“That’s the O.K.,” whispered Le Blanc to Harry. “The boss wanted to know if Monk was all right.”
Then Le Blanc turned to the New York gangster, and took him across the room to the bar, where several men were drinking. The New Yorker ordered a drink, but left the glass on the bar. He seemed too deeply intent on his surroundings to indulge in the questionable enjoyment of Marmosa’s liquor.
Harry’s eyes wandered everywhere. All seemed occupied, with the exception of four sinister figures who commended Harry’s close attention.
Two of these were “Hymie” Schultz and “Four-gun” Spirak. Those gangsters were apart; one watching a roulette wheel, the other near the door beside a faro table.
The other two were the Homicide Twins, Genara and Anelmo. They stood together in a corner of the room. One was watching Schultz; the other had his eye on Spirak.
Harry realized that he was watching four of the toughest killers in Chicago; notorious gunmen who thought nothing of murder in cold blood.
They were evenly matched, but the Homicide Twins were on the defensive. Unless the opposition started something, they would not act tonight.
Looking toward the bar, Harry noticed that Le Blanc and Thurman were engaged in close conversation.
Joe le Blanc was not worrying about the presence of Schultz and Spirak. He knew that Genara and Anelmo had them covered. Hence he was quietly talking with Monk Thurman, who had not yet been recognized by any one there.
Thurman, like Le Blanc, was indifferent to the presence of the four Chicago killers.