Just Another Sucker

I

As I stepped into the hall, shutting the front door, Nina came out of the lounge. She was looking pale and anxious. She ran to me, reaching up to kiss me. I put my arms around her, holding her close to me.

‘Harry!’ She was whispering. ‘They have been here this after noon when I was out, searching the place.’

My arms tightened around her.

‘What makes you say that?’

‘Keep your voice down. Do you think they have hidden a microphone somewhere?’

I hadn’t thought of that possibility. I immediately realised the danger.

‘It’ll be in the lounge if it is anywhere.’

‘I’ve looked. I can’t find it.’

‘Wait here.’

I went into the lounge and crossing over to the radio I turned on, with the volume well up. A second or so later, the room was filled with the strident sound of a jazz session.

I went to the window and looked out. There was no sign of the police car, but I was sure it was there, out of sight, but from where they could watch my front gate. Then I went into the kitchen and looked out of the window. There was an alley running along the bottom of the garden. Two linesmen were working within sight of the kitchen door. One of them was at the top of a telegraph pole: the other lounged at the foot. Neither of them seemed busy.

While Nina watched from the door of the lounge, I made a systematic search for the microphone. I finally found it hidden in the radiator. If I hadn’t had some experience of police methods, I would never have found it.

I moved the radio to within a couple of feet of the radiator and let the jazz swamp the microphone.

‘They can’t hear us now,’ I said. ‘What made you think they had been here?’

‘I don’t know — a feeling.’ She sat down abruptly, looking at me with frightened eyes. ‘As soon as I opened the door I felt someone had been here. When I looked in the closet I found my clothes had been disarranged.’ She shivered. ‘What does it mean, Harry?’

‘It means they are on to me. They’re watching outside now.’

I had a sudden idea. I went into the bedroom, opened the closet door and checked my suits.

The brown sports suit was missing.

For a long uneasy moment I stood staring at the space where it had hung, then I went back into the lounge.

‘They were after my brown suit and they’ve taken it,’ I said.

Nina was trying not to cry. It wrung my heart to see her.

‘What are we going to do? Oh, Harry! I can’t bear the thought of losing you again! What will they do to you?’

I knew what they would do to me — they would put me in the gas chamber, but I didn’t tell her that.

‘Why did you let him have the tapes?’ she went on frantically. ‘I would rather…’

‘Stop it! This is my mess! He wasn’t bluffing. I had to give them to him!’

She beat her knees with her fists.

‘But what are we going to do?’

‘I don’t know. There must be a way out of this mess. I’ve been trying to think…’

‘You must tell John the whole story. He’ll help us. I’m sure he will!’

‘He can’t do a thing for me. There’s no proof. My only possible hope is to make O’Reilly confess, but how do I do that?’

‘What happened to the ransom money, Harry?’

I stared at her. A sudden prickle of excitement ran through me. I remembered what O’Reilly had said: Find the ransom, and you’ll find the killer.

‘What is it, Harry? Have you thought of something?’

‘The money! Where is it?’ I got to my feet and began to pace up and down. ‘Five hundred thousand dollars in small bills can’t be easily hidden. Where have they hidden it? Not in a bank — that’s certain. In the house? Dare they risk that? They must know as soon as I’m arrested, I’ll try to incriminate them and Renick will search the house. I can’t believe they would risk hiding it there — then where?’

‘A safe deposit?’

‘It would be risky. They would have to open an account and sign for a key. The most likely place is a left luggage station, either at the airport, the bus station or the railroad station. It would be easy and safe for O’Reilly to check in a suitcase at any of these places. No one would remember him, and he could get at the money quickly in an emergency without identifying himself.’

‘You must tell John.’

‘That wouldn’t help me. O’Reilly must be caught getting the suitcase out. He must be caught red-handed to do me any good.’

Nina made a gesture of helplessness.

‘But he would never let himself be caught red-handed.’

‘That’s right. Unless…’ I paused, then went on, ‘unless I can stampede him by some trick.’

‘But how? A man like that…’

‘Let me think about it. Let’s have supper. While you’re getting it, I’ll think. I want to turn the radio off. It’s driving me nuts.’

‘I’m so frightened. If they took you away…’

‘It hasn’t happened yet. Get hold of yourself, darling. I’m relying on you.’

‘Yes, of course.’ She got to her feet. ‘I’m sorry, Harry.’

I kissed her.

‘Go ahead and let’s eat,’ I said, then I crossed to the radio and turned it off.

When she had gone into the kitchen, I sat down and really bent my brains to the problem, but it wasn’t until we had made a poor meal in silence, that a sudden idea dropped into my mind.

Nina who kept glancing at me expectantly, saw by my sudden change of expression that I had an idea.

She began to speak, then remembering the microphone, she stopped. I put the radio on again.

‘I think I’ve got it,’ I said. ‘There is only one way to work it. I’ve got to trick him. I think I have an idea how I can do it, but everything depends on whether or not the money is in a left luggage station or a safe deposit. If it’s in the house, then I’m sunk, but I can’t believe it is in the house.’

‘What are you planning to do, Harry?’

‘Give me a moment.’

I went to my desk and taking a sheet of paper, I wrote out the following: NEWS FLASH.

I gave the sheet of paper to Nina who read it. She stared blankly at me.

‘I don’t understand, Harry.’

‘It’s my job to feed the local TV and radio stations with news of the kidnapping. They’ll broadcast this without question. I’m hoping when O’Reilly hears of this, he’ll stampede. He could lead me to the place where he has hidden the money.’

‘But you don’t know he’ll be listening in.’

‘He’ll be listening in all right. I’m going to tell him to listen in.’ I moved to the telephone, then paused. ‘They’ve probably tapped the line by now. I’ll have to use an outside line. If it got back to Meadows, he would stop it.’ I started for the door. ‘I’ll go to the drug store at the corner. I’ll be right back.’

‘Shall I come with you, Harry?’

‘Better not. You wait here for me.’

By now it was dark. I left the bungalow and strolled down the path to the gate. As I opened the gate, I glanced to right and left. The police car was parked about fifty yards up the road. The drug store was the other way. I didn’t have to pass the car. I set off, walking at a normal pace. I heard the car start up. I knew it was crawling after me, but I didn’t look back. My one fear now was that they would arrest me before I could put my plan into operation. If they did that, I was really sunk.

I went into the drug store and shut myself in a booth. I called the local TV station. I got through to Fred Hickson, the P.R.O. and my opposite number.

‘Fred,’ I said, ‘I have an important announcement for you. The D.A. wants it broadcast and put on TV

at eleven tonight. Can you do it?’

‘Sure: let’s have it,’ Hickson said.

I read the News Flash to him and he took it down.

‘That’s okay,’ he said. ‘We’ll interrupt both programmes at eleven o’clock. The D.A. certainly means business, doesn’t he?’

‘He sure does,’ I said. ‘Well, thanks, Fred — so long,’ and I hung up.

I looked at my watch. It was half past nine. I telephoned Malroux’s residence. After a delay, the butler answered.

‘This is police headquarters,’ I said. ‘We want to talk to O’Reilly. Is he there?’

‘I believe he is in his room,’ the butler said. ‘If you will hold on I will connect you.’

There was a clicking on the line, then O’Reilly said, ‘Hello! Who is it?’

Speaking slowly and distinctly so he couldn’t miss a word, I said, ‘Hello, sucker, how’s your conscience acting tonight?’

There was a sudden silence. I could imagine him at the other end of the line, his face hardening and his hand tightening on the receiver.

‘Who’s this?’ he demanded, a snarl in his voice.

‘The other sucker,’ I said.

‘Is that you, Barber?’

‘Yes. I’m tipping you off. The D.A. has at last come up with a bright idea. If you’re interested, and you’d better be interested, listen to the TV programme, local network, at eleven tonight for a news flash.

Got it? The local station at eleven tonight. See you in the gas chamber,’ and I hung up before he could say anything.

As I came out of the booth I saw a big man with a red face and with cop written all over him come into the store.

I knew sooner or later the axe would fall, but when I saw him my blood ran cold.

He came straight up to me.

‘Mr. Barber?’

‘That’s right.’

‘You’re wanted at headquarters. We have a car right here.’

‘Why, sure,’ I said, and as we walked together from the store to the waiting car, I thought of Nina.

The detective and I got in the back of the car. The other detective who had been waiting by the car, slid under the driving wheel.

‘What’s it all about?’ I asked as the car shot away. ‘Has something come up?’

‘I wouldn’t know,’ the detective said in a bored flat voice. ‘They just told me to fetch you, and I’m fetching you.’

There was nothing now I could do. I had played a King and now everything depended on whether O’Reilly held the Ace or only the Queen. If he held the Ace, I was sunk.

II

Renick was working at his desk. The one light in the room came from his green shaded lamp. It made a pool of hard light on his blotter.

The two detectives shepherded me into the office as if they were handling something fragile, then as soon as I was safely delivered, they stepped back into the passage and closed the door.

I walked to a chair and sat down, glad of the heavy shadows in the room.

Renick was smoking. He tossed his pack of cigarettes and his lighter into my lap. There was a short silence as I lit a cigarette.

‘What’s up?’ I asked as I put the lighter and the cigarettes on the desk. ‘I was just going to bed,’

‘Let’s cut out the bluff, Harry,’ he said quietly. ‘You’re in bad trouble and you must know it.’

‘Am I under arrest?’

‘Not yet. I thought I’d have a talk with you first. This is off the record. I could lose my job handling it this way, but I’ve known you, come rain, come sunshine for the past twenty years. You and Nina are real people to me so I’m giving you a break. I want you to tell me the truth. If you’re in the kind of trouble I think you are, I’m handing you over to Reiger. I’m not going to work on you. Let’s have the truth and it’s strictly off the record: did you kill Odette Malroux?’

I looked directly at him.

‘No, but I don’t expect you to believe me.’

‘There are no microphones in this office, and no witnesses. I’m asking you, not as a police officer, but as your friend.’

‘The answer is still the same: I didn’t kill her.’

He leaned forward to crush out his cigarette. The white light from the desk lamp lit up his face. He looked as if he hadn’t had any sleep for a couple of days.

‘Well, at least that’s something,’ he said. ‘You’re mixed up in this business, aren’t you?’

‘I certainly am. I’m in such a jam, even having you as a friend, isn’t going to do me any good.’

He lit another cigarette.

‘Suppose you tell me the whole story.’

‘Sure — how did you get on to me, John?’

‘Tim Cowley told me he had seen you at the bus stop on the night of the murder with a redhead, wearing a blue and white dress. I kept checking on you, and everything I turned up pointed to you.’

‘I thought maybe Cowley would give me away,’ I said wearily. ‘I was nuts to have got myself mixed up with these two women, but I wanted the money. They offered me fifty thousand dollars for what looked a pretty simple job. I wanted that money to get out of town and make a fresh start.’

‘Let’s have the story.’

So I told him. I told him everything except that Nina had helped me move Odette’s body. I kept her out of it.

‘I thought I was playing safe by having those tapes,’ I concluded, ‘but O’Reilly beat me to it. Now I have nothing — not one thing to support my story.’

All the time I had been talking, Renick had sat motionless, staring at me. Now he drew in a long, slow breath.

‘Well — for the love of Mike! What a story!’ he exclaimed. ‘There’s one thing that doesn’t seem to add up — how was it Odette co-operated in this kidnapping plan?’

‘Yes, that had me guessing, but I’ve thought about it and it’s not all that hard to figure out. It’s my guess she fell for O’Reilly. He probably made a terrific play at her. She must have known her father wouldn’t let her marry the guy. She wanted money to hold O’Reilly. What she didn’t realise was that he had fallen for Rhea. The two of them planned to lead the girl on. One of the two suggested the kidnapping plan — the only possible hope for Odette to lay her hands on a substantial sum of money. She fell for it. The other two used the faked kidnapping to murder her and to make me the fall guy. It could have happened that way.’

‘Yes.’ Renick brooded for some moments. ‘But all this doesn’t help you, Harry. We’ve no proof your story is true. Meadows wouldn’t touch it.’

‘I know.’ I looked at my watch. The time was fifteen minutes after ten. ‘This is where you can help me. I’ve set a trap for O’Reilly. There’s a chance he’ll lead me to where he’s hidden the money. I want you to come with me. It’s my one chance of licking this thing. I must have police witnesses.’

Renick hesitated.

‘I can’t imagine O’Reilly leading you to where he’s hidden the ransom. What makes you think he will?’

‘It’s a gamble, but there’s no other way out for me. I’m not going to try to get away, John. I just want your help. If this trick of mine fails, then I’m sunk.’

‘Well, all right, but I warn you, Harry, I’ve got to report this and it’s my bet Meadows will have you arrested. I’ve kept it from him up to now, but he’s got to be told.’

‘Give me an hour. If I can’t swing it by then, then I’ll take what’s coming to me.’

‘Well, okay.’

‘Can I telephone Nina? She’ll be wondering where I am.’ He waved to the telephone.

I called Nina. I told her I was with Renick and said I was going after O’Reilly.

‘Keep your fingers crossed for me,’ I said, ‘and don’t worry.’ I hung up. To Renick, I said, ‘Let’s go.’

‘Go where?’

‘Malroux’s place.’

Renick made for the door and I followed him.

The two detectives waiting outside looked inquiringly at Renick.

‘I want them along too,’ I said.

The four of us walked down to the police car. During the drive out to Malroux’s place no one spoke.

When we reached the gates, I said, ‘We’ll walk up. I don’t want him to know we’re here.’

We reached the house at ten minutes to eleven. The lights were on in three of the ground floor rooms.

It was a hot night and all the french windows stood open.

‘I’ll go first,’ I said, ‘then you follow on.’

Moving silently, I mounted the steps leading to the terrace. Then keeping close to the wall, I walked to the open french windows and cautiously peered in.

They were there.

O’Reilly in a sports shirt and slacks, was sprawling in a lounging chair, a highball in his hand. Rhea was lying on the settee. She was smoking and she looked far from relaxed.

Renick joined me silently. The two detectives hovered in the shadows behind us.

O’Reilly was saying, ‘He’s bluffing. You’ll see. I bet you it’s so much hot air.’

‘It’s nearly eleven. Turn it on.’

Their voices came clearly to us.

O’Reilly got out of the chair and turned on the big TV set that stood in a corner. He returned to his chair and drank half the highball at a swallow.

There was a gangster film showing. Two men, guns in hand, were stalking each other in the half dark.

Rhea swung her long, slim legs off the settee and stared at the screen. The two of them sat there, waiting.

At eleven o’clock, the picture faded and Fred Hickson appeared on the screen.

‘We interrupt this programme to bring you the latest development in the Malroux kidnapping…’ he said, and then went on to read the announcement I had dictated to him. When he had finished, the gangster picture came on again.

I stood there, watching and waiting, so tense I could scarcely breathe. I didn’t have to wait long.

O’Reilly jumped to his feet, slopping his drink.

‘Goddam it!’

He crossed to the TV set and turned it off, then he spun around, his fleshy face pale, his eyes alarmed.

‘Nine o’clock tomorrow! That must mean they haven’t the warrant yet or they would have started right away. I’d better get down to the airport!’

I drew in a long breath of relief. My bet had come off. I had guessed right.

‘What do you mean?’ Rhea demanded.

‘Mean?’ He scowled at her. ‘What do you think I mean? If they find that dough, we’ll be in trouble.

I’m getting it right away before they find it. I was a dope to have left it there. I might have guessed they would start something like this.’

Rhea got to her feet. Her face was white and her eyes were glittering.

‘It’s a trap, you fool! Do you imagine Barber would have warned you if he wasn’t hoping you’d lead him to where you left the money? He will have told that Lieutenant! They will have detectives waiting for you.’

O’Reilly ran his fingers through his hair.

‘Yeah, maybe you’ve got something there, but we’ve got to take the risk, baby. Maybe you’d better collect the case. I’ll keep out of it.’

‘I’m not going. Let them find the money! They can’t possibly trace it to us!’

‘You’ll have to go,’ O’Reilly said. I could see his face was glistening with sweat. ‘What are you worried about? They wouldn’t interfere with you. They wouldn’t know you were collecting the dough.

They’d think you were just getting a suitcase.’

‘I’m not going!’ Rhea said, her voice shrill. ‘I’m not walking into a stupid trap like that! Let them find the money. There’s plenty more where that came from!’

O’Reilly moved away from her.

‘Look, baby, if you want to save your skin, you’d better go. Those two tapes are with the money.’

Rhea stiffened.

‘Tapes? What do you mean?’

‘You heard me — those two tapes I got from Barber are with the money.’

‘You told me you had destroyed them!’

‘Keep your goddam voice down! I didn’t destroy them.’

There was a long moment of silence, then she said, ‘You’re lying!’ Her voice was off-key and strident. ‘You want that money. You’re trying to trick me into getting it for you!’

O’Reilly suddenly looked bored.

‘Look, baby, this is your funeral, not mine. I’m telling you — those two tapes are with the money.

Okay, I admit it. I’ve been a mug. I let that cheap shyster Barber talk me into it. He said if I didn’t hang onto the tapes you could ditch me, so I went down to the airport and put them with the money. I would have given them to you as a wedding present. Now, you’re in trouble. I’m in the clear, but those tapes can fix you. You’d better go down to the airport and get them pronto.’

‘You devil!’ Rhea said, her voice a vicious whisper. ‘You stupid, blundering devil!’

‘You’re wasting time, baby. If you don’t want to spend the rest of your days in jail, you’d better get going.’

‘I’m not going! You’ll go or I’ll tell the police you murdered her! I may go to jail for a few years, but you’ll go to the gas chamber. I’ll tell them! I’ll tell them everything! Do you hear me! I’ve got your love-letters! I can fix you, you stupid oaf! Now go and get that case!’

‘Yeah?’ O’Reilly’s face suddenly turned to stone. ‘So that shyster was right. You would never have married me would you, you bitch? You’ve never even loved me, have you? I can see it on your face!’

‘Marry you?’ she screamed at him. ‘You? I promised you five hundred thousand, didn’t I? Do you imagine I’d marry a stupid hick like you? Go and get that money and those tapes!’

A .25 revolver suddenly appeared in his hand. He pointed it at Rhea.

‘I’ve a better idea, baby. How would it be if you decided to put a slug through your head? The cops would accept the suicide theory. They would find the tapes. They would guess you had listened to the broadcast, lost your nerve and took the easy way out, and that would put me in the clear. How do you like that?’

‘Put that gun down!’ Rhea said, backing away. ‘Barber knows you killed her! He’ll tell the police even if I don’t.’

O’Reilly grinned viciously.

‘He hasn’t a prayer. He’s no proof. I like my idea better.’ Renick shoved me aside, his hand sliding inside his coat and coming out with a .38. He stepped into the room.

‘Drop it!’ be shouted.

O’Reilly spun around. The .25 spat fire. It’s vicious little bark was half drowned by the bang of the .38.

O’Reilly dropped his gun. He blinked at Renick, then his knees folded and he slid to the floor as Rhea began to scream.

III

O’Reilly lived long enough to sign a statement. It was as I had guessed. Odette had fallen in love with him and had tried to persuade him to go away with her. O’Reilly was already in the toils of Rhea. The kidnapping plot was her idea. He had agreed to murder Odette for the ransom money and providing Rhea found someone to take the rap. So they picked on me.

When the dust finally settled, I found myself in a cell. I had no idea what was going to happen to me, but at least, I did know they couldn’t hang the murder on me.

I remained in the cell for two days, then Renick visited me.

‘You’ve got a break, Harry,’ he told me. ‘Meadows’s only hope of nailing this woman is for you to turn State evidence. He is willing to fix it with the judge for you to go free if you’ll do it. She’s got a battery of attorneys who could get her off unless you come in for us. Will you do it?’

I didn’t hesitate.

‘Of course I’ll do it.’

‘I knew you would. I’ve seen Nina. She is putting the bungalow in the market. When it’s sold, you two had better get out of town and try to make a fresh start some place else.’

‘You don’t have to tell me,’ I said. ‘I’ll get out fast enough. Can I see Nina?’

‘She’ll be along this afternoon.’

But why go on?

After a terrific legal battle, Rhea drew fifteen years. If it hadn’t been for my evidence she could have beaten this rap. Then I came up before the judge.

He told me what he thought of me. It didn’t amount to much, but he was wasting time: I didn’t think much of myself either. He said he would give me a suspended sentence of five years. If ever I got into any more trouble, the five years would have to be worked off before I began a sentence any other judge might hand out to me. But that was also a waste of time for I was through with trouble.

All I wanted now was Nina and the chance of a fresh start.

Nina was waiting for me as I left court.

She put her hand in mine and smiled at me.

Right at that moment, I felt the fresh start would take care of itself.