Near Miss

Chapter 10

Matilda turned up as Stone was waking from his nap. Dino was still there, making an occasional call to his office.

“Aha! Matilda!” Dino said, loudly enough to bring Stone to full consciousness.

“Dino! Stone!” she cried, imitating Dino’s enthusiasm.

“Sit down, Matilda,” Dino said. “We want to interrogate you.”

“On what subject?” Matilda asked, looking alarmed.

“On the subject of Trench Molder,” Stone said, sitting up. “We need to know everything about him, especially how often he hires assassins to kill people he doesn’t like, such as my own self.”

“Okay, let’s see,” Matilda said. “I met him at a party at somebody’s house on the Upper East Side.”

“Whose party?”

“I don’t remember the name. A girlfriend had been invited, and she took me along. I do remember the host had a grand piano, because somebody was playing it, and somebody else was singing.”

“Was either of them Trench?”

“No. Trench was sitting on a stool at the piano, next to me.”

“Doing what?”

“Trying to sing along, until the piano player told him he couldn’t carry a tune and to shut up.”

“Did he have the pianist beaten up or killed?”

“I don’t know. Maybe, since I never saw him again.”

“What were your first impressions of Trench?”

“A little drunk, funny, cute.”

“Did he introduce himself?”

“He did. And he gave me a card, which I have since discarded, before you ask for it.”

“What kind of work does he do?”

“I believe work is what he would call a four-letter word. He lives the life of luxury, thanks to a relative. An uncle, I think.”

“Do you know this uncle’s name?”

“He never mentioned it.”

“Was there anything threatening or sinister about Trench?”

“No, except that once he learned my name, he seemed to think he had taken possession of me. If another man tried to enter our conversation, he became surly. That proved to be a reliable indicator of his future attitude toward me.”

“Did he ever mention having committed a crime?” Dino asked.

“He mentioned having beaten up a couple of people who intruded on his company with a woman.”

“Did he say if he hired someone to do that for him?”

“Sort of, but I don’t remember what words he used.”

“Did it surprise you to learn, when you learned, that he would hire someone for that purpose?”

“It surprised me that the man he hired had a gun, which indicated that he planned to shoot somebody, probably Stone or me.”

“Was Trench mad enough at you to have you killed?”

“I don’t know. I couldn’t see inside his head.”

“Did he mention ever having done that before?”

“He managed to give me the impression that he did not suffer competition gladly.”

“And Stone was the competition?”

“That’s my guess, given what ensued.”

“Was Trench watching what happened?”

“He was still upstairs at Herb Fisher’s party, so there is a chance he could have been looking down on us. I didn’t catch him doing it. I was already inside the car when the trouble started.”

“After the police arrived and people were swarming around the crime scene, did you see Trench among them?”

“No, I didn’t get out of the car until we reached Lenox Hill.”

“Did you see Trench hanging around Lenox Hill?”

“No, but I wasn’t looking for him.”

Dino paused in his questioning.

“Dino,” Matilda said. “I think you’ve pumped me dry on the subject of Trench. Is there something else you’d like to question me about?”

“Ah, no,” Dino said. “I grant you bail. But I may want to talk to you more later.”

“Gee, I hope I can make the bail.”

“You’ll have to forgive Dino,” Stone said. “When he gets excited about an interrogation, he tends to hyperventilate and has to breathe into a paper bag for a while. He’s almost at that point now.”

“I remain at your beck and call, Commissioner,” Matilda said.

“That’s how I like my witnesses,” Dino said. “No paper bag necessary.”