Fast Buck (16 page)

Rico stiffened.

‘You sure?’

Baird made an impatient movement.

‘If you hadn’t been hypnotised by his front you could have found out about him as easily as I did.’

Rico began to sweat.

‘How about this five grand?’ he asked, tapping the envelope. ‘He can’t be al that broke.’

‘Don’t I keep tel ing you? He isn’t the top man.’

Rico thought for a moment, then shrugged.

‘Does it mat er? At least we’ve got the dough.’

‘I like to know who I’m dealing with. Ever asked yourself why Kile wants Hater out of jail?’

‘I asked Kile. He wouldn’t say. I don’t see why we should worry.’ Rico spread out his hands. ‘We’re getting paid for the job. The money’s good enough, isn’t it?’

‘You’re a bigger sucker than you look,’ Baird said. ‘Don’t you know who Hater is?’

Rico shifted uneasily in his chair.

‘I don’t know what you’re get ing at,’ he said. ‘Hater used to be one of the big operators about twenty years ago. He specialised in jewellery. I seem to remember he pulled off a big deal and a fence shopped him.’

‘About fifteen years back he pul ed off a four-million-dollar job and cached the stuff. It was never found,’ Baird said softly.

‘Four mil ion?’ Rico gulped. ‘It was never found?’

‘That’s right. Doesn’t the nickel drop now?’

‘You mean Kile’s after the stuff?’

‘Kile and someone else. It looks like it, doesn’t it? Why should they want to kidnap Hater? He’s only got two more years to serve. If he escapes now, he’l be on the run for the rest of his life until he’s caught.’

‘Four mil ion dol ars!’ Rico got up and began to pace up and down. ‘Jeepers! That’s dough.’

‘That’s about the first sensible thing you’ve said tonight,’ Baird said sourly. ‘And they’re paying me ten grand. That’s a laugh, isn’t it?’

Rico wiped the sweat from his forehead. He went over to the cellarette and made two highballs.

‘I’d bet er talk to Kile,’ he said as he brought the drinks to the desk. ‘He’l have to jack up the ante.’

‘You’l keep your trap shut,’ Baird said. ‘I’m handling this. If we play our cards right, we should collect the whole bundle.’

Rico lost colour and gripped the edge of his desk until his knuckles turned white.

‘Are you crazy?’ he asked. ‘What would we do with stuff like that? We couldn’t handle it. Four million dollars! There’s not a fence in the country who could handle it.’

Baird took off his hat and ran his fingers through his thick blond hair.

‘I don’t know why the hel I bother with you,’ he said, exasperated. ‘Haven’t you any brains? Do you think I’m mug enough to imagine you could handle the stuff? No, the obvious thing to do is to wait until Kile gets rid of it. He must know someone he can unload it on or he wouldn’t be paying us to snatch Hater. The time we move in is when Kile collects the dough. Then we take it away from him. If he knows what he’s doing, the take should be worth half a mil ion at least, probably more, and that’s bet er than a lousy ten grand. Now do you see what I’m get ing at?’

Rico licked his dry lips.

‘It sounds al right,’ he said cautiously, ‘but how do we know when he gets paid off?’

‘That’s something you can find out. He’s got to be watched night and day after we’ve turned Hater over to him. And another thing, we’ve got to find out who the top man is, too. And then there’s that shamus who followed me: we’ve got to find out who employed him, and why.’

Rico started out of his chair.

‘What shamus? I haven’t heard anything about a shamus.’

Baird eyed him jeeringly.

‘Don’t get so steamed up. The night I went to Red River Basin I spot ed a fat guy tailing me. I caught him napping and softened his skull for him. He was an operator working for the International Detective Agency. Someone who doesn’t mind spending dough is having me watched. Maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with the Hater snatch, but somehow I think it does. We’ve got to find out why I was being tailed, and pronto.’

Rico took a long drink. His nerves were fluttering.

‘Maybe it’s Kile,’ he said hopeful y.

‘I don’t know, but I mean to find out. How long’s this red-head been working for you?’

‘You mean Zoe?’ Rico’s face was startled. ‘What’s she got to do with it?’

‘I don’t know, but every time I’ve shown up here she’s been watching me. Maybe she’s a plant.’

‘Zoe, a plant? Don’t make me laugh,’ Rico said. ‘I’ve known her three or four years. She came to work at the club when it first opened. I knew her when she was in show business before that. She’s okay.

Maybe she’s interested in you. She has a yen for a big guy like you; she told me so.’

Baird jerked his thumb at the photograph on the desk.

‘Put that in your safe and lock it up,’ he said. ‘I think she’s mixed up in this. It’ll be easy enough to prove. Now, listen, here’s what you have to do…’

***

When Baird closed the door, Zoe drew in a deep breath of relief. She sat for a long minute, staring at herself in the mirror. She saw she had gone pale under her rouge, and she laughed a little unsteadily.

‘That guy sure scared the lace pants right off you,’ she said, addressing her reflection in the mirror.

‘Phew! He’s enough to scare anyone. Zoe, my child, you’ve got to be a lot more careful in the future.

Take my advice and call Ed. He’l know how to handle this.’

She got up and went to the door, opened it a crack and looked down the deserted passage. Satisfied there was no one to hear her, she shut the door again and rang Dallas’s apartment. There was no answer.

She replaced the receiver, feeling a little lost and sat for a moment thinking. It was only a few minutes after ten. Maybe Ed would blow in. He came in most nights now. Maybe he was on his way down at this very minute.

She began to finish her make-up, and while she painted her lips with a fine-haired brush, she wondered what Baird was doing in Rico’s office. She had promised Ed to find out al she could of Rico’s and Baird’s movements, and she didn’t want to let Ed down. By now she was half in love with him, and besides, he was paying her well.

She went to the door again and opened it. She hadn’t the nerve to go down the passage and listen outside Rico’s door. Baird had given her a bad scare.

Watch your step
, he had said.
I shan’t tell you again.

A little shiver ran down her spine as she remembered the way he had looked at her. But with Ed around, she told herself, trying to bolster up her courage, there wasn’t anything to be scared about. Baird wouldn’t dare touch her. Al the same she wasn’t going to take unnecessary risks until she had consulted Ed. He’d know how far she could go.

Leaving the door ajar, she went back to complete her make-up. Then she took off her wrap and slipped into her green evening dress. In twenty minutes she would have to go into the restaurant. It was her late night, and she wouldn’t be through until three o’clock.

She heard the door open at the far end of the passage and she jumped to her feet, running to her door to listen.

She heard Baird say, ‘What are you worrying about? We’l be back in an hour at the latest. You’re not chained to this dump, are you?’

“I shouldn’t be going out,’ Rico grumbled, ‘but I’l take a chance. Maybe nothing will blow up while I’m away.’

‘Aw, forget it. Did you lock up that envelope – the one Kile gave you?’ Baird asked.

‘It’s in my desk. It’s okay. No one ever goes into my office when I’m out. Come on, for the love of Pete, if we’re going,’ Rico said impatiently, and she heard them walk down the passage to the street door.

Cautiously Zoe peered into the passage. She was in time to see Rico disappearing into the alley at the back of the club.

She stood hesitating. Something from Kile! That’s what Ed wanted.

She ran over to the telephone, and again dialled Dallas’s number, but there was stil no answer.

Where was he? she wondered feverishly. They said they would be back in an hour. If Ed was to get a look at that envelope she would have to take action herself.

She went back to the door and looked at Rico’s door. It seemed now a long way down the passage.

Should she take a chance and get the envelope? If she went at once there couldn’t be any risk.

She started down the passage, her heart beating violently, and her knees shaky. She reached the office door, paused outside while she screwed up her courage to go in. Then she rapped softly on the door, turned the handle and pushed the door open. The office was in darkness.

‘Is anyone there?’ she asked in a quavering voice.

The silence that came out of the darkness reassured her, and she slipped into the room, shut the door and groped for the electric light switch.

The lights over Rico’s desk went on. She moved quickly to the desk and jerked open the top drawer.

The first thing she saw was a big envelope with Rico’s name scrawled on it.

As she reached forward to pick it up, the shadow of a man fell across the desk.

The shock paralysed her for a moment, then she spun around.

Baird was standing just behind her. At the door, Rico stood, white-faced, staring at her in horror.

‘Hel o, Toots,’ Baird said softly. ‘Stil peeping?’

The scream that rose in her throat was cut short as his fist smashed against the side of her jaw. She felt herself falling into dark, suffocating oblivion.

II

Adam Gillis stood under the bright lights of the Elite cinema and looked impatiently at the stream of passing traffic.

About fifty yards away, Dallas sat in his car, parked in the shadows, watching him.

From time to time Gillis glanced at his strap watch, and Dallas guessed he was waiting for someone.

He wasn’t surprised when he saw a small coupe pull out of the stream of traffic and stop within a few feet of Gillis.

Gillis opened the door and got in.

‘About time,’ he said crossly. ‘Why can’t you be more punctual? Do you think I haven’t other things 59

James Hadley Chase. The Fast Buck. 1952

to do except wait at street corners for you?’

Eve edged the car once more into the slow moving traffic.

‘I’m sorry, darling, but he didn’t leave until five minutes ago. Besides, I’m not more than five minutes late.’

Dallas started his engine and slid into the traffic after them. He had caught sight of Eve at the driving-wheel, and wondered where these two were going.

‘Has Rico been along?’ Gillis asked, lighting a cigaret e.

‘Yes. Baird got back last night. He says it’l be difficult, but not impossible. Rico said Baird’s going to get Hater out this week.’

Gillis breathed heavily. His eyes were alight with excitement.

‘Did Rico say how he was going to do it?’

Eve shook her head.

‘Preston didn’t want to know. He gave Rico the five thousand and the photograph. He’s arranged to hand over the rest of the money at the shooting-lodge as you said. That’s where Baird will take Hater.’

‘Fine,’ Gil is said. ‘Wel , we’re coming along. If anyone can do the job, Baird can.’

‘Preston’s get ing nervy, Adam. He worries me.’

Gillis shrugged indifferently.

‘Keep him going. I won’t be long now. As soon as he’s collected the money from the Rajah, I’ll move in and take over.’

‘But, darling, how can you be so sure you’l succeed?’ Eve said anxiously. ‘You just can’t take the money away from Preston like that. He’l never stand for it.’

‘Oh, yes, he wil ,’ Gillis said airily. ‘A couple of nights ago, when he was with you, I broke into his stately home. I opened his safe. What do you think I found in it?’

You – you opened his safe?’ Eve exclaimed, horrified. ‘Adam! How could you?’

‘Oh, shut up!’ he said impatiently. ‘If you’d been more helpful I needn’t have taken the risk. I told you we had to get something on Kile. Well, I’ve got it. I found Jean Bruce’s bracelet in the safe. That’d get him ten years in jail.’

Eve gripped the steering-wheel tightly.

‘How do you know it’s Jean Brace’s bracelet?’

‘My dear pet,’ Gil is said, and laughed. ‘Jean used to amuse herself with me when she felt she wanted to be a naughty girl, and I can tell you that was quite often. I’ve seen the bracelet a dozen times.’

Eve felt sick.

‘Oh! I didn’t know you knew her.’

‘There are lots of girls you don’t know I know,’ Gil is returned. ‘As a mat er of fact, I’m damned sorry Jean’s dead. When she was in the mood, she could be vastly diverting.’

‘But the bracelet was stolen,’ Eve said, turning to stare at Gil is.

‘Watch the road, can’t you?’ he said sharply. ‘Of course it was stolen. The police are looking for it now. If Kile doesn’t play bal , I’m going to be one of those anonymous callers you read about in the papers and tip the police off he’s got the bracelet in his safe.’

‘You can’t do that!’

‘Not if it isn’t necessary.’

‘But how did he get it?’

‘I should worry about that. He can explain that to the police if he wants to, but somehow I don’t think he will.’

Eve drove in silence for a while, her mind frozen with fear and worry. It was still not too late to draw back. She felt she had to warn Adam again.

‘Preston’s worrying about Baird,’ she said. ‘He’s beginning to think as I do. Suppose Baird finds out who Hater is, or suppose Hater tells him about the collection?’

‘Baird is almost certain to find out who Hater is,’ Gil is said carelessly. ‘But he can’t do anything about it until the money’s paid over. I should think it’s more than possible he knows already and is planning to double-cross Kile. I’ve taken al that into account. It’s simply a mat er of working faster than Baird, and I’ve no doubt I can do it.’ He glanced at his strap watch. ‘Make for the Frou-Frou Club, will you? I’ve got to meet a man there in ten minutes.’

‘Oh, Adam, I do wish you would give this up,’ Eve said feverishly. ‘It’s too dangerous. You don’t know what you’re walking into. I’l go back to the Fol ies. I can earn enough for both of us.’

‘Wil you shut up!’ Gil is snarled furiously. ‘Don’t be so damned gutless! This is the chance of a lifetime, and I’m not going to miss it!’