reduced. And all for a silly little handful of watch movements!”
“You think that was all he had?”
She frowned. “I assumed-but they have some kind of X-ray machine, don’t they? I’ve always been told that once they’re suspicious of you, you can’t bring in as much as a carpet tack without their knowing about it.”
“Jack Malloy has a theory, but there’s probably nothing to it. You said you gave Paul some alternatives?”
“Yes, I told him that if he didn’t stop for good, I’d leave him. From now on they’ll take extra precautions when Paul comes in. I used to think I was a fairly honest person, but I’m learning some unpleasant truths about myself. Did I give him that ultimatum because what he was doing was wrong, or because he’d surely be caught if he tried again? I don’t know, Michael.”
“And he agreed to quit?” Shayne said thoughtfully.
“Finally. We had quite a knockdown, drag-out fight, and even after we’d made our peace and he swore a solemn oath, I think he was still a little tempted. Apparently Alvarez has made a new offer that was very hard to turn down. I don’t know much about that man, but I imagine he got rather ugly when Paul said he was through. I thought he’d sent someone for Paul, and that was who was knocking on my door. But thank heaven it’s after midnight. Paul’s beyond his reach, and I’m going to see to it that he doesn’t come back. As of twelve o’clock tonight, our firm is out of business. What’s more, nobody’s going to miss it but us.”
Shayne poured some cocoa from the little pot into the waiting cup. He had been feeling his way blindly, and he couldn’t do anything effective without knowing a few more facts. He had ten minutes, perhaps fifteen at the outside.
He handed Martha the cup. “Better drink this. I’m going to ask you some questions, and I have a few things to tell you. Then we’ll decide what to do.”
“Michael, before you start, I want to tell you how wonderful it is to see you. I’ve been so terribly tense and upset, and now all at once I begin to think that things may turn out all right. That’s what I remember about you- how reassuring you could be. Without saying anything, just by being there. I’ve kept up with your cases, and I’ve always been so proud of knowing you! I’m afraid I boasted about it a little sometimes. You-never married again, did you, Michael?”
Shayne shook his head. “No. When this is over, I’ll tell you about my secretary, Lucy Hamilton. You were married to a cop. I think you’d understand why I don’t want to let anyone in for-” He broke off abruptly. “But that’s neither here nor there. Why did Paul charter a plane tonight instead of waiting for a regular flight in the morning?”
“His mother’s doctor cabled him. She’s very sick and wants to see him. They’ve always been very close. If you want to know the truth, I don’t think she’s all that sick-she’s a bit of a hypochondriac. I shouldn’t be saying this, but I’ll bet any amount of money that she’ll still be around thirty years from now. But Alvarez had been threatening Paul, and it suddenly occurred to me that here was my chance to wipe the slate clean. I could use my mother-in- law’s sickness to get Paul away before anything happened. Needless to say, we can’t afford to charter a plane. But I insisted. I made all the arrangements and bundled him into a taxi, without giving him time to open his mouth to protest. And to show you how wealthy we’ve become, with all of Paul’s desperate smuggling, after scraping up enough to pay for the plane I was feeling too poor to pay for a taxi back from the airport. So I said goodbye to him here.”
“Did you actually see that cable?” Shayne asked.
“No,” she said, puzzled. “He read it to me on the phone. But why?”
“Well, brace yourself,” he said bluntly. “I may be all wrong, but here’s how it looks to me. I don’t think there was any cable. He needed an excuse to get off the island in a hurry, without waiting till morning. He set up a date with Alvarez for tonight. When Alvarez showed up, Paul slugged him with a monkey wrench and took the contraband without paying for it. This was risky, but he planned to be on a plane half an hour later, and he planned to let you persuade him not to come back.”
Martha set the cocoa back on the bedside table, being very careful to keep it from spilling. She said slowly, “I don’t believe it.”
“I was there with Alvarez,” Shayne said. “I didn’t see who did the slugging, but I do know he was slugged.”
“It wasn’t Paul!” she said, putting her hand impulsively on his arm. “I know him, Michael. He couldn’t have done it.”
Shayne, who had had some experience with husbands and wives, knew how little they often knew about each other. He said skeptically, “When did he leave?”
“He wanted to allow plenty of time for all the red-tape. About a quarter to eleven?” she said hopefully. “Maybe later. He called from the airport to say goodbye. That must have been around eleven-thirty. Wouldn’t that prove-”
“He could say he was at the airport and not be there.”
“Well, I don’t suppose I can convince you, Michael. But you just don’t know how impossible it is. If you could find the taxi driver, couldn’t he settle it? No, the simplest thing will be to cable Jack Malloy. Have him meet Paul’s plane, and find out if he’s smuggling anything.”
“Paul didn’t take off,” Shayne said.
The color drained slowly out of her face as she stared at him. “Alvarez thinks Paul hit him with a wrench and robbed him, and Paul is still on St. Albans?”
The redhead nodded somberly.
“But how did it happen?” she said. “Did something go wrong with the plane?”
Shayne shook his head. “Alvarez got him on the phone just before he took off. He told him he’s holding you as hostage, and warned him not to leave if he wanted to see you again.”
She breathed out in a kind of shudder. “And Paul stayed? Thank God.”
She went on quickly, “There’s something I haven’t told you, Michael. It’s mixed up with the rest in a queer way, I don’t know how. He’s been seeing another woman, apparently for some time. I only found out about it yesterday. Oh, things have been quite hectic around here for the last twenty-four hours. At the end he promised to give up both the smuggling and the girl, but I’m not sure I believed him. That’s the real reason I didn’t go to the airport. I was wrung dry. But Michael-if he knows that Alvarez suspects him of doing this crazy thing, he must know how dangerous it is to stay on the island.” She turned her head. “And if in spite of that he stayed-”
She sat erect and said briskly, “What are we going to do about it, Michael?”
“We’ll try to put him back on the plane. Alvarez told him to go to some place in the country. A cab from the airport could make it in half an hour. Does that mean anything to you?”
She moved her head, frowning. “I don’t understand. How do you know all this, Michael? And you said you were there when Alvarez was robbed. You haven’t got into trouble on my account, have you?”
Shayne grinned at her. “Nothing serious.”
Her breath caught, and her face was suddenly flooded with comprehension. “He’s waiting downstairs!”
She swung off the bed and went to the window, approaching it cautiously from one side. Drawing back the curtain a few inches, she peeped out.
“Two cars,” she said quietly, turning. “Yes, of course. Before Paul puts his head in the noose he’ll want to make sure that Alvarez isn’t bluffing.”
“That’s right. So here’s what we’ll do. I’ll tell Alvarez I talked you into coming with me, but something made you suspicious and you gave me the slip. Get out by the back door. Steal somebody’s bike and get as far as you can in five minutes. Then stay out of sight. Maybe Paul will have sense enough to keep clear. If he doesn’t, he’ll have an easier time holding up under the pressure if you aren’t around.”
“Michael, wait a minute. Did you say half an hour from the airport? It seems to me Paul once pointed out a driveway that went in to a wonderful modern house, and said something mysterious about the wages of sin. I’ll just bet-it must be!” she exclaimed, becoming excited. “Michael, he’ll wait downstairs, won’t he? Alvarez? If we could get a taxi, maybe we could get there ahead of him and warn Paul.”
Shayne snapped his fingers. “All right, we’ll try it. Get your clothes on.”
She ran to the closet and snatched a skirt and blouse off a hanger. She pulled open bureau drawers. Carrying the bundle of clothes, she hurried to the bathroom.
“Leave the door open,” Shayne called. “I’ve got some more questions to ask you. Did you or Paul know Albert Watts?”
