“I?m just trying to get a fix on all the players,” I said,
“Why would Harry want to create this kind of problem for himself? I told you, it?s his worst
nightmare come true.”
“Maybe he thinks he can keep it quiet like the Cherry McGee affair. Get rid of these hoodlums and
pass it off as some kind of kook slaying.”
“You?re reaching, son,” he said. “Harry Raines has more to lose in this than anybody.”
“Maybe that?s what he wants everybody to think.”
“You?re serious, aren?t you.”
“You can look at it two ways. He?s got the most to lose when this gets out, but he also has the most to
gain by getting rid of the Triad.”
“You know, if I didn?t know better, I might think that?s the way you want it to play out.”
“Just asking. Like I said, I?m trying to cover all the bases.”
“You?re out of the ballpark on that one,” he said, scowling at me over his drink. He looked around the
room and jiggled his ice some more.
It was time to force the issue. Dutch Morehead knew more than he wanted me to know, I was sure of
it.
“Look, Dutch,” I said, “I don?t mind standing muster for your SOB?s. I understand all that. I?ll make
my peace with them in my own way. But I think it?s time we started trusting each other. Right now I
have the feeling I?m not playing with all the cards and you hold the missing ones.”
He continued to play with his drink. Finally he said, “All right, what?s stuck in your craw?”
“What about this Committee you mentioned? What?s that all about? I mean, look around, Dutch. This
is the creme de la creme of Dunetown in here. Society, politics, money. This is their watering hole.
They act like nothing?s happened. Three mainline mobsters and a woman have been butchered and
there isn?t a frown in the place.”
“They don?t know about it yet,” he said. “And the local press is gonna keep it under wraps as long as
they?re told to.”
“By whom?”
He sighed as only a big man can sigh. It shook the table.
“I got a few questions first,” he said.
“My old man used to say, „You can?t listen when you?re talking.
“Is that a fact,” he said. “Well, my old man used to say, „You can?t get water out of a low well
without priming it.”
1 started chuckling. “You?re older than I am, Dutch, I suppose you can keep this up a lot longer. What
