‘His word against yours.’
‘No. I took a shot at the car; smashed the rear window. Olin’s found the car about a mile from the club. If Olin gets either of them, he’l make them talk.’
‘Does he think he can pin it on them?’
‘It’s a cinch if he knew what the motive was,’ Dal as said, looking straight at Purvis.
‘And what’s that?’
‘Zoe slipped up somewhere. Maybe they caught her listening outside the door. I’m not kidding myself they don’t know the set-up now. You should have seen the way the bastards burned her.’
Purvis stroked his nose.
‘We paid her wel ,’ he said uneasily, ‘but she didn’t deserve that.’
‘That’s pret y white of you,’ Dal as said heatedly. ‘This wouldn’t have happened to her if we had told Olin what we are doing. He’d have had Baird in jail by now.’
‘That’s a lot of hooey,’ Purvis said. ‘Olin’s got nothing on Baird. I know you’re feeling sore about the girl, but you can’t talk like that. If you felt like that about her, you shouldn’t have put her out on a limb.’
‘So it’s my fault?’ Dal as said, his face white and strained.
‘It’s certainly not mine. I didn’t suggest paying her three hundred dol ars.’
Dallas didn’t say anything. He ran his fingers through his hair and grimaced. He was feeling bad about Zoe.
‘What’s Ainsworth doing?’ Purvis asked, after a short pause.
Dallas drank more coffee, and as he fumbled for a cigarette, he said, ‘He’s watching Kile. At the moment we’ve lost Baird, Rico and Gil is. When I got to the club with Olin, Baird and Rico had skipped. There was no sign of Gillis. I tried to find MacAdam, but his car had gone. I’m hoping he went after Gillis. Olin took the club to pieces, but we didn’t find anything. That guy, Luigi, Rico’s Captain of waiters, talked after Olin got tough with him. He told Olin both Rico and Baird had returned to the club about forty minutes before we got there. Rico said he had to leave town in a hurry. He collected all the cash he could lay his hands on, and went off with Baird in a dark blue Packard. No one knows where he was going. Olin’s thrown out a drag-net, but so far the car hasn’t been seen. While this was going on, I searched around for MacAdam. As soon as Ainsworth reported to me, I sent him down to watch Kile. If Kile slips through our fingers, we’ve lost the lot of them.’
‘I imagine Baird and Rico have gone to Shreveport,’ Purvis said thoughtfully. ‘I think the balloon’s about to go up.’
‘Yeah,’ Dal as said. ‘Think we should tel Olin what’s cooking? He could set a trap for Baird.’
‘Red River’s not in his territory. By the time he got any action, Baird would be miles away. Besides, we’re losing sight of our objective: we want Baird to take us to the jewels. If Olin barges in now, we’re back where we started.’
‘I don’t like it,’ Dallas said. ‘The casualties are mounting up. First Burns, now Zoe: maybe it’ll be me next.’
Purvis didn’t look particularly worried.
‘I’ve been working fifteen years on this case,’ he said. ‘I’m in sight of pul ing it off. I’m not going to bring Olin in to mess it up now.’
Dallas shrugged. He felt too tired to argue. He stared down at his feet, brooding.
Rain continued to patter against the window. A car came grinding up the hill towards Purvis’s house.
Both Purvis and Dallas listened to the sound of the labouring engine. They looked at each other questioningly. The car came nearer, then passed the house and went on up the hill. Both men relaxed again. Then the telephone bell started to ring. Dallas jumped a little and spilt some of his coffee.
Purvis picked up the receiver. He said, Yes, speaking.’ He sat stil , his face expressionless, his long, bony fingers tapping a tune on the arm of his chair. After a while he said, ‘Okay, and thanks. I’l be down in the morning. Brentwood hospital? Yeah, I know how to get there. It’s before you get to Lincoln Falls. Yeah, sure.’ He hung up.
‘Who’s dead now?’ Dallas asked, his hands turning into fists.
‘MacAdam’s been found with a fractured skul ,’ Purvis said slowly. He didn’t look at Dal as. ‘He was picked up in Brentwood’s main street.’
Dallas stubbed out his cigarette.
‘How is he?’
‘He’l be al right,’ Purvis said. ‘Be some time before he gets around again, but he’s not in danger.’
‘That’s swel ,’ Dal as said sarcastical y. ‘Just a fractured skul . Nothing worse than a slight headache.
Baird again, eh?’
‘I guess so. A man answering to Rico’s description used the telephone in a cafe in Brentwood around two o’clock. A lit le while later MacAdam was found about a couple of hundred yards from the cafe. At least we now know they’re heading for Red River. There’s an airfield at Lincoln Falls. They could get a plane to Shreveport from there.’
Dallas got slowly to his feet.
‘I’d bet er get over to Kile’s place. If we let him slip through our fingers, we’re sunk.’
‘Rico could have been phoning Kile,’ Purvis said thoughtfully. ‘Looks as if they’re on their way to get Hater out.’
‘I can’t imagine they’re going to Red River to look at the al igators,’ Dal as said sarcastical y. ‘I’m glad I haven’t a wife and children. This job’s get ing dangerous.’
