I said: “You better get out of the way.” I was getting mad with this gunman. I guessed he'd think twice about letting the gun off. After all, we were on a main street, and guns can make a noise.
Maybe Katz gave Blondie a signal, or maybe she acted on her own initiative. I had been keeping my eyes on the gun, making up my mind whether I could jump Katz or not, and for a moment she was out of the picture. Well, I deserved what came to me, because I had had a taste of her before. I said already this dame was poison, and poison she was.
Something hard and heavy hit me on the side of my head, and I went down on my knees. The room tilted and the lights began to spin.
Dimly I heard Katz say: “Don't hit him again.... I wantta talk to this bird.”
Someone grabbed my arms and twisted them behind me and a hard, cold strap bit into my wrists. I felt myself tossed on the bed. My head cleared and I struggled to sit up, but a hand, out of the mists, closed over my face and slammed me back on the pillow. I lay still until I could focus the lights properly, then I raised my head cautiously and looked at them. They stood at the end of the bed, watching me.
Blondie had her arms crossed over her breasts. Her face was indifferent, but her eyes smouldered. Katz chewed the toothpick and held the automatic loosely.
Without taking his eyes off me, he said to Blondie: “What's it all about?”
“He's crazy. He came up here an' said I'd taken five grand off him.”
Katz shrugged. “Well, didn't you?” he said. He moved round the bed and sat down close to me. “Listen, punk,” he went on, I m goin' to tell you somethin'... then you're goin' to tell me somethin'. We've got your jack all right. Blondie lifted it, like you thought she did....”
Blondie made a move forward. “What the hell....” she began.
Katz turned his head. “Shut up,” he said. “I'm handlin' this. I want this guy to know where he gets off.”
He turned his head back to me. “We've been watchin' you for some time. You went to Vessi's bump-off, didn't you?”
I said: “What of it?” It struck me that if this guy talked enough, I might learn something.
“We're interested to find who sent you... get this right, we don't care about you... we just want to find who's paying you; get it?”
I looked at Blondie. I was getting a little of the angle. “I thought you were Vessi's side-kick,” I said. “I see. I'm wrong. Vessi was framed, an' you know it. This guy's no pal of Vessi's... what the hell are you playin' ball with him for?”
Blondie said viciously: “You lay off that. Who sent you that five grand... that's what you gotta tell us.”
I shook my head. “I can't tell you that... I don't know myself. I just got a note offerin' me five grand to bust the frame-up open, an' I was interested. I went along to see Vessi die.... I didn't learn anythin', and the five grand turned up to encourage me, an' you knocked it off. That's the history as far as I'm concerned.”
I was careful not to tell them that I had my instructions by 'phone, because I didn't want to give them a lead that it was a woman. I reckoned I'd given them just enough information without telling them more than they knew.
Katz scratched his jaw with his thumbnail. “That all?” he said.
I nodded.
Blondie said suddenly: “What the hell's the matter with you, Earl? Why don't you rough this guy around. You won't get anywhere talkin' soft to him.”
Do you get the idea now? This dame was real poison ivy. I said quickly: “What more do you want me to say? I can't tell you somethin' I don't know.”
Katz still sat there scratching his chin with his thumbnail. He kept his eyes fixed on my face, and I don't mind telling you that I didn't like the look in his eye. This guy was as tough as Blondie, only in a different way. He wasn't all wind. When he started something, you'd know about it all right.
He said at last: “Okay, I guess you can beat it. You better keep clear of this place. You won't find that five grand, an' you'd better not go to the cops about it... get it?”
Blondie pushed forward. “You're crazy,” she said. “Look what this heel's done to me. You ain't lettin' him get away with that?”
A sudden flash jumped into Katz's eyes. He looked mean. “Listen, Roundheels,” he said, “You lay off. I'm handlin' this... so shut your trap.”
Blondie stepped away, shrugged, and walked into the bathroom. Katz watched her go and then turned back to me. “She's mad with you,” he said, chasing holes in his teeth with the pick. “I'd watch my step with her. Once she gets mad with a guy, she stays mad.”
I sat up. “Suppose you get rid of this strap, an' I'll scram.”
He looked at me thoughtfully. “I wouldn't start anythin' if I were you,” he said.
I grinned. “That's okay, I assured him. “I never hunt around for trouble.”
He jerked the strap off my wrists and stood up. He was a cautious guy but I wanted to get out of that room badly. If they had my five grand I wasn't going to risk my skin for it. After all, I'd never really had it, so I wouldn't miss it.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed and gently massaged my wrists.
Katz leant against the chest of drawers. He still held the automatic limply at his side. “Take my tip, bozo,” he said, looking at me from under his hat, “you lay off this Vessi business... it ain't healthy. We don't want to get a
