that his teeth came out in my shoe.
I looked at the billy, picked it up and weighed it. The thing was made for murder. It was too bulky in my pocket so I dropped it in the empty shoulder holster under my arm and grunted at the guy on the floor who was squirming unconsciously in his own blood.
The room was another of those rooms between rooms. A chair was tilted back against the wall beside the door, the edge of it biting into the soundproofing. Just for kicks I dragged the stupe over to the chair, propped him in it and tilted it back against the wall again. His head was down and you could hardly see the blood. A lot could go on before he?d know about it, I thought.
When I was satisfied with the arrangement I snapped the lock off the door to accommodate the customers and tried the other door into the back room. This one was open.
The lights hit me so hard after the semidarkness of the hall that I didn?t see Connie come over. She said, ?Where?ve you been, Mike??
Her hand hooked in my arm and I gave it an easy squeeze. ?I got friends here too.?
?Who??
?Oh, some people you don?t know.?
She saw the blood on the back of my hand then, the skin of the knuckles peeled back. Her face went a little white. ?Mike . . . what did you do??
I grinned at her. ?Caught it on something.?
She asked another question, one I didn?t hear. I was too busy taking in the layout of the place. It was a gold mine. Over the babble you could hear the click and whir of the roulette wheels, the excited shrieks when they stopped. There were tables for dice, faro spreads, bird cages and all the games and gadgets that could make a guy want to rip a bill off his roll and try his luck.
The place was done up like an old-fashioned Western gambling hall, with gaudy murals on every wall. The overhead lights were fashioned from cartwheels and oxen yokes, the hanging brass lanterns almost invisible in the glare of the bright lights inside them. Along one wall was a fifty-foot bar of solid mahogany complete with brass rail, never-used cuspidors and plate-glass mirrors with real bullet holes.
If ever I had a desire to be surrounded by beauty, I would have found it there. Beauty was commonplace. It was professional. Beauty was there under a lot of make-up and too much skin showing. Beauty was there in models who showed off what they liked to advertise best. It was like looking into the dressing room of the Follies. There was so much of it you tried to see it all once and lost out with your hurry.
It was incredible as hell.
I shook my head. Connie smiled, ?Hard to believe, isn?t it?? That was an understatement. ?What?s the pitch??
?I told you, Mike. It?s a fad. It caught on and spread like the pox. Pretty soon it?ll get around, the place will be jammed and jumpin?, then the whole deal will get boring.?
?So they?ll move on to something else.?
?Exactly. Right now it?s almost a club. They?re fawned over and fought over. They make a big splash. Wait till it all catches up with them.?
?And all this in the Bowery. Right in the middle of the Bowery! Pat would give his right arm for a peep at this. Maybe I?ll let him give me a left arm too.?
I stopped and peered around again. Beauty. It was starting to get flat now. There were too many big bellies and bald heads in the way. They spoiled the picture. I spotted Homer and Andrew in the crowd having a big time at the crap table. Evidently Homer was winning because his babe was stuffing the chips he handed her into a bag that wouldn?t take too many. The ones she had left over got tied up in her handkerchief.
We made a complete tour of the place before picking out a leather-covered corner spot to watch the shindig and drink at the same time. A waiter in a cowboy outfit brought us highballs and crackers and said it was on the house. As soon as he left Connie asked, ?What do you think, Mike??
?I don?t know, sugar. I?m wondering if my pal would have gone for this.?
?Wasn?t he like the rest??
?You mean, was he a man??
?Sort of.?
?Hell, he probably would. What guy wouldn?t take in a hot spot with a babe. He?s alone in the city, no chaperon and bored stiff. His work is done for the day and he needs a little relaxation. We?ll leave it at that. If he did get persuaded to come it didn?t take much persuasion.?
I lit a cigarette and picked up my drink. I had a long swallow and was following it with a drag on the butt when the crowd split apart for a second to let a waiter through and I had a clear view of the bar.
Juno was sitting there laughing at something Anton Lipsek just said.
The ice started to rattle against my glass and I had that feeling up my spine again. I said to Connie, ?Get lost for a little while, will you??
?She?s truly beautiful, isn?t she, Mike??
I blushed for the first time since I wore long pants. ?She?s different. She makes most of them look sick.?
?Me too??
?I haven?t seen her with her clothes off. Until then you?re the best.?
?Don?t lie, Mike.? Her eyes were laughing at me.
I stood up and grinned back at her. ?Just in case you really want to know, she?s the best-looking thing I ever saw. I get steamed up watching her from fifty feet away. Whatever a dame?s supposed to have on the ball, she?s got it. My tongue feels an inch thick when I talk to her and if she asked me to jump I?d say, `How high?? and if she asked me to poop I?d say, `How much??. But here?s something you can tuck away if it means anything to you. I don?t like her and I don?t know why I don?t.?
Connie reached over and took a cigarette from my pack. When it was lit she said, ?It means plenty to me. I?ll get lost, Mike. But just for a little while.?
I patted her hand and walked over to where the queen of the gods and goddesses was holding court. When she saw me her smile made sunshine and the funny feeling started around my stomach.
She held out her hand and I took it. ?Mike, what are you doing here??
Juno guided me to a stool on Olympus, letting go my hand almost reluctantly. More eyes than Anton Lipsek?s watched me enviously. ?I was sidetracked into a flirtation when I left your office.?
Anton wiggled his beard with an ?Ah hah!? He caught on fast.
?I guess it pays to be physical,? Juno smiled. Her eyes drifted over the crowd. ?There aren?t too many men here who are. You?re rather an attraction.?
So was she. You might say she was over-clothed by comparison, but not overdressed. The front of the black gown came up to her neck and the sleeves came down to meet her gloves. The width of her shoulders, the regal taper of her waist was sheathed in a shimmering silk that reflected the lights and clung tenaciously to her body. Her breasts rose full and high under the gown, moving gently with her breathing.
?Drink??
I nodded. The music of her voice brought the bartender to life and he put a highball in front of me. Anton joined us in a toast, then excused himself and walked over to the roulette wheel. I deliberately swung around on the stool, hoping she?d follow me so I could have her to myself.
She did, smiling at me in the mirrors that had bullet holes. ?I have news for you, Mike. Perhaps I should let it keep so I could see you again tomorrow.?
My hand started to tighten around the glass. One of the bullet holes was in the way so I turned my head to look at her. ?The girl . . .?
?Yes. I found her.?
Ever have your insides squeeze up into a knot so hard you thought you?d turn inside out? I did. ?Go on,? I said.
?Her name is Marion Lester. I ?presume you?ll want to see her yourself of course. Her address is the Chadwick Hotel. She was the third one I spoke to this afternoon and she readily admitted what had happened, although she seemed a little frightened when I told her the full story.?
?All right, all right, what did she say?? I took a quick drink and pushed the glass across the bar.
?Actually . . . nothing. Your friend
