The Girl Hunters

'Just Leo, as far as I know.'

I said, 'The papers stated that nothing of importance was in the safe.'

'That's right. There couldn't have been over a few hundred dollars in cash, a couple of account books, Leo's insurance policies, some legal papers and some jewelry of mine. The books and legal papers were on the floor intact so--'

'What jewelry?' I interrupted.

'It was junk.'

'The papers quoted you as saying about a thousand dollars' worth.'

She didn't hesitate and there was no evasion in her manner. 'That's right, a thousand dollars' worth of paste. They were replicas of the genuine pieces I keep in a vault. That value is almost a hundred thousand dollars.'

'A false premise is as good a reason for robbery as any.'

Her eyes said she didn't agree with me. 'Nobody knew I kept that paste jewelry in there.'

'Two people did.'

'Oh?'

I said, 'Your husband and his killer.'

The implication of it finally came to her. 'He wouldn't have mentioned it to anyone. No, you're wrong there. It wasn't that important to him at all.'

'Then why put it in the safe?'

'It's a natural place for it. Besides, as you mentioned, it could be a strong come-on to one who didn't know any better.'

'Why didn't you have the combination?'

'I didn't need it. It was the only safe in the house, in Leo's private study--and, concerning his affairs, I stayed out completely.'

'Servants?'

'At that time we had two. Both were very old and both have since died. I don't think they ever suspected that there were two sets of jewels anyway.'

'Were they trustworthy?'

'They had been with Leo all his life. Yes, they were trustworthy.'

I leaned back in the chair, reaching hard for any possibility now. 'Could anything else have been in that safe? Something you didn't know about?'

'Certainly.'

I edged forward now, waiting.

'Leo could have kept anything there, but I doubt that he did. I believe you're thinking of what could be termed state secrets?'

'It's happened before. The Senator was a man pretty high in the machinery of government.'

'And a smart one,' she countered. 'His papers that had governmental importance were all intact in his safe- deposit box and were recovered immediately after his death by the FBI, according to a memo he left with his office.' She waited a moment then, watching me try to fasten on some obscure piece of information. Then she asked, 'May I know what you're trying to get at?'

This time there was no answer. Very simply the whole thing broke down to a not unusual coincidence. One gun had been used for two kills. It happens often enough. These kills had been years apart, and from all the facts, totally unrelated.

I said, 'It was a try, that's all. Nothing seems to match.'

Quietly, she stated, 'I'm sorry.'

'Couldn't be helped.' I stood up, not quite wanting to terminate our discussion. 'It might have been the jewels, but a real pro would have made sure of what he was going after, and this isn't exactly the kind of place an amateur would hit.'

Laura held out her hand and I took it, pulling her to her feet. It was like an unwinding, like a large fireside cat coming erect, yet so naturally that you were never aware of any artifice, but only the similarity. 'Are you sure there's nothing further...?'

'Maybe one thing,' I said. 'Can I see the den?'

She nodded, reaching out to touch my arm. 'Whatever you want.'

While she changed she left me alone in the room. It was a man's place, where only a man could be comfortable, a place designed and used by a man used to living. The desk was an oversized piece of deep-colored wood, almost antique in style, offset by dark leather chairs and original oil seascapes. The walnut paneling was hand carved, years old and well polished, matching the worn oriental rug that must have come over on a Yankee clipper ship.

The wall safe was a small circular affair that nestled behind a two-by-three-foot picture, the single modern touch in the room. Laura had opened the desk drawer, extracted a card containing the combination and handed it to me. Alone, I dialed the seven numbers and swung the safe out. It was empty.

That I had expected. What I hadn't expected was the safe itself. It was a Grissom 914A and was not the type you installed to keep junk jewelry or inconsequential papers in. This safe was more than a fireproof receptacle and simple safeguard for trivia. This job had been designed to be burglar-proof and had a built-in safety factor on the third number that would have been hooked into the local police PBX at the very least. I closed it, dialed it once again using the secondary number, opened it and waited.

Before Laura came down the cops were there, two excited young fellows in a battered Ford who came to the door with Police Specials out and ready, holding them at my gut when I let them in and looking able to use them.

The taller of the pair went around me while the other looked at me carefully and said, 'Who're you?'

'I'm the one who tuned you in.'

'Don't get smart.'

'I was testing the wall safe out.'

His grin had a wicked edge to it. 'You don't test it like that, buddy.'

'Sorry. I should have called first.'

He went to answer, but his partner called in from the front room and he waved me ahead with the nose of the .38. Laura and the cop were there, both looking puzzled. Laura had changed into a belted black dress that accented the sweeping curves of her body and when she stepped across the room toward me it was with the lithe grace of an athlete. 'Mike--do you know what--'

'Your safe had an alarm number built into it. I checked it to see if it worked. Apparently it did.'

'That right, Mrs. Knapp?' the tall cop asked.

'Well, yes. I let Mr. Hammer inspect the safe. I didn't realize it had an alarm on it.'

'It's the only house around here that has that system, Mrs. Knapp. It's more or less on a commercial setup.'

Beside me the cop holstered his gun with a shrug. 'That's that,' he said. 'It was a good try.'

The other one nodded, adjusted his-cap and looked across at me. 'We'd appreciate your calling first if it happens again.'

'Sure thing. Mind a question?'

'Nope.'

'Were you on the force when the Senator was killed?'

'We both were.'

'Did the alarm go off then?'

The cop gave me a long, deliberate look, his face wary, then, 'No, it didn't.'

'Then if the killer opened the safe he knew the right combination.'

'Or else,' the cop reminded me, 'he forced the Senator to open it, and knowing there was nothing of real value in there, and not willing to jeopardize his own or his wife's life by sudden interference, the Senator didn't use the alarm number.'

'But he was killed anyway,' I reminded him.

'If you had known the Senator you could see why.'

'Okay, why?' I asked him.