get any false ideas about the value of his time, and lit one for myself.
‘Do you think Perelli kidnapped Dedrick?’
The small eyes blinked. He hadn’t been expecting that one.
‘What’s it matter what I think?’
‘Plenty. And, look, don’t let’s waste time. If you don’t want to answer questions, just hand back my dough and I’ll find someone who will.’
We stared at each other across the desk, and he decided I meant business.
‘Beer?’ he asked. ‘Might as well make ourselves comfortable.’
He produced two cans of beer, levered off the caps with a jack-knife and handed me one.
‘Happy days.’
‘Happier nights.’
We drank, sighed as men will, and set the cans on the desk.
‘I don’t reckon he did it. It wasn’t in his line.’
‘That’s what he told me.’ I leaned forward and began to make patterns on the desk with the wet bottom of the can. ‘I want to help him if I can. Anything you might tell me could turn the trick.’
Maxie started to explore his back molars again, changed his mind and poked about inside his ear instead.
‘Not a bad guy. A free-spender. No trouble. Nice girl friend. You seen her?’
I said I had seen her.
He closed one small eye, then opened it again.
‘The best figure I’ve ever seen on a woman. Think it’s real?’
‘Could be. Did you see him bring that fishing-rod in here?’
He shook his head.
‘No; and I know he never had a fishing-rod. I asked the girl who cleans his room. She’s never seen one.’
‘Did she look under the bed?’
‘She cleans under it.’
‘The cops found it last night. Did she clean under the bed yesterday morning?’
He nodded.
‘What time?’
She was late. Perelli didn’t leave the apartment until twelve thirty. She didn’t start cleaning until one.’
‘What time did the police find it?’
‘Seven-thirty.’
‘So between one-thirty in the afternoon and seven-thirty in the evening someone planted it. That’s right, isn’t it?’
‘If anyone planted it.’
‘Well, we won’t argue about that. Sometime between one-thirty and seven-thirty either Perelli or someone brought a fishing-rod into this building. That’s right, isn’t it?’
He couldn’t find any fault with that reasoning.
‘Yep.’
‘Are there any other entrances except the main one?’
‘There’s a rear entrance to the basement.’
‘Can anyone get up to the apartments that way?’
‘No.’
‘Sure?’
‘Certainly, I’m sure. The way this place is built, you either come in the main entrance or up the stairs from the rear entrance. Either way you have to cross the lobby and you’d be seen.’
‘Where were you between one-thirty and seven-thirty last night?’
‘At the movies.’
‘You mean you weren’t here yesterday afternoon and evening?’
‘I was at the movies.’
‘Your day off?’
‘My day off.’
‘Who was in charge of the lobby?’
‘Gracie Lehmann.’ Maxie took another pull at his can of beer, added, ‘It’s her day off today.’
‘Have the police questioned her?’
‘Why should they?’
‘Didn’t they want to know about the rod? I mean how it got into Perelli’s room?’
‘Why should they?’
I drank a little beer myself. He was right, of course. They had found the rod in Perelli’s room, and that was good enough for them. They wouldn’t bother to find out how it got there. It was there, and as far as they were concerned that was all that mattered.
‘She could have seen someone bring the rod in, then?’
‘If anyone brought it, she saw it.’
‘She might have gone out to wash her hands or something?’
Maxie shook his head.
‘The lobby ain’t to be left a second. That’s the rule of the house. She has a retiring room behind the switchboard. If she goes in there she turns down a switch connected with buzzers under the front and rear mats. Anyone coming in from the main entrance or up the stairs from the basement would sound the buzzer. It’s foolproof. We had a lotta burglaries here one time. Now we really have to watch out. If anyone brought in the rod, she would have seen it.’
‘We’ve just proved either Perelli or someone did bring it in. So she must have seen it.’
‘That’s right.’
I drained the can of beer and lit another cigarette. I was faintly excited.
‘Want another?’ Maxie asked, helping himself.
I nodded, and watched him hoist two more cans into sight.
‘Well, I guess I’d better talk to Gracie,’ I said as he knocked off the cap of the can. ‘She could be my star witness.’
‘She’ll be in tomorrow. Watch her. She’ll come a mite expensive.’
‘Where does she live?’
He brooded over this, then shook his head.
‘Can’t give you her address. It’s against the rules.’
I nursed the can of beer and stared past him at the photograph of Jack Dempsey.
‘It’s my bet Jeff Barratt brought in that rod.’
He was drinking from his can, and the beer went down the wrong way. I had to get up and thump him on the back or he would have choked. I thumped him a little harder than necessary. I thought I might as well get something for my money.
‘Barratt?’ he wheezed when he could speak. ‘What are you talking about?’
‘Barratt hates Perelli’s guts. The guy who planted the rod hates Perelli’s guts. Barratt lives opposite Perelli. Barratt’s a first-prize rat. Not evidence in court, but evidence to me.’
He chewed this over and finally nodded his head.
‘Could be.’
I drank some more beer.
‘Don’t waste your time on Gracie if you expect her to squeal on Barratt,’ he said, lowering his voice. ‘She’s very, very strong for him.’
Now, perhaps, I was going to get value for my money.
‘What gives?’ I asked. ‘Why should Barratt want to bother himself with a girl like that?’
The guy who owns this building tries to keep it respectable. Don’t ask me why. He’s funny that way. We’ve got instruc-tions that all women visitors are to check out before one o’clock or it has to be reported. Gracie works a night shift every other week. Barratt’s women visitors don’t check out at one o’clock and don’t get reported.’
