No Orchids for Miss Blandish Part 22

Fenner went over to her.

"He isn't a pretty sight, is he? The Grisson gang did that to him. We found the three of them: Riley, Bailey and Old Sam. It's a sweet setup for Ma Grisson, and what a laugh Eddie must have had when you believed Riley had walked out on you. Riley got the blame for everything and all the time he was dead and buried. Did you get any of the ransom money? I bet you didn't. All you got was a cheap strip job at the club and a tumble from Eddie. Well, here's your chance to even the score. How about it, baby?"

"Get away from me!" Anna screamed at him. "I don't know nothing about nothing!"

"Get smart," Fenner said. "You're in the clear now; keep in the clear. You cooperate with us, and we'll cooperate with you. Now listen, we want to know if the girl's in the club. We think she is, but we've got to know for certain. She's in the locked room upstairs, isn't she?"

White-faced and shaking, Anna glared at him.

"Find out for yourself!"

"Put yourself in that girl's place!" Brennan said, leaning across his desk. "How would you like to be shut up with a moron like Grisson? Come on, Anna, if you know anything, spill it. There's a fifteen grand reward, and I'll see you get it."

"Oh, drop dead!" Anna said viciously. "I've never squealed to a copper and I'm not starting now!"

Fenner said, "Can I talk to this baby alone for five minutes?"

Brennan hesitated, then he got to his feet. Time was pressing. He went out of the room, jerking his head at the two detectives who followed him out.

Anna faced Fenner.

"You're wasting your breath," she said. "I've got nothing to tell you."

"I think you have," Fenner said. "Anyway, I've something to tell you. I've been checking up on you. Brennan doesn't know you had a room at the Palace Hotel on the night Alvin Heinie was shot to death. He doesn't know you own a .25 automatic, but he does know Heinie was shot with a .25. It wouldn't take him long to put two and two together and slap a murder charge on you if I told him what I'm telling you. You had the motive, the opportunity and the gun. You cooperate with me and I'll keep my mouth shut, otherwise I'm going to tip Brennan off that you were at the hotel that night and then he'll really work you over."

Anna's eyes s.h.i.+fted.

"How about it?" Fenner asked. "We're wasting time. Is the Blandish girl in the club?"

Anna hesitated, then she said, "I don't know, but there is a girl in that room. I've never seen her. I don't know if she's the girl or not."

Fenner went to the door and called Brennan in.

"She's had a change of mind," he said. "She knows there is a girl in the locked room, but she hasn't seen her."

"How do you know there's a girl there if you haven't seen her?" Brennan demanded.

"I've heard the boys talk," Anna said sullenly. "I've seen Ma go up there with stuff from the laundry. I've seen Slim go in there with packages from women's stores."

"Now start using your brains," Brennan said. "How do we bust in there and get to the girl before she gets hurt?"

Anna shrugged.

"Search me. I'm not running your stinking police force. That's your job."

"When the club's open, what are the chances of rus.h.i.+ng the place?" Fenner asked.

"Not a chance. They've really got that end organized. Every member is known. Until they identify themselves, the door's not opened."

"Is there any other way in?"

"I don't know of one."

Brennan and Fenner exchanged glances. Fenner shrugged.

"Okay," Brennan said. He went to the door and called the wardress. "Take her to Doyle's office and sit with her."

"Hey!" Anna exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "You're not keeping me here! Now listen..."

"You're staying here until we get die girl," Brennan said. "Take her away."

Protesting loudly, Anna was pushed out of the room. When her yells had died away down the pa.s.sage, Brennan said. "She's told us exactly nothing."

"Except there is a girl in the locked room," Fenner said, "and it can't be anyone else but the Blandish girl, but how do we get her out?"

"If we're going to bust in there," Brennan said, "we've got to make sure none of the club members are there. The first move is to cordon off the joint and stop anyone going in. The club opens around ten o'clock," He looked at his watch. "It's not yet eight. If we could pick up one of the Grisson gang, we might be able to persuade him to talk. There may be another way into the club besides through that steel door." He picked up the telephone receiver. "That you, Doyle? I want one of the Grisson gang, and I want him fast. No, I don't care who it is. Get them all if you can, but I want at least one in a hurry. Okay." He hung up. "If any of those rats are floating around town, we'll have them. There's not much else we can do now except wait."

"We should tell Blandish what's cooking," Fenner said. "After all, she's his daughter."

Brennan hesitated, then nodded. He waved to the telephone.

"Okay: go ahead and tell him," he said.

7.

Eddie Schultz discovered he wasn't as tough as he imagined he was. Although the movie he was watching had plenty of action, it didn't hold his interest.

He kept thinking of Miss Blandish. She would be dead by now, he told himself. What would Ma do with the girl's body? He guessed that would be a lousy job for him and Flynn to handle. How would Slim react? Eddie thought he wouldn't be in Ma's shoes for any money.

Suddenly he couldn't stand the darkness of the movie house any longer. He got up and pus.h.i.+ng his way roughly past the three people between him and the aisle, he walked to the exit. The time was three minutes past eight. He needed a drink. Crossing the street, he went into a bar, ordered a double Scotch, then went over to a telephone booth and called his apartment. He would tell Anna to join him at the bar, and they would have an early dinner together. He didn't feel like sharing his own company any longer.

He was irritated when he got no answer. It was unusual for Anna to leave the apartment before nine. Where had she got to? He went back to the bar, tossed off the drink, paid for it and left the bar. He decided he'd drive over to his apartment. Maybe Anna had slipped out for a moment and would be back.

He reached his apartment, parked his car and entered the apartment lobby.

The janitor, a heavily built Negro, was sitting in his office, reading the racing sheet.

"Hi, Curly," Eddie said, pausing, "did you see Miss Borg go out?"

The janitor lowered his newspaper.

"Sure did, Mr. Schultz. She went out ten minutes after you did." He squinted at Eddie curiously. "She had a suitcase with her."

Eddie frowned.

"Okay, Curly." He crossed to the elevator and rode up to his apartment, unlocked the door and entered. He went into the bedroom. The closet doors stood wide open. He saw at a glance most of Anna's clothes were missing.

He swore under his breath. So she had skipped! Should he tell Ma? He hesitated. Ma would have to know. He crossed over to the telephone as the front doorbell rang.

Who could this be? he asked himself uneasily. His hand slid inside his coat and his fingers closed over the b.u.t.t of his gun. He went to the door.

"Who is it?" he called.

"A message from Miss Borg, Mr. Schultz," the janitor called.

Hurriedly, Eddie unlocked the door which smashed open as he turned the handle, sending him reeling back into the room. Before he could recover his balance, two big men had piled into the room and were covering him with guns.

"Take it easy, Schultz," one of them said. "Just keep your hands still."

The janitor, his eyes rolling, peered into the room, then he turned and hurried away.

Eddie faced the detectives.

"You've got nothing on me," he said, a cold uneasy feeling in his stomach. "What's the big idea--busting in like this?"

One of the big men moved around him and took away his gun.

"Got a permit for this, Schultz?" he asked.

Eddie didn't say anything.

"Come on. Don't let's have any trouble. If you want it, you can have plenty of it, but why want it?"

"I'm not coming with you," Eddie snarled. "You've got nothing on me."

"The same old story," the detective said. "Let's go." Eddie hesitated, then he let the two men shove him into the elevator and down to the waiting police car. Ten minutes later, he was facing Brennan and Fenner in Brennan's office.

"What's the big idea?" Eddie bl.u.s.tered. "You've no right to bring me here. I want my lawyer."

"Show him the exhibits," Brennan said, "then bring him back."

Shrugging, Eddie swaggered out with the two detectives, but he felt far from swaggering. Why had they picked up Anna? Just how much did Anna know? Had she talked?

Five minutes later, he was back in front of Brennan, white-faced and shaking.

"We know you and your pals knocked those guys off," Brennan said. "Johnny talked before he was. .h.i.t. We know you and your pals s.n.a.t.c.hed the Blandish girl. You have a chance to save your dirty hide, Schultz. We want the girl out of the club. You tell us how we get her out and I'll see you keep out of the gas chamber. You'll go away for ten to fifteen, but you'll save your G.o.dd.a.m.n hide. Is it a deal?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, copper," Eddie said, sweat running down his face. "I didn't s.n.a.t.c.h the girl... I didn't kill those guys. I want my lawyer."

"I haven't time to argue with you, Schultz," Brennan said. "Your only hope is to come clean, and you'd better come clean fast or else you'll wish you were never born."

"I tell you I don't know a thing!" Eddie shouted. "I want my lawyer."

Brennan picked up the telephone receiver. "Send O'Flagherty and Doogan up here right away," he said and as he replaced the receiver, he went on to Eddie, "These two guys have been pushed around badly by gangsters like you. O'Flagherty was in hospital for four months and Doogan lost an eye. We keep them on the force because they wouldn't know what to do with themselves if we didn't, they're not much use for active service, but they do have their uses. They hate gangsters. Every now and then I get a tough bird like you who won't cooperate with me. I hand him over to these two guys and they love to have him. I don't inquire what they do to him, but invariably he talks after being with them for a couple of hours or less. He invariably looks a h.e.l.l of a mess when he comes back here to do his talking, but that doesn't worry me because my two boys were in a h.e.l.l of a mess when we found them after the gangsters had worked them over."

Eddie had heard about O'Flagherty and Doogan. He knew some of the boys had beaten up the two detectives, and at the time, he had rubbed his hands gleefully at the news, but the idea of having these two apes work him over appalled him.

"You can't do this to me!" he exclaimed, backing up against the wall. "I've got friends! You touch me and I'll see you lose your job."

Brennan grinned wolfishly.

"All you rats say the same thing--I'm still here."

The door bounced open and two men came in. Eddie had never seen men as big as these two with the exception of professional heavyweights. They were dressed in sweat s.h.i.+rts and blue slacks. The sight of their enormous, rolling muscles and their hard, brutal faces turned him cold.

They stood by the door, looking at him. Doogan, whose empty red eye socket seemed to glare directly at Eddie, folded enormous hands into fists. O'Flagherty, his face scarred, his nose flattened, looked expectantly at Brennan.

"Boys," Brennan said, "this is Eddie Schultz. We know he's connected with the kidnapping of the Blandish girl. He says there's no one on this pansy police force who can make him talk. Do you want to have a try at him?"

O'Flagherty showed his broken teeth in a grin. He eyed Eddie the way a tiger might eye a fat goat.

"Sure, Captain," he said. "We would like a try. He doesn't look so tough."

Doogan walked up to Eddie.

"Are you tough, baby?" he asked, peering at Eddie with his one eye. His right hand whizzed up and slapped Eddie across his face. It was as if he had been hit with a sledge hammer. He rocketed across the room and went down on his hands and knees, his head spinning, his face on fire.

"Hey! Not in my G.o.dd.a.m.n office!" Brennan protested. "I don't want blood all over the place. Get him out of here!" Eddie pushed himself to his feet. His nerve cracked as Doogan and O'Flagherty closed in on him.

"Call them off!" he yelled. "I'll talk! Don't let them touch me!"

"Hold it, boys," Brennan said and got to his feet.

The two policemen drew back, gaping in astonishment and disappointment at Eddie.

"I'll talk," Eddie repeated, holding his bruised, flaming cheek. "Don't let them touch me."

"Well, this is a surprise," Brennan said. "Okay, boys, wait outside. If I think he needs loosening up, I'll call you."

Doogan wiped his nose with the back of his hand in a gesture of disgust.

"Can I hit him once more, Captain?" he asked hopefully, doubling his fists.

Eddie backed away, s.h.i.+elding his face with his hands.

"Not right now," Brennan said. "Maybe later."

Reluctantly, the two policemen went out.

"Sit down," Brennan said.

Eddie sank into a chair, facing Brennan.