James Chase: Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief

She said in a soft, husky voice, “Come home with me, darlin’.”

Raven hated her viciously. His first conscious reaction was to smash his fist in her face. He found that he was too tired even to do that. Instead, he moved on, ignoring her.

She took two quick steps and was beside him again. “Come on,” she said urgently, “it’s just round the corner. Spend the night with me, honey. I’m goodhonest, I wouldn’t tell you if I wasn’t.”

He stopped walking and half turned. It suddenly dawned on him that she must be one of Mendetta’s whores. She was in Mendetta’s district. A murderous desire suddenly surged through him.

She came very close and put her thin white hand on his sleeve. He couldn’t bear her to touch him, and he shook her off savagely.

“What’s the matter, honey, ain’t you well?” She began to draw back, suddenly uneasy.

He looked up and down the deserted street. No, not here. He’d have to go back to her place. His thin mouth curled into a smile. This would make Mendetta sit up all right. He said, “Well, come on, then. Where do we go?”

At once she became bright again. He felt against his face her little sigh of relief. She said, “Gee! You scared me. I thought you were a cop.”

He began to move down the street with her, taking long, shambling, unsteady steps.

As he didn’t say anything, she went on, “A girl’s gotta look out for herself. It’s a tough life, darlin’. You’re goin’ to give me a nice present?”

Still he didn’t say anything. Her voice, her scent and her walk all infuriated him, but she was one of Mendetta’s possessions. He mustn’t say or do anything that would frighten her until he got her where she couldn’t get away. As he didn’t trust himself, he kept silent.

He was conscious that she was looking at him closely, and that her step lagged a little. He put his hand on her arm and hurried her along. “Where is it?” he said.

“Here,” she said a little breathlessly. “Let me get my key.”

He stood back while she searched in her cheap little bag. They were directly under the street light. He could see her brass−coloured hair, her wide rouged mouth, her short nose and her hard, professional eyes. She only came to his shoulder, and under her tight bottle−green dress he could see the outline of her small, firm breasts.

He said harshly, “For God’s sake hurry.”

She giggled nervously. “I’m hurrying.”

He could have spat in her face. She turned and smiled at him. “There’s a hole in the lining, I guess,” she said.

At the corner of the street, a cop suddenly appeared. Raven saw him instantly. The inside of his mouth went very dry, and he said once again, “Hurry.”

The tone of his voice startled her, and something of his urgency infused her with panic. She fumbled with her key, jabbing at the keyhole unsuccessfully.

With an obscene word on his lips, he snatched the key from her fingers and opened the door. He put his hand on her shoulders and shoved her inside, stepping in behind her and closing the door softly. He could feel the cold sweat under his arms.

She said a little angrily, “Why did you do that?”

“Put a light on.”

He could hear her fumbling along the wall, and then the passage was swamped with a bright hard light. He said, “Well, go on. Don’t stand there.”

She hesitated. “I don’t know about you. There’s something I don’t like about you.”

He pushed his hat to the back of his head and looked her full in the face. They looked at each other for a long minute.

“Do you always yap like this?” he snarled at her. “Take me to your room.”

They went upstairs. He followed her closely. As she went up before him he could see how her hips rolled as she lifted her feet. The professional skirt was so tight across her hips he could see where her suspender belt ended and where the little knobs of the suspenders caught her stockings.

They went up three flights in silence. Then she stopped and opened a door. He caught a glimpse of a little brass plate on the door as he entered a box−like hallway. He closed the door behind him. She took him into the bedroom.

He stood in the middle of the room, his ears intent, listening.

She said, “Come on, darlin’. Don’t stand there.”

“You alone up here?”

“Sure, we won’t be disturbed.”

Still he stayed listening. She said again impatiently, “What is it?”

He chewed his lower lip, looking at her thoughtfully, then he said, “Mind if I look?” and went out, throwing open the other doors without entering. He glanced in the other two rooms, satisfying himself that they were empty.

She followed him into the hall. Her face was hard and her eyes glittered angrily. “What the hell do you think you’re doin’?” she snapped. “This is your room here. The rest of this joint is privatedo you get it?”

Raven again felt like smashing his fist in her face, but he held himself in. “Okay, okay,” he said, walking past her into the bedroom.

She shut the other two doors and then followed him in. Once more her lips broke into her professional smile, but her eyes were dark and suspicious. She said, “Come on, darlin’. Let’s get it over.”

Raven took off his hat and ran his fingers through his short, wiry black hair. He sank on to the bed, which gave under his weight.

The room was shabby and not over−clean. The strip of carpet that lay on the floor was threadbare, and from where he was sitting he could see a small stack of soiled underclothes behind an easy−chair.

While he sat there she took off her dress by just pulling a zipper and stepping out of it. Underneath she wore a pair of pink step−ins and a brassiere. She swayed a little before him, turning this way and that, so he could see her. Then she said, “My present?” Her hard face lighted up with a glittering smile.

Raven put his hand in his pocket and offered her a twenty−dollar bill. It was all the money he had in the world. The amount took her breath away. She clutched at the bill and stood staring at it. “Migod, you’re cute!” she said. “Gee! I’ll give you a good time for this.”

The bill disappeared into the top of her stocking, and she hurriedly stripped down to her suspender−belt.

She said, coming round the bed, “Come on, darlin’, come on.”

He said, “Don’t be in such a hurry. Put on a wrap or somethin’. I want to talk to you.”

He saw her go a little limp. “Aw, come on, darlin’. We can talk afterwards.”

“No.”

She hesitated, then, shrugging, crossed the room and took a dark red silk wrap off the door−peg.

Raven, sitting in the chair, looked at her indifferently. He noticed she had a little roll of fat above her hip bones, and he thought her buttocks looked ridiculous framed in the soiled suspender−girdle. A dame had got to be good just wearing a girdle, stockings and shoes. This whore wasn’t so hot.

She put the wrap on and wandered over to the bed. “You’ve got to be quick, darlin’,” she said. “I can’t keep you here all night.”

Raven shook his head. “I shan’t stay all night,” he said. “Who’s underneath?”pointing to the floor.

“No one. All offices,” she said. “I keep telling you no one’ll disturb you.” Then a thought crossed her mind.

“Say, the bulls aren’t looking for you, are they?”

A thin smile came to Raven’s lips. “Not yet, they ain’t,” he returned.

There was a long silence. His cold, wolfish face, his hooded eyes, made her very uneasy. She’d kicked around with plenty of toughs and hoods in her time, but this guy was different. She felt suddenly scared of him, and horribly alone. He just sat there, gripping the arms of the chair, watching her indifferently.