Джеймс Чейз - You're Dead Without Money

‘We mustn’t look on the darkest side,’ Kendrick said as he stroked his big nose. ‘I won’t waste time saying I’m sorry although I am. You did have prospects but you were unlucky. We all could be unlucky. At least, unlike so many unlucky people, you have up to now had a merry life. What you want is immediate help. Suppose I send Louis up to your place and get him to make an inventory of the things you have? It is some time since you bought from me and I forget just what you have.’

Elliot nodded.

‘Okay, but I don’t want Louis shooting his mouth around the City. It needs only a rumour that I’m in trouble for all my creditors to move in. I’ve got to have a lump of money by the end of the month... three weeks.’

‘What do you mean by a lump of money?’

‘To get me straight, I need at least a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. If I don’t get that, I’ll go bust and then no one gets anything.’

Kendrick pursed his fat lips.

‘That’s quite a sum, but don’t despair. Let’s see what we can do. Louis will be with you tomorrow at ten. When he has made an inventory, we will have another talk.’

‘There’s that Chagall you unloaded on me. That would be worth a hell of a lot.’

Kendrick looked sad.

‘Not a good one if I remember rightly. At that time people were crazy about any Chagall, but of course it has its value. You can rely on me. I will do my very best to be helpful.’

Elliot got to his feet. He hadn’t much hope. He felt instinctively this could turn out to be a deal that would give him little and this fat queer much.

‘Okay, Claude, then I’ll leave it to you.’

‘Yes.’ Kendrick rubbed his smooth shaven jaw, then said casually, ‘You know Paul Larrimore I believe?’

Surprised, Elliot stared at him.

‘I know him... what of it?’

‘A difficult man to get to know,’ Kendrick said, his fat face sad. ‘Rather a recluse, wouldn’t you say?’

‘He keeps to himself if that’s what you mean. I wouldn’t call him a recluse. Why bring him up?’

‘You and he, I understand, are friends.’

‘I guess so. What’s all this about?’

‘I’m anxious to get into contact with him, but he refuses to see me. I find this a little churlish and I was wondering if you could break the ice for me.’

‘Larrimore is tricky.’ Elliot shook his head. ‘He doesn’t welcome people. What do you want with him?’

‘Stamps.’ Kendrick smiled. ‘I’ve been thinking of going into the rare stamp market. Larrimore is one of the most important philatelists in the world. I would be so happy to have him as my adviser.’

Elliot stared at him as if he couldn’t believe what he was saying.

‘Larrimore? Your adviser? Come on, Claude, you’re nuts! Not a hope...’

‘Like that?’ Kendrick shook his head sadly. ‘Well, I must take it you would know.’ A pause, then he went on, ‘Tell me how you got friendly with Larrimore.’

‘Apart from collecting stamps, he is a golfer. Not good, but like most golfers who aren’t good, deadly keen. He comes to the club once a week and I play with him from time to time. I cured him of a hell of a slice and since then he has always been friendly. That’s it. I don’t see anything of him now... my tin foot fixed my golf.’

‘How odd. A slice? Odd how things happen.’ Kendrick finished his whisky. ‘Although you haven’t seen him lately, you could still call on him?’

‘Look, Claude, I said forget it,’ Elliot said impatiently. ‘Larrimore wouldn’t help you.’ He moved to the door. ‘Louis will come tomorrow at ten?’

‘Yes.’ Kendrick smiled. ‘Don’t worry too much, cheri. It’s always darkest before the dawn.’

‘I seem to have heard that somewhere before,’ Elliot said and left.

‘Well now, Mr. Campbell,’ Barney said, ‘I want you to appreciate how I bring threads of my story together like weaving a carpet. It’s only because I can’t spell and my writing isn’t so hot that I’m not in your racket. I’ve got the technique, but the rest is strictly for the gulls.’

I said all of us couldn’t aspire to the heights and would he like another hamburger?

‘That mightn’t be a bad idea,’ Barney said and wigwagged with his eyebrows to Sam. ‘Feed the body — feed the mind, huh?’

I said that was an accepted fact.

‘Well now... I’ve got Joey, Cindy, Vin, Elliot and Kendrick on the stage. Now comes the time to join them together and I’ll do it step by step.’ Barney waited until Sam produced the hamburger and having inspected it, he nodded approval, then continued, ‘Joey couldn’t afford to let Cindy stick around making cow’s eyes at Vin now he knew Vin was running short of money. As his own ready cash was also getting low, he sent Cindy out to work the stores in the morning instead of the afternoon and he went out also to work the buses, leaving Vin to sit at home, dreaming about the Big Take.

‘It so happened that Cindy was walking down the main street, heading for one of the stores when she saw Elliot’s Rolls parked by the kerb. The sight of his car brought her to a standstill. Most people paused to stare at the car, but it mesmerized Cindy. This was the car of her dreams and she was standing there, in a white sweatshirt and these things they call “hot pants,” worshipping the car when Elliot came out of Kendrick’s gallery.’

‘The first thing Elliot noticed was Cindy’s long beautiful legs and then her little bottom and then her tits. These three feminine features had a big attraction for Elliot and for the moment he forgot his worries and even his tin foot. Seeing Cindy gaping at his car, he joined her and said in his screen voice that used to send shivers up and down the spines of his women fans, “She’s as lovely as you, isn’t she?”

‘Cindy spun round, embarrassed, then she laughed.

‘ “Better! Man! What a gorgeous car!” Then she did a double take as she recognized Elliot.

‘Cindy was an Elliot fan. When she was younger, she had adored Errol Flynn. When he passed on, she turned her adoration on Elliot. To find herself standing right by her favourite movie star completely threw her. She clasped her hands and stared, looking a cross between a sheep and a cow as she exclaimed, “It’s Don Elliot!”

‘Elliot hadn’t seen that soppy look for a long time and he reacted to it.

‘ “Hello,” he said and he gave out with his sexy smile which he hadn’t used since he had lost his foot. “You know me, but I don’t know you. Who are you?”

‘Cindy recovered herself.

‘ “I’m not important, Mr. Elliot. I was just passing and I saw this lovely car and I stopped and then you appeared.”

‘ “It’s mine,” Elliot said, and for the first time he felt this huge bad debt was worth the worry it was giving him. “Would you like a ride?”

‘ “Would you be kidding, Mr. Elliot?”

‘Elliot laughed, opened the offside door and waved her to get in.

‘With a dazed expression, Cindy settled herself in the passenger’s seat, clasping her hands over her breasts. Elliot drove slowly through the heavy traffic, saying nothing. One quick look at this girl’s face told him to let her alone, let her have her dream, let her give herself up to the silent movement of the car. Once clear of the traffic and on to Seaview Boulevard, he accelerated a little and headed for the hills. He drove at an easy speed until he reached a long stretch of deserted road, then he shoved down the gas pedal and let Cindy experience the sudden rush of silent power that swept them along at over a hundred miles an hour. As the road came to an end to join up with the highway to Miami, he slowed and pulled into a lay-by.

‘ “What do you think?” he asked. “Maybe you would like to drive her before you decide.”