Джеймс Чейз - You’re Lonely When You’re Dead

He gave a thin, smiling grimace.

‘You’re my pal, Mac,’ he said. ‘I owe you something. What a spot I was in! She’s crazy. You know that? She’s as crazy as a rattlesnake you kick accidentally, and as dangerous. I thought I was a goner. Did you hear what she said? That stuff about being lonely when you’re dead. That’s a nice crack to make when you’re shooting at a guy, isn’t it? That’ll tell you how crazy she is.’

I handed him a drink to match the first.

‘Don’t toss that lot down all at once. I want you sober for the next ten minutes.’

‘Gimme a cigarette,’ he said. ‘My nerves are creeping up and down my spine like spider’s legs. I’m going to get the hell out of here. I know her. Know what, Mac? I wouldn’t put it past her to go home, get another gun and come out here again. Well, I’m not staying. I’m not taking any more chances with a crazy twist like her.’

I gave him a cigarette and lit it for him. Although he kept talking I could see he was in a bad way. The reaction had hit him all ends up, and I shouldn’t have been surprised to have seen him slide out of his chair in a faint.

‘Take it easy,’ I said. ‘She isn’t coming back. Get hold of yourself.’

He took another drink and sat staring blankly at the carpet. I could see it was no use hurrying him. He had had a shock, and he hadn’t the guts to shake it off quickly.

It was nearly five minutes before he spoke again, and then his voice sounded a little more normal.

‘What are you doing out here, Mac?’ he asked. ‘Don’t tell me if you don’t want to. I’m glad you came. I’d be growing cold by now if you hadn’t bust in the way you did.’

‘I’m here to talk to you,’ I said. ‘You can help me straighten out a little problem I’m working on if you want to.’

He looked at me and gave a pinched grin.

‘After what you did for me, Mac,’ he said seriously, ‘Anything I can do is for the asking. And I’m sorry I pushed you around that day. I guess you feel sore about that. Well, I’m sorry.’

‘I was sore all right, but forget it. I thought that dame couldn’t walk. What’s behind it all?’

‘She’s trying to get back on Cerf,’ Mills said. ‘I tell you she’s crazy. And I mean crazy.’

‘What’s Cerf done to her?’

‘Do you want to hear it?’ Mills asked, huddling farther down in his chair. ‘I’ll make it short if you really want to hear it.’

‘Go ahead,’ I said.

“Well, it’s this way,’ Mills said. ‘She was nuts about her mother, but she hadn’t much time for Cerf. To complicate things Cerf was crazy about her. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for her and was jealous the way she used to hang around her mother. The three of them took a trip in a car. Cerf drove. They stopped some place for lunch and Cerf livened himself up with a load of booze. He was all right in the hotel but when he got into the air he was stinko — just like that!’ And Mills snapped his fingers. ‘Instead of turning the wheel over to one of the women, he got obstinate and insisted on driving. He hit a truck head on. It was a hell of a smash. The trucker was killed, Nat was knocked out and her mother thrown through the windscreen, cutting her throat on the glass. Cerf wasn’t even scratched When Nat came to she found herself covered with her mother’s blood and her mother laid out beside her with her head hanging on a strip of skin. Know what I think?’ He leaned forward to stare at me. ‘I think that sent Nat crazy. It didn’t show, but it’s there. Cerf nearly went crazy himself when he found Nat was hurt, and she was quick enough to see the way he reacted. Up to then, she told me, he’d never shown any feelings. He was responsible for her mother’s death, and she hated him from then on with a hatred that has been growing ever since. To punish him she pretended she couldn’t walk. Maybe for the first couple of months she did punish him; from what she told me, he was genuinely fond of her, but after a while I guess he got used to the setup. She wouldn’t have it he didn’t care, but that’s my bet. Can you imagine? She kept to a wheel chair or in bed for two solid years, going out only when Cerf was away or at night when she knew he wouldn’t come to see her. That shows you what a nut she is.’

‘And how did you happen along?’ I asked.

‘They wanted another guard on the gate. I was short of dough at the time and got the job. You know how these things happen. About a couple of days later she began to make passes. I guess she was bored with herself and thought it’d be fun to have a guy to fool with.’

‘Do you know anything about a suitcase of stolen articles which was found in Anita’s cupboard?’

‘That was Nat’s idea. I collected the stuff for her, and she planted the suitcase. She reckoned it’d take the gilt off Cerf’shoneymoon, and it certainly did. She was full of sweet ideas like that.’

‘What can you tell me about Gail Bolus?’

He stared at me, surprised.

‘You get around, don’t you, Mac? What do you know about her?’

‘I’m asking you. You know her, don’t you?’

He nodded

‘Yeah. She blew into town about four months ago. She was crazy about the fight racket. We met at Kruger’s. At that time I did a bit of boxing. We hooked up together. She liked to see me fight. When I quit fighting, she lost interest in me. You know how it is, Mac. She was a tough dame, and knew all the answers. You have to work too hard with a dame like that. I gave up trying. As far as I know she used to earn a living playing poker. She could shuffle all the aces to the bottom of the deck as easily as she could light a cigarette. I don’t know what became of her.’

‘Did she ever mention Lee Thayler?’

He shook his head.

‘Who’s he?’

‘Never mind. What were you doing in Barclay’s house a couple of days back?’

He gave me a quick, startled look.

‘You’re a busy guy, aren’t you? What were you doing there?’

‘I was there. What were you looking for?’

‘That was Nat again. She sent me out there to see if I could find anything that’d convince Cerf Anita was two-timing him. But I didn’t find anything.’

I finished my drink and stood up.

‘You wouldn’t have any ideas about the murder? Why Dana Lewis was shot?’

He shook his head.

‘Not a thing. Nat thinks Anita did it, but I don’t. Anita isn’t the type.’ He pushed himself out of the chair. Fear and whisky made him unsteady on his feet. ‘If that’s all you want, Mac, I guess I’ll be going. I’ll pack a bag and get out of town. I shan’t be easy until I’ve put some miles between myself and that twist.’

‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘That’s all I want.’

On the way back to Orchid City I chewed over what I had heard and what Mills had told me. On the face of it none of the facts I’d learned had any bearing on Dana’s death, although they did clear up some points that needed clearing up. But I was still as far away as ever from finding Dana’s killer.

I was still sure that the key to the whole business was the reasons why Dana was shot and why the diamond necklace had been left in her apartment. But I couldn’t see any way of finding the explanations of those two reasons. As far as I could see the hunt was narrowed down to Thayler or maybe Bannister. Thayler was the most likely suspect. I couldn’t see why Bannister should have shot Dana unless he had been bribed to do so by the promise of the necklace, and when he didn’t get it he had squared accounts by shooting Anita. I didn’t like this theory much, but decided it might be worthwhile to give it a little more thought. I didn’t think it was possible for Natalie to have shot Dana. She had no motive for one thing, and she wouldn’t be able to handle a .45 for another.