Джеймс Чейз - You Never Know With Women

I explained to Veda about Casy as she drove down the mountain road to Santa Medina.

“All right,” she said out of the darkness. I could just see the outline of her head and the red spark of the cigarette she had in her mouth. “But I don’t want to talk now. I want to think. Do you mind if I think? We can talk later, can’t we?”

I didn’t get anything else out of her until she pulled up outside Casy’s joint.

“Is this it?” she asked.

I helped her out of the car and pointed to the electric sign. It was twenty-four feet square, and even from where we stood we could feel the heat from the neon lights.

“Speaks for itself, doesn’t it—” I said. “Come on in and meet Casy.”

The guard at the door gave me a quick, hard look, then touched his cap. He was paid to know who could go in there without a frisk and who couldn’t. I guess he earned his money.

“The boss around?” I asked him.

“In the office.”

“Thanks.”

I took Veda’s arm and we went through the lobby, across a sea of drugget, past one of the five bars and down a passage that led to Casy’s quarters. Close by a very hot band was playing. There was a smell of tobacco smoke and whisky in the air.

It wasn’t a luxury joint, but it served its purpose. You could find anything you wanted within its walls from a willing blonde to a poker chip. Casy catered for all vices. The only reason the cops hadn’t slammed the place shut was the Police Chief himself had a kink and Casy looked after him.

A guy with a profile like Byron, only better, in a nifty white flannel suit and with a cornflower in his buttonhole, drifted out of a room and minced towards us. He looked at Veda with eyes like the eyes of Disney’s Bambi, fluttered long lashes at her and minced on.

The expression on her face made me laugh. I took her into the bar that was reserved for Casy’s friends. The room was full of men and tobacco smoke. Joe, Casy’s bodyguard, a short, thickset guy with a flat, ugly puss and eyes like chips of ice, heaved himself away from the bar and came scowling towards me. But he grinned when he recognized me and gave me a light punch on the chest. Then he saw Veda and he pursed his thick lips.

“Hello, chummy,” he said to me. “Where did you spring from? Ain’t seen you in months.”

“Casy around?”

He jerked his head to the door at the far end of the room.

“Go ahead. He ain’t doing nothing.”

All the men had stopped talking and were staring at Veda. I didn’t blame them. I guess if she took a walk through a burial ground the graves would give up their dead. But I hunched my shoulders and looked tough just to let them know it wouldn’t be healthy to get the wrong ideas. She walked past those guys as if they were poles in a sheep fence.

“That door there,” I said to her, and she turned the handle and walked right in.

Casy was sitting at his desk, a bottle of Scotch at his elbow, a cigar in his small white teeth. He was in shirt-sleeves and his tic hung loose and his collar was open. His black thick hair looked as if he’d just run his fingers through it.

“Floyd!” He jumped to his feet. “Well, what do you know! How are you, soldier?”

I shook hands and we tried to crack each other’s bones. Casy has quite a clutch.

“I’d like you to know Miss Rux,” I said, grinning at him. “Veda, this is Mick Casy: the guy I told you about.”

“Glad to know you,” Casy said, a little uneasy. “Sit down. Have a drink?”

Veda sat down. She seemed to throw Casy out of his stride. He began to do up his collar and retie his tie.

“You’ll excuse me. I wasn’t expecting visitors.”

“Be yourself, Mick,” I said, pulling up another chair. “Veda’s a regular fellow. You wait until you know her like I do.”

Casy smiled uneasily. I could see Veda had knocked him.

“Is that right? Well, you certainly can find ‘em, Floyd. Damn it, have a drink?”

While he set up glasses, Veda studied him. Casy was short, with a chest like a barrel, nearing fifty and looked what he was: the owner of a successful gambling joint.

“Where’ve you been all this time, Floyd?” he asked, shooting me a puzzled glance. “I haven’t seen you in months. What’s cooking?”

“Trouble in one form and another,” I said, and picked up the glass he had pushed towards me, shot the whisky down my throat. “A couple of guys are being difficult, Mick. I want to hole up for a while.”

“Cops?” Casy again glanced at Veda as if he couldn’t place her.

I shook my head.

“Not yet it isn’t cops, but it could be later.”

“Two guys, huh? Like me to take care of them? For the love of Pete, Floyd, use your head. What do you want to hole up for? Joe will take care of anyone bothering you, you know that.”

“Yeah, but this is a kind of a family affair. I’ll take care of them when the time comes, but the time hasn’t come yet. Veda and I just want to stay out of sight for a few days. Can you fix it for us?”

Casy ran his fingers through his hair, frowned.

“Sure I can. Come over to the hotel with me if you like. Plenty of protection, drinks, and nice beds. You’d like it. That suit you?”

I shook my head.

“I was sort of figuring on being alone.”

He took another look at Veda. This time he smiled.

“Yeah, I should have thought of that. There’s the penthouse on the top floor. A couple of boys are in there now, but they can come out. How’s about it?”

I knew the penthouse. I was hoping he’d let me have it.

“Fine,” I said.

He seemed glad to show what he could do for me. He shouted for Joe.

“Big shot,” I said to Veda. “Watch his smoke.”

Veda didn’t say anything. She had gone back to her statue act. Her eyes were watchful and she sat very still.

Joe came in.

“Get those two punks out of the penthouse, Joe,” Casy ordered, “And have someone clean up the place. Make it snappy. Floyd’s moving in.”

Joe looked surprised, but he didn’t ask questions.

“Sure, boss,” he said and went away.

“Anything else I can do?” Casy asked. “If there is, just name it.”

I produced Gorman’s diamond, tossed it on the blotter.

“I’d like to raise a little folding money on that, Mick.”

He picked up the diamond, held-it under the light, frowned at it.

“Nice stone.”

“Yeah, but it’s hot.”

He looked up sharply, his frown deepening.

“Not a copper job, Mick. I took it off the guy who’s making trouble for me. He won’t go to the cops.”

Casy’s frown went away.

“Okay. What do you want?”

“It’s worth four, five grand. Three will do.”

“Cash?”

“Yeah.”

He went to an open safe, dug out a wad of notes, tossed a thick packet on the desk in front of me.

“There’s a grand there. That’ll hold you, won’t it? You can have the rest whenever you want it.”

I stuffed the notes away in my hip pockets.

“You’re a pal, Mick.”

“Sure, I’m a pal.” He looked at Veda. “He saved my life once. He’s a good guy. I’m telling you. Don’t let anyone tell you different.”

“I won’t,” Veda said.

Casy poured more drinks.

“About these two guys,” he said. “Sure you wouldn’t want me to take care of them?”

I shook my head.

“Not yet. Still, you never know. One of them is tough.”

“I like them tough,” Casy said simply, and meant it.

Joe put his head round the door.

“All clear up there. I’ve taken your bags up, miss.” He leered at Veda.

She thanked him. In spite of her calm, I could see she was a little bewildered by all the attention.

“Come on then,” Casy said, struggling out of his chair. “We’ll go up.”