James Chase - I Would Rather Stay Poor

The fallowing morning, at nine o’clock, the armoured truck again appeared outside the bank. From it came four accountants from the out-lying factories to collect the money: with them were the four guards. Everything moved like clockwork. The four men were introduced to Calvin by the sheriff, then with Alice joining them, they all went down to the vault while the four guards stood outside the bank, alert and watchful. Calvin and Alice unlocked the door of the vault and two of the four accountants produced keys and unlocked the wooden cases.

The sight of all that money in small bills turned Calvin’s mouth dry. He stood to one side watching the four men as they counted the money, each taking the amount needed for their particular payroll, putting the money in their briefcases.

While they counted the money, the sheriff stood at the head of the stairs. The out-riders and the two guards with Travers guarded the entrance to the bank. Within fifteen minutes, the four accountants had collected their money and had gone.

During the day, Calvin continued to think about the money, but he always came back to the same impossible snag: if he took the money, he would immediately become suspect No. 1. He knew this to be fatal.

That evening, while Alice, Miss Pearson and the major had settled down to watch television, and after he had heard Flo leave, he went into the kitchen.

Kit was pressing a dress. She looked up and smiled at him.

‘Television isn’t interesting you?’ she asked, moving the dress on the ironing board.

‘Television seldom interests me,’ he said, leaning against the wall and watching her. ‘Am I in the way?’

‘Of course not.’

‘Tomorrow is Saturday,’ he said, his blue eyes intent. ‘What does one do in a place like this on Saturday?’

She shrugged as she moved the damp cloth into position.

‘Nothing very exciting… there are a couple of movies on at Downside if you can bother to drive that far.’

‘Would you come with me?’ he asked, watching her. ‘Being on one’s own isn’t much fun.’

She folded the cloth and put it away.

‘Thank you, but I can’t tomorrow.’ She looked directly at him, the irritating amused expression in her eyes. ‘Besides, it wouldn’t be a good thing for the local bank manager to be seen with me in Downside. People have the habit of gossiping here.’

He scowled.

‘Yeah… I hadn’t thought of that. Well, I guess I’ll be able to kill time somehow. Is there a golf course handy?’

‘There’s quite a good one at Downside. At least, Major Hardy says it is good… I wouldn’t know.’

‘Maybe I’ll take a look at it.’

She held up the dress, examined it critically, then folding it, she moved towards the door. As she passed him, he put his hand gently on her arm.

‘You said the other night, you could be tempted. I have an idea that might tempt you.’

She disengaged her arm, her brown eyes suddenly alert.

‘What idea?’

He hesitated, wondering if he could trust her. ‘Just how badly do you want money?’ he asked, staring at her.

‘I want it,’ she said. ‘Why do you ask?’

Again he hesitated, then urged on because he was sure he couldn’t do this thing alone, he said, ‘I’m talking about the payroll. Didn’t you say if you were in my place you would be tempted to steal it?’

She stared at him for a long moment, her face suddenly expressionless, then she said quietly, ‘Did I? You mustn’t believe everything I say.’

‘Why not? You say something… you must mean what you say.’

‘Not necessarily.’ She moved away, putting the ironing board back into a closet. ‘I must get on. I have a lot to do before I go to bed.’

She was moving to the door when he said, ‘Let’s talk about it tonight. Will you come to my room?’

She paused in the doorway and looked searchingly at him. For a long moment she seemed to hesitate, then she nodded.

‘Yes… all right.’

She went out of the kitchen. He waited a few moments, then he went to his room. He sat down, loosened his tie, lit a cigarette and began to think.

He was still thinking when he heard Kit come upstairs and enter her room. There was a long pause while he waited expectantly. The lock of the communicating door clicked back and the door swung open.

She came into the room, closing the door behind her. Calvin sat motionless, watching her as she walked to an armchair and lowered herself into it.

‘Well?’ she asked, looking at him. ‘What is it?’

‘You say you want money,’ Calvin said. ‘Will you tell me why?’

‘That’s not difficult. I want it to get out of this dreary town. I want it so I don’t have to slave for the rest of my days. I want it so my daughter can live a decent life instead of working in the box office of a third-rate movie house. I want it so I can take her away before she is stupid enough to marry a small-time deputy sheriff with no future and no hopes of making any money. I want it to give her the opportunity to have the right clothes and right background to hook a rich husband.’

‘Why shouldn’t your daughter marry a deputy sheriff?’ Calvin asked.

‘If she does, she’ll have to remain in this narrow-minded, gossip-ridden town for the rest of her days. She’ll have to scrape for money as I have done when I was fool enough to marry a man who lived here. I know what it means. I’m going to take her away if it is the last thing I do.’

‘Maybe she doesn’t want to leave here. Maybe she even wants to marry this guy. Maybe she’s even in love with him.’

Kit made an impatient movement with her hands.

‘She’s too young to know her own mind. Once I can get her away from here, show her how the world really lives, she won’t want to marry that small-time boy.’

‘Just how far would you go to get your hands on big money?’ Calvin asked.

‘You mean the payroll?’

Calvin nodded.

‘I told you… I would take any risk,’ Kit said. ‘If you think I can help you and if my share is big enough, you can rely on me.’

Calvin drew in a long slow breath.

‘We’ll have to trust each other,’ he said.

She smiled.

‘You are frightened of me?’

‘Why shouldn’t I be?’ He leaned forward, his blue eyes gleaming. ‘I don’t know you. You could call the sheriff and tell him I’m planning to steal the payroll. Then where would I be?’

She laughed.

‘Where would I be too? I’d never do such a thing. I’ve been waiting and waiting and hoping and praying that someone like you would come into my life… a man who isn’t scared to take risks.’

Looking at her, he was suddenly convinced that he could trust her.

‘Okay, so you have yourself a partner,’ he said. ‘With your help, we could lay our hands on this money… three hundred thousand dollars!’

‘But how?’

‘I don’t know — yet. It’ll be tricky. I’ll be the first one they’ll suspect.’

‘So you haven’t even an idea, let alone a plan?’

‘Not yet, but I now have a partner and that’s important. If we are going to do this thing we mustn’t rush it. When we do it, it must be foolproof.’

‘I’m ready to take risks.’

‘You think about it,’ Calvin said. ‘I’ll think too. It’s got to be foolproof.’

He got to his feet and crossed to the closet. He took from it a bottle of whisky. ‘Let’s drink to it.’

She looked first at him, then at the bottle he held in his hand. Her expression puzzled him.

‘I don’t drink,’ she said curtly. ‘I never drink.’

She moved past him towards the communicating door. He put down the bottle and caught hold of her arm. For a moment they looked searchingly at each other, then she jerked free.