Rex Stout - Red Box, The

It would have been useless to bring him here; he has his profit and loss calculated.-Yes, Fritz? Ah, the soufflй chose to ignore the clock? At once, certainly.”

He gripped the edge of the desk to push back his chair.

We did not ignore the souffle.

My lunch was interrupted once, by a phone call from Helen Frost. Ordinarily

Wolfe flatly prohibited my disturbing a meal to go to the phone, letting it be handled by Fritz on the kitchen extension, but there were exceptions he permitted. One was a female client. So I went to the office and took it, not with any overflow of gaiety, for all morning I had been thinking that we might get word from her any minute that the deal was off. Up there alone with her mother, there was no telling what she might be talked into. But all she wanted was to ask about Perren Gebert. She said that her mother had phoned the

Chesebrough at breakfast time and had learned that Gebert had not been there for the night, and after phoning and fussing all morning, she had finally been informed by the police that Gebert was being detained at headquarters, and they had not let her speak with him. She said that Inspector Cramer had told her mother something about Gebert being held on information furnished by Mr. Goodwin of Nero Wolfe's office, and what about it?

I told her, “It's all right. We caught him trying to get in a window out at

Glennanne, and the cops are asking him what for. Just a natural sensible question. After a while hell either answer it or he won't, and they'll either turn him loose or keep him. It's all right.”

“But they won't…” She sounded harassed. “You see, I told you, it's true there are things about him I don't like, but he is an old friend of mother's and mine too. They won't do anything to him, will they? I can't understand what he was doing at Glennanne, trying to get in. He hasn't been there…I don't think he ever was there…you know he and Uncle Boyd didn't like each other. I don't understand it. But they can't do anything to him just for trying to open a window. Can they?”

“They can and they can't. They can sort of annoy him. That won't hurt him much.”

“It's terrible.” The shiver was in her voice. “It's terrible! And I thought I was hard-boiled. I guess I am, but…anyway, I want you and Mr. Wolfe to go on.

Go right on. Only I thought I might ask you-Perren is really mother's oldest friend-if you could go down there and see where he is and what they're doing…I know the police are very friendly with you…”

“Sure.” I made a face at the phone. “Down to head-quarters? Surest thing you know. Bless your heart, I'd be glad to. It won't take me long to finish my lunch, and I'll take it on the jump. Then I'll phone you and let you know.”

“Oh, that's fine. Thank you ever so much. If I'm not at home mother will be.

I…I'm going out to buy some flowers…”

“Okay. I'll phone you.”

I went back to the dining room and resumed with my tools and told Wolfe about it. He was provoked, as always when business intruded itself on a meal. I took my time eating, on to the coffee and through it, because I knew if I hurried and didn't chew properly it would upset Wolfe's digestion. It didn't break his heart if I was caught out in the field at feeding time and had to grab what I could get, but if I once started a meal at that table I had to complete it like a gentleman. Also, I wasn't champing at the bit for an errand I didn't fancy.

It was after two when I went to the garage for the roadster, and there I got another irritation when I found that the washing and polishing job had been done by a guy with one eye.

Downtown, on Centre Street, I parked at the triangle, and went in and took the elevator. I walked down the upstairs corridor as if I owned it, entered the anteroom of Cramer's office as cocky as they come, and told the hulk at the desk:

Tell the inspector, Goodwin of Nero Wolfe's office.”

I stood up for ten minutes, and then was nodded in. I was hoping somewhat that

Cramer would be out and my dealings would be with Burke, not on account of my natural timidity, but because I knew it would be better for everyone concerned if Cramer had a little more time to cool off before resuming social intercourse with us. But he was there at his desk when I entered, and to my surprise he didn't get up and take a bite at my ear. He snarled a little:

“So it's you. You walk right in here. Burke made a remark about you this morning. He said that if you ever wanted a rubdown you ought to get Smoky to do it for you. Smoky is the little guy with a bum leg that polishes the brass railings downstairs at the entrance.”

I said, “I guess I'll sit down.”

“I guess you will. Go ahead. Want my chair?”

“No, thanks.”

“What do you want?”

I shook my head at him wistfully. “I'll be doggoned, Inspector, if you're not a hard man to please. We do our best to help you find that red box, and you resent it. We catch a dangerous character trying to make an illegal entry, and hand him over to you, and you resent that. If we wrap this case up and present you with it, I suppose you'll charge us as accessories. You may remember that in that

Rubber Band affair-”

“Yeah, I know. Past favors have been appreciated. I'm busy. What do you want?”

“Well…” I tilted my head back so as to look down on him. “I represent the executor of Mr. McNair's estate. I came to invite Mr. Perren Gebert to attend the funeral services at the Belford Memorial Chapel at nine o'clock this evening. If you would kindly direct me to his room?”

Cramer gave me a nasty look. Then he heaved a deep sigh, reached in his pocket for a cigar, bit off the end and lit it. He puffed at it and got it established in the corner of his mouth. Abruptly he demanded:

“What have you got on Gebert?”

“Nothing. Not even passing a red light. Nothing at all.”

“Did you come here to see him? What does Wolfe want you to ask him?”

“Nothing. As Tammany is my judge. Wolfe says he's just clinging to the cliff of existence or something like that and he wouldn't let him in the house.”

“Then what the devil do you want with him?”

“Nothing. I'm just keeping my word. I promised somebody I would come down here and ask you how he is and what his future prospects are. So help me, that's on the level.”

“Maybe I believe you. Do you want to look at him?”

“Not especially. I would just as soon.”

“You can.” He pressed a button in a row. “As a matter of fact, I'd like to have you. This case is open and shut, open for ihe newspapers and shut for me. If you've got any curiosity about anything that you think Gebert might satisfy, go ahead and take your turn. They've been working on him since seven o'clock this morning. Eight hours. They can't even make him mad.”

A sergeant with oversize shoulders had entered and was standing there. Cramer told him: “This man's name is Goodwin. Take him down to Room Five and tell

Sturgis to let him help if he wants to.” He turned to me. “Drop in again before you leave. I may want to ask you something.”