He Won't Need it Now

     Gilroy nodded and left him. When he had gone, Duffy sat down and did some thinking. Then he got up and went over to the small bureau, unlocked the top drawer, took out the bundle of money he had left there, and looked at it. Then he went to the door and turned the key. He sat down at the table and counted the money carefully. He'd got thirty-four grand and some small notes. He counted on the table three piles of five thousand dollars. That left him nineteen thousand dollars. He split the nineteen grand into four parts. One went into his hip pocket, another in his side pocket, and the third in his trouser pocket. The fourth, three thousand dollars, he folded carefully and put in his shoe. He had to take his shoe off and put it on twice before it was comfortable.

     He went over and unlocked the door, picked up the money on the table, and wandered into the bar.

     Gilroy was talking to Schultz and Shep. They were drinking beer. They all looked up, a faintly expectant expression on their faces.

     Duffy leant on the bar. “Here's your split,” he said gently. He gave each man the money rolled in a tight ball. “Five grand,” he said. “Don't count it now.”

     Shep picked up his glass and poured the beer on the floor at his feet. “Gimme champagne,” he said to the barman. “I'm goin' to launch myself.”

     Schultz fingered his cut, then shoved it in his trouser pocket. He looked vacantly at Duffy, nodded, and went out.

     Gilroy turned his head, watching him walk across the floor. “That guy's mighty careful with his dough,” he said. “I wouldn't say he's tight. He's careful.”

     Duffy glanced at the clock. “I'm going to snatch myself a little sleep,” he said. “We'll get going about eleven.”

     Gilroy said, “Any dough hanging to this job?”

     Duffy nodded. “Sure,” he said. “I want you boys to make money while you can.”

     Shep took his short fat nose out of his glass. “That's a hell of a way to talk,” he said.

     Duffy grinned. “You expect to earn this dough, don't you?” he said.

     “Sure, but we won't work that hard.”

     Back in his room, Duffy rang Sam. He said, “Do you feel like doing me a favour?”

     Sam said, “Aw, forget it, will you? Alice's only a little dumb; she don't know what it is to want things.”

     Duffy's mouth twisted. “You lay off Alice. She's right. See? Alice is goddam right. If I'd got the sense of a louse, I'd be doing a job of work instead of trying to be a big shot. Well, I ain't got the sense, and what's more, I'm getting a kick out of this. What I want you to do is to keep your ear open down at headquarters. I want you to keep an eye on English. That bird's been pulling too many fast ones to make me sleep easy. Will you do that, Sam?”

     Sam seemed puzzled. “Sure,” he said. “I'll do any little thing like that.”

     Duffy said, “You'll keep me in touch. If anything starts popping, gimme a buzz?”

     Sam said, “Sure,” then he said, “You know what you're doing?” He sounded worried.

     Duffy said, “I'm bucking something that thinks it's too big for me, but ain't.” He added, “'Bye, soldier,” and dropped the receiver on its prong.

     Outside, he could hear the rain beating down. He went over to the bed and lay flat, one leg hanging over the side. He scratched the side of his face gently with his nail. “I wonder...” he said to himself, then he heard someone walk past his door. He heard Gilroy say, “She don't wear 'em. It saves time.” Shep said something in his tinny voice, but Duffy couldn't hear.

     In time, the sound of the rain lulled him.

CHAPTER XVI

     SOMEWHERE A BIG clock chimed half past twelve as the Buick slid to the kerb. The rain drummed on the roof hard.

     Shep said, “Heck! What a night!”

     “You should worry, no one about,” Duffy said, rolling down the window and putting his head out. The rain touched him, cold and sharp. He looked up and down the deserted street, then he rolled up the window again, opened the door, and stepped out. Gilroy followed him.

     “Fat, you stay in the car,” Gilroy said.

     Shep nodded his tiny head. “Suits me,” he said. He pulled a Luger from his overcoat pocket and laid it across his knees.

     Then Schultz got out. The three hurried across the pavement to a block of offices.

     “Round the back,” Duffy said.

     They walked on, turned a narrow alley, and then stopped. Just above their heads was the fire-escape. Gilroy put his back against the wall, folded his hands in front of him, and nodded at Schultz. Schultz put his foot in Gilroy's cupped hands, and Gilroy hoisted him up. Schultz just touched the fire-escape with his fingers. He said, “Higher.”

     Gilroy gave a little grunt, shifted his feet and raised Schultz a few inches. Schultz's fingers curled on the iron rung, and then he put his weight on it. The fire-escape creaked and slowly came down.

     Duffy went up first, then Gilroy, then Schultz. On the first landing, Duffy stood aside, whilst Schultz opened a window. He did it very easily. They all climbed into a dark corridor.

     Duffy said, “It's on the first floor.”