The Soft Centre

‘Yeah?’ Karsh sneered and reached the door. ‘This is your last chance, Joey. Spill something or stand for the sirens.’

Henekey appeared to hesitate, then he reached into his pocket and took out a small object which he laid on the desk.

‘Okay, you win. There it is. I swear that’s all I’ve been holding back. I found it by the dead woman’s body.’

Karsh who had been bluffing and hadn’t expected to gain anything from his threats, walked to the desk and regarded the solid gold cigarette lighter that Henekey was offering him. He didn’t touch it, but he examined it closely. This was a costly item, he told himself. He looked searchingly at Henekey.

‘When I found her,’ Henekey explained, ‘I was so fazed, I didn’t know what I was doing. I saw this lighter right by her on the bed and I picked it up and put it in my pocket. I forgot about it when I talked to the cops.’

‘Yeah?’ Karsh sneered. ‘You think I have a hole in my head? You saw it and you couldn’t resist stealing it.’

He picked up the lighter and examined it more closely, then he turned it and his eyes narrowed as he read the engraved in inscription on the back of the lighter:

Chris―with love―Val?‘Who is Chris and who is Val?’

Henekey shook his head.?‘I wouldn’t know. I got the idea this belonged to the killer. Why should it belong to the Parnell woman?’

‘She could have stolen it,’ Karsh said, but he didn’t sound convinced.?‘That’s all I can give out,’ Henekey said. ‘Honest Karsh, I wouldn’t lie to you.’

Karsh didn’t seem to be listening. He continued to examine the lighter, then after a long moment of hesitation, he dropped the lighter into his pocket.

‘Okay, Joey, quid pro quo. I’ll keep my mouth shut and you keep yours shut. I could be seeing you again so don’t hang out the bunting just yet.’

He walked out of the office, and Henekey, his face tense, watched him drive rapidly away in a dusty aged Buick.

*****

Karsh stopped off at the Ojus Post Office. He put through a call to the office. When Hare came on the line, Karsh told him about Henekey and the lighter.

‘What do you want me to do?’ he asked at the end of his recital. ‘Give the lighter to the cops?’

‘We mustn’t rush anything,’ Hare wheezed. ‘Never rush anything, Sammy. Chris and Val, you say? Now why should those two names ring a bell in my mind? I want a little time to think. You go and have a nice cold beer. Telephone me in about an hour. I’ve got thinking to do.’

After he had hung up, he sat for some minutes, his fat face tight with concentration, then he reached out and rang for Lucille.

‘Get me a copy of the Miami Herald for yesterday.’ he said as she poked her head around the door. ‘Fast, honey.’

When she had brought him the paper, he waved her away. He flicked through the pages until he came to the Society Gossip column where he read that Charles Travers, the tenth richest man in America had flown out from New York to spend a couple of days with his daughter and son-in-law, Chris Burnett. Further down the column, he learned that Mrs. Burnett’s christian name was Valerie. He also learned the young couple were staying at the Spanish Bay hotel. He then called for this morning’s edition of the Miami Herald. He learned of Chris’ disappearance and re-appearance, but the information was so slight he was unable to form an opinion of what had actually happened to Burnett. He put a call through to the Spanish Bay hotel and asked to speak to Henry Trasse, the hotel detective who was on Hare’s payroll. He listened to what Trasse had to tell him about the Burnetts, grunted and hung up. He then lit a cigar and sat slumped into his chair for some time while his evil, fertile mind was busy. It was only when Karsh telephoned that he came alive.

‘Sammy, I think we are on to something very, very interesting. The lighter belongs to Chris Burnett, the son-in-law of Chris Travers… yeah… that’s the one. Trasse tells me Burnett is a nut. A couple of days ago, he took off from his hotel and was absent for twenty-four hours or so. He was picked up by the cops. He didn’t know what he had been doing or where he had been. He’s in Gustave’s squirrel farm right now. Now look, Sammy, this could be a very profitable deal if we play our hand right. Here’s what I want you to do. I want you to drive from the Park Motel towards the North Miami Beach highway. All along the route, taking your time, I want you to keep your eyes skinned. Check all the dirt roads. Burnett must have had a car. He was also wearing a sports jacket when he left the hotel. It was missing when the cops found him. If you could find the jacket, we would be sitting very pretty. Work at it, Sammy. Pull out all the stops in your organ. I want the full bloodhound treatment.’

Karsh cursed under his breath as he sweated in the hotel telephone booth.?‘You want me to turn the lighter over to Terrell?’ he asked.?‘No more than I want you to cut my heart out and drop it in the harbour,’ Hare returned. ‘Who said you had a heart?’ Karsh snarled and hung up.