The Soft Centre

Then he looked up at her. The expression on his face terrified her. He wasn’t Chris any more. He wasn’t human any more. He began to move out of his chair as she began to back away from him. His breath came through his clenched teeth in a soft, hissing sound. His hands, his fingers hooked, moved upwards as he got to his feet.

‘Chris!’

Her voice was sharp and terrified.?‘I’ve had enough of you,’ he said, his voice a soft, frightening whisper. ‘I’m going to kill you the way I killed her!’

Then the nurse was behind him. Her hands gripping his wrists, and with speed and strength, locking them behind him in a Judo grip. She held him powerless while he glared at Val, his mouth working and the awful twitch moving under his skin like the flickering of a snake’s tongue.

‘Go!’ the nurse said urgently. ‘Tell Dr. Gustave! Hurry! I can manage him!’

Val turned and ran blindly back towards the house. At the end of the path she met one of the male attendants who turned as he heard her quick footfalls.

She gasped out what was happening, then as he ran to the nurse’s help, she dropped on her knees on the grass and hid her face in her hands.

CHAPTER TWELVE

At the time Val was burning her husband’s jacket, Terrell was finishing his favourite breakfast of eggs and grilled ham.

A few minutes before he had sat down, Jacobs had driven Mrs. Prescott, Angel and her Teddy Bear from Terrell’s bungalow, back to the Park Motel.

Both Terrell and his wife were relieved to see them go. The child had been too much even for Terrell’s patience.

As he ate, Terrell looked back on the previous day. Jacko and Moe were now accounted for. He thought with regret of the officer whom Moe had killed. Lee Hardy was dead. Terrell had no regrets about him. With Jacko and Moe out of the way, Henekey’s murder could be considered closed. There still remained Sue Parnell’s murder to be solved. So far there was not a single clue that might lead him to the killer. Then there was this odd business of Val Burnett paying Homer Hare twenty thousand dollars. Terrell was sure Hare was blackmailing Val Burnett, but there was nothing he could do about that, he told himself, unless she was willing to co-operate.

It was while he was finishing his second cup of coffee that he heard a car pull up outside the bungalow. Glancing through the open window, he saw Joe Beigler and Fred Hess get out of a police car and come striding up his garden path.

‘More trouble,’ he said to Carrie. ‘Now what do they want this time?’

He left the morning-room and opening the front door let Beigler and Hess in.?‘What’s up now?’ he asked as he led the way into the lounge.?‘I took Hardy’s prints when they dumped him in the morgue,’ Hess said. ‘I’ve been checking all the prints I found in the cabin where the Parnell woman was knocked off. Hardy’s prints are on the list. He was definitely in the cabin at some time. While I was at it, I checked Henekey’s office. Hardy’s prints are also on Henckcy’s desk.’

Terrell moved around the room, puffing at his pipe.

Finally, he said, ‘This could be the answer. That alibi the Lang girl gave Hardy never jelled with me. Could be Hardy did the job. Let’s go talk to her.’

‘I guessed you’d want to do that,’ Beigler said. ‘I have a search warrant. If we tear the place apart, we might even turn up the motive.’

The three police officers arrived outside Lee Hardy’s penthouse front door at a few minutes to nine. Beigler dug his thumb into the bell push and held it there for several seconds, then the three men waited. More seconds dragged past and Beigler again thumbed the bell push.

The front door was suddenly jerked open by Gina, her face like a stone mask and dark smudges under her eyes. She was wearing a flower patterned wrap and her feet were bare. She looked as if she had just got out of bed. By the way she screwed up her eyes as if trying to focus the police officers, Terrell could see she was drunk.

‘I want to talk to you,’ Terrell said and riding her back, he moved into the lobby.

She shrugged indifferently and then walked unsteadily into the lounge. She seemed glad to flop into one of the big comfortable Lounging chairs. She rubbed her eyes, yawned and then stared at Terrell without seeing him.

‘Make some coffee,’ Terrell said to Beigler. ‘She’s plastered.’

Beigler went out of the room in search of the kitchen. Hess took a chair behind Terrell and fiddled with a notebook while Terrell slowly filled his pipe.

Gina said abruptly, ‘What is it? If you’ve just come to stare at me, then get the hell out of here?’

‘You told me Hardy spent the evening here with you the evening Sue Parnell was murdered. I’m asking you again: was Hardy here or were you lying?’

‘Lee didn’t murder her,’ Gina said.?‘I didn’t ask you that. I asked if you gave him a false alibi. This is serious. I have reason to believe he was in this woman’s cabin at the motel on the night she died.’