Danny Dempsey and the Unlikely Alliance by Denis Byrne

shattered. I’ve got almost his complete stash. Why bother with the measly twenty he’s got left?
    But Harrington was insistent. He wanted a last stab at making a comeback. And Harry let him break, poor slob. Nothing down, then Harry couldn’t resist a bit of showboating. Harrington could only watch in admiration as Harry knocked them in like clockwork. Then sent the last nine ball on a breathtaking trip around the table before it trickled into the side pocket with practically the last rotation it seemed capable of performing. It took Harry all his time not to bow as it disappeared from view.
    â€˜Just about made it, pal’, Harry observed as seriously as he could manage with all that lovely money safely tucked away in his pocket. ‘I guess this is my lucky day. You feel like a bite to eat? It’s the least I can do after relieving you of your roll.’
    Harrington couldn’t have put it better himself. The Superintendent certainly knew what he was about. He’d predicted exactly what Harry was proposing, having already told Harrington to expect to be invited back to the hall tomorrow to try to recoup his losses. Harry operated that way, just to show what a big heart he had.
    Baldy Bradford was only trotting after the Superintendent when it came to judging human nature. Of course, the Superintendent had the advantage of knowing everything there was to know about Harry the Hustler, before Harry came to the conclusion that he wasn’t cut out to be a real criminal. He’d been arrested at least fifteen times after bungling one caper after another. And had always ended up in the loving arms of the Superintendent’s squad, who ensured he did a few months behind bars for each of his errors.
    But Harry finally got sense. There was no law against pool hustling to earn a crust. None that he knew of, anyway. And there had always been enough suckers willing to try their luck against him when he’d started out. But the well had run dry after a few years when word spread of his prowess. So the Superintend forecast Harry would view Harrington as an easy mark, and try to string him along for as long as possible.
    And the fact that Harry knew so much about what was going on in the underworld he once was part of was the reason he was now richer by three hundred and forty euros from the Superintendent’s supposedly non-existent snitch slush fund . But he had to slip forty of that back to Baldy before himself and Harrington left to feed their faces in one of the local Fast Food outlets. Still, three hundred was very nice indeed for a few hours playing the game he loved. Harry was going to insist the pigeon had a second helping of whatever he fancied.
    Before they said their goodbyes after arranging the following day’s rematch, Harry asked Harrington his name. ‘Brendan Bedford,’ Harrington told him, thinking it sounded as good as any other, also assuring himself that telling a few white lies in the interests of justice wasn’t at all the same thing as deliberately lying where matters of principle were concerned.
    â€˜Mine’s Harry,’ came the reply as they shook hands. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’

C HAPTER N INE
    â€˜ What do you mean he’s gone fishing?’ the Chief of Police shouted into the mouthpiece, almost making Sergeant Neville’s eardrum explode. ‘What on earth sort of an irresponsible thing is that to be doing at a time like this?’
    â€˜I don’t really know, sir,’ Neville replied nervously, being as surprised at the Superintendent’s departure every bit as much as the Chief seemed to be. ‘He left about fifteen minutes ago.’
    â€˜Is he out of his mind, Sergeant?’
    Sometimes Neville thought the very same thing himself. But had always been proven wrong in the past. Even with all his funny little ways, the Superintendent had a way of coming up with the goods in the end.
    â€˜I wouldn’t