Hit and Run by James Hadley Chase Page A

was hurt?'

    She lifted her hair off her shoulders with an exasperated movement.
    'Do you have to keep on and on like this? I've told you what happened.'

    'I must get this straight, Lucille. You kept on and reached the main road. Then what did you do?'

    'I realized I must have damaged the man's motor-cycle and I had also damaged your car. I was frightened. I thought I'd better tell you. I didn't want to go back in case I met the policeman, so I decided to go to your place and wait for you.'

    I lit another cigarette while I stared at her. She kept her eyes lowered and I could see she was very tense.

    'How did you know where I lived?' I asked.

    She stiffened.

    'I – I had looked you up in the telephone book,' she said, speaking slowly and deliberately as if to give herself time to think. 'I – I once passed your place when I was out cycling. I knew where you lived.'

    I had an uneasy feeling she wasn't telling me the truth.

    'You had to drive a mile and a half before you reached the road that leads here. Did you pass any car while you were coming here?'

    'I don't think so.'

    'Are you quite sure about that?'

    'I don't remember passing any.'

    'I think you must have, Lucille. After all it's a highway. The time was around half past ten. There must have been a number of cars on the road.'

    'I didn't notice any.'

    'I think you must have passed at least one car, Lucille.'

    'Suppose I did?' Her voice shot up. 'I tell you I didn't notice any, but suppose I did? What does it matter?'

    'You were driving with only one light: the other light was smashed. An approaching motorist, seeing you, would think you were driving a motor-cycle until he was close enough to see you were driving a car. He would remember that.'

    She moved impatiently.

    'So what does it matter?'

    'It does. If the car was seen and remembered, the police will know in which direction you were travelling. It will tell them you weren't leaving town. That's the one thing they can't be sure about: whether the car that killed O'Brien left town before the road blocks were set up. If you were seen, the police will know where to look for the car. Instead of having to search the whole town, they will know the first place to look is on the coast roads-right here!'

    If possible, her face went a shade paler than it was already.

    'Oh! I hadn't thought of that'

    'That's the main reason why I'm asking all these questions. Will you please try to concentrate? It's more than important. Can't you remember if you passed any cars?'

    She shook her head helplessly.

    'I can't remember. All I was thinking about was getting to your place.'

    'At least you must remember if you met any cars on this road.'

    'I'm sure I didn't.'

    Thinking about it, it seemed to me the situation was pretty bad. She must have passed a number of cars on the highway. Someone must have noticed she was driving with only one headlamp. Sooner or later this someone would remember and report to the police, and then the search would concentrate on the district where I lived.

    'Well, all right, I think that's about all,' I said. 'You'd better go home. There's nothing you can do now you must leave me to handle it.'

    She got hesitantly to her feet.

    'But what are you going to do, Ches?'

    'I honestly don't know for the moment. I've got to think about it. You have my promise to keep
    you out of it if I possibly can. If things look as if they are going wrong, I'll let you know. That's as far as I can go for the moment.'

    She studied me, her face tense.

    'What are you going to do about your car?'

    'That's something else I'll have to think about. I don't know.'

    'And this man who telephoned?'

    'I'll wait until he contacts me again. If you hear from him, let me know.'

    'But suppose he asks me for money? I'm sure that is what he plans to do.'

    'Let's wait until he does,' I said impatiently. 'If he does want money, tell him you must talk to me first.'

    'Can I promise him some money?' she asked, staring at