Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye by Horace McCoy Page B

that excavation down the street. Holiday hadn’t sat down yet, her eyes were on the bedroom door; and I kept trying to tell her with my lips and hands to please sit down, that we were in no danger now. I didn’t believe this myself, but as the seconds passed and I heard nothing from the bedroom I slowly became aware that maybe this was so. If anything was going to happen in there it surely would have happened by now. If they were shaking down the room they surely would have found Jinx by now. It just wasn’t possible that they could have found him and not made some sounds. It just wasn’t possible. My intestines began to ease off and I began to feel better, heart-beat by heart-beat. I smiled and spread my hands at Holiday: You see? Now, please sit down.
    She was just sitting down when the door opened and the Inspector and Reece came in.
    ‘Where is this pay-roll job?’ the Inspector asked.
    I searched his face. He was not suspicious. He was on the level. My intestines finished easing off, sprawling into a luxurious heap. ‘I don’t know, sir,’ I said. ‘My friend knows …’
    ‘Where is your friend now?’
    ‘I don’t know that either, sir. But I can get in touch with him…’
    Reece moved around in front of me. He hadn’t looked at Holiday since he had come out of the bedroom. He had his mind above his belt for a change. ‘When’d you figure on pulling this?’ he asked.
    ‘We hadn’t gone into that,’ I replied. ‘My friend’s the one who spotted this. He just said it looked like a push-over. He didn’t go into details.’
    Reece looked at the Inspector and the Inspector looked at me.
    ‘Well, I’ll tell you what you do,’ he said. ‘You have your friend here at nine o’clock and we’ll go into details.’
    ‘I’ll try, sir,’ I said. ‘I’ll certainly try.’
    ‘Whaddya mean you’ll try? You said you could get in touch with him.’
    ‘Yes, sir, but whether or not I can get in touch with him in time to have him here by nine o’clock, I don’t know. He’s holed up somewhere. I’ll have to get the word to him round-about. You can come back at nine, but if he’s not here I don’t want you to get sore at me.’
    He stuck his left little finger in his ear and dug, grimacing, and then he looked at the nail to see what he had dug and wiped it off on his trousers. ‘I’m not coming back till he’s here,’ he said. ‘You think you can raise him by tomorrow?’
    ‘Oh, I’m sure of that…’
    ‘Call me at headquarters. If I’m not there say that Mister Baker called. I’ll know what that means. Mister Baker.’
    ‘Yes, sir, Mister Baker – Inspector, sir, what about those two plainclothes men at the garage, Pratt and Downey? What if Mason brings them here? What if they come here?’
    ‘All you got to worry about,’ he said, ‘is dragging that friend of yours out of his hole.’
    ‘Yes, sir,’ I said.
    He turned and started to go and then stopped, glaring at Reece. Reece was paying no attention to what was being said now. He had his back turned to the Inspector, gazing at Holiday, his chin stuck out, nipping his teeth together in eloquent communication. He was not even aware that the conversation had stopped. He looked like a damn fool, standing there with his chin stuck out, nipping his teeth together, showing her what he’d like to do.
    ‘Whenever you’re ready, George,’ the Inspector said quietly.
    Reece whirled guiltily, startled. ‘Oh – sure, sure,’ he said. ‘I’m finished, I’m finished …’
    The Inspector nodded, moving to the hall door, followed by Reece. They went out without looking back. I got up and tiptoed to the hall door. I made sure the latch was caught and then I lay down on the floor with my ear near the crack at the bottom of the door, listening. I heard their footsteps moving down the hall. When the sounds faded I got up and crossed to the bedroom, motioning for Holiday to follow.
    I went straight to the closet door.
    ‘Jinx! Jinx!’ I