Galloway.â
âWe will,â the man said. âSomething went wrong at Rollisonâs flat, I havenât heard what, yet, but when I want you to worry, Iâll tell you.â
Maggie didnât smile. Her face had taken on a kind of impassiveness, and was very beautiful. With that slow, exciting walk, she crossed the room again, still drawing at the cigarette. The Austin was parked immediately outside the hotel, and she saw a man get into it and drive off. Before it was out of sight, the door bell of the apartment rang.
She went across and opened it.
âHi, Maggie,â a young man said, and came breezily into the room. âIâve brought the prize packet. Ought to win a first in any show, Iâd say.â He waited until she had closed the door, and then lifted the case, swinging it a little, as if he were going to toss it into the air.
âDonât!â exclaimed Maggie.
âNow whatâs the matter with you?â asked the young man cheerfully. âI thought you had nerves of steel.â
âHe doesnât wantâit hurt.â
âSo it better hadnât be,â the young man said. âHeâs got enough bad news coming to him, as it is.â
Maggie asked sharply: âWhatâs gone wrong?â
âThe Toff oddity had a slice of luck,â the other told her quietly. âHis flat wasnât burned and heâs still alive and kicking. He caught Galloway, too, and Galloway was good. The Doc wonât be too happy about that when he knows.â
âWhy doesnât he know already?â
âSmith was with Galloway, and thought he was followed from Rollisonâs flat, so he went to earth until he knew he was safe.â
Maggieâs eyes, lacklustre until then, took on a kind of brightness.
âThatâs what he must have meant when he said he was beginning to think that Rollison had a lucky star.â She watched the youth put the case down on a gold and green couch covered with a rich brocade, and saw him unfasten it. He pushed the lid back, and she took a step forward. âIs there anything else?â she asked.
âPenn was caught doing this job.â
âPenn,â she echoed.
âThatâs right. Two keymen gone in one morning,â the young man said, in a subdued voice, but his movements werenât subdued.
âLeo, be careful,â Maggie said quickly, and moved forward.
He was taking the baby out of the case as if it was a bundle of rags; and actually held it upside down. She took it from him, and he made a grimace of distaste, watching her as she lifted the child to a level with her face, and looked at its screwed-up eyes and its little snub nose, the bubbles at its lips.
âItâs okay, isnât it?â Leo asked abruptly.
âYes, it takes a lot to harm a baby,â Maggie said, slowly, and turned away from Leo, towards the bedroom. âIâm to keep it here until five oâclock, when heâll send for it.â
âAnd we shanât know who heâll send or where itâs going to be taken,â Leo observed, and lit a cigarette as he followed her. He watched as she put the child gently down in an armchair, and hemmed it in with cushions. âIf the Doc ever fires you, you could get a job as a childrenâs nurse,â he said; âyou look as if youâd hate to see it hurt. I say, Maggie.â
âWhat?â
âEver get fed up with the Doc?â
She didnât answer.
âYou know what I mean,â said Leo, smoothly. âHe takes us all for granted, doesnât heâand he doesnât really trust us an inch. Not a millimetre. Weâre watched and followed, all our movements traced, sometimes I think that if I want to pet a girl Iâd have to ask his permission. I just wondered whether you ever felt like some of the othersâthat heâs a bit too much of a good thing.â
âYou get your money, donât
Maggie Brendan
Barbara O'Connor
Jan Washburn
Terri Blackstock
Norah Simone
Barry Kemp
G.P. Taylor
Alan Cumyn
Linda Barnes
Lisa Jackson