Free said: “Well — killed him, eh?”
Hammond nodded. The girl, with her head still lowered, shivered a little and made a moaning sound. Hammond said:
“A lot of others have tried to kill this same man, but it never took. He rated killing, Free. But there’s the law—”
Free said slowly: “Sure, there’s always the law.”
Hammond smiled thinly. “It was Bandor, Free. Tony Bandor.”
Free sucked in a slow, long breath. He swore very softly. The girl looked up and said fiercely:
“I didn’t mean to kill him, want to kill him! I had — to kill him!”
Hammond said: “That’s the way it was, Free.”
Free narrowed his eyes and said: “That’s the way what was?”
Hammond looked at the girl and spoke gently. “That’s all right, Miss Reynolds. Don’t worry.” His eyes went to Free’s. “It was like this,” he said, and then was silent for several seconds. When he went on it was as though he were reading a newspaper item. “Recently Miss Reynolds inherited quite a sum of money. She’s always lived in New York, but she hasn’t gone about so much. Miss Reynolds likes horse racing — a fine sport, Free. Now and then she used to make a bet. With the inherited money she increased her betting a bit, naturally.”
He paused and Free said: “Naturally.”
Hammond nodded. “About a week ago she had a streak of luck and made a big winning. The bookie was hit pretty hard, and he felt she should meet his backer. It happened to be Bandor. Miss Reynolds didn’t know anything about him, but she thought he was pretty nice. Tony could be that way, you know. Well, it turned out he wasn’t so nice. And about an hour ago he got himself killed.”
Free looked at the girl’s bowed head and said nothing. Hammond frowned.
“Miss Reynolds was perfectly justified, of course. But we don’t want the usual mess. Publicity, jury trial — the tabs smearing her name all over everything. You know how it is.”
The girl shivered again. Free looked at Hammond, smiling just a little.
“I know how it is, Tim,” he said. His voice held a peculiar note and Hammond continued to frown.
The girl spoke, without lifting her head, very softly:
“I told him — I didn’t care about — the bet. I’d let it go. But he wouldn’t—”
Her voice broke. Hammond said: “Well, let’s not worry about that. Tony’s dead, and the set-up doesn’t look bad. But we’ve got to be careful, Free. Awful careful. Miss Reynolds went to Burkley right away, and he sent her here. Burkley, you and I — and Miss Reynolds — we’re the only ones who know she killed him.”
Free said a little grimly: “That’s fine, if it’s right.” There wasn’t much enthusiasm in his voice.
Hammond said: “It’s right. Tony met Miss Reynolds at the Paramount at three. They sat through part of a picture, then he told her he had cash for her at his place. He said he always settled with cash. They took a cab down to the Village — got out three or four blocks from his place. It’s a nice old-fashioned, three-story brick house, with window boxes.”
The girl said a little shakily: “Green window boxes — it looked so nice—”
Hammond said: “Yeah, with green window boxes. They went inside — Tony using a key. He showed her around, and then took her into his radio room. He’s a radio fan. He can get China. It’s a sound-proof room. Well, things didn’t go so good, Free — and Tony got shot. Miss Reynolds came out, and she doesn’t think anyone saw her. Tony didn’t use the house much — he told her he only went there on important business. The room was soundproof, so the chances are he’s still where he fell. Miss Reynolds went right to her lawyer, and Burkley sent her to me. I happened to be in.”
Free said: “That was lucky.”
Hammond’s eyes got very small. Free looked at the girl.
“Sure Bandor was dead?” he asked quietly.
She raised her head and dabbed at her eyes with a small handkerchief. He didn’t think he had ever seen a more beautiful woman. She wasn’t a kid, yet everything was fresh, youthful. Her lips and eyes were lovely.
She nodded slowly. “His eyes — were open, staring terribly,” she said softly. “I waited — perhaps a few minutes. It seemed hours. I’m sure — he was dead.”
Free said: “What did you do with your gun?”
Her eyes widened. “It wasn’t — my gun,” she said. Her voice rose a little. “It was his—”
Hammond said: “It was in the radio room, Free. You see? It was just in there, on a cabinet or something. Miss Reynolds isn’t sure what the gun was on. She just grabbed for it. She’s been through a lot, Free.”
Free nodded. “Sure,” he agreed. “Well, what did you do with the gun you killed him with, Miss Reynolds?”
She shivered a little, then sat erect. Her eyes met his squarely.
“I brought it away with me,” she said. “It’s — in my bag.”
Free looked at Hammond and Hammond nodded. “I’ve had a look at it, Free. A ten slug Colt, with two slugs used. Miss Reynolds thinks she shot twice. Tony was close to her — and she thinks she got him in the stomach and heart. She was pretty excited, you see — and she just grabbed the gun and squeezed it. You know how it goes, Free.”
Free’s eyes were very small. “Sure, Tim,” he said. “It’s happened before. She noticed the gun right after she got in the radio room, eh?”
The girl said: “About five minutes after. Mr. Bandor — he didn’t seem to notice it, or if he did he didn’t pay any attention to it. When he said he wouldn’t let me go — I remembered the gun. It was all — very terrible—”
Hammond sighed. “Poor kid,” he breathed.
Don Free looked at the carpet. “Well... you don’t think you were seen going in the Greenwich Village house, or coming out. You haven’t been playing around with Tony Bandor. The shot was fired in a sound-proof room, and you’ve got the gun. A lot of guys were after Tony, and the police know that. Only three of us know that you killed him.”
Hammond reached for a pack of cigarettes laying on his desk.
“That’s about it, Free,” he said. He rapped on the desk surface before he lighted the cigarette. When he spoke his voice held a thoughtful note. “What I’m afraid of is a slip-up.”
The girl said huskily: “Oh,—”
Hammond said: “They might have been seen at the Paramount, or on the way downtown, or going in the house. She might have been seen coming out. And there’s this bookie who had Bandor as a backer.”
Free nodded. “What’s his name?” he asked.
The girl said: “Kronnen — Eddie Kronnen. He has an office in the James Building, but I’ve never been there.”
Hammond blew a thin stream of smoke towards the ceiling. He spoke very quietly.
“Self defense, Free. But we’ve got to be careful. If anyone is wise, they won’t run to the police. They’ll come after Miss Reynolds. She’s just inherited a lot of money. I think we can handle the police, unless things get too hot. I’d like you to buzz around the Village and find out if they’ve found the body yet. And you might get a line on Kronnen, see if he knows anything, or suspects anything.”
Free looked towards the girl’s handbag. Hammond watched him and said:
“We’d better keep the gun, Miss Reynolds.”
She handed the bag to him, and he opened it. He put a handkerchief in his palm, covering his fingers, and took the Colt from the bag, got it in a drawer of his desk. The girl said:
“I will pay you well, Mr. Hammond—”
He smiled at her. “Naturally,” he agreed. “But just once. We’re not blackmailers, Miss Reynolds. That’s what I’m worried about.”