“Sure. That was just on a vacation.”
“Well, Ike, I’d swear you was holdin’ down a job as one o’ them swell life-savers when this picture was taken.” Sal held it up again, and gazed at it long, with gleaming eyes. Benson was smiling a pleased, self-conscious smile.
A half-drunken giggle from Sal. Then she turned to her companion with a serious expression on her face.
“You wouldn’t let me keep this picture, would you, Ike?”
“Why, sure. Keep it if you want to,” and he made a big-hearted gesture.
“Thanks a lot, kid. I know a girl friend that knows a life-saver down at Asbury. A little wizened-up guy, too. When I show her this it’ll knock her cold.”
Sal’s flattery was working. Benson was leaning back, his thumbs pompously placed in his upper vest pockets. Sal laughed another silly laugh and then seemed to get a brilliant idea.
“Say, Ike, I can’t wait. What you say I mail the snapshot to the girl friend right now. I can tell her I’m out dining with the picture himself in person.”
Benson seemed to think it was a great idea, too. He called over the waiter and instructed him to bring an envelope and the other necessary equipment. When it was before them a few moments later, Benson leaned back to laugh again. Sal slipped the snapshot in the envelope and began to address it.
Benson was apparently feeling happy as he tilted back in his chair, waiting till Sal should finish. Sal felt that his attitude was most fortunate for her. He was not watching what she scrawled on the letter. In a moment she passed it over to the waiter to mail.
“And mail it right away,” ordered Benson, authoritatively. “Then bring us another round of drinks.”
“Thanks so much for your assistance,” said Sal. There was a smile of sardonic pleasure on her lips, but she was certain that the dick failed to read its meaning.
With another round of drinks Benson’s amorous attentions increased. But Sal’s attitude had undergone a sudden change. She could not even trouble herself to be coldly polite.
“I’m leaving now.” she said, as she rose abruptly from the table.
“Sure, we’re both going.” There was a fatuous grin on the detective’s face. “You just come along with me,” he continued in a confidential whisper. “I’ll take care of you. And listen! That ain’t all.” It was impossible to let this opportunity to boast slip by. “I got cash with me, girlie, and lots of it.”
He was reaching into an inside pocket.
“Never mind, Ike, I—” the girl began hurriedly.
But it was too late. Benson had drawn out his hand and there was a blank expression on his face. Sal scarcely glanced at him. She started to reel drunkenly in the direction of the exit. But Benson had suddenly grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her around.
“Where’s the money that was in my pocket?” he demanded.
“What money, Ike?” She looked at him with wide eyes.
“That dough I got from the crook? It didn’t take me long to get it, and send the yegg on his way. I guess you saw the scene all right!”
Sal started on again, down between the row of tables.
“You stay right here where you are.” His firm grip stopped her progress.
“Now let’s see. That crook had got hold of five thousand.” Benson was thinking it out slowly. “And you was waitin’ on the corner for somebody that didn’t show up. No guy would throw you over if there wasn’t some reason. I guess maybe the kid you was waitin’ for was the one I sent on his way.” He looked narrowly at the girl.
“I guess,” he continued, “I’ll just be takin’ you over to the night court instead of seein’ you home.”
Sal was suddenly more sober. She faced the dick with a smile that was very like a sneer.
“What you goin’ to tell the judge at the night court, Ike?”
“Well... I—” and Benson began to flounder. What was he going to tell the judge?
Sal helped him out.
“You’re goin’ to tell him that you caught a crook with the goods. And his next annoying question might be. ‘Where is the goods?’ Then what do you suppose you’ll say?”
“Well, I... can—” Benson started again.
“Yeh, that’s just about what you’ll say, and some judges can be pretty funny. He might inquire as to when you developed defective speech.”
“Aw, shut up,” growled Benson, struck with a sudden idea. “I’m goin’ to show him the goods.”
“Hadn’t you better make certain of that?”
“I sure will. Right now.”
But a search of Sal’s clothing revealed nothing. He seemed to grow more drunkenly furious at the way he had been trapped. He made a more thorough search, and all but tore the clothing from the girl’s back. The only outcome was that he had to be convinced that the swag was not on Sal.
“All right,” he said, and he reeled drunkenly in his rage. “I’ll take you without it.” He grabbed her arm and began to march her towards the door. “I’ll fix up some story. The real crook got away. But you were his accomplice, waiting in a car to make good his getaway.”
Sal looked at him quietly as she walked along.
“That’s fine. You got a swell set o’ brains, Ike. Of course, you kinda forgot that I’ll be allowed to bring in witnesses. I don’t think your story will look quite so good when I bring in the waiter there to prove that you been dining and wining with the lady accomplice for the last two hours. The judge might make some funny remarks. And when you stagger quite as much as you’re doin’ now, Ike, he might even suggest that you leave your nice shiny badge at Headquarters. So let’s go ahead and see the judge. I’m curious to know if my guess isn’t about right.”
Benson halted suddenly, and his hold on the girl relaxed.
“Think you’re a clever twist, don’t you, puttin’ it over on a plainclothesman.”
Sal shook her head decidedly in the negative.
“Say, you don’t give me a chance to show how bright I really am. All dicks are so damn dumb.”
“Yell? Is that so?”
“Sure, it’s so,” laughed the girl. “If you weren’t so weak on the head-work, you’d have thought of looking around where I was sittin’ with you, when you didn’t find the swag on me.”
Sal saw that she had headed him the right way. Benson made a dive back for the table they had recently left. While he sprawled there on the floor, rummaging about. Take-It-Easy-Sal slipped out of the door and made her getaway without being followed.
Back at the hotel she expected to find Jim. But it was not till the next morning that he showed up.
“Well, we sure ran into hard luck that time, Sal,” he said. “If that guy hadn’t happened to be a crooked dick, I sure would have done a stretch. I didn’t come around last night because I figured the dick might be wise that you was waitin’ for me, and follow you, only to find me here. Then you’d have been in the mess to.”
“Well, that wasn’t quite the game. I followed the dick instead. And, Jim, the swag is ours.”
Jim only stared at her. Then, “You got it here, now?”
“Not quite yet, Jim, but Uncle Sam is bringing it to me just as fast as he can.”
She glided quickly over to the telephone and picked it up.
“Hello. This the hotel desk? Will you send one of the bell-boys up with the mail? O.K.”
While they waited, Sal leaned back on the divan, lit a cigarette and recounted to her partner the events of the previous night. A few minutes later a letter was handed in at the door. Sal glanced casually down at the handwriting, saw that it was her own, and passed the envelope over to Jim.
“And the coin is in here?” he said with a pleased smile.
“Together with a picture of my latest boy friend,” added the girl as she sank down on the divan again.