Slowly, as if afraid to open the door and afraid not to, Phil gets up and, holding the gun behind him, goes to the door and unlocks it. Dancer pushes the door open violently, knocking Phil back against the wall, then kicks the door shut; and standing close to Phil, says with threatening mildness, “What did I tell you about trying to cut yourself in on somebody else’s game?”
Outside the Hall of Justice — broad daylight. Harold is asleep in Nick’s car. Nick, Nora, and Abrams come out of the building surrounded by a flock of reporters.
Abrams is saying to the reporters “Lay off us. I told you anything you get, you’ll have to get from the DA.” He then says to Nick and Nora, “I could use a lot of breakfast. How about you folks?”
Nick looks at his watch and says, “I could use a lot of sleep.”
Nora is too sleepy to say anything.
Abrams insists. “Yeah, but you got to eat anyhow, don’t you, and there’s a pretty good place not far from here.”
Nick asks, “You mean you want to ask some more questions?”
Abrams. “No, not exactly, but there are a couple of points.”
Nick. “We’ll drop you wherever you’re going and you can ask them on the way — but if you get wrong answers it’s because I’m talking in my sleep.”
As they are about to get into Nick’s car, a taxicab drives up and Dancer gets out. Abrams goes over and grabs him by the shoulder, asking “Where have you been?”
Dancer. “Hiding — where’d you think I’ve been? The lights go out and somebody starts shooting — I haven’t even got a gun — I don’t know whether somebody’s trying to get me or if I’m being framed by you people, or what — so I did the only smart thing I could think of and played the duck and waited for daylight so I can at least see who’s shooting at me.”
Abrams turns to Nick and says, “Phooey! I won’t be more than a minute. I’m going to turn him over to the boys. I’m afraid to trust myself with him this morning — I’m liable to slap him around too much.” He and Dancer go back into the Hall of Justice.
Abrams returns almost immediately, gets into the car with Nick and Nora complaining “What stories these guys think up.” They drive off.
Interior Nick’s car. Nick, Nora, and Abrams are sitting together. Nora is nodding sleepily, her head keeps bobbing in front of Nick, interfering with his vision. Whenever Nick turns to speak to Abrams, her head falls back, concealing him.
Abrams. “Sure I believe David Graham — I guess, but how do I know he ought to have believed Mrs. Landis? Well, I’m going to talk to her today, if I have to lock up that lame nut doctor while I do it. On the level, Mr. Charles. What’s she doing with him around if she isn’t at least a little bit punchy?”
Nick. “I don’t think she is — just very nervous. You know how idle wives get — look at Mrs. Charles, for instance.”
Abrams looks at Nora, who by this time is sound asleep, her chin resting on her chest.
Nick goes on — “and then, living with Robert wasn’t doing her any good.”
Abrams. “You honestly don’t think she did it?”
Nick. “No.”
Abrams. “She had the best reason. Graham had paid him to go away and he was going away, so he didn’t have much reason — Dancer and the Chinaman and the Byrnes gal were taking him all right, but killing him made it tough for them on the check. Besides, why didn’t they grab the bonds and that jewelry of his wife’s that he had on him? And that goes for the Byrnes gal, even if she was double-crossing the others.”
Nick asks, “How about Phil — her brother?”
Abrams. “There’s no telling exactly until we get hold of him, but he figures to be out for the dough, too — so why don’t he grab the bonds? He don’t sound to me like a lad who would kill somebody just because he was running off with his sister.”
Nick. “Lots of stickups go wrong — perhaps he had to leave before he could get the stuff.”
Abrams. “You mean on account of Mrs. Landis running around the corner with a gun in her hand like she said she did? If he saw her, why didn’t she see him, and she didn’t say anything about that, did she?”
Nick. “Back in the office, you said Landis and Pedro were killed with bullets from the same gun. She doesn’t fit in very well with Pedro’s killing; but Polly lived in his house, which ties his killing up at least a little with her and the others.”
Abrams. “That’s right enough, and I guess there’s not much doubt that he was killed because he was on his way to tell you something. It’s a fair bet that that something he was going to tell you had to do with Robert Landis, but there’s something funny about that house that I want to show you. Maybe, if you’ve got a few minutes—”
Nick. “You don’t mean the goats in the hallway?”
Abrams, surprised. “What goats?”
Nick. “Never mind — but Mr. and Mrs. Charles aren’t going anywhere but home — to sleep. Think you’ll be able to fish Mrs. Landis’ gun up from where David threw it?”
Abrams. “I guess so. Anyway, the boys are down there working now.” He pauses. “—and when we get that, then we’ll know. It will only take a few minutes to go over to that apartment house.”
Nick. “Call me later. We’ve been on a train for three days and look what kind of a night we’ve had.”
Abrams. “All right — I could use a little sleep myself but I’ve got to talk to Mrs. Landis and got to stop at the bank and see about that check.”
Harold pulls over to the curb and Abrams gets out. Nora almost falls out after him as he withdraws his support. Abrams helps Nick put her back on the seat and placing her head on his shoulder, Nick nods goodbye to Abrams, who waves to him as they drive off.
Nick and Nora in their car going home. She is sleeping on his shoulder. With his free hand he unties his necktie and takes off his shirt. When he twists around a little to unbutton his collar, in back, Nora wakes up and asks, “What are you doing?”
Nick. “I’m getting as few clothes as possible between me and bed.”
Nora. “That’s cheating.” She begins to loosen her clothes. They arrive at the house. As they go up the front steps, Nora says, “Last one in bed is a sissy!” They run into the house pulling off clothes.
From the living room to meet them come Asta and the reporters that they left at the Hall of Justice, the reporters asking questions “Do the police suspect Mrs. Landis?” “What connections had Pedro Dominges with the Landis killing?” et cetera, et cetera.
Nick insists he knows nothing about it and has nothing to say as they go back into the living room, winding up with “I’m going to give you boys one drink apiece and then put you out.”
One of the reporters asks, “Well, answer another question for us and we won’t print it if you don’t want us to. Is it true that you actually didn’t retire as a detective but are working under cover?”
Nick, starting to pour drinks. “No, it’s not true, but don’t print it because I don’t want my wife’s relatives to know I’m living on her money.”
A stone with a piece of paper wrapped around it crashes through the glass of the window and knocks the bottle out of his hand. Asta joyfully grabs the stone, runs under a sofa with it, and starts to chew the paper off while Nick and the reporters scramble after him. By the time Nick recovers the stone with the paper, the note has been pretty well chewed up. He spreads it out, glances at it and puts it in his pocket before the reporters, who are crowding around him, can read it.
Nick. “Silly little woman. I told her to stop writing me.”
The reporters, failing to get anything else out of Nick, rush out to see if they can find out who threw the stone. Nick smooths the note out and he and Nora, patching it as well as they can where Asta’s teeth have tom it, read it. It is crudely printed.