1956 - There's Always a Price Tag by James Hadley Chase Read Free Book Online

but suppose he didn't take the car out or walk across a street when he was plastered? How long had I got before the premium was due? That was the vital point.
    Helen must know that time was pressing. Wouldn't it be the smart thing for me to do to wait for her to get rid of Dester, keep clear of it, and then move in and make her part with half?
    That brought me back to the guy who had fallen out of a window. Was this something in her past that I could hook her with? Then I suddenly thought of Solly. He had contacts in New York. He might be able to get me the dope if I could persuade him to take the trip.
    I looked at my watch. It was just after seven o'clock. I couldn't imagine that Dester would be going out this night. The sooner I talked to Solly the better. I picked up the telephone and called his apartment.
    There was a delay before he answered.
    'I want to talk to you, Jack,' I said. 'Can you meet me at Sam's bar in half an hour?'
    'Not tonight I can't. I've got me a heavy date. What's biting you?'
    'Nothing's biting me, but plenty will bite you if you don't hustle over to Sam's bar.'
    There was a pause while he wrestled with himself, then I heard him heave a sigh.
    'Well, okay, if you snap it up I can still keep my date. I don't have to meet her for another hour.'
    'Sam's bar in twenty minutes or faster,' I said and hung up.
    I changed into my suit and started down the drive at a fast clip. I would have liked to borrow one of the cars, but I wasn't going to ask permission, and I knew it would be unsafe if I didn't ask permission.
    Solly was impatiently waiting for me as I came into the bar. I took him to the end booth against the wall where we could talk without being overheard and told the waiter to bring us a couple of highballs.
    'What's this about?' he asked as soon as the waiter had put the drinks in front of us and had moved away.
    'Yeah. Now listen: you remember what you said about Mrs. Dester? About a guy who threw himself out of a window because of her?'
    Solly grimaced. 'Yeah, but what's that got to do with me? Look, if you've brought me here...'
    'Take it easy,' I said, patting his arm. 'Who told you about this guy?'
    'Search me,' Solly said, shrugging. 'People tell me things all the time. I wouldn't know.'
    'Was it true?'
    'I guess so. What are you getting so excited about? What's Mrs. Dester to do with this proposition of yours?'
    'Do you know for certain this guy fell out of a window?'
    He stared at me. 'Does anyone know anything for certain? What is all this about?'
    I sat back, drank some of the highball while I looked at him. 'How would you like to pick up five hundred bucks?' I asked.
    He scratched the side of his beaky nose with a dirty fingernail. 'Are you kidding?'
    'This isn't the time to kid. There's five C's waiting for you if you're prepared to make yourself useful.'
    'Is this some racket?' Solly asked, his eyes hard. 'Now look, you...'
    'I know, I know. Let me do the talking, will you? I'm offering you the chance to get in on something on the ground floor, but you must be prepared to gamble with me and you must also be prepared to do some preliminary work before you cash in.'
    'I don't think I like the sound of this,' he said slowly. 'You can't lay your hands on five bucks let alone five hundred. What the hell gives? Look, I'm passing up a good date because I thought you meant business.'
    'I know,' I interrupted. 'Coming from me it sounds nuts, but it isn't anything like as nutty as it sounds. The point is how much do you want to know about it?'
    He shifted impatiently.
    'How much do I want to know? I want to know the whole works, of course.'
    I stared at him. 'Sure you do?'
    'What are you getting at?'
    'I want some information about Helen Dester,' I said, lowering my voice. 'I think you can get this information. When I've got it, I'll be in a position to pay you five hundred, but not before.' I paused to stare at him again. 'Now do you want to know the whole works?'
    He started to say something,