10-Story Detective, September 1941 — page 17: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

FOUR AND TWENTY BLACK) ACKS——————————-15 The manager was outside—a small man with a bald, egg-shaped head and faint eyebrows that were so- light they gave him a hairless appearance. “What was that? The erash?” Falkner told him: “Don’t get ex- cited, Putner. Just someone shooting at me.” Putner was jittery. “Shooting? Lis- ten, Mr. Falkner. This is a respect- able hotel. We can’t have such goings on, do you understand? First you are mixed up in a murder and then someone shoots through a window.” Falkner said: “I don’t enjoy it any more than you do.” “You’ll have to move.” Putner was still excited. “You’ll have to move.” Falkner nodded. “That’s exactly what I intend to do.” The little manager showed his re- lief. “In that case—” Falkner said: “In that case you can send up a boy to take my stuff over to one of the rear rooms. They’re hotter, but there aren’t any three- storied buildings back there to use as shooting galleries.” Putner’s mouth opened - “You mean—you think that you’re going to stay on at this hotel?” Falkner told him: “I don’t think, I know. Now run along and let me worry about something important.” “But you can’t! Do you under- stand? You can’t! Pll send up the _-house officer. I’ll have you thrown out.” 3 Falkner took a step toward him, and he retreated down the hall, still shouting threats. Falkner closed the door. He turned around and said: “You all right?” From the darkness her voice came shakily: “I guess so.” “Then you’d better get out of here before the big parade arrives. You’re too much involved in this thing with me already. Everyone in this town is either going to clip me or throw me out on my ear.” “But, Guy—do you think they were really trying to hit you?” slowly. | He said, with a shrug which she couldn’t see: “Do you know of any leading citizen who goes around ae windows out for the fun of it?” She said slowly and thoughtfully: “I never heard of any.” “Then someone was trying to hit me.” “he phone rang and he groped through the darkness to find it. His voice was irritable as he said: “What is it now?” It was I{cCosky. The fat man was out of breath. “Hello, palo. I just thought I’d eall you and tell you that they tested the slug they took out of old Durey. It came from your gun.” Falkner swore softly. “That’s im- possible. At the time Durey was shot that gun was in my poeket and I was out in the hall. I’m no magician.” McCosky’s voice was still tired. “I don’t know what yeu are but those slugs check. There’s a milk train at three-thirty. I thought you might like to be on it. We won’t arrest you till morning, but this is the last chance.” | ALKNER hung up slowly, Reach- ing over, he turned on the eeil- ing light. ees The girl said: “What was that?” _ He told her: “MeCesky. They elaim that the slug they dug out of Pete Durey came from my gun. That puts us both in a spot. You told them you were with me all the time.” Her face drained of all color. “But surely you didn’t kill him—did you, Guy ?” His twisted grin moeked her. “You should know. You were with me all the time.” She caught her lip in her white teeth. “Oh, Guy, why don’t you get out of town? They framed you onee—” He swung and caught her shoul- ders roughly. “Say that again.” She stared at him. “Why—what—” He said through gritted teeth: “Who framed me? Who had me ar- - rested for forgery? I’ve been trying COMICOO® S ©