5 Detective Novels Magazine Cover — page 31: what you’re looking at

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

DEATH ALL AROUND ME so I felt reasonably safe in visiting him for a pretended interview. If I slipped anywhere and he got wise, that was all right with me. I had some other questions I’d like to ask him, too. The offices occupied a whole eight- story building half a block from the waterfront, and when I asked for Ward, I was sent to the top floor. There, I stepped out of the elevator into a large reception room as modernistic as the steamship line was ancient. Everything was done in pastel, including the re- ceptionist who rated her blond hair about as much as an Airedale would have. I told her I wanted to see Ward’s secretary. “That would be Mr. Galey,” she said. If she’d had the nerve, I think skhe’d have asked me to date her. I didn’t enjoy being eaten by a woman’s eyes. She plugged into the board, nibbled at me some more while she waited, and at last told Mr. Galey that the reporter was here. I moved out of her range and pre- tended to study some old photos of wind- jammers which were hung safely behind thick glass. Light slanted on the glass in such a way as to make a fairly good mirror of it, and when the door behind me opened and a man started to come out, I think I recognized him before he knew who I was. If this happened to be Mr. Galey, private secretary to Syd- ney Ward, he had an alias, to wit: Al- bert Moore—with a propensity for set- fe cute little traps for people he didn’t ike. ; Galey backed into his office and closed the door so quickly I knew I couldn’t be mistaken. I was even more sure of it when the receptionist called me over in a voice dripping with honey. “Mr. Galey is sorry, but Mr. Ward will be tied up until tomorrow. If you can return then—” I said, “Fhanks, beautiful. I’ll come back but not entirely because your boss asked me to. Maybe if I stay over an- other day, I can get to take out a mighty cute girl. Mighty cute.” _ She simpered and didn’t quite look as if she were going to jump over the counter at me, though I think she was considering it. I had a favor to ask of her and I asked it fast. “May I use that phone, please? A local call.” “Sure,” she said. “Go right ahead. Tell me the number you want. I'll get it for you if it’s in Siam.” I found a phone book, ran through it, and scribbled down the number of Cora Kane’s phone. While I was looking for it, I kept watching that glass case. was quite certain that Galey opened his office door and closed it again just as quickly as before. I handed the written number to the receptionist, and she signaled she’d put it through in a second. Someone had her on the wire. Finally she put the call through but she didn’t look up at me when I raised the phone and said hello to Cora. “I don’t want to talk to you, Johnny,” Cora said. “I don’t want to see you again.” . I said, “You’ll be home at eight to- night, baby, and you'll let me in, because if you don’t, I’ll go away and come back with the cops. If you run out on me, they’ll have you in twenty-four hours. You and I can get together but under my terms. At eight tonight.” Tye the phone on its cradle, I left the office. I had no doubt at all that Galey, alias Moore, had listened in. I was feeling pretty good by the time I reached my office. So good, in fact, that I worked for the rest of the after- ee and picked up fifty bucks for my- self. I made sure I was across the street from the apartment house where Cora lived two full hours before eight, the hour I’d told her I’d be there. I had a good idea that Galey wouldn’t want me to see Cora again, not after the threatening way I’d talked to her. The easiest way to prevent it was to stop me, and as Galey had tried once to put a permanent end to my activities, it seemed likely that he’d try again. I stood in a deep doorway where it was good and dark. I could see who went in and out of the building across the street but I couldn’t be seen myself. At seven-thirty a car pulled up and Galey got out and went into the build- ing alone. I resisted the temptation to go after him, and it was a good thing I CoOMmniclooo SS (C(O)