Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 71 — page 104: what you’re looking at

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

WISHFUL THINKING a vengeance killing, a gang job. Maybe he was a squealer, a welcher or a double-crosser.”’ “Could be,” agreed Stanley. ““Maybe it wasn’t even a local job.” “It was local, all right,” said Mark decisively. “‘No one other than a local would have known about the dump.” “They took a chance at that,” said Stanley. “If the watchman had caught them dumping the body they’d have been in trouble.” “If he had caught them then we'd be short one watch- man.” corrected Mark. **That man’s killers were ruth- less. They didn’t stop at just shooting him or crushing his skull. They took their time about it, slowly torturing him to death and probably enjoy- ing every moment of it.”” He tilted back his chair and stared at the ceiling. “It was a premeditated crime, obviously. They had everything to hand for the job and that meant preparation.” “How do you make that out?” “The injuries must have caused intense pain. He must have struggled and screamed and fought. So he was taken to a place where his screams wouldn’t be heard, where his killers could take their time and work in peace.” Stanley grunted, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the captain’s deductions. He reached for his copy of the report and leafed through it. “Clothes don’t help. Cheap shoes, cheap suit, cotton shirt, no underwear or socks and no hat, at least we didn’t find one. No cleaning marks on the clothes—they looked new, and nothing in the pockets.” “Did they fit?’ “No. The clothes were too big and the shoes too small. Why ?” Ss “Just a thought.” Mark straightened his chair. “‘Let’s attack it from the other direction. So far we’ve assumed that someone prepared every- thing they needed for the crime and then lured the victim into the trap. Suppose the crime took place where 103 COMME DOOKSACOMN =