The Perfect Crime #32

Lawyer Reed Kent's reputation for honesty in Carver City makes him the last person an underworld fugitive should trust—but when Frankie Udel bursts into his life desperate and armed, Kent finds himself caught in a dangerous web of mob violence and mistaken assumptions. Trapped between a desperate criminal and the brutal crime boss Zep Carletti, who believes Kent holds a mysterious package, the honest lawyer must outwit both sides before they realize he's got nothing to give them. In this 1953 crime tale, one wrong move means death, and Kent's only advantage is knowing exactly what his pursuers want him to confess.

Slick Ace Harry, a lifelong gambler, walks away from an all-night poker game with a fortune—only to be held up on the street by one of the other players, who drew the high card in a scheme to reclaim their losses. When Harry refuses to surrender and the situation turns deadly, the killer decides to keep all the winnings for himself and flee town. Harry's widow knows her husband couldn't lose honestly, and she tips off a lieutenant who devises a clever trap at the funeral to catch all the conspirators at once.

Gunner Rawling, a career criminal on the run after a botched bank robbery, finds refuge in Doc Ryker's hidden warehouse—a safe house that promises thirty days of protection for a steep price. But when Doc discovers how much cash Gunner managed to steal, the hideout becomes a trap, and Gunner must fight for his life against the very man who was supposed to keep him safe.

Willie Doone's forgettable face has made him the perfect crash-and-run artist—until he targets a jewelry store during an air raid drill, banking on the crowds to help him vanish. When the streets empty faster than he expects, Willie's flawless plan crumbles, and he finds himself cornered with nowhere left to hide. A sharp lesson in how even the cleverest criminal can't account for everything.

Danny Case thought he could use his honest job driving a construction crew as cover for a payroll robbery—but when his criminal partner Nick Trell shows up to pull the job, the other workers smell a setup and fight back. As the plan falls apart at the crossroads, Danny and Nick discover that crime, no matter how carefully plotted, has a way of catching up with you.