I gotta go up against them now."
"Leave the old man out of it, if you can."
"Why?"
"He has enough troubles and he's sick."
"You mean Regan?"
I scowled.
"I don't know anything about Regan, I told you.
I'm not looking for Regan.
Regan hasn't bothered anybody that I know of."
Ohls said: "Oh," and stared thoughtfully out to sea and the sedan nearly went off the road.
For the rest of the drive back to town he hardly spoke.
He dropped me off in Hollywood near the Chinese Theater and turned back west to Alta Brea Crescent.
I ate lunch at a counter and looked at an afternoon paper and couldn't find anything about Geiger in it.
After lunch I walked east on the boulevard to have another look at Geiger's store.
10
The lean black-eyed credit jeweler was standing in his entrance in the same position as the afternoon before.
He gave me the same knowing look as I turned in. The store looked just the same.
The same lamp glowed on the small desk in the corner and the same ash blonde in the same black suede-like dress got up from behind it and came towards me with the same tentative smile on her face.
"Was it — ?" she said and stopped.
Her silver nails twitched at her side. There was an overtone of strain in her smile.
It wasn't a smile at all. It was a grimace.
She just thought it was a smile.
"Back again," I chirped airily, and waved a cigarette. "Mr. Geiger in today?"
"I'm — I'm afraid not.
No — I'm afraid not.
Let me see — you wanted. . ."
I took my dark glasses off and tapped them delicately on the inside of my left wrist.
If you can weigh a hundred and ninety pounds and look like a fairy, I was doing my best.
"That was just a stall about those first editions," I whispered. "I have to be careful.
I've got something he'll want.
Something he's wanted for a long time."
The silver fingernails touched the blond hair over one small jet-buttoned ear.
"Oh, a salesman," she said. "Well — you might come in tomorrow.
I think he'll be here tomorrow."
"Drop the veil," I said. "I'm in the business too."
Her eyes narrowed until they were a faint greenish glitter, like a forest pool far back in the shadow of trees.
Her fingers clawed at her palm. She stared at me and chopped off a breath.
"Is he sick?
I could go up to the house," I said impatiently, "I haven't got forever."
"You — a — you — a — " her throat jammed.
I thought she was going to fall on her nose.
Her whole body shivered and her face fell apart like a bride's pie crust.
She put it together again slowly, as if lifting a great weight, by sheer will power.
The smile came back, with a couple of corners badly bent. "No," she breathed. "No. He's out of town. That — wouldn't be any use.
Can't you — come in — tomorrow?"
I had my mouth open to say something when the partition door opened a foot.
The tall dark handsome boy in the jerkin looked out, pale-faced and tightlipped, saw me, shut the door quickly again, but not before I had seen on the floor behind him a lot of wooden boxes lined with newspapers and packed loosely with books.
A man in very new overalls was fussing with them.
Some of Geiger's stock was being moved out.
When the door shut I put my dark glasses on again and touched my hat.