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'Yes, of course I would be sad!' Mr Myer replied angrily. 'Are you trying to suggest that I know where Elaine is?'

I smiled.

'Now don't get excited, Mr Myer,' I said. 'Can you tell me the name of anyone who works with Elaine - anyone who shares a desk with her or works in the same room?'

'Yes,' Mr Myer said, 'that's easy. Elaine shares a room with Suzy Graham.'

I got up.

'Thank you very much, Mr Myer,' I said. 'Where is Suzy Graham's office, please?'

'It's along the corridor,' said Mr Myer 'the third door on the left.'

I thanked Mr Myer again and walked to the door.

'Oh, Mr Samuel,' Mr Myer said, 'I'm sorry that I got angry, but you understand that I don't want. . .'

'Yes, I understand,' I interrupted. 'You don't want dirty private detectives in your nice, clean office.'

I walked out of Mr Myer's office and banged the door behind me. I walked slowly down the corridor and knocked on the third door on the left.

'Come in,' said a voice.

So I went into the room.

'Are you Suzy Graham?' I asked.

'Yes,' said the girl sitting at the desk. 'I'm Suzy.' 

I smiled at her. Suzy, was the kind of girl everyone smiled at. She was small and slim and had a pair of beautiful, brown eyes.

'What can I do to help you?' Suzy asked.

I smiled again.

'I'd like to ask you some questions, Miss Graham.'

'Don't call me Miss Graham,' the girl said, 'you can call me Suzy.'

'Well, Suzy,' I said, 'I would like to ask you some questions about a friend of yours. Her name is Elaine Garfield.'

Suzy stopped smiling.

'Yes, all right,' she said. 'But I don't want to talk about Elaine here in the office.'

'Right,' I replied, 'I'll tell you what we'll do. We'll go out and find a cafe. I'll buy you a cup of coffee and you can tell me about Elaine. All right?'

Suzy cheered up and looked much happier.

'I'd like to have a cup of coffee,' she said, 'but Mr Myer might get angry if I leave the office.'

'Don't worry about Mr Myer,' I said, with a big smile. 'Mr Myer and I are great friends.'

6

Suzy

_S

uzy put on her coat and we left the office together. We found

a little cafe, just opposite the Title-Insurance Building.

In the cafe, I told Suzy why I was asking questions about Elaine Garfield.

'Elaine's twin sister, Helen, thinks that Elaine has disappeared, and she has asked me to find Elaine,' I said. 'Helen told roe that she came to Myer and Myer last Tuesday. She was told that Elaine had left work suddenly, last Monday afternoon. Is that right?'

Suzy nodded.

'At least, part of it's right,' she said. 'Elaine was at work last Monday, and she hurried off in the middle of the afternoon.'

Suzy stopped for a minute, and then she continued.

'But 1 don't remember seeing Elaine's sister, Helen, on Tuesday. In fact, I didn't even know that Elaine had a sister.'

'Elaine's sister lives in New York,' I explained. 'Now, can you remember last Monday afternoon? Did Elaine give any reason for leaving suddenly?'

'Oh, yes,' Suzy said, 'Elaine said that she wasn't feeling well and was going to lie down.'

'Did Elaine receive any visitors or phone calls last Monday afternoon?' I asked.

'No, I don't think so,' said Suzy. 'No wait a minute, I think ... yes, Elaine did receive a phone call, just before she left.'

I smiled.

'I don't suppose that, by chance, you might have heard any of the telephone conversation?'

'Certainly not,' Suzy replied, 'I don't listen to other people's phone calls.'

'Can you think of any reason why Elaine disappeared?' I asked.

'No,' Suzy replied, 'Elaine was always very friendly with everyone and she didn't seem to have any troubles.'

'Did Elaine have any special friends, any men or women she talked about a lot?' I asked.

'No, not really,' Suzy replied. 'Elaine and I used to be quite friendly and we went out dancing together a lot. But recently we haven't been out together at all.'

'I understand,' I said, though I really didn't understand anything at all. 'Can you remember the last time you went out together? Can you remember the place you went to?'

'Oh, that's easy,' Suzy said quickly, 'we went to the Las Cabanas Club. We always went there. It was about a month ago. We had an argument there and we haven't gone out together since.'

'What was the argument about?' I asked.

'It was after midnight,' Suzy explained, 'and I wanted to go home. But Elaine said she wanted to stay a bit longer. She said that she had met a wonderful man and didn't want to leave. I said I was going home and I left Elaine in the club. After that evening, one thing led to another.'

'What do you mean,' I asked, ". . . one thing led to another"?'

Suzy smiled.

'I often spoke to Elaine about the man she had met. Elaine thought he was wonderful. I told her that he was no good at all.'

'What did Elaine say when you told her that?' I asked, with interest.

'She became very angry,' replied Suzy. 'We haven't been out dancing together since then.'

I paid for the coffee.

'You've been very helpful, Suzy,' I said, 'and I've only got one more question. Can you remember the name of the man Elaine Garfield met at Las Cabanas?'

'Benny Greep,' Suzy said, 'that's his name. Benny Greep.'

'Thank you very much indeed, Suzy,' I said, with a smile. 'You've been a great help.'

'Not at all,' Suzy said and looked at me with her beautiful, big, brown eyes. 'If there's anything else I can do for you, just ask.'

I looked straight into her eyes.

'What are you doing tonight?' I asked.

'I'll be at home watching television,' Suzy replied. 'My boyfriend's a boxer and he's fighting in a match on television tonight.' 

'Goodbye, Suzy,' I said and watched her as she walked back across the street to the Tide-Insurance Building. Her boyfriend was a boxer! That was just my luck.

7

Benny Greep

_I

looked at my watch. It was nearly eleven o'clock. I went back into the cafe and asked if I could look at the telephone book. I turned to "L" and ran my finger down the outside of the page. Soon, I found the name I was looking for: "Las Cabanas". I looked more closely. The address was:

Las Cabanas, 232 Golden Drive. Telephone: 323.0313

I left the cafe and walked over to where I had parked the Chrysler. It wasn't time for lunch yet, so I decided to go and see what Las Cabanas was like. It took me nearly twenty minutes to drive there and another ten minutes to find somewhere to park.

Have you ever seen a night club in the daytime? It's a very depressing sight. At night, a nightclub seems wonderful. However, at a quarter to twelve in the morning, it looks old, empty and dirty. The man I met at Las Cabanas looked old, empty and dirty, too.

I rang the bell for five minutes before he answered the door. Even then, he didn't open the door itself. Instead, he opened a small window in the door.

'What do you want?' he asked. 'The club doesn't open until ten o'clock tonight.'

'I'm looking for someone,' I said, 'someone called Benny Greep.' 

'I don't know anyone called Benny Greep,' the man replied and started to shut the window.

'Wait a minute,' I said and pushed five dollars through the window.

'That's better,' the man said. And he opened the door and let me in. I followed him across the dance floor. The man was a cleaner. He picked up a brush and began to clean the floor.

 

'Do you know where I can find Benny Greep?' I asked the man again.

'If you come back tonight at ten o'clock, you'll find Benny Greep here,' the man said. 'Benny plays the drums in the band.'

I gave the man another five dollars.

'Where can I find Benny now?' I asked.

The man picked up a piece of paper from the floor and wrote an address on it.

I took the paper and left immediately.

As I drove the grey Chrysler away from Las Cabanas, I looked at the address the cleaner had written:

55Щ AWl£2>A ЖЕЕГ K/rsr Los A*<fEi£s

5314 Arvieda Street was an old block of apartments. I gave the porter a couple of dollars and he told me which was Benny Greep's apartment. I walked up the narrow, dark stairs until I came to the fifth floor. I was looking for Apartment 507.

I knocked on the door of Apartment 507 and waited. There was no answer, so I rang the bell. No answer. I knocked again, hard. There was still no answer.

I pushed against the door and it opened easily. I waited. There was no sound from the apartment, so I went in. The light was on and the curtains were drawn. The apartment was very small. There was one main room, which was used as the living-room, dining-room and bedroom. The room had two doors. One of the doors led into the kitchen and the other into the bathroom.

The main room was very untidy. The table was covered with dirty plates and glasses and there was a full ashtray lying on the floor. There was a strange smell in the room.

I looked into the kitchen. The kitchen was also dirty and untidy. I walked across to the bathroom and opened the door.

Benny Greep was in the bath. His left hand was hanging over 

the side of the bath. The hand had neatly cut nails, and there was a gold ring on one finger. The wrist was covered by a shirt-sleeve, which was rather dirty. I couldn't see the rest of the arm, because it was under the water.

Benny Greep's head was just out of the water. He had a handsome face and quite long, black hair. His eyes were wide open. The only other parts of his body out of the water were his feet. But I couldn't see his toes because he still had his shoes and socks on. The bath water was red.

I pulled out the plug in the bath, to let the water out. When the bath was empty, I looked at the dead man more closely. He had been dead for several hours. He had been shot in the chest and then pushed into the bath. I looked on the floor by the bath. There was blood there, too, and I was standing in it. I moved back and cleaned the blood off my shoes with some water.

Then I quickly looked round the main room again. The dead man's coat was lying on a chair and I felt in the pockets. I found a few dollars and a driving licence. The driving licence had a photograph of the dead man on it. The licence belonged to Benny Greep, and the address in the licence was 5314 Arvieda Street, West Los Angeles. The dead man in the bath was definitely Benny Greep.

 

Arrested for Murder

_I

moved around the room and carefully cleaned everything I had touched. I didn't want to leave any fingerprints. There was nothing in the room to connect Benny Greep with Elaine Garfield. I picked up the telephone and asked for the police.

'I'm speaking from Apartment 507, 5314 Arivieda Street,' I said. 'There's a dead man in the bath.'

'Right,' said the policeman at the other end of the telephone. 'What's your name?'

I told him.

'Don't touch anything,' the policeman said, 'and stay where you are. A police car will be there in a few minutes.'

I put down the phone and sat down to wait. Three minutes later, I heard the police car coming. The car stopped outside the building and I could hear heavy feet running up the stairs.

Two policemen walked into the apartment. They were both wearing ordinary clothes and looked hot and tired. One was about twenty-five years old, the other about forty.

The older policeman came up to me and showed me his police papers.

'Where's the body?' he asked.

I pointed to the bathroom. Both policemen went into the bathroom to have a look. The younger one came back first, shaking his head.

'All right,' said the younger policeman, 'why did you do

it?'

'Do what?' I asked in surprise.

'Why did you kill your friend in the bath?' said the young policeman.

'He wasn't my friend,' I replied. 

'I don't care if he was your friend or not,' said the policeman. 'Tell me why you killed, him.'

'I didn't kill him,' I said calmly.

'Then what are you doing here?' asked the older policeman, coming in from the bathroom.

'My name's Lenny Samuel,' I explained. 'I'm a private detective and I came here to talk to Benny Greep. The door was open and so I came in. I looked in the bathroom and I found the dead man in the bath, so I telephoned the police. The dead man is Benny Greep.'

'Why did you want to talk to Benny Greep?' the younger policeman asked.

'I'm sorry, I can't answer that,' I replied.

'Who are you working for?' asked the older policeman.

'I'm sorry, I can't answer that either,' I said. 'As far as I know, Benny Greep's death doesn't have anything to do with the person I'm working for.'

'Tell me who you are working for,' shouted the younger policeman angrily.

'Take it easy,' said the older policeman to the younger one. 'You stay here until the other police arrive. I'm going to take Mr Samuel down to the police station.'

I kept quiet and followed the older policeman out of the room and down the stairs. Outside the building, we got into my old Chrysler. The policeman drove. We were soon at the police station, where the policeman locked me in a small room. I sat down on a hard, wooden chair in the locked room and tried to sleep.

It was no use getting angry or upset at being arrested for murder. That is something you have to get used to, if you are a private detective. It happens all the time.

But I could not sleep. I was thinking about all the things which had happened since I had met Helen Garfield the day before. I couldn't sleep, because several things were worrying me. But I couldn't remember what those things were.

Sergeant Murphy

_W

hile I was in the police station, I remembered one of the things which was worrying me. How had Jo and his tall friend known that I was in Elaine Garfield's apartment? The porter at the Manson Building must have told the two men. I decided that I would go and talk to the porter when I left the police station.

I sat back in the chair and looked at my watch. The time was nearly four o'clock.

Then I remembered that Helen Garfield was coming to my office at five o'clock. I would not be there to meet her.

But there was something else that was worrying me. It wasn't anything important. It was quite a small thing. But I couldn't remember what it was.

Suddenly, the door opened and a policeman came in.

'Stand up,' shouted the policeman. 'Follow me.'

I stood up and followed the policeman out of the room and along a corridor. The policeman stopped, knocked on a door and opened it.

'Are you ready to see the private detective?' asked the policeman, as he put his head around the door.

Without waiting for an answer, the policeman opened the door wide and pushed me into the room. The policeman came into the room and closed the door behind him.

In the room, there was a man sitting behind a desk. He was completely bald - he had no hair at all. He was about fifty-five years old and his name was Sergeant Murphy. Sergeant Murphy had spent all his life in the police and he didn't like private detectives.

Sergeant Murphy sat looking at me. He looked at me for about five minutes, without saying anything. I was standing in front of his desk, looking straight back at him. The silence didn't worry me. In fact, I quite liked it. The silence was much nicer than questions about what I'd been doing in Benny Greep's apartment.

'What were you doing in Benny Greep's apartment?' asked Sergeant Murphy suddenly. .

'I wanted to talk to him,' I replied.

'Why did you kill Benny Greep?' shouted Sergeant Murphy suddenly.

'I didn't kill him,' I replied, and I told Sergeant Murphy the same story that I had told the policemen in Benny Greep's apartment.

'I don't believe a word of what you've told me,' said the sergeant. 'Who are you working for?'

'I'm sorry,' I replied, 'I can't tell you who I'm working for. As far as I know, Benny Greep's death has nothing to do with me or with the person I'm working for.'

. I stopped and looked at the sergeant. I knew that what I had just said wasn't true. In fact, I thought Benny Greep's death was connected with Elaine Garfield's disappearance. But I couldn't tell the police. Helen Garfield had said that she didn't want the police to know about her sister's disappearance.

Sergeant Murphy looked me straight in the eyes.

'I hate all private detectives,' he said slowly, 'and you are the private detective that I hate the most. I don't think you are telling me the truth. I think you are hiding things from me. I think you know more about Benny Greep's death than you say you do. And you are going to tell me all you know -now.'

'I've already told you all I know,' I replied quietly.

, Sergeant Murphy's face went red. The red colour went up until it covered all of his bald head. 

 

'I hate all private detectives, ' he said slowly, 'and you are the private detective I hate the most.'

'Don't try to play, games with me,' he shouted. 'Now get out.'

'Can I go home now?' I asked.

'No,' said Sergeant Murphy.

The sergeant told the policeman at the door to take me back to the small room and lock me up again.

I went with the policemen and didn't argue. I don't like arguing with policemen. When I was alone in the room again, I sat down. I tried to remember the other thing that had been worrying me earlier. Someone had said something important, but I could not remember what it was.

10

The Yellow Car

_I

looked at my watch. It was half past five. I was still at the police station. I'd seen Sergeant Murphy once more, during the afternoon. It hadn't been a pleasant meeting. I hadn't told the sergeant who I was working for. And I hadn't told him why I'd wanted to talk to Benny Greep.

Half past five. I wondered if Helen Garfield was waiting for me at my office.

Suddenly, the door of the room opened and Sergeant Murphy came in.

'Get out,' he said, 'I've decided to let you go. Now go before I change my mind.'

I went before Sergeant Murphy changed his mind. As I got my car out of the police garage, I wondered why Sergeant Murphy had let me go.

As I drove away from the police station, I noticed a small yellow car behind me. A minute later, I looked in the mirror again. The small yellow car was still behind me. I drove a little faster and then suddenly turned right up a narrow street. At the end of the narrow street, I turned left and then left again. Soon, 1 was back on the main road. I looked in the mirror. The yellow car was still right behind me.

So that was why Sergeant Murphy had let me go. The sergeant had ordered some policemen to follow me. They were going to watch what I did and who I met.

I drove straight back to the office. As I parked the car outside, I noticed the yellow car had stopped across the road. I ran up the stairs and into my office. The door to the outer room was open, as usual, but the room was empty. 

Helen Garfield wasn't, there. But there was a letter on the table, on top of the magazines. I picked the letter up and read it.

'bvurlkjr.

I оялия. hjure ax fott o'clock апЛ tocuubctt bmt фи* cUdLuLt ССМаЛ. I hUutt tSUL IfGU LurObhfU

Afezt ml out CaAclms ax⁹

//.го bsKlcubt. - _л _ _

 

I put the letter in my pocket and looked at my watch. It was just after six o'clock. I had five and a half hours before the meeting with Helen Garfield. There was plenty of time to go to the Mansion Building and talk to the porter. I got into the Chrysler and drove off towards the Mansion Building. The small yellow car was still following me. As I drove, I thought about Helen Garfield's letter.

'Why does she want to meet me at Las Cabanas?' I asked myself. 'In fact, how does she know about Las Cabanas at all? She says that she lives in New York.'

I would have to ask Miss Helen Garfield a few questions, the next time I saw her.

But the most important thing now was to get away from the yellow car, which was still following me. I was going to the building where Elaine Garfield lived and I didn't want the police to know.

There were two men in the yellow car. I turned right and the yellow car followed. I stopped and the yellow car stopped. I turned the Chrysler around and the yellow car turned around. I tried to drive faster than the yellow car, but the Chrysler was too old and too slow.

I slowed down and waited until I was near the next traffic lights. Then, just as the lights were changing from green to red, I drove across them. The yellow car was too late. The lights were now red. But that didn't stop the car. It drove straight past the red light.

Then, as I looked angrily in my mirror, something happened which made me laugh. A policeman on a motorbike drove after the yellow car. The policeman made the driver stop, because he had driven past the red light.

I drove away as fast as possible. In my mirror, I could see the driver inside the car arguing with the policeman on the motorbike. It was the funniest sight I had seen for a long time. I drove on towards the Manson Building, happy to have escaped. I may even have sung a little, because I was feeling so good.

1L

A Short Visit to the Manson Building

_A

s I was driving happily towards the Manson Building, I had a surprise. I looked in the mirror. The yellow car was coming up fast behind me.

I drove as fast as I could, but the yellow car got closer and closer. Just then, a dog ran across the road, in front of the Chrysler. I braked hard and the tyres screamed as the Chrysler stopped suddenly to avoid the dog. Then there was the scream of more tyres as the driver of the yellow car tried to stop.

There was a loud crash and a bang, as the small yellow car ran right into the back of my big, old, grey Chrysler. The two men in the yellow car weren't hurt, but their car was badly damaged at

 

A policeman on a motorbike drove after the yellow car. The policeman made the driver stop.

the front. Oil and water were running out onto the road. The old Chrysler was not damaged at all. I got out and walked back to the yellow car.

'You ought to be more careful,' I said to the driver. 'You were driving very dangerously. It's lucky for you that my car isn't badly damaged.'