"Around the country, the bookies pay off winners at track odds" "It's dangerous when a long shot comes in, unless you have somebody at the tracks to lower those odds" "Heartbreak Highway, fast lane to the blues" "Each turn I take leads me back to you" "And there's nothing I can do" "Bet you can't do that with a quarter" "Are you kidding?" "Sure, I can" "I'll give you a dime for every quarter you can lay on end" "It's a bet" "Hey, you got any quarters?" "Sir!" "How you doin'?" "All right Can I get a, uh, Miller, please?" "You got it" "Heartbreak Highway, fast lane to the blues" "Each turn I take" "Out of 20 3, 4, 5" "5 is 10, 10 is 20" "Thanks, sir" "Next" "Okay, Ace 10 in a row" "Yep, You're right" "That's a dollar I owe you" "Hey!" "That was the deal a dime for every quarter" "Running time for the six furlong, 1 minute, 10 and 1/5 seconds" "In the winner's circle, Number 1, "Magical Flight,"" "owned by Frank and Melanie McDonald, trained by Melanie McDonald, ridden to victory by Orlando Guerrino" "Number 7, "Telescope," second, number 5, "Free To Go," third, number 3, "Just Be Kind," fourth" "Winning quinella combination" "$5,000 on the 3 horse to win, please 4, 5, 10, that's 20" "$3720 winning quinella combination" "2, 3, 4, and 5 Thanks" "Thank you" "Winning exacta combination, 9 and 7, returns $118.80" "$118.80 the 9-7 exacta combination" "Winning quinella combination, 7 and 9, $54" "$54 even, the 7-9 quinella combination" "Post time in three minutes" "In the winner's circleNumber 1, "Magical Flight,"" "owned and trained by Anthony Martinez" "$2,000 on the 3 horse to win" "Running time for the six furlong, 1 minute, 11 and 1/5 seconds" "They're in the gate" "They're off" ""Full Force" from the outside racing right out for the lead with "Vital Contact" moving up" "Mmm, Mrs Langtry, I'm sorry" "Why?" "What's wrong?" "You are a valued customer, as you know" "But what's wrong?" "I can't understand this It's something you almost never see" "What is?" "This is some of the finest filigree platinum I've ever seen" "Mm-hmm" "But the stones, no" "They're not diamonds, Mrs Langtry" "But they must be They They cut glass" "Glass will cut glass, Mrs Langtry" "Almost anything will" "Come with me" "Let me show you a positive test for diamonds" "Yeah" "Take this" "Do you see how the water splashes over them?" "How it slides off in a sheet?" "With real diamonds, it won't do that" "It clings to the surface in tiny droplets" "I see it" "I hope you're not too badly disappointed with us, Mrs Langtry" "It's not your fault" "You'll give us an opportunity to serve you again, I hope, if there's anything you think we might be interested in" "Well, I have only one thing now" "Are you interested?" "Well, I would have to see it, of course" "You are seeing it" "You're looking right at it" "Mrs Langtry" "Something like this very rarely happens" "The fine setting and workmanship usually means precious stones" "It always hurts me when I find they're not" "I always hope" "I'm mistaken" "Can I get a Miller, please?" " One too many, mister?" " What?" "Step away from the car" "Never mind Let's see your driver's license" "You seem pretty sick, Mr Dillon" "Well, it's a bad shrimp, I think" "Didn't quite taste right when I was eating it" "I'm getting over it, though" "Want us to take you to the doctor?" "No, I'm fine now Thanks" "I've still got a lot of clients to see" "You take it easy, now" "I will, Thank you" "Have a good day, now" "Quinella wagering on all 12 races..." "Hi, Lilly" "Irv?" "Irv, I'm done here Do I come back to Baltimore?" "No, no Bobo wants you to go on to La Jolla" "La Jolla?" "I never go to California That's 1,000 miles from here" "Come on, Lilly You don't argue with Bobo" "He needs somebody to handle playback there" "Maybe I'll swing around Los Angeles on the way" "Take two or three days Call when you get there" "Yeah, Okay" "Put it this way say I rent to a woman" "Well, she has to have a room with a bath, because otherwise she's got the hall bath tied up all the time, washing her goddamn hair and her clothes and everything she can think of" "I had my first hotel 37 years ago in Wichita Falls, Texas, and that's when I learned about women" "They don't make the money, see, for a place like this" "Not regular, they don't" "There's only one way they can get it by sellin'their self tapping'them cute little piggy banks they all got" " Mr Dillon" " Mr Simms" "Here's a potential neighbor of yours" "Mrs Langtry may drop by" "I'll send her right up" "That's the fine type of person I have in mind for here, like yourself, I'm sure" "Well, don't you want to see me?" "Of course, honey I'll meet you at the bar" "Oh, honey, I can't go there" "Well, what do you have in mind?" "Come on You could be here in 20 minutes" "Oh, I don't know, Roy" "I've got to get the train from downtown, and that's about an hour from your place" "In a minute" "Smack" "Heads" "Smack" "Tails" "What do you want, kid?" "Show me how you did that other one" "Scram, Go home" "I can't I just left home" "You're too young You ought to be in school" "I am in school" "5 of spades 5 of spades" "Where's the 5?" "In your other hand" "Good You learned something" "Goodbye" "I want to learn everything" "You want to be a grifter?" "A grifter, Yes" "Not partners" "That's your first lesson" "Cuts your score in half right down the middle" "Worse than that, you take a partner, you put an apple on your head and hand the other guy a shotgun" "Grifters, huh?" "You're one, all right" "Grifters got an irresistible urge to beat a guy who's wise" "There's nothing to whipping a fool" "Hell, fools are made to be whipped" "But to take another pro, even your partner, who knows you and has his eye on you that's a score" "No matter what happens" "So, you want to learn a few tricks," "I'll teach you a few tricks" "But your hand does not get into my pocket" "It's a deal" " Roy" " Mm-hmm" "All right Forget the long con" "If the fool tips, you're caught You'll do time" "Never do time" "And don't go dressing like that" " Why?" " It's showing off Showing off!" "Any blind man could spot you" "Yeah" "Give me $20" "Come around tomorrow, I'll take you again" "Well, that's fine" "Two months we know each other, you're already so bored you fall asleep before I get here" "When you're not here, all I can do is dream about you, Myra" "You stink, and I hate you" "Hmm" "The twins seem to be very restless" "Maybe we ought to put'em to bed, huh?" "You know what I'm gonna do?" "I'm gonna smother you" "Death, where is thy sting?" "Ahh" "You smell good, Myra, like a bitch in a hothouse" "Ooh, darling" "What a beautiful thing to say!" "Maybe you don't smell so good" "I do, too You just said so" "It could be your clothes" "It's me" "Do I have to prove it?" "Naturally" "What?" "Simms, Mr Dillon" "Sure, Mr Simms What can I do for you?" "A visitor, Mr Dillon a very attractive young lady" "She says she's your mother" "Send her up" "Come on in, Lilly" "Hi, Lilly" "Roy" "Long time no see" "Eight years" "I'm just making some coffee You want some?" "Just instant" "It'd be nice" "Here we are" "Come on Sit down, Lilly" "So, what are we up to these days?" "Still handling playback money at the track" "I'll be going back to Baltimore as soon as the races at La Jolla are finished" "So you're working for that same bookmaker?" "Yeah" "An easy life" "Usually" "Got a great view, Roy" "I guess you've been getting my Christmas cards" "You always did have a sense of humor" "Glad to see you, Lilly" "I'd have been hurt if you hadn't have dropped by" "I'm glad to see you, too, Roy" "I'm not sure what you're up to" "Up to?" "I'm not up to anything, Lilly" "Come on, Roy You can't kid me" "You got so much more on the ball than I ever did, and you know what it does to a person" "Lilly, why don't you mind your own goddamned business?" "Roy, what is it?" "It's no sweat" "God, you're ice cold" "Don't laugh at me" "Laugh?" "I'm not laughing at you, honey" "Did somebody hurt you, Roy?" "Got hit in the stomach a couple days ago" " Let me see" " No" "Dr Mitchell?" "It's Lilly Dillon, doctor" "I work for Just us Amusement Company out of Baltimore, and" "What?" "Don't you brush me off, buster" "Do I have to get Bobo Justus to call you?" "Mrs Dillon, I'm sorry about our little disagreement on the phone" "And I'm really sorry about your son" "Well, it's hard to believe that such a strapping young man is is your son" "Never mind that Just take care of him" "Yeah, well, he's had he's had an internal hemorrhage" "He's bleeding to death" "Well, make it stop" "His blood pressure's under 100" "I don't think he's gonna make it to" "You know who I work for" "Yeah, but there's just so much I can do" "My son is gonna be all right" "If not, I'll have you killed" "No, really You're Roy's mother?" "Mm-hmm" "That's impossible" "Not quite" "But I'm not sure who you are," "Mrs, uh, Langtry, was it?" "I'm Roy's friend" "Yes" "I imagine you're lots of people's friend" "Oh Oh, of course" "Now that I see you in the light, you're plenty old enough to be Roy's mother" "Aren't we all?" "Play nice Don't fight" "Darling!" "Roy" "You're gonna be all right" "Sure, I am" "What am I doing here?" "You were bleeding inside, honey" "Remember that bruise you had?" "You called the doctor, huh?" "Wellno, Roy Your mother did" "Oh, yeah?" "Thanks" "How long did they say till I can get out of here?" "Roy, your mom saved your life" "Yeah" "Second time I gave it to you" "I was kind of inconvenient for Lilly" "You know, she was only 14 when I came along" "In fact, I used to be her kid brother" "Well, or so she'd say" "Well, you're all right now, I guess" "It's a two-hour drive I'm late I have to go down to the track" "Thanks, uh, Lilly" "Don't mention it" "I guess I owe you my life" "You always did" "Down to the track?" "La Jolla" "Her job" "I want to know everything about you" "Number 7, "Troubadour," rank outsider, stays unchanged at 70 to 1" "70 to 1" "Now at the start, "Blue Bay," 5 to 2" ""Celadon Star," the favorite, moves in at 2 to 1" "Now "Troubadour" goes into the gate, still running high odds at 70 to 1" "And they're off!" "From the start, it's "Fertile Crescent, " "Troubadour, "" ""Otis Blue," "Buckmeister," "Uncle Louie"" "Down the backstretch, "Celadon Star" has the lead by two lengths with "Call Me Hap" second" ""Six Dreams" goes along in third, now "Troubadour" now moving stoutly on the outside" "Not Troubadour No" "Rounding the far turn," ""Celadon Star" in front, "Call Me Hap" second" ""Blues Bay" now begins to drop back a little bit as "Six Dreams" moves up" "Now "Troubadour" making a bold move on the outside" "They round the turn into the homestretch, and it's "Celadon Star" in front" "On the outside, "Troubadour" now coming strong, with "Call Me Hap" along the rail" "Those two vying for second position, but it's "Celadon Star" in front" "Now "Troubadour" begins to pick up the pace" ""Celadon Star" holding the lead, "Troubadour" coming on" "It's "Celadon Star" "Troubadour" grinding onto the outside with a strong finish" ""Celadon Star", "Troubadour"" "It's "Troubadour" on the outside now, going by to get the lead" ""Troubadour" winning it by half a length" "Finishing odds were as follows" "Today's amazing success story, "Troubadour," outsider, at 70 to 1, in first place, second place" " Roy?" " Mm-hmm?" " Roy?" " Mm-hmm?" "What happens when you get out of here?" "A ticker-tape parade, a key to the city, sex with my baby" "Ah, the usual, I guess" "And that's it?" "What else?" "Well, that's what I want to know" "Is Is this all we have, Roy" ""sex with my baby"?" "Not that I'm knocking it, but is that all?" "What are you driving at, Myra, marriage?" "I didn't say that" "Ah But, well, that's what I asked" " I don't think so" " Ha" "I'm a very practical little girl, and I don't believe in giving any more than I get" "And that might be pretty awkward for a matchbook salesman or whatever you are" "Everybody needs matches" "What do you sell, anyway?" "Self-confidence" "God knows you have it to spare" "I'll see you tomorrow" "Hey" "No kiss?" "Hello, Mrs Langtry" "Hi" "Time to rest" "Well, I'll leave you in Carol's good hands" "Hmm" "You're looking much better today" "But you're not You're looking very bad today" "I am?" "You belong in bed, Miss Flynn" "Here I'll give you part of mine" "You will not" "But you must" "I've seen girls with this look before" "Bed is the only thing that will cure them" "Bed without dinner might cure you" "You'd better behave, or I won't kiss you good night, and then you'll be sorry" "You'd better behave, or I'll tell your mother" "Well, we wouldn't want that, now, would we?" "Oh Hi, Myra I didn't recognize you" "No, I'm sure you didn't" "Myra's been here" "And what's your objection to Myra?" "The same as anybody's" "I stopped by your place, picked up your mail" "Just bills I'll take care of them" "I can take care of my own bills, Lilly" "Whatever you say" "The manager at your place said your boss called" "Really pulled the wool over everyone's eyes, huh?" "What are you talking about?" "So I've got a job So what?" "Stop kidding me" "Four years in a town like Los Angeles and a peanut-selling job's the best you can do?" "You expect me to believe that?" "Well, it's there The boss called" "You said so yourself" "That dump you live in?" "Those clown pictures on the walls?" " I like those" " You do not" "Roy Dillon, cornball clown pictures, commission salesman it's all a front" "You're working some angle, and don't tell me you're not, because I wrote the book" "You're one to talk" "You still running playback money for the mob?" "That's me That's who I am" "You were never cut out for the rackets, Roy, and if you" "How come?" "You aren't tough enough" "Not as tough as you, huh?" "How'd you get that punch in the stomach, Roy?" "I tripped on a chair" "Get off the grift, Roy" "Why?" "You haven't got the stomach for it" "Oh, good, Carol, come in" "Dr Mitchell says you can get out of here Friday, but that you should have someone to look in on you, so I hired Carol" "You hired?" "Well, you'll pay me back I know that" "Lilly, I make my own decisions for a long time now" "Roy, you couldn't possibly object to a pretty, young lady coming to visit you" "Carol" "Do you know why my mother hired you?" "Why, yes" "I'll come in every afternoon and make sure" "She hired you for me to fuck" "Uh" "To keep me away from bad influences" "Isn't that right, Lilly?" "It is not" "Uh, Mrs Dillon, perhaps I" "Go wait in the hall Don't go away" "You didn't have to do that" "I thought I did" "So you won't take a thing from me, is that it?" "Sex?" "I'm not offering you sex, you little punk" "That's not what I meant" "For Christ's sake, Lilly, you're just throwing that wallflower at me 'cause you don't like Myra" "Myra's nothing She's less than nothing" "Then why does she bug you?" "You jealous?" "Of what?" "You want to lie down with dogs?" "And I'll pick the dog" "Go ahead, Roy" "Thanks, Mom" "That's right, I just give you your life" "What you do with it is up to you" "That's right!" "Myra here Sorry you missed me" "Tell me how to reach you, and I will" "Baby, I'm getting out of here today That's it" "Listen, let's go down to La Jolla this afternoon" "We'll hit the beach Have some fun, huh?" "Take some time off, forget all this other stuff" "Myra" "Don't tell me" "You're Addison Simms of Seattle, and we had lunch together in the Fall of 1902" "Myra, listen" "Myra, damn it!" "Listen, Myra" "Joe" "How's your wiry zone?" "Are hidden germs lurking in your nooks and crannies?" "All right, this is your final warning" "You've got to settle your bill today" "Now, Joe, don't I always pay my bills, huh, one way or another?" "Yeah, well, this time there's just one way" "Stop getting up nights, man" "You, too, could learn to dance" "All you need is a magic step, simple as one, two, three" "Here's your bill" "It's a lot of money, Joe" "You wouldn't have padded it" "You owe every damn cent of that" "Maybe I could get the dough from your wife Do you suppose?" "Maybe your kids'd crack their piggy banks" "You take one step towards my family, and I promise you" "Oh, oh!" "Don't wet your pants, for Christ's sake!" "Come in, Joe" "The money" "There it is" "The automatic clutch, Joe" "It comes with the deluxe upholstery and the high-speed wiry zone" "Myra, please" "I've let you" "I've been very good to you" "I've let you stay here month after month" "Can't be done, Joe" "All passengers must pay as they enter" "No free passes or rebates" "That's a strict rule of the Intercourse Commerce Commission" "Oh, God" "Only one choice to a customer, the lady or the loot" "What's it gonna be?" "Your difference between your folded towel and your clean towel is a trip to the laundry" "When you're cleaning those bathrooms, what you do is you pick up the towel, and you give it a good shake and a good look, and you say to yourself, "Would I dry myself on this towel?"" "If the answer is yes, you fold it" "What if it's wet?" "Mr Dillon, welcome back" "You're looking fine, just fine" "Thank you, Mr Simms I'm feeling fine" "I'm glad you're better" " Sickness comes to us all, Mr Dillon" " That's true, Mr Simms" "We never know when, we never know why, we never know how The only blessed thing we know is it'll come at the most inconvenient, unexpected time, just when you've got tickets to the World Series," "and that's the way the permanent waves" "Well" "That fella could be a congressman" "If it's wet, you don't fold it" "You shake it and hang it neatly on the rod provided" "Yes, sir" "What are you laughing at?" "Oh, nothing" "Nothing, nothing No, never mind, Joe" "It's just, I was remembering at lunch, on the menu, it said" ""Today's special" ""Broiled hothouse tomato under generous slice of ripe cheese"!" "Hi, Bobo" "Did I buy you that dress, you piece of shit?" "Well, I guess so You're the guy I work for" " I'm the guy you work for, huh?" " Yeah" "Then in that case, I may just flush you down the toilet" "Take me to my hotel" "Troubadour" "How'd you figure you were gonna get away with that?" "I'm not getting away with anything, Bobo" "You're fucking right, you're not" "How much did your pals cut you in for on that nag?" "Or are they giving you the same kind of screwing you gave me?" "I was down on that horse, Bobo, maybe not as much as I should've been" "But there was a lot of action" "One question do you want to stick to that story or do you want to keep your teeth?" "I want to keep my teeth" "All right, I'll ask you another" "You think I got no contacts out here?" "That nag paid off on almost the opening price" "There wasn't hardly a flutter on the tote board from the time the first odds were posted" "There ain't enough action to tickle the tote board, and you claim a 10 grand win" "You send me $10,000 like I'm a fucking mark you can rip off" "No, Bobo, I didn't" "You want to talk to me straight up?" "!" "My son" "Your what?" "My son was in the hospital" "What the fuck are you doing with a son?" "He left home a long time ago" "He was in the hospital up in Los Angeles" "He was real sick" "Motherhood" "I never fucked up before, Bobo" "You got any kind of long coat in the car, something you could wear home over your dress?" "No" "I'll loan you a raincoat" "You guys take a walk" "Ugh!" "Will you go in the bathroom and bring me a towel?" "You ever hear about the oranges, Lilly?" "You mean the insurance framers" "Tell me about the oranges, Lilly while you put those in the towel" "You hit a person with the oranges wrapped in a towel" "They get big, ugly-Iooking bruises, but they don't really get hurt, not if you do it right" "It's for working scams against insurance companies" "And if you do it wrong?" "It can louse up your insides" "You can get p-p-p-p-p-p-p-p" "What?" "!" "P-p-permanent damage" "You never shit right again" "Bring me the towel" " Whaaa!" " Aaah!" "Ugh!" "Ugh!" "Oh, no!" "Oh, no!" "Oh, no!" "No!" "Aahhhhh!" "Oh, no!" "Come on, get up" "You go clean yourself up The coat's on the bed" "Oh, I almost forgot 10 grand it's yours" "Troubadour, huh?" "You want a drink?" "Gee, uh, I better not, if that's okay" "I still got to drive up to Los Angeles" "See your son, huh?" "That's nice, Lilly a side of you I never knew" "Yeah, he's a good kid, a salesman" " On the square, huh?" " Yeah" "How you making out these days?" "Stealing much?" "From you?" "My folks didn't raise no stupid kids" "You're not skimming a thing, Lilly?" "Oh, well, you know, clip a buck here and a buck there, not enough to notice" "That's right take a little, leave a little" "A person who don't look out for himself is too dumb to look out for anybody else" "He's a liability, right, Bobo?" "That's 1,000% right, Lilly" "Or else he's working an angle" "If he's not stealing a little, he's stealing a lot" "You know it, Lilly" "You know, I" "I like that suit, Bobo" "I don't know what there is about it, but somehow it makes you look taller" "Yeah?" "Yeah" "You You really think so?" "Yeah" "A lot of people have been telling me that" "Well" "You can tell them for me they're right" "Well, I best be going" "Roy will wonder where I am" " Worries about his mother, does he?" " Yeah" "You give him a hug for me" "I will" "Thanks, Bobo" "So long, Bobo" "I don't see" "I don't see why we have to take the train" "What if we want to drive somewhere while we're there?" "Well, we will rent a car" "Big spender" "You ain't seen nothing yet" "Hey, why so many people?" "Race season at La Jolla" "Where your mother is?" "And you don't want to see her, do you?" "Nope" "Hit the beach, eat well that's good enough for me" "I'm gonna stretch my legs You want to come along?" "No" "You want a drink?" "No" "See you in a minute" "A drink for you, a drink for Gunderson's dead grandmother," " but the junior, he gets milk" " Milk" "I'd like one milk, please" "In a minute" "Check it out, check it out, check it out" "This is a good time to tell you boys that, um, I was" " Whoa!" " Whoa!" "Whoa!" "Shit!" "Ugh!" "Oh, I'm sorry" " You okay, fella?" " Yeah" " Look, I spilled all your drinks" " Don't worry about it" "Are you sure you're okay?" " What are those, beers?" " Don't worry about it" "Watch this I'll be right back" "Four Millers" "He jumped right in!" "He jumped right in!" ""Don't worry about it, sarge, I'll drive him!" "He's too distraught!"" "You said, "distraught"!" "Hey, you guys could've got into a lot of trouble" "No way!" "Are you kidding?" "!" "You remember that?" "I couldn't believe that" "Hey, one of you guys drop this?" " No, no" " No, it's not mine" "I don't know, I wouldn't have taken a chance like that" " To us!" " To us!" "Here we go!" "Another round I'm buying" " No, come on, guy, you can't buy every round" " It's, like, our turn" " Come on, we got plenty of cash" " Give us a shot" "Tell you what we'll roll for it" "All right" " Low number buys" " Very good" "You roll first" " Let's go, junior" " Let's go, junior" "Another round of drinks" "That's a four All right, we're in" "I told you I'd buy" "It just doesn't seem fair, Tom" "Give me a chance to get even when I get back" " You got it" " Make sure they're cold" "Let's go!" "Let's go!" "Let's go!" "He's got $20!" "Come on!" "Here we go!" "Here we go!" "All right!" " All right" " Jesus!" " Take it away, my friend" " Yep" "You're getting better at this, man" "Want to go one more time?" " One more time" " I got 4" "I got 3 Spot me" "Spot me on this one Spot me!" " I'm not spotting you" " Come on, you guys!" "Four bucks!" " You shut up!" " Come on, let's go!" "Let's go!" "One or a two One or a two" "One or a two One or a two" "Come on!" "Pow!" "A game of chances" "It's getting worse and worse, man" "I'll tell you what, I'll tell you what take that away" "Take it Here, it's yours" "It's great to get away, isn't it, take some time off?" "Next week, I'll be back to work" "You already went back to work" "What?" "I watched you, working the tat on those sailor boys" "Working the what?" "Oh, come on, Roy, the tat, what you do for a living" "I'm a salesman" "You're on the grift, same as me" "Myra, I'm not following this" "Roy, you're a short-con operator and a good one, I think" "Don't talk to me like I'm another square" "You talk the lingo What's your pitch?" "The long end, big con" "Nobody does that single "o"" "I was teamed 10 years with the best in the business," "Cole Langley" "I've heard the name" "It was beautiful and getting better all the time" "Is that right?" "It is, Roy It's where you should be" "What do you bring in, $300, $400 a week?" "We used money like that for tips" "Wow" "And now, right now, it's the perfect time, the best time since I been in the game" "All over the Southwest, you got these businessmen" "They were making money when everybody was making money" "They think that means they're smart" "And now they're hurting" "When the price of oil fell, so did they" "They still got money, but they need more money" "Good morning You may head right in" "When the oil money was good, they put up all these office buildings" "Now they're half empty" "Good morning" "They'll give you anything to move in, first two months free, redecoration, whatever you want" "They help you set up the store" "I'm the roper" "I go out and find them and bring'em in" "Morning, gentlemen" "Gloucester Hebbing, may I present my fine stockbroker, Henry Fellowes?" "Gloucester" "What we have here today, Mary Beth, is strictly between" "Oh, I told Mr Hebbing all about it, how brilliant you are at making money for your special clients" "Well, I certainly hope that you're not spreading the news a little too widely Are you?" "Well, of course not, but I'd trust Mr Hebbing with anything wouldn't I, darling?" "Well, I guess I'll just have to take your word for that won't I?" "Here's the money" "Goody!" "Please, let me help you" "Once they saw that money, they were hooked, and I made sure they saw it" "Well, isn't that just beautiful?" "Then all Cole had to do was tell the story" "Gloucester" "We are talking about breaking the law here" "I just want to make sure you understand that" "No one is gonna get hurt, but the law is going to be broken" "Laws are made to be broken, aren't they?" "Loose talk is the thing I worry most about" "I can keep my mouth shut" "Gloucester, come on over here and sit down" "Now" "Tokyo exchange is nine hours behind us" "The New York exchange is one hour ahead of us" "There is never one hour in which both exchanges are open" "Information moves, but it has to wait" "Now, I have a fellow working for me" "Do you know what a hacker is, uh?" "Yeah, sure, that's, like, a computer expert or genius" "Very good, and what this boy's been able to do is tap into that main link between Tokyo and New York, and when we really need it, he's been able to give us a 7-second delay" "in the transfer of that information" "Do you know what that means?" "Well, I can see that you get your information ahead of New York" "Every once in a while, a major change happens, and we have a 7-second advantage to put a buy order, a sell order into that computer in New York just before that data from Tokyo comes pulling in right behind it" "Not much time" "No, we have to be ready, we have to have the money, we have to know what that information means, and we have to be able to move like greased lightning, but, boy, when it works, it is beautiful!" "Seven seconds, huh?" "I don't see how you can do it" "Machines!" "Machines, Gloucester!" "I have got a whole room full of machines back here" "You want to see'em?" "Come here" "Oh, Henry, no" "Come on, take a look!" "I got a whole suite full of mainframe computers back here!" "We're not really interested, Henry" "Oh, they are so beautiful" "No, Henry!" "Oh, you've got a minute Come on, Gloucester" "Listen to'em hum" "Henry, don't try Mr Hebbing's patience" "You sure?" "Wellokay, then" "Cole liked to take risks, huh?" "He didn't think they were risks" "He was so good, Roy, he could just play with a mark" "He was so crooked, he could eat soup with a corkscrew" "And when he got serious?" "He'd explain that he had to have cash so there wouldn't be any paper trail for the SEC, and a lot of cash or it wasn't worthwhile" "The least we ever took was $40, 000, and the most was $185, 000 from one sucker" "I thought these people were broke" "No, no, Roy, just cash poor" "They had savings accounts, stocks to sell" "Houses to mortgage, sell their wife's jewelry" "Oh, they had plenty of money when they put their minds to it or when I put their minds to it" "And a month later, the sucker calls the cops, and you're on the run" "No, no" "He never calls the cops, not after we give him the blow off" "This is it" "The money" "Whoo, I think you're gonna be pleased" "Hoo, yeah!" "Come on, let me have one!" "Let me have one!" "FBI everybody hold what you got!" "No, I don't have anything to do with this!" "The evidence is right here!" " It's you, isn't it?" "You" " No, I swear to God!" "You and your goddamn big mouth?" "!" "Pipe down!" "Hey!" "Hold it!" "Let me go!" "No!" "No!" "Ugh!" "You don't move!" "Get back there!" "You don't nobody moves!" "Stay there Oh, God" " Come on with me now!" " No!" " Nobody move!" "Nobody!" " No!" "Come on, get him!" "Let's go!" "Go, go, go!" "Ugh!" "Ugh!" "They never came back" "Do ya, do ya love me" "Even though I make you cry?" "And can you feel the heartbeat?" "The breaking heart in every sigh?" "Do ya, do ya need me?" "Always one to let you down" "Can you feel the rhythm?" "The beat of your heart makes me pound" "We were rolling in dough, lived wherever we wanted" "Only pulled two or three scams a year" "It was great Great" "Great" "What happened to Cole?" "He retired" "Retired?" "Where?" "Upstate" "Upstate where?" "Atascadero" "It's all hollow" "Ha Aaaaaah" " No, baby Not again" " It's all hollow I can't move" "It's all hollow" " I can't move" " Cole?" "All hollow It's all holl" "I can't move I can't move I can't move" " I can't move I can't move" " It'll be all right, honey" "It's just the stress again" " We'll take a vacation" " I can't move I can't move" " Cole" " I can't move" "Cole, you scare me when this happens" " Please" " I can't move" "No!" "You demon!" "Demon!" " Oh, Cole, please!" "Please!" " Ahhhhh!" "That's where they keep the criminally insane, isn't it?" "He retired, and that's it" "But I didn't" "I'm still the best long-con roper you'll ever see" "I bet you are, too" "And now you're trying to rope me" "Join up with you" "All right Here we go" "Strike three" "Oh!" "A beautiful woman like you" "You shouldn't eat alone" "Go away" "What do you want to eat alone for?" "Could I have some more coffee, please?" "Coming up" "All right We could have coffee together" "Uh My name's Kenny" "Your pal wants you" "Let him find his own pretty woman" "This fellow bothering you, Miss?" "Yes" "Why don't you go back there and just go sit down?" "I'll sit here" "Oh!" "Oh-ho!" "Oh Now you've done it" "You all right?" "You didn't need to do that" "I thought I did" "You should take better care of your friend" " Get out of here" " Okay" "I'm sorry a lady can't eat in here without being bothered" "It'll never happen again, Miss" "See ya later" "Why do we have to have separate rooms?" "Do you expect your father to come through?" "Separate bathrooms, darling" "I will not lay out all my cosmetics for you to knock over" "Things a man isn't supposed to know" "Well, you don't mind really, do you, Roy?" "It's been such a wonderful evening" "I guess I just wore myself out" "Sure" "I'm pretty tired myself" "Forget the long con" "'Cause I'm the one who's being conned" "Screw this noise" "Yeah" "Open your door" "What for?" "Gangway" "I hope you don't mind, sir" "I just washed my clothes, and I couldn't do a thing with them" "If you could have seen the look on your face when when I told you good night" "You looked so mm" "Mmm" "Roy" "Can I come in?" "Sure" "What are you doing in La Jolla?" "Me and Myra came down yesterday" "We're leaving tonight" "If you come out to the track, don't know me" "We won't hit the track" "What's that?" "4 grand It's for the hospital" "Is it enough?" "Roy, I don't want your money" "I pay my debts" "Oh, you do?" "Yep" "Expecting somebody?" "No That was the point" " Where'd you get that?" " An accident" "Roy, take that money back I don't want it" "No" "I thought" "I was hoping we could play it straight with one another" "I guess not" "I guess you won't be getting a straight job either" "Not this week" "Not ever" "It's up to me" "I'm strictly short con" "It's nothing but small-time stuff" "I can walk away from it anytime I want" "Where have I heard that before?" "Yeah, but I'm in control" "Sure You're only 25 years old" "Already you can lay down 4 grand without even turning your head" "The grift's like anything else, Roy" "You don't stand still" "You either go up or down" "Usually down sooner or later" "Well, I'll let it be a surprise then" "You gonna head east from here?" "After the meet" "Back to Baltimore" "It's nice to see you again" "You little prick" "Okay?" "No, I see him Just wait Hold it" "That's the guy we're following" "Just wait" "Ahh" "Excuse me" "Could I borrow your binoculars?" "Thanks" "Got a race to the wire" ""Telescope" on the outside" "Excuse me" "That race pays the big one" "Winning exacta combination, 9 and 7, returns $11880" "$11880 the 9-7 exacta combination" "Winning quinella combination, 7 and 9, $54 $54 even" "The 7-9 quinella combination" "What'd you do with yourself all afternoon?" "I went out to the track" "What were you doing at the track?" "Did you run into my mother?" "No How could I?" "I was in the clubhouse Lilly wouldn't be in the clubhouse, would she?" "How did you know that?" "Okay I saw her" "She didn't see you, in other words?" "I saw her out there, and I was curious" "You know, she's always so nasty to me" "And I know she's knocking me to you every chance she gets" "So, I called a friend of mine in Baltimore, so now I know who she is" "You must have some very knowledgeable friends" "I'm well-connected, Roy" "Cole introduced me to a lot of people very valuable valuable for us" "Running your broker scam, you mean?" "What a team we'll make" "You won't regret this, Roy" "Regret what?" "I didn't say I was coming aboard" "But why not?" "I thought it was settled" "Nothing was ever settled" "Uh-huh" "It's your mother talking against me, isn't it?" "She's got nothing to do with this" " I make my own decisions" " That's not what Lilly thinks" "Who cares what she thinks?" "I don't care what she thinks" "I left home when I was 17 with nothing but stuff I bought and paid for myself, nothing from Lilly" "Darling, guess what?" "I had to tell you right away" "I called a fellow I know in Tulsa the the one who plays my chauffeur" "He says that there's a sucker there that's made for us and a broker that just shut down" "We can use their office, not change a thing" "Now" "I can scrape up 10 grand if I try" "I got a couple of aces in the hole, some markers I could call on for something real" "That leaves $15,000 or $20,000 for your end" "We can start this weekend" "Get the sucker into position" "Hold it" "You're talking some pretty tall figures" "What makes you think I got that kind of money?" "Well, you must have" "Now, you know you do, Roy" "Maybe I like it where I am" "Well, maybe I don't" "I had 10 good years with Cole, and I want'em back" "I gotta have a partner" "I looked and I looked, and believe me, brother," "I kissed a lot of fuckin'frogs" "And you're my prince" "Do I get any say in this?" "No Because" "That's what I say" "What I say is no" "We don't do partners" "What is it?" "What's going on?" "Why don't you want to team up?" "The best reason I can think of is that you scare the hell out of me" "I have seen women like you before, baby" "You're double-tough, and you are sharp as a razor and you get what you want or else, but you don't make it work forever" "Sooner or later, the lightning hits" "And I'm not gonna be around when it hits you" "My God" "It's your mother It's Lilly" "What?" "Sure it is" "That's why you act so funny around each other" "What's that?" "Oh, don't act so goddamned innocent" "You and your own mother?" "Ugh!" "You like to go back where you've been, huh?" "Watch your mouth" "Yeah Yeah, I'm wise to you" "I should've seen it before, you rotten son of a bitch" "How is it, huh?" "How do you like it?" "Ah!" "Ow!" "Stop Stop Stop" "Stop Stop!" "That's not like me" "I don't do this" "That's why we wouldn't work together" "You're disgusting" "Your mind is so filthy, it's hard to look at you" "Goodbye" "And you don't even know it" "Mama Mama She's the one" "And you'll get yours, mama Oh, yes" "Yeah?" "Lilly, it's Roy" "Lilly, I was wondering if, um," "I was wondering if we could just talk" "You know, like, have a conversation?" "Maybe we've both grown up" "Maybe we could just talk" "Well, sure, Roy" "You want me to drive up?" "No" "Okay" "I'll come there tonight" "Fine Come on down" "It won't be a home-cooked meal, you know" "Well, that's good news" "Well, who's a boy gonna talk to if not his mother?" "Don't worry" "I'll look after her" "Roy?" "Lilly, listen, it's Irv" "You've always been decent with me" "I'm taking a hell of a chance here" "Somebody blew you out with Bobo" "The car full of money he's" "Lilly?" "Lilly!" "Lilly, come on" "Lilly!" "Bobo knows about all the money in the car, the money you stole from him" "A black and gold Cadillac" "Fuck!" " Hi" " Hi" "Welcome to Phoenix" "I'd like a single room for tonight" "Everything's the same size, same price" "I'm a very light sleeper" "Traffic noise keeps me wide awake all night" "The trucks I know what you mean" "Do you have something around back, facing away from the road?" "I could put you in room 19" "Very quiet Faces the desert" "Sounds perfect" "Could I park my car back there?" "Right in front of the room" "Somethin'wrong?" "Oh I'm sorry" "I thought you were the other lady" "No, I'm me" "I'll give you number 6 very nice room, very handy" "In the front, right by the pool" "Oh Don't you have something around back, where it's quieter?" "Everybody wants the back tonight" "I guess everybody wants privacy" "Roy Dillon?" "Lieutenant Pierson, Phoenix police" "I have a car here" "There was a bunch of money" " hidden in your mother's car" " Yeah?" "A lot of money" " Would you know anything about that?" " No" "I realize this is a shock" "Mostly, I don't believe it" "Well, that's natural" "No I mean, I don't believe it" "I know my mother" "Lilly is not a suicide" "Nothing would make her check out" "I'm sorry It was her, all right" "It was her gun even" "Her gun?" "Mm-hmm" "There is one thing I have to caution you" "Normally we don't do a next-of-kin I D, unless there's no other choice" "In this case, there's no fingerprints on file" "The dental records don't help because of the location of the wound" "She ate the gun" "I'm sorry" "This is going to be a shock" "Not many laughs in this room, huh?" "Not many" "Remove that" "We'll want a full identification" "Jesus" "No question, huh?" "No" "Well that's that then" "Yeahthat's that" "Ohh" "Mom" "The last modern thing I liked was the miniskirt" "Your technology now nobody understands it" "That's the simple fact of the situation" "Good evening, Miss, uh, Langtry" "Hello, Lilly" "Oh Roy" "You scared me" "You going somewhere?" "Somewhere else, that's for sure" "I just came back from Phoenix" "Oh, yeah?" "Is the frame holding?" "It looks very solid, Lilly" "Take a minute Tell me about it" "I've really got to go" "You're dead, Lilly It worked" "Yeah, but not for long" "Cops may buy it," " but Bobo will spend money to make sure" " Even so" "Relax a minute Sit down" "Just for a minute" "Put that down" "Myra followed you, huh?" "Yeah" "I guess she must have been the one that blew me off with Bobo, to get me running" "Did you tell her about my stash?" "No" "That's what she was after, though" "What happened in Phoenix?" "Oh, Roy" "It was terrible" "You read about people killing people and all that" "But when it happens my God" "She was in her nightgown, you know" "The old grifter's Dodge nightgown and the ice bucket, and she just got in the wrong room by mistake" "Ah!" "Ah!" "I sat in there with her" "I thought, "What do I do now?"" "Run, I've got Bobo and the law after me" "Stay, how do I explain?" "This was perfect" "It is, isn't it?" "I've wanted out of the rackets for years" "And now I'm out" "I can make a clean break" "You've already made a break" "I don't know how clean it is" "I'm sorry, Roy" "I hated to take your money" "You're not taking it" "Roy!" "I need this money!" "I can't run without money!" "And if I can't run, I'm dead!" " You must have some money" " Just a few bucks" "Myra's stuff?" "Her credit cards" "How far am I gonna get with that?" "Far enough" "San Francisco, St Louis, someplace new start over" "At what?" "You're smart, you're good-Iooking" "You won't have any trouble finding a job" "A job?" "I've never had a legit job in my life" "Well, you're gonna start if you want to live through this" "You're gonna get a square job, and you're gonna lead a quiet life" "You start showing up at the tracks or any of the hot spots," "Bobo's boys are gonna be all over you" "Roy, don't tell me what to do with myself" " It's a big world out there" " Not anymore" "Lilly, listen to me It's good advice" " I'm following it myself" " What?" "You want me out of the rackets, you want me off the grift, I think I'm gonna get out" "Roy, that's fine, but I don't have time for this!" " Bobo's after my ass" " I thought you'd be happy for me!" "After all, you're the one who's telling me what to do all my goddamn life!" "Bobo's not after you!" "Bobo's after me, and he's goddamn good," " but so am I" " What makes you think" " I'm a survivor, Roy I survive" " I'm gonna let you get out of here" " And to survive my way, I need money - with my goddamn money?" "And that leaves this" "No" "Want a drink?" "No You probably shouldn't have one either" "No, but I'm goddamn thirsty" "Ice water?" "Sure That sounds nice" "I'll get it" "Take whichever one you want" "You wouldn't do that" "You don't know what I'd do" "You have no idea" "To live" "You'll live, Lilly" "I know what's bugging you, of course" "Oh, I didn't know anything was" "I wasn't a very good mother to you when you were a kid" "It was pretty lousy of me, I guess to be a child at the same time you were" "Oh, for God's sake, Lilly" "I gave you your life twice" "I'm asking you to give me mine once" "I need the money, Roy" "No" "So, you're getting off the grift, huh?" "I might" "That's good" "You don't really belong on this side of the fence, you know?" "I don't?" "If you stayed a crook, you think you'd live to be my ripe age?" "Well, I don't see why not" "Hmm" "I guess I got it wrong, then" "Seems to me I heard about a guy just your age who got hit so hard in the guts it almost killed him" "Well" "Oh, that's different That doesn't count" "It doesn't really matter, does it, if I'm getting out?" "You're getting out?" "You're on the level?" "You don't need the money!" "So why the hell can't I take it?" "!" "Lilly, my money wouldn't last forever" "And then what?" "You'd be stuck in some other part of the rackets with another Bobo Justus to slap you around and burn holes in your hand" "If you can't change your life now while you're still relatively young, how could you do it when you were, say, crowning 50?" "This way, you gotta go the square route" "Send me a card when you get settled" "I could maybe help you out sometime" "Roy" "What if I told you that I wasn't really your mother?" "That we weren't related?" "What?" "You'd like that, wouldn't you?" "Sure, you would" "You don't have to tell me" "Now, why would you like that, Roy?" "What are you talking about?" "Of course you're my mother Of course you are" "Roy" "Roy" "There's nothing more to talk about" "I want that money, Roy" "I need it" "Now, what do I have to do to get it?" "You mean you won't give it to me, Roy?" "Will you or won't you?" "What can I do to get it?" "Is there nothing I can do?" "Lilly, Jesus, what are you doing?" "Nothing at all Nothing at all" "Uhhhhh!" "Uuuuhhh!" "No, no, no, no" "No, no"