"Thank you." "Hello?" "Yes, a few minutes ago." "No, there wasn't any first class on that flight." "What do you mean prima donna?" "I'm the best." "Right." "You bet I fly first class." "Yeah, I got the pictures." "But those people are your problems." "The deal is you take care of your end, and I'll take care of mine." "And everybody will be happy." "In other words, I don't move until that Prince woman is eliminated." " Plotkin?" " Right." "What is this information that is supposed to be so vital to the IADC?" "Not here." "Follow me." "Get her." "We've got to waste her." "What did you do that for?" "I didn't mean you any harm." " You call this harmless?" " So I lied." " Why were you setting up Diana Prince?" " Money." "I hope you saved it." "This is your rainy day." "Well, whoever this Plotkin character is, his personal effects don't tell us much." "It's like he was a no-good drifter who'd sell his mother for a buck." "Wonder Woman used her lasso." "But all he could tell her was that... he was hired by the other two to help take me out." " And the other two?" " Got away." "What do you make of this?" "Found in his wallet." ""Sir:" "This will confirm demolition of CARl as requested." ""My people will move on their respective assignments with all due speed." ""Completion guaranteed before 9:30 a. m., 26th." ""W.N."" "Demolition?" "Sounds more like they're talking about murder to me." "The 26th is tomorrow." "And you must have been one of their respective assignments." "And whoever C-A-R-I stands for is the prime target." "W.N.?" "Woodward Nightingale?" "He never makes a contract unless someone's talking at least six digits." "This is certainly his style." "For once, we'd have a chance to be one up on him." "If we can figure out who the prime target is." "carl, C-A-R-I." "Steve, that big industrialist who's in Washington for the trade meetings." " Carlo..." " Indrezzano!" "It fits." "He's certainly qualified for a Nightingale assassination." "Let me see, what did I do with that?" "Yeah, here it is." "His full name is Carlo Amadeo Ricardo Indrezzano." "So his initials are C-A-R-I." "Sounds like I'd better get myself ready for a watchdog assignment." "Yeah." "But, Diana..." "I understand Indrezzano has quite a reputation for being a swinger." "That's what I'm preparing for." "All right." "But be careful, you've already been set up once." "Yeah, got you." "Our swimwear for this season reflects both new and traditional designs... utilizing many of the exciting today fabrics, both in the wet..." "I wouldn't be too concerned, Carlo." "Two million bushels of wheat lost to mildew." " And I shouldn't be too concerned?" " It's unavoidable." "Besides, it means we get a better price for the remaining 10 million bushels." "Yes." "Of course." "I want two of that one." "I wouldn't want to slight my friends here." "Your sense of perspective has not diminished... in all the 14 years we've been partners, Marius." "Where I lose sight of things, you do not." "That is why we are where we are." "Has the oil company changed its mind about our offer?" "Not yet." "But it will." " Exactly." " Get me the Prince woman." "I suppose it's about time I returned her call." "The IADC has insisted that one of their agents guard me." "The least I can do is take her to lunch, I mean, to preserve my image." " They've assigned a woman to you?" " Yes." " I can imagine what she looks like." " I'm afraid I can, too." "Probably stout... squat, and beetle-browed." " With a moustache." " No doubt." "Now that's probably what my bodyguard will look like." "Hi there, Violet." "Say hello to Beamer." "He's going to be working with us." "Hi." "How's the typing?" "Don't ask." "Violet used to be our number one hit lady." "Hit person." "And I'm thinking seriously of getting back into the business." "Well, just for one day." "Find whoever it was who said that... women were cut out for office work." "Listen, I think Mr. Nightingale is expecting us." "Right." "You gentlemen are not going to be wanting any coffee, are you?" " No." " That's good." "The price I quoted was for three." "If you want four, it'll cost you more." "If that's your attitude, I suggest you seek assistance elsewhere." "I don't do business with chiselers." " This place is a trip." " It's kind of his personal memory lane." "Murder through the centuries." "The state taught him how to be an executioner." "Then they stopped capital punishment, and the only thing he knows is how to kill." "Negotiations on that point are out of the question." "Half of the money in front, the balance on delivery." "Otherwise, we have no deal." " These pictures?" " Those are just some of his victims." "That's for his next one." "Then you agree to those terms?" "Good." "Four it is." "You'll have a confirmation by wire." "Mr. Nightingale, this is Elden Beamer, he's from Saint Louis." " Mr. Beamer." " Elden." "Thank you, Mr. Beamer, but I prefer to keep things on a more formal basis." "Mr. Krug told me something about you." "He says you have a knack for my line of work." "That's nice of you to say, Mr. Nightingale." "I didn't say it, Mr. Beamer, this idiot did." " Mr. Nightingale" " Shut up." "You botched your assignment, Mr. Krug." "There's nothing more to be said." "Except that it won't happen again." "Dedication." "Accuracy." "Pride in one's work." "That's what I look for, what I demand from my people." "Of course, not everyone has my special aptitude for execution." "My flare for neatness, my precision." "That takes years of training." "In my case, conveniently paid for by the state." "In your case, I'm not paying you to be trainees." "I'm paying you to do a professional job." "Which, this morning, you failed to do." "Look, we had Diana Prince, but Wonder Woman showed up." "That agent must be neutralized before Mr. Starker will undertake his assignment." "That's our arrangement." "Okay, we'll get her, I promise." " Wonder Woman or no Wonder Woman." " Good." "Let's not hesitate to make that no Wonder Woman, shall we?" " Yes?" " We're here to repair the carpet." " My carpet?" "I wasn't aware..." " Here's the order." " You will be finished by lunchtime?" " Don't worry, we'll be through in an hour." " Madame or mademoiselle?" " Ms. Prince." " Is there a Mr. Indrezzano here?" " But, of course." "Follow me, please." "Signor Indrezzano, your luncheon companion, Ms. Prince." "Thank you." "Are you going to eat standing, Mr. Indrezzano?" " You are Diana Prince?" " You were expecting me." "Indeed, no." "I was expecting..." "Never mind what I expecting." "What I found was love." " Mr. Indrezzano." " Carlo, please." "Carlo, I must say that you are everything I expected." "With you as my bodyguard, I shall remain eternally in danger." "You don't look like a government agent." "I left my trench coat in the cleaners." "Then I shall have to keep you out of the trenches." "Definitely." "Are you ready to order, signore?" " I'm ready for anything." " I'm hungry." "The wine list, please." "I'm supposed to be watching you, remember?" "Hello." "Well, I'm just fine." "And you?" "I just wanted to get a situation report, Mr. Starker." "Time is getting short, my client is getting anxious." "So am I. But there's still Diana Prince." "A mere detail." "One which will be taken care of within the hour." "That's the same thing I heard yesterday." " What about this other mere detail?" " Call me at 3:30." "The information you require will be here then." "Just remember, I don't move until you chill Diana Prince." "Stop making excuses, Mr. Starker... and concentrate on your end of the arrangement." "I've paid your price, I've got a customer to satisfy." "What is he, standing right there beside you so you can look good?" "That's all." "Don't fail to call me at 3:30." "Put him on, Nightingale." "I'll set him straight about your business operations." "Until this afternoon." "I'll tell him who does all the work while you take all the" " Hello?" "You see?" "Everything's fine, just as I said." "I'm not paying you $1 million to watch you play businessman." "Results, I want results." "I'm telling you, your order will be filled by 9:30 tomorrow morning." "It better be." "Or it will be my head in the basket." "You better not let your shrimp go to waste." "Eating would mean having to take my eyes off of you." "I know." "I never dreamed that they would provide me with such an... exquisite escort." "I'd rather you didn't regard me as your escort." "Your life is in danger." " I'm here on business." " Nonsense." "For me a beautiful woman can mean only pleasure." "Romance." " I'm sorry." " I'll put cold water on it." " I'm sorry." " It's all right." "Look on the bright side." "You can finish your shrimp now." "Just a moment." "Pardon, Signor Indrezzano, there is a phone call for Miss Prince." "She stepped away." " I'll take the call." " Certainly." "Over there." "Thank you." " This isn't Diana Prince." " Let's take him for bait anyway." "Excuse me, where is Mr. Indrezzano?" "Miss Prince, he is taking a phone call for you." " Where?" " At the public phone over there." "You all right?" "What happened?" "Let's just say we just cheated the jaws of death out of a meal." "You mean, you saved me?" "That's impossible." "It's ridiculous." "You are a woman." "I've been told that once or twice." "Now you're sure you're all right?" "Yes." "I got to get back to the lady I was having lunch with." "She'll never believe this!" "Perfect." "Perfect, Violet Louise." "Except, you spelled "sincerely" backwards again." "I warned you, Woody." "I am not cut out for this kind of work." " I'd much rather" " That's all behind you now." "If anyone ever deserved retirement, it was you." "Some retirement, this is torture." "Not entirely, Woody." "Hello." "It's for you." "Starker." "It's 3:30, where is the information?" "Listen carefully, her name is Major Anita Finley." "That is correct." "Finley." "She will be driving an official army car." "Green." "License plate "G" 108... 2135." "Of course." "I always get the job done." "Neatly, professionally." "We shall see." "In the meantime, Mr. Starker... whatever your opinion of me, do not fail." "Sounds like I should have assigned Diana Prince to protect Diana Prince." "Well, if Diana's initials were C-A-R-I, it might make sense." "If Carlo was the target, they could have killed him at the restaurant." "And they didn't." "Why do we keep coming up with questions instead of answers?" "I am more than prepared to tell you why." "I was talking with Eve." "But since you are all warmed up... we have reason to believe somebody put a contract out on Carlo Indrezzano." "Indrezzano, Carlo..." "Amadeo Ricardo... international industrialist." "Net worth $2 billion and rising." "Can you tell us who might want to see him dead?" "Affirmative." "If you have approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes to kill." "As it were." "What did we ever do to his programmers to deserve this?" "So a lot of people would like to see him dead." "How about his associates?" "Friends, relatives, people close to him?" "Marius Makropolous is his closest associate." "They are partners." " Can you tell us any more about him?" " Makropolous, Marius." "Business tactics highly effective and highly unorthodox." "Rumored to be solely responsible for the stock market panic of 1959." "Causing the collapse of four of the world's largest banks." "Boy, no wonder Carlo wanted to keep him in the background." "Marius could be the one who arranged the hit." "He could certainly afford Nightingale prices." "But Marius lacks a motive." "That doesn't explain the attack on Diana." "Is that all the help you can give us, Ira?" "If that is all the help you can give me." "Thanks a lot." "It kind of makes you wish that his programmers did have those initials." "Amen." " Major Finley?" " Yes?" "Hi, I'm Phil Murray." "Steve Trevor asked me to greet you... and show you to your parking space." "How very thoughtful." "Major Trevor must be as nice as I've heard he is." "Nicer." "You'll like him a lot." "If you'll just go down to the end and turn to the right, you'll find a space over there." "Thank you." "Steve, Major Anita Finley is here." " She's the new engineering officer." " Thank you, Eve, send her in." "Welcome to Washington, Major." "I hope your stay at IADC is a pleasant one." "I'm looking forward to it, Major Trevor." "How wonderful it is, Diana, that my life is in danger... and is receiving such beautiful protection." "You would probably change your mind if you saw me in a trench coat." "Nothing could make me change my mind about you." "Well, thank you for a very lovely evening." "Good night." "The best part of the evening is still ahead." "That's right." "The part where I go to sleep." "Are you refusing me?" "What an amusing girl you are." " Who is that?" " That is James Dernier." "He is my replacement for the rest of the evening." "You'll like him." "He looks great in a trench coat." " Good night." " Wait." "I'll pick you up here at 8:45 in the morning." "We'll play tennis, then have breakfast." "Make it 9:45, my office, no breakfast, and you've got a deal." " Good night." " Splendid." "Thanks again." "Thank you, lovely lady." " Some more coffee, Major?" " No more, thank you." "Come in." "These are the plans for the building you asked for." "Here, Corporal, I'll sign for them." "Take a look here." "Got the plans for the ductwork... wiring diagrams, masonry specs." "That's it." "There you are, Corporal." "Thank you." " And there you are, Major." " Wonderful." "Thanks for the hospitality, Steve." "But I think I better get to work." "It's a shame you had to start work so late." "It's the only way we're going to get things done in time." " I suppose so." " Good night, Steve." "You were on your way in to see Woodward Nightingale, weren't you?" " How do I get to him?" " Through there." "Pull a light bulb." "His office is downstairs." "Thank you." "Here we go." "Get in." "Remain immobile until the police come for you." "Have you an appointment?" "That's hardly the way to treat a walk-in customer." "And that's hardly the way to treat my receptionist." "I could have stopped her, Woody, if I'd been wearing my gun." "That's quite all right, Violet Louise." " Woodward Nightingale." "Cage and all." " What you've left of it." "Please, come in." "We'll have a chat." "There's really nothing to chat about." "I'm afraid you've drawn up your last contract, Nightingale." "What a pity." "My brilliant career over, just like that." "You should have ended that career when you were laid off your job as executioner." "And let all that knowledge go to waste?" "That would have been criminal." "Just tell me who the latest person is scheduled for demolition." "All in due time, Wonder Woman." "A picture of that unfortunate person will grace that empty frame." "I'm really interested in your gallery of victims." "But you ought to be interested in this one." "It is, it has for quite some time been intended for you." "Come on." "Now that we've all had our fun, the games are over." " Who is supposed to be hit?" " I..." "All right." "You have me." "But I have the satisfaction of knowing... you will be unable to prevent my latest... and greatest victim from getting its just reward." " Its?" "What are you talking about?" " Marius Makropolous hired me." " Right." "To kill Carlo Indrezzano." " Wrong." "We know it is someone with the initials C-A-R-I." "No, my dear." "You see... my reluctant secretary, Violet Louise... suffers from a form of dyslexia." "She frequently spells things backwards." "Backwards." "I.R.A.C.?" "You're hired to destroy a computer" " For $1 million." " Why?" "Like many of my victims, it knew too much." "It was inadvertently programmed with information... which would have exposed a plot to ruin Carlo... and leave Marius in control of their business empire." "The computer would have revealed Marius' plot... at its regular readout on Thursday morning, the 26th." "At 9:30." " That's this morning." " Correct." " Who did you hire to make the hit?" " A man named Starker." "But to know his name will do you no good." "He's a master of disguise." "That right, Wonder Woman." "Only four minutes." "When you broke through my security doors... you destroyed all our telephone lines." "Do you know how far we are from Washington?" " I'd say 40 miles." "47, to be exact." " Hold your wings for a while, Nightingale." " It is you who needs wings." "You have four minutes to travel 47 miles." "Only four minutes." "And counting." "I bet you never see her behind a typewriter." "Ms. Prince doesn't seem to be in the building just now, sir." "Perhaps you'd like to wait over there for her." "Thank you." "Excuse me." "Steve, you've all got to stay out." "Steve, I want you to clear the area, and shut this door behind me!" "All right, get back, everyone!" "Good morning, please stand by for my 9:30 a. m. readout." "The areas of concern today are foreign and domestic security... military operation in the European sector." " Here, allow me." " It's all right." " No." " I insist." "You know, Major, you really ought to change your hairstyle." "Something like this." "Gentlemen." "And we found the real Major Finley in the trunk of her car." " A little stiff, but okay." " That's good." "I take it, Marius Makropolous did not enjoy Ira's 9:30 readout?" "No." "How could my partner, my good friend, do such a thing?" "It has to do with greed, Carlo." "Sometimes, you can't trust even your friends." "Carlo, have you seen a doctor about that shiner?" "It's nothing." "I bumped into a door." "I know." " Don't feel too badly, I was fooled myself." " I was not fooled." "Not even for a moment." "Would you have captured that dangerous assassin had I not risked my very life?" "Of course not, Carlo." "We are very grateful." "I want no publicity, please." "Bravery is its own reward." "I would like to express my gratitude to Wonder Woman." "Would you give her this for me, please?" "That's very generous of you." "I don't think she'd take it." "Besides, we never know when she's going to be around again." "Well, in that case..." "I'd like you to have it." "Take it, it's yours." "Take it." "That's very nice of you, Carlo, but I can't take it either." "Thanks anyway." "I don't believe it." "For the first time, I can't even give a diamond away." "Well, we've all seen enough shining things for one day."