"Name of Joyce Lakeland." "Lives about four or five miles out on Derrick Road past the old Branch place." "Oh, I know the old Branch place." "She a hustlin' lady, Bob?" "Well, I guess so, but she's been pretty decent about it." "She ain't taken on no roustabouts or nothin' like that." "In fact, if these preachers around town weren't rompin' down on me," "I wouldn't bother her at all." "Well, how shall I handle it?" "Tell her to lay off awhile or..." "Oh, I don't know." "I don't know." "Just go out and size her up and make your own decision." "I know you'll be gentle, as gentle and pleasant as you can be." "So go on out there, see how she looks to ya." "All right." "Thanks, Bob." "Mornin' Miss Parker." "Oh, hello." "Mornin', ma'am." "The trouble with growing up in a small town is everybody thinks they know who you are." "I was born here 29 years ago." "And Central City was small enough that my father was the only doctor in town." "Then the oil boom came, and the town grew to fit its name." "The sheriff's office handles the policing for both the city and the county." "We do a pretty good job of it, to our own way of thinkin'." "We're kind of old-fashioned." "Out here, you say, "Yes, ma'am," and "No, ma'am,"" "to anything with a skirt on." "Out here, if you catch a man with his pants down, you apologize, even if you have to arrest him afterwards." "Out here, you're a man and a gentleman, or you aren't anything at all." "And God help you if you're not." "Yes?" "I'm sorry, ma'am, uh..." "Come on in." "You go on back." "I just need to wash up." "What do you think you're doing with that?" "Sheriff's office, ma'am." "What are you doing with it?" "I have a permit." "Are you satisfied, copper?" "Well, I reckon it's all right." "And my name's Ford, ma'am, not Copper." "Jesus." "The only decent-looking guy I've seen in this stink hole and he's a boy scout with a badge." "How much?" "I don't jazz cops." "That's not very polite, ma'am." "I just came out here for a little talk." "And I asked you what you wanted." "Well, I guess I want you out of Central City by sundown." "And if I see you here after that..." "I'm gonna run you in for prostitution." "You lousy son of a bitch." "Don't you call me that, ma'am." "You lousy son of a bitch!" "You son of a bitch, bastard, pimp!" "Get off me!" "Get off me!" "Let go of me, you bastard!" "Get off me!" "You bastard son of a bitch!" "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "No." "Don't say you're sorry." "I went back the next day and the day after that." "I couldn't help it." "It was like a wind had been turned on a dying fire." "Let's pull out of this crummy old town together, just you and me." "What, are you crazy?" "Go on." "Let me hear you say it." "Oh, no." "Go on." "Tell me what a fine ol' family y'all Fords is." ""We all Fords, ma'am." ""We wouldn't even think of living with one of you miserable ol' whores, ma'am."" "Don't." "You think you're too good for me." "Don't start that." "You do." "I'll never give you up." "Never." "And if you think you're too good for me now," "I'll make it so you won't be." "Oh, baby, you got your bowels in an uproar all over nothin'." "I was just thinkin' about the money." "I can get money." "Oh, yeah?" "He's crazy about me, and he's dumb as hell." "I'm sorry?" "Who's crazy about you and dumb as hell?" "Elmer Conway." "You know who he is, don't ya?" "I knew Elmer Conway well enough." "We'd been in the same class together at school." "Aw, he wasn't a bad man." "He'd just been spoiled." "Spoiled by his father, Chester Conway." "Chester had built half of Central City, and he acted like he owned the town, and nobody had the guts to tell him any different." "Joyce was a fool to think she could put one over on old man Conway." "But her plan started me thinking about how I could settle some old scores of my own." "You want a refill, hon?" "No, I've got to go." "All right." "So you're a deputy sheriff?" "You don't even carry a gun." "No, I don't." "What if some crook should try to shoot ya?" "Well, I'll tell you a secret." "We don't have too many crooks in Central City." "That's good to know." "I started needling people." "I couldn't help it." "I guess it was a substitute for somethin' else." "Thank you, Max." "You don't have to pay." "I want to thank you for what you've done for my Johnnie." "No one else would've done what you did." "Thank you very much, Max." "I appreciate that." "It's made a big difference." "You know, I figure that you don't get any more out of life than what you put into it." "You're right there, Lou." "Well, I'm gonna push off." "I got a whole lot of gettin' around to do, and I don't want to rush." "Haste makes waste." "Evenin'." "Evenin'." "Hey, how 'bout it, bud?" "How 'bout it?" "Look, I've been on a hell of a binge, and, by God, if I don't get some food in me pretty soon," "I'm just gonna keel over here, you know?" "Is that right?" "Yeah." "Need something' to warm you up, huh?" "Oh, anything." "Just anything at all." "Yeah." "Ah!" "Jesus, bud!" "Ouch." "Cigar." "What the hell are you tryin' to do with that, huh?" "See that?" "That's a real-life sheriff's badge." "Sure." "Beat it." "Sure, bud." "Sure, sure, I'm goin'." "I'm goin'." "You better watch it with that stuff, bud." "You think so?" "You just better watch it." "Hello, Lou." "Joe." "Welcome." "Come on in." "Sorry to ask you to come around so late." "Figure it's better to be discreet, you being a public official and all." "Have a seat." "It is hot out there, huh?" "What can I do for you?" "Well, look, Lou, there's something I want to talk to you about, and I know that it's something that you're very sensitive about, so..." "How did you feel about Mike Dean?" "Well, I don't know what you mean." "He was my brother." "Right, he was your foster brother, right?" "Your father adopted him." "Well, Dad and the Deans were old friends, and when Mike's parents passed on in that big flu epidemic we had a while ago," "Dad adopted him." "See, my mother died when I was a baby and..." "Dad thought that Mike would be good company for me." "You were the only son and heir, and your father brings in another son." "Didn't that rub you a little the wrong way?" "Well, I was only six years old and Mike was eight, so I don't..." "So you liked Mike, then?" "Oh, I couldn't have loved a real brother any more." "Even after he did what he did?" "Just what would that be?" "Come on." "The girl identified him." "That girl was five years old." "She would've identified anybody they put in front of her." "So you didn't feel the slightest bit embarrassed when he came back to Central City?" "Not at all." "I wanted him back; so did Dad." "Dad pulled a lot of strings to get him that job." "You know, Lou, I mean, that all squares." "So now let me tell you what I know about Mike's death, all right?" "Now, he was killed six years ago." "He was working on a girder on a Conway Construction job." "Apparently he slipped on a rivet." "So when he fell... he threw himself backwards... so he'd land inside the building and onto the decking." "But the floors, they hadn't been decked in properly." "So he fell... all the way to the basement." "So what about it?" "Well, listen, I will tell you what about it, Lou." "Conway, Chester Conway, he didn't install the decking." "Oh, now, Joe." "You just haven't thought this deal through properly." "See, I know you were getting along all right with Chester Conway, and then he got a notion to go non-union, and, well, that upset you, didn't it?" "I understand that." "That's only natural." "But if you thought that there had been a murder," "Now Joe, you would've said somethin' six years ago." "Am I right?" "Well listen, I am sorry I troubled you for nothing, Lou." "I mean, I certainly enjoyed our talk." "May I make a suggestion, Lou?" "Certainly." "Save the bullshit for the birds." "All right?" "Good night, Joe." "Lou." "Lou?" "What're you doing?" "Lou." "Amy, what're you doin' here?" "Waitin' for you, upstairs." "Somebody might've seen ya." "No one did." "I snuck out after my folks went to sleep." "Aren't ya glad?" "Well, I wasn't expecting' you." "Well, my, such enthusiasm." "I'm sorry." "I shed my clothes for you and my decency and... you just say you're sorry." "Will I see you Sunday for dinner?" "Well, I can't, babe." "I told a fella I'd do a favor for him." "I can't get out of it." "Shouldn't be too late." "Why don't you come on by around 10:00 and wait for me." "We're gonna have a talk, talk about why you've acted the way you have these past few weeks." "Understand?" "Yes, Miss Stanton." "So now, sleep well." "Bye." "I loved Joyce, and there were times when her voice seemed to whisper to me," ""Forget it, Lou." "It's not too late if you stop now."" "But then I'd remember Chester Conway, and I knew I had to go through with the plan." "Come on in." "Close the door behind ya." "Have a seat." "Well..." "You got things all fixed up for tonight, have ya?" "Gonna wind this thing up so it'll stay wound?" "Well, I'm not gonna do anything." "I mean, I've done all I'm gonna do, so..." "I don't think we better leave it that way, Lou." "If that damn crazy Elmer sees her again, there's no tellin' what'll happen." "I want you to take the money yourself." "$10,000 in small bills." "Oh, I won't do that." "Now, you take it, and you pay her off, and you bust her around a little bit, and you run her out of the county." "Mr. Conway." "That's the way you do it." "You pay her, you bust her, and you run her out." "Did you say somethin'?" "Now, look here, Miss Lakeland insisted that Elmer bring that money out all by himself." "Now, those are her terms, and I..." "I don't see what she's got to do with it." "Well, what you don't see is that you have a whole lot of gall." "What'd you say?" "Well, how do you think it would look if it got around that an officer of the law had made a blackmail payoff?" "Now, Elmer came to me with his trouble, and I came to you, and you asked me to see what I could do about gettin' this done quietly, and I've done all that I can think to do," "and I don't see how you can ask me to do one thing more." "Maybe you're right, boy." "But you will see that she leaves after she gets that money." "If she isn't gone after an hour," "I'll move her on myself." "Well, I'm gonna send Elmer over to your place as soon as I can locate him." "And you make sure he's got everything straight." "Understand?" "What if the old man never cools off, hmm?" "Well, hold on, you told me you were sure he was gonna come around." "If that isn't the case, I better tell Miss Lakeland." "No." "Don't you do that, Lou." "Why don't you do this?" "Why don't you buy a business?" "Then you and Joyce can run it together, and when it gets goin' good, then you get in touch with your old man and... he'll see you made a darned smart move." "Yeah, I don't know about that." "Well I'm not gonna twist your arm." "I already stuck my neck out about a mile and a half to give you all a fresh start." "I know you did, but why?" "Why?" "Why'd you do all this for me and her, Lou?" "I might've thought that you'd do something for me." "Well, hey, I can give you a little out of that $10,000, I guess." "Oh, don't bother." "If you don't have any money of your own," "I don't want to take your old man's." "I got plenty of my own money." "Come on." "Oh, hell, here." "You sure?" "Mm-hmm." "I appreciate it." "Thank you, Elmer." "I appreciate it." "So you're gonna be there tonight, right?" "10:00. 10:00." "Hey, have you heard this stuff?" "Black." "Yellow." "And red." "Coh, that's good." "Lou." "Hi, darlin'." "Hi." "What are you doin' here?" "Chester wanted me to come by and hold Elmer's hand." "Well, he won't be here for another hour, so..." "You will join me in two weeks, won't you, Lou?" "Won't you?" "Well, that's my understanding." "You promise?" "Lou, do you suppose Elmer will, you know, make any trouble?" "I don't see how he can." "What's he gonna do, squawk to his dad?" "I'll just tell him you changed your mind." "I don't know, it just..." "It all seems so complicated." "Well..." "I'll tell ya, honey, it is kind of complicated." "You remember my stepbrother, the one who died?" "Mm-hmm." "Well, Chester Conway... organized it for him to be killed." "That's terrible, Lou." "Yeah." "You can't do anything to Elmer." "You mustn't, honey." "Please?" "I won't let you." "They won't catch me, baby." "They won't even suspect me for it, really." "They'll just think he got tanked, like he usually is, and then you two got to fighting," "and you both got killed." "Well, that doesn't make any sense." "How am I supposed to be dead?" "Don't." "I have to travel." "Baby, you aren't goin' anywhere." "Understand?" "Lou." "Lou." "Hold on." "It's almost over." "Why?" "Why?" "I'm sorry, baby." "I'm sorry." "I love you." "Hold on." "I love you." "Do you hear me?" "Honey, can you hear me?" "I'm sorry." "I'm real sorry." "I love you." "Good-bye." "You're gonna be all right." "All right." "Hey, Lou, ol' boy." "You got here before me, huh?" "You bring the money?" "What's it look like?" "Where's Joyce?" "Oh, she's in the bedroom." "Why don't you go on back?" "Bet she's all stretched out and waitin' for ya." "Oh, now you shouldn't talk like that." "You know I'm about to be married." "Honey!" "Honey!" "Oh, God." "Who did it, Lou?" "It was suicide." "That doesn't make any sense." "Oh, sure it does." "You're just too stupid to see it." "I'm real sorry, sweetheart." "But I feel anguish, and I'm sorry." "I know you were scared." "You seemed awful surprised, and I'm sorry." "Oh, shoot." "God damn it, Lou." "You tryin' to get killed for Christ's sakes?" "Well, I'm real sorry, sir." "I had to pull in there with a flat tire, and then I didn't see you when I..." "Come on, let's go." "We don't have time to stand around gabbing'." "Well, it's still pretty early." "The hell it is." "It's quarter past 11:00, and Elmer ain't home yet." "He said he was gonna come back right away, and he ain't done it." "Come on, you follow me." "Yeah, but don't tell me that again." "I know how bad it is." "He's dead, and that is that." "What I'm interested in now is her." "Well, do it." "Get on out here as quick as you can." "I don't want to see her die, not this way." "I want to see her burn." "Just get that ambulance out here now." "So, Lou, that's, uh..." "That's it?" "That's all you got to say?" "Well, I told it five times." "I guess the only thing I left out of it all..." "I feel awful sorry." "Well it's a bit late for that." "Tried to handle this blackmail deal all by myself." "You know, I sure wish I'd come to you, Bob, with it." "It's okay, Lou." "I really do." "I would have, had it been anybody other than Chester asking for help." "You know that." "It's all right." "Don't fret yourself about that." "Well, I appreciate your understanding." "Well, get some sleep, partner." "Good night." "Good night, boss." "Here's your food." "Thank you, Max." "Hey, Lou, I need to ask you something." "It's about Johnnie." "He's taken a job at Slim Murphy's and, uh..." "Well, I hear bad things about Slim Murphy." "So I was wondering..." "Would you like me to check up on him?" "Yeah, could you?" "I'd be happy to." "Thank you." "Appreciate it." "I was glad to do Max a good turn." "I knew Amy'd be waiting for me, and I knew she'd be mad as hell." "Fathers are funny." "They got ideas of their own." "And the good ones get in your hair the most." "Dad thinks he knows best about everything." "Slim Murphy hasn't got a very good reputation." "Now, nobody's proved that he's been mixed up in any of these car stripping jobs, but if I were you..." "Yeah, I know, I know." "I won't get in any trouble, Lou." "That sounds like a promise." "I know you won't break a promise." "Where have you been?" "I'm sorry, baby." "Where have you been?" "I'm sorry." "I had a whole lot of trouble tonight." "I'll bet." "Well, you want to hear about it or don't ya?" "I've heard so many of your lies and excuses," "I may as well hear one more." "All right." "Well, it started about three months ago." "Bob asked me to check up on a prostitute." "Yes?" "How could you be so stupid?" "Why did you do that?" "Well, I was doing a favor for Chester Conway." "He wanted me to help Elmer get out of a fix." "Why are you always have to do people favors?" "You never do any for me." "All right, I shouldn't have done it." "You shouldn't have let that woman in this town in the first place." "No, I shouldn't have." "Mm-mm." "I don't understand." "Hey." "Lou." "Stop that." "Lou, stop that." "What's the matter, huh?" "All this trouble's just thrown me for a loop." "Forget everything but me." "I want to." "Let me pet you." "You son of a bitch!" "Hey, what..." "You dirty, filthy bastard!" "You're dirty." "I can tell, I can smell it on you." "I can smell you've been screwing her." "What are you saying?" "You screwed her." "You've been doing it all along." "Come here." "You don't touch me!" "Amy, listen." "No." "Lou, stop it." "Amy, look at me." "Look at me." "It's Lou, honey." "The same Lou you've known all your life." "Come on, open up." "Are you crazy?" "Why would I do that?" "You did do it." "I know you did." "Amy, why?" "Stop." "Why would I run the risk of losing a girl like you by running around with some chippy?" "No use arguing about it." "Just thank my lucky stars" "I didn't catch some terrible disease." "Hey." "Damn it, hey, come here." "Come here." "Now, you can say what you want about me, but don't say that the girl I'm gonna marry is sleeping with a guy who would run around with whores." "You don't want to marry me." "Yes, I do." "I just didn't want to be told when." "I wanted to propose myself... which is what I'm doing right now." "Yeah, hello?" "Hey, Lou, it's Bob." "Bob, what's on your mind?" "Hiya, Lou." "Sorry to bother you." "I hope we didn't interrupt anything." "You had a date for last night?" "That's right." "For what time?" "Well, supposed to be a little after 10:00, the time I figured" "I'd be finished with the Conway business." "Who's the girl?" "Well, damn it." "Now, that I don't think is any of your business." "Howard, you know, you're kind of a newcomer out this way, but you ought to know better than to ask a man a question like that." "It's my job." "If Ford had himself a date last night, then, uh..." "Well, you know what I mean, Ford." "Well, no offense, Howard, but I figured you did all the jawing you had to do when I talked to you a couple hours ago." "You're wrong, brother." "Okay, easy, Howard." "For cryin' out loud." "I know the girl." "I know her folks." "She's one of the nicest little ladies in town." "I ain't got the slightest doubt that Lou had a date with her." "The more I'm around you people, the less I understand you." "Come on." "Let's go." "Don't be shy." "Come on." "See that track there, Ford?" "You know what caused that?" "I reckon so." "A flat tire." "So you admit that." "That's the sort of track you'd get from a flat tire." "What's this all about, Bob?" "You know, I really don't know, but this is Howard's show, so you might as well just answer him." "Well, I already said it once." "You get that track from a flat tire, yes, sir." "Come see the track your tire made." "Here we are." "The tire that made this track wasn't flat." "Well, I never said I had a flat tire when I pulled off the highway." "Now, wait a minute." "No, I had a puncture, sure." "Felt the car sway a little, but I pulled off the lane before the tire could really go down." "I hope you boys didn't chew up a perfectly good tire for nothin'." "Doggone it, Howard, if this ain't the strangest damn deal." "Getting away with a stupid mistake can be a blessing twice over." "When a man's rope slides off you once, he's mighty cautious about making a second throw." "Feeling twitchy, Lou?" "Oh, it's just... just a passing hunger." "Yeah, I wouldn't mind grabbing a bite myself." "Joyce was bound to die if she wasn't dead already." "As soon as things quieted down, I'd quit my job." "I'd sell the house." "I'd leave Central City once and for all." "Coh, those look good." "She still unconscious?" "Yeah." "Thank you." "And anything else for you?" "No, I'm good, thank you." "Enjoy your food." "Conway wants to fly her to Fort Worth." "Says she can't get the right kind of medical attention here." "Yeah, well, maybe I'll go myself." "What do you think, Lou?" "Want to take a little flight into Fort Worth?" "I've never been on an airplane." "Wait a minute." "She hasn't even been booked yet, let alone arraigned." "Well, Conway wasn't asking you if he could take her to Fort Worth." "He was telling ya." "Did he say what time?" "12:30." "Oh, well, that'll give Lou and me time to scrub up a little and pack a bag." "Right, Lou?" "Yeah." "What's the matter with those eggs, boy?" "Better eat 'em before they get cold." "Don't." "I have to travel." "Baby, you aren't goin' anywhere." "I want to see her burn." "First time on a plane, and you waste the whole damn trip sleeping'." "Take it easy." "Sheriff." "Yes, sir?" "You go with the ambulance." "Lou, come on." "You ride in the car with me." "All right." "You didn't like that, did ya?" "The way I spoke to ol' Bob Maples." "But I have a reputation, and I'm not about to let anybody's tender feelings get in my way." "If she pulls through this operation, she's gonna be able to talk tonight." "I want you to be there when she comes out of that anesthetic." "What about Bob?" "Bob Maples is too old to be on his toes." "You can use my hotel suite." "You just come over when I give you a call." "Let's go to the hospital." "Conway thought he was a big shot." "But his son had just been killed by a whore he'd fallen in love with, and he'd never be able to live it down," "Not if he lived to be 100, and I damned well hoped he would." "It was the first time I'd been out of West Texas, and I wanted to see the sights." "Instead, I had to stay cooped up in the hotel." "It was almost like there was a plot against me." "I had done something wrong when I was a kid, and I'd had my nose rubbed in it day after day until like an overtrained dog," "I started crapping out of pure fright." "Hey there, Lou." "Hey, Bob." "Quite a palace." "You know, Bob, I want you to know that I'm awful sorry about what happened out there at the airport." "I didn't like it one bit, and I-I told Conway that too." "Did you have some kind of trouble out at the hospital?" "She's dead, Lou." "She never came out of the ether." "Well, that's that." "Hey, Lou." "Where are ya, buddy?" "Lou." "What you doin'?" "What you doin' sitting here?" "Oh, I'm just having a smoke." "Well, you can smoke out here." "Come on." "Free booze." "I know what you are, Lou." "I know what you are." "I know." "I know you backwards and forwards." "I knowed you since you was knee-high to a grasshopper, and you ain't never done anything wrong." "Maybe I'm behind the times." "Maybe..." "Maybe I'm too old for this game." "Why don't you lay down awhile, Bob?" "Ain't gonna skip out on me, are ya?" "Just pull up, have yourself a drink on Mr. Conway, and enjoy it." "When's the next train for Central City?" "Well, sir, we've got one leaving' tonight at 7:00." "Well, that'd be all right." "All right." "Two passengers." "Thank you, ma'am." "Bob." "You're gonna spill your drink." "Boy, I'm as frazzled as a cow's hide under a branding iron." "Oh, why you always do that sly grin, spilled-milk stuff?" "Well, I bet I know somethin' you never thought of." "What's that?" "It's always lightest... just before the dark." "You got it wrong, Bob." "No, Lou, you got it wrong." "It's always lightest before the dark." "You mind if I come in, Lou?" "Not at all, Mr. Rothman." "All right." "This is very nice." "It's very nice." "Want some coffee?" "No, thank you." "Would you like an egg?" "Oh, no, thank you." "So very discreet newspaper stories are correct in their hints?" "That Elmer tried to dish it out and had it thrown back at him?" "Well, it looks that way, doesn't it?" "I can't help but wondering how a girl with her face caved in and her neck broke can land four bull's-eyes on a guy," "I mean, even one as large as Elmer Conway." "Well, she was shooting him while he was punching her." "Well, from what I hear, she... she was still alive after he died, and any one or, well, two of the bullets that she put into him were enough to lay him low." "You know?" "The genuine article, Lou." "No substitutes accepted." "I don't know where you get off in questioning me." "Well, I know you had it in for Conway, and perhaps I share some of that responsibility for setting you against him." "I just don't want anything to come out that might put the union in a bad light." "Oh, my, well, it hadn't occurred to me, but now that you say it... sure looks bad." "Incidentally, what's the score as of today?" "A one or a two?" "She's dead." "Well, they can't prove anything." "But then again, if they knew what I know about you having a motive." "A motive... for killing Joyce Lakeland?" "Why would I want to do that?" "Say she's just a piece of stage setting." "I can't tell you what happened, 'cause I wasn't there." "But I know that there are flukes in murders just as there are in anything else." "A woman gets her brains blown out and she crawls five miles." "Some fella gets hanged and poisoned and chopped up, and he goes right on living." "I don't know why those things happen." "But I know they do, and so do you." "Yeah, I guess so, Lou." "I guess so." "You know, as screwy as things are... you just don't fit the bill as a killer." "Well, what do I say to that?" "What were you trying to pull off?" "The money was supposed to be a payoff." "Conway was paying Joyce to leave Elmer alone." "So Elmer was trying to leave with the whore." "That's right." "Almost wish I thought of it myself, Lou." "Just a matter of a will finding a way." "Better watch that stuff, Lou." "You save that for the birds, huh?" "Do you want to box?" "Now you're a real boxer." "You look like a man." "Hit harder." "You want to be a big boy?" "Look what your daddy did." "Do you want to do it too?" "It's okay." "I like it when you hurt me." "Lou Ford speaking." "Howard, Lou." "Got some news on the Conway murder." "Yeah?" "We got him." "What?" "We got him, Lou." "Think you know him." "Who?" "Johnnie Pappas." "Johnnie Pappas?" "Yup." "Come on down to the courthouse." "He's been asking for you." "Sweet talk him, Lou." "Well, who am I to be telling you what to do, huh?" "Well, you haven't told me anything yet." "Not anything that makes any sense." "Now, I know Johnnie's been bucking the saddle a little bit, but I don't see him as a murderer." "Elmer Conway took 10,000 bucks around to that chippy's house." "When we counted it up, $500 was missing." "Yeah?" "The bills were all marked, see?" "The old man had already tipped off the local banks." "If she tried to hang around town after the payoff, he was gonna squeeze her for blackmail." "That Conway, they don't put many past him." "Well, seems like they put a few past me." "Oh, come on Lou, you got no reason to feel like that." "All right, let it go." "So Johnnie spent some of the money, then?" "$20." "Broke it at the drugstore last night." "Traced it back to him a couple hours ago." "Now, he could've taken that $20 in and paid himself with it." "But he couldn't admit to it." "And here's the kick." "From about 9:00 Sunday night until 11:00, his time can't be accounted for." "We can't account for it, and he just won't." "I know how you feel, Lou." "He's just a kid, and you know him." "But you got to think about how that poor woman must've felt when he was beating her face in." "You saw what her face looked like." "Stewed meat." "Hamburger." "Oh, for Christ's sake." "Hey, I'm sorry, Lou, but that's the truth of it." "All right." "Sweet talk him, Lou." "I know this one." "Hey, Ford, get me out of here!" "He's in the back." "Want me to wait?" "No, I'll be all right." "Thank you." "Hey, Lou." "How ya doin', Johnnie?" "Oh, I knew you'd come." "I sent for you." "Everything's gonna be all right." "Sure." "You got a cigarette, Lou?" "Those bastards took all my cigarettes." "Ah, they're just doing their duty, kid." "Have a cigar." "I'll have one with ya." "I don't know how you can stand it in here." "Sure driving me crazy." "Well, it'd drive anyone crazy." "I think that's the idea." "How soon can I leave?" "It won't be long now." "Say, you didn't tell those fellas about that $20 bill I gave you, did you?" "No." "What do you think I am, anyway?" "Gosh, I know you don't make a lot of money." "You know, if someone should slip you a little tip," "I'm not gonna say anything." "I don't take bribes, Johnnie." "Well, who said anything about bribes?" "You just said something about a bribe." "Well, I just wasn't gonna let 'em hit ya cold with it until you figured out or remembered where you found it." "I wish you hadn't done that." "You understand?" "You understand that was the wrong thing to do." "I don't care about those guys." "You're my friend." "I've got a foot on both sides of the fence." "They were put there early, and they stayed put." "I can't move." "I can't jump." "All I can do is wait until I split right down the middle." "You get it?" "Yeah." "I killed them." "I killed both of them." "Bet you had a real good reason, Lou." "There's a reason." "I bet they had it comin'." "No." "Nobody has it comin' to them." "That's why nobody can see it comin'." "Hi." "Give ya any trouble, Lou?" "Not at all." "Hi, honey." "I'm sorry." "It's all right." "Where have you been?" "Yeah, hello?" "Lou." "Hendricks." "What is it, Howard?" "It's late." "Johnnie Pappas." "You really put the fear of God into the boy." "Sign a confession, did he?" "Well, more than that, Lou." "He hanged himself." "Thank you for calling, Howard." "I appreciate it." "What was that all about?" "Johnnie Pappas hanged himself." "Oh, no, Lou." "Baby, I'm so sorry." "After Johnnie's death, somethin' changed." "It wasn't anything I could put my finger on, but I got the feeling that people were looking at me in a different way." "Bob Maples kept on drinkin', and he seemed to age about ten years." "And nobody talked about Johnnie." "But that didn't stop me from thinking about him, and I realized a week had gone by, and I hadn't paid my respects to Max Pappas." "And here's a look at the weather picture." "It's gonna be the same." "Clear today, turning cooler this afternoon." "Clear and colder tonight and tomorrow." "I'm sorry, Officer Ford, we're not open for business." "Well, that's all right." "That's all right, Max." "I just wanted to..." "I just wanted to come by, and I've been meaning to come by since that night, and I wanted to just tell you how sorry I am and had there been anything I could've done," "I would've done it." "You know that." "I'm sorry that you're closing down." "I'm not closing." "Why should I close?" "Just remodeling it." "Adding some new booths, a new floor." "Just like Johnnie would've liked it." "Well, that's right." "Hurry up, Reggie." "But remember the Flick rear window sticker can be the only contest sticker of its kind on your car." "Did I do this?" "Mm-hmm." "Mind if I join ya?" "Thanks." "I knew you wouldn't." "So you're visiting the scene of the crime." "That's what they call it, isn't it?" "What do you want?" "I saw you headin' out this way, and I wanted to have a little talk." "How many times you come here, Lou?" "How many times you lay her?" "I'm not so hard up for it that I have to lay whores." "Sure." "Tail like that, man can live without, I suppose." "But what could be substitute for bullshit?" "Where would we be without it?" "Well..." "I wouldn't be listening to you now." "Okay, let's cut the bullshit." "Now, we both know that Conway's looking to pin Elmer's murder on someone, and I'm just trying to make sure that he doesn't pin it on me." "Why would he do that?" "Well, Conway hates the union almost as much as I hate him." "Johnnie Pappas killed Elmer." "That's why he hanged himself." "You been talking to Max Pappas?" "I was." "Now, where do you suppose he got the money for that kind of remodeling?" "Not my place to consider it." "No." "Chester Conway's jobbing all the material." "He's paying off all the men." "I mean, no one's seen a nickel coming from Pappas." "I mean, doesn't that strike you as rather odd that he'd be doing a job for a man whose son killed his boy?" "Conway takes all the turnkey stuff he can get." "Cuts half a dozen profits instead of one." "Well, I suppose so." "So you been out to Johnnie's grave?" "No, I'm ashamed to say I haven't done that yet." "Yeah, I bet." "You know, he's buried on sacred ground." "You know what that means, Lou?" "I reckon the church didn't call it a suicide." "Have any answer, Lou?" "Do we have an answer?" "Well, he was so awful young, I figure they cut him a break." "Yeah, maybe." "Maybe, maybe, maybe." "You know, there's just one more thing." "It's the big thing." "Now, on the Sunday night that Elmer and the late occupant of this cottage got it, one of my carpenters went to the picture show at the Palace." "Parked his car around back at around 9:30." "When he came back, all four of his tires were gone." "Well, that's funny." "I didn't hear anything about it." "It'd been funny if you had, Lou, 'cause he didn't report it." "But he did mention it to one of the boys at the Tuesday joiners' meeting, and one of them, it turned out bought two of the tires from Johnnie Pappas." "You feelin' the chill, Lou?" "Jeez, I guess I don't get you." "The birds, Lou." "Remember?" "Starving sparrows." "If Johnnie Pappas had an alibi for the night of the murders, then he would've told me, and he wouldn't have hanged himself." "He trusted you." "He liked you." "You were his friend." "I was his friend." "Okay." "That's fine." "That's fine, Lou." "But you think you're so clever, don't ya?" "But Conway, he ain't no fool." "So if I were you, I wouldn't hang around." "You know, I thought about leaving town." "Yeah?" "Sounds like a good idea, Lou." "That's a good idea." "What?" "What?" "Lou, why don't we..." "Amy, why..." "Bread 'n butter." "Bread 'n butter." "Bad luck stay away from my darlin'." "You do want to still, right?" "Honest and truly?" "Didn't I just start to ask you?" "How?" "When?" "I mean, what were you..." "Well, I was thinking in a couple weeks..." "I was thinking the same." "Darlin', I was just gonna say that." "What?" "Well, I was gonna..." "What were you thinking?" "I was thinking that we should elope." "You want to elope?" "This Doc Ford's place?" "Well, I'm sorry, stranger, the doctor doesn't practice anymore." "Oh, that's okay, bud." "It's just a little burn." "Doesn't make any difference." "Yeah, a cigar burn." "See, you and me, we got some talkin' to do and, uh..." "I'm thirsty." "You got any whisky around?" "No, but I got a phone." "The jail's about six blocks away." "Well, why don't you go right ahead with that, bud?" "Go right ahead." "But it'll cost ya." "And it won't be just the price of one burned hand." "All right, let's have it." "I did a year stretch at the Houston pea farm, and I seen a couple of guys like you." "Is that right?" "So I figured it might pay to watch you a little." "I followed you that night, and I heard some of that talk you was havin' with that labor fella." "Well, I reckon that meant a whole lot to ya, did it?" "No, no, no, no, it hardly meant anything to me at all." "Matter of fact, it didn't mean much to me a couple of nights later when you come up to that little shack I was camping in, and then you cut cross prairie to that little yellow house." "Did you say you had some whisky, bud?" "Yeah, you see, I caught up on the news." "And then them things that you done and you said, well, they suddenly meant plenty." "I don't have much money." "Yeah." "Well, you got this place." "Must be worth a tidy little sum too." "Maybe I could get a loan." "How long do you think it would take to get this loan?" "Two weeks." "$5,000." "$5,000 in two weeks." "5:00, two weeks from tonight, and we'll call that a deal." "And don't worry, I ain't a hog about money or nothin'." "I get the $5,000, that's the last we'll ever see of each other." "Well... all right." "Oh, and don't you go gettin' no notions about running out on me." "Do you think I'm crazy?" "You ask an unpleasant question, bud, you might get an unpleasant answer." "I went to work every working day of those two weeks." "Morning, Jeff." "Howdy, Lou." "Chester Conway came to talk to Hendricks, and I made it my job to see him." "Mr. Conway." "Lou." "I'd like to talk to you for a second." "What about?" "I should've gone out with Elmer just like you said." "And if cussin' me out will make you feel any better or if you want my job," "Lord knows you can have it." "I sure won't hold a grudge." "Elmer trusted you." "I trusted you." "Appreciate that." "Hey, Lou." "I think you're gonna like this one." "Amy came to see me every day." "She always brought some cake or pie or somethin'." "And she had to take it kind of easy when she sat down." "We'd sit outside and have a drink, and I'd think how much she looked like her." "And afterwards, she'd lie in my arms, and I could almost fool myself into thinking it was her." "But it wasn't her." "And for that matter, it wouldn't have made any difference if it had been." "I'd just be right back where I started." "I took her everywhere she wanted to go, did everything she wanted to do." "It wasn't any trouble." "She didn't want to go much or do much." "For the first time in I don't remember when, my mind was really free." "I knew I had to kill Amy." "I could put the reason into words." "But every time I thought about it," "I had to stop and think why again." "I'd be doing somethin', reading a book or somethin', and all of a sudden, it would come over me that I was gonna kill her, and the idea seemed so crazy that I'd almost laugh out loud." "Then I'd start thinking, and I'd see it, see that it had to be done." "Bob, Amy and me got somethin' mighty important to do tonight, and I'm gonna be out Monday and Tuesday." "Oh, well, now." "Well, now, you don't think maybe you..." "Oh, hey, hey, hey." "That's good news, Lou." "That's real good news." "I know you're gonna be happy together." "I feel pretty lucky." "Feel like my life's a picture show." "They don't come any better than little Amy." "Yes, sir." "Gonna be good." "Lou." "Honey?" "Darlin'?" "Well, you're not even ready yet." "Here you are on our day of elopement..." "Don't say anything, Amy." "Don't say anything." "Don't say..." "All I want to say is how much I love you." "You're late." "You got the money?" "Put that in your pocket." "I have the rest back in the kitchen." "Oh, shit!" "What..." "You stupid son of a bitch." "I was gonna marry that poor little girl." "I was gonna marry that poor little..." "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Get to your mom and dad!" "What's goin' on?" "Hey!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Help!" "Murderer!" "He killed Amy Stanton!" "Murderer!" "Help me!" "He killed Amy Stanton!" "Anybody!" "Somebody!" "Halt!" "He's a murderer!" "He killed Amy Stanton!" "Help!" "Help!" "Halt!" "Murderer!" "Halt!" "He killed Amy Stanton!" "Stay back!" "Back up." "Stay back!" "Stay back!" "Get an ambulance, now." "Please step back." "No, go home, now." "Go home." "Go on home." "We're all done here." "Gosh, Jeff, how long you been out here?" "Reckon I been here quite a spell." "Well, come on in." "I was just fixin' some..." "Kind of like it where I am." "Air smells real good." "It's been smelling real good, anyways." "Where is everybody?" "I figured they'd come by." "Told 'em you wasn't up to it." "Told 'em you was all broke up about Bob Maples." "About Bob?" "Shot hisself last night around midnight." "Yes, sir." "Poor ol' Bob killed hisself." "And I reckon I know just how he felt." "Sure you don't want a cup of coffee?" "No, thank you." "Last night's events, these recent events," "I don't like 'em one bit." "Well, that's only natural, Howard." "I don't see how you could." "I mean, I don't like 'em one bit, either." "Well, now, take this drifter, this alleged robber rapist that you'd have us believe robbed and raped Miss Stanton." "We know he didn't do it." "He's a pipeline worker." "He had a pocket full of wages." "You're not gonna get away with planting that money on him." "What money?" "The money you stole from Elmer Conway." "The money you stole the night you killed him and that whore Lakeland." "Why would I kill Joyce Lakeland?" "'Cause you killed Elmer Conway." "You had to shut her up." "Why would I kill Elmer Conway?" "I've known him all my life." "You killed him; you killed Joyce Lakeland;" "you hanged Johnnie Pappas." "Howard, you're not making any sense." "You killed Johnnie Pappas to protect yourself." "You'd given him that marked $20 bill." "How much money went missing?" "$500?" "You're saying that I killed Elmer Conway for $500?" "I'm saying Johnnie Pappas wasn't anywhere near the scene of those murders." "I never believed that." "He was stealing tires at the time." "Johnnie Pappas was my friend." "That was your theory." "You think you got it all figured out, don't ya?" "Four, five murders." "Six if you count poor Bob Maples, staked everything he had on ya." "And you just sit there explaining' and smilin'." "You ain't bothered one bit." "How can you do it, Ford?" "How can you just sit there and do that?" "Well, somebody's got to keep their head around here." "Any more questions?" "Yeah, I got one." "Shoot." "How did Miss Stanton get those bruises on her body?" "Old bruises, not made last night." "Same kind of bruises we found on the Lakeland woman's body." "How do you think she got them, Lou?" "Oh, gosh Howard, you got me there." "How would I know?" "You'd been beatin' on her just like you beat on that whore." "So I was beatin' on Amy, and she kept right on seeing me?" "I was bruising' her up, and she was fixin' to marry me?" "Boy, you didn't know Amy Stanton." "Maybe you didn't know Amy Stanton as well as you thought you did." "Is that right?" "This was in her purse." "Apparently she intended to have you stop at some restaurant down the road and have you read it." "Now it begins, "Lou Darling." Let me have it." "I'll read it." "It's his letter." "Let him have it." "Very well." ""Lou Darling..." ""Now you know why I had you stop here" ""and why I've excused myself from the table." ""It was to allow you to read this," ""the things I couldn't somehow otherwise say to you." ""Lou, I beg you, please, please," ""please not to take it the wrong way." ""But I'm afraid." ""Are you in trouble?" ""Now, I don't want to ask you more than that," ""but I do want you to believe that whatever it is," ""even if it's what I..." ""whatever it is, Lou, I'm on your side." ""I love you." ""Are you tired of my saying that?" ""I know you'd never knowingly do anything wrong." ""So even if it should involve being separated for a while," ""a long while, let's..." ""well, we'll make it all right, you and I together." ""If you'll only tell me, if you'll just let me help you." ""I hope that when I come back to the table" ""you'll still be there." ""But if you feel that you can't," ""then just leave my bags inside the door." ""I have money with me," ""and I can get a job in some other town." ""I've always loved you," ""and I always will, whatever happens." ""Always, darling, forever and forever." "Always and forever, Amy."" "She was so damn talkie, wasn't she?" "I mean, just the sweetest thing, but just talk a fencepost right out of a field." "You dirty son of a bitch." "Don't say that to me." "No, don't say that." "Don't never say anything about a man's mother." "To hell with that crap." "You killed that little girl." "She as good as says so." "She wrote it down after I killed her?" "That's quite a trick, Howard." "You killed them, Ford." "You killed them all." "Know what that thing is right there?" "Over by Jeff?" "It's called a door." "Now, I can't think of a thing to keep you and Mr. Plummer from walking through it." "I sure liked Bob Maples." "I sure liked that little Miss Amy." "Why don't you close that door behind you real careful?" "I'm still suffering from shock." "Jeff." "You right sure you ain't comin' with us?" "You don't reckon you could change your mind?" "They put me down in the cooler where Johnnie Pappas had killed himself." "And they kept me there for a week." "I guess they thought that'd break me." "But it didn't, just gave me time to think." "On the eighth day, they transferred me to the insane asylum." "I didn't see that comin'." "No one tried to push me around or even questioned me there." "I tried to tell myself that was a good sign." "But in my heart I knew." "I knew they must have some evidence." "Morning, Mr. Ford." "Will they be playing the pictures again tonight?" "Excuse me?" "Would you tell 'em not to do it so fast?" "I hardly get a chance to see her." "Where is he!" "What have you done with that poor man?" "Have you torn out his tongue?" "Have you roasted his poor broken body over slow fires?" "He has come!" "I've come, sir!" "Have they punctured your eardrums, huh?" "You fiends!" "Are you too weak to cry out?" "Be brave, my poor fellow!" "Be brave!" "It's a dirty habit." "Got it young, though, and reckon I'd keep it." "Thank you." "You know something, Mr. Ford, there wasn't a damn bit of sense to what I did back there." "No, I couldn't see it." "I didn't get you free, Mr. Ford." "They let me have this writ." "That's why you can be here with me." "Oh, I know." "I figured it'd be that way." "You know who sent for me?" "Joe Rothman." "That's right." "You know why?" "Well, I reckon he's scared." "He figures they're gonna pin the Elmer Conway murder on me, and he thinks I'm gonna drag him into it." "You're pretty smart, Mr. Ford." "They got somethin' on you?" "Somethin' you can't beat?" "They have got it." "Maybe you better tell me what it is." "Oh, I don't think there's anything you can do, Mr. Walker." "Just be wasting your time, and I wouldn't want to get Joe into a fix." "I reckon I might be a better judge about some things than you, Mr. Ford." "I just don't want anyone else to get hurt." "Mr. Ford..." "I wonder if you might tell me your story." "You don't have to, you understand, but it might be useful to me, and I might be able to help somebody else." "I don't think so." "I never had any legal schooling', Mr. Ford." "I pick up my law by reading in a attorney's office." "All the higher education I ever had was two years at in agricultural college, and that was pretty much a plain waste of time." "I just learned two things at that college, Mr. Ford, that was ever any use to me." "One was I couldn't do any worse than the people in the saddle so maybe I better try pulling 'em down and riding myself." "And the other was a... was a definition in an agronomy book." "A weed is a plant out of place." "I find a hollyhock in my cornfield, and that's a weed." "I find it in my yard, and it's a flower." "You're in my yard, Mr. Ford." "Well, it's a long story." "I don't rightly know where to begin." "I could start with my mother dying when I was young, or I could start with when I first met Joyce." "Come on in." "She'd hit me or I would hit her." "I'm sorry." "There's Amy to tell about." "So I told him how it went." "The whens and whys and whos of it all." "What are you doing?" "I bet they had it comin'." "5:00, two weeks from tonight, and we'll call that a deal." "It's always lightest... just before the dark." "They had it right from the beginning." "I let it go because I had to." "I reckon they knew the truth all along." "That's the whole thing, huh?" "That's it." "Would you care to have me come inside with you for a while, Mr. Ford?" "Well, I don't think it'd be smart." "I got an idea that... it won't be long now." "All right, then." "I am sorry, Mr. Ford." "I had hoped if I couldn't do any better, at least I'd be taking you away from here." "You said that you didn't want anyone else to get hurt." "You meant it?" "I meant it." "Can't hurt somebody who's already dead." "Oh, man." "That looks terrible." "Pants don't even fit." "It's ridiculous I'm not wearing a tie." "Look at your..." "I look..." "I ought to wear a tie." "You ought to wear a tie." "You'd look better." "Hi." "Long time, no see." "Long time, no see." "Howdy, Lou." "Howdy, Jeff." "Hello, Lou." "Hi, sweetheart." "Howard." "The whole gang's here." "Look at you boys." "Howard Hendricks, the D.A." "Mr. Conway, the villain." "Hank Butterby." "Don't say anything, Hank." "They haven't given you any lines." "I didn't tell 'em anything." "I just wanted you to know that." "And I wanted to see you." "I wanted to see you too." "So I could tell you." "Don't say anything." "I love you too." "The End"