“Meglio tardi che mai. Better late than never, visit the cocktail lounge on the main floor of eh?”
the building. He had, in fact, became of late a She drew back, startled, then laughed.
steady customer.
“I think you’re very nice, Mr. Vallo. But if
Dominick Vallo was seated at one of
you don’t mind, I’d rather have a boy friend
the tables, staring moodily into the depths of my age.”
an old fashioned. Reece joined the other and
Vallo shook his head bitterly. “So it
signaled the bar hostess.
must be il campo santo—the cemetery —after
“You have heard the news?” Vallo
all.”
asked.
Kendall glanced at his watch and stood
Reece shook his head. “What do you
up. “We’d better be going, Leila, if we’re to
mean?”
have enough time to climb into our formals.”
“Jerry Kendall has not told you?”
She nodded quickly and picked up her
“I haven’t seen much of him lately—or
purse and gloves. Reece seethed at her evident of anyone, for that matter,” Reece said
eagerness. He managed an airy wave of the
bitterly.
hand as she and Kendall left. Reece was
“The beautiful Leila, she is going to
almost glad to have them go. If they had
marry,” Vallo explained.
remained another minute, he felt as though
Recce’s heart climbed a mountain and
Mammoth Mystery
6
jumped off. “Marry!” he gasped.
perpendicular. “Impossible, eh? Well, I’ll
Vallo nodded solemnly. “Jerry was in
show you the miniature! You shall see for
a great hurry, but he told me this. Just a few yourself.”
minutes ago. He went upstairs to look for
“All right, but you’re going to have a
you.”
hard time convincing me.” Reece rose in
“I must have gone down just as he
belligerent acceptance of the other’s
came up,” Reece decided dully. Abruptly he
challenge. This was exactly what he had been
stood up. “I don’t want to see him. Come on,
hoping for. Vallo had played right into his
let’s go. There’s another bar around the hands.
corner.” Reece tossed a bill on the table to pay The fog inside Reece was swiftly
for the drinks, as yet unarrived, and grasping a evaporating. He glanced at his watch. It was
reluctant Vallo by the arm, hastily left.
almost evening, which meant that most of the
In the other taproom, Reece and Vallo
tenants of Reece’s and Vallo’s office building settled down to serious drinking. The alcohol
would be gone. This suited Reece fine, since it was a key that unlocked the door of Recce’s
meant that there was now little chance of his
reserve. He began pouring out to Vallo the
running into Kendall.
story of his hopes and frustrations. Highly
emotional by nature, Vallo’s usual melancholy
ONLY one elevator operator was now on duty
deepened to a boundless sympathy for Reece.
in the building and his cage was rising to the
“That Jerry Kendall, he is a rat!” Vallo
upper floors. Fuming at Recce’s irritating
declared thickly. He hunched toward Reece
disbelief, Vallo plunged up the stairs. With a secretively. “My friend, what you need in this shrug, Reece followed. They met nobody on
crisis is one of the little toys the Italians like the way to their floor. The hall itself was
the Borgia’s used long ago. Clever little empty.
gadgets—like the miniature.”
Muttering hotly under his breath, Vallo
“The miniature?” Reece grunted. fumblingly fitted his key in the lock and led
“What’s the miniature got to do with helping
the way into his shop. From a drawer of the
me?”
old-fashioned roll-top desk in his office, he
Vallo leaned forward closer, and his
pulled a Small flat metal box.
voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. “The
“Here it is!” he announced
miniature was made small to be worn close to
triumphantly. “Now I shall show you.” Vallo
one’s heart. Not your heart, my friend, but the opened the box and into the palm of his hand
heart of your enemy. For inside the miniature
shook a tiny framed painting which looked
is a device which throws out a poisoned curiously thick. “Handle it carefully,” he needle when the heat of the body melts a little warned as Reece impulsively reached for it.
wax stop. A nice gift, no? Your enemy wears
“The last owner of the miniature kept poison
it close to his heart, and— phf-f-t! . No more on the needle, and it is still deadly.”
enemy.”
Reece gazed at the miniature with
Something clicked in Recce’s mind,
fascinated interest. The painting was of a
like the pieces of a long, perplexing puzzle
young girl. The resemblance to Leila seemed
falling finally together. A ray of cunning slight at first, but strangely the longer Reece penetrated the alchoholic fog which filled him.
looked at the painting, the closer the similarity He told Vallo, “It’s impossible. I don’t believe became. He realized finally that the alikeness a word of it. Such a thing just can’t be done.”
was due more to spiritual than physical
Vallo’s back became stiffly characteristics. The girl in the miniature had
Close to My Heart
7
the same quality of demure shyness as Leila.
Reece drew back in mock alarm.
“But where is the needle?” Reece “Careful with that thing, Dominick!”
asked Vallo.
“Don’t worry, it is not loaded.”
“It is inside,” the other explained. He pointed
“But can you load it, Dominick?”
to a barely discernible spot on the surface of
“Sure. I have powder and shot in the
the painting. “See? She wears a red dress. This case that goes with the pistols. I know the
is red wax, covering the hole where the needle method.”
comes out. It is hard to tell the difference,
“Let’s load it, then,” Reese suggested
no?”
in sudden eagerness.
Reece nodded slowly, his thoughts
Vallo shook his head dubiously. “It is
scurrying like hungry mice. “You wouldn’t
too much trouble.”
know it was there unless you looked for it.”
“Come on, Dominick, we’ll have some
Reece abruptly grasped Vallo’s arm, and his
fun.”
eyes narrowed. “Listen, Dominick, you agreed
“No, it would be just a waste.
that Kendall played us a dirty trick by taking Reece gauged the other’s state of
Leila away from us like that. Are we going to
inebriety carefully. He decided to try a ruse
let him get away with it? No we won’t! I’ll tell which had worked successfully once before.
you what we’ll do. Well send him the
“I don’t believe that gun will work,
miniature for a wedding present—tell him to
Dominick. You’re just trying t
o impress me.”
wear it close to his heart. There’s our revenge, Dominick. How’s that?”
AS BEFORE, Vallo bit. His dark eyes lighted
“Madonna, no!” Vallo snatched the with indignation. “Again you refuse to miniature from Recce’s hand. “The little believe,” he accused. “All right, all right, I Leila, she knows. She will tell the police who shall load it. You shall see for yourself.” He sent the miniature. I will go to jail.”
sat down at the desk, removing from one of
“That’s right, of course,” Reece the drawers a large leather-covered case. It muttered. He bit his lip, frowning was lined with red velvet inside. There were thoughtfully. In his mind, the completed depressions for the pistols, and compartments puzzle shifted, rearranged itself, clicked into which held powder, shot, and wadding. With
place. Exultation coursed through him like the quick though unsteady hands, Vallo loaded the
glow of vintage wine. His plans had changed a
weapon. When he had finished, Vallo
little. But now they were perfect—utterly extended the pistol with a flourish to Reece.
foolproof. He was going to murder Kendall—
“There! Now it is loaded.” He
and get away with it beyond any slightest
carelessly indicated an old leather couch
suspicion from either Leila or the police.
across the room which was covered with
Reece had earlier noticed a brace of
pillows. “Go ahead, prove it for me. I have
antique dueling pistols on the wall over loaded the gun so that there will not be much Vallo’s desk. Now he pointed to them, noise.” With a smile of anticipated triumph, pretending a sudden interest.
Vallo produced a half-filled bottle of whiskey
“Say, Dominick, do those old guns from the desk and drank deeply. Putting the work?”
bottle down, he swiveled in his chair to watch
“Work? Certainly! They are genuine,
the couch.
these, and not just for show.” Vallo placed the Recce’s lips thinned in a hard grin. He
miniature on his desk and took down one of
placed the muzzle of the pistol against Vallo’s the pistols.
right temple, and before the other could
Mammoth Mystery
8
realize what was going to happen, he pulled
He departed by way of the stairs,
the trigger. There was a dull muffled roar.
leaving the lobby of the building only when he Vallo slumped limply in the chair.
was sure he would not be noticed. The
Reece felt as though on fire with package and its accompanying note he elation. The set-up was beautiful—just dropped in a mailbox on the corner.
beautiful. In his mind’s eye, he could visualize just the way it would look to the police, to
THAT night—and for a good part of the next
everyone. Grief-stricken at the news that Leila morning—Reece celebrated what he felt
was going to be married, Vallo had committed
certain was the complete solution of his
suicide. The art dealer’s brooding melancholy
problems. How he managed to reach his
temperament, and the numerous threats which
apartment afterward was a mystery which he
he had made to kill himself would support the
couldn’t explain. When he awoke, it was early
theory.
afternoon. Feeling too sick to go down to the
This, however, was just a part of agency, he remained in bed.
Recce’s plan. He chuckled with satisfaction as On his way to work, the following day,
he rounded out the rest of it. Forging Vallo’s Reece collided with the mailman. His bus was
hand-writing, he intended to send the due to arrive within a few minutes, and he was miniature to Kendall, with the explanation that anxious not to miss it.
it was a wedding present, and the sentimental
“A registered for you,” the mailman
request that Kendall wear it close to his heart.
called out, as Reece muttered hasty apologies
The job of forgery need not be done with
and started once more for the door.
exactness, since any noticeable differences
It was a thick envelope. Reece signed
would be explained on the basis that the hurriedly and dashed for the bus stop. His coat writing had been done while Vallo was drunk.
pockets were filled as usual. After a futile
Since the miniature bore a resemblance
search for space, Reece stuffed the envelope
to Leila, Kendall would carry it around as a
into the pocket of his shirt.
keepsake. The needle would do its lethal
At the agency, Reece found matters
work—and Reece would have a clear road
proceeding as though nothing had happened.
both with Leila and the agency, with nobody
The Vallo part of his plan had gone through
the wiser. Kendall’s death would be accepted
without complications, as he had learned from
as due to an act of revenge on the part of
a garrulous elevator operator. Vallo’s body
Vallo.
had been discovered by an assistant, and the
Reece got to work. Wiping the pistol
police had dismissed the art dealer’s death as clean of his fingerprints he placed it in Vallo’s suicide—just as Reece had intended they
hand. Then he assembled all the necessary
should.
materials—pen, ink, twine, writing and
The only remaining uncertainty was
wrapping paper, and various records from Kendall. Something which gave Reece hope which to copy Vallo’s handwriting. He first
was the significant fact that Kendall was not
wrapped the miniature carefully and addressed
in his office. Reece knew Kendall was always
it to Kendall. That done, he wrote a short note, the first person to arrive at the downtown
explaining the miniature as a wedding gift and agency in the morning.
adding the request that Kendall wear it close
Entering his own office, Reece found a
to his heart. With stamps he found in one of
letter on his desk. He tensed with sudden
the desk drawers, Reece finally had the alarm as he recognized Kendall’s handwriting.
package and note ready for mailing.
Reece tore the letter open quickly, his
Close to My Heart
9
thoughts spinning in wondering anxiety.
so I’m sending you the miniature. I’m not
sentimental enough—
DEAR FLOYD:
Wrote you two letters, sending one to
There were just a few lines more, but
the agency and one to your apartment so there Reece abruptly stopped reading. With a thrill
wouldn’t be any delay. Was called out of town of unutterable horror, he recalled the
on business which I’ll explain fully when I get registered envelope which had arrived as he
back. That Dahlia Cosmetics deal has been
was hurrying from his apartment. The bulky
bringing in customers!
envelope which he had stuffed—of all
Vallo sent me as a wedding present
places—in his shirt pocket . . . over his heart!
that miniature he was always talking about.
Fear flashing and roaring inside him,
I’m not keeping it, as it isn’t me Leila’s going Reece frantically reached to tear the envelope to marry, but a fellow she’d been engaged to away. He was too late. He knew it as he felt
a and quarreled with, which was why she came sudden sharp pain over his heart—in his heart.
to the city. The guy came after her, and they He tried to scream in terror and frustration, but made up. I was in a hurry that afternoon—this the poison acted before he could get his
business had popped up—and Vallo must have paralyzed throat muscles to operate. Blackness misunderstood me.
closed in around him—the ultimate blackness
I know how you felt about Leila, and
of death.
Close to my Heart by Chester S Page 2