1972 - You're Dead Without Money

by James Hadley Chase

‘Skip the smart dialogue,’ Vin said sharply. ‘Are we going to work together on this or aren’t we?’

  She sipped her drink while she continued to eye him.

  ‘Do you imagine, Superman, that if there was a chance, I wouldn’t have taken the stamps weeks ago, sold them and got the hell out of here? It’s no deal. The old stinker has his collection protected.’

  ‘Maybe with the two of us working at it, we could swing it.’

  She shook her head.

  ‘This is a waste of time. You won’t get them so forget it. Let’s talk about what we’re going to do tonight’

  ‘Where money is concerned,’ Vin said, ‘nothing is a waste of time. Where does he keep his collection?’

  ‘In the house. He has a big room, lined with drawers. In each drawer there are stamps set out under glass and each drawer is wired to a burglar alarm. There are hundreds of drawers and thousands of stamps. Believe me, looking for one particular stamp is like looking for a virgin in this City . . . strictly for the birds.’

  ‘What’s his security like?’

  ‘Tricky alarms wired direct to the cop house. Each drawer automatically locks when he throws a switch when he isn’t in the stamp room. The switch is in a steel box built into the wall and he always has the key. There is a closed circuit TV and the monitor is watched by Security Guards, night and day when he isn’t in the room.’ She grimaced. ‘He takes care of his stamps . . . that’s all he cares about.’

  Vin turned this information over in his mind. After a long pause, he said, ‘Okay . . . but suppose I got in the stamp room without raising the alarm, how do I find these eight stamps?’

  She stared at him, then laughed.

  ‘You don’t get in.’

  ‘I said suppose I did.’

  She shrugged.

  ‘You’ll find something like eight hundred drawers all containing thousands of stamps, all under glass and the drawers wired to the cop house and watched by Security Guards so if you touch just one of the drawers you’ll get a lapful of fuzz.’

  Burglar alarms, closed circuit TV and police didn’t bother Vin. He was an expert in his field, but what did bother him was the thought of getting into this stamp room and then trying to find eight particular stamps.

  ‘Look, baby,’ he said, ‘your old man can’t have a miracle memory. Suppose he wants one particular stamp among all these thousands? He must have a system of finding it fast.’

  ‘He has. He and I worked it out together . . . that was before mummy died and before I realized there was more to life than fooling around with a lot of crappy stamps.’

  Vin felt his pulse rate quicken.

  ‘What’s the system then?’

  ‘It’s simple. Each drawer has a number. He keeps a register. For instance U.S.A. stamps are in drawers numbered one to a hundred and fifty. These drawers are broken down into dates and again into rare stamps. During the day he carries the register around with him and at night he locks it in a safe in his bedroom.’

  ‘What’s it look like?’

  ‘A little leather loose leaf book he carries in the inside pocket of his jacket Short of knocking the old buzzard on the head, no one will get it.’

  Vin finished his drink.

  ‘So suppose we knock him on the head?’

  ‘Not a chance. He only goes out once a week to play golf, otherwise he’s in the stamp room. When he goes to the golf club he has a chauffeur with him. The road to the club is always busy with traffic so no one can hold up the car. There’s no chance of getting into the house. He has a staff of five and they’re always around. You can forget it Without the register, you can forget the stamps . . . so you can forget the million dollars.’

  Vin now had most of the information he wanted. There was no point in wasting further time with this chick.

  ‘Okay . . . I’ll think about it. If I come up with an idea, do you and me make a deal?’

  ‘What deal?’

  ‘I get the stamps. You give me the name of the buyer and we split the take.’

  ‘That’s not my idea of a deal, Superman,’ she said and finished her drink. ‘I take seven-fifty and you have the rest.’

  Vin grinned.

  ‘Okay . . . okay.’

  ‘And I handle the buyer, Superman.’

  Just for a moment he hesitated, then, knowing she had him where she wanted him for the moment, he grinned again.

  ‘It’s a deal.’

  She nodded.

  ‘Well, let’s go.’ He got to his feet. ‘I’ve got business. How about tomorrow night?’

  ‘What’s the matter with tonight?’

  He shook his head.

  ‘I’m tied up. Tomorrow night I’ll take you to the Low-Life Club. Dress the part, baby . . . it’s your thing.’

  ‘Who’s tying you up tonight?’ She was studying him suspiciously.

  ‘Oh, a guy . . . come on, baby, let’s go.’

  She went with him to the Jaguar.

  ‘Want me to drop you off home?’ he asked as he started the car.

  ‘Who wants to go home? Drop me off at the Plaza Beach. I’ll spend the day there.’ As he set the car in motion, she went on, ‘Give me some money, Superman. If I’m not seeing you tonight, I’ve got to eat Give me a hundred dollars.’

  ‘Your kid friends can feed you. I only give money for value.’

  ‘Haven’t you had value, you mean sonofabiteh?’ she demanded.

  ‘Not yet.’ Vin grinned. ‘You, me and a million bucks is my idea of value.’ But when he dropped her at the entrance to the Plaza Beach he gave her thirty dollars. She snatched the money out of his hand, put her tongue out at him, then walked away, swinging her hips.

  * * *

  For the first time since he had become secretary to Herman Radnitz, Holtz failed to carry out his master’s instructions. He had been told to have Don Elliot watched and to submit a daily report on Elliot’s activities. Back in his office, he had telephoned Jack Lessing who was in charge of a team of experts specializing in this kind of work. Lessing had said there would be no problem and he would put four men on the job right away.

  Six hours later, Lessing, short, thin, with foxy eyes and thinning hair, came into Holtz’s office. Without wasting time, he reported that Elliot had disappeared and his men could find no trace of him.

  ‘I’ve got ten men hunting for him but up to now there’s no sign of him,’ Lessing said. ‘He hasn’t left the City by rail or plane but he could have used his car. His Alfa is missing. We can’t get a thing from his servants. So what do you want me to do?’

  Holtz stared at him and the expression in his eyes made Lessing shift uneasily.

  ‘Find him!’ Holtz snarled. ‘That’s your job . . . that’s what you get paid for! It can’t be difficult He’s known everywhere. Get the syndicate working on it . . . get every available man on

  it . . . but find him!’

  When Lessing had left, Holtz sat wondering if he should wait another six hours before telling Radnitz. There was every chance that with the whole of Lessing’s organization hunting for Elliot he would be found, but he decided he would have to tell Radnitz there was a hitch.

  He went out on to the terrace where Radnitz was talking to Berlin on the telephone. He was arranging a currency deal and Holtz waited until he had replaced the receiver.

  ‘What is it?’ Radnitz asked, turning to stare at Holtz.

  Holtz told him and went on to explain what action was being taken. Radnitz listened, his fat face darkening and his hooded eyes gleaming angrily.

  Holtz expected to receive vitriolic criticism. He was even prepared to be dismissed and he was startled when Radnitz seemed to control his anger and pointing to a chair, said quietly, ‘Sit down.’

  A little uneasy because he had never sat down in Radnitz’s presence before, Holtz took the chair.

  ‘How long have you worked for me?’ Radnitz asked, taking a cigar from a pigskin case and cutting it with a gold cutter.

  ‘It will be five
years next month, sir.’ Radnitz nodded

  ‘You have given satisfaction. You have my confidence. I think I had better tell you why Elliot must be found.’

  Holtz stiffened. This was the last thing he expected and because he was surprised, he decided to say nothing.

  Radnitz lit his cigar, then stared at the distant beach, crowded with people sun bathing and swimming.

  ‘I am searching for eight Russian stamps,’ he said. ‘They come from a lot that was never issued to the public. They got into the hands of a Russian scientist who had fallen in love with an American woman he had met in East Berlin. He was warned to have nothing further to do with her. Outwardly he agreed, but inwardly he planned to defect. He knew the stamps would be valuable and he had to provide for himself and this woman once he left Russia. He drew up a report of his work. This report is of considerable value to the enemies of Russia. He made eight microdots of this report and each dot went on to each of the eight stamps, making them priceless. We needn’t go into the details about the report but it is something the C.I.A. would pay enormous money to have. This scientist persuaded a friend to smuggle the stamps out of Russia and to East Berlin and the American woman got them but the scientist had left it too late and he was arrested. Under torture he revealed what he had done. Having been warned of her lover’s arrest, the woman fled to Paris. She sold the stamps to a Paris dealer and with the proceeds went to New York. The dealer, knowing nothing about the microdots, sold the stamps to a client who was kidnapped, but died of a heart attack before the kidnappers could find out what he had done with the stamps. The stamps have vanished.’ Radnitz paused while he tapped ash off his cigar. ‘As you know I have considerable and profitable dealings with the Soviet Government. They asked me if I could help. I have promised to do so. Financed by them, I have made a very thorough search for the missing stamps. Unfortunately, the news has been leaked to the C.I.A. and they too are searching for the stamps. I have to move carefully. At the moment the C.I.A. are concentrating their search among the smaller collectors - especially the Russian collectors. My search has narrowed down to a man called Paul Larrimore who lives in this City. I believe he has them and I have made him a generous offer which he has ignored. This means nothing. He either has the stamps and won’t sell or he hasn’t got them and hasn’t the politeness to say so. It would be a simple solution to kidnap this man and force him to admit he either has or hasn’t got the stamps, but this would produce publicity and would alert the CI.A.’ Radnitz puffed smoke, his face stony. ‘I have now approached Claude Kendrick who knows this movie star, Elliot, who seems to be Larrimore’s only contact. Elliot is desperate for money and has agreed to try to get information about the stamps. I have reason not to trust Kendrick. If Elliot got the stamps and gave them to Kendrick, Kendrick might try to find a higher bidder than myself so it is important for me to know when Elliot gets information and when he gets the stamps. So Elliot must be found at once.’ Holtz thought for a moment

  ‘If he is going to try for the stamps, sir, he will still be in the City. This narrows the field. I will alert Lessing.’

  ‘I will leave it to you.’ Radnitz paused and stared at Holtz. ‘I’ve explained this to you because I want you to realize how important and how serious this operation is. If I get the stamps I will be in an excellent position to bargain with the Russians. The Kazan dam project is hanging fire. If I give them the stamps, they will give me the contract for the dam. It’s as simple as that. I don’t have to tell you how valuable the contract is. I expect to hear Elliot has been traced within the next twenty-four hours.’ By way of dismissal, Radnitz reached for the telephone receiver.

  * * *

  A lot of questions ran through Vin’s mind as he drove back to the bungalow.

  Did Elliot know the real value of the stamps? Did Kendrick know? Just how much had Kendrick offered Elliot - a lot more than the fifty thousand Elliot was offering him, Cindy and Joey, that was for sure - but how much more?

  Then he thought over the information he had got from Judy. The actual steal didn’t worry him. He was sure he could handle the alarms and the closed circuit TV but how to get hold of the register? Various ideas occurred to him, but each was dismissed as too dangerous. He decided he would have to consult Elliot. Vin knew his own abilities were not up to organizing a tricky steal like this. One slip, one false move and a million dollars would escape him. The thought made him sweat No, he would have to give Elliot some of Judy’s information. Then if they were successful and got the stamps, he would have to fix Elliot and also Judy. He had already made up his mind there was going to be no share out on this steal. It was going to be the Big Take for him and nothing for the rest of them.

  He found Elliot, Cindy and Joey in the garden. They looked expectantly at him as he came over and took the fourth chair.

  ‘Where have you been?’ Joey asked. ‘We were getting worried. What’s been going on?’

  ‘Plenty.’ Vin grinned. ‘I’ve got this Larrimore babe eating out of my hand and I’ve got most of the info we want.’

  ‘That’s quick.’ Elliot looked startled. ‘You mean you’ve already talked to her about the stamps?’

  ‘Sure . . . it was a natural. She brought the stamps up herself.’

  ‘Has Larrimore got them?’

  Vin pointed his finger at Elliot.

  ‘Just hold it, buster. . . I’ll ask the questions. How much did Kendrick offer you for these stamps?’

  ‘It’s not what he offered me that concerns you,’ Elliot said quietly. ‘You three agreed to work with me for fifty thousand dollars.’

  Vin shook his head.

  ‘Not now, buster. I’m doing all the work. You couldn’t get to first base without me. These stamps are worth money . . . so let’s hear what Kendrick offered you.’

  Elliot hesitated, then shrugged.

  ‘Two hundred thousand. As it is my idea and my contact, fifty thousand is a fair split for you three.’

  ‘You think so?’ Vin was very sure of himself. ‘I say no. It’s going to be better than that.’

  Elliot looked at Cindy and Joey.

  ‘Are you satisfied with the split . . . do you want more?’

  ‘Never mind about them. I want more,’ Vin said, ‘and I’m going to get it. Here’s the new deal. I get fifty, they get fifty between them and you get a hundred.’

  Listening, knowing that once the operation was concluded, he and Cindy would be rid of Vin, Joey said quietly, ‘That still puts you ahead, Mr. Elliot.’

  Elliot thought for a moment. This cut in the take would mean a few months less to live and he realized he was now ceasing to care.

  ‘Okay, you have yourself a deal. Has he the stamps?’

  ‘Yes.’ Vin went on to explain about the register. ‘This is the problem. Without this index, we’ll never find the stamps. But once we know the number of the drawer containing the stamps I can get them.’

  ‘This isn’t our problem,’ Elliot said. ‘The deal I made with Kendrick is that if I can assure him Larrimore has the stamps and tell him how to find them, he’ll pay off. You’ve given me the necessary information. We don’t have to do anything more. It’s his problem to get the stamps. By this time tomorrow we will have the money and can get out of town.’

  Vin squinted at him.

  ‘If a slob like Kendrick is willing to pay two hundred grand to you, how much do you imagine he is going to get when he sells the stamps?’

  ‘That’s his affair,’ Elliot said impatiently. ‘A hundred thousand is enough for me. I’ll see him right away, give him this information and arrange for payment’

  ‘Hold it! Suppose I tell you I can find out who the buyer is Kendrick is dealing with? Suppose I tell you this buyer would pay five hundred big ones and this could come to us instead of Kendrick?’

  Elliot stared at him.

  ‘Do you know who the buyer is?’

  ‘I can find out.’

  ‘How?’

  Vin grinned.

 
; ‘Don’t worry about that. I’m not kidding. I can find that out. Now listen, we would be nuts to deal direct with Kendrick. That slob will pay you two hundred and put three hundred in his pocket for nothing. With my info we can get the stamps and then we can sell them to Kendrick’s man for five hundred grand, cutting Kendrick out of the deal.’

  Looking at Vin’s excited face and seeing the greed in his eyes, Elliot suddenly felt sure that Vin was planning to double-cross not only Kendrick but Cindy, Joey and himself. Just how the double-cross would work Elliot had no idea, but he was sure this was what Vin was planning.

  He felt a surge of excitement run through him. This could be much more fun than living in debt and pitying himself because he had a tin foot. He had made six successful movies in which he, as the hero, had pitted his wits against thugs like Vin. The scriptwriters had taken care that his wits had always been sharper and that always in the end he had come out top. But now, this was for real: not a thriller that was put in a can and exhibited in the movie houses of the world. There would be no scriptwriter to take care of him. No director to shout ‘Cut 1’ when the going got too rough.

  Okay, he thought, let’s see how smart you are. Let’s act this out as if it were a movie. What have I got to lose anyway? A few more months of life? If I don’t get the money, there are the sleeping pills to take care of the final fade out So I’ll pretend to play along with you. Could be I’ll be trickier than you think you are. At least, it could be fun . . . acting out one of my movies, but this time for real.

  ‘It’s an idea,’ he said. ‘So what do you plan to do?’

  Vin moved uneasily.

  ‘Let’s take another look at this: we have now the chance of getting five hundred grand. Let’s work out a new deal. Joey and Cindy get a hundred and you and me get two hundred each. How’s about it?’

  Joey was listening and worrying. A hundred thousand dollars! This was money beyond his dreams. He cringed at the thought of the prison sentence Cindy and he could get if this operation turned sour.

  ‘No . . . count us out!’ he exclaimed. ‘We’ve never done a job this big and we don’t want to do it now!’