Friday
Gary phoned Cleo early and, told her for the nth time that
he loved her and was looking forward to seeing her at the bistro when Dorothy
met her old flame. Gary had taken the precaution of organizing a plain car staffed
with a plain-clothes armed squad team to park nearby and was himself armed for
the occasion. Jack Cooper was a wanted
gangster and Dorothy was in potential danger, even if she thought that was an
exaggeration.
Sergeant Barbara Fielding was going to accompany Gary, also
in mufti and acting as the girlfriend. He wanted her to get experience of such
situations.
There was news about Jack Cooper. It had only came via email
that morning. Enquiries in Canada had revealed that Cooper had never married
and had no children registered in his name, though there seemed to be a mystery
surrounding a guy he called a nephew who was actually his son and if so, why he
was asserting something else. Research into the activities of the so-called
nephew was ongoing. It was possible that he was not related at all. Was he
perhaps a body-guard? He had not appeared when Dorothy met Cooper the first time.
Cleo groaned on hearing that. She thought they had enough
complications elsewhere with all the Marble and Riddle family connotations without
adding a full-scale investigation into the Coopers.
The Canadian authorities were grateful for photos taken
clandestinely by Greg on the night they had followed the Rolls Royce into
Oxford. Greg made a hobby of photographing all his ‘gangsters’ and passing the
photos on to the appropriate police department. The photos had shown a second
man getting out of the car. On request, the Canadian police studied their
records and reported that the man was named Cedric Copeland and was wanted for
peddling timber among other misdeeds. He went by the name of Sid and was
well-known to the police there, but the only time he had been arrested he had
been freed again because he had an alibi the police could not crack.
Gary was very pleased with himself. Helped by Greg’s photographic prowess he had
revealed the whereabouts of two wanted felons to the Canadian police, who
promised to support him in any way they could. He had not mentioned the
important work Cleo had put in, though he did have the grace to have a guilty
conscience about leaving the agency out. Gary was still not reconciled to the
professional efficiency of the woman he wanted in his bed but not on his crime
cases.
“That was simply marvellous work, Gary!” said Cleo, who was
generous to a fault while knowing that Gary would want all the praise for
himself. “That guy, if it was him, said he was Jack Cooper Junior on the phone
to Dorothy. I don’t know if she spoke to him this time.”
“So either Sid is Cooper’s son or just the gangster Canadian police think he is.
I’m surprised Sid, who must have answered the phone when Dorothy first rang,
did not say Cooper was his Uncle,” said Gary.
“Maybe it was a slip of the tongue. He could have been
startled that they had been traced,” said Cleo “Let’s hope he does not have a
hold on Jack Cooper. We don’t know enough about the hierarchy of those
gangsters. You’ll have to pound those Canadian guys. They might be keeping some
of the good stuff to themselves. It’s happened to me several times.”
That last comment was meant to reach its target and it did.
“I’ve stopped doing that,” said Gary somewhat untruthfully, since
he hadn’t got over his frustration at the solutions and suggestions with which
the Hartley Agency had already topped investigations he liked to think were his
prerogative, “but it all stinks to high heaven, doesn’t it?”
“It’s a can of worms, Gary!”
“We’ll wait till after Dorothy’s date this evening, and then
we’ll move in on them.”
***
“There are plenty of questions to be answered,” said Cleo. “I
want to know why Cooper and Copeland got together if it isn’t a family thing.
Is Copeland a hireling sent to find Cooper and put him out of action, or had
they both belonged to the same timber purloining syndicate? “
“I agree” said Gary. “But tell Delilah only what you have
to. The atmosphere at the bistro should not put Cooper on his guard.”
Cleo was nervous about what could happen at the bistro that
evening and conveyed that nervousness to Robert.
“Just leave them to it, Cleo,” Robert advised. “Dorothy is
innocent of any ulterior motive in meeting her old friend. They’ll have a meal
and chat. What can happen? Nothing! Be rational and calm down.”
“I have this awful feeling of foreboding,” said Cleo.
***
At six p.m. Cleo went to the bistro to put Delilah and Mitch
in the picture.
“Why are you worried, Cleo?” Delilah wanted to know. “I
don’t think I’ve ever seen you so nervous.”
“Dorothy should be here at seven. She wasn’t going to meet
the guy again, but decided she had been unfriendly and wants to put things
straight.”
“She should have left it at that,” said Mitch. “I’ve heard
about Dorothy’s hunches. She should not ignore them. In fact, no one should
ignore a hunch.”
“You’re right, Mitch, but this time she is not the one to
have the hunches, but me. I would not be so nervous if I knew less about Mr
Cooper.”
“Go on, Cleo. Tell us!”
“The only thing I can say right now is that he is registered
as deceased in Canada. Why would he have himself declared dead if he isn’t on
the run?”
“I hope he doesn’t turn nasty,” said Mitch.
“The guy sitting over there drinking coffee is a patrol cop about become a detective. His name is Greg Winter
and he’s here to keep an eye on things.”
“And who is the lady?”
“She’s a new policewoman at HQ. Gary seems to have
talent-spotted her.”
Delilah’s eyebrows shot up. She drew Cleo aside.
“Aren’t you… I thought… Don’t you see him anymore?”
So Delilah knew about her and Gary.
“She’s not one of his bedfellows, you guys. He’s taken,”
said Cleo.
“Don’t worry, Cleo. I won’t say anything. Gary is far more
attractive than that butcher of yours, though Robert is a nice chap.”
Cleo really wanted Delilah to know what a dilemma she was
going through.
“I love them both, Delilah. Has that ever happened to you?”
“It happens to all of us,” Delilah said. “The question is
who you want to be with, and I think we both know the answer to that.”
“I need time.”
“Is that what you tell that cop?”
“Yes.”
“You can’t stretch time, Cleo. It isn’t elasticated. He
might look elsewhere.”
“He won’t, Delilah. I’m sure of him.”
“Is he sure of you? It’s his baby you’re carrying, isn’t it?”
“I hope it is. But let’s just talk about Dorothy’s meeting. The
guy must be on the run.”
“This is really serious stuff,” said Mitch.
“Just don’t contact Greg and Barbara at all except to serve them.
We want everything to stay calm so that Dorothy isn’t alarmed, has her meeting
and then takes her leave. Greg is sitting where she won’t spot him and she has never
met Barbara.”
“OK. Thanks for putting us in the picture,” said Mitch,
giving Greg a thumbs up.
***
Gary arrived at about ten to seven and went into the kitchen
to wait until Dorothy had sat down. He did not want her to spot him. He would
slip in through a side door to sit where she could not see him. Cleo joined him.
“I have a guestroom free,” said Delilah. “You could use it
later,” she told Gary. A slight nod from Cleo said it all. Gary could not
resist giving Delilah a short hug and Cleo a much more intimate one.
“Get your act together, kids,” said Delilah. “I can see you
are fading away!”
Dorothy arrived just after seven and had only just sat down
when Jack Cooper arrived. He seemed pleased to see Dorothy. They embraced
briefly. Delilah took them the menu and quite soon Jack Cooper ordered for both
of them.
Gary and Cleo entered and sat at a corner table well out of
Dorothy’s vision.
“This time you’re my guest, Dorothy,” Cooper said.
“That’s not necessary, Jack. I’ve been paying my way all my
life.”
“Well, make an exception. I have to tell you something
important.”
“Spit it out, Jack!” said Dorothy, much to Jack’s surprise.
“Sorry, gangster jargon. I meant ‘do tell me’,” she corrected.
The use of the word gangster was unfortunate, but Dorothy
was, of course, unaware of Jack’s reputation.
“It’s like this, Dorothy,” he began. “I think I’m going to
have to move on sooner than I expected.”
***
Dorothy was not sure whether to be sorry or relieved. There
was no denying that Jack was uneasy. He had deliberately chosen to sit where he
could see the entrance to the bistro. He seemed to be keeping an eye on who
came in and went out. Dorothy was sitting on the other side of the table
corner, so when Jack looked at the door, she looked too.
“Are you waiting for someone, Jack?”
“No, Dorothy.”
“You seem agitated.”
“Do I?”
Delilah served Dorothy and Jack with pasta for starters. She
took the same dish to Greg and Barbara. Delilah gave Greg to understand that she
knew who they were and what they were there for.
***
No one was prepared for what happened next. A man walked
into the bistro, saw Jack, and went to his table. Greg looked up from his
newspaper and watched the man, but did not move.
“I’ve been looking for you, Jack,” the man said in low
tones. “I have a message from home.”
“Who is this man, Jack? Is he your son?”
The man drew up a chair between Jack and Dorothy and sat
down.
“No Miss. Not his son. I’m his…..keeper.”
“Wait a minute! We’re not in a zoo here and you can’t push
me around, whoever you are,” said Dorothy.
Greg could not hear exactly what was being said at Jack’s
table. It did not look particularly friendly, but he was reluctant to interfere
too soon.
“Lady, you heard. I have a message for Jack.”
“And you listen to me,” said Dorothy. “We are having a quiet
dinner and you are not invited. Do something, Jack!”
The man got up and took Jack by the elbow. Dorothy looked on
in astonishment as he steered Jack out of the bistro. A few seconds later there
was a shot. Greg, who had followed the two men to the door after instructing Barbara
to look after Dorothy, was not quick enough. The man had disappeared. Jack lay
on the cobbles with a bullet in his chest. He had died instantly. The whole
incident had not taken more than half a minute.
Dorothy ran to the door, saw what had happened to Jack and
screamed. So did everyone else. Gary and Cleo hurried belatedly to the door. To
their shame in the circumstances, they had been busy with themselves.
Greg crouched at Jack Cooper’s side.
“He’s dead,” he pronounced. “Shot at close quarters. It all
went so fast, we could not have prevented it.”
“Did anyone see who did it?” Greg shouted to the half dozen onlookers
gathering around the corpse.
No one had seen anything or was not going to admit it. They
would be asked to give their names and other personal details and would be
contacted as witnesses if necessary.
“We’re all regulars here, sand one man. We have to come outside
to smoke.”
“We know you could not have known that was going to happen,”
Gary told them. “The man who killed Jack Cooper was probably a hired killer.”
Gary was angry with himself that he had not really anticipated
this eventuality.
“I didn’t even have time to get my new pistol out,” said
Dorothy, getting it out now.
Put it away, Dorothy. You’re frightening me,” said Delilah.
Greg and Barbara were shocked. In truth, they had not
reacted fast enough either because they were also busy with themselves; they
were going through the process of love at first sight and had forgotten why
they were at the bistro.
“None of us saw what was going to happen, Greg,” said Cleo,
who had seen what was going on between the two patrol cops. “It all went so
fast.”
“Speed is all-important in such assassinations,” said Gary.
“If that gangster had known he was being watched, he would have gone away
without completing his task and waited for a better opportunity.”
Mitch had rung for an ambulance. The squad car was near
enough for the police, who were leaning on their vehicle having a quick smoke,
to see a man hurrying away from the bistro. They were in luck. The man must
have thought he had got away, but the patrol officers cornered him, thought he
looked suspicious and took him back to the bistro handcuffed.
“That’s him,” said Dorothy. “I should have screamed when he
pushed me to one side, but I was taken by surprise. Who is he?”
The man was silent. One of the patrol officers searched the
man’s pockets and produced a wallet containing a Canadian passport.
“Cedric Copeland,” he read.
“Ah, so it’s Sid, is it?” said Cleo, and the man looked
scared.
“Wanted by the police in Canada, aren’t you, Mr Copeland?”
she said.
Copeland did not answer.
“Doing a bit of paid killing again, are you?” Cleo
continued. To Dorothy she said “I think we’ll find that Mr Copeland traced Mr Cooper
here and was hired to put him out of action.”
“You mean assassinate him?” said Dorothy. “But why?”
“I’ll tell you later, Dorothy.”
***
Robert had arranged to meet Cleo at the bistro later that
evening, since he wanted to organize his accounts and orders first. He was
looking forward to a dish of pasta, so his surprise was unbounded when Cleo
walked in from the bistro shortly after eight thirty, accompanied by Dorothy,
who was now angry that Cleo had not put her in the picture, and shivering from
the shock.
“You’re early,” said Robert. “Did you bring the food home?”
Cleo wrapped Dorothy in a blanket and sat her down. She was
contrite.
“I’m so sorry, Dorothy,” she said. “I should have warned
you, but I thought that would make it more difficult for you to behave
naturally.”
“But I wouldn’t have made a date at all if I had known he
was on the run.”
“That’s what Gary said,” said Cleo, anxious to play the
matter down.
“You know, Cleo. I was sceptical about meeting him again,
but had a guilty conscience. That’s when you should have spilt the beans.”
“I know, Dorothy, and I’m sorry. Can we talk in the morning?
I’m as shocked as you about what’s happened.”
“Oh dear! Your baby,” said Dorothy, who seemed to have recovered
her equilibrium. “Go to bed and rest. You are not to blame for anything that
happened.”
“Can someone tell me what happened?” said Robert, and was appalled
at what he heard.
“That’s what comes in meddling in stuff that’s a size too
big,” he said. To Dorothy he said. “Cleo is going to rest and not take on
dangerous missions from now on, and I’m going to walk you home, Dorothy.”
“I’ll phone Gary from home and tell him I’m ready to
identify that guy who shot Jack,” said Dorothy.
"Thanks
a bunch. I'm sorry I put you on the line."
"I'm
not. On reflection, it was a good idea to find out that Jack Cooper had at
least one enemy prepared to kill him before someone took a pot shot at me as
well."
While Robert walked Dorothy home, Cleo rang Gary to tell him
that she was going to bed to recover. They could talk the following day.
“And I mean talk,” she added.
“You’re frightening me.”
“Peggy’s on the way down, Gary. The birth is fairly
imminent.”
“Take care, Cleo. Forget that drama we’ve just witnessed.”
“Dorothy’s all cut up, Gary. We put her in a terrible
position.”
“But we got the two guys. The Canadian police will be very
impressed.”
“Maybe you’ll mention that Dorothy acted as a decoy.”
“Unintentionally.”
“I nearly lost my best sleuth, Gary.”
“And Dorothy lost her boyfriend to a paid killer.”
“Get it right when you see her,” said Cleo. “She needs
comforting.”
“She’s a tough lady, Cleo. She’ll be watching a gangster
film on TV now and remembering her own confrontation with gangsters.”
“I can’t understand why I go on loving you,” said Cleo. “You
are rather a bastard.”
“Don’t try to understand, my love. Just carry on with ‘the
lovin’, as Gloria calls it!”
“It will have to be at a distance,” said Cleo. “I can’t have
you in my life when I’ve just had a baby that could be my husband’s.”
“But isn’t.”
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