Michael Shayne 48_09_04 ep10 the case of the generous killer
Transcript
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01:15Yeah, it wasn't a pretty picture.
01:17His throat had been slit not more than a minute ago.
01:21I started around the corner of the warehouse after the killer.
01:23All of a sudden, I spread even in the air,
01:26and my head splattered on the pier,
01:27and a million stars exploded in front of my eyes,
01:29and then all the lights went out.
01:44The new adventures of Michael Shane, private detective.
01:47Michael Shane, reckless, red-headed Irishman,
01:49back again at his old haunts in New Orleans.
01:52This is your director, Bill Russo,
01:53inviting you to listen to another transcribed episode,
01:56which we call,
01:57The Case of the Generous Killer.
02:12Curtain tax bill merged by...
02:16How much difference does that make to a guy who's broke?
02:19The manhunt for police slayer Victor Gross.
02:24Not many good news anymore.
02:27Weatherman predicts more rain.
02:29May I beg your pardon?
02:31I didn't hear you come in.
02:33I didn't mean to scare you.
02:35The sign on your office door said enter.
02:37So I did.
02:39Yeah, well, have a seat.
02:41No, thanks. I always like to stand.
02:44When you're only five feet tall, you prefer to stand.
02:47Suit yourself. What can I do for you?
02:50Here.
02:51That's a hundred dollar bill.
02:52Yes, for you.
02:53Me? What for?
02:55I don't know much more about it than you, Mr. Shane.
02:57Look, you must, because I don't know anything about it.
03:00How come you're giving me a hundred dollar bill?
03:02Oh, I'm not giving it to you. It's not mine.
03:04Oh, wait a minute. Let's not play guessing games.
03:06A man gave me this to give you,
03:08and gave me one just like it for doing it.
03:10A man who?
03:11A passenger on the Star of Bermuda.
03:13Oh, the Star of Bermuda. What...
03:15Look, friend, I think you better start at the beginning.
03:18You're leaving me way behind.
03:19Well, I know it doesn't make much sense,
03:21but all I can tell you is what happened.
03:23I'm ship's cook on the Star of Bermuda. It's a tramp steamer.
03:25Yeah.
03:26We docked here at New Orleans yesterday,
03:28and we're shoving off at the hour.
03:29Yeah, yeah, yeah.
03:30Just about an hour ago, a little before dark it was,
03:32a passenger came aboard.
03:34Did he give you his name?
03:36No.
03:37Oh, fine.
03:38He just paid me to bring you this hundred dollar bill.
03:39But didn't he say why?
03:40Didn't he tell you what he wanted me to do?
03:42I'm coming to that.
03:43Well, let's have it. What is it?
03:45Mr. Shane, he's paying you the hundred to come and arrest him.
03:59In a moment, we'll return to Mike Shane and the case of the generous killer.
04:16Well, the day had made perfect sense, up to now.
04:21I'd had my ham and eggs bright and early,
04:23spent most of the morning in the courthouse,
04:25checking on some records for a client,
04:27most of the afternoon explaining them to him.
04:30So there I was, a little after dark,
04:32sitting in my office, peacefully reading the newspaper.
04:35On a pint-sized sheet of paper,
04:37I had written down all the details of the case.
04:40So there I was, a little after dark,
04:42sitting in my office, peacefully reading the newspaper.
04:45When a pint-sized ship's cook from a tramp steamer
04:47eases into my office, gives me a hundred dollar bill,
04:49and tells me a passenger on his boat sent it to me
04:52so I'd come down and arrest him.
04:54Afterwards, the little guy leaves,
04:56and I spend about half an hour trying to figure out the deal.
04:59Well, I finally gave up,
05:01because nothing about it made sense.
05:03Except, of course, one thing,
05:06the hundred dollar bill.
05:08And that made very good sense.
05:10Seemed like a pretty good reason for me to mosey down
05:12to the Star of Bermuda.
05:14So I slipped the hundred buck bill
05:16into the solitary confinement of my wallet,
05:18and went down to the waterfront.
05:20The Star of Bermuda was just about the tackiest looking tramp
05:24I've seen in a long while.
05:26I went up the gangway.
05:28The only sign of life was a deckhand
05:30lounging against the rail.
05:34Hello.
05:35Yeah.
05:36Uh, got a passenger aboard?
05:38Yeah.
05:39Well, where's his cabin?
05:40Aft.
05:41How far aft?
05:42Stern.
05:43Oh, look, chatterbox,
05:44do you mind telling me just where?
05:45I'm no sea scout.
05:46Only cabin. Can't miss it.
05:47I'll be a light on.
05:48Oh, wait a minute. Don't overdo it.
05:49You better stop for a breath.
05:50Thanks.
05:51Welcome.
05:53I started walking toward the stern,
05:55my footsteps echoing on the deck.
05:57And then, sure enough,
05:58I saw a stab of light coming from under the cabin door.
06:03No answer.
06:07Still no answer.
06:10Unlocked.
06:13Then I stopped.
06:15It looked like my client had decided he couldn't wait to be arrested.
06:19He was hanging at the end of a rope,
06:20swinging gently back and forth with the motion of his ship,
06:23and he was buried dead.
06:27I took a long look at the guy,
06:28and then I got a very smart idea,
06:30which was to get out of there and get out fast.
06:32But it was no good.
06:33When I got to the door,
06:34I ran right into something black and bullish.
06:36Only this bull didn't have horns.
06:37Who is he, Shane?
06:38You'll probably find this hard to believe, Inspector,
06:40but I don't know.
06:41Dykes, cut him down and search him.
06:42Yeah, okay.
06:44Let's try it again, Shane.
06:45Who is he?
06:46I'm stuck with the same ancillary fever.
06:47I'd never laid eyes on him
06:48until about ten seconds before you got here.
06:50Yeah.
06:51All I know is this guy sent me a hundred buck bill
06:53by way of the ship's cook to come down here and arrest him.
06:55Okay, so I came down.
06:56Here he was, hanging.
06:57Didn't send word why he wanted to be arrested?
06:59Nope.
07:01Hmm.
07:02Wonder if he knew the net was closing in.
07:03Thought he'd have a better shape this way.
07:05I don't follow you.
07:06You know who this guy is or was?
07:08Dykes.
07:09No identification, Inspector.
07:10Mm-hmm.
07:11There's your answer, Shane.
07:12Yeah, but maybe you've got a hunch.
07:13This could be our boy.
07:15We don't know.
07:16No way to tell now.
07:18Well, he must have given a name
07:19when he reserved his cabin.
07:20Ziegler.
07:21Doesn't mean a thing.
07:22Might as well be who I am.
07:24You wouldn't care to tell me who you think he might be?
07:27That's right.
07:28Huh?
07:29I wouldn't.
07:30Oh.
07:31Well, boys, this has been nice.
07:32I think maybe I'd better be getting back to town.
07:34At least, of course, if you don't mind.
07:36Oh, we don't mind.
07:37We got nothing on you, Shane.
07:39Not now.
07:41So it might be a good idea for you to get back to town.
07:44Only just don't leave town.
07:46Hmm?
07:52Well, of course, all I could do at that point
07:54was send Inspector Lefevre, an RSVP,
07:57to his cordial invitation to remain in New Orleans.
08:00My RSVP read,
08:02Yes, Inspector.
08:04About then, the coroner arrived,
08:05and I followed the inspector and Sergeant Dykes down the gangway
08:08and along the pier to the street at the end
08:10where their car was.
08:12There was a little lunch counter nearby
08:14with a few assorted floaters lounging around.
08:17Among them, a skinny, nervous, slippery character
08:20appropriately nicknamed the Weasel.
08:23A guy who made his living selling information
08:25and anything else he could steal.
08:27As I walked by the stand, Weasel looked at me,
08:30rolled his cigarette from one side of his mouth to the other,
08:33let one of his eyelids droop a little.
08:36I got the message.
08:38I watched the two plainclothesmen drive away,
08:40and sure enough, pretty soon, the Weasel eased over to me.
08:46Hello, Mikey.
08:47What's on your mind?
08:48I want to talk to you.
08:49What about?
08:50It's big, Mikey.
08:51And crooked.
08:52Nah, Mikey, you got it wrong.
08:54It's big and, uh, and level.
08:56It better be today.
08:57Oh, I'm giving it to you straight.
08:59It's hot, Mikey.
09:00Okay, come on.
09:01We'll go have a cup of coffee.
09:02Nah.
09:03Too many people.
09:05Come on.
09:06I know where we can talk.
09:15I followed Weasel partway out on the pier again
09:18to a deserted warehouse.
09:20He slid the door open and motioned me to follow.
09:23It was dark as pitch inside,
09:25and it seemed to be the way Weasel wanted it.
09:28Now we can talk, Mikey.
09:29Okay, start.
09:30It's, uh, it's about the guy hanging from the rope.
09:32What about him?
09:33That's what I'm telling you.
09:34I go aboard that boat to see an old pal,
09:36so I'm looking for him back there.
09:38This, uh, this cabin door is open a little,
09:41so, uh, I look inside,
09:43and there's a guy swinging by his neck.
09:46Well, don't leave me there.
09:47Oh, gee, it really rocks you to see something like that,
09:50but then in a minute, I, uh,
09:52I kind of got a hold of myself, and I go on in,
09:55and I, uh, I sort of face the guy.
09:57Why?
09:58Why?
09:59Because, well, I figured I,
10:01I want to find out who he is.
10:03Yeah, you mean you figured you'd lift his wallet.
10:05Oh, now, Mikey.
10:06You know, that's about the one thing
10:07I figured you'd draw the line at, robbing a dead man.
10:09I thought I was...
10:10Yeah, but I was wrong, I guess.
10:11Now, quit trying to sell that yawn
10:12about wanting to find out who he is.
10:13Well, okay, okay, Mikey.
10:15Fella's got to make a buck somewhere,
10:17but, but I did find out who the guy is, Mikey.
10:20All right, let's have it then.
10:21Yeah, there was some papers in his wallet, letters,
10:23stuff like that, and they, uh,
10:25they showed that this guy is Victor Groves.
10:32Victor Groves.
10:34The name hit me like a bulldozer.
10:36All of a sudden, a lot of things started making sense.
10:39His name was in the headlines
10:40because Victor Groves was a hired killer,
10:42but he was only a name.
10:44Nobody had ever seen him except his victims,
10:45and they naturally were never in a position to identify him.
10:48But why Victor Groves had sent the money to me to arrest him,
10:51why he decided to hang himself before I got there
10:54still didn't add up.
10:55And neither did Weasel's angle in lifting the papers.
10:58Don't you get the pitch, Mikey?
11:00You and me, we're the only ones
11:01who know this stuff as Victor Groves.
11:03So?
11:04So?
11:05So there ought to be a payoff.
11:06The cops probably fork over something to find that out,
11:09so then they could call off the hunt.
11:11Got it all figured out, haven't you, Weasel?
11:13Sure, sure.
11:14I, uh, I don't dare go near the cops,
11:17but you can.
11:18So you handle the arrangements,
11:20and we split the take.
11:21Right down the middle, huh?
11:23I'll, uh, have to think it over.
11:25Think it over nothing.
11:26We gotta work fast.
11:27All right, give me the papers.
11:28Oh, no, no, no.
11:29Weasel, Weasel keeps the papers.
11:31Come on, come on, let's have them.
11:32No, Mikey.
11:33Give them to me or it's no deal.
11:34But, Mikey, I...
11:35Give them, I said!
11:36Okay, okay.
11:38We, uh...
11:39I don't know why I can trust you.
11:41You don't.
11:42Always, always kidding.
11:45Huh, Mikey?
11:46Yeah, always kidding.
11:48Look, I'll get in touch with you tomorrow morning
11:50near the lunch stand.
11:51Give you my answer then.
11:52In the meantime, I'll keep the papers
11:54in a safe place.
12:00I put the wallet in my pocket
12:02and stepped back out on the pier.
12:04Weasel stood watching me
12:06as I started down the pier.
12:08I wondered if he had a hunch
12:09about what was going on in my mind.
12:11If he did, there was gonna be trouble,
12:13because what was going on in my mind
12:15was I was gonna march right down
12:16to police headquarters
12:17and turn those papers in.
12:19Yeah, Michael was gonna be
12:21very law-abiding this time.
12:23And then something happened
12:24that froze me in my tracks.
12:26It was a scream from 50 yards behind me
12:28from Weasel.
12:30I whirled around.
12:31The scream ended in a horrible gurgle.
12:32I pounded back toward him,
12:33but he was already crumpled up
12:34over on the pier.
12:35Even in the dim light,
12:36I could see his throat
12:37had been cut very recently.
12:39I started around the warehouse
12:40after the killer.
12:41All of a sudden, I was spreading
12:42even in the air,
12:43and my head splattered on the pier
12:44and a million stars exploded
12:45in front of my eyes.
12:47And then all the lights went out.
12:55In a moment, we'll return to Mike Shane
12:57and the case of the generous killer.
13:00It all started when a hundred-dollar bill
13:02was dropped on my desk
13:03by a five-foot-high ship's cook
13:05who told me a passenger on a tramp steamer
13:07wanted me to come down and arrest him.
13:09So I went and found the passenger
13:11swinging from the end of a rope.
13:13Inspecting the favor of the rope,
13:15I found a piece of paper
13:16with the name of the killer
13:17on it,
13:18and I wrote it down on the paper.
13:20I wrote,
13:21I wrote,
13:22I wrote,
13:23I wrote,
13:24I wrote,
13:25I wrote,
13:26I wrote,
13:27I wrote,
13:28Inspector Lefevre arrived about then
13:30and found no identification on him.
13:32Then pretty soon,
13:33a slippery character named Weasel
13:35led me into a warehouse
13:36and told me he'd lifted the papers
13:37from the dead man.
13:39Papers that proved the guy was Victor Gross,
13:41a hired killer that nobody had ever seen.
13:44I got the papers away from Weasel
13:46and started down the pier.
13:48Weasel got his throat cut.
13:50I ran around the warehouse after the killer
13:52when a hand grabbed my ankle
13:53and I knocked myself out on the pier.
13:55And then,
13:57after a while,
13:58the haze started thinning out a little.
14:00There I was,
14:01riding along in the back seat of a squad car
14:03with one of Lefevre's boys,
14:05Sergeant Dykes.
14:07Shane,
14:08what are you trying to do,
14:09shake down the police force?
14:10Shake down it?
14:11Now wait a minute, Dykes.
14:12Let's have it slow and clear,
14:14and from the beginning.
14:15Okay.
14:16Only maybe I won't be telling you anything
14:18you don't already know.
14:19A couple of weeks ago,
14:20Victor Gross killed one of the boys on the force.
14:22Yeah, I read the papers.
14:23Then we find you standing in the state room
14:25watching a man swinging at the end of a rope.
14:27Look, Sergeant,
14:28I told you the ship's cook
14:29brought me a hundred-buck bill from this passenger
14:30to come down and arrest him.
14:31Uh-uh.
14:33And we left Jewish over on the block
14:35and walked back to the ship.
14:37The cook tells us he hasn't been ashore all day.
14:39Well, he's lying.
14:40Says he hardly ever goes ashore.
14:42Hates land.
14:43Wears a shade over 300
14:44and has trouble getting around.
14:46300?
14:48Oh, no.
14:49Oh, yeah.
14:51So we start down the gangway,
14:53going to look for you.
14:54But you save us the trouble.
14:56There's a scream farther out on the pier
14:58than someone running.
15:00We get out and find a stoolie named Weasel
15:02lying dead and you unconscious.
15:04Then we find Victor Gross' identification papers on you.
15:06I got them from the weasel.
15:07He lifted them from the dead man.
15:08Oh, yeah, yeah.
15:09Look, Dykes, you got it all wrong.
15:11Gross committed suicide.
15:12Don't boil, Shane.
15:14The knots in the rope
15:15and some of the bruises on Gross' neck
15:16told us it was no suicide.
15:18It was murder.
15:19He was strangled.
15:24Well, about that time,
15:25I was willing to sell my social security number
15:27very cheap.
15:29Two murders with me
15:30sitting in the chief suspect's chair
15:32on both of them.
15:34I guess it was a little after one in the morning
15:36when my cell door opened
15:37and clanged shut again.
15:39I looked up.
15:40Inspector Lefebvre was standing there.
15:43Shane.
15:44Hello, Inspector.
15:45Let's talk.
15:46Why?
15:47It's been a losing game for me so far.
15:49Seems to be quite a case against you.
15:51Yeah, according to just about everybody but me.
15:53Look, Inspector, I didn't kill Gross.
15:55I didn't lift his papers
15:56and I didn't kill the weasel.
15:57That might be kind of hard to prove.
15:59About the weasel, that is.
16:00Maybe somebody will tell me
16:01how I managed to slit his throat,
16:03get rid of the knife,
16:04and then knock myself out.
16:05You could have managed it.
16:07Okay, okay.
16:09But I don't think you did.
16:10What?
16:11Now, I don't think you killed the weasel
16:13and I'm pretty sure you didn't kill Victor Gross.
16:15Well, what do you think
16:17I've been trying to tell you boys all night?
16:20Yeah.
16:21You know, Shane,
16:22the passenger who was choked to death?
16:24Who identified him?
16:26He is not Victor Gross.
16:27He's not Gross!
16:29Uh-uh.
16:30Well, then...
16:31Then it adds up why Weasel was killed.
16:33Because the real Victor Gross
16:34found out Weasel had lifted the papers
16:36from the dead man
16:37and thought Weasel still had them.
16:38Could have been that way.
16:39It has to be that way, Inspector.
16:40Look,
16:41Victor Gross knows you're out to get him,
16:43so he gets a drifter from the waterfront
16:44into that stateroom on the tramp steamer.
16:46He kills the guy,
16:47plants his own papers on him,
16:48strings him up to make it look like suicide,
16:49and then he...
16:52went on it.
16:53That little guy who brought me the hundred
16:55said he was the ship's cook.
16:57He must have been the real Victor Gross.
16:59That's the way it's beginning to look, Shane.
17:01He wants you to come down,
17:03discover the body,
17:04then everybody thinks Gross committed suicide,
17:05the case is closed,
17:06and the pressure's off the real Gross.
17:08That little guy.
17:09Who would have ever figured that he...
17:11I can't even remember much what he looked like.
17:13Well, try to remember, will you?
17:14Yeah, but I wasn't paying much attention.
17:16I remember he was very small.
17:18What about the face?
17:20Um, thin face.
17:22Straight nose.
17:23Dark eyes.
17:25That's about it.
17:26Not enough.
17:27The best I can do.
17:28All right.
17:30We're releasing you, Shane.
17:32Well, I won't say it's about time, Inspector,
17:34but it is about time.
17:36Hey.
17:38Wait a minute.
17:40Anyone besides the police force know
17:42that the dead passenger's been identified
17:44as someone other than Gross?
17:45No.
17:46That's what I thought.
17:47Then something else.
17:49Does anyone know I've been arrested
17:51and don't have Gross's papers on me anymore?
17:53Nobody outside knows that.
17:55Thanks a lot. I'll stay here.
17:57We're letting you go.
17:59I like it here all of a sudden.
18:01You can't stay here, Shane.
18:02Look, I know what you've been leading up to.
18:03As far as Gross is concerned,
18:04I've still got the papers.
18:06You think I'm gonna walk the streets of New Orleans
18:08waiting for him to make a pass at me?
18:10We do.
18:11Get yourself another boy.
18:12This one just quit.
18:13One of our boys will tell you
18:14he'll grab Gross if Gross comes after you.
18:15Look, Inspector,
18:16you don't know what you're asking me to do.
18:17You're wrong there, Shane.
18:18That's what I'm asking you to do.
18:19Make a target out of yourself.
18:20You know why?
18:21I don't care why. I'm not gonna...
18:22Because a killer's still running around loose.
18:23A killer nobody can identify,
18:24and he'll strike again soon
18:25because he guns not only for hire
18:26but for pleasure.
18:27He's vicious.
18:28He's gotta be stopped,
18:29and this is one way that might work.
18:30Now, how about it?
18:31Look, Inspector,
18:32you and your boys have been giving me a rough time.
18:33You throw me in a clink, you...
18:34Okay, I'll do it.
18:44Well, this ought to do, Shane.
18:46Sure, thanks.
18:47One place is as good as another.
18:49You got it straight now.
18:50Too straight.
18:51I'm gonna go back to my office building
18:52and start out alone, on foot.
18:55Right.
18:56Keep away from crowds
18:57and keep away from the brightly lit streets.
18:59Oh, fine.
19:00What am I supposed to do,
19:01roost in a dark alley somewhere?
19:03Just keep away from the bright lights.
19:05And get this.
19:06When you leave your office building,
19:07walk south a block.
19:09And go any direction you want
19:10because that's the point our boys will start tailing you from.
19:13One block south of your office.
19:14Yeah, yeah, yeah.
19:15Uh-oh.
19:16There's one more thing.
19:17What is it?
19:19Good luck.
19:22I found an all-night cab stand
19:24and grabbed a taxi back to my office building.
19:27Just as I was going to start walking,
19:29a woman came out of the building and crossed the street.
19:32A short woman.
19:34And then as I stood there watching her,
19:36it dawned on me.
19:37As I turned north and sort of a dazed,
19:39I was realizing my job was just twice as tough as I'd thought.
19:43Because it had just hit me that Victor Groves
19:45was plenty small enough to pass for a woman.
19:52By the time I had digested that pleasant thought,
19:54I realized I was about a block and a half from my office.
19:57I slowed down and looked around.
19:59The streets were pretty deserted.
20:02I spotted the car as soon as it turned the corner
20:05and came toward me very slowly.
20:07I stopped.
20:08The car kept coming.
20:10I was hoping Inspector Lefebvre's boy was awfully close and ready.
20:13Then the car was slowing still more.
20:16I got opposite of him.
20:17It stopped.
20:19The window toward me started rolling down
20:21and I couldn't see inside, so I waited and then...
20:23Hey, but how do I get to St. Louis Street from here?
20:30I told him.
20:32Stood there watching him drive away.
20:34Took out my handkerchief and mopped my face a little.
20:37Then I started walking again.
20:40A little lady with a tray of flowers
20:42had been standing at the entrance of a bar.
20:44Started crossing a narrow street toward me.
20:47I stopped.
20:48She had a shawl over her head and she was short.
20:52I stood there and watched as she came up to me.
20:55A flower, monsieur?
20:58A flower for your lapel, perhaps?
21:01Yeah, yeah, sure.
21:02You're working late tonight.
21:04Oh, oui, I always work late.
21:06Here, a nice carnation.
21:08Thank you, thank you.
21:09Oh, merci, monsieur.
21:11Oh, but monsieur, I did too much.
21:13Monsieur!
21:17When I was already around the corner,
21:19I didn't somehow care about staying in one place too long.
21:21The thing was getting to me a little.
21:23It seemed like all the inhabitants of New Orleans
21:25that I'd seen in the last half hour
21:26had shrunk about six inches suddenly.
21:28Like, like the guy coming down the sidewalk
21:30told me right now.
21:31I couldn't tell where he'd come from.
21:32He was just suddenly there.
21:34I was right near the mouth of an alley
21:35and for a minute I was tempted to dive into it.
21:37But I just stood there waiting.
21:39He was taking his time.
21:41Like the other people I'd waited for,
21:42I couldn't see his face.
21:44It was pretty close now,
21:45but the third time I was hoping
21:47the feverish boy had the situation well in hand.
21:50Then the guy was right in front of me.
21:54Hey, pal.
21:55Happen to have a light on you?
21:57I still couldn't see his face.
21:59I couldn't tell from his voice,
22:01so I took a match out of my pocket.
22:02I held it out and scratched it with my thumbnail.
22:04A little flame spurted up
22:06and outlined his face.
22:08It was a wrong face.
22:10It didn't belong to Victor Groves.
22:14The guy,
22:15coughed a couple of times on a cigarette,
22:17fainted,
22:18walked off.
22:20I leaned against the building for a minute.
22:22I was having that let down feeling of relief again.
22:25But when I heard the dog whimpering
22:27with pain in the alley behind me,
22:28I didn't even hesitate.
22:30I walked into the alley.
22:31As soon as I did,
22:32I realized it was no dog.
22:33There never had been.
22:34It was just a little too late, though.
22:35A hand shot around my throat.
22:36I could feel the point of a knife in my ribs.
22:38There was a soft voice in my ear.
22:40Well, Mr. Shane,
22:41we meet again, don't we?
22:50In a moment, we'll be back with a thrilling climax
22:52to tonight's Michael Shane adventure.
23:06Michael Shane Adventure
23:27There wasn't much I could say.
23:28That hand around my throat
23:29told me I wasn't supposed to say anything.
23:31Victor Groves had gotten to me at last.
23:33Inspector Lefebvre's boy was nowhere in sight.
23:35Now, Mr. Shane,
23:36the identification papers, please.
23:38I don't have them on me, Victor.
23:40Please.
23:41I have very little time.
23:42I tell you, I don't have them on me.
23:43They're not in your office.
23:44I've searched it thoroughly.
23:46You do not have them on you.
23:47So I have wasted my time following you.
23:50But, uh,
23:51perhaps it will not be in tiny waste of time, Mr. Shane.
23:54What do you mean?
23:55Simply that under the circumstances,
23:57I fortunately have no other alternative
23:59but to dispose of you.
24:01Oh, look, I had...
24:02I had heard the scuffling steps a second or two before.
24:05I was hoping Groves hadn't heard them.
24:07But he had.
24:08I just stood there in the alley
24:09and I knew if I made a single sound,
24:11I'd get that knife, all six inches of it.
24:13The steps came nearer to the mouth of the alley
24:15and they turned into the alley
24:17and a little figure loomed up in front of us.
24:21The scream pulled Groves' eyes off me just long enough.
24:23I swung my elbow back hard.
24:24I was lucky.
24:25The knife went flying across the alley.
24:27Then I got hold of one of those fingers
24:28that were wrapped around my throat.
24:29I put everything I had into it.
24:31It was just enough.
24:32The finger snapped and the hand fell away
24:34and I swung my fist hard.
24:35I picked the Groves bust off the wall
24:37and flopped to the ground and lay still.
24:39Just then a flashlight stabbed into the alley.
24:41A big guy followed it in.
24:42It was a feverish boy.
24:44So everything was okay.
24:46And then...
24:47Then I remembered the little old woman.
24:49She was cowering over one side of the alley,
24:51trembling.
24:52I went over to her.
24:54It was a flower lady.
24:56Of all the people, I was expecting you weren't the one.
24:59But I was following you.
25:01I saw you enter the alley from down the block.
25:04But why?
25:05You would not stop.
25:06I called to you.
25:07You gave me too much money, monsieur.
25:09What are you talking about?
25:10I gave you a buck and told you to keep the change.
25:12But that is just it, monsieur.
25:13It was not one dollar.
25:15It was a hundred dollar bill.
25:17A what?
25:18I knew you had made a mistake.
25:19I had to return it to you.
25:21Well, I'll...
25:24You know, that's quite a nice touch.
25:27Grosses on a hundred buck bill is a thing that traps you.
25:30What, monsieur?
25:31Nothing, nothing.
25:33Look.
25:34Do me a favor.
25:36Keep the doll, will you?
25:38I kind of think you want it.
25:44Well, that was just about that.
25:47Except I had a bone to pick with Inspector Lefebvre.
25:50Later in his office, I brought it up.
25:53You know, that plainclothesman of yours
25:55was supposed to be tailing me, Inspector.
25:57He wasn't exactly Johnny on the spot.
25:59I was beginning to think he'd never show up.
26:01He almost didn't.
26:02But it wasn't his fault.
26:04He was lucky to find you at all.
26:05What do you mean?
26:07You remember what your instructions were
26:09about leaving your office tonight?
26:11Yeah, I was to walk south a block
26:13and your boy would start tailing me from there.
26:15Right.
26:17You maybe had a run on your mind
26:19when you left your office?
26:21I don't say.
26:22I just realized Gross might be disguised as a woman.
26:24Yes, sir.
26:26Oh, no.
26:27Oh, yeah.
26:28I...
26:29I walked north instead of south.
26:34You mean all the time your boy wasn't even close?
26:38That's right.
26:39You were all alone.
26:44Inspector.
26:45Hmm?
26:46You know where I could get a good compass?
26:50Cheap?
26:54This is your director, Bill Rousseau, again.
26:57Our story is based on characters created by Brett Halliday.
27:00The music is composed and conducted by John Duffy
27:03and Michael Shane is portrayed by Jeff Chandler.
27:06The New Adventures of Michael Shane
27:08is a Don W. Scharf production
27:10transcribed in Hollywood
27:11and distributed exclusively by the Broadcasters Guild.
27:14Next week, you'll hear more from Bill Rousseau
27:17and the rest of the Broadcasters Guild.
27:20The New Adventures of Michael Shane
27:22is a Don W. Scharf production
27:24transcribed in Hollywood
27:26and distributed exclusively by the Broadcasters Guild.
27:29Next week, you'll hear Michael Shane
27:31and another thrilling adventure
27:33from mysterious and colorful New Orleans.
27:50The New Adventures of Michael Shane