Dime Detective Magazine March 1950 by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery, Pulp
Publisher: Dime Detective Magazine
Published: 1930-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

When Robbie got to the clubhouse with his father, he saw two policemen and he felt better immediately, Policemen could do anything.

“Did you find him?” Robbie asked the nearest policeman. “Was Jimmy all right?”

“He wasn’t here, son.” The policeman turned to the other. “Harry, get out a description of the boy.”

“Right, Les.” Harry went back to the patrol car at the curb.

“Are you Robbie Carr?” the policeman named Les asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“All right, Robbie,” Les said wearily, He felt a little ill because he had doubted that girl back at the drugstore. “Tell me all about it.”

Robbie told him about the ball. He gave a description of the two men. He described the car.

“That’s a help, son,” Les said gently. Harry was back by then and Les sent him to the car phone again to call in the new information. “And, listen, Harry, from what Robbie says, these guys couldn’t have left here more than ten minutes ago. Tell them that at headquarters. Tell them to—Oh, hell, you know what to tell them.”

For the first time, Robbie became fully conscious of the damage which had been done to the clubhouse. Sadly, he crawled into the wreckage, feeling lis way in the dark interior. He bumped against the soapbox, heard something roll. He groped blindly and felt a smooth, hard ball.

He scrambled out of the clubhouse and ran to Les with the ball. “This is it. This is what the men wanted. It must have been because they dropped it and—” He broke off as a wave of nausea hit him. Those men were coming for him, They wanted him, not Jimmy.

“Bolita,” Les said grimly, examining the ball. “Number sixteen.”

“What does it mean?” Robbie’s father asked.

“A bolita ball. Bolita, a stinking racket.” Les looked at the ball again. “There are two ways. Find out who this ball was made for—it’s legal enough to make them, illegal to use them—but that would take too long.”

“What’s the other way?” Robbie’s father said. This was a strange, new world to Frank Carr. Police, gambling. He knew little about either.

“It may be too late for that, too. Go to that cigar store. Make the owner tell who ran the throw. My money’s on Louie Annata.” Les frowned. “Yes, that’s the best way—the only way.”

He started toward the patrol car.

“What about—what about my boy?” Frank Carr asked, knowing the taste of fear. He was a hero in his son’s eyes, a tired clerk in his own. He was not a coward but he knew his own limitations.

“You don’t have to worry, Mr. Carr,” Les said gently. “Those guys won’t be back.”

Frank Carr nodded in relief, He took his son by the hand and they walked together toward the alley and home…

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.