The Castle on Deadman's Island Read Free

He liked the slogan painted on the fence. He read it every time they went by in his father’s old Ford: WARD KEEPS COAL, AND COAL KEEPS WARD .
    â€œWard’s Coal?” Graham shook his head. “Unlikely. They’d be too conspicuous there. Think of a place where there are benches for people to sit and talk.”
    â€œI get it now,” Neil said. “The waterfront!” It was his favorite place to go and watch the waves roll in. At the far end of the waterfront walkway was a dock where boats unloaded coal for the hospital power plant.
    â€œExactly,” Graham said. “The perfect place for a rendezvous. They’d blend in and nobody would give them a second glance. Except yours truly. I shall just happen to be strolling by at eight o’clock tonight.”
    â€œYou can’t,” Neil said.
    Graham looked up sharply. “What do you mean? You’ve been urging me to take this seriously, and when I do …”
    â€œI mean they know what you look like. One of them does, anyway – the guy who tried to run you down.”
    â€œI’ll go in disguise then,” Graham said. “Glue some bristles from my father’s shaving brush on my lip, borrow his fedora, and –”
    â€œGraham,” Neil interrupted, “that’s not good enough. Chances are the guy will still recognize you. Then he’ll know he hasn’t scared you off, and he’ll really be after you. No, I’ll go instead.”
    â€œYou?”
    â€œSure. He won’t suspect me. He’s never seen me before.”
    Graham sneezed and dug out his handkerchief again. “Maybe you’re right. No chance he’ll mistake you for me, that’s for sure.” He looked up at his friend. “You’re a good foot taller than shortie here and a lot thinner. But are you sure you want to get involved in this mess?”
    â€œOf course I do – you’ve helped me often enough.” Neil was thinking of their last detective venture together and of the countless times Graham had come to the rescue when he was stumped by some math problem. “I’ll just saunter by casual-like, and get a look at them. I may not be able to hear much of what they’re saying, but at least we’ll know who you have to watch out for. It’ll be a cinch.”
    Actually, I’ll be scared stiff, Neil thought, but I won’t let Graham know that.
    â€œIt’s starting to rain,” Neil said. People strolling along the waterfront were opening umbrellas and picking up their pace. “Maybe they won’t come.”
    â€œIt’s only sprinkling,” Graham said. “They’ll come.” A few minutes later, he nudged Neil and pointed. “Must be them now, right on schedule.”
    Up ahead, two figures could be seen settling down on the last bench at the far end of the walkway. “Wait here,” Neil said, and he set out alone.
    As he neared the bench, Neil saw that one of the men wore the gray fedora and ugly green sports coat Graham had described. But the other, to Neil’s surprise, was dressed in a dark blue suit. Graham had expected the second person might be a seedy criminal type, depending on how you interpreted the note. Butthis guy looked like a prosperous businessman, with his conservative clothes and furled umbrella.
    The two men on the bench were arguing and gesticulating, but stopped as Neil approached. He glanced sideways at them as he went by. When he reached the end of the pavement, Neil turned and walked back, his hands in his pockets, whistling, which may have seemed odd behavior when it was getting dark and threatening rain. The two men looked up at him as he passed.
    Neil hurried back to where Graham was waiting. “I heard some of what they said. They were arguing and the one said, ‘But we can’t go that far!’ Then the one with the gray fedora said, ‘Why the hell can’t we? Serve her right.’