getting to know a thing or two."
"You are running true to form, aren't you? I suppose there was some petty racket going on with petrol and you couldn't pin it on anyone, so you've picked a dead man. That's just like a policeman. You're a real policeman, I suppose?"
"Yes, Scotland Yard, but they've put me into a Colonel's uniform when I'm on duty."
He was between me and the door now. I couldn't get away from the table without coming into range, I'm no fighter, and he had six inches of advantage anyway. I said, "It wasn't petrol."
"Tyres, saccharin... why don't you policemen catch a few murderers for a change?"
"Well, you could say that murder was part of his racket."
He pushed the table over with one hand and made a dive at me with the other; the drink confused his calculations. Before he could try again my driver had his arms round him. I said, "Don't treat him roughly. He's only a writer with too much drink in him."
"Be quiet, can't you, sir," my driver said. He had an exaggerated sense of officer-class. He would probably have called Lime "sir."
"Listen, Callaghan, or whatever your bloody name is..."
"? alloway. I'm English, not Irish."
"I'm going to make you look the biggest bloody fool in Vienna. There's one dead man you aren't going to pin your unsolved crimes on."
"I see. You're going to find me the real criminal? It sounds like one of your stories."
"You can let me go, Callaghan, I'd rather make you look the fool you are than black your bloody eye. You'd only have to go to bed for a few days with a black eye. But when I've finished with you you'll leave Vienna."
I took out a couple of pounds' worth of Bafs and stuck them in his breast pocket. "These will see you through tonight," I said, "and I'll make sure they keep a seat for you on tomorrow's London plane."
"You can't turn me out. My papers are in order."
"Yes, but this is like other cities: you need money here. If you change sterling on the black market I'll catch up on you inside twenty-four hours. Let him go."
Rollo Martins dusted himself down. He said, "Thanks for the drinks."
"That's all right."
"I'm glad I don't have to feel grateful. I suppose they were on expenses?"
"Yes."
"I'll be seeing you again in a week or two when I've got the dope." I knew he was angry: I didn't believe then that he was serious. I thought he was putting over an act to cheer up his selfesteem.
"I might come and see you off tomorrow."
"I shouldn't waste your time. I won't be there."
"Paine here will show you the way to Sacher's. You can get a bed and dinner there. I'll see to that."
He stepped to one side as though to make way for the waiter and slashed out at me: I just avoided him, but stumbled against the table. Before he could try again Paine had landed on him on the mouth. He went bang over in the alleyway between the tables and came up bleeding from a cut lip. I said, "I thought you promised not to fight."
He wiped some of the blood away with his sleeve and said, "Oh no, I said I'd rather make you a bloody fool. I didn't say I wouldn't give you a black eye as well."
I had had a long day and I was tired of Rollo Martins. I said to Paine: "See him safely into Sacher's. Don't hit him again if he behaves," and turning away from both of them towards the inner bar (I deserved one more drink), I heard Paine say respectfully to the man he had just knocked down, "This way, sir. It's only just around the corner."
3
WHAT HAPPENED next I didn't hear from Paine but from Martins a long time afterwards, reconstructing the chain of events that did indeed—though not quite in the way he had expected—prove me
"You are running true to form, aren't you? I suppose there was some petty racket going on with petrol and you couldn't pin it on anyone, so you've picked a dead man. That's just like a policeman. You're a real policeman, I suppose?"
"Yes, Scotland Yard, but they've put me into a Colonel's uniform when I'm on duty."
He was between me and the door now. I couldn't get away from the table without coming into range, I'm no fighter, and he had six inches of advantage anyway. I said, "It wasn't petrol."
"Tyres, saccharin... why don't you policemen catch a few murderers for a change?"
"Well, you could say that murder was part of his racket."
He pushed the table over with one hand and made a dive at me with the other; the drink confused his calculations. Before he could try again my driver had his arms round him. I said, "Don't treat him roughly. He's only a writer with too much drink in him."
"Be quiet, can't you, sir," my driver said. He had an exaggerated sense of officer-class. He would probably have called Lime "sir."
"Listen, Callaghan, or whatever your bloody name is..."
"? alloway. I'm English, not Irish."
"I'm going to make you look the biggest bloody fool in Vienna. There's one dead man you aren't going to pin your unsolved crimes on."
"I see. You're going to find me the real criminal? It sounds like one of your stories."
"You can let me go, Callaghan, I'd rather make you look the fool you are than black your bloody eye. You'd only have to go to bed for a few days with a black eye. But when I've finished with you you'll leave Vienna."
I took out a couple of pounds' worth of Bafs and stuck them in his breast pocket. "These will see you through tonight," I said, "and I'll make sure they keep a seat for you on tomorrow's London plane."
"You can't turn me out. My papers are in order."
"Yes, but this is like other cities: you need money here. If you change sterling on the black market I'll catch up on you inside twenty-four hours. Let him go."
Rollo Martins dusted himself down. He said, "Thanks for the drinks."
"That's all right."
"I'm glad I don't have to feel grateful. I suppose they were on expenses?"
"Yes."
"I'll be seeing you again in a week or two when I've got the dope." I knew he was angry: I didn't believe then that he was serious. I thought he was putting over an act to cheer up his selfesteem.
"I might come and see you off tomorrow."
"I shouldn't waste your time. I won't be there."
"Paine here will show you the way to Sacher's. You can get a bed and dinner there. I'll see to that."
He stepped to one side as though to make way for the waiter and slashed out at me: I just avoided him, but stumbled against the table. Before he could try again Paine had landed on him on the mouth. He went bang over in the alleyway between the tables and came up bleeding from a cut lip. I said, "I thought you promised not to fight."
He wiped some of the blood away with his sleeve and said, "Oh no, I said I'd rather make you a bloody fool. I didn't say I wouldn't give you a black eye as well."
I had had a long day and I was tired of Rollo Martins. I said to Paine: "See him safely into Sacher's. Don't hit him again if he behaves," and turning away from both of them towards the inner bar (I deserved one more drink), I heard Paine say respectfully to the man he had just knocked down, "This way, sir. It's only just around the corner."
3
WHAT HAPPENED next I didn't hear from Paine but from Martins a long time afterwards, reconstructing the chain of events that did indeed—though not quite in the way he had expected—prove me
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