The Golden Cockroach |
“It’s probably another bill collector. What can I do? I haven’t been paid for the last three weeks myself.”
She took a deep breath and picked up the phone.“Krasche and Burne Investigations. How may I help you?”
The female voice on the other end was sobbing.
“I need help. May I speak with one of the detectives please?”
“Neither Mr. Krasche nor Mr. Burne are here right now. They’re both out working on a case,” she lied. “I do expect them to be in the office within the next hour or so if you’d like to come in.”
The woman sniffled. “Alright. Is your address the same as listed in the phone book?”
The secretary answered, “Yes, it is.” She was really thinking, “If the landlord doesn’t toss us out on the street.”
“I’ll be there in about an hour.”
########
Betsy Jordan had been with the agency since it started a couple of years ago. The business was not doing badly in the beginning but the last few months had not been good. With the stock market crash a bad memory, the economy was still not recovering as quickly as the politicians wanted everyone to believe. The big war was over and large numbers of service men were coming home; there weren’t enough jobs to go around. Manufacturers had to retool again, from military hardware to domestic goods but people didn’t yet have the money to buy them. The crime rate had climbed since the crash but private investigators weren’t getting any of that work. Why pay someone when the police did the work for free?
Jonathan “Jonnie” Krasche couldn’t find work when he returned from the service so he decided to try starting a business on his own. He saw plenty of action overseas but managed to return home unscathed except for a bad case of athlete’s foot, which was an occupational hazard when in the infantry. Jonnie was basically a decent Joe but could best be described as a player and a wise-ass. He always had an eye out for a pretty face and a nice shape which got him in trouble more often than not. By chance, he ran into his old high school buddy Will when he got home from the service.
Wilbur “Will” Burne hadn’t been as lucky as Jonnie. Will had taken a couple of bullets in the leg during the landing at Normandy. After a period of time in an Army hospital, he was sent home with a Purple Heart and a permanent limp. Work was hard enough to find, let alone for a guy with a bum leg.
With an uncanny knack for problem solving, the two men readily jumped into the idea of an agency offering investigative services.
Betsy did her best to hold everything together. Girl Friday, big sister, accountant, whatever it took to keep things on an even keel. Jonnie and Will were like brothers. Her own brother never came home from the war; he was on the Arizona at Pearl Harbor.
########
Betsy was checking the morning mail. Wonder of wonders – a check!
“Which bill should I pay first?” she mused.
The door opened and Jonnie swaggered in, displaying his usual bravado.
“G’mornin’, Betsy darlin’. How are you this fine day?”
He walked over to the credenza and poured himself a cup of coffee.
“Much better now that you’re here. We might be getting a new client if she shows up.”
Almost on cue, the door opened and a long-stemmed, drop-dead gorgeous blonde entered, hips swaying provocatively.
Jonnie stood as if in a trance while coffee dribbled down his chin.
Betsy discreetly slipped a tissue into his hand and whispered “Easy, big fella. Wipe your chin.”
Smiling at the woman she said “Good afternoon. May I help you?”
“I hope so. I called a little while ago to talk to one of the investigators.”
Finally back in control, Jonnie stepped forward and extended his hand.
“If it’s help you need, you came to the right place. My name is Jonnie Krasche.”
“Mister Krasche, can we speak privately?” she asked.
“Of course. Step into my office and take a load off. Would you like a cup of coffee?”
“Yes, that would be nice.”
“Betsy, please get a cup of java for Miss --------“
“Vanderbutt. Rhonda Lee Vanderbutt. You can call me Rhonda Lee” she said, her voice dripping with honey.
They went into Jonnie’s office and sat down.
Betsy brought them both a fresh cup of coffee. As she was leaving, she placed a box of tissues on the corner of the desk. Smiling broadly at Jonnie she said “Just in case you need a quick wipe!”
Jonnie smiled back. “Gee, thanks Mom” he said with mock sarcasm.
Laughing to herself, she closed the office door.
########
Jonnie and Rhonda Lee appeared to be in serious conversation for about an hour when Will arrived.
“’Mornin’, Princess. How goes the battle?”
“We’re surviving, sweetie.”
“Sorry to be so late but I had to see the sawbones about a new prescription for pain-killers. This rainy weather is killing my leg.”
“My poor baby!”
Will glanced through the window of Jonnie’s office.
“Hmmm. Who’s the nightingale with Jonnie”?
“Hopefully a paying client,” remarked Betsy.
“What a pair of gams! They must go clear up to her chin!”
“Honestly, you two guys are a couple of real perverts, she exclaimed. Jonnie was slobbering all over his chin when she walked in.”
Will chuckled. “What would you do for entertainment without us?”
“I’ll have to give it some thought,” she laughed.
Jonnie opened the office door and ushered Rhonda Lee into the main room.
“Rhonda Lee, I’d like you to meet my associate, Will Burne. He and I will be working together on your case.”
She extended her hand toward Will. He gently took it, bowed, and kissed the back of her hand.
“Enchante’” he said with his best Maurice Chevalier imitation. She seemed favorably impressed.
Betsy turned her head, hiding the appearance of wanting to throw up. “I can’t believe these guys,” she thought.
After a brief conversation, Rhonda Lee left. Jonnie walked over to Betsy’s desk and pulled a check from his shirt pocket. He snapped it and held it under his nose.
“Ahhh! The smell of money.”
He handed it to Betsy. Sniffing it she said “Smells like Chanel Number Five to me. Wow, nice retainer.”
“I’d like you to go to the bank and cash it; hopefully it won’t bounce.”
Jonnie took the check and endorsed it.
“Oh, I have another one that came in the morning mail.” Betsy handed the check to Jonnie for endorsement.
“Great! Maybe things are looking up. I want you to take what we owe you before you pay any bills.”
“Do you mean it? I can sure use the money.”
“We can’t afford to lose you, kiddo” said Will.
“You got that right,” said Jonnie with a big smile. “Nobody can sweet talk the landlord like Betsy.”
“I knew you lugs only wanted me for my body and good looks,” she laughed.
########
After Betsy left for the bank, Jonnie and Will sat down in Will’s office.
“So, what’s the wire on the babe?” asked Will.
“She wants us to track down her ex-boyfriend. Here’s his picture. His moniker is Henry Wolf.” He handed the picture to Will.
“Looks like a real palooka. Was he that good that she wants him back?”
“It’s a bit more complicated than that,” said Jonnie. “It seems that the lug took it on the lam with this.” He pushed another picture across the desk.
Will’s brow furrowed as he looked at the picture.
“He swiped a fake cockroach?”
“It’s not a cockroach. It’s a solid gold scarab. A scarab is some kind of Egyptian dung beetle.”
Will scratched his chin. “What would a chick like that want with a crap eatin’ bug?”
“She said it’s a valuable family heirloom. She’s willing to pay a couple of G’s if we can find this Henry hombre and get the scarab back. The chick gave me the skinny on some of Henry’s hangouts. I’m going to snoop around and see if I can get a bead on him. You put your ear to the ground and see what you can find out about that gold cockroach.”
“Okay. Keep in touch if you find anything.”
########
Betsy was surprised to find Jonnie and Will already at the office when she arrived the next morning.
“Well, hello. It looks as if you two mugs skipped breakfast this morning. It’s a good thing that I picked up some donuts on the way in.”
Will looked up and smiled. “Princess, you’re the best. I can use a couple of those sinkers and a cup of mud.”
She placed the box of donuts and some napkins near the two men.
“I’ll put the pot on.”
“Thanks, sweetheart,” said Jonnie.
“Did you find out anything about our boy Henry?” asked Will.
“Not yet,” said Jonnie. “He’s in the wind. If anybody knows where he is, they’re not talkin’. How are you doin’ with the cockroach?”
Will selected a donut from the box and took a bite.
“You won’t believe this. I think Miss Rhonda Lee was puffing smoke up your backside.”
“Why’s that?”
“I don’t think the cockroach is a family heirloom. It appears that it’s part of a collection of Egyptian artifacts that the Nazis looted from a French museum during the war. It’s part of a set that King Amenhotep III had made for his wife.”
Jonnie started to laugh. “Can you imagine the battle if some bozo gave his American wife a set of crap eatin’ beetles?”
“Yeah, he’d be singin’ soprano for the rest of his life,” he chuckled.
“So, if the Nazis swiped it, what’s it doing here in the good old U. S. of A.?”
Betsy brought in two steaming cups of coffee and placed them in front of Jonnie and Will. As she turned to go back to her own desk, the telephone rang so she picked it up. After a moment, she placed her hand over the mouthpiece.
“Jonnie, some guy is on the line. He says his name is ‘Squeaker’.”
“Ah, he’s one of my snitches. Maybe he has something for us.”
Leaning back in his chair he said “Hello, Squeaker. What can I do ya for?”
“I hear you’ve been lookin’ for that Wolf mug. If I can put you on to him, what’s it worth?”
“Well, that depends on how much you want.”
“Is it worth a C-note to ya?”
“You want a C-note? That’s a lot of mazuma, Squeaker.
“You’ll be surprised when I give ya the low-down. It’s worth every penny.”
Jonnie rubbed his chin. “If your story is as good as you say I don’t mind putting that green in your pocket. When and where?”
“Do you know Sammy-J’s bar down by the waterfront? Meet me there at 7:00 this evening.”
“Okay. Sammy-J’s at 7:00. For a C-note, it better be good.”
“It’s real good, Jonnie. Things are not what you think.”
Jonnie hung up the phone.
“Will, maybe both of us should make this meet. An extra head and more muscle might give us an advantage.”
########
At five minutes to seven, Jonnie parked his jalopy in front of Sammy-J’s bar. There were more flashing lights than a Christmas tree. The area was swarming with cops.
“I wonder what’s going on.”
“I’ve got a feeling that it’s not good,” said Will.
As they got out of the car, they were approached by Police Lieutenant McGregor.
“Well, well. What are you jamokes doing on this side of the tracks?”
“Good evening to you too, Lieutenant. We just thought we’d stop in for a nightcap before goin’ home.”
“You’ve suddenly developed a taste for watered-down booze in a dirty glass?” he said with a grin.
“Oh, I thought this was a classier joint than that. So, what’s going on, Lieutenant?”
“We found some jasper sleeping with the fishes. Seems as if the natives all have gotten amnesia; nobody knows who he is. Come take a gander and see if you recognize him.”
The lieutenant took them across the street to the water’s edge where a body lay under a blanket. He pulled the blanket down, exposing the face.
“What do ya think, Jonnie?”
Jonnie swallowed hard.
“Wow, he really got worked over. Yeah, I know who he is. He goes by the moniker ‘Squeaker’. I never knew him by any other name.”
“Where did he get that handle?”
“I suppose it was because of his voice; it always made a squeaking sound.”
“What all did they do to him?” asked Will.
“Well, it looks like they beat the stuffing out of him and then cut out his tongue. They finished the job with a bullet in his pump and tossed him in the drink. I guess they didn’t like something he said.”
Lieutenant McGregor covered the pulpy mass that used to be a man’s face.
“You can go on about your business, boys. If you get a line on who did this, I’d appreciate it if you give me a jingle.”
“Will do, Lieutenant.”
Jonnie and Will walked back to the bar.
“It looks like we made the trip for nothing,” said Will.
“Let’s go inside and see if we can squeeze the bartender.”
The two men sat down at the bar. Jonnie motioned for the bartender.
“Barkeep, bring us a couple of whiskey’s, straight up. Make it top shelf, not that watered-down swill you give the local clientele.”
The bartender glared at them as he placed their drinks on the bar. Jonnie took a sip of whiskey.
“So, what happened to the Squeaker?” asked Jonnie.
“Never heard of the gink,” growled the bartender.
“Don’t lie to me. He called me from that phone on the wall earlier today.”
“Why don’t you two pugs hit the bricks? The door swings both ways.”
After a drink of whiskey, Will cleared his throat. “You know Jonnie, I bet our good friend Lieutenant McGregor would be happy to come back in and take a closer look at this dive. I think I saw some bimbo disappear in that back room with a guy.”
“Look shamus, I don’t want any trouble.”
“Tell me about the Squeaker,” said Jonnie. “Was he with anybody before he left?”
“Yeah. He was with some rough lookin’ mug.”
Jonnie showed him the picture of Henry Wolf. “Is this the guy?”
“That’s him alright. He’s a mean SOB. He had the Squeaker by the arm when they left. Next thing I know, the cops are all over the place.”
“Can you tell us anything else about this thug?”
“I see him in here fairly often with some of the guys who work on the docks. That’s all I know.”
Jonnie pulled his wallet out of his pocket and laid a ten spot on the bar.
“Thanks a lot, pal. We appreciate your help.”
When they came out of the bar, the meat wagon was just leaving with Squeaker’s body.
As they walked toward Jonnie’s car Will grabbed his sleeve.
“Y’know, were going to have to come clean with Lieutenant McGregor. I’d sure like to have him on our side if things go bad with that Henry Wolf creep.”
“I think you’re right.”
McGregor was getting into his car.
“Lieutenant, do you have a minute? We need to talk. We think we know who did the deed on Squeaker.”
“We can talk in the car. Get in.”
The men all got into the police car.
McGregor lit a cigarette and offered one to Jonnie and Will. They both declined.
“So, what’s the scoop” said McGregor?
Jonnie pulled the photograph from his jacket pocket and handed it to him.
“We found out from the bartender that he saw this mug dragging Squeaker out of the bar. We understand that his name is Henry Wolf. Squeaker had called us earlier today and told us that he had some info on this Wolf character.”
“Why are you looking for Wolf?”
Jonnie told him the whole story about Rhonda Lee Vanderbutt and the golden cockroach.
McGregor flipped his cigarette butt out the window.
“I appreciate you being straight with me. I won’t interfere with your investigation. Maybe between us we can run this Henry Wolf punk down. But, be careful! After what he did to the Squeaker, you don’t want to let him get the drop on you.”
“Thanks Lieutenant. We’ll keep you in the loop and I’d appreciate it if you return the favor.”
“No problem. See you later, boys. Watch your back!”
########
The following morning, Jonnie and Will were in the office trying to plan their next move when Lieutenant McGregor walked in.
“Well, good mornin’ Lieutenant. Did you take a wrong turn on the way in this mornin’?” quipped Jonnie.
“I’ve had my people working all night trying to get a wire on Henry Wolf. I think you boys have stumbled into a real hornet’s nest.”
“Have you had breakfast yet? Take a load off and have some java and sinkers with us.”
“That sounds good. I’m hungry.”
Will looked toward Betsy’s desk and said, “Princess, will you please bring the Lieutenant a fresh cup of that Draino?”
“Are you trying to tell me that my coffee is too strong?” she objected.
“Well, it is a bit on the chewy side this morning,” he laughed.
McGregor took the steaming cup from Betsy as she purposely elbowed Will’s shoulder, causing him to spill coffee on his chin.
“The stronger the better for me,” said McGregor. “Thank you.”
Jonnie slid the box of donuts toward him.
“What did you find out about Wolf?” said Jonnie
“It took some digging but we found out that his real name is Heinrich Wulf. He was an officer in the Nazi SS. The French government is looking for him for stealing historical artifacts from the museum and smuggling them out of the country.”
“That makes sense. I think the gold scarab that the Vanderbutt dame says he pinched is part of that loot,” said Will. “I wonder how she got mixed up with Heinrich Wulf.”
McGregor laughed. “Well, she’s not all sweetness and flowers. I never saw the lady but I’d be willing to bet that she looks like this.”
He pulled a photograph from his pocket and tossed it on the desk.
Looking at the photo, Jonnie said “Yeah, that’s her alright. She sounds like a sweet southern belle.”
McGregor continued. “Her real name is Rosalind von Drescher. They nicknamed her the ‘Cobra’; beautiful, fast, and deadly. The French think she’s the brains behind the operation. Wulf provides the muscle.”
Will took a sip of coffee. “It kind of looks like they’ve had a falling out. Herr Wulf seems to be a bit of a loose cannon.”
Jonnie munched on another donut. “What we don’t know at this point is, did Heinrich only glom the gold cockroach for himself or did he take it on the lam with the whole kit ‘n’ caboodle?”
“I’d be willing to bet that he took it all,” said McGregor. “The complete set would be worth a lot more dough.”
“So, what’s our next move?” said Will.
McGregor leaned back in his chair. “Do you have an address for the Fraulein?”
“No, she only gave me a phone number. What if we get a line on Heinrich’s hideout first? Once you get the bracelets on him, we can drop a dime on him to the von Drescher broad. If she’s as nasty as they say, she’ll likely go straight to his place to get her loot and take her revenge on him for stiffing her.”
“Yeah”, said McGregor thoughtfully. “I’ll set up a stake-out around Sammy-J’s.”
“No disrespect,” chuckled Jonnie “But I’m sure Heinrich can smell cops a mile away. Since he seems to be a regular at Sammy-J’s, Will and I will stake it out. When he shows, I’ll follow him back to his place while Will gives you a jingle.”
“That should work. I’ll have a couple of radio cars in the neighborhood.”
McGregor got up to leave. He turned and said, “Please be careful, boys. I’m still remembering what the Squeaker looked like when we found him. I don’t want to be a pall bearer anytime soon.”
“Just don’t stop for a brew on the way,” laughed Will.
“I second that,” Jonnie said with a smile.
“When this is over we’ll all tip a few, on me!”
########
With darkness fast approaching, Jonnie and Will settled down on a couple of empty stools at the far end of the bar. They were able to see most of the room from there. The bartender came over to them. He was friendlier than during their first meeting.
“What’ll ya have?” he said.
“Bring us a couple of drafts please,” said Will.
The bartender chucked. “Nobody says ‘please’ around here.”
He placed two mugs of beer in front of them.
Jonnie took a swallow. “Has that Henry Wolf character been in yet today?”
“Not yet but, he’s usually as regular as Ex-Lax. He should be in any time now,” he smiled.
Jonnie and Will nursed their beer for awhile. It wasn’t long before Heinrich Wulf came in. He picked a seat near the middle of the bar and ordered a beer. After a minute or two, Heinrich walked over to the pay telephone on the wall near them. He dialed a number and waited for someone to pick-up.
“Rosalind, das ist Heinrich. Nun sag das doch nicht immer, Fraulein.”
Will looked at Jonnie. “What’s going on?” he whispered. “Why is he calling her?”
Jonnie shrugged his shoulders. Heinrich was talking softly and the background noise in the bar made it hard to hear.
“………….. gestolehne Waren……………Ja, Ja…..”
Heinrich glanced over his shoulder to assure himself that no one was listening.
“……..ist 23 Harbor Strasse. Ja. Dieses ist gut. Um 9 Uhr.
Bis dahin, Fraulein.”
Heinrich hung up the phone and went back to his seat at the bar.
“What do you think that was all about?” said Jonnie.
Will took a swallow of beer.
“I couldn’t hear everything but I get the impression that Herr Wulf just made a deal with the devil. Apparently he was having trouble moving the stolen goods on his own so he had to bite the bullet and make a deal with his old partner. Looks like he plans to meet her at his place in about an hour.”
Heinrich finished his beer and left the bar.
Will went to the telephone.
“I’d better let McGregor know what’s happening. Lieutenant, this is Will Burne. We overheard Heinrich Wulf set up a meet with the von Drescher broad at his place. Yeah, 23 Harbor Street at 9:00. If you get there about 8:30, you can grab her when she shows up. Jonnie and I will make sure that our friend Heinrich doesn’t take a powder in the mean time.”
Jonnie and Will made their way down the darkened street to 23 Harbor street.
“I’ll take the front. You see if you can find an open door in the rear,” said Jonnie.
As Will went to the rear of the building, he noticed a car in the dark alley with the motor running.
“I don’t like this,” thought Will.
As he reached the rear door, a hooded figure dressed in black burst through the door, carrying a leather covered case. Will grabbed the case and the two struggled over it. The assailant landed a well-placed kick to Will’s bad leg. He fell to the ground, cradling the case in his arms as Jonnie threw open the door. The dark figure jumped into the idling automobile and sped off down the alley.
“Will, are you alright?”
“I think I’ll be limping a little more than usual for awhile,” said Will as he grimaced in pain. “That broad can sure kick!”
“Are you sure it was her?”
“Yeah, I could smell her Chanel Number Five. How about Heinrich?”
“Dead. Looks she wounded him first and then put a slug into his forehead at close range.”
“I guess she holds a grudge,” said Will.
Lieutenant McGregor’s car came to a screeching halt in the alley next to where Will was still on the ground.
“What happened? Are you guys alright?”
Jonnie explained, “The Fraulein pulled a double-cross. Heinrich Wulf is dead; he got a terminal headache. She’s on the run.”
Still holding the leather case Will said, “Check this out. Hopefully there’s a full set of gold cockroaches in there.”
McGregor took a quick look inside. “It looks like you saved the day, Will. I won’t try to count them here but it looks like we have all of them. I want one of my men to take you to the hospital to get that leg looked at.”
########
A couple of hours later, Jonnie, Will and McGregor were going over the day’s events.
The Lieutenant leaned back in his chair.
“Well, all in all, the day didn’t end too badly. We won’t get to fry Heinrich Wulf for murder but I don’t think the Squeaker would complain about how he got it. You recovered the stolen artifacts. Two out of three ain’t bad.”
Jonnie cradled his coffee cup in his hands. “I’ve got a crazy idea if you want to hear it, Lieutenant.”
“I’m game. What is it?”
“I’m hoping that the Fraulein doesn’t know Will and I are working with the police. Hopefully she still thinks we’re free agents. I got her phone number. If she hasn’t blown town yet, I was thinking I might be able to con her into thinking we want to sell the set of gold scarabs back to her. “
“Do you think she’d fall for it?”
“She’s greedy and she doesn’t like anyone getting the best of her. What have we got to lose?”
“Maybe your life.”
“I’m not figuring on doing this alone, guys.”
McGregor pushed the telephone toward Jonnie. “Give it a try.”
Jonnie dialed the number that was given to him by Rhonda Lee Vanderbutt. He heard the phone on the end of the line ringing. Will and McGregor picked up phones on the same line and listened. After it rang about eight times, someone finally picked up.
“Hello?”
“Yes, may I speak to Miss Rhonda Lee Vanderbutt please?”
“She is not here.”
“Excuse me but you sound like her. Or, maybe I should call you Fraulein von Drescher?”
“Who is this? What do you want?”
“This is your friendly private detective, Jonnie Krasche. You hired me to find your missing gold scarab.”
“I’m sure you know that your partner took the collection from me in that dark alley,” she snapped. “What do you want?”
“Well, my partner and I don’t have the connections that would allow us to dispose of the items. We were hoping that you might be interested in buying the collection from us.”
“You must have ‘gross testikels’ to try this, Jonnie.”
“You can’t blame a fella for trying, Fraulein.”
Her tone softened. “Fraulein sounds so formal. You may call me Rosalind” she said, the familiar honey dripping from her voice. Jonnie smiled to himself. “How much do you want?” she asked.
“I’m thinking 200 G’s would be a bargain,” said Jonnie.
Rosalind paused for a moment. “I don’t have that much now. What if I give you 100,000 now and the rest when I sell the collection?”
“How do I know you won’t double-cross me? I saw the hole in Heinrich’s forehead.”
Now, Rosalind really poured it on. “Oh, Jonnie. It hurts me that you don’t trust me. I was attracted to you the moment I met you. You know, the two of us could have a good life together when we sell the collection. Just the two of us with all of that money!”
Not to be outdone, Jonnie pretended that he fell for Rosalind’s line. “You’ve been on my mind ever since you walked into my office. We can have a lot of fun with that money, sweetheart. The collection is in the safe in my office. It’s now early Sunday morning and there won’t be anyone around. I can meet you there around 6 o’clock, if you’re not too sleepy” he chuckled.
“Maybe we will find a bed somewhere to catch up on our sleep,” she purred.
“I’ll see you at 6 o’clock sweetheart.”
The phone connection opened and everyone hung up their telephones.
McGregor smiled broadly. “Jonnie, I don’t know if I should complement you for being so slick or slap you on the side of the head for being such a scumbag,”
“All’s fair,” laughed Jonnie.
########
Now knowing Rosalind’s penchant for arriving early for her appointments, Will, Jonnie and McGregor arrived at the office at 4 o’clock. McGregor and Will secluded themselves in the storage room off the main office. McGregor had posted some of his men in the lavatory down the hall. Jonnie sat at his desk, pretending to have dozed off.
Around 5 o’clock, Jonnie heard someone at the main door to the offices. His eyes barely opened to a fine slit, he saw Rosalind enter, close the door and lock it. She quietly walked over to Jonnie’s desk.
“Guten Morgen, Jonnie.”
“Good morning, sweetheart. I didn’t expect you so early.”
“May I see the gold scarab collection?”
“What’s your hurry? There’s nobody around. Maybe we can get a little better acquainted.”
Rosalind reached into her purse and pulled out a pistol, pointing it at Jonnie.
“Is that Nazi SS issue?” asked Jonnie.
“I fear there is more to you than I thought, Jonnie. Where is the safe?”
“It’s in the store room,” said Jonnie as he motioned toward the door.
“Show me.”
Jonnie walked to the store room door, Rosalind close behind. He flung open the door and quickly stepped aside, revealing McGregor and Will, their guns pointing at Rosalind.
“You can’t get all of us. Give it up,” commanded McGregor.
Jonnie took the pistol from her hand.
She glared at Jonnie. “Schweinehund!” she shouted.
Jonnie smiled broadly at her.
########
The boys were bringing Betsy up to date over a cup of coffee when McGregor walked in.
“I just thought I’d let you know that the French are sending people over to escort Rosalind von Drescher back to France for trial. I’ve got a feeling that it will be a short one. The museum is also sending someone to transport the gold scarab collection back.”
“I guess we won’t be getting that 2 grand from Rhonda Lee for finding her gold cockroach,” laughed Jonnie.
McGregor grinned. “Well, I understand there’s a reward for the recovery of the collection. A nice tidy sum, I’ve heard.”
“You wouldn’t be trying to con us would you?” said Jonnie.
“Would I lie to you boys? By the way, if you remember I promised to spring for a round or two when this caper was over. Are you ready?”
“Oh, yeah!”
“You too, Betsy. You’re part of this. Get your coat and put on your fancy garters; we’re taking you out on the town.”
“Why, thank you Lieutenant. You don’t have to tell me twice!”
As Will tried to get up from his chair he almost fell as pain shot through his leg. A memory of Fraulein von Drescher that would stay with him for awhile. Betsy rushed to help him.
“Will, are you going to be alright?”
He looked into her eyes and smiled. “Princess, I’ll dance on one leg as long as you’re there to hold me up.”
“I promise,” she said softly.
“We’d better get going before the Lieutenant changes his mind,” quipped Jonnie.
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