the doorkeeper-bouncer was the first obstacle. kintyre wished he had worn a hat. nothing disguised him except a gray suit; the square of bandage at his hairline felt like a searchlight.

"follow my lead," whispered corinna as they went down the stairs.

it was dark in the doorway, and narrow. she contrived to get herself squeezed between kintyre and the other man; and as she slithered by she threw him such a look that he would have let a rhinoceros enter unnoticed beside her.

the alley cat was full tonight. mostly the cool crowd, kintyre judged, drawn by the rumors of last night's affair. he could not help himself, but whispered to corinna: "where in the hell did you learn to put five thousand volts of raw sex into three motions and one sidelong glance?"

"theater." even at this moment, when she saw through a harsh blue haze her brother who might be a murderer singing a dirty ballad, she could have been a female puck. "also, it helps to live with a cat."

they threaded their way along the wall until they found a table in shadow. "we can see him at the intermission," he proposed. she nodded. the waitress who lit their candle—kintyre snuffed it again when she had left—and brought them a demi of burgundy, paid them no special attention. well, it was long established that an excited eyewitness has no value. those who saw the fight had not really seen the fighters.

corinna fell silent, resting her cheek on one fist. she didn't drink at all. kintyre tried to read the way she was looking at guido, but understood only a troubled tenderness.

"mind if i join you?"

kintyre looked up, startled, into trygve yamamura's flat face. "oh," he said stupidly. "sit down. miss lombardi, this is—" he explained in detail.

"i'm glad to know you," she said. her eyes added: maybe. it will depend on what comes next. guido's guitar twanged and capered. his voice overrode the room, as full of satyr laughter as if it had never known anything else. "with his whack-fol-de-diddle-di-day—"

"were we that conspicuous coming in?" whispered kintyre.

"lay off the stage hiss," yamamura told him. "a low speaking voice draws less attention. no, you pulled it off okay. it was only that i was making it my business to see everyone who comes in. still am." his eyes remained in motion as he sat holding his beer; the rest of him was nearly limp, taking its ease until a muscle should be needed.

"been here long?" asked kintyre.

"couple hours, since the act went on," said yamamura. "i tailed guido from his place. before then, though, i assumed he wouldn't leave his four safe walls, so i found plenty to do elsewhere."

corinna exclaimed: "you learned something?"

"uh-huh. i came right over this morning after bob saw me. no grass grows where i have been, i mean no grass grows under my feet." yamamura took a pipe from his maroon sports jacket. "the best way to get a line on your friend larkin seemed to be to check guido's recent movements. i started at the other end—his call on clayton, a week ago last monday. you know, when he and bruce went around to see about a job. clayton himself isn't in the city today, but i went to that swank apartment hotel he inhabits and jollied the staff."

having filled his pipe, he took his time lighting it. "i gather clayton gave guido and bruce a rather long interview," he went on. "or, rather, bruce. guido left about an hour before his brother did."

"he never mentioned that!" said corinna.

"why should he?" countered yamamura. "not good for his pride, is it? but what did bruce and clayton find to talk about?"

"and how much of it did guido hear?" murmured kintyre.

corinna flushed. "please don't," she said in a hard voice.

"i'm sorry," he answered, torn. "but if bruce had to tell clayton something important, even worth killing about—they'd shoo guido out first. but guido might have gotten enough hints to make some deductions and—no, wait, let me finish! maybe guido blabbed to someone else, not realizing himself what it signified."

she gave him a shaky little smile. "thanks for trying," she said.

"ah, this is probably of no significance at all," said yamamura. "bruce could just as well have been giving clayton the latest information about the mildew on page 77 of that book." he attempted a smoke ring and failed. "or could he? depends on how you interpret this tidbit: clayton telephoned genoa, italy, that same night."

"who did he call?" asked kintyre.

"the switchboard girl doesn't remember. all she heard was a lot of italian: they started gabbling right away, before she could take herself out of the circuit. clayton stayed home for several hours next day. the italian called again. now none of this would be worth retailing, i guess, except for one more oddity about mr. clayton. he had the bellhop bring him several dollars in change. then he went out and was gone for some hours."

corinna raised her thick dark brows in puzzlement. kintyre nodded. "yes. long-distance, though not transatlantic, calls from a public booth," he said. "no chance of being eavesdropped on."

"it may not mean a damn relevant thing," said yamamura. "the most legitimate businesses have their secrets. but i'll admit to being curious. did bruce steer him onto something big? and did a business rival then strike at bruce? that doesn't sound likely. maybe clayton himself—no, hardly that. in my line of work i'd have heard it if he weren't straight, or if he associated with thugs."

kintyre jammed his fists into knots. an intake of air hissed between his teeth.

"what is it?" corinna's alarm seemed to come from far away.

"nothing. or possibly something. never mind. go on, trig."

only part of him heard the detective continue. the rest said through thunder: one more suspect. i had been sure clayton, of all people, must be innocent. for the federal government would have assured itself he knows no assassins—trig, perhaps more reliably, tells me the same—and he could not have found any on short notice, and it is impossible he could have done the crime personally.

but guido might have such connections!

did clayton see guido again?

"then i went around and chivvied the cops," said yamamura. "they were just hauling in the michaelis family, and hadn't much time for any other ideas. however, they are going to check house rentals over the weekend. you see, what was done—i'm sorry, miss lombardi—the deed would require an isolated spot. an entire house, at least. for the noise."

"has anything come of that?" asked corinna with a great steadiness.

"not yet. these things take time. well, then i had some supper and came here. wasn't open yet, but they were making ready. someone will have to meet my expense account, twenty-five good dollars to grease my way in and learn something."

"i can," said corinna.

"not you, miss lombardi. most especially not you." yamamura fumbled with his pipe; he was all at once an unhappy man. "must i say it?"

her eyes closed again, a flicker of aloneness. then: "please. it's better now, isn't it, than later from someone else?"

"a couple of strangers were in here last thursday night. they introduced themselves to guido, stood him drinks, talked at length. all this was noticed by the bartender, without any special interest, simply because it was a slack midweek night. he didn't hear what was said. after closing time, guido went out with them.

"the description of one of those birds answers moderately well to bob's description of larkin."

corinna shook herself, as if something rode her neck. "is that all?" she asked.

"yes."

"it could be worse," she said. "we already know he knows larkin."

"what did the other man look like?" asked kintyre.

"smallish fellow, sandy-haired, long nose. and i'm surprised the barkeep could tell me that much. look how you've come right back in here tonight, a stranger, after tearing the joint up."

guido finished. applause crackled, abnormally loud for a place like this: did they clap the knife which had been drawn? wondered kintyre.

corinna got up and made her way toward the platform. guido gaped at her. "i like that girl," said yamamura. "do we have to go on with this business?"

"if we don't, she will alone," kintyre told him.

corinna and guido held a muted argument. the fear was bulging his eyes. finally he collapsed, somehow, and went out through the rear door. corinna followed.

"here we go," said yamamura. "no, you ape, don't blow your nose! oldest trick in the book, and you can bet there's at least one plainclothesman here tonight."

he sauntered affably between the tables. kintyre came behind, his shoulders aching with tension. the bartender, the man who could actually notice things, regarded him speculatively as he passed by. a small surf of conversation lapped at his feet, he had to choke down the idiotic belief that it was all about him.

then they were in the back room. kintyre recognized the alley door he had used previously. almost hidden by stacked beer cases, a stair led upward. at its top they found a dusty room with an iron cot, a couple of chairs, and an old vanity table. a naked electric bulb glared from the ceiling. dressing room, kintyre supposed.

guido sat on the bedstead. he held a cigarette to his lips and drew on it as if it kept him alive. corinna stood before him. the overhead light made her hair into a helmet and her face into a mask. shadows lay huge in the corners.

guido didn't look up. "i'll see you later," he mumbled. "i swear it. but not here. for chrissake, we can all be killed here."

"then why did you come tonight?" asked yamamura.

"god! i was afraid not to."

"did you see anyone dangerous in the audience?"

"i can't tell." his forehead glistened under the tangled hair. "there's a baby spot on me when i sing. i can't see past the first couple tables."

corinna said: "mr. yamamura is a private detective. i understand he's even better at judo than dr. kintyre, which you should know is saying quite a lot."

"and when they go home?" he lifted a skull face. "what happens to me then?"

yamamura replied: "your only real safety will come when those people you are afraid of have been settled with. do you want to go the rest of your life being afraid?"

"you can't settle with them," whispered guido. "i mean, it's not just larkin with his switchblades. o'hearn carries a gun, and he's a three-time loser already, do you understand what that means? i've seen his gun!"

"is there anyone else?" asked kintyre.

"i don't know. you expect me to tell you if i do? i'll get myself killed!"

corinna waved kintyre and yamamura back. she sat down beside guido and took his free hand. "bruce got himself killed too," she said in her gentlest tone.

"oh, yes, yes, yes! leave me alone!"

"he was tied down somewhere and tortured," she said, not raising her voice. "they burned him. the marks were all over his body, even after they finished hacking it up. i know that much, no more. nobody would tell me more, and i didn't want to ask. but he must have been glad when they finally cut his throat."

guido tried to rise. she pulled him back, without using much strength. "jesus!" he screamed.

"why did you help them?" she asked.

"i didn't! it's got nothing to do with—i didn't!"

she stood up again and looked down upon him. "why did you do it?" she said as calmly. "how had he hurt you, that you had to let him be burned and twisted and killed?"

"no! not me! i don't know!" his mouth was stretched into a gash; a tongue like dry wood bobbed within it.

she slapped him. it could not have been hard, but he fell back onto the bed and clawed at the mattress.

"good-by," she said, and walked from him.

kintyre looked at her and knew why the furies had been women. his heart was a cold lump.

corinna waited in a corner, her hands writhing together. guido tried, horribly, to weep, and could not.

then at last he rolled over on his back, blinked at the light, and said in a high childish voice: "i'll tell you what happened. i'll tell you so you can see it wasn't me, wasn't anything to do with bruce, it just happened to happen the same weekend, and then maybe if you get out and leave me alone they won't kill me.

"all i did was this. these cats from chicago came around last week and said they were after some of the pod and could i get it, it was worth five hundred bucks to them plus expenses. not horse, now, i don't have anything to do with horse. just marijuana, it never hurt anybody, you don't get hooked, you don't go nuts, hell, i mean you even have to will yourself to keep the jag up and it's only in your head, man, you don't do nothing to nobody else, dig?"

"guido," said corinna warningly.

he snapped after air. presently he continued: "so i told them i didn't handle it myself but i knew some who did. but they didn't dig that, said they didn't want nothing to do with any local pushers, they didn't even want it from any near town. well, it seemed way out to me, but five hundred plus expenses for finding a small packet wasn't to be turned down, so i asked around and got the name of a dealer in tijuana, and when i saw them the next day they said that would do. so i rented a car and drove down saturday. i was supposed to meet larkin here again monday night and give him the packet and get the rest of my money—they paid two-fifty in advance. i came back to town late monday. when i hit my pad i heard about bruce and the old lady was crying all over me, so i called the place here and talked with larkin, could he meet me tuesday night instead. so he said all right, only the professor was here when he arrived. i haven't seen larkin or o'hearn since, and what're they thinking i said?"

kintyre didn't look at corinna, he didn't believe it would be decent for a minute or two. he asked guido: "what other jobs did you do for these men? rent a house for them?"

"no—nothing. i turned the car back to the rental agency on monday, that's all. they'd advanced some of my expenses. they still owe me—"

"you're not likely to collect," said yamamura. he nodded to kintyre. "i see what you're driving at. they missed a bet, not having him rent the scene of the crime too. and of course it was a mistake to dump the body across the bay: that expedited the investigation, rather than slowing it up as intended. but then, they were strangers to this locality. and there's not much long-range difference, is there?"

"what do you mean?" asked guido lifelessly.

"i mean you've been played for an all-time sucker," said kintyre. "it's pure luck—the michaelises just happened to become patsy number one—that you haven't been arrested on suspicion of murder. so far."

he heard corinna gasp. guido seemed too drained to understand.

"another thing," said kintyre. "what's between you and gerald clayton?"

"clayton?" the empty eyes blinked from the bed. "clayton. oh, him. nothing."

"are you certain?"

"we talked for a while, up at his pad. bruce took me there. so finally he gave me the polite brush-off and i came on over here to do my show. bruce stayed."

"that's all? you're sure?"

"for a long time, anyway. i met him once before—months and months ago—just social like—" guido's tones dribbled to silence.

kintyre rubbed his chin. "that seems to let clayton off," he said. "if, to be sure, our friend here is telling the truth."

"he is," said corinna. turning, kintyre saw her inhumanly composed. "i know him. he can't be lying now."

"i wish i could be that certain," said kintyre. "the whole thing makes so little sense that—though judas, i feel i could almost grasp the answer, but no."

yamamura asked guido: "where is this dope you brought?"

"it's not dope," said the figure on the cot: a tired, automatic protest. "it's only pod."

"never mind that. if you don't like the law, write your congressman. where's the dope?"

"they'll kill me if—"

"what use is your life to you right now?" asked yamamura scornfully.

it had not seemed possible guido could shrink further into himself. "that dressing table over there," he whimpered.

yamamura opened the drawer, flipped out a small parcel, and tore a corner. "uh-huh," he said.

"well?" said kintyre.

"well, by rights we should turn this and the kid in. it could mean a stretch in a federal prison, since he crossed a border. it could even mean a loss of citizenship, he being naturalized. dope is a hysterical issue."

corinna did not speak.

yamamura continued, in an almost idle tone: "however, it's true enough that this isn't a really vicious drug. i could heave it into the nearest garbage can and there'd be an end of the matter. if you think he's had a little sense beaten into him."

kintyre said: "that's my guess, trig." yamamura slipped the package into a coat pocket. corinna shuddered, her fingers closed about kintyre's.

yamamura knocked the dottle from his pipe, which had gone cold between his teeth, and said, "let's assume for now that he is telling the truth. then what have we got?"

"a couple of murderers still hanging around," said kintyre. "why? surely not to collect their hashish. that was just a gimmick to make guido, their decoy, leave town, and make it damn near impossible for him to explain why. whether or not a murder charge could have been made to stick, it would certainly confuse the issue long enough for this job to be finished, for the killers to go safely home again, and for the one who hired them to cover his tracks completely."

"you imply their job is not yet finished," said yamamura.

"i sure do. there's no other sane reason for them to stay around, risking detection and arrest. only—who's next?"

"guido?" it was corinna who asked it, firmly.

"i doubt that, at least as far as the original plan went. who wants a dead red herring? of course, now they may indeed go for him, afraid of what he has spilled. i think we'd better take him across the bay."

yamamura nodded. "let's get moving," he said. "up there, lad." he stepped to the cot, took guido under the arms and hauled him erect. "we can go out the back door."

guido shambled, leaning heavily on the detective. kintyre and corinna followed. "he must be telling the truth," she said. "i know him! and that package—"

"does tend to bear out his yarn," said kintyre. "i want to believe in his essential innocence myself. the trouble is, if his story is true, then who hired the killers?"

"that mr. clayton?"

"not if guido has given us a full and fair account. i've explained to you that the michaelises are out. who's left?"

"i've heard of a writer. owens, is that his name?"

"i don't know. i plain don't. and yet i'm nagged by a feeling that i already have the answer—and i can't name it! things have been happening too fast." kintyre scowled. "and until we can identify the one who hired the killers—the real murderer; the others are only a deodand—he's free to murder someone else."

they had come down the stairs now, slowly, and stepped into the alley behind the building. windowless brick walls closed three sides: it was a cul-de-sac thick with shadows, opening on a wanly lit trafficless street of hooded shops.

the man by the alley entrance stepped a little closer. there was just light enough to show that he was not tall, that he had sloping shoulders, and that he carried an automatic pistol. he stopped three yards from the door, too far off for a leap.

"hold it," he said.