"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 041 - The Killer" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

"The same old game," returned Herston. "Picking up jobs here and there -"

"With any complications?" interjected Mullrick.

"None," assured Herston.

Mullrick's gaze was steady. He was watching Herston's face to make sure that his companion was not
bluffing. Satisfied, Mullrick leaned back in his chair.

"Jerry," he said, "I have work for you. I can't run risks, however, by employing a man who may be in
wrong with the police. So far as your connections with the underworld are concerned, I can see definite
advantages. But if you have been implicated in any trouble during my absence -"
"Not a bit of it!" broke in Herston emphatically. "Listen, Mullrick, I can get anything I want from the big
shots. Anything. That's because I keep away from crime. You know what I do for them. When they want
a little private detective work done, they don't pop in on an agency. They come to me. They know I can
keep mum."

"Exactly," responded Mullrick. "I know it, too. That's why I have used you for previous investigations. I
just wanted to be sure that you hadn't stepped over the boundary line during my absence. I may need
you for various purposes, and when the pinch comes"

"I'll be Jerry on the spot. I can give you anything, including alibis. I know the ways of these New York
dicks. I only ask you one thing, Mullrick. Give me the whole lay right at the start. If I know what's been
doing in Mexico, I can work better when you need me."

"I'm coming to that," declared Mullrick, with a slow smile. "I'm satisfied now that I can count on your aid
from the start. So here's where we begin."

Mullrick arose abruptly and went to the telephone. He called a number, and Jerry Herston heard his end
of the conversation.

"Hello," said Mullrick. "Tribune Hotel?... Room 918. Hello... Hello... Ah, is that you, Santo?... Mullrick
speaking... Yes, here in New York... I have an apartment, listed in my name... In the lobby, yes...
Belisarius Arms. That's it. Right away. I'll expect you..."

Mullrick hung up the receiver. He turned to face Jerry Herston. He noted the quizzical look upon the
ex-detective's face.

Mullrick smiled as he sat down. He produced a large sheet of paper from his pocket, and unfolded it
upon a small table. Jerry Herston found himself staring at a map of Mexico.

"We have a few minutes," explained Mullrick. "In that time, I shall give you the inside information. Look
at this map, Jerry. Here is the state of Durango."

"You were there?" questioned Herston in surprise. "That's a long way from Mexico City -"

"I was in Mexico City," interposed Mullrick quietly. "My business, however, had to do with affairs in
Durango. That, Jerry, is one of the richest portions of all Mexico. The mineral content of its mines is
fabulous."