"Spillane, Mickey - Mike Hammer 11 - Survival . . . Zero! 1.0" - читать интересную книгу автора (Spillane Mickey)

They might even make it on this one. So let's hear the story. Once more, from
the top."
"Lippy . .. Lipton Sullivan," I said. "We went to school together. He dropped
out at the ninth grade and we met up again in the Army for a while. No record I
know of. Just a hard-luck character who couldn't make it in this world. Two
years ago I got him a job checking out groceries in a wholesale warehouse."
"See him often?"
"Only once since then. We had a couple of drinks together. He insisted on
buying. Nice guy, but a born loser."
Pat rubbed his hand across his eyes before looking up. "Heavy drinker?"
"Nope. He rarely touched the stuff."
"Broads?"
"I told you he was a loser. Besides, he never was a big one for women. They
seemed to be mutually unattractive to one another."
This time Pat waited a long time before he spoke. "I don't like it, Mike."
"I can't blame you."
"No ... I don't mean that."
"So?"
"You're involved, old buddy. I know what happens when you get involved. Right
now you sit there and play it cool, but you know you're damn well involved . .
."
"Nuts," I said. "He was a guy I knew, that's all."
"He didn't call the cops, Mike. He called you. When was the last time he did
that?"
"When I got him that job. He thanked me."
"That was two years ago, you said. You changed your number since then."
I grinned at him and reached for a cigarette. "You're still pretty sharp, kid,"
I told him. "No phone directory here, no memos in the papers on him so he must
have memorized my new number."
"Something like that."
"Maybe he wanted to thank me again."
"Can it."
"So I'm his only famous friend." I fired up the butt and blew a stream of gray
smoke toward the ceiling.
"Let's take the other reason why I don't like it."
"Go ahead."
"For a nothing guy like him it's too nasty a kill. Now suppose we see how smart
you still are, friend."
I glanced over at the discolored sawdust and felt my mouth turn sour. "One of
three things. A psycho kill, a revenge kill or a torture kill. He could have
stayed alive a long time with his belly slit open before somebody pounded the
knife into his chest."
"Which one, Mike?" Pat's voice had a curious edge to it.
My own voice sounded strange. "I don't know yet."
"Yet?"
"Why don't you handle it your own way?" I said.
'Td love to, but I got that funny feeling again, Mike. Sometimes I can smell the
way you think."
"Not this time."
"Okay, I'll buy it for now. See you in the morning?"