Were they connected? Somewhere on the periphery there had to be a connection. So far they were connected only through Tip Malone; he had been Selina’s lover and a friend (?) of Frank’s niece. Why was I covering for Miss Stone? I had promised Gina Ronico I wouldn’t reveal her to the police, but Miss Ronico’s uncle had long ago invalidated the need to keep that promise. He had given me her name. But his stooges hadn’t bothered her. Now, why? There had been an hour of full, hot sunshine while I’d been sitting around the West Side Station, and the damp spots in the road were steaming and mist was rising from the wet hills. That used-car confidence man, that Lawrence (Larry?) Crewe had fallen under the spell of Selina Stone. It wasn’t hard to do. Because of it he had taken some lumps. My lumps had come from a visit to Lily Chen, but that probably wasn’t the whole reason I’d been pushed over the cliff. After fourteen months Larry was still conscious of his lumps and ready to go hunting with me.
