Part 3 (1/2)

Half an hour later, Maverick joined him.

aLuggage, Roger,a Kendrick said as Maverick sat down by his side. aMrs. Lepski must have smart luggage to go with her purchases.a aShe is a little stubborn about money,a Maverick said. aStill, it is an idea. Iall see if I can persuade her.a Kendrick laid his fat hand on Maverickas arm.

aShe must have luggage: a nice suitcase and a vanity box. In fact, dear Roger, you had better provide two suitcases: one for her and one for her husband, but the vanity box is a must.a Maverick studied his cousin.

aI rather doubt . . .a aWait. You will offer these pieces of luggage at such a ridiculously low price, she wonat be able to resist. I will pay the difference.a aYou are not being frank with me, Claude,a Maverick said, his voice sharp. aYou are cooking up something.a aYes.a Kendrick sighed. He knew his cousin. aLet us say I will pay you ten thousand dollars, and no questions asked.a aI am sorry, Claude. I will want to know what all this is about. I refuse to be involved in something you are hatching, unless I know exactly what it is.a Kendrick sighed again. He knew he would get no cooperation from his cousin without laying his cards face up. His sudden inspiration had to be the solution of getting the icon to Switzerland. The icon, carried by a well-known police officer, surely would cross the frontiers. Knowing it would now cost him a great deal of money, he told Maverick of the big steal.

chapter three.

For the next two days, Carroll was extremely busy and loving every minute. She took Lepski to Harry Levine, one of the better tailors in the city, and supervised his kitting out for the trip. Lepski had flamboyant tastes, but Carroll would have none of it. She chose a charcoal-grey suit for eveningwear, a sports outfit, a pair of extra dark blue slacks, four conservative s.h.i.+rts and three conservative ties. Although Lepski argued, she stamped on his objections, announcing that if he wanted that G.o.d-awful s.h.i.+rt he kept fingering, then he would pay for it himself.

Finally, satisfied her husband would travel as a suitably dressed escort, she told Harry Levine to deliver the purchases and she paid by cheque.

aI need a new hat,a Lepski said. aGot to have a hat.a aLepski!a Carroll snapped. aOnly cops and old, bald men wear hats these days! You donat need a hat! I donat want you to look like a cop!a aG.o.dd.a.m.n it! I am a cop!a Lepski shouted.

aNo hat!a Carroll said firmly, aand if you dare to take that abortion you are now wearing on your head, Iall destroy it! Now, go back to work. Iam going to have my fitting.a Leaving Lepski muttering to himself, she walked the two blocks to Maverick.

She had a dreamy two hours with two fitters who pinned and smoothed and murmured compliments about her figure. To Carroll, this was living! Finally, the fitters told her the dresses and the travelling suit would be delivered in two daysa time.

Leaving the fitting room, Carroll found Maverick waiting.

aMrs. Lepski! I do hope you are happy,a he said with his wide, white toothy smile.

aMarvellous!a Carroll exclaimed. aI canat thank you enough!a aNow the handbags and the shoes.a After another hour, guided by Maverick, Carroll bought three pairs of shoes and two handbags. She was nearly delirious with happiness.

Money! she thought. What it is to have money!

aMrs. Lepski, there is one other thing,a Maverick said.

aNothing more,a Carroll said firmly. aI said seven thousand and I mean seven thousand.a aSo far, you have spent six thousand, five hundred dollars,a Maverick told her. aHave you thought about luggage? You and your husband will need smart-looking luggage when arriving in Paris. Alas, hotels judge people by their luggage no matter how well they are dressed. Have you thought of this?a Carroll hadnat. She remembered the last time she and Lepski had gone on vacation what a sorry state their suitcases had been in. She remembered with a shudder Lepskias awful suitcase which he had inherited from his grandfather.

aWell, no. I hadnat thought . . . I suppose . . .a At a signal from Maverick, one of his smartly dressed sales girls came in with two splendid-looking suitcases in dark blue leather with dark red bands.

aNow these cases have a little history,a Maverick lied. aThey were ordered by one of my very rich clients who is extremely difficult to please. I had them made especially for her and to her specifications. She returned them, complaining they were not large enough. We had a little argument.a He paused to give Carroll his toothy smile. aSince she had ordered them, she paid for them and I made larger ones for her. So, Mrs. Lepski, I can offer you these two magnificent suitcases for one hundred dollars. What do you say?a Carroll examined the suitcases. She thought they were the most beautiful suitcases she had ever seen, and she longed to possess them.

aBut that is almost giving them away,a she said.

aWell, not quite. I have been paid for them. I would like to do you a little favour.a Carroll didnat hesitate.

aItas a deal.a aHow wise. Then, Mrs. Lepski, I have a vanity box to match these two suitcases, and this I propose to offer you as a present. It is really rather nice.a The sales girl produced the vanity box. When Carroll saw how it was fitted, she could only gape at it.

aYou mean you are giving it to me?a aWhy not? Itas been paid for and your kind order deserves a slight return. Please accept it.a aWhy, thank you! Itas just marvellous!a aI will deliver the dresses and the cases to you on Wednesday. I understand you will be leaving on Thursday.a aOh, I can take them with me.a Carroll was reluctant to be parted from her purchases.

aPlease, Mrs. Lepski. I would like to put your initials and Mr. Lepskias initials on the cases. I would also like to furbish the vanity box with our special selection of cosmetics. Do leave it to me.a aI canat thank you enough, Mr. Maverick. Then Wednesday?a aWithout fail, Mrs. Lepski,a and Maverick escorted her to the elevator.

Three minutes later, he was speaking to Kendrick on the telephone.

aNo problem, dear Claude,a he said. aShe is happy with the suitcases, and I have promised to deliver them and the vanity box Wednesday morning.a aSplendid!a Kendrick exclaimed. aThe object is eight inches by nine and half an inch thick.a aI will personally dismantle the vanity box. The object, of course, will add to the weight, but not unduly.a aYes. That is a small problem.a aShe didnat pick the box up. She wonat know the difference. I plan to fill the box with our most de luxe cosmetics. She will be dazzled by the contents. Even if the box weighed a hundredweight, she wouldnat be parted from it.a aSplendid work, Roger.a aYou owe me three thousand dollars, Claude.a Kendrick sighed.

aYes.a aAnd one hundred thousand when the object is paid for.a Again Kendrick sighed.

aYes.a aGood. Send Louis to me Tuesday evening. Bye now,a and Maverick hung up.

Kendrick replaced the receiver, took off his wig and polished his baldhead with his silk handkerchief. Then slapping the wig on anyhow, he called for Louis.

There was a delay as Louis was engaged with a client, but twenty minutes later, he slid into Kendrickas office.

aThe replica, cheri.a Kendrick said. aIs it ready?a aOf course . . . a beautiful job.a Louis looked uneasily at Kendrick. aThis is dreadfully dangerous, baby. It really has me worried.a aBring it to me!a Kendrick snapped. He was far from being happy about this operation, but he kept reminding himself of the three million dollar profit.

When Louis returned with the replica of the icon, Kendrickas confidence rose.

aYou are a craftsman, cheri,a he said. aThis is very good.a He carefully compared the replica with the ill.u.s.tration of the original.

aI couldnat match the colours exactly,a Louis said, abut it is near enough.a aYes . . . near enough.a aDo be careful what you are doing, baby,a Louis said. aThere will be a horrid uproar. We could land in jail.a Kendrick silently agreed, but he put the replica in his briefcase, straightened his wig and made for the door.

aRelax, cheri. Think of the money you will be making.a He left the Gallery and drove to the Spanish Bay hotel where he found Ed Haddon sunning himself on the terrace.

aLet us go to your apartment, Ed,a Kendrick said after the two men had shaken hands.

In Haddonas luxury apartment, the door closed and locked, Kendrick produced the replica.

aYour man is good,a Haddon said, taking the replica and examining it. aThis is just what I want.a aLet us sit down. I have found a possible solution to get the original to Switzerland. If this doesnat work, nothing will. There is a risk, of course, but I think a minor one,a Kendrick said as he sat down in a comfortable chair.

Haddon grinned and rubbed his hands.

aI felt sure you would come up with an idea, Claude. How is it to be done?a aFirst, you are certain you can get the icon?a Haddon sat by Kendrickas side.

aDonat letas waste time. I said you will have the icon Tuesday,a Haddon said irritably. aYouall have it! How do you get it to Switzerland?a Kendrick told him about his cousin, Roger Maverick.

aBy the sheerest luck, the wife of a police officer came to Rogeras shop to buy clothes. She has inherited money. She and her husband, Lepski, are going to Europe on vacation. They go to Paris, Monte Carlo and Switzerland. This means they will go through the French and Swiss customs controls. My cousin has sold her suitcases and a vanity box. My cousin will take the vanity box to pieces, insert the icon and put the box together again. What do you think?a Haddon stared at him.

aYou mean you are using a cop to smuggle the icon out?a Kendrick nodded.

aWhat better and safer person? Who would suspect a first grade detective on vacation smuggling the icon out of the country? Lepski is well known to the customsa officials at Miami airport. They will wave him through. He has only to show his s.h.i.+eld for the French and the Swiss officials also to wave him through. Do you like the idea?a Haddon brooded for a long minute, then grinned.

aLooks like you and I, Claude, are going to make a great deal of money. I love the idea!a aYes.a Kendrick s.h.i.+fted uneasily, abut there are still problems.a Haddon gave him a sharp look.

aWhat problems?a aWe are handing Lepskias wife six million dollars, Ed,a Kendrick said. aOf course, she doesnat realize that, but nevertheless, she will have charge of six million dollars. I know nothing about her. She may be a pea-brain. She may be one of these women who leave things behind, lose things, forget things. Suppose she left the vanity box somewhere? You follow my thinking?a aShe would leave her pants behind, but sheas not going to leave a valuable vanity box behind.a aAll the same . . . women do do awful things like even leaving their diamonds behind.a Haddon nodded.

aYouare right. Okay, Claude, Iall fix it.a He looked at his watch. aIall fly up to Was.h.i.+ngton and talk to Bradey. We must arrange for someone to be with the Lepskis until they reach Switzerland. Bradey will take care of that.a Kendrick relaxed.

aThatas it, Ed. Someone who will never let her or Lepski out of his sight, but warn Bradey that Lepski is a smart cop. They will have to be tailed with care.a aLeave it to me. Iall personally deliver the icon to your Gallery around five oaclock Tuesday and I will let you know what I have arranged. Donat worry, Claude, this is going to work.a Four hours later, Haddon was talking to Lu Bradey, still disguised as a clergyman. They were sitting together in Bradeyas motor hotel room.

Bradey nodded approval when he heard of Kendrickas plan to smuggle the icon to Switzerland.

aThatas real smart,a he said.