Free Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout Page B

see. I looked at Tina, who was back on the edge of her chair. You were saying …
    We dont want Mr. Wolfe mad at us, she said in distress.
    Forget it. Hes only mad at me, which is chronic. What do you want to go to Ohio for'
    Maybe not Ohio. She tried to smile again. Its what I said, we love this country and we want to go more into it far in. We would like to be in the middle of it. We want you to tell us where to go, to help us -
    No, no. I was brusque. Start from here. Look at you, youre both scared stiff. Whats the danger Carl mentioned'
    I dont think, she protested, it makes any difference -
    Thats no good, Carl said harshly. His hands started trembling again, but he gripped the sides of his chair seat, and they stopped. His dark: eyes fastened on me. I met Tina, he said in a low level voice, trying to keep feeling out of it, three years ago in a concentration camp in Russia. If you want me to I will tell you. why it was that they would never have let us get out of there alive,
    not in one hundred years, but I would rather not talk so much about it. It makes me start to tremble, and I am trying to learn to act and talk of a manner so I can quit trembling.
    I concurred. Save it for some day after you stop trembling. But you did get out alive pounds Plainly. We are here! There was an edge of triumph to the level voice. I will not tell you about that either. But they think we are dead. Of course Vardas was not our name then, neither of us. We took that name later, when we got married in Istanbul. Then we so managed -
    You shouldnt tell any places, Tina scolded him. No places at all and no people at all.
    You are most right, Carl admitted. He informed me, It was not Istanbul.
    I nodded. Istanbul is out. You would have had to swim. You got married, thats the point.
    Yes. Then, later, we nearly got caught again. We did get caught, but -
    No! Tina said positively.
    Very well, Tina. You are most right. We went many other places, and at a certain time in a certain way we crossed the ocean. We had tried very hard to come to this country according to your rules, but it was in no way possible.
    When we did get into New York it was more by an accident - no, I did not say that. I will not say that much. Only I will say we got into New York. For a while it was so difficult, but it has been nearly a year now, since we got the jobs at the barber that life has been so fine and sweet that we are almost healthy again. What we eat! We have even got some money saved! We have got -
    Fifty dollars, Tina said hastily.
    Most right, Carl agreed. Fifty American dollars. I can as a fact that we would be healthy and happy beyond our most dreams three years ago, except for the danger. The danger is that we did not follow your rules. I will not deny that they are good rules, but for us they were impossible. I cannot expect ourselves to be happy when we dont know at minute someone may come and ask us how we got here. The minute that just went by, that was all right, no one, but here is the next minute. Every day is full of those minutes, so many. We have found a way to learn what would and we know where we would be sent back to. We exactly what would happen to us. I would not be sure if you felt a deep contempt when you saw me tremag the way I do, but to understand a situation like this I we you have to be somewhat close to it. As I am. As is. I am not saying you would tremble like me - after Tina never does - but I think you might have your own of showing that you were not really happy.
    Yeah, I might, I agreed. I glanced at Tina, but the expression on her face could have made me uncomfortable, so backed back at Carl. But if I tried to figure a way out I doubt ___ Would pick on spilling it to a guy named Archie Goodwin because he came to the barber shop where I worked. He tttvbe crazy about the rules you couldnt follow, and any there are just as many minutes in Ohio as there are in York.
    There is that fifty dollars. Carl extended his hands, not