Free The Nothing Man by Jim Thompson

tryin' to keep an open mind, Mr. Lovelace." Stukey was almost whining. "Like I said, I ain't passing up any bets."
    Lovelace harrumphed angrily and glanced at me. I said I had complete confidence in Mr. Stukey's ability to handle the case. "I'm not sure that he needs or wants any suggestions from me, but-"
    "Certainly he does! Why shouldn't he?"
    "Well," I went on, "it seems to me that the two things tie in together-that is, the solving of the murder and the city-wide clean-up. I believe that every known or suspected criminal, every person who has no legitimate reason for his presence here, should be brought in and questioned. Probably the murderer will be among them. If not-well, we will have done our best. At any rate, as rapidly as the suspects are eliminated, they should be ordered out of the city and kept out."
    "Excellent," said Lovelace firmly. "Is that all clear to you, Chief?"
    Stukey hesitated, but only for a fraction of a second. Mr. Lovelace might be a fathead but you didn't say no to him in Pacific City when he asked for a yes.
    "I got it," he said. "Me and Clint understand each other real well."
    Mr. Lovelace stood up. He shook my hand again, then sauntered toward the door with his arm around my shoulder.
    "I-uh-" He paused. "I-it has occurred to me that we have been rather inconsiderate here tonight. You have lost your-she was your wife, after all-and under such tragic circumstances. Yet we have allowed you to-we have called upon you to-"
    "I am a Courier man," I said simply. "I have tried to act as I know you would have acted."
    "I-uh-ahem-I am afraid you do me too much credit. In your case, I… Are you feeling entirely well? I was thinking that-uh-well, shock, you know. I would be happy to refer you to my own physician if-"
    "Thank you, sir," I said, "but I believe the worst is now over. Now it is largely a matter of prayer, of consulting the spirit, of rising above personal tragedy into a newer and finer life."
    "Well-uh-"
    "Onward and upward," I said. "That is the answer, sir. My head in the clouds, my feet firmly on the ground."
    I helped him into the car and closed the door. Dave took me by the arm, drew me away a few feet. "I'm sorry as hell, Brownie. I know how much-how you felt about her."
    "A woman that wasn't my wife?" I said. "A youthful mistake? A floozy? A-"
    "Brownie!"
    "Yes, Colonel?"
    "Is there anything at all-? Would you like to have me come back and stay tonight?"
    "Why don't you?" I said. "We can talk over old times, our joyous carefree days in the army when-"
    He let go my arm. He almost threw it away from him. Then he got a grip on himself and made one more try. "You did a swell job on Stukey, fellow. What you're doing-Ellen would have been proud of you."
    "I wonder," I said. "I'll have to ask her the next time I see her."
    "We'll get the guy who did it, Brownie! By God, we'll pour the coal on Stuke until-"
    "Yes," I said, "we'll get him. Someone will get him."
    "Well… Think you'll make it all right? You wouldn't like to have me send out a doctor?"
    "Send out a surgeon," I said. "I am heavily burdened and wouldst shed my balls."
    He whirled and walked away.
    I went back into the house. Lem Stukey had moved over to the lounge and was taking a drink from the bottle.
    "Well, keed." He didn't seem particularly discomfited now. If anything, he appeared pleased, and I was confident I knew why. "It looks like we got to find ourselves a murderer, don't it?"
    "Not necessarily," I said. "We, or rather you, have to look for one. You have to round up our local riffraff and eliminate them as suspects, also eliminating them from Pacific City."
    "For nothin', huh? I drive all the easy dough out of town and I don't get nothin' out of it. That ain't reasonable, Brownie. I'm willing to play along with you-hell, don't I always go along with a pal? But you got to-"
    "I don't got to," I said. "I've played along with you too long, Lem. Now I'm through."
    "But why? You're sore about tonight? Jesus, pal, you