Free 1972 - Just a Matter of Time by James Hadley Chase Page A

he could take you somewhere?’
    She lifted her shoulders.
    ‘Do you?’
    Bromhead thought of what was involved. If Sheila and Gerald were seen together and remembered and if there was an inquiry later and someone talked the whole plan could explode, and yet he knew it was essential that she kept control not only of Patterson but also of Gerald.
    ‘We must take some risks, but we must minimize them as far as possible.’ He paused to think while Sheila waited, confident he would solve any problem. ‘First, the hotel staff must get to know you. They must accept you as they accept me - part of the hotel background. To do this you must make several trips a day down to the lobby, to the bookstall, to mail letters, to buy stamps. You must think up some reason to speak to the hall porter and the doorman. That I can leave to you but establish yourself so the staff regard you as one of themselves. There’s a staircase from here, reached through your bedroom. It leads down to the 19th floor. You may not have noticed the exit door. It is behind a curtain. It’s there in case of fire. The door is bolted on the inside so you can get put quickly. You must buy a blonde wig. Get yourself a drab—looking dustcoat. Leave here by the staircase, then take the elevator down from the 19th floor. After eleven o’clock the elevator goes on automatic. The night staff in the lobby won’t know if you are staying at the hotel or visiting someone. The trick with this is to show confidence. Leave the elevator and walk briskly across the lobby and out. You do the same in reverse when you return. Don’t hesitate. You won’t be noticed. Take the elevator to the 19th floor, walk up the stairs and enter your room. You need do this only twice a week. Before leaving, give the old lady a sleeping pill. How you do that is your business. Seeing Gerald twice a week should keep him happy. What do you think?’
    She thought about this, then nodded.
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘All right.’ He got to his feet. ‘How do you find the old lady?’
    ‘She’s very easy . . . I like her.’
    Bromhead paused in the open doorway.
    ‘Don’t get to like her too much . . . no one lasts forever.’
    When he had gone, Sheila got up and went to the big window and looked down at the luxury yachts in the harbour. The sun turned the water into an oily rainbow.
    Perhaps the air conditioner was making her feel cold. She shivered. Opening the terrace door she went out into the hot sunshine. Looking down at the town, the sea and the busy traffic, she still felt cold.
     
    * * *
     
    Gerald rolled off her with a moan of satisfaction. She knew there would be no after—play and she was thankful. Gerald was so selfish and adolescent, once satisfied, he wanted only to sleep.
    She waited until his breathing became heavy, then she reached for the towel and wiped his sweat off her body. She longed to take a shower, but she didn’t want to wake him so she lay still, feeling the heat of his body as they nearly touched on the narrow, sordid bed and she stared up at the dirty white ceiling, lit by the flashing neon sign from the nightclub across the way.
    The room was small and insufferably hot. Through the open window came the sounds of the waterfront: drunken voices, squeals from excited girls, the blare of transistor radios and the shuffling of feet.
    This, she reminded herself, she would have to endure twice a week. Even then, she couldn’t be sure that he wouldn’t look for another woman. She had known when they had teamed up that he would present problems. He just didn’t understand nor ever would appreciate what it meant to have unlimited money – as she did and Bromhead did. His mind was too small. The only thing that bothered him was boredom. Give him enough money with which to eat, drink, run a car, go every night to some nightclub, dance with some attractive girl, have sex with her, yak with kids of his own age and he would be happy. But she was determined to make him understand;