Free Cop Out by Ellery Queen Page B

open to the kitchen and he ran in and snatched a blanket and wrapped her in it and flung her over his shoulder fireman style and ran out and through the broken door and into the woods and made a great circle around to where he had hidden the Saab and then he was on the dirt road and a heartbeat after that on the blacktop speeding away from the Lake.
    Only then did the smell from the sleeping child’s mouth register on his brain and he knew what they had done to her to keep her quiet.
    Through the rage he kept telling himself well it could have been worse a lot worse I hope Ellen sees it that way God damn their slimy souls.
    It was like a movie. One shot he was in the shack bundling Bibby in a blanket the next he was in the Saab pushing it at its top speed and the next he was in his own parlor.
    And there was Ellen, flying from the rocker, grabbing Bibby from him, sitting down with the child in her arms to rock her the way she used to when Bibby was an infant. And staring up at him with such fear in her eyes that he wondered if he wasn’t dreaming.
    â€œWhat is it, Ellen? What are you so scared about? Wake up, honey, I got Bibby back and she’s okay, they gave her a shot of whisky to keep her quiet, that’s why she’s sleeping and smells like that but it won’t hurt her, don’t worry, maybe give her a headache tomorrow morning, that’s all. Now you put her to bed while I call John to shoot some cars over to Balsam and pick those three hoods up,” he could not seem to stop talking, something was terribly wrong, her eyes said so, and he didn’t want to know, it was too much, he had had enough for one day, “and we’ll give John the bag with the money—”
    Ellen mouthed, “It isn’t here any more.”

THURSDAY–FRIDAY

The Money
    â€œWhat do you mean?” Malone said. “What do you mean it isn’t here any more?”
    â€œSomebody took it.”
    â€œWho? How? I told you not to let it out of your sight!”
    â€œDon’t yell at me, Loney. I don’t think I can take any more.”
    â€œWill you answer me, for God’s sake? How did it happen?”
    Ellen got out of the rocker with Barbara. She pressed her lips to the child’s defenseless neck. “After I’ve got this baby in bed.”
    He sank onto the sofa staring. Halfway up the stairs she turned. “Did you say whisky? They gave a nine-year-old whisky? ”
    He did not answer. She hissed something profane and vicious and ran the rest of the way.
    Malone sat there listening to the small sounds from upstairs.
    I got Bibby back. The money is gone. Now what?
    His elbows dug into his dirt-soaked knees and he took his head in his hands and tried to think. But the thoughts were stuck, going round and round like a toy train.
    When Ellen came down she was calmer. Give a woman her kid to tuck in and she doesn’t give a damn about anything else. She took his cap off and got him out of his hunting jacket and smoothed his hair. “I’ll get you some coffee.”
    Malone shook his head. “Now tell me what happened.”
    She sat down by his side and held on to her own hands.
    â€œThere’s not an awful lot to tell, Loney. It happened so fast. I had to go to the bathroom this afternoon—”
    â€œAnd you left the money in here?”
    â€œWhat was I supposed to do, take the bag to the toilet with me? Why didn’t you chain it to my wrist? How was I supposed to know—?”
    â€œAll right ,” He did a swiveling exercise with his head, making his neckbones creak. “I can’t seem to get this tiredness out. I could be coming down with the flu.”
    â€œYou’re such an optimist. You could be fighting it off.” She smiled at him, anxious to get away from the money. She didn’t want to talk about it.
    â€œYou went to the toilet and you left the bag here in the parlor,” Malone said. And he could think of