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CHAPTER 28
"Very well, Forry," Heepish said. "If you want it that badly..."
He bowed and made a flourish. Forry felt his cheeks warming up. He said, "DoI want it? It's mine! I paid for it with my money! You stole it, likea common thief!"
"No common thief would touch it," Heepish said.
Forry, deciding that absolutely nothing was to be gained bystanding there, plunged on ahead. The others opened a way for him, and Heepish evenran up andopened the door for him.
"See you, Forry," he said. "Yeah. In jail, maybe!" As soon as he was in his own house, Forry placed the painting on
the wall and then checked the doors to make sure they were locked. TheDummocks had not come home yet, so he decided to stay and sleep on the couch thatnight. Then heremembered that he was supposed to get the latest edition ofVampirella out. Hehad completely forgotten about it!
He made himself some coffee and went into a rear room, where his"office" was. He worked away steadily until 2:30, when he heard a slight noisesomewhere in the house. He rose and started out of the office when the lightswent out. That was all he needed to put him hopelessly behind schedule!
He fumbled around in the desk drawer for matches, which he didnot think he would have, since he had never smoked. Finding none, he gropedthrough to thekitchen. The pantry shelves were filled with books and magazines. Hedid not eat at the house but took all his meals out or ate at Wendy's. Theicebox, exceptfor some cream for coffee and a few goodies, was filled withmicrofilm.
As he felt around in the porch room for a flashlight, the lightssuddenlycame back on. He continued until he found the flashlight. If thepower failedagain, he would work by its light.
On the way back to the office, he looked into the front room. TheStoker painting was gone!
There was no time to stand around and think. He put on hisrainhat and raincoat and rubbers and walked as fast as his heart would let him out to the car. He got into the big green Cadillac and backed out into the lakewhich Sherbourne Drive had become. He went as fast as he dared and within two minutes was before Woolston Heepish's. Fred Pao, the painting in his arms, was justturning away from the car.
Forry blasted his horn at him and flicked his brights on. TheChinese was startled and almost dropped the painting. Forry cried out in anguishand then lowered the window to shout at Pao.
"I'll call the police!"
Pao opened the rear door of the car and shoved the painting intoit. He ran around to the other side, got in, and the motor roared. His Mercurytook off with a screaching of tires and sped towards Olympic. Forry stared athim for several seconds and then, biting his lip, took off with a similarscreeching oftires. At the same time, he honked furiously at the Chinese. The manwas takinghis beloved Dracula where he could hide it until the search was up.
And then Woolston Heepish would receive it!
But not if Forrest J Ackerman, the Gray Lensman of Los Angeles, had anythingto do with it! Just as Buck Rogers trailed Killer Kane to his lair, so FJA would track down the thief!
Pao's car swung west on Olympic. Forry started to go through thestop sign, too, but had to slam on his brakes as a car going west on Olympic, sheets of water flying from its sides, honked at him. His car skidded and slidsidewise out onto the main boulevard. The oncoming car swerved and skiddedalso, turnedaround once, and ended up still going westward. Forry straightenedout the Cadillac and ran it as if it were a speedboat. Waves curling out onboth sides, he passed the car he had almost hit and then continued building upspeed untilhe saw Pao's taillights going right on Robertson. He went through ared light, causing two drivers to apply their brakes and honk their horns. Hechased Pao upRobertson and down Charleville Boulevard. Despite its multiplicity ofstopsigns, neither stopped once. Then Pao turned up to Wilshire, wentwestward back to Robertson, up Robertson, through all intersections with stop signsand signallights, red or green, and skidded right on Burton Way. He ran a redlight goingto San Vicente and so did Forry. In the distance, a police sirenwhooped, andForry almost slowed down. But he decided that he could justify hisspeeding and, even if he couldn't, a fine would be worth it if the cops caught Paowith the stolen goods. He hoped the cops would show up in time. If theydidn't, theymight find one dead Chinese.
Pao continued down San Vicente, ran another red light at Sixth, with Forrytwo car-lengths behind him. Despite their recklessness, neither wasgoing overforty. The water was too solid; at higher speeds it struck the bottomof the car like a club.
At Wilshire and San Vicente the light was green for them, but twocars raced through the red; and Pao hit the lead car broadside. Forry appliedhis brakes and slowed down the car somewhat, but it crashed into the rear of theChinese's car. His head hit something, and he blacked out.
CHAPTER 29
Childe was half-dazed. After the screaming of metal, the crashingand ripping and rending of metal, and the shatter and tinkle of glass, there was a moment of silence--except for the rain and a siren in the distance. Some of the cars still had operating headlights, and these cast a pale rain- streaked halo over the wreckage. Then a huge black fox leaped onto the top of hishood, pausedto grin through the windshield at him, leaped down onto the street, and trotted off into the darkness behind Stats Restaurant.
The police car, its siren dying, pulled up by the cars, and twoofficers gotout. At the same time, a big dog--no, a wolf--passed by him, also onthe way tothe rear of the restaurant.
An officer, looking into the cars, swore and called to hispartner. "Hey, Jeff, look at this! Two piles of clothes in this one and another pilein this car and nobody around that could have worn them! What the hell isthis?"
The policeman had a genuine mess in more ways than one. No oneseemed to be dead or even seriously hurt. Childe's car was bashed in in the frontand side but was still operable. The car of a Mr. Ackerman had a smashedradiator and would have to be towed away. Pao's car was destroyed. The others wereleakingbadly from the radiators and could not be driven far.
One policeman set out flares. The other still could not get overthe abandoned clothing. He kept muttering, "I've seen some freak things, but this tops them all."
Another patrol car arrived after ten minutes. The officersdetermined that no one needed to be hospitalized. They took down the necessaryinformation, gaveout some tickets, and then dismissed the participants. The case wasfar from over, but there had been so many accidents because of the rain and somany otherduties to perform that the police had to streamline normalprocedures. One didsay that Mr. Pao and Mr. Batlang would be sought for leaving thescene of an accident. And if the clothes meant anything, they might be arrestedfor publicnudity, indecent exposure and, probably, would be subjected to apsychiatricexamination.
One of the passengers in the car said that they must have beendazed He knew them well, they were responsible citizens, and they would never leavethe scene of an accident unless they had been rendered half-conscious in astate of shock.
"Maybe so," the policeman said. "But you have to admit it'srather peculiarthat all three should take off their clothes--slide out of them the way it looksto me--and run away. We were right behind you, and we didn't even see them
leave." "It was raining very heavily," the passenger said"Not that heavily." "What a night," the other policeman said. Childe tried to talk to the others in the accident, but only