up all the hardness in them.
“You know Miss Harper, don’t you? And Madox?” he asked her. I was surprised at his voice. It was a little shaky, and it had lost most of that parade-ground bark.
“Oh, yes, of course. Won’t you sit down?” And then she murmured to Gloria, “That’s a lovely blouse. I like it.”
She excused herself after a fill-in on how he was feeling and said she’d go out in the kitchen and fix some drinks. When she was gone, Harshaw asked, “How’s it going?”
“Pretty good,” I said. I told him how many cars we’d sold and about a couple we’d taken in on trades.
“You think the ad did any good?”
“Sure. I’ve got another one in this week’s paper.”
He grunted. “O.K. I’ll tell you what I asked you over here for, but before I do, how’d you get crossed up with that Sheriff?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. For one thing, I was new here. And according to that cashier the robber was a big man.”
“It’s lucky for you Dolly saw you over there at the fire. I know that bird. In two days he can make you believe you’re guilty yourself.” He stopped to take a deep breath. He didn’t have much strength. “But never mind that. Here’s what I’ve got in mind—”
Just then she came out of the dining room and interrupted him. “It’s those darn ice-cube trays, George. They’re stuck again. Maybe Mr. Madox—“
“Sure,” I said, getting up. “Excuse me.”
The little witch, I thought; when she wants to throw ‘em at somebody they’re not stuck. I followed her through the dining room and out into the kitchen. She watched me as I opened the refrigerator and took the trays out.
“That’s funny,” she said, smiling. “I couldn’t budge ‘em.”
“Anything else?” I asked.
“Well, you could put the cubes in the glasses if you’d like.”
I put them in four glasses. She poured whisky and soda in three of them and plain soda in the fourth. Then she began stirring, making a lot of noise. With the other hand she caught my lapel, and jerked her head for me to come nearer.
She looked up at me, still with that hard smile on her mouth. “Very pretty, isn’t she?” she asked, not whispering, but keeping her voice low. Her nostrils dilated a little as she sniffed. “And you can tell the angel-faced little bitch to quit leaving her tracks on you. I can smell her all over you.”
“You’re crowding your luck,” I said. “Don’t go too far.”
“Maybe you thought I was joking. You’d better keep it in mind.”
“I’ve told you once,” I said. “Don’t threaten me.” I caught the arm that was stirring, pried the spoon out of her fingers, and threw it on the drainboard. “Shall we take the drinks in?”
We went in and passed the drinks around and sat down. Gloria glanced at me with her eyes shining.
“Madox, I’ve just been telling Miss Harper,” he said. “Here’s the deal. I’m going to have to quit trying to work, at least for a long time. So I want you to take charge of everything down there. She’ll continue to run the loan office, just as she has been, but you’ll be responsible for the whole works. I’ll pay you a salary, plus your own commissions and the sales-manager’s take on what Gulick sells. You ought to be good for around six thousand a year. Do you want it?”
Did I? I thought. It was a terrific break, and it took me a little by surprise. I didn’t understand it. We’d always fought like a couple of sore-headed bears. “Sure,” I said, trying to get my breath. “Of course I do. But why me? I mean, Gulick’s the senior man—“
He gestured curtly. There was still a little of the old Harshaw there. “Gulick can’t handle it,” he grunted. “He hasn’t got the drive. I know you have, and you’re too disagreeable to be crooked, so it’s yours if you want it.”
Sure, I thought. I’m not crooked. Besides betraying him with his wife, all I’ve done lately is steal twelve thousand dollars. It was a little hard to look at him.
It didn’t take long to straighten out the details. Just before we left she had to go with Gloria to show her where the bathroom was, and as they went out of the room he looked after them. It was the first time I’d ever seen anything gentle in his face. I wondered which one he was looking at.
“That’s one of the finest