A shave, a shower, a change of clothes and a two hour solid nap and Rick Hart, P.I. was back in harness. I wasn't thrilled about the Druid connection or that the path to the necklace might lead right to their door. I crossed my fingers and hoped that Desmond had it and was holding it for future opportunities.

His centre of operation was a bowling alley in the west end of the city, an entertainment about as popular in the area as the area itself. I parked and entered Pin City Bowl with an air of considerable doubt.

"Carlos Desmond?" I said to a lean, emaciated looking counter man whom I doubted could lift one of the establishment's ten pin balls.

"Who wants him?" Phlegmy voice.

"I do, that's why I asked."

"He ain't here, smart ass." Stringbean wiped the counter sans enthusiasm.

"Not even for a big sale?"

The wiping stopped and he stared at me a moment. "Wait here."

Two elderly ladies were having a small argument over the score sheet. Outside of them there was no other business; Pin City Bowl was still in the days of paper score sheets, crayons and pin boys. I even heard Dean Martin on the scratchy speakers.

"You said somethin' about a big sale?"

I turned back to see who owned the soprano voice and looked up at a living tattoo with hands and feet. He looked like Queequeg in Moby Dick.

"Uh- yeah, I heard Carlos was the man to see here."

"You can talk to me."

Actually I couldn't. The incongruously high voice coming out of this inked mountain was threatening to start me blubbering with laughter.

"Somethin' funny?"

"Mmmn, nope." I coughed and backed away from the counter. "Sorry- frog . . ." I gathered myself and asked again for Carlos Desmond.

"If you wanna talk big sales you talk with me."

"I just said that because your friend here said he wasn't in and I want to talk to him about something else."

Tattoo looked at Stringbean and the latter scurried away, returning shortly with the person I presumed to be Carlos. Tattoo gave Carlos a dull stare then drifted back behind the counter to the other room. I beckoned Carlos to a vacant bowling lane and we sat on the bench.

"I know you?"

"Nope but you know the guy who iced Luther."

If Carlos had worn a shell he would have disappeared inside. His eyes darted around the alley and his face was the definition of panic.

"Who are you? What do you want?" A hissed whisper.

"Same thing Semple wanted . . . the necklace you guys were holding as collateral."

Pale didn't describe Carlos as his eyes rolled up into his head and he gripped the edge of the bench for support.

"Jesus, man. Quiet! If those guys hear you I'll be road kill!"

"Let me guess. Luther got it because his clients couldn't pay and you got it because he couldn't pay you and you didn't tell anyone here."

"I'm tellin' you, man. If they knew . . ." His expression changed as he saw my eyebrows rise. "You wouldn't . . ."

I added a false smile. "The necklace for my silence, Carlos?"

His groan had the two elderly ladies take a break in their argument to look over at us with an air of disgust.

"He owed me a lot of money, man."

"Write it off on your taxes." I made a point of looking at my watch.

"Alright, alright. You know if you tell them you'll never get it back."

"You won't be around to find out if I do or not. Time's up."

"I don't have it on me, man; I gotta get it from where I stashed it."

"Let's go."

"I- I can't right now. They want me here" I showed my teeth. "Tonight! I'll get it tonight. Meet me at Belmont and Town at eight. You know where that is?"

"Just make sure you know where it is, Carlos 'cause I know where they are." I cocked my head towards the counter.

"I'll be there. I promise."

********

"C'mon, Verna it's a simple favour. Geez I bought you a turkey wrap the other day."

"I thought that was for my favour."

"Oh, oh . . . that smarts! I wouldn't even dream of paying you for that . . . I mean you aren't that type of- I always considered us friends with benefits . . . sort of."

"A turkey wrap and now driving you to what might be a dangerous meeting is my benefit for what I gave you!

"Ye- no! No . . . these are just favours."

"That benefit you." Verna folder her arms and stood strong on one side the way women do when they are being adamant.

"Ooo-kay. What can I do to get you to do this favour for me?"

"Take me someplace nice for dinner. Not Harry's or that other diner you get coffee at, someplace really nice."

"Deal. Dinner someplace nice." I held out my arms. "Are we good?"

********

"Do I need to keep the engine running?"

I laughed. "No, this is nothing like that. I'm meeting this guy and I just wanted a witness to the meeting . . . in case."

"In case? In case what?"

"Nothing . . . he has some questionable friends . . ."

"Hart, I ought to shove you out and leave you here. I might have known this was not just some simple favour."

"Verna, relax. There's nothing to- shhhh, there he is." I stepped out of the car quietly and leaned back in before closing the door. "Keep the motor running."

Carlos was stepping from one foot to the other, his head on a swivel and his breathing coming through his nose in squeaks.

"Were you followed?" He hisssed.

"Who the hell would follow me? You're the one that could get followed . . . were you?"

"No- I don't know. Let's get this over with."

"Fine, give me the necklace."

"I don't have it on me."

"Goodbye, Carlos." I turned and started away.

"Wait! It's in there." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the apartment building behind him.

We climbed the steps to the front doors and I signalled Verna in the car, pointing up. The apartment was second floor front, which made me happy as I moved the curtain aside to see Verna's car. Carlos wasted more time pouring himself a large drink from a bottle on the kitchen counter.

"Who's place is this?"

"Mine."

I blinked and paused a moment. "You brought us to your place?"

"I had no choice."

"Huh? What do you mean, no choice?"

"Just what he said, Gumshoe."

Gumshoe? Soprano didn't sound quite so funny in the circumstance and the three bulky bikers with Tattoo weren't funny either. I watched one of them lead Carlos from the room and felt my shirt get very damp.

"Hard or harder, your choice." He held out his hand.

"What?"

"The necklace you were going to sell Carlos."

"Excuse me? I came here to get the necklace from him!"

"Not what he says. And you told me you were at the alley for a big sale."

"I explained that . . . look, I came here because Carlos said he had the necklace and I warned him that I would tell you guys that he was keeping it for himself after getting it from Luther for money owed."

"So you was gonna just blackmail him for it."

"No, I'm trying to get it back for a client." I was beginning to doubt my chances with such flimsy reasons in the face of a biker drug gang.

"Who's this client?"

"Well, I can't tell you that- client privilege."

Tattoo's grunt must have been some secret communication signal the Druids used because his associates started toward me. I grabbed Carlos' liquor bottle and hurled it through the window, following it with screams of, "Go! Go!" and frantic arm waving. Praying Verna saw my efforts, My legs were lifted and reversed into the room. I broke my fall with my hands instead of my head and then I was wheel-barrowed around to face Tattoo.

He had considerately placed a wooden chair in the middle of the room and I was slammed onto it and secured with oily smelling bungee cords.

"Guess you lost your ride."

"It was a cab, I didn't want him to leave the meter running."

"You got a smart mouth, Gumshoe. Hope you got a smart brain too. Where is the necklace?"

"I told you. I came here to get it from Carlos."

The blow landed on the side of my jaw beside my mouth. Everything reacted, teeth, eyes, skull even my hair, all hurt at once and didn't stop. I flashed on the heroes in movies who take several shots like that, wince and then make a glib comment . . . I was no hero. It hurt like hell and I couldn't focus.

When I finally did focus it was on the brass nose ring of the biker that socked me. He was inches away, breathing curry in my face.

"Did that jog your memory, Gumshoe?"

"That and everything else. But it doesn't change the truth," I mumbled. "I came here to get the necklace from Carlos." Nose Ring shifted back. "Look, you can pound me 'till the cows come home. I - don't - have - the - necklace."

Tattoo called his man off and whispered something over his shoulder to another leather clad hulk.

"I think I'll take your word for that . . . for now. You can go."

"Be happy to if you untie me and call me a cab. I don't think I could walk very far at the moment." I heard Nose Ring snicker. "About the necklace, I need to get it back to my client and if you give me a little time I'll see that it's worth your while." So much talking was just murder on my jaw.

"From what I hear, this hunk of jewellery is worth my while."

"You'll never fence it Even if you break it up, the composite stones are well known in the trade. I can at least offer you cash."

"How much?"

"Let me get the necklace back to my client and I'll work something out." My jaw was swelling and it was getting harder to speak without a bitching pain.

"Bring Carlos in." Tattoo seemed interested and I prayed I was right.

One look at my face and Carlos almost began to weep. He couldn't confess to having the necklace fast enough. I wanted to throttle him. Two minutes later it was recovered from the back of a crappy painting and Tattoo was holding it up to the light like he could recognize a fake if it bit him.

"What's it worth?"

The very topic I was hoping to avoid. "Not sure, few thousand though." Carlos coughed.

"Expensive, huh?"

"Yeah, can you imagine four or five grand for something like that?" My jaw warned me to shut up.

"That much! Well I think our cash settlement should reflect that, don't you?"

He spoke like he was educated. "I'll do my best, I promise."

"What about me?" Carlos suddenly regained some daring. "I had it first."

Sympathy pains in my face came alive as Nose Ring delivered a sledgehammer blow to Carlos' head.

"Uh- okay can I have that and get going? Sooner the faster, right?"

Tattoo leaned over me and spoke softly. "No do-overs, Gumshoe. I'll hang onto this until I hear from you by tomorrow night. And no cops."

"I can only promise to do my best but I have to prove I have it back before my client will listen to any deal."

Tattoo took a beat, thankfully not on me, and gave me the necklace.

"Do you have any more business with him?" His eyes slid over to the dazed Carlos.

"Nope. Nothing. Never did 'till now and won't again."

"You got that right."

I could only give a slight nod. The statement made it abundantly clear that Carlos was fish bait and unless I delivered, I would be joining him.