Tommy drank some more of his beer and waited for Trent to continue. Which he did after a moment or two. “I got a trunk over to the apartment. I lost the key awhile ago and I hate to break open the lock. Do you suppose you could run over and make me a key?”
“I work for the Melrose Lock and Key Shop,” Tommy said. “It’s in the phone book.”
“Sure. There are a lot of lock and key shops in the phone book,” Trent said. “But this is night; they’re all closed by now.”
“They have night numbers for emergency cases,” Tommy said.
“What do they charge — for emergency cases?”
“My boss charges five bucks.”
“I’ll give you ten and for all I care you don’t even have to tell the boss. You can stick it in your own pocket.”
“You can call the night number and get the job done for five Granite 3-1127.”
“Ah, the hell with the money,” said Trent. He looked at his watch. “And I got to run along now. Do you want to come with me and fix me up a key? Or don’t you?”
Tommy looked thoughtfully at Trent, then beyond him at Herbie the Lugan. Finally he shifted to Andy. “Want to come along, Andy? It won’t take me very long.”
“No,” said Andy promptly. A little frown creased his forehead. “Uh, Tommy, can I see you for a minute?”
Trent smiled thinly. “Ah, sure, tell him it’s dangerous coming along with us. He doesn’t know us from Adam. We might even be crooks — or kidnapers. You got some rich relatives, Tommy, who’d pay big ransom for you?” He sneered and took a card from his pocket. “Willis Trent, The Lehigh Apartments! If he doesn’t come back in a half hour, send the cops.”
“The hell with you,” said Andy, and stalked off.
Trent’s eyes glowed as he looked at Tommy. “I’ve got some people coming up to the place. Are you going to fix me up a key or aren’t you?”
“Let’s go,” said Tommy.
The three men left the bowling alley, proceeded to Tommy’s car where he got his tool kit, then walked to a very neat convertible parked a half a block away. They climbed in and Trent sent the car rolling along to Highland Avenue. He turned right on Highland and a moment later made another right turn. After a few blocks he turned left on Whitley and climbed halfway up the hill and stopped. The hill was so steep he was compelled to apply the emergency brake as well as put the car in low gear.
“The Lehigh Apartments,” Trent said. “Want to call your friend before we go in?”
“No,” Tommy said shortly.
“And I haven’t even got a gun on me.”
“Ha-ha,” laughed Herbie the Lugan.
They crossed the sidewalk and entered the lobby of the apartment house. There was a small desk in one corner behind which sat an elderly white-haired man. He nodded.
“Good evening, Mr. Trent.”
“ ’Evening, Eustace,” replied Trent.
“Some people been going up,” said Eustace.
“Fine.”
Trent led the way to an automatic elevator and the three men stepped in. Inside Trent pushed the button for five. The doors closed and the car whined up to the top floor. They got out and Trent led the way up a narrow hall around an el and to a door at the end of the corridor. From inside the apartment came the noises of a party going at full blast.
Trent pushed open the door and stepped aside for Tommy to enter. There were ten or twelve people in the apartment, most of them in the living room, but some overflowing to the terrace. A white-jacketed Filipino was serving drinks.
Trent waved at his guests. “Hi, folks! Make yourselves at home.”
“We are, Will,” someone called.
Trent grinned and continued on toward a bedroom door. Herbie the Lugan crowded on his heels, but when he reached the door Trent turned and, placing his hand on Herbie’s chest, pushed him back. “Join the party, Herbie. Drinks and food — free.”
“Oh, sure!”
Trent signaled to Tommy and they entered the bedroom. Inside Tommy surveyed the room. Some day, he thought, I’m going to have a room just like this. Silk sheets on the bed. Or maybe it’s satin. Mahogany furniture, velvet drapes. At least a dozen suits in the closet and neckties — a hundred of them, not one costing less than five dollars.
Trent stepped into the closet and pulled an army footlocker out into the bedroom, a strange-looking object in contrast to the rich furnishings. “All right,” he said, “let’s see you do your stuff.”
“Do you just want it opened, or do you want it opened with a key?”
“What’s the difference?”
“If you just want it opened, I can do it with a hairpin, or a paper clip. But if you want a key...”
“Let’s see you open it with a key.”
Tommy shrugged and setting his tool kit on the floor, opened it. He rummaged about a moment, found a blank key and tried it in the lock. Nodding, he withdrew it and striking a match, held the match to the key. He again inserted the blank key in the lock and after drawing it out, began applying a file. A moment later he turned the key in the lock.
“Do it again,” Trent said.
“What?”
“Lock it and open it again.”
Tommy snapped the lock shut, got a new blank key and matching it against the one he had just manufactured, was about to apply a file, when Trent exclaimed:
