I Would Rather Stay Poor Read online

  It was Sunday after lunch. Kit, Iris and Calvin sat in the lounge. Miss Pearson and Major Hardy had gone to their rooms for a nap. Kit and Iris were both pale and silent. Calvin was relaxed and very confident.

  ‘It’s one of those things,’ he was saying to Iris. ‘You can’t go through life without some of the gilt being rubbed off. I admit it: we shouldn’t have done this thing, but we did it, and now we have to make the best of it. Three hundred thousand dollars is a lot of money. If you think about it, you’ll realise why we were tempted. I’m sorry about Alice. She just happened to get in the way, so…’

  ‘Shut up, you swine!’ Kit screamed at him.

  Iris closed her eyes and her hands turned into fists. For the past twelve hours she had been through a nightmare. The sound of the violent, drunken voice of the woman who was her mother sickened her.

  Calvin’s eyes blazed with fury. He half started out of his chair, then controlled himself.

  ‘If you scream like that,’ he said, an edge to his voice, ‘the old people upstairs will hear you.’

  Kit stared at him, her face convulsed with hate.

  ‘Then stop talking… do something!’

  ‘There’s nothing I can do. If anyone is to do anything it will have to be Iris.’ Calvin twisted around in his chair to look directly at Iris. ‘If you want to save your mother from the gas chamber, you’ll have to help. You’ll have to see Travers and tell him you had the chance to search the bank yesterday and you found nothing. You’ll tell him you went through all the deed boxes and found nothing relating to the robbery. You’ll give him a carbon of one of the bank letters. I have one ready for you. I went into Downside yesterday and typed a letter on a Remington in a typing bureau. You’ve got to convince him he has made a mistake in picking on me. Do you understand?’

  Kit was watching Iris anxiously. Iris continued to stare down at her hands. She didn’t say anything.

  ‘After you have talked to Travers,’ Calvin went on, ‘you’ll go to ’Frisco on Monday and you’ll take the money with you. Once it is out of Pittsville, your mother will be safe. If it is found here, she won’t be safe. Don’t imagine I’ll let them arrest me without dragging her into it. Once I have the money in a safe deposit in ’Frisco, your mother and I will leave here. You’ll be free to marry Travers. You can then forget about us, I expect you’ll be glad to.’

  Still Iris said nothing.

  ‘Well, come on,’ Calvin said, his voice suddenly impatient. ‘What are you going to do? You can’t just sit there like a dummy. Are you going to help your mother or aren’t you?’

  Iris looked up and stared at Kit, then she said quietly, ‘Yes.’ She got to her feet. ‘I’ll do what you want. When I go to ’Frisco, I’m not coming back; I hope I’ll never see either of you ever again.’

  She went out of the room. Calvin got quickly to his feet and followed her. She was putting on her coat. He gave her the carbon copy of the letter. She took it without looking at him, then turning away, she opened the front door and walked quickly towards the garage.

  Calvin watched her drive to the highway, then shrugging his heavy shoulders, he returned to the lounge. Kit had lit a cigarette. She stared at him as he came in.

  ‘Well, that’s that,’ he said. ‘She’ll do it. In less than a month you’ll have your share of the money. I told you it would work out, didn’t I?’

  ‘Get out of my sight!’ Kit said softly. ‘And keep away from me! I don’t want the money. You take it. I’m not touching it. I want you out of here. Do you understand? Pack up and get out! I won’t have you in this house. You’re evil. Get out!’

  ‘It’s not going to be that easy,’ Calvin said. ‘We have got to stay together. I’ve explained why and I’m not going over it again. For the next year or so, you and I are going to be Siamese twins. Don’t think I like it. I don’t, but there is no other way. And don’t talk about not taking your share. You’ll take it once you see it. Don’t kid me you won’t.’

  He went out of the room. Kit suddenly covered her face in her hands and began to cry.

  Travers had Sunday duty. He had just finished a sandwich lunch when he saw Iris drive up and park her car outside the office. He hastily tossed the paper bag into the trash basket and wiped the desk free of crumbs, then he got to his feet and went to the door just as Iris entered.

  ‘Hello, honey. I was getting worried about you,’ he said, kissing her. Immediately he was aware something was wrong. He drew back to look at her. She was pale, and there were dark smudges under her eyes. She looked steadily at him. ‘What’s up?’ he asked. ‘Come in and sit down.’

  Iris sat with her back to the light.

  ‘It’s nothing,’ she said. ‘I had a headache.’ She forced herself to smile. ‘I’m all right, Ken… we were wrong. It isn’t Calvin. I’m sure of that now.’

  Travers went around and sat behind his desk.

  ‘What’s new then?’ he asked sharply.

  ‘He went to Downside yesterday and left me the keys,’ Iris said, speaking rapidly and looking down at her hands. ‘I went through the whole bank. I even opened all the deed boxes. The money isn’t there nor the Remington. Look, I have a carbon copy of the letter you wanted.’

  With hands that shook a little, she opened her bag and gave him the carbon.

  She watched him study it, then he grimaced.

  ‘The Remington we’re after didn’t write this,’ he said and laid the carbon down. Something was wrong, he told himself. Why did she look so ill? Why, when she told him she had found nothing in the bank, had she avoided looking at him? ‘Well, that seems to be that,’ he said. ‘I was practically certain Calvin was our man. He still could be. He might have hidden the money somewhere else. I’m not giving him up as a suspect. We haven’t anyone else.’

  ‘You’ve got to give him up as a suspect!’ Iris said. There was a note of hysteria in her voice. ‘My mother is marrying him! You can’t hound him now!’

  ‘But look, honey,’ Travers said uneasily, ‘the fact you didn’t find the money and this carbon doesn’t match the Remington doesn’t prove Calvin didn’t do the job. I still think he did. I think he’s smart enough to fool us, and I’m not staying fooled.’

  Iris got to her feet.

  ‘I can’t stop you,’ she said, ‘but I don’t have to be on your side any longer.’ She pulled off her engagement ring and placed it on the desk. ‘I’m going away, Ken. You must please yourself what you do. I don’t want to marry you. I’ve thought about it. I don’t want to marry someone working for the police.’

  Travers stared at the ring as if he couldn’t believe his eyes. Then as Iris made for the door he jumped to his feet and came quickly around his desk.

  ‘Iris! Wait! You can’t do this! Let’s talk about it. You just can’t break our engagement like this.’

  She paused.

  ‘I’m sorry, Ken, but I have to go away. I don’t know where I’m going yet. Tomorrow I’m going to ’Frisco for the bank. When I get there, I’ll decide what I’m going to do. I have to get away from here. I’ve decided I’m too young to get married. I want to look around. I’m sorry.’

  Travers went red and then white.

  ‘So that’s it? It’s suddenly occurred to you, I’m not good enough. So you want to look around. Well, for Pete’s sake! Have you gone crazy or something?’

  ‘I just want to look around,’ Iris said. ‘I’m sorry, Ken. I think it would be better if you forget about me. I hope you will,’ and she went out and over to her car.

  Travers made a move to go after her, then stopped. He went around the desk and sat down. He stared for some minutes at the modest emerald and diamond ring, then he reached out, picked it up and put it in his pocket.

  He sat brooding for some minutes, then getting to his feet, he locked up the office, got in the sheriff’s car and drove fast to the rooming-house.

  He rang the bell and waited. There was a long pause, then the door opened and Calvin looked inquiringly at him.

>   ‘Hello,’ Calvin said. ‘Are you looking for Iris? She’s out.’

  ‘I wanted to see Mrs. Loring,’ Travers said, staring at the big man.

  ‘I’m sorry: Kit’s resting.’

  ‘I still want to see her,’ Travers said in his cop voice. ‘Will you tell her I’m here?’

  Calvin’s smile became a trifle forced.

  ‘Is this official business?’ he asked. ‘I don’t want to disturb her.’

  ‘Call it that if you like,’ Travers returned. ‘I want to see her.’

  Calvin stood aside.

  ‘Come in. I’ll tell her.’

  Travers walked past Calvin into the lounge. He watched Calvin go upstairs. Travers moved around the room impatiently. There was a long delay, then Calvin came down the stairs.

  ‘She’s coming. She’s powdering her nose.’ He moved into the lounge and made to sit down.

  ‘This is a personal thing,’ Travers said curtly. ‘I want to see Mrs. Loring alone.’

  Calvin raised his eyebrows.

  ‘Of course. I wasn’t thinking.’ He moved to the door. ‘Kit isn’t in very good form. Be careful how you handle her.’ Nodding, he went out of the room.

  Travers continued to wait. After some minutes, he heard slow hesitant steps coming down the stairs, then Kit appeared in the doorway. He could see at once that she had been drinking. She had also been crying. Her face was white and puffy. Her eyes glittered. She faced him.

  ‘Well? What is it?’ she demanded, her voice loud and harsh.

  ‘It’s about Iris,’ Travers said. ‘Something’s upset her pretty badly. Can you tell me what it is?’

  ‘If I knew, I wouldn’t tell you,’ Kit said, peering at him as if she had trouble in focusing. ‘I don’t want you here. If you want to know what’s upset her… ask her.’

  ‘Did you know she is going away?’ Travers asked patiently. ‘She’s broken off our engagement. I want to know why. I think you can tell me.’

  Kit’s lips twisted into a sneer.

  ‘Why shouldn’t she go away? What’s her future if she stays in this one-horse hole? I’m glad she’s going. I’m glad she has had the sense to break off with you. She’s young enough and pretty enough to hook a rich husband: not a small-time cop like you!’

  ‘Okay,’ Travers said evenly. He had to make an effort to control his temper. ‘You must have talked her into this. Well, I now know where I stand. For her sake, I hope she does hook a rich husband if that’s what she wants.’

  Kit stared at him, her brown eyes hating him, then she turned and moved unsteadily out of the room. Just as she reached the doorway, she lurched and had to steady herself by grabbing hold of the door.

  Travers watched her. She moved on into the hall and as she started up the stairs, she again lurched. Travers felt a sudden cold rush of blood up his spine. Into his mind flashed a picture of Alice Craig, wearing that awful coat and the floppy hat concealing her face as she had come out of the bank on the night of the robbery. She too had torched in exactly the same way as this woman had lurched. Then he had thought she had been ill, but now in a sudden intuitive flash he realised that he hadn’t been watching Alice Craig. The woman he thought was Alice, had been Kit, wearing Alice’s clothes. It had been Kit who had come out of the bank that night and that meant it was Kit who had helped Calvin steal the payroll! It had been Kit who had helped Calvin murder Alice!

  Travers felt suddenly sick. Kit! Iris’s mother!

  Watching him through the crack in the door, Calvin saw by Travers’s expression, he had guessed at the truth. He drew back. A few moments later, Travers came out and walked to the front door. Calvin watched him go.

  His sweat-moist hand rested on the butt of the gun in his hip pocket. He wondered what Travers would do.

  2

  It was after eight-thirty when Travers who had been sitting in his car at the bottom of the road for the past half hour, saw Iris coming towards him in Kit’s car.

  He jumped out and stood in the middle of the road, waving. Iris pulled up. Travers came up to her.

  ‘We’ve got to talk,’ he said. ‘I’ll leave my car here. Let’s go up to Perch Lane. We can talk there.’

  ‘I don’t think I want to talk to you,’ Iris said, not looking at him. ‘I’m sorry, Ken. Talking will get us nowhere now.’

  ‘Oh yes, it will,’ Travers said and walking around to the offside door, he got in beside her. ‘Let’s go.’

  Iris hesitated, then made a U-turn and drove back to the highway. Neither of them said anything until they had reached the tap of Perch Lane, a favourite meeting-place of theirs. It was dark now. The lights of Pittsville twinkled at them from a distance as they sat side by side.

  Travers said abruptly, ‘I know now why you are leaving. I know why you’ve broken the engagement. I want you to know I’d have done exactly the same thing if I had been in your place.’

  Iris stiffened with shook. She looked quickly at him: fear in her eyes, then she looked away.

  ‘I know your mother is involved in the robbery,’ Travers said quietly.

  Iris shuddered. Suddenly, she began to cry. Travers put his arm around her. He held her to him as she sobbed, her body trembling, her hands gripping his. It was some moments before she managed to control herself, then she moved away from him, dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief.

  ‘What are you going to do, Ken?’ she asked unsteadily. ‘I’m going out of my mind. It’s too horrible to think of. When that awful man told me… oh, Ken! Kit of all people!’

  ‘There is only one thing to do,’ Travers said ‘I’ve been thinking about this. We’ve got to consider ourselves first. You and I are going to leave town. We’re going to get married. Your mother won’t object… she can’t object now. I’m resigning from the police. There’s no other way out. Your mother and Calvin will have to work out their own destiny, but I’m not having anything to do with it.’

  Iris looked searchingly at him.

  ‘But what will you do? You can’t leave the police. It’s your job.’

  ‘I’ll find something else. I’m not worrying about that now. I can’t remain on the force knowing what I know. We’ve got to clear out or else we could be in serious trouble.’

  ‘He — he wants me to take the money to San Francisco tomorrow,’ Iris said. ‘He says if I don’t… Kit…’ She choked back a sob. ‘I said I’d do it.’

  ‘You’re not doing it. That’s what I mean when I said we’ve got to clear out tonight otherwise you could get involved. Once you are involved, you’ll be an accessory to murder. So don’t let’s argue about it. We’re leaving tonight.’

  ‘But where do we go?’ Iris asked. ‘I haven’t any money… We just can’t go.’

  ‘I have some money,’ Travers said. ‘It isn’t much but it’s enough to keep us going for three or four months. We’ll take the eleven fifteen train to ’Frisco. In the morning, we’ll get married, then I’ll start looking around for something to do.’

  Iris hesitated, then she nodded, gripping Travers’s hand.

  ‘All right. I’ll come with you. Whatever you say, I’m sure you’re right.’

  ‘Fine.’ Travers took the engagement ring from his pocket. He offered it to her. ‘Do you want your ring back, Mrs. Travers?’

  At half past nine, Sheriff Thomson was about to settle down to watch a Western on TV when the front door bell rang. He looked at his wife, grimaced, then hauled himself out of his armchair and went to the door.

  ‘Why, hello, Ken,’ he said when he saw who it was. ‘Don’t tell me we’ve got an emergency on?’

  ‘It’s all right, Sheriff,’ Travers said, following the sheriff into the small sitting-room. ‘It’s not that kind of an emergency.’ He put his deputy’s badge and his .45 revolver on the table. ‘I’m resigning from office as from this minute. I’m sorry to spring this on you, but there are special circumstances. Iris and I are leaving tonight for ’Frisco. We’re getting married tomorrow. I’m quitting because I don’t wan
t to be a police officer when I marry her.’

  The sheriff stared at Travers, then he walked heavy-footed to an armchair and sat down.

  ‘Well! Do you have to drop this kind of bombshell in an old man’s lap as late as this? What’s wrong with being a police officer? Why can’t you marry her and still remain a police officer?’

  ‘Special circumstances,’ Travers said woodenly.

  ‘They must be. Don’t you think I’m entitled to know what the circumstances are?’

  ‘Yes, I do, but I’m sorry, Sheriff… I can’t tell you.’

  The sheriff pulled at his moustache.

  ‘Look, son, you and I have worked together now for more than five years. I’ve known you since you were a kid. Let’s have the truth. What’s gone wrong?’

  ‘I can’t tell you,’ Travers said. ‘I’ve got to quit and that’s all there is to it.’

  ‘You’ll be sheriff next year. You can’t throw up your career this way, Ken. Have you thought of that?’

  ‘Of course I have,’ Travers said a little impatiently. ‘I know what I am doing. I’ve got to quit, and I’m quitting.’

  The sheriff shrugged.

  ‘Well, okay, I guess I can’t stop you.’ He waved to the badge and the gun. ‘They’re still yours. You can’t walk out of the force in five minutes. It’ll take a couple of weeks before you are officially free of us, but that doesn’t mean I’ll stop you quitting tonight if it’s that urgent. All the same, hang on to the gun and your badge until your papers come through.’

  ‘I don’t want them,’ Travers said. ‘As far as I’m concerned, I’m officially off the force as from now.’

  The sheriff got to his feet.

  ‘Sure you don’t want to tell me? You can trust me, Ken. I think you could do with some help.’

  Travers smiled tightly. He held out his hand.

  ‘Thanks, Sheriff, but there’s nothing I want to say.’

  The two men shook hands.

  ‘I guess this damn bank robber is going to get away with it,’ the sheriff said gloomily. ‘I was counting on you to get him. This job is way out of my class and out of Easton’s class too.’