Heck jumped, launching himself at Little Hymie. The gun went off,
furrowing Heck's cheek. The slug plowed harmlessly into the ceiling.
Heck and Little Hymie scrambled over and over on the floor. Heck got
the gun from Little Hymie, then Little Hymie hit him and the gun went
clattering across the floor.
Patty, Willy, Johnny The Cat and the other big man all lunged for it.
Little Hymie hit Heck again, and Heck counter punched. Little Hymie
bleated. Heck hit him again. Little Hymie subsided.
Heck looked up in triumph. His eyes went wide.
The other big man, Hymie's companion, had the gun. He was far bigger
and far more capable than Hymie. It still looked more like curtains. It
looked more like curtains than ever before. Hymie stood up groggily.
"Over there with the rest of them," ordered Little Hymie.
The man with the gun waved it. Heck began to move.
"It's Muscles Freddy," Johnny The Cat said in awe.
* * * * *
"They sent Muscles Freddy here to do the job on you, Boss. I always
knew you were big time."
Muscles Freddy waved the gun again. "Who gets it first?" he asked.
Little Hymie glanced up. Little Hymie's left eye was swelling rapidly.
He shook a fist at Heck. "Give it to the little guy," he said. "The
wise guy."
Heck gulped. He watched the big hand begin to squeeze, drawing the
trigger back. The muzzle of the automatic pointed at his belly and
seemed big enough to swallow him.
He teleported.
Not far--just across the room. Right behind Muscles Freddy.
"Hey, where'd he go!" Freddy cried.
"Behind you!" warned Hymie.
Freddy whirled.
Heck teleported again.
"Hey!" hollered Freddy. "He goes on and off like a neon sign."
Heck materialized alongside him, grappling for the gun. But Freddy drew
it back and fired. Heck had beaten him to it by a split second. Heck
had teleported.
"Damn neon sign!" repeated Freddy.
Heck re-materialized. Freddy gaped. Heck flashed off. Then on. On
and off. Off and on. Every time he flashed on again he struck at the
bewildered Muscles Freddy's gun-hand. Finally, as was inevitable,
Freddy dropped the gun. Heck and Little Hymie dove for it, their heads
striking together. Little Hymie drew back and slammed the edge of his
palm across Heck's Adam's apple. Heck gagged, but held the gun in his
hand and climbed to his feet. He hit Hymie in the jaw with the barrel
of the gun on the way up, and Hymie fell down. Muscles Freddy stood
there, looking at the gun. He was completely stunned.
"This is the first time in my life I ever called the police," said
Scarface Willy, and went to the phone. He got halfway through dialing,
and stopped. "I can't," he said.
"Why, Boss?" asked Johnny The Cat.
"The hideout."
"But if Muscles Freddy and Hymie know," Heck pointed out, "you'll have
to change it anyway."
"Hadn't thunk of that," said Willy, and dialed again. While they
waited for the police he told Heck: "I owe you a favor, see? On account
of you saved my life. So, I tell you what. I'm letting you and the
fiancée go. And I won't horn in on your business."
"Oh, Heck, you're wonderful!" cried Patty.
But Heck looked at Scarface Willy and shook his head; and while Patty
looked shocked, he said: "No, pal. That won't do at all. You never were
man enough to horn in on my business, you understand?"
Scarface Willy's face went mean and for a moment Heck thought the
racketeer was going to try to take the gun from him. Heck spoke slowly
and carefully, all the while watching Hymie and Freddy with the gun.
The police came and took them away. Heck went on talking. He was going
to be a salesman in this wild adventure after all. He had to sell
Scarface Willy the biggest idea of all. He made his plea eloquently,
richly, cleverly, like those very best of salesmen who can speak far
better than any lawyer who ever pleaded a case. When he finished,
Scarface Willy was almost in tears.
"All right," Willy said at last. "You saved my life after I kidnapped
your girl. I know I'm a louse. I know it. I owe you a favor, pal.
You're right. You name it."
"I want you to de-burgle," Heck said in triumph.
"Do which?"
"De-burgle. First our warehouse. Return everything we have to its
original owner. You have the outfit that can do it, if we give you
temporary use of teleportation. Then all our customers. You'll have to
burgle the goods from them and de-burgle them to their original owners.
Then you'll have to put up money to cover payment of our staff. We're
liquidating. We'll pay our profits back to our customers, of course."
"How much will it cost me?" Willy wanted to know.
"Several score thousand dollars, I'm afraid."
* * * * *
Willy's face went white, but Heck had done too good a selling job.
Patty beamed at him. He beamed at Patty. It would all be done, he knew.
There remained one detail. No, two. Laara. And the little fellow with
the slightly over-sized head. Heck didn't think he'd have any trouble,
though. He was reasserting himself as a salesman. He felt the happiness
welling within him. Laara and the little guy would go home, where they
belonged. That would be a cinch. He knew it would be. His troubles were
over.
"You'll begin at once?" he asked Scarface Willy.
"Yes," Willy said. There were still tears in his eyes. "It's the least
I can do."
Heck took Patty's hand.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"To get the details straightened out. To get married. To go on a
honeymoon. To see Mr. Weatherby about getting my old job back--with a
considerable raise in salary."
Patty's eyes turned sultry. "Go back to _get married_, darling, and
kind of fill in."
"Well, we get married and go on a real honeymoon--"