"Then read on."
"_Magic Formula For Successful PRAYER_ . . . That it?"
"Yeah, that"s it. Read what it says underneath."
"_Here are some of the amazing things it tells you about: When to pray; Where to pray; How to pray; The Magic Formulas for Health and Success through prayer; for conquering fear through prayer; for obtaining work through prayer; for money through prayer; for influencing others through prayer; and_--"
"That"s enough." Grave Digger took a deep breath and said in a voice gone thick and cottony again, "Ready, if you don"t tell me what I want to know, you"d better get yourself one of those prayers. Because I"m going to take you over to 129th Street near the Harlem River. You know where that is? It"s a deserted jungle of warehouses and junk yards beneath the New York Central bridge."
"Yare, I know where it"s at."
"And I"m going to pistol whip you until your own wh.o.r.e won"t recognize you again. And if you try to run, I"m going to let you run fifty feet and then shoot you through the head for attempting to escape. You understand me?"
"Yare, I understand you."
"You believe me?"
Ready took a quick look at Grave Digger"s rage-swollen face and said quickly, "Yare, I believes you."
"My partner got suspended tonight for killing a criminal rat like you and I"d just as soon they suspended me too."
"You ain"t asted me yet what you want to know."
"Get into the car."
The car was parked at the curb. Ready got into Coffin Ed"s seat. Grave Digger went around and climbed beneath the wheel.
"This is as good a spot as any," he said. "Start talking."
""Bout what?"
"About the Big Greek. I want to know who killed him.
Ready jumped as though he"d been stung. "Digger, I swear "fore G.o.d --"
"Don"t call me Digger, you lousy pimp."
"Mista Jones, lissen --"
"I"m listening."
"Lots of folks mighta killed him if they"d knowed --" He broke off. The pockmarks in his skin began filling with sweat.
"Known what? I haven"t got all night."
Ready gulped and said, "He was a whipper."
"What?"
"He liked to whip "em."
"Wh.o.r.es?"
"Not "specially. If they was regular wh.o.r.es he wanted them to be big black mannish-looking b.i.t.c.hes like what might cut a mother-raper"s throat. But what he liked most was little colored school gals."
"That"s it? That"s why Reba barred him?"
"Yas suh. He proposition her once. She got so mad she drew her pistol on him."
"Did she shoot him?"
"Naw, suh, she just scared him."
"I mean tonight. Was she the one?"
Ready"s eyes started rolling in their sockets and the sweat began to trickle down his mean black face.
"You mean the one what killed him? Naw suh, she was home all evening."
"Where were you?"
"I was there, too."
"Do you live there?"
"Naw, suh, I just drops by for a visit now and then."
"Where did he find the girls?"
"You mean the school girls?"
"What other girls would I mean?"
"He picked "em up in his car. He had a little Mexican bull whip with nine tails he kept in his car. He whipped "em with that."
"Where did he take them?"
"He brung "em to Reba"s till she got suspicious "bout all the screaming and carrying on. She didn"t think nothing of it at first; these little chippies likes to make lots of noise for a white man. But they was making more noise than seemed natural and she went in and caught "im. That"s when he proposition her."
"How did he get "em to take it?"
"Get "em to take what?"
"The whipping."
"Oh, he paid "em a hundred bucks. They was glad to take it for that."
"You"re certain of that, that he paid them a hundred dollars?"
"Yas suh. Not only me but lots of chippies all over Harlem knew about him. A hundred bucks didn"t mean nothing to him. They boy friends knew too. Lots of times they boy friends made "em. There was chippies all over town on the lookout for him. "Course one time was enough for most of "em."
"He hurt them?"
"He got his money"s worth. Sometime he whale h.e.l.l out of "em. I s"pect he hurt more"n one of "em bad. "Member that kid they picked up in Broadhurst Park. It were all in the paper. She was in the hospital three, four days. She said she"d been attacked but the police thought she was beat up by a gang. I believes she was one of "em."
"What was her name?"
"I don"t recollect."
"Where"d he take them after Reba barred him from her place?"
"I don"t know."
"Do you know the names of any of them?"
"Naw suh, he brung "em and took "em away by hisself. I never even seen any of "em."
"You"re lying."
"Naw suh, I swear "fore G.o.d."
"How did you know they were school girls if you never saw any of them?"
"He tole me."
"What else he tell you?"
"Nuthin" else. He just talk to me "bout gals."
"How old is your girl?"
"My gal?"
"The one you have at Reba"s?"
"Oh, she twenty-five or more."
"One more lie and off we go."
"She sixteen, boss."
"She had him, too?"
"Yas suh. Once."
The sweat was streaming down Ready"s face.
"Once. Why only once?"
"She got scared."
"You tried to fix it up for another time?"
"Naw suh, boss, she didn"t need to. Hit cost her more"n it was worth."
"What were you doing with him in the Dew Drop Inn?"
"He was looking for a little gal he knew and he ast me to come "long, that"s all, boss."
"When was that?"
""Bout a month ago."
"You said you didn"t know where he took them after he was barred from Reba"s."
"I don"t, boss, I swear "fore--"
"Can that Uncle Tom c.r.a.p. Reba said she barred him three or four months ago."
"Yas suh, but I didn"t say I hadn"t seed him since."
"Did Reba know you were seeing him?"
"I only seed him that once, boss. I was in the AlabamaGeorgia bar and he just happen in."
Grave Digger nodded towards the three alien cars parked ahead, in front of the Knickerbocker.
"One of those cars his?"
"Them struggle buggies!" Scorn pushed the fear from Ready"s voice. "Naw suh, he had a dream boat, a big green Caddy Coupe de Ville."
"Who was the girl he and you were looking for?"
"I wasn"t looking for her; I just went "long with him to look for her."
"Who was she, I asked."
"I didn"t know her. Some little chippie what hung "round in that section."
"How did he come to know her?"
"He said he"d done whipped her girl friend once. That"s how come he knew her. Said Sissie"s boy friend brought her to "im."
"Sissie! You said you didn"t know the name of any of them."
"I"d forgotten her, boss. He didn"t bring her to Reba"s. I didn"t know nuthin" "bout her but just what he said."
"What did he say exactly?"