Latest / Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas / Frank Race: The Adventure of the House Divided (EP0910)

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Frank Race: The Adventure of the House Divided (EP0910) · Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas

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Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
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is your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, email it
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to me Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at
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Radio Detectives, and become one of our friends on Facebook, Facebook dot com
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slash Radio Detectives. Before we do get started, I want to let you
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know that I have a new novella collection out pulled Flan Other Day. It
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continues the adventures began in Tales of the dymn nine and it's available as a
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paperback for nine ninety nine and also for the kindle title is Flan other Day?
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All right, Well, now it's time for today's Frank Race story.
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This one's called The Adventure of the House Divided. The Adventures of Frank Race,
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starring Paul Dubou with Tony Barrett as Mark Donovan. The war changed many
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things, the face of the earth and the people on it. Before the
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war, Frank Race worked as an attorney, but he traded his law books
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for the Cloak and Dagger of the Oss and when it was over, his
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former life was over. Two adventure had become his business. The Adventures of
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Frank Race, and now we joined Frank Race for the adventure of the House
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Divided, San Francisco in September with the Marina Mellow, under blue skies and
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a warm sun. I happened to be on Chestnut Street when I was a
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sail by the one aroma that can take my mind off anything else in the
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world, that of hot, fresh baked bread. It took only a moment
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to spot the source, and I made a fast pivot toward the door of
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an old fashioned bakery. There were several customers the contern. I was forced
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to wait, and a hand touched my arm. See you're a Frank Racing
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Why, yes, I know you don't I'm Tom crawl Krowel, of course,
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I remember you used to work for Manhattan Insurance Company. It was who
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was you on the Lambert Jes You saved my life with some pretty fast shooting.
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What made you leave the insurance company? And I'm not as young as
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I used to be raced, I could turn to traveling, so I turned
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private eye for whoever wants to her me. I'm on a job right now
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and I think I'm in a jam jam. Yeah, it's this package.
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I think I'm being followed, because I'm carrying it. That's why I tucked
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in here. So they go out the back way into the alley. Yeah,
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he picked a bed one no back way, no alley, which means
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that if they've spotted me, I'm stucked. But good. Four to one
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kind of referts. Call it for the two crawl. And I was hoping
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you'd see that. There's one of them now on the sidewalk, a sward
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heavy set figure and a well fitting donegal tweed. The opaque stare of a
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bobcat on the prowl. A man on the sidewalk eidus for a second or
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so, then slipping a hand inside with the pel of his jacket, he
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started for the bakery door. A second bird of prey followed him as they
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came inside. I moved away from krawl and stepped out of the counter.
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What can I do for you, sir? I'll just take a couple of
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these chocolate eclay as you have here. How much that will be thirty cents?
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Would you like a bag for the No thanks, I'll just keep them
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in my hands. Careful one of these crowl No thanks? Better have one
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crowd you take the load of go and we'll take that package of carrying.
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Yes, what do you want in here? Shut up? Said the package
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crowd. I don't get any ideas are going for the heater. I've got
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mine my hand already. We're all very busy with our hands, all right.
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We you boys have yours loaded with guns, minor loaded with chocolate eclairs.
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I think I'll give you one. Why, he jerk taught me murder
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his hot chocolate eight clare in his eyes, I stepped in the group for
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me getting in the way of his companion. I'm all on an individual with
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a face that could have doubled for the suet pudding for this one had ideas,
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so as he started to draw, I started a left hook. The
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bob Cat fush enough to floor both of them. Right trim on, racists,
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sit out here. The shots that come from the street for black sedan
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parked at the curb. As Karl slumped against me, I jerked the pistol
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from his holster slicker two bullets at the sedan and swung around just in time
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to greet the Bobcat's palace. He scrambled off the floor. He doubled up
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and went down again, clutching a broken shoulder. He sat staring at me
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with an expression of hurt wonderment, and the sound effects in the distance.
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There was evidence in the local constabulary might be joining in, so the Black
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Sedan was writing it off as a lost cause. The inside of the bakery
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presented quite a tableau. The woman who waited on trade stood staring across the
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counter as though she'd just seen a movie star scattered about on the floor,
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with the remains of my two chocolate eclares, plus the pair of tough boys
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also somewhat scattered about. It was a victory for the righteous, but at
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the moment anyone could have had my share of it, Knowing as I did
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that Tom Crowell was dead well well well sort of wander and Quarry times h
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Hello Mark, what goes with a package? Trouble Mark all the way,
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I'm hat an old friend this afternoon. Tom Krawell worked with us on the
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Lambart case. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I remember him. Planted a
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couple of slugs and Pinky Wallace. Just about the time Pink was lining up
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to do likewise to you, Carl was on he isn't all right any longer,
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must kill this afternoon just because he happened to be carrying that package.
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Oh you kid, I wish I were. What's in a package? Haven't
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the slightest idea? Look, he's got a name on her, Victoria Manor
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on twenty seven winder Mall Lane, and it sounds like a fancy nairboy.
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How'd you get hold it? Is? I was with Krawl when he died.
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He was shot by four thugs. The only thing I was able to
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do for him was to keep him from falling too heavily. What about cops?
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How'd you get away with a package? I decided I wanted to prove
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of delivering Krawl's package for him, so I didn't wait around. So what
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are you doing with the thirty? It's the pistol krowd carried rather good weapon.
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But I thought i'd pick up this logo of mine. The way this
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business shapes up, I may need it. Windomu Lane a short thoroughfare wearing
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a set of iron gates like a lawn. Yet number one twenty seven looked
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perfectly at home in such a setting, the thick set mansion with awesome lawns.
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For the butler answered my push at the bell, I mentioned the name
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Victoria Mayner and I said I had a package. I was asked to wait
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in a small oak paneled study. Gosh, I'm glad to go out here.
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I was wait a minute, you're not no. My name is Race.
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You asked for Victoria Maynard. You said you had a package. I
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do have a package. I brought it here because Karl couldn't. He was
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shot and killed this afternoon. You don't mean that who killed him? Gunman?
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You're a friend of his. You were with him when he died.
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Yes to both questions, and now you might tell me something. What's in
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this package? Would you wait here a few minutes, just long enough for
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me to change. I'd like you to take me out somewhere so we can
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talk. I said yes, i'd wait. When she left the room,
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I spent the time looking at some choice first editions. Once the door was
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opened and an old woman looked in at me, a very old woman with
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a fragile figure and the glare of a drill sergeant. She gave a little
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snort and went away. Then in another twenty minutes the girl came back.
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Have you had lunch? As a matter of fact, No, I haven't
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either. There's a place not far familiar we'll take my car. I thought
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we'd better come here because well, they might be at the house hold in
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a second, will you, baby? I have the slightest idea what you're
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talking about, and before you try to explain it, are you Victoria Maynard?
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Yes, my friends call me thinking And who might be at the house
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If it's that little old lady, I can understand your trepidation. She looked
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at me as though I'd been caught with the family plate. That's my great
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aunt Ellen. She wouldn't hurt anyone race. You were Krawl's friend. Does
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that mean you're also a private detective. I'm an investigator, but I usually
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work for insurance companies. Would you work for me? I need someone badly.
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I'm being blackmailed. What did Krawell have to do with it? That
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package you brought to me? It contains negotiable securities? Krawl was acting?
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Is my go between? Paying off on blackmail? As fool's game. I
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can't help this race. It's something beyond my control. If I'm going to
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represent you, I'll have to know the story and all of it, all
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right, I suppose that's sensible, as you might have surmised. I'm very
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wealthy. I've had everything, including Wellesley and a tremendous coming out party.
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But I'm an adopted chat. Nothing wrong with that. There is in my
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case, there's a lot wrong with it. I've just learned that my real
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father is an ex convict. I suppose you learned it the hard way from
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blackmailers. That's right, And they have all the facts. Believe me,
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they have all the facts. Anything you pay such people is a complete waste
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of money, just the same they're going to be paid. I don't care
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what it costs. You are making a rash statement that could cost you everything
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you have. Even that, if they were to spread that information about me,
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well I just couldn't take it. That's all the people I know,
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the family. It even happens that I'm engaged raised to my uncle's son,
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my foster cousin. Can you imagine what this would mean to him? It
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wouldn't have to mean anything if he would if he were the right kind of
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guy. Well, it happens that he is the right kind of guy.
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But I still don't want him to know. And if you can't understand that,
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I can understand it. I'm sorry. Oh what about your father,
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your foster father. He's dead. Now I've given you the details, and
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i'd like you to contact a man called se Jets, the payoff boy.
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Yes, I still want to know why was Kruwell killed? I don't know
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where do I find this silly I have his phone number at the house.
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I'll give it to you when we get back. Ceili may call here before
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you contact and what shall I say? Can call me? I'm at the
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Saint Francis. Come on, I'll give you that number. I still think
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you're foolish to let go of any money because of this affair. I've already
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made one pain at Race. I can't stop now here. We'll take this
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side to her. She led me to the oak panel den. Here,
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in front of the fireplace, erect in a leather chair sat the little old
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lady who had looked in on me before the sight of her seemed to startled
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Vicky Mayner. At Ellen, were you waiting for someone? At Ellen?
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Aren't you well? Race? She seems look? The girl was staring in
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horror, her gaze held by a dark stain on the flagstone hearth, a
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fluid sat andy stained the size of a steak plate. And then, even
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as we watched the old lady's body shifted in the chair, swayed sideways,
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and we'll return of the Adventures of Frank Race. And just about one minute,
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and now back to the Adventures of Frank Race. The old lady had
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been stabbed in the back, and in my book, it would have to
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go down as murder. Ricky made his face, already drained of colors,
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stiffens into stock lines as I mentioned this, What shall I do? Call
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the police? There's no use calling doctor, no use at all. And
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when the police get here, I wouldn't try to hold out on them.
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If I were you, I'd tell them about this blackmail setup. No,
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this is murder, baby. You don't fool with it, not if you're
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smart, and holding out on the police is never I didn't kill an Allen
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Race. You know that you and I left this room together. That's right.
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So when I tell this to the police, they're going to want to
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know who I am and why I'm here. Tell them the truth. You're
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an investigator working for me, investigating a lost insurance policy left by my father.
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That's a truth race about the insurance policy. My family knows about it.
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I'll do my best for your baby, But I can't tell direct lies
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wouldn't be healthy for either of us. All Right, Grace, I know
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you'll do your best. She left me, and when a phone I'd look
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around. Well, whatever the weapon had been, it didn't seem to be
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in the room presently. The police arrived, headed by a Lieutenant Grimsby,
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accompanied by several reporters wearing the expressions of beagles on ascent. In the midst
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of the confusion, there appeared a man who would have made the perfect model
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for your average All American football player. When he took Vickie in his arms,
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I pegged him for Larry Mayner, her foster cousin and fiance. Where
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do your standing this chicken? I don't know Marry yet. I can't even
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think you didn't see it happen. I was out, and that seems to
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be the only thing in my faith. And if it weren't for Race,
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I don't know what I would have done. Who's been in the house today?
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No one else but Mason with his definescy Well, he just told the
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police he didn't see or hear a thing. Has Dad been here yet?
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Not yet? I drew away from them and went to the door. But
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before I could leave. Vicky ran up to me. Race. You were
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wonderful with the police. You gave me every break in the world. I'm
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scared. There's there's something about this. There always is about murder. Baby.
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Just hang on, let's see what turns up. If see cause,
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I'll tell him to contact you. Is that all right? It's all right
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on one condition. I'll go back to the hotel and wait for Celie's call.
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You let me handle him my way, all right, Race, you
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do it your way, Oh brother, When you get lost, you get
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lost. I was figuring we might get the train out of here today.
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Sorry, Marcus, but we're stuck, maybe for several days. Hello,
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Frank Race there, yeah, yeah, se hang on for you. This
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guy don't sound like no pacifist. Hello. That's right, I'm seeing I
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hear you want to talk to me. I do you care to come out
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here? Are you kidding? If I do any talk and I'll pick the
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spot and the time. Whatever you say. You got a car, I'm
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a stranger in town. How about a cat? Oh cat brand a car?
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I charge it to the team, all right, So I ran a
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car. Make it a coup. You know what go off street is.
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I'll find it and go off between Francisco and Bay. They are twelve thirty
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tonight. Lift up the Lydia trunks. So won't know you now something h
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That guy didn't sound like no law of Biden sits blackmailer. M And I
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suppose you're going to sashi out that i'd meeting all by yourself, not this
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one, Marcus. I'm taking you along if I have to stuff you in
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that trunk golf street between Francisco and Bay, a short block of apartment houses.
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They parked the rented coop and I got out to raise the trunk lid,
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and he signing up. Guys. Yet there's a car coming up.
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Now keep out a side right, Race, I'm race for me. There
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were two of them in a Bure convertible, each with a face that matched
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the shadows around him. I moved over to the car. Get in.
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I'd I have to do my talking right here. What do you want a
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written invitation? Get in, Mark, explain the facts of life to these
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gentlemen. I'm over here. Boys on the driver's side. I walked around
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while he was both looking at race. Both of us came around me and
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it's thirty eight. Maybe you recognize at thirty eighth Seilly it belonged to Tom
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Crawl. I don't get this. What's it all about? Keep your hands
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quiet and get out on my side, both of you. I'll open the
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door. Sure, get out like this. He punched up into the curve,
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but I had my feet ready as he leaped, and he went back
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against the car. I was up as he came in again, and I
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left was a loving right now. Yes, Paul, nice work if you
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can get it. Ain't all the way a conscious race, and I want
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him unconscious. How about your man? You kidding? Can you imagine he
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tried choking me? No, there is a boy. What's going to need
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somebody and friend of wach help me get this one on his feet, Get
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on my own, silly. It's pretty late and there isn't a person at
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sight, which means there's no one to stop me from lacquering you to a
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friendle if you don't talk, start la, I ain't saying a wood.
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Let me start on him right, No, no, no, I guess
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I just can't work that way. Beat it, silly, Come on,
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Mark, let's get out of here. I still think we should have waxed
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that crumb I didn't like the look he give us when we pulled out.
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Mark. This looks like a dead end. It is unless we want to
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end up in a drink. I'm trying to row. Yeah, hey,
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rig up ahead. He's swinging around a plackets. It's the beetle. It
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must be silly. You got a tommy gun. Race. I'll try jump
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on a sidewalk. Oh maybe when I was close, but I didn't think
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we would make it. I think we shook a good Let's take a lesson
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from this little escalvator. I'll never go easy on you guys like this ceiling
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wait to ena back to the hotel, I guess. As we entered the
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lobby of the Saint Francis, I found myself being paged. I followed the
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bellhop to the bar to wear A well dressed man of about fifty five sept
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an old fashion. Here. She don't race. I'm Senderson made uncle and
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bergen in drink for the gentleman. It'll be race. I'll follow your example,
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and I may say that this is somewhat of a surprise, shouldn't be
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mayor claim seems to be in somewhat of a situation, And from what I
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hear you are a good person to turn to under such circumstances. Mind telling
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me where you heard that. They get around. I'd like you to work
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for me on this affair. Rays, I'm already working for your niece.
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It's all in the family. I'm afraid these things don't always work out that
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way. I am very fond of Vicky Rays. Of course, your father
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and I am very close brothers. A lot in common, even hand duplicate
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departments when we were youngsters. I'd like to take over. Now, who
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vicame? I want to help her all I can. Oh, what makes
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you think she needs help? Oh, Vicky likes to have a good time,
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and she's been short of ready cash. Let me, I've had the
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feelings she might have run into some sort of trouble. Why don't she hire
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you? I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that It would be sensible
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to tell me yes, for Vicky's sake. See, I'm not worried so
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much about the murder. The police now have reason to believe it was done
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by a housebreaker. They didn't believe that while I was there. They are
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flexible people. Ways they know and the change their minds. No. Getting
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back to Vickie. Sorry, mister Manner, you're pushing an unsuccessful sale.
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I never worked for two principles. At the same time, it looks like
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we ain't going to get much sleep tonight must be after door o'clock. The
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next driveway, stop the car. What do you know? So this is
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one twenty seven window of light. We got enough ground for a nine hole
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golf course. That driveway must be a mile long. All right, what
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are we doing now? We walked that mile of driveway down to the house.
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We're not sure this is quite a great but we dropped twenty feet since
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we left the street. Here it's this store. This store is locked.
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What are we doing now? We get in somehow with as little fuss as
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possible. Oh, we will just try this window. See what I'm meaning.
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Don't seem like anybody ais No, doesn't seem to be any reaction.
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Look is this the room where they all lady was knocked off? This is
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it? Throw your flash on that fireplace? Harth? What am I looking
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for? Oh? I get it? A stain y? Oh, that
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is a stain. They must have leaven. It's a matter, don't I
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allid something? Still? Hear it? Nay? Some dreaming things. Come
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on, we're going upstairs. Oh you know, strom's kind of like the
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one we just left. That it's an exact duplicate, which proves something I've
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been suspecting for the last hour or so, that I've been played for a
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patsy. I don't care. This room wasn't empty when I saw at last
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and the furniture, and it was exactly like that in the room below.
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Oh that's fine. So what gos so? I operated under an adusion of
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having been in only one room, while actually i'd been in two. When
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I first came into this house, I came through the front door from the
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street level, and I was led into this room. I left it with
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Vicky Mayner. We stayed away about an hour. When we came back,
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we found the old lady dead, apparently murdered, in the same room we'd
24:30
left. Oh, and that's what I told the police, giving Vicky Mayner
24:33
an excellent alibi. What I'd overlooked was the fact that we'd come back into
24:37
the hospital lower level in the surroundings that looked the same but actually belonged to
24:41
a different room. That's why this room is empty. She's been trying to
24:45
did you say something to Mark, what happened to light? You'll have to
24:48
depend on the moonlight. Race. Your friend is on the floor unconscious.
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Thank you? What have you done to him? Why did you have to
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come in here? Race? Why couldn't you just let things go as they
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were? I guess I'm the curious type. What's that you're have in your
25:03
hand? A pistol? I thought you were working for me, Rays,
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I've been working by Tom Krawell all the way. He left a wife and
25:10
a teenage kid. Since you caused his death, it's my belief that they
25:14
should collect damages from you or from your estate, because you may not be
25:18
around very long. Baby. You said yourself that Karl was killed by gunman?
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Gunman? Who are working for you? You were hijacking those securities because
25:26
you needed money. They really belonged to your great aunt Victoria E Maynor,
25:30
with the E standing for Ellen. I caught that phase of it in the
25:33
papers tonight, baby, and you had a feeling that I might do just
25:37
that, which was why you had Celley try to eliminate me. You're quite
25:41
an actress, Vickie. That blackmail story was a peach You've got to die,
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And I might as work comp that gun will Sorry, baby, yea
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help me? You know that wouldn't be hard to take. That's the trouble
26:11
with this whole case. Say you're working for me be a lot simpler if
26:19
I could just forget Tom Crowell. But you see, Baby, I never
26:26
worked for two principles at the same time. The Adventures of Frank Race,
26:52
starring Paul Dubov with Tony Barrot as Mark Donovan, comes to you from Hollywood.
26:57
Others heard in tonight's cast were Michael Lan Barrett, Chris Kraft, Tom
27:03
Holland, William Johnstone, and Gunner Peterson. This series is written and directed
27:07
by Joel Murcott and Buckley Anchel. The music is composed and played by Ivan
27:11
Ditmares. Be sure to be with us again this time next week for another
27:15
dramatic chapter in the Adventures of Frank Race. Mark Gilmore speaking. This is
27:22
a Brucel's production. Welcome back. Well. I knew one thing for sure
28:02
that Mark Donovan would not get to save the day in this one, so
28:07
Frank Race had to go ahead and save himself with some quick most And I
28:14
also appreciated that this episode wasn't handled by a kind of pat you said something
28:22
that gave you a way type ending the identical rooms was kind of a neat
28:30
was kind of a neat trick. So all right, well, that will
28:34
actually do it for today. Be sure. I encourage you to rate our
28:40
show on iTunes, follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives and fill out our
28:45
listener survey survey dot Great Detectives dot net. Join us tomorrow for light George
28:51
Do It, and then next Tuesday listen in for another episode of Frank Race.
28:55
In the meantime, send your comments to Box thirteen, A Great Detectives
28:59
dot net, but from Boise, Idaho. This is your host, Adam
29:03
graham Son and off