Windmills of the Gods

“Hi,” she mumbled, and slumped into a chair.

“Neusa, did you remember to talk to Angel?”

She looked at him vacantly. “Angel? Si. Kin I have a drink, huh?”

He ordered a double rum for her and a double Scotch for himself. He needed it desperately. “What did Angel say, Neusa?”

,Angel? Oh, he say yeah. Ess okay.”

Harry Lantz felt a surge of relief. “That’s wonderful!” He no longer cared about his messenger-boy mission. He had thought of a better idea.

Lantz prided himself on being a pro. He was too smart to walk into a deal like this without first checking it ou.t. Before leaving the States, he had cautiously asked around about Angel, and what had impressed him most was that the Israelis had put a price of a million dollars on his head. This drunken floozy was going to lead him to Angel. He was going to collect that one million dollars.

He watched her slop down her drink, spilling some of it on her already soiled blouse. “What else did Angel say?”

“Angel say he wanna know’ who your people are.”

Lantz gave her a winning smile. “You tell him That’s confidential, Neusa. I can’t give him that information.”

She shrugged. “Then Angel say to tell you to get lost.”

Harry Lantz’s mind started working at top speed. “Neusa, I’ll telephone the people I’m working for, and if they give me permission, I’ll give you a name. Okay?”

She nodded, indifferent.

“You tell Angel I’ll have an answer for him by tomorrow. Is there someplace I can reach you?”

guess so.”

He was making progress. “Where?”

“Here.”

He made the call collect from a telephone booth so it could not be traced. It had taken him one hour to get through.

“No,” the Controller said. “I told you, no r -mmes.

“Yes, sir. But there’s a problem. Neusa Mufiez, Angel’s mistress, says he’s willing to make a deal, but he won’t move without knowing who he’s dealing with.”

“What is this woman like?”

“She’s a fat, ugly moron, sir.”

“It’s much too dangerous for my name to be used.”

Harry Lantz could feel the deal slipping away from him. “Yes, sir,” he said earnestly. “The only thing is, sir, Angel’s reputation is based on his being able to keep his mouth shut. If he ever started talking, he wouldn’t last five minutes in his business.”

There was a long silence. “Very well. You may give Angel my name. But he is never to divulge it and never to contact me directly. He’ll work only through you.”

Harry Lantz could have danced. “Yes, sir. I’ll tell him. Thank you, sir.” He hung up, a big grin on his face. He was going to collect the fifty thousand. And then the milliondollar reward.

WHEN Harry Lantz met Neusa Muez late that evening, he immediately ordered a double rum for her and said happily, “Everything’s set. I got permission.”

She looked at him indifferently. “Yeah?”

He told her the name of his employer. It was a household word.

She shrugged. “Never hearda him.”

“Neusa, the people I work for want this done as quickly as possible. Marin Groza is hiding out in a villa in Neuilly, and-“

“Where?”

“It’s a suburb of Paris,” he said patiently. “Angel will know.”

“I need ‘nother drink.”

An hour later Neusa was still drinking, and this time Harry Lantz was encouraging her. When she’s drunk enough, he thought, she’s going to lead me straight to her boyfriend. The rest will be easy. “When is Angel coming back to town?” he asked.

She focused her watery eyes on him. “Nex’ week.”

Harry Lantz took her hand and stroked it. “Why don’t you and I go back to your place?” he asked softly.

“Okay.”

He was in.

NEUSA MUez lived in a shabby two-room apartment that was as messy and unkempt as its tenant. When they walked through the door, Neusa made straight for the little bar in the corner.

Lantz watched as she poured a drink and downed it. She’s the most ugly, repulsive pig I’ve ever met, he thought, but the million dollars is going to be beautiful.

Lantz walked over to her and put his arms around her huge, flabby waist. “You’re cute, do you know that?”

“Wha’?” Her eyes were glazed.

He was getting nowhere. He had to think of an approach that would get this amazon into bed. But he knew he had to make his move carefully. If he offended her, she might report him to Angel, and that would be the end of the deal.

As Lantz was desperately trying to think of a clever gambit Neusa mumbled, “Come on ‘n the bedroom.”

He grinned in relief. “That’s a great idea, baby.”

She stumbled as Lantz followed her into the small bedroom. In it was a large unmade bed and a bureau with a cracked mirror above it. It was the open closet that caught Harry Lantz’s attention. He glimpsed a row of men’s suits hanging on a rack.

He went into the bathroom to undress, and when he returned, Neusa was propped up in bed like a leviathan. He sat down beside her. She was drunker than he had thought. Th:It’s good, he said to himself. It will make things easier. “You’re a very pretty woman, honI like you a lot.” He began to caress her. “I’ll bet you live an exciting life being Angel’s girlfriend. That must be really interesting. Tell me, baby, What’s Angel like?”

There was a silence, and he wondered if Neusa had fallen asleep. “Don’t go to sleep, sweetheart. Not yet.” He felt her stir. “What kind of man is Angel? Is he handsome?”