Chapter 5: Taking care of business

The name written on the paper was 'Nyx Hecate'. Now there's a name for the ages. I dialed the number and after three rings a rough male voice answered, "Yeah?"

"Nyx Hecate please." I responded.

"Who's this?" The voice asked.

"I'm calling for Mrs. Mary Eldon, my name is Jimmy." I told the voice.

"Hang on," The voice said sounding bored, and then in the background I heard the voice say, "Hey boss. It's some guy named Jimmy, said he's calling for that dame Mary Eldon."

Then a new voice spoke into the phone. This voice sounded much softer than the previous voice had when it said, "Jimmy? Not sure if I know you or not but I do know Mary Eldon. What can I do for you Jimmy?"

"I'd like to meet with you and clear up Mrs. Eldon's account." I told him.

"No shit. She come into some money or something?" He asked sounding surprised.

"Or something," I answered and then I asked. "What's the grand total Mr. Hecate?"

"You gonna pay the whole thing in cash Jimmy?" He asked.

"That's the plan." I responded.

"No shit." He sounded surprised again. "Hang on."

Several minutes passed and I assumed he was wading through piles of paper to tally Mary's account then, "Yeah, here it is, twenty two grand. Tell you what Jimmy if you're really serious about this being a cash transaction, make it an even twenty grand, I'll give ya a two grand discount for cash."

"Thank you," I responded then I added, "I expect that you'll have all of Mrs. Eldon's markers, or I.O.U.'s, or any other form of records you have on her that I can take with me."

He laughed, "What do you think this is Jimmy the 1940's where you'll find me in some smoke-filled den with the customary bookies' paraphernalia of betting slips and paper tally sheets compiling mounds of paper to keep track of my business flow? This is the twentieth century Jimmy. I make clients that can't pay right away write me out checks Jimmy. Just like the supermarkets."

I didn't have the heart to tell him that 1940 was also in the twentieth century, "You'll have all of Mrs. Eldon's checks with you then?"

"You bet." He laughed "That's an inside joke Jimmy. Get it? You bet."

"Yeah, funny," I commented and then I added, "Where and when should we meet?"

"You got the dough?" He asked.

"Yep," I responded. We always keep some cash at home in the floor safe and I had forty thousand dollars in a brief case in the trunk of my car which I had brought up with me.

"You know where the Stillwell Hotel on south grand is?" He asked.

"I can find it." I told him.

"I'll be waiting in Hank's Bar. That's the hotel bar. I'll be the guy sitting with the big ape with two .45 automatics under his suit jacket. Can you make it here in an hour?"

"Give me two." I asked.

"Six o'clock it is," he responded.

"See you then." I said and then I hung up.

I went back into the kitchen and told Clarity and Mary about my phone conversation with Nyx Hecate.

"I guess I should have told you about the checks," Mary told me then she said, "The Stillwell Hotel is where he operates out of. He has fax machines and telephone-forwarding systems and other equipment in air-conditioned apartments on the twelfth floor."

"Wow, times really have changed I guess." I said and then I added, "Well, I'd better get going, I don't know how long it'll take to get there."

"We're going with you." Clarity said standing up.

"I don't want either one of you anywhere near that sleazball." I told her firmly.

"We'll wait out in the car, but we're going with you." Clarity sounded very determined.

I knew better than to argue with her when she was that adamant, and besides we weren't going to some smoke-filled den it was a nice hotel. "Okay," I said smiling.

"He really is special isn't he?" Mary commented to Clarity.

"Sure is." Clarity said slipping her arm through mine and then guiding me out toward the car.

I removed two hundred, one hundred dollar bills from the brief case and then divided them into four equal envelops of five thousand dollars each and then I slipped the envelopes into my coat pocket before sliding into the drivers seat.

The Stillwell was a modern tourist class hotel located in downtown Los Angeles, about ten or fifteen miles from LAX International Airport. I located the lounge, 'Hank's bar' easily enough to the left of the lobby past the concierge desk and once inside I located Nyx Hecate even easier.

As advertised he was sitting in a corner booth across from a man in a plaid coat that looked taller than I was, and he was sitting down. This guy had to be six eight or six nine at a minimum and his shoulders had to measure at least five feet across. He looked as big as a water buffalo and as mean as one, too.

It was difficult to tell because he was also sitting down but Nyx Hecate himself looked to be in his mid thirties and seemed to be average height, maybe five foot seven, but he probably weighed a good 250 pounds. He had curly dark hair and a sweet face, round and smooth. He also seemed to be an impeccable dresser wearing an imported suit that must have cost one or two grand or more.

"Mr. Hecate?" I asked stepping up to the table.

"Jimmy?" He said looking up and smiling.

I nodded and Hecate just looked at the water buffalo and the animal pulled himself up out of the seat and then squeezed out of the booth and wandered off, presumably to go graze somewhere.