"Janus" Summer 1955

THE TWO-TIMER - A. Szepesy (4A) - after E. Hemingway

IT WAS DARK. There'd been a lot of rain about that afternoon. The wet sidewalks shone under the street lamps. It was quiet. Two small guys came round the corner. They were moving at a brisk walk. A drunk lurched up out of the gutter in front of them. The, one on the left slapped him down with a black-jack. The drunk lay still in the gutter. The two little guys hurried on. They came to a big grey block of flats. They stopped outside. They looked round a bit and went in.

"Hey, Al, you sure this is the right place?"
"Yeah, guess so," from the little guy on the right.
"You reckon he'll be in here."
"Yeah, guess so."
"Two-to-one, he's drunk."
"Yeah, he'll be tight."
They got to the fourth storey and stopped outside a dingy, brown door.
The little guy called Al took out a key. He fiddled about with the lock a bit.
"Hey, Luz, it's hookey, won't budge."
"Have another go."
"Guess I will."
This time the door opened. They went in quietly. But quietly. Al first. They were in a small apartment, kind of cob-webby and cheap.
"Guess things ain't so good with him," whispered Al.
"They're gonna be worse."
"Yeah, they're gonna be worse."

A light came out from under a door a way down the hall. They went towards it. Al tripped over a mat lying in the shadows. He didn't make much sound as he regained his balance. He was light and quick on his feet.

"That you, Honey?" said a big voice from behind the door.
"He thinks we're his girl," said Al.
"Yeah, the sucker, the big lousy two-timing sucker."
"Shall we go to see him?"
"Yeah, let's go to see him."
"Hey, baby, got some bourbon out there?" said the drunk voice inside.
"No, but we got somethin' just as lethal," whispered Luz.
"Yeah, guess we have," said Al.

They opened the door and went in. A big guy lay sprawled on a divan by the wall. He was big. Must have had plenty muscles once. They were running to fat in some places now. Guess he could still pack a punch though. The big guy was tight. He was ugly when he was tight. Ugly most of the time but more so when he was tight.

"Guess you're drunk again, big boy."
"Huh?"
"Guess you're just damn tight, you flootin' slab of alcohol."
"Whatcha say?"
"Aw shuddup!"
"Sorry, baby."
"He's so blind drunk he don't know us from his girl."
"Got some rye, honey?"
"Aw you're hell drunk already."
"Huh?"
"You're hell drunk already."
"Who says so?"
"Listen two-timer" - Luz this time - "You're going places."
"The hell I am."
"Yeah, guess you'll go there, you won't make the grade upstairs anyway."
"What's that?" the big guy wasn't too cock-eyed to know when something was wrong. He was scared.
"Guess he came in blind and I guess he's going out blind."
"Yeah, he always was tight."
"Yeah, guess so, even when he was two-timing us."
"Guess so."
"Come on, Al, let's get going quick, the girl may be coming back."
"Yeah. let's jerk this blind greaser and go."

They took a razor out each. Handy slick lethal razors. They both had gloves on. They both looked matter-of-fact. Like they were doing an office job. When they went over to the big guy he was sleeping heavily, he was dead, blind, drunk. As they went briskly down the side walk he was sleeping peacefully. Only he wasn't drunk.