 From Hollywood it's time now for Johnny dollar Thanks It is here it ain't The older house in la guiara. I'm staying here at all his request Ah Sorry, but felicitations are a little out of place trouble. Someone came with an inches of killing all their last night I've got the bullet. How's your ballistic setup at your disposal? Just bring it in. Thanks. I will maybe it's got something to say Tonight and every weekday night Bob Bailey in the transcribed adventures of the man with the action-packed Expense account America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator yours truly Johnny dollar From special investigator Johnny dollar location Caracas, Venezuela to the home office worldwide mutual insurance company Hartford, Connecticut Assignment the alder matter Expense account continued Expense account item five five dollars even tip to one nachos Gomez servant in the big older house for a good reason He hadn't liked the idea of my prowling the slope alone last night looking for someone with a gun He'd insisted on joining me True. We hadn't found anything, but he'd been there Five bucks is much to pay for a friend and I had a feeling I could use one. I Eat breakfast alone Alder had already gone to his office and the rest of the house was asleep Not Joe's breakfast tray rattled when he saw the money Why oh Call it appreciation. You didn't have to follow me out there last night Well, you could have been her senior. You don't know the slope is a long drop to the bottom and lumpy I didn't expect money. I did not do it for that. I know that go ahead. Thank you. Thank you Something I Tell you something senior when you go running out there last night. I was sure you would find nobody Oh, hi, but you're so for yourself too much. Yeah, how you call it bushes do thick They could be standing right next to you and you wouldn't know Then why did you come streaking out after me? I told you he's a long way down one wrong step and In the states, that's an old joke. The punch line is watch that first step. It's a beaut I got in the car. I'd rented the previous day and headed toward Caracas. I Panned the driving time pleasantly by counting oil wells From that I graduated to try to figure how much money they made with each given stroke of the huge pumps Nice kind of occupation. Sure specifically designed for a purpose To keep me from worrying about the business at hand Namely why super salesman Billy Alder insured for a quarter of a million dollars should change his beneficiaries five times in a single month Further who'd taken that pot shot at him last night answers. I went back to counting oil wells In Caracas, I headed for police headquarters and the head man have a vines He turned the bullet over to his lab, but they were shorthanded by lunchtime. I still had no report. So I took the last guest to lunch For a man who is living in a house like Billy Alder's you do not look happy, amigo That bullet traveled an inch more to the left Billy Alder wouldn't need a house. It's a good point You look too serious for a nice lunch. I fixed that Hey, then it does Pisco sour, please You ever drink the Pisco sour, amigo? No, well it helped. Well, they do not solve the case for You but they make you happier about being worried. Maybe we'd better order doubles Confusing the Alder house. What do you think? Keep me alive Alder says, but that's the only word you can get out of You feared the thing I mentioned yesterday the the the tension the strangeness the only ones I've met are alder and his daughter You haven't met Mrs. Alder any of the others. Why? They got home late after the shooting way after Interesting all sure It could have been any of them out on that slope. I do not worry about you amigo You will do fine. Well, I well here's something else interesting Alder doesn't want me to question any of them about that shot. Oh, you notice there was no complaint to your office about the murder try I know this Because Alder wanted it that way like I say interesting. Ah Gracias waiter you seep that amigo see if it does not help. It's good Very nice, it will be nicer. Just give you time You still have the senior Billy Alder on your mind. Yeah Have another seep Heffey see Something else of mine. You got to learn to relax Johnny. You mentioned Mrs. Alder a few minutes ago seems surprised. I hadn't met her What are you thinking of? Just that you living at the house. Oh heffey. I was more than that. I mean you are a match Come on. Come on. I'll level with me. I'm far enough out in left field as it is Write it off as professional courtesy, huh? You are a pretty nice looking fellow meal. Don't snow me. I am simply trying to answer your question Johnny Mrs. Alder, how shall we say it? It does not make her angry to be seen in the company of a handsome man. I see What's mr. Alder's reaction the oldest must be people are breathing if they have a quarrel it is not in public Thanks But at the risk of seeming ungrateful you could have mentioned that yesterday It's a pretty good department in Caracas police amigo. You know why? Because I teach them always one thing at a time comprende Mucho amigo. Come on. We eat then we go back to the lab if they have not finished. I fire everybody Expense account item six fourteen dollars eighty five cents Valesquez drank enough Pisco Sours to float the Normandy Back at the police lab. I wish I'd kept pace with him because all they could tell from the bullet was that it had come from a Luger And Valesquez pointed out there must be a couple of thousand Lugas in Caracas. I Had it back for the older house at La Guerra Unless the members of that happy household slept all day somebody should be alive and stirring and they were people I wanted to meet badly But I almost didn't make it as I approached the main gate I noticed another car parked along the side of the road about 50 feet from it Suddenly it roared in the life shot forward scream to a stop You're dying for what's the matter with you plenty You know I am dollar I know this if you ever try a stunt like that again I'll ram those pearly teeth right down your throat tough guy. There's an easy way of finding out But we'll get to that in a minute. I ask you if you knew who I am sure I do Paul Kincaid the lead who was Smooching with Billy Alder's daughter yesterday. You taking bows. You just couldn't wait to tell Alder about it Could your girl's been telling your lies Kincaid I just happen to be there if you don't want to be seen don't neck and always just a minute And speaking of people in wrong places. I thought you were reforming in the oil fields I don't see any Derrick's on the older property. I took the day off so I could come over and see you Well, you're getting a good look. Yeah, and I still thank all the hired you to keep Peggy away from it Now you keep out of my head dollar What are you staring for? Well now everybody's full of wild ideas today. I just had one that maybe isn't so wild Like maybe you just ad-libbed a reason for being here And the real one is to sneak out on the slope and see if you can't find an empty Luger shell What there has to be one out there, you know, you say and I took that shot at Alder. I don't know How bad do you want to marry into the Alder money? It was a jilly while it lasted It lasted too long You get a set of arms working in an oil field He had them all right and those punches hurt so I went to Joodle Even then it was tough I guess I better get in shape or take up accounting A look in the car mirror made one thing clear. I couldn't take a face like that through the front door When I reached the house, I skirted it, managed to get to the service entrance without scaring the life out of anyone Here my little gift to Nacho Gomez, Cedar Adam 5, began to pay off He hustled me up to my room by the back stairs and without waiting to be asked, he got busy with bandages and things You win, senor Would you believe it if I said yes? Only through politeness, I think Oh, pardon me, senor, that one was pretty deep But I... Yeah, what's funny? I was just thinking if you really win, I hate to see the loser Thanks, but I can do it without seeing him again There, it's about the best I can do, senor Yeah, well okay, thanks Oh, no, it's nothing, con su permiso, senor Sure, just tell me one thing, would you? Is anything going on downstairs? How do you mean, senor? Well, that racket we hear coming up here Racket? Oh, you mean El Mantante Mantante? The bullfighter? The finest matador in the world, senor Did you not know he's the guest of the house? He's staying here? Oh, si, the senor and senora Alder, they're big aficionados, they love the corrida New style, isn't it? Finding bulls in the house? No, senor, Mantante, he just gave how you say a demonstration of the passes with the cape, you know? It's beautiful, why you never go down and watch, senor? You see, you will enjoy, it's lovely, the fine bullfighter Anybody ever ask the bull about that? After nacho's gentle administrations and a quick change of clothes, I must confess I look slightly more like a human being again, uh, slightly Anyhow, I wandered downstairs, headed for the huge living room And I was like walking into another world, alive and pulsating to the music from a record player Five or six people stood around, hypnotically beating time Their eyes glued to the great El Mantante, a handsome spaniard Who skillfully worked a bullfighter's cape in the center of the floor Nacho hadn't exaggerated, Mantante was beautiful to watch But the feeling wasn't unanimous Billy Alder and his daughter Peggy were the only people in the room I knew And though they beat time with the others, they both shared the same expression on their faces Intense dislike for the man with the cape As I shifted my attention to them, a woman tore reluctant eyes away from the matador And moved quietly toward me She wasn't really beautiful, but tremendously chic For one of a better word And that made her seem beautiful I'm Constance Alder, Mr. Dollar, welcome to our home Well, thank you, Mrs. Alder I'm afraid I've been negligent, it's a hostess Oh, we've just missed connections, that's all Charmingly put, do you mind if I wait to introduce you to the others? When Mantante's finished? No, of course not, please go on back, don't worry about me, I'm doing fine Thank you I watched her as she crossed the room Then realized that someone else was doing exactly the same thing Her husband, Billy Alder Only the look on his face was the same glaring dislike With which he'd favored the cape-wielding matador Interesting Then after a long moment, Constance Alder moved quietly out of the room As though not wishing to disturb the others The performance was still going strong And after about five minutes, I moved out onto the patio Stood looking down at the Lagyera Harbor Because it was on my mind, I stared down at the spot on the slope From which the Luger had been fired And I saw that someone was there, awkwardly searching the ground A moment later, they straightened up, moved a few feet to continue the search Even in the late afternoon sun, there couldn't be any mistake in the search's identity It was Constance Alder Now here's our star to tell you about tomorrow's episode of this week's story Tomorrow, two sides of the same old yarn And whichever side you choose, you've got to call it wrong Join us, won't you? Yours truly, Johnny Dollar Yours truly, Johnny Dollar, starring Bob Bailey Is transcribed in Hollywood Written by Tony Barrett, it is produced and directed by Jack Johnstone Be sure to join us tomorrow night, same time and station For the next exciting episode of yours truly, Johnny Dollar Roy Rowan speaking