 Murder by Experts. A virtual broadcasting system presents Murder by Experts. With your host and narrator, the noted mystery writer, Brett Halliday. Mr. Halliday is creator of the world-famous detective character, Michael Shane. Author of 25 mystery novels, and whose latest work, This Is It, Michael Shane, has just been blubbered. This is Brett Halliday. Each week at this time, Murder by Experts brings you a story of crime and mystery, which has been chosen for your approval by one of the world's leading detective story writers. This time, our guest expert is the noted mystery novelist, Lenore Glenn Offert. From her wide knowledge of the field of mystery, Ms. Offert has chosen a tense and dramatic tale of a man who found himself amashed in a web of jealousy and violence. With an ending he didn't foresee, as written by George and Gertrude Fass. And now we present John Sylvester and Joyce Gordon in Freeze a Crowd. A suitcase full of clothes and a hundred arrangements of prop tunes sure can get heavy on a hot day. My arms fell as if they'd been unhinged at the joints by the time I'd walked a mile from the main road to the hedge hop in. It was a long, low, white building, sitting back about a hundred feet from the road. This was it. The roadhouse where I would spend the next three months pounding the ivories. At this hour of the morning, the entrance hall was empty. And so was the dining room. I walked straight through and pushed open a swinging door that looked as if it might lead into the kitchen. It did. Well, I'll find Mr. Hedges. You'll be around. You the new piano player? That's right. Thick stars to name. Gus Peters, I'm a cook. Glad to know you, Gus. Rest your weary limbs. Thanks. He didn't meet you at the bus stop, huh? Nope. Yeah, he wouldn't. More important things to tend to. How about a cold beer? You look as if you need it. No beer, thanks. I'll have a glass of milk, if it's handy, and a sandwich. Milk. You sure you're the new piano player? I said I was. So Hedges had more important things to do than to meet me, huh? His wife keeps him on a jump. His wife? Yeah. Doesn't let her out of his sight. She went to town to do the marketing this morning. Me followed her most likely. Why would he want to do that? Don't trust her, that's why. Jealous. You want some free advice, son? Yeah, okay. Stay away from her. Far away. I don't want to be hard. No. Well, maybe you'll change your mind when you see her. Why do you suppose we've been having such a fast turnover on piano players? None of them last more than a week. Ah, listen, Gus, I see plenty of gorgeous girls in my line of work. They don't bother me. Yeah, well, every Napoleon's got his water loose on. Only two men around here ain't ever been bothered by Alice Hedges. Me, for one, I'm fast that kind of foolishness. And the other? Andy Slade. Who's he? You made him your works here. How does he manage to resist? You know, I ain't never figured that one out. Except he's just a natural, cold fish. Any review of stuff on the porch, Dick? Uh-huh. Well, I'll take it to your room. You're in the attic right next to me. Oh, swell, but never mind lugging up that stuff. Oh, sure, I'd sell them going up anyway. You just sit here and finish. Gus went out and left me along with my sandwich and milk. A couple of minutes later, I found out what he'd been driving at. The door from the dining room swung open and a girl came in carrying some packages. She walked over to the table and put them down before she said anything. And I had time to get a good look at what was probably the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. Hello. You're Dick Starr, aren't you? Yes, I am. I'm Alice Hedges. How do you do? Hello. I hope Gus is making you comfortable. My husband didn't meet your bus, did he? No, I walked. I'm awfully sorry. If I'd known, I... Oh, John, here's Mr. Starr, the new pianist. Mr. Starr, my husband. How are you, Mr. Hedges? Hello, Starr. Alice, go remind Andy to meet me in my office in 15 minutes. Oh, but John, I'm sure he'll be more... Go on, Alice. Listen to me, Starr. You're new here. Yes. I get this into your head and get it in good the first time. Stay away from my wife. You can relax, Mr. Hedges. I'm here to play the piano. Well, just so you don't forget, it's the only thing you're here for. Mr. Hedges, I assure you, I haven't the least intention... Oh, now, don't give me that, Starr. I've reached the end of my rope with her. The next man she makes a play for is gonna get it. The next man she... You heard me. That's why I'm warning you. Now, if you want to stay healthy, keep clear of her. That said... Enough said. Okay. Now, let's talk about your work. Yes, Mr. Hedges. You play in the dining room from dinner time until 2 a.m. You could take a 10-minute break every hour. Uh-huh. And there won't be a lot of customers in the dining room. Sometimes there may not be any. But you'll play anyway. Oh, that's okay with me. Maybe you'd better get this straight from the stock. I don't make my money out of the dining room. Or the bar either. No? No. I've got the barn fixed up with a dice table and a roulette wheel. Oh. Andy Slade runs that end of it. Now, it's not going to affect you one way or another. Oh, I'm not worried, Mr. Hedges. I've played in other clubs where they had gambling rooms. Good. We'll get along, Dick. Just remember, stick to your piano playing. I intended to. If Hedges wanted to go around thinking his wife was a man chaser, that was his business. Of course he was wrong. All you had to do was look at Alice Hedges to know that she was straight. She'd never come chasing after me. And even if she did, she wouldn't find anyone at home. No, sir. Jobs don't grow on bushes. And I was hanging on to this one. At dinner, I played for two or three couples. And at about 10, the gambling crowd began drifting in. They'd have one drink at the bar and then head out toward the rear where the barn was. I went to have a look during one of my 10-minute breaks. That's when I met Andy Slade. He was tall and good-looking in a pasty way and handled the roulette wheel with an easy air. He grinned when Hedges introduced us. But I felt sure he wouldn't know me again the next time we met. So this was Andy Slade, the only man outside of Old Gus that Hedges could trust. At two in the morning, I quit and went into the kitchen for a glass of milk. Alice was there alone. Hello, Dick. Did you want something? No, thanks. I guess I'll be going up to bed. But you must have come in for something. A glass of milk? Don't be bashful. Well, all right. Thanks a lot. I suppose my husband told you. Told me what? That I'm no good. He did, didn't he? Oh, he... nothing like that. No use, Dick. He tells everybody. Well, he might have said something, but I just let it blow over my head. What do you think, Dick? About me, I mean. From what you've seen of me. Do I look like that kind? Well, certainly not. You look like a nice girl to me, Mrs. Hedges. A very nice girl. You really mean that? I know you do. You can't imagine how much it means to me to hear you say that. John is so crazy with jealousy, and he has no reason, absolutely no reason. Makes me so miserable. Always spying on me, always following me. Oh, gosh, that's a shame. Dick, see that lake out there? Yes? It's big and blue and deep. Someday that's where I'm going. That's one place he won't follow. Oh, don't talk like that, Mrs. Hedges. That's no way to solve anything. Would it really matter to anyone? What? Sure. It wouldn't matter to John. He doesn't love me really. Jealousy is just sort of a disease. I haven't anyone else. It wouldn't matter to me, Mrs. Hedges. You? Yes, it would, even though I never laid eyes on you before this morning. I know what you must be feeling, and I'm sorry for you. You're kind, Dick. You really understand, don't you? Oh, Dick, I need someone to understand me, to help me. Gee, I'll be glad to do anything I can on you. I know there's nothing you can do, but I'll be able to talk to you, and that'll mean so much to me. It will. I need a friend, Dick. I'm glad I found a friend. I went up to my room, but I didn't sleep. I kept thinking about Alice. What a tough spot she was in. I'm feeling sorry for her, and wondering what I could do to help. But five hours of torsing didn't help solve her problem any. I got up, washed, shaved, and dressed, and started down for breakfast. Then I noticed a piece of paper lying just inside my door. It was from Alice, asking me to take the rowboat after breakfast and row a mile down the lake. I put it into my pocket and went downstairs to the kitchen for breakfast. Maybe you better go back to bed, son. I asked you twice if you wanted eggs, and I ain't got an answer yet. Ah, sorry, Gus. No eggs, thanks. Just some coffee. What? No milk? Where's Mr. Hedges, Gus? Sleeping. He never gets to bed before five. And Mrs. Hedges? Out marketing. Why? Oh, nothing, just that. You old man laid it on the line for you yesterday, huh? So what? I never was interested in another man's wife. She's no exception. Fine, that's fine, son. Uh... Is there a rowboat around, Gus? Yeah, it should be one tied up to the dock. Can you use it? Might as well. Nothing else to do. Well, piano players are all the same. Nothing else to do, you go rowing. Seems to me it's just back-breaking work in the heart and the hands. Well, I like to keep fit. Are the oars in the boat? Yeah. Say, Dick, maybe you'd better chop some wood for exercise. I could use some kinder. No, thanks. Listen, Rowling. The stiff breeze in my bag made the going tough. And even though the morning was cool, I'd worked up a good sweat before I'd been out ten minutes. Maybe I'd have done better to have stayed home and chopped kindling for old Gus. But she needed a friend. I couldn't let it down. Finally, I saw a patch of pink moving a little way up the bank. I rode to shore and tied up. Hello. I was beginning to be afraid you weren't coming. Weren't coming? Or with friends, aren't we? I know, Dick. I know. I just thought perhaps John saw you as you were leaving. Well, even if he did, there's nothing wrong with going out for a little row. He'd see something wrong in it. He saw something wrong and you're coming into the kitchen last night. He knew about that? But he was in the barn. He knew. He always knew. He was furious. But why? It was a coincidence that I met you there. It wasn't as if we'd planned to meet. Of course. That's what I told him. But he wouldn't believe me. He said if he ever caught us together again, he'd throw you out the same day. You're right, Alice. That kind of jealousy isn't normal. It must be terrible for you. It is. It is, but... I didn't ask you to come here just to cry on your shoulder. I wanted to warn you. Dick, you need this job, don't you? Yes, I do kind of. That's what I thought. Then you must go out of your way to avoid me. Don't even talk to me. Just ignore me as if I didn't exist. I hate to do that, Alice. You said you needed a friend, someone to talk to. That's all right, Dick. I guess I'll get used to this kind of life. Promise me you'll do as I say. It's the only way to keep your job. You really it is. Is that the way Slade keeps his job? Slade. He doesn't have to pretend indifferent. We took a dislike to each other the moment we met. John noticed it right away and decided to keep him no matter what his demands were. I see. Slade makes more than we do out of the roulette table. But he hates me. And that entitles him to anything he wants as far as John's concerned. Well, Alice, I can't hate you even to please a crazy jealous husband. Dick, please. Please try to make him think you do. I'll help you. I'll avoid you too. And go on living in solitary confinement? But look, this is America, Alice. This is the 20th century. That man has no right to keep you a prisoner in your own house. I mean, you're a woman, not a piece of property. I think it's no use. There's nothing I can do. There sure is. You can leave him. I can't leave him. He'd follow me. He'd bring me back or kill me. Oh, Dick, I'm lost. I'm lost. You've been sitting side by side on a log. Now Alice covered her face with a hat. I put my arm around her. And then she turned and buried her face in my shoulder. Oh, Dick. Dick. Sorry, Alice. I'll get you out of this. I'll think of a way. Don't worry, baby. Alice driving the car got back to the inn sooner than I did in the rowboat. Gus winked at me when I walked into the kitchen and nodded toward the dining room. Through the closed door, I heard their voices. I think you're a rotten liar. You couldn't have spent two hours in town shopping, no matter how crowded it was. Who'd you see when you got there? What man were you sweet talking to this time? I swear I didn't talk to any man in town, John. You're a liar and you're a two-timer. I'll show you. I'll break his neck. Don't be a fool. You know I ain't altogether wrong, don't you? He is wrong. He's a lunatic. That's what he is. Well, maybe he is and maybe he ain't. She's his wife and you've got no call button in your... I'll put in, all right. In my own time and in my own way. I didn't see her here for Malice again that day. I knew it wasn't because she wanted to avoid me. She was doing it for my sake to keep me out of hot water. But the next morning I felt I had to see her. And I had a hunch she wouldn't be too hard to find. After breakfast, I went down to the boat dock. The boat was there, but the oars were missing. I went back to the kitchen and asked Gus where they were. Oh, the oars, eh? That's the funny thing about them. I happened to notice that they had something wrong with them. I figured if you use them again, you might get hurt. So I just put them where they won't cause no trouble. Well, stop being smart, Gus. Let's have them. Look, what's the sense of getting blisters on your hands? You stay close to home, son. You'll be better off. I'm not worried about a few blisters. Well, then let me tell you something. Hedges took the other car and followed his wife this morning. You don't want them always, Dick? I walked out on him and let the porch door slam behind me. I'd wanted to tell Alice about the idea that had come to me at about three that morning. It was so simple I couldn't understand why it hadn't popped into my head the minute I was sure that Alice had to be rid of that man. Gambling was illegal. If Hedges was in jail, he couldn't bother Alice, could he? I went out to the public phone booth in the bar and called the police and told them about the gambling going on in the barn over at Hedge Hop Inn. As simple as that. I was feeling pretty good that night, playing to an empty dining hall and thinking how pretty soon Alice's troubles would all be behind her, with that precious husband of hers safe behind bars. Along about eleven o'clock the door from the entrance hall opened and Alice came in in the fluffy blue evening gown. She walked quickly through the room without stopping. But as she passed by my piano on her way to the kitchen, she managed to whisper, On the boat dock, Dick, at twelve. I kept on playing as if nothing had happened. But inside me a voice kept singing. She loves you, Dick. She tried to keep away, but she couldn't. She loves you. She'd never risk a rendezvous on the boat dock if she didn't. She loves you, just as you have her. At five to twelve I was on the dock. It was a night right out of a dream, with the mist over the lake and the moon a pale blur in the starless sky. I was looking out over the inky water when I heard the click of her high heels behind me. And I turned, and she was in my arms and her mouth was pressed hard against mine. It was a long time before either of us could speak. I know how you feel about me, Dick, darling. I know because it happened to me too. The moment I saw you, I was so afraid you'd believe the things John said and turn against me. I couldn't, I couldn't, sweet. I couldn't believe anything bad about you. Listen, honey, you're going to be free. Do you hear? You're going to be free. What do you mean, Dick? How? Never mind. You'll find out soon enough. Just trust me. Oh, I do, I do, Dick. You're so wonderful. Dick, someone's coming. I'll let him come. Right over here, Hedges. I'm waiting. Oh, you dirty louse. You know better than the rest of those pianos playing Casanova. Take it easy, Hedges. Dick, be careful. You look like a decent fellow, Star. That's why I warned you. You look better than the rest of them. Look out, Dick. I saw his roundhouse even before Alice screamed, and I beat him to the punch. I'll get you, I will. Dick, he had a knife. He was crouching, and there was a wicked seven-inch blade in his right hand. I circled him till I got the lights in my house at my back, and then I backed away. I couldn't fight a knife with my bare fist, and I was going to run for it as soon as I could get Alice away. House, get into the house. Lock yourself in and call the police. You'll be fish bait before they get here, and so will she. I felt something heavy being pressed into my hands. Use it, Dick. Use it quick. Hedges jumped, and I swung at the same minute. I must have crushed his skull in, because he fell like a sack of flour. In the darkness, I saw Alice bending over him. She stood up slowly. He's dead. You killed him, Dick. He's dead. Don't worry, darling. It'll be all right. I know it, Dick, but the police doesn't get murdered. What do we do? Do? I will. We'll get the police ourselves and tell them just how it happened. That's what we'll do. No, no, no. They won't believe you. We need time, Dick. Time to think. No, that's not good, Alice. If we try to cover up... For my sake. Once the police get here, you're lost. They'll never believe us. What's your idea? Hide him. Get him out of sight. Then we can make up the story. Hide him? Where? In his car. It's parked at the end of the dock. Okay. The luggage compartment. Listen, I think I hear someone. We stood and listened. But there wasn't a sound except the crickets. Shrilling so loudly, the noise seemed to beat inside my brain. So we dragged Hedge's body off the dock and I carried it to the car. Luckily, there wasn't any blood. I pushed it into the luggage compartment and closed the lid. It would be safe there until I could think of something to do with it. Then we separated. I went back to my piano while Alice gave the people gambling in the barn some story about Hedge's suddenly getting sick. So, that's what it was like to kill a man. But I wasn't guilty. I wasn't guilty of anything except the natural instinct for self-preservation. No jury would convict a man for trying to save his own life. Then why did I hide the body? I shouldn't have listened to Alice. She was a girl. She didn't understand these things. It was a mistake, a terrible mistake. And then I heard it. Mistake police. I jumped up from my piano and started for the barn. And then I remembered they weren't coming for me. They were coming to investigate that tip I'd given them about the gambling. So I stayed where I was in the dining room listening to the racket and commotion as the troopers closed in on the barn. Two minutes went by. And then a police sergeant came in leading Alice by the arm. No use, Mr. Hedge's. They know your husband's on the grounds and we're going to find him. We might as well tell us where he is. I don't know where he is. He must have gotten away. Nobody got away. We've got this place surrounded. Two of my men are looking through the house now. We'll find him if we have to tear the place apart. Who's this? Dick Starr. He plays the piano here. Well, sergeant, would it be all right if I left? I had nothing to do with the gambling. We're taking everybody in, bud. Uh, sergeant, could I talk to you alone for a minute? Sit down over there, Mrs. Hedge's. All right, what is it, Starr? Listen, I'm the one who tipped you off about the gambling here. I phoned headquarters this morning. You're not going to pull me in, are you? You tell that to the captain when we get to headquarters. Maybe he'll let you off. My orders are to take everyone and that's just what I'm going to do. I'll be reasonable, sergeant. Sorry. That's how it is. In that case... He's unconscious. Yeah. I've got to get out of here. I've got to get that car away. Do you think he can? I'll have to or we'll be facing a charge of murder. I'll be back as soon as I've managed it. I slipped out and keeping to the shadows made my way to the car. And then they saw me. I got out on the road and stepped on the gas. Behind me I heard the roar of motorcycles as some of the troopers came after me. I kept my lights off hoping to lose them in the dark when I hit the highway. But if they couldn't see me, I couldn't see anything at all. The blackout side came rushing at me. And suddenly the ground fell away. The last thing I heard was a crash of glass. Hiya, son. Well, doc, son. You're in the hospital and there's a cop just outside the door. You've been out for two days with a skin full of broken bones. Now just listen carefully. I might get another chance to say this. I'm listening. Hedges. They found his body in the car. Oh. They did? You know, I saw you stowed into the luggage compartment, son. Funny thing, though. That ain't where they found it. What do you mean? You see, there weren't no petition between the luggage compartment and the back seat. And it seems that the crash threw you out through the windshield and him right up into the front seat across the steering wheel. Needless trick of the year, I don't mind saying. What? Yeah, that's right. Some fluke, eh? The cops put the cause of Hedges' death down as an auto accident. They don't even have a reckless driving charge against you, son. Only trying to escape arrest. Practically in the clear. In the clear? Yeah. That's why I've been sitting here for two days, waiting for you to come too. Couldn't let you spill the beans. Oh, that's great. That's wonderful. What about Alice? Well, you still got her on your mind, eh? Well, I... I hate to tell you this, but you better forget about her. What do you mean? What do you mean forget about her? We're in love. Yeah, maybe you are. She ain't. She framed that fight with Hedges. Are you crazy? She knew he was following her when she went down to the dock to meet you. She knew he'd pull a knife and she had the club handy for you to use. She'd come out on top, no matter which one of you won. Where is she? Oh, son, ain't I telling you? If you killed him, that was okay with her. If he killed you, that wouldn't have bothered her none. She'd have had a fry for her murder. Either way, she was rid of him. Where is she? All right. All right, if you insist. She went away to get married. Yeah? What? To Andy Slade. Slade? I always figured him for a cold fish. I was wrong. It was just an act. An act? Yeah. She set you and them other piano players up as decoys for Hedges. But all the time, it was Slade she was after. And so the curtain falls on threes a crowd, which was chosen by guest expert Lenore Glenn Offord. Miss Offord is author of the recently republished mystery novel, The Smiling Tiger. Next week at this time, Murder by Experts brings you a story of three killers and a victim who refused to die, as selected for your approval by one of the world's foremost detective story writers. Until then, this is your host, Brett Halliday, hoping you'll be with us again next week at this time. Program was transcribed.