 From Hollywood it's time now for Johnny dollar. I mean, this is the office of Jake Oh, who are you? Who is this? You planning to add another murder to that of the Haskell brothers Listen Bring somebody with you or try anything funny and you'll never get out of this desert alive. Hello For me Johnny No, no, it wasn't Jake. Mm-hmm, but I wonder why a killer would call me 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 ours truly Johnny dollar Expense accounts submitted by special investigator Johnny dollar location Kingman, Arizona to the Greater Southwest Insurance and Liability Company Following as a report of expenditure is during my investigation of the Midas touch matter Jake Kessler local representative for Greater Southwest Insurance and Liability had laid it out pretty clearly The three Haskell brothers prosperous gentlemen ranchers had taken out life policies totaling a million and a half dollars double indemnity Which meant that their death and what was supposed to look like an accident at the bottom of the Midas touch mine could cause Southwest a cool Three million and the finger of suspicion pointed straight at one hard luck Dennis prospector and promoter It wasn't Jake Kessler's office that I'd received the phone call from hard luck. Where did hard luck tell you to meet him Johnny? Oh, I'll find it. All right. Where look. I think I'd better handle this alone Jake Johnny He's being hunted by every available policeman here in Kingman. He's a killer like I told you He got 20,000 a piece from the Haskell brothers cash Then took him down to the Midas touch and caved it in on him. All right, even supposing that he did Why would he do it? That's as obvious as those two heads you're wearing the mine is worthless How do you know because smarter people and him gave it up over 20 years ago I thought you told me the or samples he brought out a say to the 1,100 dollars a ton Johnny you know as well as I do that there's more ways to salt a gold mine and there is to skin a cat You have any proof that hard luck salted that one. No, but tad harding will captain tad harding, please He hasn't lived out in this country all his life for nothing. Where's harding now at the Midas touch But when he gets back here, you see him. He'll show you that I'm right Well, if you are it certainly would point the finger at hard luck Dennis wouldn't can't you understand Johnny hard luck needed money He's always needed money. He sold it that mine got 60,000 from the Haskell's on a lick and a promise then caved in the mine on him before they could get wise to him Good theory you'll find it's a fact. That's why he skipped out as soon as he oh Yeah, yeah, he couldn't have skipped very far. Could he and if he were guilty, why would he want to see me? All right, Johnny now listen to me the Haskell's were three of our finest citizens So the whole town will cooperate with you So don't do anything foolish like meeting that hard luck Dennis alone that willingness to cooperate Include you Jake. You know it does. I'll do anything. All right, then just give me your words You won't tell anyone that I'm meeting hard luck. Well now because if you do I'll drop this case like a hot potato Well, okay Johnny for the time being okay I Just noticed out the window tad harding his car just pulled up in front of police headquarters What are we waiting for let's go Captain Ted Harding turned out to be a tall well-built cool-headed man of about 40 who impressed me as being able to cope with any situation that might arise He bore out everything Jake Kessler had told me about the Haskell's and about hard luck And he added two new and very important bits of information one That he'd found nothing whatsoever to indicate that the Midas touch had been salted on the contrary He picked up some very rich chunks of ore To he'd learned the probable cause of the cave-in and what it meant Ted Harding had found a length of wire rope one end wrapped around the spool of a powerful handwench The other end had very obviously been tied around a pillar a thick pillar of rock and gravel that had been dug around So as to leave support for the ceiling of a horizontal shaft Jake and I have walked back to his office That's it Johnny no doubt about it no doubt a few quick turns of the handle on that winch the pillar came down and the roof caved in I'll have to admit it certainly looks that way Well, at least the company is off the hook for a million and a half of the insurance if we can prove that somebody operated that winch While the Haskells were down there now now look John means finding that person. I'm satisfied. It was murder Would the courts be? Of course sure when the claims on these policies are filed They'll be for three million on the basis of double indemnity for accidental deaths. You can bet your last penny on that Claims haven't been filed yet. Have they? Oh, no. Well, I hope we'll have time before they are Time to prove it was murder by producing the murderer you You still plan to see and talk to hard luck Dennis. Yep alone When Sometimes soon when Johnny tell you all about it after I've seen Johnny It's dangerous if I'm going to stay at that place. You told me about over at Lake Mojave. I may as well go and get settled Huh, how do I get there? I'll drive you over Johnny. No point in that. I've got my rented car Well, you probably want to be seeing the mine too Maybe I can be of help to you or maybe you just want to be present if I happen to keep a date with hard luck Dennis Now I didn't say that you didn't need to Jake I want you to stay right here in Kingman so you can keep in touch with whatever the police dig up and still be in touch With me. There's a phone at the Lake Mojave resort, isn't there? Well, sure Also, don't forget that three million dollar claim may be filed here at your office any minute If so, I want to know about it. Now, how do I get to Lake Mojave? Head East on Highway 68 he said so I did and 13 miles out of town I found the little side road yucca trail that hard luck had described over the phone The next mile on a quarter was about the worst driving I ever encountered this was nothing but an old wagon trail Several times the crankcase and rear axle spread on boulders in the middle of it The trailer dropped off sharply from the highway and as far as I could see there was nothing but Sunbaked rock and gravel of the Mojave desert splotched here and there with withered sagebrush tumbleweed Weirdly shaped Joshua trees an occasional yucca plant with its stalk poking upward like a huge candle and Too many kinds of cactus to mention All of it surrounded by bleak needles and crags of rock by high plateaus and maces The going gets so bad I'd almost decided to get out and walk when I spotted the old miner's shack that hard luck had named as our meeting place As I approached it, I could see no sign of life around it. Hello Anybody here hard luck Dennis? Hello nothing No one No sign of life at all, huh? The sudden movement at the corner of the shack was nothing but an ancient desert turtle plotting at what he probably thought was break next speed Toward a shady spot under a sagebrush Hello Hi, look anyone inside there Well, that's not What should I look around back at this shack where it's going to be crazy. Mr. Hard luck Dolly Yes, yeah, you come alone like I said I don't see anybody else around in real stare down. I don't move No gun. That's mad Sit down there in that bench Sure What's this all about hard luck? I didn't do it. That's what it's all about. I didn't do it I didn't kill the ass. Good boy. If you understand it. I didn't think you did. No Why not? Because if you had I think you would have skipped the country you wouldn't have asked me to come here and talk to you That's right. That's right You just trying to soften me up not much point in that is there with you holding a gun on me If you didn't do it hard luck, why don't you go to the police and Kingman and tell them that I wouldn't have a chance Judge or jury anything else whole towns against me. They made up their mind I did it so the best lawyer in the country couldn't save me apparently the whole town thought a lot of the Haskell brothers Surely they'd find men. That's why I picked them to share the mind with me The only reason you picked them was because they had money and you know it Like all the rest didn't you see the or they took out of the Midas touch I heard about it rich rich or twelve fifteen hundred dollars a ton and I didn't plan it there It's been there all the time even Captain Harden couldn't find where I'd sorted it because I didn't oh You know that he was out there sure I do. I know everything that goes on in his desert. All right, then look Suppose you put down that gun and tell me what happened the day the mind caved in on the Haskell you bet I'll tell you that's why I called you, but I won't put down this gun until I'm sure you're on my side I'll then wave it in some other direction you want to hear what I gotta say it and set still and listen to me first tell me this Was it murder? It was murder then not by my hand then who did it do you know yes? Yes? I know oh They wanted to see the mind again get some more samples that was last Friday today the cave Yeah, so I took them down there gave them a pick showed them where to chip it off down on the second level on But then I left them there for a minute why I heard a car heard a car pulled up So I went back out went back to see who it was there wasn't supposed to be anybody around that mine I had it posted But I've heard this car pulling up well go on go on so I left the Haskells below and went on said that I know her I went no time for my eyes to get you to the bright sunlight outside all I saw was the car When I stuck my head out That's when it hit me. What do you mean when what hits you a rock a club or something? I Would knock me out when I come to the cave in was all over the Haskells were dead in there And I knew what everybody would think so I let out stayed in the desert What do you know who it was who hit you by the car? Oh the same one that made the cave in hole dollar it would Listen That's somebody coming out there. You cheated me. You brought him. Oh, no. I did not Hard luck. Get away from the door Hard luck. Yeah, I guess they named you right now Here's our star to tell you about tomorrow's intriguing episode of this week story tomorrow the so-called Trackless Desert yields a set of tracks that leads straight to But if I told you you'd know wouldn't you so join us won't you? yours truly Johnny dollar Holy Johnny dollar starring Bob Bailey is transcribed in Hollywood It is produced and directed by Jack Johnstone who also wrote this week's story Be sure to join us tomorrow night same time and station for the next exciting episode of yours truly Johnny dollar Roy Rowan speaking