I Bury the Living Page #3

I'd say you were sensitive

or exaggerating.

"Third-floor sportswear...

$9,280 gross."

Compared to $8,500

at the same date last year.

Hmm.

Basement sportswears...

I'm gonna call Bates and Honegger

and Trowbridge right now

and tell them I'm quitting.

Don't worry, George.

Nothing drastic

will happen to the store.

My mind's made up.

You mean mixed up.

I've lived in Milford all my life,

and I can't remember any man

who ever let that place

get the better of him.

Why, when I was chairman,

I'll bet I stuck

the wrong colored pins

in that thing a dozen times.

If I ran out of one color,

I... I used the other.

You've only been down there

a couple of times.

George, I put black pins in the map

for the Drexel couple

the day they were killed.

Now, I didn't think

anything of it at the time.

And then I took a white

pin out of the map,

quite at random,

and I put a black pin in its place,

and today I find out

the old man it belonged to

died during the week.

Bob, that's terrible.

For Heaven's sake, Bob,

everybody loves a ghost story.

Where's your sense of humor?

You don't really believe

that stuff you're telling me,

do you?

No.

But I still think I may be learning

something about myself.

Where are you going?

Oh, I think I'll just take

a run out to the cemetery.

What for?

Sounds like it might be fun.

After all, I've been

trying to find some way

to wipe out our

competition for years.

Good night, George.

You want to take my car?

All right.

Won't be but a moment, sir.

Now, don't bother, McKee.

I think I've got it.

Oh, that'll be all, McKee.

Is everything all right, Bobby?

We'll see you later, Andy.

Well, the place hasn't changed a bit

since I was chairman.

A few more pins in the map.

Black ones.

White ones, too.

Sit down and relax, Bob.

I think I can get this whole thing

cleared up for you.

What are you gonna do?

I'm going to convince you

that there's nothing out here

for you to worry about.

George, let's forget this.

Uh, Bob.

I said I'm just going

to convince you.

Well, George,

suppose you took Henry

Trowbridge's white pin out

and put a black one in its place,

and tomorrow morning

he turned up dead.

There's not a chance.

Well, I know not a chance,

but suppose by some

weird coincidence,

it happened.

Now, it's happened to me

three times already.

I deal strictly in facts, son.

I don't go for this coincidence bunk.

But if Henry Trowbridge

even looks a little peaked tomorrow,

you can resign, and I'll back you up.

Now, Henry Trowbridge...

Let me see if I remember.

George, I just mentioned

Henry as an example.

Now, you're not gonna use him.

Why, Henry's as good

a choice as anybody,

considering he directly preceded you

as committee chairman.

Wait a minute, George.

You, uh, better let me put the pin in.

If you do the honors

and nothing happens,

it won't be quite as conclusive.

By all means, let's not diverge

from the established pattern.

But I'll have you know, I was no slouch

when it came to pinning

the tail on the donkey

when I was a kid.

Uh, no reflection on Henry.

Go ahead, Bob.

You better call Henry

and tell him what we did.

Eh, he'd only think we were kidding.

No, he'd believe you.

Then he'd call my physician,

and he'd reserve a nice,

quiet room for me

at Providence Hospital.

Let's keep this quiet, my boy.

Henry can't complain.

After all, if his term had

run a week or so longer,

he might be having

the willies instead of you.

Hello?

Hello, Mrs. Trowbridge,

this is Bob Kraft.

What are you doing up so late?

Uh, nothing serious.

Uh, I just meant to call Henry earlier,

and, uh, it slipped my mind.

Uh, put him on, will ya?

Oh, if he's watching a movie

and enjoying it,

uh, ask him to call me back

during the commercial.

No, no, Bob.

Just hold on, and I'll get him.

He's upstairs reading in bed,

but I'm sure he's not asleep.

Well, I hate to disturb him.

You just hold the wire, Bob.

Hello, Henry?

Oh, he's...

He's not breathing, Bob.

I've got to call a doctor.

I understand.

I'll hang up right away.

I'm... terribly sorry.

Hey, ho, nobody home

meat nor drink, nor money...

Wait here. This won't take long.

Morning!

How do you do, sir?

Well, I don't understand it.

Jess said he'd be here in 20 minutes.

I'm sure he's on his way...

Lieutenant Clayborne.

So that's it, huh?

Sure big enough.

There are the black pins, eh?

We're, uh,

particularly concerned with these four.

Isham, and the Drexel couple

and now Trowbridge.

Let me get this straight, Mr. Kraft.

You say that every time

you stick a black pin in the map,

people turn up dead?

That's right.

Well, go ahead, lieutenant.

You think I'm a crackpot,

and I hope you're right.

I just want to prove it

beyond a reasonable doubt.

"Stuart and Elizabeth Drexel,

D.O.A., emergency receiving hospital,

result of highway collision."

"William lsham, cause of death...

cerebral hemorrhage."

"Henry Trowbridge... coronary thrombosis."

Well, the rule is this...

Where no evidence of homicide exists

on initial investigation,

the matter will be dropped.

Investigated and found nothing.

Sorry.

Jessup.

What's new?

Or should I say, real?

Nothing like murder,

if that's what you're after.

I'm sorry Bob saw fit to

disturb you, lieutenant.

No harm done.

What do you make of it, Jess?

I keep telling him it's just coincidence.

Yeah.

If I were you, Mr. Kraft,

I'd take a week or two off,

take it easy.

You'll forget all about it.

If you're gonna use this story,

kindly refrain from

mentioning my name.

I know.

Lieutenant Clayborne,

with an "e" on the end.

Boy...

Didn't think four deaths

could appear so flimsy

to a policeman.

You never should have called the police.

Clayborne's one of the best.

Any other guy might have looked

for a big, heavy book to throw at you.

Yeah, maybe you're right.

On the other hand,

maybe that thing's dangerous.

Really dangerous.

Or maybe the element

of danger is in a man.

In me.

Bob.

Is there something

different about me, Jess?

I'm really beginning to wonder.

Hey, buddy, if there is

anything to this map bit,

don't go blaming it

on nameless forces.

Maybe somebody's

trying to scare you.

Could be you got

an enemy or two?

Somebody using

your desk, George?

Oh, he came in to keep

me company, darling.

That was very sweet of him.

Oh, darling, you must be dead tired.

I'm all right, Ann.

- No sleep, and then to have to go back

out there again...

- I'm all right!

There's no crime in needing a good rest.

George, I've got

some correspondence

to take care of.

I've already taken

care of your mail.

And I took the liberty of

making reservations for you.

Flight 33 leaving for Miami at 5:45.

My pal, Sanford, owns

one of the finest hotels

on the beach...

George, thanks, anyway.

There's nothing I'd rather do,

but I can't possibly go now.

Bob, I gave you my word

that if anything

happened to Henry,

you could resign.

I talked to Charlie and Bill Honegger,

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