In the Heat of the Night Page #3

this world outta luck.

Here's the first good thing

to come my way. And I pick it up.

But when I see whose wallet it is...

I mean, I start to sweat. But I heard

about this new chief. This Gillepsbie?

Got no more smile than a turnip.

So I cut across the fields, headin' for the

line, and got myself as far as the bridge

before Gillepsbie grabbed me.

What time did you find the wallet?

Well, I ain't got no watch, but it must have

been after two, by the courthouse clock.

I'm interested in eleven to two.

Where were you?

Shootin' pool. Larry's Lounge.

I got there about ten.

- What time'd you leave?

- Closin'. Must have been one.

- Anybody can swear for you?

- Packy, Bert, Les.

Ever been in trouble

with the police before?

Come on.

I could ask at the desk, you know.

Well, they brought me in one time.

- On account of this Delores Purdy.

- On what charge?

Well, uh, this Delores, she, uh...

she's real proud of what nature

done for her, you know?

And, uh...

Well, we was on a date

up to Clarke's Point, and, uh...

she says, uh... (sniggers)

Anyway, she asks me, she says, uh...

"Don't you think I got a classy build?"

And I say "Sure."

And so she starts to show me.

But I didn't do nothin' wrong.

I just didn't stop her from

tryin' to prove her point.

Then this cop, Sam Wood,

comes chargin' outta the bush

and hauls me in.

He let you go, didn't he?

Told me not to mess with her no more.

She lives on Third, a block from me.

Traipsin' around in the altogether.

With the lights on.

Now, somebody sure oughta

make her stop doin' that.

Come here.

Let me see your right hand.

- What you doin'?

- Hold still.

(door opens)

All right now, give him

the waiver for false arrest.

(Virgil) Forget it.

I'm askin' you to sign it. Please.

Give him a pen. Give him a pen.

All right. Let him out.

You'll be able to catch the 12.10 train.

It wouldn't be a bad idea

to change the charge against Oberst.

He was nowhere near the scene

of the crime, and I think he can prove it.

- I bet you know when Colbert was killed.

- About 12.30.

- While Harvey was still shooting pool.

- Wait a minute. I'll get it.

There's cue chalk under his nails,

not dried blood.

- Thank God I don't live in Philadelphia.

- One more thing.

Colbert wasn't killed

where the body was found.

- What do you mean?

- He was killed then moved to Main Street.

- Courtney?

- Yes, sir?

Change the charge to theft.

D'you mean Harve?

Who the hell else do we have back there?!

Yes, sir.

Hey.

Didn't I ask you to fix that gate?

No, not me, sir. Must have been

my brother Harold. He's on days.

Harold.

(slams door)

(phone rings)

Police department.

Yes, he's here. Hold on, sir.

Mayor's on the line, Chief.

(machinery noise/hammering)

What's all this Miz Colbert's been

tellin' me about a... a cover-up arrest?

No, ma'am. We ain't had no cover-up.

In fact, we just dropped the charges

for insufficient evidence.

Miz Colbert, I told you

he was nobody's man.

I came by to make it

as clear as I possibly can

that I do not want that Negro officer

taken off this case.

Negro officer?

Yeah, well, he, uh...

He comes from up North, you see.

And he was, uh, kinda...

- passin' through...

- If it wasn't for him,

your impartial chief of police would still

have the wrong man behind bars.

I want that officer given a free hand.

Otherwise, I will pack up

my husband's engineers...

and leave you...

to yourselves.

Miz Colbert, now don't you

worry about a thing.

Believe me, we're gonna

take care of everything.

Bill?

I wanna see you come through

this now, you hear?

Even if we have to

step on Endicott's toes?

Even that.

But do it fast.

All right.

Now, Bill, how about

this here Negro officer?

Miz Colbert seems

to have confidence in him.

Oh, he ain't nothin'. Some kind of a...

some kind of a homicide expert.

But I don't need him.

You mean you don't want him.

But you do need him.

Now look, Bill.

Suppose he turns up the killer.

He has no police power here. He's gonna

have to hand him over on a platter, right?

That's right.

And if he fails, you're off the hook, cos it

was Miz Colbert's idea in the first place.

See what I mean?

Oh, yeah.

Works out all the way around, Bill.

For all of us.

Excuse me.

Any reason why you have to leave today?

There's lots of reasons.

What would you say if

I asked you to stay for a while?

No.

This town needs a factory, Virgil.

Colbert come down

from Chicago to build it.

I hear they're gonna hire a thousand men.

Half of them'd be coloured.

- Know what that means?

- Probably got him killed.

That's what Mrs Colbert thinks.

She wants us to catch her a killer.

No killer, no factory.

Well, it's a lotta jobs for a lotta

coloured people. You follow me?

- I'm going home, man.

- They're your people.

Not mine - yours. You made this scene.

- What do you want me to do? Beg you?

- Look, I've had your town up to here!

Boy, it would give me a world

of satisfaction to horsewhip you, Virgil!

My father used to say that.

- Even did, once or twice.

- Yeah, well, not enough to suit me.

Now you listen to me.

Just once in my life

I'm gonna hold my temper.

I'm tellin' you that you're gonna stay.

You'll stay here if I have to have your

chief remind you what he told you to do.

But I don't think

I have to do that, you see?

No. Because you're so damned smart.

You're smarter than any white man.

You're just gonna stay here

and show us all.

You could never live with yourself

unless you could put us all to shame.

You wanna know something, Virgil?

I don't think that you could let

an opportunity like that pass by.

(train horn)

Jess?

Jess, this is, uh...

This is Virgil. He's workin' for me.

Give him somethin' that runs. Fix him up.

What I fix, runs. Who pays?

Police.

Well, you know where to find me.

What you doin' here, man?

Policeman.

You're a policeman here in Sparta?

They've got a murder

they don't know what to do with.

They need a whipping boy.

You got a roof?

No. I'll find a motel.

(Jess chuckles)

Viola... We got company.

Know what's gonna happen?

He gonna get hisself killed.

You watch and see he don't.

I'm aware of the risk, Tom.

But, like it or not, we're stuck with him.

Not if the chief here is right on the ball.

What do you say, Chief? You got that old

killer all lined up in your front sights, hm?

I'm workin' on it.

Tom, climb off of Gillespie's back now.

You know damn well we didn't

hire him off a homicide squad.

Yeah, well, it's gonna be his week.

Cos Colbert's only the start.

I say this n*gger won't live past Saturday.

Mrs Colbert, can you tell me

about your husband's enemies?

That's Endicott.

He's been fighting us all the way.

He sits up on his hill

and runs this county.

Or did, until we moved in.

Did your husband tell you

where he was going last night?

He said he wasn't sleepy. I went to bed.

What time was that?

A little after 11, I think.

Did he call you, or anybody

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