The Return of Doctor X Page #5

What? Are you positive about that?

Oh, I see.

All right. Thanks, Andy.

What's up, boss?

So, Angela Merrova is coming

to my office in the morning

and she's going to tell

the whole story, huh?

- Sure, I personally guarantee it.

- Listen, wise guy.

- Merrova's dead.

- Dead?

Well, we talked to

her about an hour ago.

Quesne. He killed her.

She's been murdered.

- What, again?

- Yeah.

Why, you...

Listen, phony. I don't know where

you dream up these yarns of yours,

but Angela Merrova was not

murdered. She died of natural causes.

Now, wait a minute, boss. Maybe it's one

of those up again, down again routines

she's been giving us.

Maybe she ain't dead.

If she's not dead, they're

playing a dirty trick on her,

because they're taking her over

to Bixby's Undertaking Parlors.

- Now, get out of here. Both of you.

- Yes, sir.

And don't ever come back.

I won't believe she's dead

till I see it with my own eyes.

Even then I won't believe it.

- Now where to?

- The undertaker's.

Well, that's different.

The undertaker's?

We won't be a minute.

Be out in a minute, honey.

If you find someone interesting

in there, send him out.

- How do you do?

- How do you do?

Do you have a...

A customer in here by the

name of Angela Merrova?

- You mean, the body of the deceased?

- Yes.

She just came in.

- Are you gentlemen relatives?

- Not exactly.

But we sort of have an

interest in her, so to speak.

Friends.

Yes, sir.

We were wondering if

we could see the body.

This way, gentlemen.

Would you mind stepping in

the other room with me, please?

I'd like to ask you

a couple of questions.

Certainly.

We are most willing to accommodate

everyone at a time like this.

- Well, tell me, Mr. Bixby...

- I'm not Mr. Bixby.

Mr. Bixby has been

dead for seven years.

I'm sorry.

It's quite all right.

We all make mistakes.

About Miss Merrova in here. Could

you tell me who brought her in?

My dear young man,

no one brought her in.

We went and got her.

- We were called by Dr. Flegg.

- Dr. Flegg?

Did the death certificate say

she died of natural causes?

I believe so.

All right, Walt.

Thank you very much, sir.

- Well, I hope to see you again sometime.

- I'm sure you will.

The old fellow said that Flegg was

the one who called to pick her up.

- What did you find out?

- Merrova's death was natural, all right.

Looks like we're stumped again.

Hello. Is the big mystery solved?

No. But it's after 1:00.

I think we better go home now.

Well, don't I even

get anything to eat?

Yep. We'll go over to Gus' and

get you a nice, big hamburger.

Hey, Wichita, ain't you found

out what you're looking for yet?

No. Give me time, will you, Pinky?

Wichita, if the boss finds out about this,

I'll be pounding the pavement with you.

You sure you're gonna

put all this junk back?

Yes. Will you go back

to that door and shut up?

I'm taking an awful chance with you.

But I tell you, there's

nothing on a guy named Quesne.

Well, there's got to be. I've

seen his puss in some paper.

You tried every file but X, Y, and Z,

and here's the final batch.

- I got it.

- What?

The guy.

Dr. Maurice Xavier. Dr. X.

Hey, that's the guy that starved

that little kid to death, ain't it?

Yeah, he's the skunk

who wanted to find out

how long babies could

go without eating.

"Surgeon held in starvation slaying. "

"Dr. Xavier to face trial. "

"Dr. X dies in electric chair. "

You mean to tell me you saw

that guy walking around alive?

- Yeah.

- Now I know you're bats.

Hey, what are you doing? You can't

take them clippings out of here.

Pinky, will you get me the file...

Hello, chief. I mean, ex-chief.

Hey, boss, it wasn't my fault.

Honest, I told him not to.

I thought I gave orders to you never

to show your ugly pan around here again.

I knew you didn't mean it.

Well, this time you're going

to regret knowing so much.

Now, wait a minute.

Get me the circulation department.

Tell them to send a

couple of boosters up here.

I want this Wichita

brainchild exterminated.

Now, wait a minute,

boss. I've got a story

that's going to crack the front

page of every newspaper in America.

When you read it, you're

gonna give me my job back.

- What do you have behind your back?

- Nothing. Nothing.

- Well.

- Circulations.

But it can't be.

This Dr. X was electrocuted.

Unless the execution

didn't take place.

Oh, but it did. I phoned

the warden and made sure.

Dr. Flegg came out

and claimed the body,

and the burial took place

in Greenlawn Cemetery.

But, Walt, that's impossible.

Okay. Let's go out to the

cemetery and find out tonight.

All right.

- I'll pick you up right after dinner.

- Okay.

How are we going to

get into Xavier's grave?

It's against the law, you know.

I know the old caretaker

in here. Leave it to me.

Well, sir,

here we are.

Yep. That's it.

Well, let's start, eh?

Yeah.

Boy, I never heard nails

sound like that before.

Well? What did I tell you? Empty.

I've been robbed.

No. There wasn't ever

anything in that coffin to rob.

Well, let's go, Mike.

Thanks, Pop. Put it back, will you?

I'd like to hear what your friend,

Dr. Flegg, has to say about this.

At least we can give

him a chance to explain.

It's true.

I'd hoped to keep it a secret

until I'd completed my experiments.

There's no use in my

denying it any longer.

Quesne and Dr. Xavier

are one and the same.

Do you mean to tell us

that you have discovered

a way to bring a man back to life?

Yes.

- It's incredible.

- Is it?

Remember, a hundred years ago,

anesthesia would have

seemed equally incredible.

Even 50 years back,

the possibility of x-ray

would have astounded the world.

Twenty years ago,

would anyone have believed

that the living, pulsing human heart

could be held in a surgeon's hand,

operated on, and the

patient walk again?

- But to revive a dead man.

- Yeah, I don't believe it.

You've told no one about

your visit to the cemetery?

No, sir.

Then come with me.

After you, gentlemen.

You're fortunate. I had this

equipment set up this afternoon

for some additional experimentation.

This animal died this morning.

Double glioma.

Please satisfy yourself

that he's quite dead.

Yeah.

He's dead, all right.

Too much emotion in

your make-up, Garrett.

You never would have

made a good surgeon.

An objective surgeon can't

afford the luxury of feelings.

Yes, sir.

Well, Rhodes?

No question about it.

Rigor mortis has set in.

We'll now prepare the

blood for decoagulation.

In Quesne's case, the electric

chair made this step unnecessary.

His body was already prepared.

Now, if you gentlemen will step to

the other side of that table, please.

This is ordinary rabbit blood,

taken from the animal

immediately after they die.

Rhodes, will you...

This is a special formula,

my own composition.

The compound ester,

in which essential blood

salts have been precipitated.

Naturally, Quesne

received a considerably larger dose.

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