Where the Sidewalk Ends Page #7

to stand there without telling me,

even if you have to break

some police rule.

If you know something, Mark...

I can't stand thinking how he feels.

He's never done anything wrong.

You don't know him. He's sweet.

He's always felt

that everybody was his friend.

Now he's in jail, like a criminal.

You don't know what it is

to have your father in trouble.

My father was a thief.

Wh...

He's dead now. He died when I was 17

trying to shoot his way out of jail.

I worked all my life

to try to be different from him.

Mark...

Darling.

- You better go home.

- Why, Mark?

Because you're a sucker

for wrong guys like Ken and me.

You're not wrong.

I trust you with my whole heart.

I'm glad you told me about your father.

You're not like him.

I know it.

Thanks. I've figured out what to do.

About your dad.

What?

Don't ask any questions.

I've got to do things a certain way.

- You look tired. Get some sleep.

- Thanks.

I'm not afraid any more.

Everything's going to be all right,

isn't it?

Sure. It'll turn out all right.

- So long.

- I'll wait here for you.

- OK, Mac.

- You... you oughta be more delicate.

I almost hit my head on the door.

That's OK, Willie, the cab's insured.

I wasn't doing nothin', Mr Dixon,

just readin' my paper, that's all.

I'm not interested in that.

You're up for parole violation Monday.

- I know.

- Three more years, isn't it?

- That's right.

- Would you like to duck that?

You can't do nothin', Mr Dixon.

I can say I sent you up to Scalise's

hotel, using you for a stoolie.

Yeah?

Particularly if you prove it.

Like how?

- Don't play dumb!

- By squealin' about Morrison?

No, by telling me where Scalise is.

You're gonna tell me, Willie,

and save yourself three years

and a lot of trouble, bad trouble.

- Come on.

- What d'you call this, good trouble?

You're asking for it,

- and you're gonna get it.

- Wait, wait! Wait.

- They'll kill me, Mr Dixon.

- Where's Scalise?

I gotta find out first.

A telephone, let me get to a telephone.

OK.

- Hey, Mac, pull up at that bar.

- OK.

- Keep the change, Mac.

- Thank you, Mr Dixon.

Don't push me, they'll catch on.

Get in that booth. I won't listen.

Hello?

Hello, this is Willie Bender.

Who's this, Kramer?

Listen, Kramer,

I'm hangin' here by a shoelace.

What do you mean, what do I mean?

Mark Dixon is on my neck!

He's right outside the booth.

No, no, he can't hear nothin'.

He wants to see Scalise.

What's the idea calling here?

Ain't you got any brains in your head?

That copper'll grab this number.

- Who is it?

- Willie Bender. Dixon's got to him.

This is Scalise. Is Dixon alone?

It's OK, Willie.

Now, get this straight.

I'd like to see Mr Dixon,

but all by himself.

Here's the way I want you to work it.

Write this down, so if he's watching you

he'll know it's on the square.

Hold it just a second.

Go ahead.

Tell him I'll meet him

under the following conditions.

Yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

OK, I got it.

Yeah, yeah.

What did Scalise say?

I wasn't conversin' with Scalise,

I was talkin' to Kramer.

He says he'll contact Scalise in an hour,

and you should be in the East River

Drive across from Bellevue at 3:00am.

If everything's OK, he'll pick you up

there. He says you gotta come alone.

- What else?

- That's all.

- Thanks.

- Uh, what about my parole?

I done everything I could.

Hello, Blue Star Service?

Send a messenger to the Greystone

Hotel. You know where it is.

Have him wait in the lobby.

The name is Dixon, Mark Dixon.

Right away.

'Inspector Nicholas Foley.

'Dear Sir,

'I didn't have the guts to tell you this

while I was alive,

'because I didn't want to end up

like Sandy Dixon's kid.

'That's what every hood in New York

calls me:
Sandy Dixon's kid,

'and even in the department

behind my back.

'I wanted to end up as a cop

and that's what I'm going to do.

'I killed Kenneth Paine.

It was an accident.

'I went in to pinch him.

'He slugged me, I hit back.

'How was I to know he had

a silver plate in his head?

'But I covered it up like a mobster,

'because I couldn't shake loose

from what I was.

'Now I'm shaking loose.

'I'm going to get Scalise for you.

'He's a hood, like my old man was.

'You won't have to worry about

pinning the Morrison killing on him.

'You can pull him in for mine,

'and that will square things all around.

'Sincerely, Mark Dixon.'

Where's Scalise?

Scalise ain't here.

He left a message for you.

What is the message?

He's willing to see you

under certain conditions.

What conditions?

You gotta park your gun.

- Where is he?

- We got instructions.

It's no go with a rod.

Put it down here.

Anything else?

- We gotta frisk you.

- Go ahead. We're wasting time.

- He's clean.

- Come on.

It's OK.

Sit down, Mr Dixon.

I told the boys you'd come alone.

That's because I understand you, Mr Dixon.

What I don't understand

is your reason for calling on me

at this time.

I said sit down.

I never saw a man as full of hate as you.

I consider it almost humorous

the way you came hot-footing it

after me alone.

I'm in the clear on the Morrison job.

The police are satisfied to let me alone,

but you're still hot on my neck as always.

Sit down, Dixon. I'm not kiddin'.

It don't add up, Dixon,

you stayin' on my neck like this.

Maybe you thought you could start me

running by coming after me.

Well, we're not running, Dixon. We're

all fixed to leave tomorrow morning,

passports in order and everything.

And I'm leavin' you locked in here.

It'll give us something to laugh about.

You sitting here for a couple of days

trying desperately to attract attention.

It'll maybe give the department

a laugh too.

Well, go ahead, Mr Dixon.

You came out here for something.

Let's hear what it is.

You've got something on your mind,

the way you look, Mr Dixon.

I'm gonna give you some advice,

and you'd better listen carefully.

You start mussin' me up

and you're gonna get it, d'you hear?

You'll only throw one punch

and they'll let you have it.

I've given them instructions.

- Hold it. No more shooting.

- He asked for it.

Sure. Sure, he asked for it.

That's what he came here for:

so we should rub him out.

He's crazy.

I saw when I looked in his eyes.

Kramer, get your stuff, fix him up.

That's a fancy way

of trying to frame somebody,

getting yourself knocked off.

A guy's gotta be out of his head for that.

I didn't know a guy could hate

that much, not even you.

And all because your old man

set me up in business.

I got it added up now, Dixon.

I should've figured it last night,

when you tried to hang

the Paine job on me.

You were the first cop

to get to Paine's house.

You found Paine, slugged him, killed

him. You took the body to the river.

You had to slug a night watchman.

And you've been walkin' around

ever since, half cop and half killer.

The man who hates crooks.

The law that works by itself.

The cop who can't stand

to see a killer loose.

So what is he?

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