Blind Alleys E-Book

Carroll John Daly

• Herausgeber: Black Mask
• Kategorie: Krimi
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

Five one-hundred-dollar bills call Race Williams to an appointment. When he starts he hasn't the least idea what it's all about, and the further he gets into it, the more confused it becomes except that every hand seems against him. It is not long before Race gets mad, which is all that is needed to make him tear loose and see it through. Story #16 in the Race Williams series. Carroll John Daly (1889–1958) was the creator of the first hard-boiled private eye story, predating Dashiell Hammett's first Continental Op story by several months. Daly's classic character, Race Williams, was one of the most popular fiction characters of the pulps, and the direct inspiration for Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer.

Leseprobe

Blind Alleys

Race Williams book #16

A Black Mask Classic

by

Carroll John Daly

Black Mask

Copyright Information

© 2017 Steeger Properties, LLC. Published by arrangement with Steeger Properties, LLC, agent for the Estate of Carroll John Daly.

Publication History:

“Blind Alleys” originally appeared in the April 1927 issue of Black Mask magazine.

No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the publisher.

“Race Williams” is a trademark of the Estate of Carroll John Daly. “Black Mask” is a trademark of Steeger Properties, LLC, and registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Blind Alleys

Chapter 1

The rain-driven fog deadened the street lamps to distant, ghostly blurs. The pounding, blowing hail beat against my face and just above my coat collar, biting into the skin with the sting of sharp pine needles. As I plodded along I would turn my head and peer closely at the intervals of shop windows. A pause, and a step forward again. The street numbers would make one dizzy. I didn’t have an umbrella—I never carry one. I like to see what’s coming in all directions. It’s better to be wet above ground than dry beneath it. With me “long life and the pursuit of liberty” demand an unobstructed vision. Race Williams—Confidential Agent, would look pretty hiding behind an umbrella. “Hit the bull’s-eye and get a good cigar” sort of business. Outside I was soaked but inside I was dry—no water had touched my guns and after all my health lies mostly in the barrel of a forty-four.