Shake her: “You worked for Dwight Gilette.”
Stylish–that cigarette prop helped. “Yes, and I was arrested for shoplifting in 1946. Did Ainge mention anything–”
“Don’t tell me things you might regret.”
A smile–cheap–not _that_ smile. “So you’re my guardian angel.”
I kicked a TV over. “Don’t patronize me.”
Not a blink: “Then what do you want me to do?”
Side 82
Ellroy – White Jazz
“Quit stealing from Hughes, apologize to him and fulfill the stipulations of your contract.”
Her raincoat slid off–bare shoulders, knife scars. “Never.”
I leaned closer. “You’ve gone as far as you can on looks and charm, so use your brains and do the smart thing.”
Smiling: “Don’t _you_ patronize me.”
_That_ smile–I smiled back. “Why?”
“_Why?_ Because I was _dismissable_ to him. Because last year I was carhopping and one of his ‘talent scouts’ saw me win a dance contest. He got me an
‘audition,’ which consisted of me taking off my brassiere and posing for pictures, which Mr. Hughes liked. Do you know what it’s like to get screwed by a man who keeps naked pictures of you and six thousand other girls in his Rolodex?”
“Nice, but I’m not buying.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, I think you got bored and moved on. You’re an actress, and the style angle of jilting Howard Hughes appealed to you. You figured you could get yourself out of trouble, because you’ve been in shitloads of trouble before.”
“_Why_, Mr. Klein?”
“Why what?”
“Why are you putting yourself to such trouble to keep me out of trouble?”
“I can appreciate style.”
“No, I don’t believe you. And what else did Georgie Ainge say about me?”
“Nothing. What else did the Vecchio brothers say about me?”
Laughing: “Touch said he used to have a crush on you. Chick said you’re dangerous. Mickey said he’s never seen you with a woman, so maybe that rules out the standard reason for your being interested in me. I’m only thinking that there must be a payoff involved somewhere.”
Scope the room–books, art–taste she got somewhere. “Mickey’s on the skids. If you thought you traded Hughes up for a big-time gangster, you’re wrong.”
She chained cigarettes. “You’re right, I miscalculated.”
“Then square things with Hughes.”
“Never.”
“Do it. Get us both out of trouble.”
“No. Like you said, I’ve been in trouble before.”
Zero fear–daring me to say I KNOW.
“You should see yourself on camera, Miss Bledsoe. You’re laughing at the whole thing, and it’s real stylish. Too bad the movie’s headed for drive-ins in Dogdick, Arkansas. Too bad no men who can help your career will see it.”
A flush–one split second. “I’m not as beholden to men as you think I am.”
“I didn’t say you liked it, I just meant you know it’s the game.”
Side 83
Ellroy – White Jazz
“Like being a bagman and a strikebreaker?”
“Yeah, wholesome stuff. Like you and Mickey Cohen.”
Smoke rings–nice. “I’m not sleeping with him.”
“Good, because guys have been trying to kill him for years, and it’s the people around him who get hurt.”
“He was something once, wasn’t he?”
“He had style.”
“Which we both know you appreciate.”
This portrait on a shelf–a ghoul woman. “Who’s that?”
“That’s Vampira. She’s the hostess of an awful horror TV show. I used to carhop her, and she gave me pointers on how to act in your own movie when you’re in someone else’s movie.”
Shaky hands–I wanted to touch her.
“Are you fond of Mickey, Mr. Klein?”
“Sure. He had it once, so it’s rough to see him diving for scraps.”
“Do you think he’s desperate?”
“_Attack of the Atomic Vampire?_”
Glenda laughed and coughed smoke. “It’s worse than you think. Sid Frizell is putting in all this gore and incest, so Mickey’s afraid they’ll have to book it straight into drive-ins to make a profit.”
I fixed the TV pile. “Be smart and go back to Hughes.”
“No. Frizell’s directing some stag films on the side, though. He has a place in Lynwood fixed up with mirrored bedrooms, so maybe I could get work there.”
“Not your style. Does Mickey know about it?”
“He’s pretending he doesn’t, but Sid and Wylie Bullock have been talking it up.