Ace McCracker P.I. (as O/T as they come) (oh--and long)

[DougBrennan]

The name's McCracker, Ace McCracker, and when I'm not busy showing a dame a good time, I do a little PI work. That's right, I'm a private eye, a dick, a flatfoot, a shamus. And I do alright too. I'd do even better, if I didn't have a taste for dames. And booze. And horses.

On the particular day in question, which was no day in particular, but it was hot and muggy, I was in my office, feet up on the desk, eyes narrowed to slits against the sunshine threatening to take a death grip on my brain. If I was thinking about anything I was thinking that maybe I'd showed Jacki, last night's dame du jour a little too good a time. And as I was thinking about not thinking about that, there was a knock on the door. Always the gracious host, I hollered "Yeah?" and gingerly lowered my feet to the ground.

And in walked a pair of ladies. Now a dame is a dame, but these dames were ladies! One in black, the other in red. Dresses, that is. Other than that, they looked pretty much the same. A pair of 'em. They wanted to tell me their story, but I interrupted. "Don't let the digs fool you ladies. I'm a pro. I don't go into anything blind. Let's see some money up front." So they posted a fee. A nice one. And then I listened.

They'd been together since they were girls, and just recently, never mind how, they's learned that there might be another sibling, but who knew where. They had vague memories of a third, but it had been so long.

I wanted to get my facts straight. "so there could be three of you? A set of ladies?" They agreed. And they went on to tell me about their "guardian," a man who they knew only as Big Slick. Every time they tried to find their sister, they said, Big Slick would rear up and halt them in their tracks. They didn't know how he did it, maybe it was a conspiracy, maybe as they put it "the party was rigged" or maybe he just had a map of the actions they always took."So you had a pattern," I asked. "And Big Slick had a map of this pattern? A--what should we call it--a pattern map?" They nodded eagerly.

A few ideas were whirling around in my head. "This Big slick fellow," I asked, "does he have a friend? A buddy name of King, maybe?" Again they nodded. And I knew. This guy King, he hung out at The Flop, a local dive, and he specialized in intimidation. And he was scary, and big, and mean, and ugly, and stoooopid. But just the type to scare a couple of ladies, to keep them from continuing their search. But the other thing I knew about King was that he rarely packed heat, and he was usually harmless. So I told the ladies to walk on past the flop, down to the turn of the road. And continue on to the river. And then they'd know whether they had a set or not.

"But hey," I told them "even if it's just the two of you, that's OK. You don't need to be scared of the King. And you don't have to look for Big slick around every corner." And then I grinned. "But if Ace here ever comes after you, look out!"

They thanked me, a little too profusely, considering my condition from last night, and then left. I didn't collect any more money, but I didn't need it. I had my fee for not seeing the case blind, and besides, I knew about a horse running at The Riverside Turf Club in a couple of hours, a little filly named Royal Lady.

Think I'll bet her to win.

Ace

[Oski]

Any relation to Phil McCrackin?

[jek187]

Haha, great post Doug. Keep em coming.

[Stagemusic]

Well done. I can't wait for the next installment. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[thomastem]

Keep this up and someday your writing may be more famous than Steven Punk's.

That's a good thing....I think.

[Prickly Pete]

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more famous than Steven Punk's.


[/ QUOTE ]

Lol TT. But that's just not possible.