Mystery Magazine

ALFRED DECEMBER SOC iRTRim MYSTERY MAGAZINE m^î •^fc ^^ lEW stories resented by the master of SUSPENS LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED December 1967 Dear Reader: The year is growing old, and in rapid succession we will be gorged on turkey, depleted by gifting, and made liars by resolutions. However, none o£ this is really objectionable, for they are volun tary acts—like breathing. Gift-wise, I have already heard of something for the man who has everything. The woman who would like some recompense may consider a necktie made of a new nonslip fabric, Squeezese. Once knotted, the tie will never slip, and is guaranteed to shrink relentlessly with the first drop of gravy. For the distaffer who has everything, the impoverished man might enjoy giving a box of "Miss Terry" bath salts. It requires only one soaking in this substance to make the litde lady's whereabouts unknown. Both products are manufactured by the Happy Family Chemical Company. If, for some reason, there is no out let near you, there is a gift idea par excellence on Page 133. Now, gorge on the pre-holiday gifts that follow, wherein all concerned are resolved to do their best, whatever spe cialty that might be. 'j'liîcî W FRFn HITrHPnrK'C MVCTPRV MIRITINP ^ôl- l^' ^ô- 12. December 1967. Single copies 50 HLritLU nilbnbUbnO miSICni mHUH£lnC cents, subscriptions SO.OO lor one year m the united States and Possessions: elsewhere $7.00 (In U.S. funds) lor one year. Published monthly by H. S. D. Publications, Inc.. 2441 Beach Court, Riviera Beach, Fla. 33404. Publications offlce. 10 Ferry Street, Concord, N, H. 03302. Second class postage paid at Concord, N, H, Copyright H. S. D. Publications, Inc., 1967. All rights reserved. Protection secured under the International and Pan American copyright convention. Title registered U. S. Pat. OflQce. Reproduction or use without express permission of editorial or pictorial content in any manner is pro hibited. Postage must accompany manuscripts If return is desired but no restwnsibillty will be assumed for unsolicited material. Manuscripts and changes of addresses should be sent to Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Maga zine, 2441 Beach Court, Riviera Beach, Fla. 33404. No similarity between any of the names, characters, persons and/or Institutions appearing la this magazine and those of any living or dead person or institution Is intended and any similarity which may exist is purely coincidental. Printed in the U.S.A. LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED VOLUME 12, NO. 12 DECEMBER 1967 ALFRED HITCBCOCK'S mystery magazine CONTENTS NOVELETTE THE MAN WHO HATED TURKEY by Elijah Ellis ,. 143 SHORT STORIES THE MIRACLE MOTIVE by Steve April . 2 THE MOVERS by Miel Tanburn 19 I'LL BE LOVING YOU by Fletcher Flora 26 THAT'S THE WAY SHE IS by Thotnasina Weber 41 THE WAY TO THE ATTIC by Joseph Payne Brennan 48 OPPORTUNITY by Bill Pronzini 56 WITHDRAWAL SLIP by Lawrence Wasser 70 ANOTHER WAR by Edward D. Hoch 75 THE PERFECT Jps by Samuel Orlich fr 83 PAID IN FULL by Barbara Faith . • 90 BLOOD AND LUCK by Hilda Cushing 98 THE SITTING DUCK by Carroll Mayers 112 . PoiNT-oF-AiM by Edward Y. Breese '. 120 A SWEET YOUNG THING by Mary Linn Roby .'. , 135 Richard E. Decker, Publisher Gladys Foster Decker, Editorial Director Ernest M. Hutter, Editor Patricia Hitchcock Associate Editor Marguerite Blair Deacon Art Director LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED The person who succeeds beyond his expectations often realizes, belatedly, "there is also merit in \nowing when to stop. A.r 6:45 A.M. Sunday, carrying quietly between services. Thirty- only her small, old purse and a three years old, tall and slim, she worn, tooled leather Bible, Miss dressed as plainly as possible, wore Nancy Evans left for church. She no makeup. Her golden hair was went to church every night; on dyed a grayish-black and pulled Saturdays and Sundays she usually into a severe bun, in an effort to spent • all day in church, sitting nullify, the warm beauty of her pale face and blue eyes. Her long, shapely legs were hidden in the long skirt of her obviously outmod- . ed worn suit, and she wore box- toed oxfords. As Miss Evans left the entrance of her modest apartment building there was the short bark of a gun from a car parked across the street, the loud sound instantly lost in the early morning quiet. Miss Evans staggered, then fell, a slug through her heart. The car drove off and Miss Evans' corpse wasn't found until 8 a.m. In the precinct station,'before her body was taken to the morgue, De tective Hal Fisher studied the pret ty face for almost a half hour, part ly because he had nothing else to do but mostly because he was fas cinated by her beauty. Detective Fisher was something STEVE APRIL of a mild joke around the squad ALFRED HITCHCOCK S MYSTERY MAGAZINE LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED 31 '(JTrr^-O'-^TpciDCl?/—i' -f^^^ - —'^QB^^^^^^ THE MIRACLE MOTIVE LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED room, where he was a temporary crowded office. Nor were matters "paper tearer," a job which both helped by Lt. Saunders, his- boss, embarrassed and bored him. Sever telling Fisher every day, "Look al weeks before, Patrohnan Fisher boy, I got a busy house. Why don't had walked into a liquor store you go to one of the movie houses holdup. Three goons had emptied on Broadway, spend a few hours their guns at Fisher as he had looking for missing persons, or gunned one to death and wounded something.''" the other two. All told, nineteen Hal was too much of an eager shots had been fired and somehow beaver to goof off, even officially, so Fisher's enormous frame hadn't now, as he brought in Saunders' been hit. He had been promoted to lunch of a sandwich and coffee, Detective, Third Grade in a short trying not to spill the container ceremony in the Commissioner's with his awkward right hand, he office, before a battery of TV cam told his boss, "Sir, I've been read eras. After shaking the Commis ing the reports on the murder of sioner's hand, Hal had turned, Nancy Evans two days ago." stumbled over a camera cable and "Yeah?" Saunders said impar in trying; to break his fall, had frac tiently, reading a report on a stolen tured several bones in his shoulder car. "We put that in the Open Files. and arm. Homicide agrees it was the work He now wore a plaster cast from of a nut. This Miss Evans lived his left shoulder to the wrist and alone, was. some kind of a religious had been assigned to light duty in fanatic, had no relatives or friends, the detective squad room. This em including boyfriends, worked as a barrassed Hal because the squad typist in the same office for the last room was small and crowded, and . thirteen years. Absolutely no mo his heavyweight figure was always tive." in the way. Also, it was awkward "But there always has to be a for him to file and do any clerk motive for murder, even—" work since he was a lefty. Actually "Not when it's the work oi a there was little for him to do and nut," Saunders cut in. he was often sent out for coffee and "Well, sir, there has to be a sandwiches. Fisher didn't really mixed-up motive there, too, in the mind being an errand boy; what guy's crazy mind. If it was the alarmed him was the fact he work of a loon, unless he's just looked forward to these errands as starting, there would be a pattern a means of getting out of the of other senseless killings. We have- ALFRED HITCHCOCK S MYSTERY MAGAZINE LICENSED TO UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED n't had such a pattern in the city "See for yourself; alrhost like a for two years and, according to the cell, just that cot, plain table and a files, none in this area for the last chair. No books, radio or TV, not six years. Sir, I'd like to take a even curtains, just shades." crack at the case." Hal glanced around the nearly; "Fine, fine, go out and look bare room, opened a closet door. around, take your time. Any spe Except for an old raincoat and a cial reason for your interest in this pair of boots, a faded yellow robe, case, Fisher?" the closet was empty. "This all the "I saw the corpse and one thing clothes she had?" struck me: here was a woman of "That's all. You'd think a young real beauty, like she could have woman ... I mean, take iriy daiugh- been on the stage, yet she went out ter, spends every penny she has of her way to hide it, dress plainly. buying jiinky clothes. I understand Why? I feel that's the only thing Miss Evans had nearly ten grand going for us, that the motive for in the bank, too. She was so quiet her death is mixed up in that, you hardly knew she lived here. somehow." She'd come home from work with "You look into it, full steam, a little food, around six and maybe Fisher. Do us all—you some good a half hour later she'd leave for to get out of the office," Lt. Saun church, return about nine.

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