Chapter Three
As he drove past the outskirts of town where Knight Park was located, Frank contemplated the magnitude of the crime that had been ordered and was about to be staged. Any man who would shoot a judge in a crowded restaurant would think nothing of ordering a witness to be killed as well. He had no tangible proof, but Frank's intuition told him that Carl "Cornhusker" Tillman's blatant display of disregard for human life was the very reason so many of the patrons in the restaurant that awful day three months earlier had developed selective blindness or amnesia when questioned about the murder. Of the 20 customers in the restaurant, only Britt Reid admitted to seeing Tillman shoot Judge Branson. Frank knew that Britt, much like his father before him, possessed no fear of criminals like Tillman and his thugs. The unshakable testimony of a well-respected businessman would most likely serve as a millstone around Tillman's neck, a fact that made Britt dangerous in Tillman's eyes.
Frank parked his car in the parking lot of the Good Knight Diner, which sat near the entrance to Knight Park. He went inside and ordered a cup of coffee to go. By the time he left with his purchase Britt had pulled in the parking lot in his white convertible with the top up. Britt slid across the seat into the passenger seat as Frank approached the driver's door. Frank opened the door and extended the Styrofoam cup in Britt's direction. "Coffee?"
"Are you kidding?" Britt said with a laugh. "It'll keep me up all night and ruin my beauty sleep."
Frank laughed as he got behind the wheel of Britt's car. He removed the lid and poured the coffee out onto the parking lot gravel. "I certainly don't need it," he said as he closed the door. "This has me jittery enough as it is."
Britt's car turned back toward town. After about a mile of driving in silence Britt pointed to a gravel turn-off leading into a wooded area. "Kato's parked in there," he told Frank. Frank pulled off the road, coming to a stop with the driver windows of Britt's car and the Black Beauty aligned. Britt produced a pocket watch from his jacket. He handed the gold timepiece to Frank. "This," he said, pointing to the winding stem, "activates the two-way radio. We'll stay in touch with you."
Frank admired the modification Kato had made to the otherwise normally working watch. "Right," he said.
Britt's finger touched another stem on the watch. "Oh," he said, "and, don't press that button. You'll hear a buzz in your ear if you do."
Frank laughed. The watch also contained a device that signaled a transmitter hidden in the right temple of Frank's glasses. The signal, while invaluable in alerting Frank to prearranged activities of the Green Hornet, was annoying in the District Attorney's ear.
"Good luck," Frank said as Britt walked between the two cars. Kato, in his black uniform and mask, nodded in reply. "'Good luck'," Frank repeated as he watched Britt open the rear door of the Black Beauty. "That may be the understatement of the year." He waved farewell to the two men as he put Britt's car in reverse.
"You're late!" the Hornet snapped at Michael Reeves through the open window of the Black Beauty's right rear door.
"Sorry," Reeves said. He had just exited the front door of his house, obviously rushed and ill-prepared for his departure as if he were being thrown out of the house rather than leaving voluntarily.
"If you can afford my services," the Hornet said, still aggravated by the lack of punctuality, "you can afford to buy a working wristwatch. If you can't afford one, your rap sheet says you're well-versed enough in stealing to acquire one somehow." Reeves gave a disinterested nod in response to the Hornet's chiding as he stopped at the Hornet's car. "Here's the plan," the Hornet said. "I'm going to give Reid an 'anonymous' call to get him to leave his house. I'll chase him to a deserted place and kill him."
"Why chase?" Reeves said with an expression that indicated he wanted immediate results.
"Simple, Reeves," the Hornet said in his typical gruff tone. "Unlike your boss, I don't want a lot of witnesses. Now, get in your car and let's get going." Reeves turned and started for the blue sedan parked outside of the garage in his driveway. "Reeves?" the Hornet called, causing the man to turn around. "If you can't keep up with me, don't bother."
"I can keep up with you," Reeves snapped as he opened his car door.
Kato laughed after the Hornet rolled his window up. "'I can keep up'," he repeated. "Famous last words."
The two cars drove toward the intended victim's house. As they neared Britt's home the Hornet picked the microphone on the two-way radio up. "Frank?" he called.
Frank sat behind the wheel of Britt's car in front of the townhouse. Britt's fob watch lay on the passenger seat, set for transmission and reception, along with a small reel-to-reel tape player. When he heard the voice come through the watch he picked it up and pressed the stem that Britt had instructed him to use. "Yes, Britt?"
"We're about three blocks away," the Hornet said. "Get ready."
Frank turned the key in the ignition and started the engine. He heaved a deep sigh as he pulled the car into drive. His foot rested on the brake, awaiting the signal from the Hornet to start.
Kato activated the scanner. A compartment in the trunk opened and a scanner rose from its holding place. The scanner flew off into the air. Kato kept an eye on the man in the car behind the Black Beauty via the rear view mirror. "He's watching the scanner," Kato advised.
"Good. That should be enough of a show for him. Recall the scanner." Kato pressed a button and the scanner returned to its compartment in the back of the car. The Hornet depressed the microphone button. "Okay, Frank," he said, "take off."
"Right," Frank replied over the radio.
"Hey," the Hornet said, "drive carefully, huh?"
"I won't put a scratch on it," Frank chuckled. "I'll leave that to you." Frank slid the watch into his suit jacket's breast pocket and started down the street, still sporting the smile caused by his friend's sarcastic remark.
Reeves saw the white convertible about a block ahead of the Black Beauty. His face broke into a grin as the Black Beauty increased speed slightly to chase after Britt's car. Within three blocks Reeves realized he was obeying the speed limit, thereby losing his place in the deadly convoy. He shook his head at the irony of conspiring to murder someone yet worrying about a traffic ticket.
The chase continued at safe speeds until the three cars moved beyond the city limits into the countryside. Frank increased the speed on the car and the Black Beauty followed suit. Reeves gunned his car when he lagged behind the other cars. He momentarily stared in amazement at the speedometer's reading of 70, which still left him tailing at an increasing rate.
Frank saw the wooded area where the Black Beauty had parked during the earlier rendezvous. "We're going to blow some smoke," Frank heard from the watch in his pocket. "That should block Reeves' view so you can make that turn into Knight Park." Frank refused to retrieve the watch to reply. The unusually high rate of speed forced the attorney to keep his hands glued to the steering wheel.
Kato pressed a button amid the two columns of switches on the console beneath his armrest. A mixture of steam and dye, giving the illusion of smoke, billowed from a small opening in the center of the rear bumper. The smoke accomplished its purpose, as Reeves slammed on his brakes to avoid the possibility of hitting whatever caused the sudden onslaught of smoke that blocked his vision.
Frank hit the brakes and negotiated the turn into Knight Park with an ease that surprised him. The Black Beauty followed suit, smoke still shooting out the back end. After Kato straightened the car he turned the smoke off.
Reeves' car slowed to a crawl because of the smoke obstructing his view. "What's going on," he mumbled to himself, bobbing his head from side to side to find a hole in the manmade fog. The smoke quickly dissipated, showing an empty road in front of Reeves. Only the trail of smoke emanating from the side road provided the clue as to where the cars had gone. His heart and his car's speed increased and he turned onto the park's main road. He followed the trail of smoke to a gravel side road, where the dirt from the car's tires caused the gray dust in the air to increase in density again. Reeves moved slowly for a few yards until the air cleared. Ahead of him he saw the stopped Black Beauty. Britt's car had run into a dead end and turned around, approximately fifty feet from the attacking car. The two sets of headlights faced each other.
"Here he comes," Kato said when he saw Reeves pull up.
The Hornet turned toward the back of the car. "Reeves is here, Frank," he called into the trunk where Frank hid. The scanner's compartment doors were open to allow air and conversation into the trunk.
Reeves jumped out of his car and ran to the back door of the Black Beauty. The Hornet rolled the window down. "I thought you said you could keep up," the Hornet smirked.
"What do you want from me, Hornet?" Britt Reid's voice shouted from the cornered car. The statement was the only thing on the tape player Frank left playing on the front seat.
The Hornet sat calmly, making no motion to attack the car. After a few seconds that seemed to be hours to the impatient man, Reeves leaned down to the open window and snapped, "Well, do something! Kill him!"
The Hornet turned in an instant and grabbed Reeves' lapels. Reeves braced himself against the side of the car with his hands in fear that the Hornet would pull him through the small open space. "Listen, Reeves," the Hornet snapped, "I don't tell you how to do your business. Don't tell me how to do mine, or I'll put you in that car with Reid. You got that?"
"Sorry," Reeves gulped. The Hornet released Reeves with a shove.
"Activate the rockets," the Hornet instructed. Kato pushed another button on his bank of switches. Two compartments below the front bumper opened, revealing a number of rockets on each side.
"Activated," Kato announced.
The Hornet put his gloved finger on a button and pushed it. A rocket sailed out of the Black Beauty into the front of the white convertible. The car exploded into flames upon impact, the front half of the car shooting an orange ball of fire and black smoke into the air.
Reeves jumped at the sound of the explosion. He stood in stunned silence for a moment, mesmerized by the display of firepower the Hornet literally had at his fingertips. The anger and fear of moments earlier melted away as jubilation overtook him. "He's dead!" Reeves shouted, clapping his hands with glee as if watching his favorite team win a sporting event. "I can't believe it! Britt Reid's dead! I cannot wait to see the expression on D.A. Scanlon's face in the morning!"
Because his face was blocked from Reeves' vision by the direction he was facing, Kato was able to smile in reaction to Reeves' enthusiasm. The slight motion of the Hornet's head conveyed the similar emotion he had to hold internally. "Okay, Mr. Reeves," the Hornet said, "let's get going. You have a payment to make."
"Oh, yes," Reeves said through his smile, "I'll definitely give you what's coming to you." Reeves bounded back to his car with a childlike glee. The two cars turned around and left, the black smoke and orange fire engulfing Britt's car in their rear view mirrors.
Reeves turned back toward town when he reached the main road. Kato kept the Black Beauty some distance behind Reeves' car. After Reeves turned Kato stopped the car. The Hornet jumped out of the back seat and opened the trunk, allowing Frank to climb out. "Thanks, Frank," the Hornet said.
"Don't mention me in your report to the insurance company," Frank said with a smile. He started toward a path that cut through trees to the parking lot of the Good Knight Diner to retrieve his car. He turned momentarily to watch the Black Beauty turn toward town, and to see the fiery glow in the near distance rise from Britt's car.
Reeves threw open the door to the study in his home. "Britt Reid is dead!" he joyously announced to the five men in the room. "I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. He's dead!" Reeves turned back toward the door and bowed in the Hornet's direction. "And we can thank the Green Hornet for that favor!"
As the Hornet and Kato entered the study they heard a tortured scream of "NO!" in reaction to Reeves' news. The masked men recognized the voice immediately. The Hornet's head jerked left upon hearing the shout. He saw Mike Axford tied to a straight back chair in front of the desk with the typewriter. A matching chair sat to Mike's left with Lenore Case bound to it. "You're gonna pay for this!" Mike snarled at the Hornet.
"Actually," the Hornet replied with a smile and a gesture toward Reeves,"he's going to pay--me." He turned to Reeves and said, "I'd be happy to take care of them for you as well. No extra charge."
"They're no bother," Reeves replied as he walked toward his desk. "Now that Reid's out of the way they won't bother to show up in court tomorrow. I'll keep them here tonight to ensure that. The reporter's nothing more than a material witness, anyway. As for your payment…" Reeves reached into a drawer and produced a revolver. He pointed the gun at the Hornet. Two other men in the room also drew weapons and trained them on the two masked men. "There won't be one," Reeves announced. "You see, my boss doesn't believe in paying for anything he can have done for free."
The expression on the portion of the Hornet's face that was unobstructed by his mask did not change at the sight of the guns. "Then I hope you insist on getting your salary in advance."
In the instant that Reeves took to sarcastically smile at the Hornet's comment Kato sprang into action. He kept a number of hornet-shaped darts, seven inches in length, inside his pocket, and additional darts tucked behind the gloves on his hand. With a flick of his wrist a dart moved into his hand. He fired the dart at the right bicep of one of the men with a gun. The speed and force with which Kato threw the dart sent the sharp tip through the man's clothing and deep into his flesh. The pain instantly registered and the man dropped his gun.
Before the first dart found its mark Kato had a second one in his hand. He aimed for Reeves' hand. Reeves' reaction time was much slower than the speed Kato had developed as a result of years of practice and perfection of the martial arts of his Asian heritage. By the time Reeves raised his hand Kato's second dart was en route. The dart penetrated Reeves' right hand. In reaction Reeves' hand jerked to the right as his finger, involuntarily reacting to the dart sticking out of the back of his hand, pulled the trigger. The bullet struck the third man with a gun in the stomach.
The Hornet doubled his fist and punched Delmore, the closest man to him, while Delmore was still frozen in reaction to the sound of the gun firing and the accidental shooting of his cohort. Delmore doubled over when the Hornet's fist landed in the stomach. Unprepared to fight, Delmore was helpless against the Hornet's onslaught and quickly collapsed to the floor.
Kato's immediate interest was tending to Reeves, the only man left with a weapon in his hand. Kato jumped onto the desk and kicked Reeves in the face. The gun dropped to the ground as Reeves collapsed into the chair. The force of Kato's kick caused Reeves to continue falling in the opposite direction. The chair tipped over backward and Reeves' head banged against the floor.
Porter and one other man were left standing. Neither appeared to want any part of the two masked men, but had no option but to engage in a fight. Kato jumped off the desk with his right foot aimed toward Porter. The sole of his right shoe caught Porter in the chest and knocked him backwards. While Porter caught his breath Kato went after the last man. The man put his fists up more in self-defense than in acceptance of an unspoken invitation to fight. Kato's hands moved past the man's outstretched arms as if they were not there, hitting him in the stomach and chest three times. When the man doubled over Kato finished him off with a blow to the neck. Porter stood erect just long enough to be the target of another kick from Kato. Porter went backwards, falling over a sofa.
With Tillman's associates defeated, the Hornet turned his attention to the two captives in the room while Kato checked on the man who had been shot. Kato checked for a pulse then shook his head. "He's dead," he announced as he walked to the Hornet's side.
Mike struggled against the ropes that held him to the chair. He was older, shorter, and not physically capable of fighting against the Hornet. In spite of that, Reeves' announcement that the Hornet had assassinated Mike's employer and friend made the reporter desperate to at least die inflicting some pain on the masked man. "Get away from me!" Mike shouted as the Hornet neared him. "Since you're gonna kill me the way you killed Britt, I'm gonna give you a piece of my mind. You are…"
"Shut up, Axford," the Hornet interrupted. "Britt Reid is very much alive."
"Don't lie to me!" Mike snarled. "He just said he saw you kill him."
"He saw me blow up Reid's car," the Hornet said. "Reid was not in it. I have him in hiding. That's where you're going."
"You'll have to kill me," Mike said defiantly. "I'm not going anywhere with you, unless it's to watch you walk down Death Row, where you belong."
The Hornet reached into his coat and removed the Hornet Gun. One of Kato's seemingly endless inventions, the gun fired green sleeping gas instead of bullets. The gas had an instantaneous effect on anyone inhaling it. The Hornet stepped between the two chairs to block Casey from accidentally inhaling the green gas and shot a puff into Mike's face. Within three seconds he slumped unconscious in the chair.
After Mike fell into slumber the Hornet turned to Casey. "And what are you doing here?" he asked quietly.
"I stayed late," Casey explained, "talking to Mike and Tim about the trial. Mike and I left the building together. When we did, three of those men grabbed us and brought us here."
The Hornet untied Mike's sleeping form while Kato held his shoulders to prevent him from falling out of the chair once free. After he was untied Kato picked him up and started toward the car. The Hornet undid Casey's binds and helped her to her feet. "Let's get out of here," he said. "I can't call Frank right now, so these guys will have to wait until later to be picked up."
Casey turned around to get her purse, sitting on the desk next to the typewriter. Her eyes caught the words typed on the sheet of typing paper still wrapped around the platen. "Look," she called to the Hornet, pointing at the paper.
The Hornet stepped behind the desk and read the two typed lines on the page. The first line was the jumbled mess of capitalized letters and figures. Beneath the message Tillman had given Reeves in the court was the translation Delmore had typed out: "KILL BRITT REID IN A WAY THAT DOES NOT IMPLICATE US." The Hornet slapped the shiny silver carriage return arm until the paper rolled out of the typewriter. He folded the paper and stored the note in an inside pocket. "Scanlon will want that, too," he commented. "If they can trace the typewriter to the one Tillman used to type this, he'll have an extra charge to worry about: conspiracy to commit murder." The Hornet gently patted Casey's shoulder. "Let's go."
Mike's form lay in the front passenger seat of the Black Beauty, slumped against the door. Kato was behind the wheel, ready to put the car into motion the instant the Hornet and Casey were inside. The two ran from the house to the car. The Hornet opened the door for Casey. She slid across the back seat to save the Hornet from having to walk around the car. With the gunshot having sounded, the likelihood that someone heard and phoned the police was high, necessitating a quick departure.
"Where to?" Kato asked as the car sped away from Reeves' house.
"Let's try home first," the Hornet replied.