Crazy Ellens

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Lunch and Information
When I got back to L.A., it was late evening. I was very tired. I went straight 
to my apartment and I went to bed.
The next morning, I was up early and went for a run in the park. I was still 
tired, but I felt better after a shower and a good breakfast. I got into the 
Chrysler and drove downtown to my office.
I stopped at Crazy Ellen's for a coffee and a chat with Costas.
'Have you been away, Len?' Costas asked. 
I told him where I'd been.
'Some people have been looking for you,' Costas said. They said they knew 
you often came in here.'
I drank my coffee slowly. 'It's nice to be popular!' I thought. 
'Can you remember what these people looked like?' I asked. 
Costas has a very good memory — he is proud of it. 
'Well,' he said, wiping the bar with a cloth, 'the first visit was yesterday 
morning. Two heavies came in here. They were real big guys, in their twenties, 
with mean faces. Real tough guys. They weren't police. I think they were 
carrying guns. They said they wanted to see you about a bet.'
'That's strange,' I thought. But I'd been involved in a case about a missing 
racehorse a few weeks before. Some bad guys had been making illegal bets. 
Perhaps the heavies' visit was connected with that.
'And the second visit?' I asked Costas. 
'Also yesterday, in the afternoon,' he said. 'A young guy, about twenty-five, 
although he had grey hair. He looked rich. But he seemed really worried.'
'Mike Devine,' I thought. I finished my coffee. 
'Many thanks, Costas.' I said. 
I left Crazy Ellen's and went to my office. There had obviously been some 
visitors there while I had been away. They had emptied all the drawers of my 
desk and my filing cabinet onto the floor. That was OK. I never keep anything 
important at the office because people come and search it while I'm away! I 
picked up some of the papers and put them back in the filing cabinet. Then I sat 
down at my desk and I called Mike Devine. His answerphone took the call, and 
I left a message - Mike was probably still asleep.
After that I called Toni Trenton and arranged to meet her for lunch. She said 
she'd already got some information for me. We arranged to meet at Pastroudi's 
Italian restaurant at one o' clock. I spent the rest of the morning tidying my 
office and calling Mike Devine. But Mike didn't pick up his phone - his 
answerphone took the calls again.
I walked to Pastroudi's - it wasn't far from the office. I was sitting at my 
favourite table by the window when Toni came in. She had blue eyes, short 
dark hair and a warm smile. She was wearing a smart blue trouser suit. She 
looked great. I almost fell in love again!
Then I remembered why we had broken up. It had been nearly fifteen years 
before. Toni had said I had to choose between her and boxing. She didn't like to 

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L. A. Movie by Philip Prowse
37
see me being knocked about. I had chosen boxing and she now had a successful 
career as a crime reporter on the L.A. Messenger.
Toni kissed me on the cheek and we spent five minutes talking about what 
we had both been doing. I told her about Gail and Argentina. She told me about 
crime in L.A. Then we ordered our food.
'Right, Lenny,' Toni said when the waiter had gone. 'You asked me about 
three people. Do you want to hear about them? 
I smiled and nodded.
'OK. First, Mike Devine,' Toni said. 'He was the easiest -there's so much 
written about him in the papers. He's a play-boy. He goes out partying most 
nights. He's only interested in pleasure.'
'And he has lots of money,' I added.
Toni looked at me. 'Not any longer,' she said. 'At least, that's what people are 
saying. His father got tired of paying Mike's debts, and told him to stop