Excellent condition.
1020
THE
COMPLETE
BOOK
MEET ME
AT THE
MORGUE
A tough mystery about a kidnaping
that led to four MURDERS!
BOOKS
INC.
JOHN ROSS MACDONALD
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"JOHN ROSS MACDONALD IS
THE FINEST WRITER OF 'HARD-
BOILED PRIVATE DETECTIVE
STORIES SINCE RAYMOND
CHANDLER....
The New York Times
"ANOTHER FINE MACDONALD
STORY... ABOVE ANY HARD-
BOILED CONTEMPORARY."
San Francisco Chronicle
Meet Me at the Morgue is the story of a kid-
naping that led to four murders. In his search
for the killer, Howard Cross digs deep into the
Los Angeles underworld, finding along the way
a beautiful, lost adolescent mourning a dead
lover, a suitcase hidden under an aging sadist's
bed, and a slovenly gentleman with an icepick in
his neck. John Ross Macdonald has never written
a story quite like this, and neither has anyone
else.
Meet Me at the Morgue was originally
published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
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This Pocket Book includes every word contained in the
original, higher-priced edition. It is printed from brand-new
plates made from completely reset, clear, easy-to-read type.
MEET ME AT THE MORGUE
Alfred A. Knopf edition published May, 1953
Dollar Mystery Guild selection August, 1953
POCKET BOOK edition published October, 1954
1st printing...
....August, 1954
A condensed version of this novel under the title Experience with Evil
appeared in Cosmopolitan magazine, March, 1953.
L
Copyright, 1953, by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. All rights reserved. Library of
Congress Catalog Card Number: 52-12208. This POCKET Booк edition is pub-
lished by arrangement with Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. Printed in the U. S. A
CKET BOOK
POCKE
Notice: POCKET BOOK editions are published in the United States by Poci
Books, Inc., in Canada by Pocket Books of Canada, Ltd. Trade Ma
registered in the United States and British Patent Offices by Pock
Books, Inc., and registered in Canada by Pocket Books of Canads L
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CAST OF CHARACTERS
FRED MINER-ex-war hero with a dead man in his
past and very little in his future.
HOWARD CROSS-probation officer whose persistent
belief in Miner astounds everyone, including him-
self
JAMIE JOHNSON-four-year-old who's worth every
penny of his $50,000 ransom..
ANN DEVON-Cross's lovely assistant who is frankly
ashamed of her feeling for.
Page
1
LARRY SEIFEL-unpredictable, self-assured lawyer
who can abandon any female-except one....
AMY MINER-a bleeding heart who is certain of her
husband's innocence for a very good reason............
ABEL JOHNSON-wealthy retired executive, who
guards his young wife's heart as carefully as he
guards his own.......
HELEN JOHNSON-who nursed and then married
Abel, since he had half a million good points in
his favor
JOE TRENTINO-a blind newsdealer with second
sight
LIEUTENANT CLEAT-who is obsessed with a hatred
of evil
FOREST-F.B.I. agent who listens efficiently and
never forgets a word..
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CAST OF CHARAC
FLORABELLE SEIFEL-too much a mother, too little
a human
SAM DRESSEN-sheriff's officer who dreads cadavers
almost as much as he dreads being turned out to
pasture
BOURKE private eye who can spot a pretty face a
mile off but miss something fishy right under his
nose
ART LEMP-who works either side of the law and
winds up with the pick of the crop..
MOLLY FAWN-a frustrated ham who acts out many
parts for many one-man audiences...
MISS HILDA TRENTON-Molly's landlady who
heard evil, saw evil, and knew no reason not to
speak of it..
KERRY SNOW-a dapper photographer who wore a
stolen suit to the most important date of his life....
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TO MY FAVORITE IN-LAWS
DOROTHY & CLARENCE
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"I'M BEAUTIFUL,"
Molly said. "Some very good
judges consider me beautiful.
I have classical measurements:
35-23-35. And I have talent...."
My nerves were pulled wire-
thin. "Shut up!" I said.
She was suddenly too quiet. I
looked away from the speeding
road and saw the automatic in
her hand,
"Stop the car," Molly ordered.
"This is the end of the ride. You
got plenty on me. You can put
me away for a long time."
"I'm not interested in putting
you away," I said. "I only want
to find a place where old men
won't beat you and young men
won't die on you."
With a quick grab, I twisted the
gun out of her hand, slipped it
into my coat pocket, and drove
her to the Neptune Hotel in
Long Beach.
Cover painting by Clark Hulings
THIS IS A
GENUINE
BOOK
ROCKEFELLER
CENTER
NEW YORK 20, N.Y.
PRINTED IN U.S.A.
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CHAPTER
I met the boy on the morning of
the kidnapping. It was a bright and blowing day. The wind
was fresh from the sea, and the piled white cubes of the city
sparkled under a swept blue sky. I had to force myself to go
to work.
A bronze-painted sports car with a long foreign nose was
standing at the curb in front of the County Annex building.
I parked in my regular space, a few yards behind it. So far
as I knew, there was only one bronze Jaguar in town, It
belonged to Abel Johnson. I wasn't surprised when Fred
Miner, Johnson's driver, emerged from my second-floor of-
fice and started down the outside steps to the street.
Fred reached the sidewalk and turned in my direction, a
stocky man in his middle thirties who walked with a pecul-
jar stiff-backed roll. The faded Navy suntans he always wore
had darker patches on the sleeve, where his Chief's stripes
and hash-mark had been removed. His only concession to
his civilian occupation was a black, peaked chauffeur's cap,
which shadowed his eyes. He passed my car without seeing
me, his face closed in thought.
There was a yelp and a flurry of movement from the
sports car. A small boy with a head of bright red hair scram-
bled over the door and launched himself like a missile at
Fred's legs. The man's face opened in a laugh of pure de-
light. Taking the boy under the arms, he swung him upside
down in the air and set him back on his feet:
"Knock it off now, swabbie. This is no time for games.
Come to attention."
"Okay, Fred," the boy chirped. "Aye, aye, sir, I mean."
He brought his feet together and arched his back.
"Now wipe that smile off your face or I'll break you
down to apprentice seaman and take away your privileges
for fifteen years."
"
"Aye, aye, sir."