I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for I walk by night. I know many strange tales, hidden in the hearts of men and women who have stepped into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless terrors of which they dare not speak. And now, the Whistler's strange story, Lonely Highway. As the lights of the heavy truck pierced the darkness, illuminating the lonely highway far ahead, the driver watched the rear view mirror almost as much as he did the road. The car, far back, was now gaining and honking its horn strangely. As the car drew alongside, there was sudden recognition. The truck slowed down, ground slowly to a halt at the crest of a hill. A truck driver climbed down, and a tall man, Ted Mallory, stepped from the car that had been following. You are tall, aren't you, Ted? Tall, easy to look at, and ruthless. You walk forward to meet your partner, because this entire matter has to be handled quickly, doesn't it, Ted? Glad I caught up with you, Harry. What's up, Ted? I had to talk to you, Harry. Well, what, did you keep till tomorrow? I didn't know what to think until I recognized the car. No, no, it won't keep, Harry. It's too important. Something on the holdups we've been having? Not exactly. Frankly, I thought that was just what was happening. I guess you know that's why I took this run off myself tonight. Sure, Harry, I know all about it. Well, it's got to stop, Ted. We're losing drivers. We're losing our insurance next. I know, Harry, that's why I want to sell. Now, look, we've been all through that. If you chase me out here tonight, just... No, no, the arguing's over. As a matter of fact, Harry, the partnership's over, too. What are you talking about? Just this. I'm tired of it. Tired of the business, tired of you calling the turns. So, like I said, it's over. Why do you... Hey, where did you get that gun? Never mind that, Harry. The important question is, how do I expect to get away with shooting you? It's simple. Just another gang robbery. You thought that's what it was yourself when I started honking the horn and waving you down. Yeah, but what's that got to do with it? Look, Ted, you can't pull off a thing like this. Oh, yes, I can. I got it all figured out, partner. Simple arithmetic. First, this. That was your first move, wasn't it, Ted? And it's over. Now, your second move. You lift your partner's body back into the truck cab, release the air brakes, and leak clear as the huge vehicle begins to roll forward and start down the hill. You watch, almost fascinated, the truck's running lights clearly visible as she rushes headlong toward a curve below. And then you gasp in surprise as she rounds that curve perfectly. You run to the crest of the hill and look down. The truck is making every curve perfectly, with your murdered partner at the wheel. You hurry back to your car, get behind the wheel and race down the highway. But it's no use, is it? There's no sign of a crash, no truck. It's disappeared, vanished into the night. There's nothing you can do but head back, fast, to your apartment. Hello? Ted? Oh, Ted. Hello? Hello? Who is this? Ted, I'm sorry. It's Helen. Helen Murdock. Helen. What's the matter? It's Harry. The police just notified me. Now please, Helen, pull yourself together. What happened? They found his body a few hours ago by the side of the highway. He's dead. By the side of the highway? You mean he went off the road or something, crashed his truck? No, Ted, there was no sign of the truck. They just found Harry. I'll be right over, Helen. I'll be there in ten minutes. Your careful plan went wrong, didn't it, Ted? The truck at the side of the road, the shooting of your partner, then watching the heavy vehicle start down the curving highway and take every turn as though perfectly driven and controlled. Next morning, you'll hear the newsboys shouting the story of another hijacking, the disappearance of the truck owned by your freight line. Your mind whirls as you wonder what could have happened. If it was the work of a gang with a member hiding in the back of the truck, if so, there was a witness to what you did, wasn't there, Ted? Someone who saw you kill Harry Murdock. Late that afternoon, you receive a police report. The truck has been found parked near the Hilltop Cafe on Highway 101. You take a driver with you, hurry to the spot. Find a highway patrolman waiting there for you. Good afternoon, officer. I'm Ted Mallory. Well, there it is, Mr. Mallory. There's your truck. Well, the cargo, I don't suppose... Clean. They took everything. Everything. Everything. Including my partner's life. I don't think they planned to do it, Mr. Mallory. What makes you think that? Well, up to last night, they'd steered clear of Murdock. Usually knocked the driver out, tied him up and left him in a truck. I see. Last night, someone in the gang had a nervous trigger finger. Murderous rat. We'll get him, Mr. Mallory. Don't you worry about that. I know, officer, I know. Be easy, though. After what happened, the killing, the gang will probably lay low for a time, even break up or move on somewhere else. You think they'll move on? My guess is they'll move on. But as I said, Mr. Mallory, we'll find the man who killed your partner. You can count on it. We'll get him. You turn, nod to your driver and wait till he drives the truck away. Then with the police officer, you walk back to the cafe. A few moments later, he too drives off. Inside, you sit at the counter having a cup of coffee, thinking over what the officer said. And then a man sits down next to you. Very unfortunate, Mr. Mallory, about your partner's death. Yes. Thanks. It was unfortunate. Work of a gang, they say. That's right. Only we know different, don't we? What did you say? Don't get excited. Better put your cup down, Mr. Mallory, or you're spilling your coffee. Much too good to waste. What are you driving at? Just this, friend. I was in the back of that truck. Oh, sure, sure. It was the work of a gang, all right, the hijacking part. Nice haul. Only... Only what? I just get a small share, you know, and it's a risky business. So? So now I'm in a new business. Legitimate. How do you figure? You worked it out for me, Mr. Mallory. Simple arithmetic. One, you kill your partner. Two, I see you do it. Three, you are going to take over the lines yourself, buy off Harry's widow for a song. And four? Four? I'm going to let you do it. Only one little bit of addition there. You count me in, too. A silent partner in exchange for silence. Well, I guess I really haven't much of a choice, have I, Mr. Phillips, Lenny Phillips. OK, Phillips. I'll talk to Harry's widow tomorrow. Make a deal. I thought you'd see it my way. Dad, I do hope you understand why I don't want to sell. It all came so suddenly. I want time to think. Well, whatever you say, Helen, I must admit it surprises me a little. I'll be of help, too. Really, I will. By the way, Harry used to talk. You men have needed someone like me around that freight office to take charge of the accounts. Never mind, Helen. I said I understood, didn't I? We'll find something for you to do. Again, the unexpected has happened, hasn't it, Ted? Helen Murdoch has turned down your offer to buy her out. She declared she intends to remain with the Freight Lines as a partner. And you wonder why. You can't quite accept her explanation, can you? No. You feel certain there's something else behind her move. Her decision complicates matters, doesn't it? It's definite cause for alarm. And there's still Lenny Phillips to think about. The following morning, Lenny walks into your office. Morning, Teddy. I just dropped in to see how you made out with Harry's widow last night. I didn't. What do you mean? I thought you had an appointment. Oh, I saw, Helen, but she wouldn't sell. What? She turned down my offer. That's too bad. Maybe you better make her a more attractive offer. It won't do any good. Maybe you'd better be a little bit more persuasive. Listen, Phillips, I tried my best. Try again. I will, but you've got to give me time. What for? Well, right now Helen's sort of at a loss, doesn't know what to do with herself. She wants to work around the office here, type, do some filing, anything to occupy her mind. I figure she'll get tired of the routine after a while and bow out. In the meantime, what am I supposed to do? Sit around while she cuts into my profits? Not me. That's not the way I got it planned. This partnership is just between the two of us. 50-50. But I told you she won't sell. Like I said, you'll have to be a little bit more persuasive. You get rid of her... Hold it, hold it. Someone's coming. Morning, Ted. I... Oh, I didn't know you had anyone with you. Oh, that's okay, Helen. Mr. Phillips is just leaving. Come in. Mr. Phillips, Mrs. Murdoch. How do you do, Mr. Phillips? Mrs. Murdoch? I'm sorry to hear what happened about Harry, your husband. He was a real guy. Real. Thank you. I, um, understand you're going to take up where Harry left off, stay with the line. Yes, I really don't know too much about the business, but I'm willing to learn. I do hope Ted will be patient with me. Of course, Helen, of course. Well, I've got to be shoving off, Ted. I've got an appointment. Nice meeting you, Mrs. Murdoch. Thank you. Goodbye, Mr. Phillips. See you around, eh, Ted? Yeah, sure. I hope I didn't rush him away. No, no, no. He just dropped in to say how sorry he was about... about what happened. Was he a friend of Harry's? Yeah. Well, Ted, where do I hang my hat and coat? I'm ready to go to work. Well, sure. You can use Harry's desk over there. I didn't know you'd be in so sooner. I had to straighten things out. Well, I'm rather anxious to get started, Ted. I hope you don't mind my moving in like this. It won't be much of a problem, really. If I do say so myself, I do catch on to things quickly. Very quickly. You spend the greater part of the morning going over the office routine with Helen. And as the week goes by, you notice she seems to become more and more interested in the work. You begin to wonder if perhaps you haven't been wrong about her and the pressure on you lessens. But there's still Lenny Phillips to deal with, isn't there, Ted? Yes. Day after day, he telephones you, becomes more insistent that you get rid of Helen, buy her out, and you plead for more time. And then Lenny's call suddenly ceases. Two weeks pass, and you wonder why you don't hear from him. Then one afternoon... Shall I get that, Ted? Thanks, I'll now get it. Hello? Hello, Teddy boy. I want to talk with you in private right away. I got news for you and you won't like it. Oh? There's a bar not far from your office, Frank's place. I know, but look... You can't wait, partner. Come on over, now. Helen? Yes? I've got to go out of the office for a while. If I don't get back by 5.30... I'll close up. Okay. Oh, and about dinner tonight. All right if I stop by to pick you up around 7? That'll be fine, Ted. 7 o'clock. Good. That'll give me time to see the party you just found. Okay, Phillips, what's on your mind? Sit down. Look, if it's about Helen, I'm taking her out to dinner tonight. I'm going to ask her again about something. Sit down. All right. What's happened? You trying to pull a fast one? What do you mean? Your partner's widow. What did you tell her about me? I didn't tell her anything. Why should I? She's been asking about me. What? Yeah, in that little coffee shop across from your office. Guy runs it as a pal of mine. He told me. Why would she do that? I thought maybe you might know. No, no, I don't know. She must have had some reason for asking. Yeah, she... Wait a minute. The day you met her in the office, she asked me if you were a friend of Harry's, and I said you were. Maybe she asked about you at the coffee shop just out of curiosity. Maybe. But I don't like curious women. You better see to it that this one doesn't get too curious. You'd almost made up your mind about Helen, hadn't you, Ted? Yes, you were finally prepared to accept her explanation, the reason she gave you for continuing as an active partner in the freight line. It was something for her to do to occupy her time, something to help her over the shock of Harry's sudden death. But now she's inquiring about Lenny Phillips. And you don't like that, do you? No. And you've got to do something. You think about it as you hurry to your apartment and pace the floor. And then finally an idea occurs to you. It's a way out, isn't it, Ted? And you decide to move fast. Hello? Hello, Phillips, Ted. What's on your mind? Look, I think you're right about Helen. She's getting too curious. When I got back to the office, she started asking me questions about you. Something's got to be done about that. And I have an idea. Suppose we meet and talk it over. Frank's place will do, say in half an hour. I'll be there. You've thought it all out very carefully, haven't you, Ted? Yes. But it isn't Helen that worries you, is it? Lenny presents a more serious threat, doesn't he? If Lenny Phillips were out of the way, no one could prove anything against you. Ten minutes later, you stand in the shadows across the street from his apartment building. When he comes out, you follow him around back to a small garage. As he opens the door, you move in quickly behind him and bring the gun butt down hard. And then you carry Lenny inside, prop him behind the wheel of his car, and then start the motor. Then you hurry out, close the garage doors behind you. Oh, hello, Ted. Come in. I'm sorry if I'm a little late. It's quite all right. Oh, I picked some drinks. Fine. We thought it'd be nice if we had our cocktails here. Besides, I wanted to talk to you, Ted. Good. I hope it's... Sit down, please. Oh, sure. Oh, what's on your mind, Helen? It's about Harry. And, well, it's not going to be easy for me to tell you this, Ted. What is it? I know how close the two of you were. You started in together, built up a fine business. Harry was the best friend I ever had, Helen. He really wasn't, Ted. What? He was mixed up with a gang of hijackers, getting a cut from them. Harry? Yes. When I found out, I threatened to tell you about it, but he just laughed. He knew I wouldn't say a word. I can't believe it. Harry mixed up with that gang? It's true, Ted. And they killed him. Remember that man I met in the office some time ago, Lenny Phillips? Sure. What about him? I'm pretty sure he's the man who used to telephone Harry. Thought I recognized his voice. He's one of the gang. Phillips, one of Harry's hijacking gang? Yes. Probably those who killed Harry, too. Maybe he did. Maybe that's why he came to the office to see you. What do you mean, Helen? To find out if he could how much you knew, if you suspected Harry was involved with the gang. You mean he was afraid Harry might have told me something about them? Yes. Have you seen him since? No, I haven't. Ted, I think this is a matter we should take to the police. Don't you? I think you're right. I think you should tell them what you know and what you suspect. We've got to do all we can to find Harry's murderer. I'm glad you feel this way about it, Ted. We'll talk to the police in the morning. In the morning. All right, now you said something about drinks. Of course. All right, we'll drink a toast, Helen. To us. To the continued success of our freight line. You're certain you're in the clear now, aren't you, Ted? Helen Murdoch doesn't suspect you of being involved in her husband's murder. And you're glad you moved as quickly as you did to eliminate Lenny Phillips, the one and only witness to the slay. In the morning, Helen will tell the police what she knows about Phillips, and they'll find him. But too late. Yes, even now as you dine with Helen in a famous downtown restaurant, you're certain your troubles are over. Shortly after eleven, you return Helen to her apartment, and she invites you in for a final nightcap. A few moments later. Well, I wonder who that could be. Rather late to be calling. I'll get it, Helen. Yes, this is Mrs. Murdoch's apartment, isn't it? That's right. I'm Lieutenant Emerson. Homicide. May I see you? Of course. Come in. Thanks. I'm Mrs. Murdoch, Lieutenant. What is it? You know a man named Phillips? Lenny Phillips, Mrs. Murdoch? Why, yes. Someone tried to kill him tonight. Fortunately, the attempt was unsuccessful. Phillips is at the emergency hospital now, but is in no shape to talk, at least for the moment. That's why I'm here, to ask a few questions. Someone tried to kill Phillips. Do you have any idea who? We know who. Thanks to the private detective you hired a few days ago. Private detective? You hired a private detective, Helen? Yes, to follow Phillips. I'm sure he was a member of that hijacking gang that killed Harry. I wanted to find out everything we could about him before they got to you. Your private eye found out plenty tonight. He gave us a complete description of the would-be killer and the number of the license plates on his car. According to the Motor Vehicle Bureau, the car is owned by a man named Ted Mallory, your late husband's partner. Now your partner, Mrs. Murdoch. Know where we can find him right now? The Whistler. Listen next week when once again the United States Air Forces in Europe present The Whistler.
