Blood on the Stars by Brett Halliday

God’s sake, keep the recipe to yourself ,” groaned Gentry. “I just finished dinner and it isn’t setting too well as it is. Sure you’ve been in all evening, Mike?”
    “You can ask Aunt Minnie. I’ll call her to the phone and she’ll tell you—”
    “That’s okay,” Gentry said hastily. “Then you haven’t been on the Beach lifting a couple of hundred grand in rubies?”
    “Rubies?” Shayne scowled at the wall. “What’s up?”
    “Some bird got beaten up and robbed of a bracelet about an hour ago. Painter just called up and he thinks you engineered the deal.”
    “A ruby bracelet? Wait a minute, Will. Is the name—? Lucy,” he called, “what was the name of that cowherder we met in Voorland’s place buying a ruby bracelet last Monday?”
    “Dustin?” Lucy appeared in the kitchen doorway with a plate and dishcloth in her hands.
    “I thought,” said Gentry over the wire, “you said her name was Aunt Minnie.”
    “Dustin,” Shayne growled. “Mark Dustin. Is that the bird?”
    “So you do know about it,” said Gentry gravely. “Painter figures you’re the only one who knew about the bracelet and that Mrs. Dustin planned to wear it for the first time tonight.”
    “So he puts the finger on me for snatching it?”
    “You know Petey Painter,” Gentry said. “Even if he doesn’t actually think you pulled the job, you’ll do for a suspect until a better one comes along.”
    “What does he want with me?”
    “I think he’d appreciate it if you’d return the bracelet. I think you could make a deal with him if you played nice.”
    Shayne said, “Nuts.”
    “Sure it’s nuts,” Gentry agreed pleasantly, “but you’d better go over to the Sunlux and let Painter shake you down.”
    “Let him come over here if he wants to ask me fool questions.”
    “Wait a minute, Mike. He’s ready to swear out a warrant for you if you don’t lope over there pronto.”
    “The hell he is.”
    “I told him you were always glad to co-operate and I didn’t believe that would be necessary.” Gentry chuckled and added, “Is Aunt Minnie afraid to stay alone at night? Tim Rourke is hanging around the press room and I’ll get hold of him if you like and—”
    “Leave Tim out of this,” said Shayne shortly. “I’ll go over and tell the twerp I gave up snatching rocks last week. The Sunlux ?”
    “Mark Dustin’s suite. Is there a bracelet worth a hundred and eighty grand, Mike?”
    “That’s what Walter Voorland charged the sucker for it. It looked like junk to me, but if Earl Randolph okayed a policy on it, I could be wrong.”
    Gentry said, “Give my regards to Aunt Minnie,” and hung up.
    Shayne replaced the receiver and walked back to his chair, rubbing his angular chin thoughtfully. He poured a couple of ounces of cognac in his glass and held it up to the light.
    Lucy came in from the kitchen. “What was it about the ruby bracelet, Michael?”
    “It’s been snatched.”
    “Stolen? Already?”
    “About an hour ago.” Shayne scowled and let an ounce of cognac trickle down his throat.
    “This must be the first time she’s worn it,” Lucy exclaimed. “Remember that day they were buying it? Mr. Dustin wanted it delivered by Friday for his wife to wear to a concert.”
    Shayne nodded. “And this is Friday.”
    “So they want you to recover it for them,” said Lucy happily. “That’s nice. You always feel better when you’re working. And there should be a big reward. Goodness! A hundred and eighty thousand dollars!”
    “It isn’t quite as simple as that. Painter thinks I stole it.”
    “Painter?”
    “Peter Painter,” Shayne told her. “On the Beach. You’ve heard me speak of the little bastard often enough.”
    “Oh, yes. But how on earth could he get such a crazy idea, Michael?”
    “It isn’t difficult—not for Painter,” Shayne said morosely. “In this case it wasn’t difficult at all,” he added explosively. He held up his left hand with the five fingers