Penelope came about a quarter awake and heard an uncouth voice say, "You fool! You got the dame! Take her back and try again! And don't try to fool around with her!" and she went back to oblivion.

Sometime later she was being roughly shaken and she regained most of her consciousness, aware that she was laying down and was most uncomfortable. Chongx was doing the shaking and the barman was with him. The discomfort was caused by a none-too-clean cement floor.

"I sweat ta God, Chongx," the barman was pleading, "I thought it was you in the back room who told me ta bring in the Rutledge dame. You've know me for a long time -- would I ever cross you?"

"Chloroformed. How old fashioned!" said Chongx in amazement. "Can you sit up now?" he asked Penelope.

She sat at the dirty table in the middle of the dirty room and knew she was going to vomit. The barman got a dirty bucket and very soon she was wiping her lips with a piece of a dirty towel. Chongx handed her a glass with a green liquid in it that smelled of mint.

"Drink it. It's cream da ment. It'll help ya, I know."

She sipped the drink. It was creme de menthe and it did help.

Mentally, she took stock. To her surprise she could feel that everything in her waist pack was still there. She put her hand into her pocket and pulled something out.

"I want them, Chongx, I want them very badly. No one makes a Rutledge throw up." There was a click and suddenly she held a knife with a five inch blade. The single dirty light bulb glinted off the switchblade's very sharp point. If anyone had looked they would have seen her eyes were now cold, as cold as liquid nitrogen. The wrath of the Rutledges was about to descend upon the Windy City.

(There will be more and more and more driv...er, action packed episodes.