1931, Chicago. In this time of Prohibition and Depression, gangs run the city, and most of the cops are too dumb or crooked to do anything about it. Sure, Al Capone had gotten himself arrested for tax evasion, but everyone knew it wouldn't stick.

Which is why you quit the force and went into business for yourself. You always admired Sherlock Holmes, so you bill yourself as a Consulting Detective. Pay's not so good, and the hours are as long as they are dismal, but at least nobody bosses you around.

And right now you got a visitor. Two, actually. A dame - you know the type, blonde hair, killer legs, and always falling for the wrong guy - and O'Malley. He's one of the good cops, still on the beat. When he heard the dame's story, he brought her straight to you.

"Johnny went out last night around 8 o'clock," she says. "I asked him when he'd be home, and he told me to shut my yap before he shut it for me. He goes out pretty much every night, I guess. But last night he'd changed his pants after he got home from work, and when I checked his pockets - you know, not snooping or nothing, but I was gonna do laundry - I found this note."

Trembling, she hands it to you.

"Look at that last line," she sniffles. "I don't know who Abe is, and I don't know who Zeb is, but he's gonna kill me, ain't he? He must think I've been cheatin' or something."

"I thought your name was Loretta," you reply, scanning the note.

"Yeah, but Johnny calls me honey sometimes. Who else could it be?"

"Actually," says O'Malley, "Could be anybody. To Loretta, he's Good-Time Johnny. To us, he's Johnny the Roach. One of Kahn's goons."

Terrific. Kahn, sometimes known as Genghis. Head of the cleverly named gang known as Kahn's Cons. After Capone went down, Kahn came up. Guy was smart, ruthless, and had half the town running in fear.

You look Loretta straight in the eye, and turn on the old charm to reassure her. "I don't think you're in any danger, Loretta. This message is some kind of code. A message, maybe, from Kahn to Johnny. But just to be safe, I'm going to hang on to this and see if I can figure it out, and if you come across any more like this, you bring them to me, okay?"

"You want me to rat him out? I love Johnny. If he ain't trying to kill me, I ain't turning him over to the cops. No way." She starts to get up.

"Listen to me, Loretta." No charm now. You reassured her too much already. "I don't know what this message says. Maybe it says 'Take Loretta someplace nice for dinner, on me.' But maybe it says 'Kill Loretta with a sledgehammer.' I don't know, and I may not know unless you bring me more of these. Understand?"

"Yeah, okay. I understand. But just you, not the cops." She glances at O'Malley suspiciously.

"Okay, no cops," you tell her, and she nods, relieved. O'Malley catches your eye. Sure, no cops. Until you crack this code, and then O'Malley gets a bust and a citation from the mayor, and you get... well, at least the satisfaction of helping to get another thug off the streets.

They leave you sitting there, staring at the note. Can you figure it out?