The Thin Line, also known as Taxicab Crackdown, is a mystery short story by Isaac Asimov.
Part of the Union Club series, it was first published in the March 1981 issue of Gallery magazine. Later collected in The Union Club Mysteries.
Summary[]
At the Union Club, Griswold recounts the story of a fellow agent, Archie Davidson, who was skilled at cultivating informants within enemy organizations. Archie was found murdered in a city street, appearing to be the victim of a mugging. Griswold's department was less concerned with revenge than with the urgent need to re-establish contact with Archie's key informant, a link known only to Archie himself.
Griswold was sent to investigate the death. While reviewing the contents of Archie's pockets with a local detective, he found a small, wadded piece of paper with the words "CALL TAXICAB" written in straggly capitals. The positioning of the paper and the pen suggested it was Archie's final act, a desperate attempt to leave a clue.
Griswold deduced that "TAXICAB" was not an instruction but a coded telephone number. Using the letters on a telephone keypad, he translated the word into the numerical sequence. Dialing this number successfully reconnected the department with Archie's informant, allowing them to salvage the intelligence operation and gather crucial information.
Characters[]
- Griswold
- Club Member (the narrator)
- Baranov
- Jennings
- Archie Davidson
- Archie's Informer
- The local Detective
- The Officer