The jurors filed into court, glancing curiously at Mason and the white-faced defendant.

  Judge Sedgwick emerged from chambers and took his place on the bench.

  Mason heaved a deep sigh and swung his chair around so as to face the witness stand.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Hamilton Burger put on his case with the deadly, well-rehearsed precision of a lawyer who has carefully blueprinted every possible development.

  He introduced a map of the premises. He introduced the testimony of the police officers who had been summoned when the body was discovered. The ballistic expert told of the characteristics of the fatal bullet and the test bullets and stated that beyond question, the fatal bullet had been fired from the revolver that had been found on the side of the steep hill.

  The taxi driver, who had picked Mrs Harlan up at the Union Station, had driven her to her house, then to the parking lot, and from there to the building where Mason had his office, made a positive identification.

  By the time of the noon recess, the district attorney had laid all the statistical groundwork of the corpus delicti. By afternoon he was ready to put on his array of witnesses who would clinch the case against the defendant.

  Veteran courthouse attachés, who were following the trial with interest, realized that Jerome Keddie, the taxi driver whose testimony Mason had riddled at the time of the preliminary hearing, was being saved until such time as the prosecution had forged such a deadly chain of evidence that the failure of Keddie to make an absolute identification would be a minor matter.

  After the noon adjournment, Hamilton Burger arose impressively. “Call Jacques Lamont to the stand.”

  Lamont came forward, was sworn, gave his name and address, said that his occupation was that of a parking lot attendant.

  “Are you acquainted with the defendant in this case?”

  “By sight, yes.”

  “In what way?”

  “There is a beauty parlour about half a block down the street from my parking lot. She patronizes this beauty parlour regularly and leaves her car in my parking lot.”

  “Directing your attention to the third day of June of this year, did you see the defendant?”

  “I did.”

  “At what time?”

  “At about two-thirty.”

  “And what happened?”

  “She parked her car in the parking lot.”

  “Did you see her again?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “When?”

  “At about four o’clock, a little before four, I guess.”

  “What did she do, if anything?”

  “She entered the parking lot. She was looking around, apparently looking for me and–”

  “Never mind your conclusions. Just state what happened.”

  “Well, she looked around. When she didn’t see anybody, she went directly to her car. She opened the glove compartment.”

  “Where were you at the time?”

  “As it happened, I had just been moving a car to let my assistant bring out a car which had been parked behind it. I was backing up, so that I was sitting in a car directly parallel with the defendant’s car.”

  “How close were you to the glove compartment of the defendant’s car?”

  “Seven or eight feet.”

  “What did you see the defendant do, if anything?”

  “She opened the glove compartment, took out a pack of cigarettes and a gun.”

  “What do you mean by a gun?”

  “It was a blued steel revolver.”

  “I’m going to ask you to look at plaintiff’s Exhibit D in this case, and ask if you can identify it as the gun.”

  “Well, I can’t say it was that gun. But I can say that the gun she put in her purse looked just like it. It was about the same size and appearance.”

  “Very well. Then what happened?”

  “She walked out of the parking lot and entered a car that was waiting by the entrance, a car that was being driven by a man.”

  “Did you get a good look at that man?”

  “No, sir, I did not.”

  “You couldn’t identify him if you saw him again?”

  “No, sir, all I know is that it was a man who was driving a car, a blue two-tone sedan. I didn’t notice the make.”

  “Then what happened?”

  “The defendant went away in that car.”

  “When did you next see the defendant?”

  “Later on, on the afternoon of the third, around five-forty-five.”

  “And what did she do, if anything?”

  “She drove up in a taxicab.”

  “Where were you at the time?”

  “I had been down at the far end of the parking lot with a car. I was walking back.”

  “What did the defendant do, if anything?”

  “She walked directly to her car.”

  “And what did you do?”

  “I thought she was going to take it out, so I–”

  “Never mind what you thought. What did you do?”

  “I walked rapidly toward the car, so that if she was wanting to pay the parking fees and take it out, I’d be handy.”

  “What did you see her do, if anything?”

  “I saw her open the glove compartment of her car.”

  “What did she do?”

  “She was doing something at the glove compartment.”

  “Could you see what she was doing?”

  “Sort of fumbling.”

  “Then what?”

  “Then she made a telephone call at the phone booth, and walked back to the taxicab which had been kept waiting.”

  “When did you next see her?”

  “It was about half an hour later.”

  “What did she do then?”

  “She came and turned in her check, paid the parking fees, and picked up her car.”

  Hamilton Burger turned triumphantly to Perry Mason. “Cross-examine,” he said.

  Mason glanced at the clock, yawned, said, “No questions.”

  “What?” Hamilton Burger shouted, surprised.

  “No questions,” Mason repeated.

  Hamilton Burger fought back his surprise; then, with the air of a man bringing a difficult task to a triumphant conclusion, said, “Jamison Bell Gibbs, take the stand.”

  Gibbs gave his name, age, occupation and address to the court reporter, then turned expectantly to Hamilton Burger.

  “You say your occupation is operating a service station?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Are you acquainted with the defendant?”

  “Very well, yes, sir.”

  “Do you, from time to time, service her automobile?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “When was the last time you serviced her automobile?”

  “On the third of June of this year quite early in the morning.”

  “Who brought the automobile into your station for service?”

  “The defendant.”

  “What did she tell you?”

  “She told me she was in a hurry, that she wanted a rush lubricating job and the oil changed in the crankcase.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I serviced the car, gave it a complete lube job, checked the tyres and the battery.”

  “Did she ask you to do anything else?”

  “She didn’t, no, sir. However, I did clean out the front of the car. I noticed it was a little dirty. Quite a bit of dust had been tracked in, and I took out the floor mats and cleaned it.”

  “And then what?”

  “I left a note containing the charges for the service, which is what I always do.”

  “What did you do with that note?”

  “I slipped it in the edge of the glove compartment.”

  “What happened?”

  “The latch on the glove compartment wasn’t entirely closed, and the paper slipped through, down to the bottom. I was afraid she wouldn’t see it, so I pressed the catch that opens the glove compartment and picked up the paper.”

  “What did you see, if anything?”

  Mason glanced at the jurors and saw that they were leaning forward with rapt interest.

  “I noticed there was a gun in the glove compartment.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Some binoculars … that is, I assume they were binoculars. They were in the case.”

  “What was the relative position of the gun and the binocular case?”

  “The gun was to the front of the glove compartment.”

  “Nearest your hand as you opened the glove compartment?”

  “Yes.”

  “And where were the binoculars?”

  “In the back part of the glove compartment.”

  “Now, what did you do with reference to that gun?”

  “Well,” the witness said, “sometimes things get stolen out of glove compartments and–”

  “Never mind that,” Hamilton Burger interrupted sharply. “I’m asking you to tell exactly what you did. You can discuss the reasons for what you did when you are asked the proper questions on cross-examination. I am only asking you to tell this jury what you did.”

  “I took the gun out and handled it.”

  “Are you familiar with revolvers?”

  “Oh, yes. I’m a gun lover.”

  “Have you ever fired a gun?”

  “Yes, indeed, many times.”

  “I hand you this revolver which has been introduced in evidence and ask you if you have ever seen it before.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Where?”

  “In the glove compartment of the defendant’s car.”

  “The same gun?”

  “Well, of course, I didn’t take down the number on the gun, but it was the same make, model and style.”

  “Cross-examine,” Hamilton Burger snapped triumphantly.

  “No questions,” Mason said casually.

  “Your Honour,” Hamilton Burger said, “my next witness is a hostile witness. I have her under subpoena and am going to have to put her on the stand out of order because of various reasons, which I do not think are necessary to go into at this time. I may also state, if the Court please, that her testimony at this time will perhaps have no apparent connection with the case. However, I can assure the Court that it will be connected up, that it is important, and I ask permission of the Court to call this hostile witness out of order at this time.”

  “Very well,” Judge Sedgwick ruled, “you may call the witness. If there are objections to the questions, the Court will rule on these objections as they come up.”

  “Mrs Ruth Marvel,” Hamilton Burger said.

  “Oh, good Lord!” Sybil Harlan exclaimed in a despairing whisper.

  “Take it easy,” Mason warned under his breath. “Remember now, a poker face! The jurors are watching you.”

  Mason glanced at the clock, settled back in his chair as though all of these dramatic witnesses the district attorney was bringing forward were, after all, testifying to no more than routine preliminary matters.

  Ruth Marvel had evidently been crying and was apparently angry. She permitted herself to be sworn, gave her name, address, took the witness stand, avoided Sybil Harlan’s eyes and glared angrily at the district attorney.

  “You have been a friend of the defendant for some time?” Hamilton Burger asked suavely.

  “Yes,” the witness snapped.

  “You knew her on the third of June of this year?”

  “Yes.”

  “You saw her on that date?”

  “Yes. Several times.”

  “What was the last time you saw her?”

  “I don’t know the exact time. In the evening.”

  “The early evening?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did you do at that time?”

  “I went with her to look at some property.”

  “Where?”

  “I don’t remember.”

  “What kind of property?”

  “Real estate.”

  “More than one parcel?”

  “I don’t remember.”

  “Did she tell you she was interested in property?”

  “She asked me to go with her.”

  “Did she tell you she was interested in property?”

  “She asked me to go with her.”

  “Did she tell you she was interested in property?”

  “She told me to tell the taxi driver we were to look at property.”

  “Now then, Mrs Marvel,” Hamilton Burger said, “you’re testifying in a murder case. You’re under oath. There are severe penalties for perjury. There are severe penalties for becoming an accessory after the fact. I am going to ask you if the defendant made a statement to you as to the reason, the real reason, she wanted to engage that taxi.”

  “Now just a moment, Your Honour,” Mason said. “I don’t like to object to routine questions of these preliminary witnesses–”

  “Preliminary witnesses!” Hamilton Burger shouted, his face livid with rage.

  Mason glanced at him in some apparent surprise.

  Hamilton Burger started to say something, then caught the judge’s eye and lapsed into silence.

  “Proceed, Mr Mason,” the judge said.

  “In this case, however,” Mason said, “counsel is cross-examining his own witness. He is taking leading questions. He is threatening the witness. Moreover, the testimony seems to be incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial.”

  “May I be heard?” Hamilton Burger asked.

  Judge Sedgwick nodded.

  “If the Court please,” Hamilton Burger said, “this witness will, I believe, if she is forced to, testify to a most damaging admission made by the defendant. She is friendly with the defendant; she is hostile to me; she has never told me what her testimony would be. I only know by inference and from what she has told other people. The Court has my assurance, professionally, that this is the case.”

  “The objection will be overruled,” Judge Sedgwick announced. “However, I will entertain a motion to strike out this testimony should it not prove pertinent or be materially different from that outlined by the district attorney in his statement.”

  “You will answer the question, Mrs Marvel.”

  “She said she wanted to engage a particular cab.”

  “Did she say why?”

  “She … she said–”

  “Yes, yes, go on,” Hamilton Burger prompted.

  “She said that it was a cab she had ridden in earlier in the day.”

  “And did she tell you that she didn’t want the cab driver to recognize her?”

  “Something like that.”

  “Go on,” Hamilton Burger said. “What did she tell you?”

  Ruth Marvel started to cry.

  “I must insist on an answer,” Hamilton Burger said

  “She said that her lawyer had told her to get this cab, to have me ride around with her, and pay him off when the meter got to two dollars and ninety-five-cents.”

  “Would you know the cab driver if you saw him again?”

  Ruth Marvel nodded mutely.

  “Will Mr Jerome C Keddie stand up?” Hamilton Burger asked.

  Keddie, the cab driver, stood up.

  “Is that the man?” Hamilton Burger asked.

  “Yes,” Ruth Marvel said, in an answer that was almost indistinguishable.

  “Cross-examine,” Hamilton Burger snapped triumphantly.

  Mason smiled reassuringly at the witness. “Mrs Marvel, there’s no reason for you to be upset about any of your testimony. Didn’t the defendant simply tell you that she was acting under my advice, that she thought a certain taxicab driver was going to identify her and that she wanted to test his memory to see whether he really knew who she was?”

  “Now, I object to that,” Hamilton Burger said. “Counsel is leading a witness who is very friendly to his side of the case and–”

  “How do you know she’s friendly?” Mason said. “She certainly testified for you readily enough and without reservation. This is cross-examination, and I have a right to cross-examine the witness.”

  “Objection overruled,” Judge Sedgwick said.

  “Isn’t that substantially what happened?” Mason asked sympathetically.

  “Yes,” she said.

  “Well, don’t feel bad,” Mason told her, “simply because the prosecution called you to testify as its witness when one of your friends is on trial. The defendant told you that under my instructions she was going to test the recollection of a possible witness, didn’t she?”

  “That’s right,” Ruth Marvel said.

  “And you got in the taxicab that was being driven by this gentleman, this Jerome C Keddie who has just stood up?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And Mr Keddie didn’t recognize her, did he? In any event, he gave no sign of recognition that you could see?”

  “No, sir.”

  Mason smiled and said, “That’s all. That’s all the defendant was trying to accomplish. There’s no secret about it.”

  “There isn’t now!” Hamilton Burger shouted. “Now that your scheme has backfired!”

  “Backfired?” Mason asked, as though Burger had taken leave of his senses.

  “That will do,” Judge Sedgwick ruled. “There will be no personal exchanges between counsel. Mr Prosecutor, your remark was uncalled for. The witness is excused.”

  “Now,” Hamilton Burger said, “I’ll call Jerome C Keddie to the stand.”

  Keddie came forward and was sworn.

  “Did you see the defendant on or about the third day of June of this year?” Hamilton Burger asked.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Where?” Hamilton Burger asked.

  “I was coming back from the country club and–”

  “Do you see this map on the blackboard”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Can you point to the place where you saw the defendant?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Please do so.”

  The witness approached the map. “It was right here,” he said. “And when I first saw her she was running up the street. Then she stopped and walked for a way, getting her breath. Then she started running again. Then she walked. Then she saw me and waved her arm.”

  “Return to the witness stand, please,” Hamilton Burger said. “Then what happened?”

  “She got in the cab with me and was all breathless. She seemed very much excited and disturbed. I asked her where she wanted to go. She couldn’t tell me at first. Then she told me to take her to the Union Station.”