Yes, the witness snapped angrily.
And more positive at the time of the seventh than you were at the time of the sixth?
Yes.
And more positive at the time of the fifth than you were at the time of the fourth?
Yes.
Thank you, Mason said. Thats all.
Judge Elmer looked at the clock. It is a few minutes after the hour of the noon adjournment, he said. Does the prosecution anticipate there will be much more evidence?
No, Your Honor, Hamilton Burger said.
Court will adjourn until two oclock this afternoon, Judge Elmer said. I have a brief matter which I am taking up at one-thirty but I expect it will be concluded by two oclock so that we can continue with this case. Court is adjourned and the defendant is remanded to custody.
Chapter 12
Perry Mason, Della Street, and Paul Drake gathered in the private dining room of the little French restaurant near the Hall of Justice where they so frequently had lunch during Masons court cases.
Mason looked around and said, Well, weve had some very great near defeats here, but usually during the lunch hour weve managed to get our heads together and squeeze out of the trap some way.
This is one youre not going to squeeze out of, Drake said lugubriously. Your client is guilty, Perry, and whats more, she probably lured Amelia Corning out someplace and disposed of her. Im betting that within another twenty-four hours Amelia Cornings body is discovered somewhere, and when that body is discovered youll find your client is charged with another murder.
She may be charged with a murder, Mason said, but that doesnt mean shes guilty.
Perry, how can you say that? The evidence points so unerringly and so damningly that there isnt a ghost of a chance shes innocent.
Mason said, Thats because youre looking at the evidence from the standpoint of the prosecution. Now lets start doing a little detective work... What have you been able to find about Ken Lowrys telephone calls?
No outgoing calls, Drake said, and we havent been able to trace any incoming calls.
He had an incoming call, Mason said. We know that he had one incoming call. That was from Endicott Campbell. Campbell has testified to that. Now then, Campbell either said something which started Lowry rushing to Los Angeles, or else there was another call right after Campbells call. When Della Street and I left him, he had no intention of corning to Los Angeles. He must have received another call immediately after we were there and that call started him for Los Angeles. Now, we stopped to telephone you and to have a cup of coffee. We just made it to the Arthenium Hotel by seven twenty-five. Lowry simply couldnt have reached the city much before that time. Even if hed received an immediate telephone summons, he couldnt have got here much before seven forty-five.
All right, Drake said. Your client met him as soon as he arrived, took him out and murdered him and was back with the car by eight fifteen.
It doesnt leave her enough time, Mason said. She would have had to have Lowry meet her at the scene of the murder.
Well, is anything wrong with that? Drake asked. Lowry returned to his cabin at the mine. There was a call waiting for him. The voice of Susan Fisher, a voice he had come to know, instructed him that hed pulled a boner talking with you and told him to drive to Hollywood at once, then go to this designated spot. Your client had written out the directions in shorthand.
You and Della went to Los Angeles, to the hotel, then out to Hollywood. Lowry could have taken a short cut through Burbank and saved at least half an hour.
Mason said, Were going to have to find out about that call. Lets see if we can trace it down.
If we do, Drake said, well find it was a call from your client and... well, then what are you going to do, Perry? Are you going to try to suppress the evidence or are you going to put it in the hands of the officers?
That, Mason told him, brings up a difficult question of ethics. An attorney shouldnt suppress evidence. On the other hand he shouldnt go around digging up evidence against his client. However, the evidence may not be against my client. How about giving your office a ring and see if theyve uncovered something?
Drake called for a telephone which was plugged in, gave the number of his office to the operator, said, Hello. Paul Drake talking. What have you found out?... Okay, let me have it.
Drakes eyes narrowed. He made notes, said, Okay. Im here at the usual restaurant, in the private dining room. Call me if anything turns up.
Drake hung up the telephone, said to Mason, Well, weve got it but its a peculiar lead.
What is it? Mason asked.
Long-distance from Los Angeles was calling Kenneth Lowry on Sunday afternoon, probably at about the time you were talking with him at Mojave. Lowry didnt answer his telephone so word was left for him to call Operator 67, Los Angeles. A Mexican woman who cleans up the house remembered marking down 67 on the pad by the telephone.
Well, we got in touch with Operator 67 and managed to trace the call. It was a call that was placed from a telephone booth. It was a womans voice and the woman said she would wait until he answered. Evidently this woman sat there by the phone booth for some twenty minutes before the call was completed. It was a pay-station call, and the woman deposited toll charges. Now then, Perry, the location of that telephone booth is within two blocks of your clients apartment. She evidently didnt want to put the call through from her apartment so she walked two blocks and put it through from a telephone booth.