Erle Gardner - The Case of the Substitute Face

“Why?” Dail said. “I thought the fact that she had seen Mrs. Moar carrying that money belt might... well, might be damaging.”

Mason said, “Never mind that. When Celinda gets on the stand, I’m entitled to show, by way of cross-examination, her bias toward the parties.

“I happen to know that Celinda found out from Belle that she’d graduated from the University of Southern California; that she sent a wireless to Rooney asking him to look up a Belle Newberry who had graduated from the University of Southern California. With that to go on, it didn’t take Rooney long to find out that her stepfather was Carl Moar. Celinda wanted to humiliate Belle Newberry. She thought the best way to do it would be to have detectives waiting at the gangplank to take Moar into custody. I have reason to believe she had made all the arrangements. Now then, on cross-examination I am entitled to show all of that in order to show bias on the part of the witness.”

“But,” Dail said, “I don’t see what that’s going to gain you. After all, it’s rather petty, it certainly doesn’t affect Mrs. Moar—”

“No,” Mason said, “but it affects Belle. When Roy Hungerford learns that Celinda was on that ship posing as a friend of Belle Newberry, asking her to attend week-end parties after the ship had docked, and all the time planning to humiliate her at the gangplank by showing that her stepfather was an embezzler, Hungerford will have a very accurate appraisal of just what your daughter considers fair play.”

“Oh, I say,” Dail protested, his face flushing, “isn’t that hitting below the belt?”

Mason said, “Dail, when I’m fighting for a client, I hit where it’s going to hurt the most. You might tell Celinda what to expect in the line of cross-examination.”

“I’d like very much to avoid this,” Dail said.

Mason got to his feet and crossed to the door. “I feel quite certain that you would,” he said. “In fact, Mr. Dail, thinking back on it, I have a very clear recollection of the charming urbanity with which you signified your willingness to discuss a monetary settlement with Moar. Knowing the plans which you had in the back of your mind, I can only call your attention to the old proverb about chickens coming home to roost.”

Dail tried to make his exit dignified. He turned on the threshold and said, “You can’t get away with it, Mason. You’ll find that I draw some water around here. Good night!”

He slammed the door.

Mason grinned across at Della Street.

“You shouldn’t have done that, Chief.”

“Why not?”

“Celinda will get in touch with Roy Hungerford and bring things to a head tonight. She’s clever, and she wants him. She’s a shrewd campaigner.”

“That,” Mason said, “is exactly what I figured she’d do. Now, I happen to know that of all the things Roy Hungerford detests, a woman who tries to force things is his pet abomination. Designing females have been trying to give him the rush act ever since he was old enough to wear long pants. If he’s hesitating between Celinda, who’s in his set, and Belle, who’s not, Celinda will wreck all of her chances trying to rush things-and the beautiful part of it is that it will be all her doing.”

Della Street said, “Well, I hope she cooks her goose to a cinder!”

Mason opened the door to Paul Drake’s room and said, “Paul, I have something else for you.”

“What is it?” Drake asked.

“You said that Morgan Eves was acquitted of murder about two months ago in Los Angeles?”

“Yes.”

“And,” Mason went on, “Baldwin Van Densie defended him?”

“Yes.”

“Well,” Mason said, “Moar was on a jury in Los Angeles about two months ago. It was a murder case. Van Densie was defending. Moar took a dislike to Van Densie, claimed he was putting up a sell-out defense. The D. A. had a pushover with the other jurors, but Moar went to the bat in the jury room and whipped them into line. You might have your Los Angeles office look up the records and see if Moar was on Morgan Eves’s jury.”

The detective twisted his forehead into a frown. “Gosh, Perry, if that was the case, then Eves would be bound to Moar by a debt of gratitude, and if Evelyn Whiting had been going with Moar for some time, she must have... Why? dammit, Perry, as soon as she found out Moar was on the jury, trying the man she loved, she’d have brought all sorts of pressure to bear to get an acquittal.”

Mason grinned and said, “You’re doing fine, Paul. Go ahead and put through that call. And in the meantime, I’m on my way to the morgue where I will loudly proclaim that the body is not that of Carl Moar.”

“You mean to say they’ve identified the wrong body?” Drake asked.

“I mean to say,” Mason replied, “that I am going to give an interview to the press in which I will positively deny that the body is that of Carl Moar.”

“There’ll be newspaper reporters there?” Della Street asked.

“There will be before I get through talking,” Mason said grimly.

Drake, reaching for the telephone, said, “Gosh, Perry, if you’d only stayed in Bali!”

Donaldson P. Scudder entered the courtroom with the air of a crusader, armed in the cause of righteousness and intent on routing the forces of evil. He faded to speak to Perry Mason. Judge Romley took the bench. The bailiff intoned the usual formula for opening court.

Scudder arose as soon as court had been convened, cleared his throat and said with the distinct articulation of one who is carefully weighing his words, “Your Honor, it has reached my knowledge within the last few hours that there is another eyewitness to the murder who was within a few feet of the defendant when she fired the first shot. I have endeavored to locate this eyewitness and have failed. While I can make no promises, I sincerely hope to be able to have this witness in court within forty-eight hours. I can assure your Honor that the circumstances necessitating the making of this motion are most unusual. I therefore ask that the case be continued for two days.”

Judge Romley shifted his eyes toward Perry Mason.

Mason was on his feet, his manner indignant, his voice booming through the courtroom. “Your Honor, not only do I oppose the motion and object to it, but I characterize the making of it as prejudicial misconduct. I characterize the statements made in regard to that witness as pure propaganda intended for newspaper consumption and comparable in every way with the statement released to the press yesterday that the body of Carl Moar had been recovered!”

Scudder took a deep breath, stood very erect, and said, “Your Honor, the only reason I cannot produce this witness now is that Perry Mason has concealed him. I even have reason to believe that the witness is being concealed against his will.”

Mason jumped to his feet. “Your Honor,” he shouted, “that is the most dastardly accusation which can be made against a practicing attorney. The deputy prosecutor...”

“Just a minute, Mr. Mason,” Judge Romley interrupted, his voice crisp and businesslike. “I wish to ask Mr. Scudder a few questions. Mr. Deputy District Attorney, are you aware of the grave implications attending your statement?”

“I am, your Honor.”

“Are you prepared to substantiate those statements?”

“I am not only prepared to do so, your Honor, but I would welcome the opportunity of doing so. At this time, I cannot produce the evidence which my office hopes to produce at a later date, when criminal action will be taken against the attorney for the defendant, but I can at least produce sufficient evidence to justify your Honor in granting this continuance.”