Erle Gardner - The Case of the Phantom Fortune

"And what do I reallyknow?" Mason asked. "What knowledge do I have?"

"You know about…about…"

Mason grinned. "Exactly, Della.I perhaps have some hearsay evidence but all I ever actually saw was a suitcasefilled with old newspapers. It's no crime to collect newspapers in asuitcase."

"And just where do we go fromhere?" she asked.

Mason said, "We have beenretained to protect Mrs Horace Warren against the person whose fingerprint wasgiven to us. That print was made by Margaret Lorna Neely We are, therefore,retained to protect Mrs Warren from herself."

"You're going to take theassignment literally?"

"There isn't any other way totake it," Mason said. "We're going to protect Mrs Horace Warren fromherself."

"Her past?"

"Her past, her present,everything."

"How can you do that?" sheasked. "Mrs Warren has already turned over the money."

"That doesn't mean that Gideonhas received the money," Mason said. "Let us assume that it is in transit.

"Horace Warren says the moneywas still in the suitcase up to a short time before he tried to show it to me.When we opened the suitcase newspapers had been substituted for the currency.

"Police would have beenfollowing Collister Gideon. He would have anticipated that. Therefore he wouldhardly have been so foolish as to go directly to the Warren residence and pick up the money. Thereforehe must have sent some intermediary."

"Some person who was present atthe party?" Della Street asked.

"We can't tell," Masonsaid. "It may have been one of the servants. Gideon is smart. He knew inadvance the date of his release. It is well within the limits of probabilitythat he could have planted an accomplice as a servant."

"Then Mrs Warren paid over themoney?"

"Or the servant stole it,"Mason said. "Or the husband stole it so his wife wouldn't be payingblackmail, and then retained me to protect her from the blackmailer."

"What a mess!" Della Street exclaimed.

"But," Mason pointed out,"we have one advantage. We have the fingerprints of everyone who was atthat party By the time the people in that fingerprint van get done classifyingthem, we can find if anyone there has a criminal record. We'll check on theservant's first."

"And suppose we find thethief?" Della Street asked. "Then what? Who makes the complaint?"

Mason grinned. "No one."

"You mean you let the thief getaway with forty-seven thousand dollars?"

"I didn't say that," Masonsaid. "We do a little cloak-and-dagger stuff of our own. Once we've foundthe thief, we steal the money back again."

"Couldn't you make a complaintand -"

Mason interrupted with a firm shakeof his head. "You can't make a complaint in a situation of that sort – notwith the income tax being what it is. Everyone would jump to the conclusionthat the forty-seven thousand dollars represented money the Warrens were trying to conceal from their bankaccount, and therefore were keeping it stored in a suitcase in Mrs Warren'scloset.

"The Bureau of Internal Revenuewould move in and want to examine everyone in connection with the case. They'dhave to know that the money was being saved to pay some sort of a blackmaildemand. They'd look Mrs Warren up, inquire into her past, and in no time at allwould find out about the skeleton in her closet.

"No, Della, the thing has to behandled very circumspectly, and completely under cover."

"And that's why Mrs Warren hassaid nothing about the loss of the money?"

"What could she say?"Mason asked.

Della Street was thoughtfully silent for a moment, thensaid, "Nothing, I guess, but it must be horribly frustrating to haveforty-seven thousand dollars which has been carefully saved in cash disappearand not be able to utter even a word of protest."

"I think," Mason said,"that describes it very accurately – a horribly frustratingexperience."

Later that afternoon the telephoneon Della Street's desk rang a routine summons. Della picked up the receiver, said,"Yes, Gertie," then suddenly her jaw sagged, her eyes grew large, andshe said, "Why – Wait – Hold the phone a minute, Gertie."

Della Street turned to Perry Mason. "A man in theoffice says he is Collister D Gideon."

"Well, what do you know,"Mason said. "I guess we're going to have to give Mr Gideon credit forbeing a pretty clever individual. By all means, Della, tell him to comein."

"But Chief, he – Good heavens,that means he must know…"

"Know what?"

"Everything."

Mason said. "If he gave LornaWarren forty-seven thousand dollars to keep for him, he certainly knows abouther present whereabouts. If he didn't give her the money to keep for him, butregarded her as a loyal employee, he has probably kept up with what has beenhappening in her life and that complicates the problem."

"But what can you do?"Della asked. "If he shows up here …"

"He has shown up here,"Mason said, "and that means he thinks he holds the high hand and is goingto call for a showdown. I'm becoming very much interested in Collister DamonGideon. Show the gentleman in, Della. Then tip Gertie to call Paul Drake andhave a shadow put on Gideon as soon as he leaves the office."

Della Street said, "I'll be right out,Gertie," hung up the phone, vanished to the outer office and a few momentslater returned leading a slim-waisted, well-dressed smiling individual in hislate forties into the office.

"This is Mr Mason," shesaid.

Gideon didn't offer to shake hands.

"How do you do, Mr Mason,"he said. "I don't know how much you know about me, but I am assuming youknow a great deal. May I be seated?"

"By all means," Masonsaid. "What makes you think I know anything about you?"

"Putting two and twotogether."

"Would you mind telling mewhich two and two you put together?"

"Not at all," Gideon said,settling back in the chair, looking around the office with the swift survey ofa man who has been forced by environment to make instantaneous and accurateappraisal of his surroundings.

"You see, Mr Mason," hesaid calmly, "I'm a crook."

"Indeed," Mason said.

"That is," Gideon amended,"the government says I'm a crook, and a jury of my peers agreed with thegovernment."

"And the aftermath?" Masonasked.

"A term in a federal prisonwith very little time off."

Mason shook his head with what mighthave been a gesture of sympathy.

"Now then," Gideon said,"at the time I was in business and ran head on into the governmentalforces of so-called righteousness, I had working for me a very beautiful youngwoman, a Margaret Lorna Neely."

"I take it she wasn'tinvolved," Mason said.

Gideon smiled. "The governmenttried to involve her but the charges didn't stick. The jury acquitted her andconvicted me. The government tried us together, possibly with maliceaforethought, feeling that a jury acting on rather weak evidence would salveits conscience by acquitting one defendant and convicting the other."

"You don't seem to be bitterabout it," Mason said.

"I don't seem to be bitterabout it," Gideon said. "It would do very little good to be bitterabout it, and the last few years of my life have taught me a great deal, MrMason. One of the things I have learned is not to do things which can't resultin any ultimate benefit to me."

"Indeed," Mason said.

"Among other things, thoseyears have taught me that the world, beneath its veneer of civilization, is gearedto the ancient principle of survival of the fittest, and in the battle forsurvival the person who is utterly ruthless has a very decided advantage overthe person who practices the so-called Golden Rule."

"I see," Mason said."You still haven't told me why you came here."

"It pays to read thenewspapers," Gideon said, "particularly the society column, and Inotice in the afternoon paper that at an informal gathering given by HoraceWarren, the noted financier and progressive businessman, the guests werethrilled by the presence of Mr Perry Mason and his beautiful secretary, Miss Della Street."