Erle Gardner - The Case of the Phantom Fortune

"It wasn't hard to get. On theother hand, she hadn't been implicated in anything. She had been the innocenttool of a smooth crook who had wormed his way into her confidence and hadprofited by her loyalty."

"Do you think she took thatforty-seven thousand to keep for him?"

"I never thought so until …well, until I knew that he was getting out of prison and – Well, she hadforty-seven thousand dollars in the suitcase."

"So now you think she acted ascustodian of that money for him?"

"I don't know."

"Does it make any difference inthe way you feel toward her?"

"No."

"All right. Now tell me whathappened," Mason said, "and remember to keep your voice low, put yourmouth close to my ear and mumble."

"Gideon was making aclean-up," Warren said. "I suppose he telephoned Lorna. He telephoned Judson Olney.He telephoned me. He put the bite on everyone. He said he was leaving and heneeded cash money."

"Why Olney?" Mason asked.

"Olney is very loyal to myinterests. He didn't know all that was going on but he was terribly afraid thatGideon was going to blackmail Lorna and the story might come out. Gideon put avery gentle touch on him, just twenty-five hundred dollars."

"How much on you?"

"He wanted me to get tenthousand in cash and bring it to him."

"He told you who he was?"

"Yes."

"Did he tell you of hisconnection with your wife?"

"He told me the whole thingover the telephone. The man was fiendish, Mason."

"Then it's logical to assume hetelephoned your wife."

"I presume so."

"And she went out there withmoney?"

"I don't know."

"Did Olney go out there withmoney?"

"Olney was raising themoney"

"Did Olney say anything toyou?"

"Not at first. He was trying toraise the money The cashier told me that Olney wanted an advance. I called himin and asked him what was the matter and finally I became convinced it wasblackmail, and knowing what Gideon had been up to I faced Olney He thenadmitted that it was true, that he was trying to protect Lorna and protect me.The man has that much loyalty."

"You trust him?" Masonasked. "You think it's simply loyalty?"

"I think it's simplyloyalty." "What did you tell him?"

"I told him to forget it, thatI'd take care of it, and I went down there."

"Did you have the money?"Mason asked.

"No, I didn't have the money. Iknew that if I once started paying him there'd be no end to it."

"In dealing with ablackmailer," Mason said, "you either submit to his demands, you callin the police, or you kill him. Now then, you weren't going to pay his demands.Did you make up your mind you were going to kill him?"

"No, Mr Mason, I didn't. Idecided to take the second choice. I decided to tell him that if he made anyother demand I was going to go to the police, tell them the whole story, accusehim of blackmailing and put him back in prison."

"And what did he say when you putthat up to him?" Mason asked.

"He never had a chance. He wasdead when I got there."

Mason raised his eyebrows.

"I know it soundsstrange," Warren said, "but he was dead. Someone had killed him."

"Do you know how?"

"I assume with a revolver. Therewas a revolver there on the table."

"The police found it?"Mason asked.

Warren lowered his eyes.

"Well?" Mason asked.

"I lost my head, Mason."

"What the devil!" Masonsaid. "Come clean. What happened?"

"The man was lying there dead.He had evidently been living there for some time. It was a secret hideout.There were cases of canned goods and a little alcohol stove, a table, a boxfilled with empty tin cans, and, as I say, there was this gun on the table."

"Don't tell me you touched thatgun," Mason said.

"I did worse than that," Warren said. "When I arrived at the warehouseI found a door open. I walked in. At first I didn't see anyone. I saw this gunon the table and I picked it up. I hadn't armed myself before going there, butI felt that it would be a good plan to disarm my adversary So I put the gun inmy pocket." "Then what?"

"Then I walked around behind abox of canned goods and saw Gideon lying there on the floor and at that momentsirens seemed to explode all over the place. Naturally I thought it was thepolice. Actually it was the fire department. I lost my head, turned and ran,and tried to conceal myself in the warehouse. They found me."

Mason said, "Damn it, Warren, quit lying to me! You're not thatsimple."

"I'm telling you thefacts."

"No, you're not," Masonsaid. "You're telling me the story. You thought Loma had killed him,didn't you?"

"I… I've told you whathappened."

"No, you haven't. There wassomething there that made you think Loma had killed him. What was it?"

Warren hesitated, then said, "I saw Lorna'scar as I turned down Clovina Avenue."

"Did she see you?"

"No."

"How far was that from thescene of the crime?"

"Five or six blocks."

"Anything else?" Masonasked.

"One of Lorna's gloves was onthe floor, right by the table."

"Which one, left orright?"

"I don't know."

"How do you know it wasLorna's?"

"It was a very unusual shadefor suede."

"And what did you do with it?"Mason asked.

"I picked it up, picked up thegun, shoved the gun in my pocket and flushed the glove down the toilet. It wasthen I heard the sirens. I was cut off. There was no escape. My car was parkedin the alley. He had told me to come to the side door of the alley and go inthe back part of the storeroom."

"You going to tell your storyand disclose Gideon's connection with your wife?" Mason asked.

"I am not. I am going to keeptight-lipped."

"What did you do with thegun?"

"I'm a big clumsy boob, MrMason. I had it in my pocket."

"You mean you kept it toprotect your wife. You wanted to take the rap for her. Is it your gun?"

"Yes. I bought it. It'sregistered in my name."

Mason said, "All right. Don'ttell anybody anything. Tell them that you are innocent of the murder, that youwill tell the whole story when you are on the witness stand and not before.Don't give anyone so much as the time of day."

"What about Lorna? What willshe say?"

"You leave Lorna to me,"Mason said. "This is one hell of a murder case. They've got you boxed in.If they can find out anything about Lorna, they'll use that for motivation.What about Judson Olney, can you count on him to keep quiet?"

"I don't know, I hope so."

"I sure as hell hope so,"Mason said. "But if the police start sweating him he'll crack and the fatwill be in the fire."

Mason didn't spare the time to gethis car out of the parking lot. He hailed a taxicab, jumped in and said,"Get me to 2420 Bridamoore just as fast as you can make it."

"Hang on," the driversaid. "I'll get you there fast."

"All right," Mason toldhim. "It's an emergency. There's a twenty-dollar tip for scaring me halfto death."

The driver grinned, concentrated ontraffic, whipping his car through every opening, racing for the signals.

As they turned into Bridamoore,Mason heaved a sigh of relief as he saw Della Street's car parked in front of the building butno police cars.

The lawyer tossed the taxi driver atwenty and a ten, said, "Keep the change. It was worth it. Thanks,"and dashed for the house.

"Want me to wait?" thedriver asked.

Mason waved his hand in a gesture ofdismissal, tried the front door. It was open. The lawyer walked in."Hello, Della!" he called. "This way Chief," he heardDella's voice saying. Mason ran through the reception hall, across theliving-room into a den.

Della Street was seated, with a tearful Lorna Warrenregarding her hopelessly.

"Look," Mason said."Look and listen. We haven't much time. Now, get this straight. Yourhusband has been arrested for the murder of Collister Gideon. They may not beable to make a case if he doesn't say anything and you don't say anything.They're going to have to prove motivation. Now, you're going to have to tell afib. You're going to have to tell the officers that your husband asked you notto talk about anything, that it was absurd to think that he would be chargedwith murder, and that your best course was that of dignified silence.