Erle Gardner - The Case of the Horrified Heirs

Boring Briggs said. «Now, look here, is all this going to get into the newspapers?»

«Not unless you let it get into the papers,» Dr. Alton said.

«You're communicating with the police?»

«Not as yet,» Mason said.

There was a moment's silence.

Mason went on calmly, «To a large extent, it's up to you folks. I take it this is a situation you wouldn't want to have publicized. I can also well realize that you have received the information with feelings of mingled emotion, but we are now facing facts, and one doesn't argue with facts.»

«How do you know they are facts?» Briggs demanded.

Mason met his eyes and said coldly, «Laboratory facts. Positive evidence.»

«You can't get evidence of something that's past that way,» Briggs said.

Mason said, «Something that isn't generally known is that arsenic has an affinity for fingernails and hair. Once it gets in the system, it reaches the nails and the hair and lasts for a long, long time. Late this afternoon, Dr. Alton had samples taken of Lauretta Trent's hair and her fingernails. I, personally, had an analysis made by a laboratory that is highly competent.

«The answer was arsenic poisoning. In the hair, they were able to trace the intervals of arsenic poisoning.

«Now then, Dr. Alton is Lauretta Trent's personal physician. He's seen fit to disclose this information.»

«Because,» Dr. Alton said, «I'm trying to save the life of my patient. I think I have treated her long enough to understand something of her temperament. The minute I tell her that she has been a victim of arsenic poisoning, things are going to start happening around here.»

«I'll say they are,» Mrs. Briggs said. «Lauretta will hit the ceiling.»

«One dose of arsenic poisoning,» Dr. Alton went on, «may be more or less accidental; two doses indicate a deliberate attempt at homicide. Apparently, there have been three.»

His announcement was greeted with silence.

After a moment, Mrs. Kelvin said, «These tests, are they absolute-that is, could there be any mistake?»

«They're absolute,» Mason said. «There can be no mistake.»

Mrs. Briggs said, «That first time she got sick was after she ate all that Spanish food. George cooked up the food on the grill in the patio.»

«We all had it,» Mrs. Kelvin said. «That is, the first time.»

«And only Lauretta got sick,» her husband pointed out.

Dr. Alton said, «Spanish food would be an ideal means of concealing an attempt at arsenic poisoning.»

«That second time she got sick,» Mrs. Briggs went on, «George had been doing some more outdoor cooking.»

«Who is George?» Mason asked.

«George Eagan, the chauffeur,» Gordon Kelvin said.

«And he doubles as a cook?» Mason asked.

«He doubles in almost anything and everything. He's with Lauretta most of the time.»

«Too much of the time, if you ask me,» Mrs. Kelvin snapped. «The man is positively trying to dominate her thinking.»

Mason said, «Would you, by any chance, know whether he is remembered in her will?»

They exchanged shocked glances.

«Does anyone know the terms of her will?» Mason asked.

Again there were glances and a significant silence.

«Apparently,» Mason said, «Delano Bannock was Lauretta Trent's attorney during his lifetime. Does anyone know if she has a will which was drawn in his office, or whether she went to some other attorney after Bannock's death?»

Kelvin said, «Lauretta jealously guards her private affairs. Perhaps she feels there is too much of her family living with her. She has become very secretive about all of her personal affairs.»

«Financial affairs,» Mrs. Briggs said.

«Both personal and financial,» Mrs. Kelvin added.

Mason said, «I have reason to believe that the situation at the present time may be somewhat crucial.»

«How did you get a sample of her hair and fingernails?» Kelvin asked.

«I instructed the nurse,» Dr. Alton said.

Kelvin turned to Anna Fritch. «Did George Eagan know that you were taking samples of hair and nails?»

«She told him,» Anna Fritch said. «She was bubbling over with enthusiasm that her illnesses might have been the result of an allergy. She seemed in very high spirits.»

«An allergy?» Kelvin asked.

Dr. Alton said, «I explained to Nurse Fritch here that I wanted some tests made for an allergy, that there was a possibility the patient's symptoms might have been a violent and acute reaction to an allergy. I asked her to get samples of hair and nails and to explain to the patient that I was taking the nails because I was going to give her some medicine that would cause a skin irritation and I didn't want her to scratch. I also said that I thought the digestive upset she had had might have been due to an allergic reaction to a certain type of hairdressing-those things do happen, you know.»

Kelvin said with dignity, «I think instead of standing here and becoming angry at Dr. Alton, we should give him our thanks and start doing something.»

«Doing what?» Mrs. Briggs asked.

«Trying to locate Lauretta for one thing.»

Mrs. Kelvin said, «She's out with that chauffeur of hers. Heaven knows where they've gone or when they'll be back. What are we going to do about trying to locate her? Call the police?»

Gordon Kelvin said, «Of course not. However, we know certain places where she might be. There are several restaurants that she frequents. There are a few friends on whom she might be calling. I would suggest that we get on the telephone and start calling, being very, very careful not to do anything which would indicate there might be any urgency in what we are trying to do.»

«You two girls are probably the ones to do it. Start ringing her friends on the phone, say casually it's a little late to be calling, but that you want to speak with Lauretta.

«If it turns out Lauretta is there, take it in stride. Tell her that she's wanted home at once, that… that her sister isn't feeling at all well.

«Whichever sister happens to locate her can say it's the other sister who has been taken ill, and ask Lauretta to come home at once.

«In that way the chauffeur won't feel that we're suspicious of him and won't try to-well, won't try anything.»

«Such as what?» Briggs asked.

«There are lots of things he could try,» Mrs. Kelvin snapped.

«Well, we don't want him to get suspicious; we want him to walk right into our trap,» Kelvin said.

«What trap?» Mason asked.

They looked at him for a moment, then Kelvin said, «He's the only one who could have poisoned her, don't you see?»

«No, I don't see,» Mason said. «I can see grounds for suspicion but it's a long way from suspicion to actual proof. I would suggest that you be rather careful before you start talking about traps.»

«I see your point,» Kelvin said. «However, let's start trying to locate her and get her home. At least she'll be safe here.»

«She hasn't been,» Mason said.

«Well, she's going to be now!» Kelvin snapped.

«I agree with you,» Dr. Alton said. «I am going to explain to her exactly what has happened; I am going to put my cards on the table, and I am going to see that she has private nurses around the clock, and that all food which she ingests is taken under the supervision of those nurses.»

«Fair enough,» Kelvin agreed. «I don't think anyone will object to that.»

He turned to the others.

«Will they?» he asked.

Mrs. Briggs said, «Oh, stuff and nonsense! You can't put her in a virtual prison that way, or an isolation ward or something; once Dr. Alton tells her, she can be on her guard. After all, she's old enough to live her own life. She doesn't need to be isolated from all her pleasures simply because Dr. Alton said someone has tried to poison her.»