Эрл Гарднер - The Case of the Reluctant Model

The lawyer opened the door of Maxine’s car, said, “Thanks a lot for coming down here, Maxine. I was afraid you were nervous and upset and might not show up.”

She became conscious of her skirt well up above her knees as the lawyer opened the door. She made a token gesture of pulling it down an inch or two, said, “I’ve been waiting here for more than ten minutes. Some man drove past and seemed... well, he’s driven past twice.”

“Someone looking for a parking place probably,” Mason said, “or looking for a date to come out of the apartment house. Now tell me, Maxine, what’s the trouble?”

She said, “I— Mr. Mason, I can’t give you the details. Something terrible has happened and I have to go away.”

“All right,” Mason said, “you’re going away. Where are you going?”

“I... I don’t know — I can’t tell — not even you.”

“But,” Mason said, “you must remember you’re a witness in a lawsuit.”

“I know. I understand. I gave you an affidavit. You can use that if you have to.”

“I can’t use an affidavit,” Mason said. “The law provides that a person has a right to cross-examine the witnesses called against him, and if you’re going to testify against Durant, his attorneys have a right to cross-examine you.”

“That’s... that’s—”

“That’s what?” Mason asked.

“Nothing,” she said.

“So,” Mason told her, “you have to be here.”

“I... I can’t... not for a while anyway.”

“All right,” Mason said, “why can’t you be here?”

“I can’t tell you... It’s— No, Mr. Mason, it’s just too... too terrible.

“Now please, Mr. Mason, I just can’t wait any longer. I’m in trouble and—

“Miss Street, would you do something for me?”

Della Street called across from the car, “What is it, Maxine?”

“My apartment,” Maxine said. “I had to leave my canary. I’m not going to be back for — well, quite a while and I didn’t have anyone I could leave the canary with. I put out feed and water to last it through tomorrow. Would you take the key to my apartment, go up tomorrow, get the bird and take it to some good pet shop that will take care of it?”

“Perhaps I could take care of it,” Della Street said, glancing significantly at Perry Mason.

“Oh, would you? Would you? That would be wonderful! If I knew that my little bird had a home with someone who appreciated him, someone—”

“How long do you expect to be gone?” Mason asked.

“I don’t know. I’ll be back but I can’t tell you when. I wish I knew myself. I... Mr. Mason, I simply have to go. Can’t you understand? I wouldn’t have called you at all if I had wanted to just run out on you. I’d have gone quietly and you wouldn’t have known anything about it until you started to look for me to be a witness.”

“That,” Mason admitted, “is what puzzles me.”

“Why does it puzzle you?”

“It isn’t in keeping with the rest of the picture.”

“The rest of what picture?”

“Oh, never mind,” Mason said. “We’ll work it out some way. Now, how are you going to know when I need you?”

“You just put a want ad in the paper, Mr. Mason. Just say ‘Case coming up for trial. I need my witnesses,’ and sign it with just the initial M. Then I’ll get in touch with you. But you’ll have to arrange things so that I can be brought into court and testify and then slip right out again and— Now, let’s not have any misunderstandings, Mr. Mason. I’ll testify to the things that are in that affidavit I signed, and that’s all. I don’t want to be questioned about anything else.”

“What do you mean, anything else?” Mason asked.

“Anything,” she said. “Anything at all... Now, I have to go, Mr. Mason. I simply have to. I can’t tell you any more but I’ve waited too long already.”

She handed the apartment key to Perry Mason. “Will you please pass this across to Miss Street?” she asked. “Thank you both — thank you a lot. I’m sorry things had to happen this way but I... I just can’t wait any longer.”

She gave Mason her hand. “Good-by, Mr. Mason.”

The lawyer hesitated a moment, then accepting her hand, said, “Good-by,” and eased himself out of the car. He closed the car door and almost instantly Maxine started the motor.

As soon as the headlights started pulling out from the curb, a car half a block ahead swung out into the center of the street. Another car turned the corner, the driver apparently searching for a parking place, crawling along at such a snail’s pace that he blocked traffic.

Maxine impatiently blared on the horn.

Another car coming from behind with a single masculine driver fell in behind Maxine’s car and that driver, too, impatiently blasted away on the horn.

The car that was blocking traffic moved off to one side, and the cars that had been blocked went speeding on in a cluster of red tail lights, all in a compact unit.

“Drake’s men?” Della Street asked.

“Drake’s men,” Mason said.

“Well, what do you make of it?”

Mason said, “I don’t know, Della. The lawyer in me tells me that Durant is a phoney. On the other hand, the lawyer in me tells me this girl is on the up-and-up and is actually in some real trouble, that she has a horror of letting anybody down, and that right now she intends to be present when that case is brought up for trial.”

“In other words, your intuition is headed in two different directions,” Della Street said smiling.

“Reaching two opposite conclusions,” Mason said. “A great deal will depend on where she goes and what she does.”

“You think Drake’s men will be able to follow her?”

“With a group of operatives like that,” Mason said, “they’ll follow her. The only difficulty is that she may know she’s being followed.”

“What about us?” Della Street asked. “Do we explore the apartment tonight?”

Mason shook his head. “That key,” he said, “could be a trap of some sort — and yet I just can’t believe that girl isn’t genuine. Anyhow, Miss Street, this is your apartment house and since we are here I’ll take you across to your apartment and see you safely home.”

“How very nice of you,” she said, “and what about the problem of my car, which is in the parking lot at the office building?”

“Under the circumstances,” Mason said, “I’m quite sure the Bureau of Internal Revenue will consider that a taxicab will be a perfectly legitimate deductible expense tomorrow morning.”

“And by that time,” Della Street asked, “you’ll know where Maxine spent the night?”

“If Paul Drake’s men are half as clever as they should be, we’ll know from time to time exactly where she is. Moreover, by tomorrow morning we should know something about her past, and by tomorrow afternoon we should have a pretty good line on the terrified Maxine Lindsay.”

“Do you want the key to her apartment?” Della Street asked.

“Heavens, no. Why should I have the key to Maxine’s apartment? It was given to you, Della, and in your possession it is a perfectly innocent case of keeping a canary. In my possession the situation might be a little difficult.”

“I don’t get it,” Della Street said.

“Let us suppose that when Maxine gets on the witness stand, in the event she ever does, some attorney cross-examines her and asks her casually and in parting, ‘Now, you read in the papers about the suit being filed by Otto Olney against Collin Durant?’ And she will say, ‘Yes, I did,’ and the lawyer will say, ‘And on that night did you see Perry Mason, who was present at the time Olney had a press conference?’ and she will say, ‘Yes, I did.’ And the lawyer will smirk and say, ‘And did you know, Miss Lindsay, that from that day on Mr. Perry Mason had a key to your apartment?’ Then he will smirk at the jury, bow and smile and say, ‘Thank you, that’s all, Miss Lindsay. I have no further questions.’ ”