The Case of the Fenced-In Woman (19 page)

Tragg's slight hesitation before adding the words of course, and his smile, gave force to his point.

"Did you have any evidence that I had received those securities in Los Angeles and had taken them to Las Vegas?"

"I did not uncover any direct evidence," Tragg said. And then added gratuitously, "Those things are seldom done in the presence of the police, you know, Mr. Mason."

There was a ripple of laughter from the crowded courtroom.

"I think," Judge Fisk said, "that I will ask the witness to refrain from these voluntary statements and simply answer the questions. After all, Lieutenant, you're a police officer, you have been on the witness stand many times, you are familiar with courtroom procedure and you know only too well the effect of what you're doing. I feel that the hearing will be more orderly if you abide by the rules."

"I'm sorry, Your Honor," Tragg said.

"Proceed," Judge Fisk announced.

"Now then," Mason said, "when you started groping around the edges of the swimming pool looking for something that would be a key to the wet shirt sleeves of the decedent, did you get your shirt sleeves wet?"

"No, sir," Tragg said, "probably because I wasn't in any great hurry."

"What did that have to do with it?"

"I rolled up my sleeves."

"Both of them?"

"Yes… No, I'm mistaken on that, Mr. Mason. I'm sorry. I rolled up my right shirt sleeve up above the elbow."

"You didn't roll up the left sleeve."

"No."

"And didn't get it wet?"

"No. I used my right arm entirely in my explorations."

"Thank you," Mason said. "I think that's all at the moment."

"Call Oliver Ivan to the stand," Ormsby announced.

Ivan was a middle – aged individual, rather heavyset, stolid, unemotional and quietly positive.

"What is your occupation?" Ormsby asked.

"I run a hardware store."

"Were you operating a hardware store on the fifteenth of March of this year?"

"I was."

"Where?"

"Next to the Village Motion Picture Theater on Dupont Street."

"Have you ever seen the defendants before?"

"I have."

"When did you first see them?"

"The first time I can remember seeing them was on the fifteenth of March."

"At what time?"

"Sometime between twelve and twelve – thirty."

"Did you have any conversation with them?"

"Yes."

"Did you conclude any business transaction with them?"

"Yes."

"What was the business transaction?"

"They wanted to buy a knife."

"They were together?"

"Yes."

"Did you sell them a knife?"

"I did."

"Would you recognize that knife if you saw it?"

"I would."

"I show you People's Exhibit G and ask if that is a knife you have seen before?"

"That is the identical knife that I sold them. It has my price mark on the blade. It has both the selling price mark and my private cost mark on the blade. The letters 'EAK' represent the cost to me and the selling price of the knife is penciled on the blade."

"Was there any conversation which you overheard between the defendants as to the type of knife they wanted?"

"Yes. They conversed in low tones, but I was able to hear them perfectly. They wanted what they referred to as 'an identical knife.'"

"Did they say what it was to be identical to?"

"No. Just that they wanted a knife that was identical."

"Did you notice any peculiarity about their mannerisms?"

"The woman, Mrs. Carson, was trembling so she could hardly hold the knife. The man seemed to be rather excited, but he was trying to calm her."

"Did you notice any evidences of affection or any indication as to how they felt toward each other?"

"The man had his arm around her quite a bit of the time, patting her on the shoulder and telling her to take it easy."

"Now you say 'the man.' To whom do you refer?"

"Whenever I have said the words 'the man', I referred to the other defendant, Morley Eden."

"You have no doubt that this is the knife that you sold them?"

"No doubt at all."

"You may cross – examine," Ormsby said.

Mason's manner was urbane, almost casual. "You have a good – sized hardware store?" he asked.

"We carry a pretty good stock."

"This particular knife. Do you remember where you purchased it?"

"I purchased a gross of these knives on the fourth day of February from the Quality Cutlery Company. That is a cutlery jobber."

"Purchased a gross?" Mason asked in some surprise.

"Yes."

"And only marked the cost and selling price on the blade of one knife?"

"I didn't say that," Ivan said sharply. "I simply said I had marked the cost and the selling price on this one knife."

"Did you mark it on any of the others?"

"I marked it on all of the others."

"A gross?"

"A gross."

"And put those on sale?"

"Yes."

"Then," Mason said, "as far as you know, this particular knife could have been purchased at any time from the fourth day of February and up to the fifteenth of March."

"I remember selling them the knife."

"You remember selling a knife," Mason said. "But as far as you know this particular knife, with this cost mark and selling price on the blade, could have been sold at any time after the fourth day of February and prior to the sixteenth day of March; that is, including the morning of the fifteenth of March."

"Yes, I guess so."

"It could have been bought by any person."

"That is true."

"Then as far as you can tell while you are under oath, Loring Carson, the decedent, could have purchased this knife from you and placed it in the kitchen of the home he was equipping for Morley Eden?"

The witness shifted his position uncomfortably. "I remember the conversation. I remember the transaction with these defendants."

"You remember selling them a knife," Mason said affably. "You identify this knife as being one of a gross shipment you received. You can't truthfully and conscientiously go any further than that, can you?"

"No, I guess not."

"You remember selling them a knife," Mason went on. "I am now asking you if you can testify under oath that this particular knife now in evidence was not sold to Loring Carson prior to the fifteenth day of March of this year and after the fourth day of February when your shipment of one gross was received."

"No, I guess I can't," the witness said.

"That's all," Mason said cordially, "and thank you for your very commendable frankness. I have no further questions."

"I have a question on redirect," Ormsby said. "You did sell these defendants a knife on the fifteenth day of March of this year which is absolutely identical in every way with this knife which I show you and which had the same figures on the blade. Is that right or not?"

"Objected to," Mason said, "on the ground that Counsel is trying to cross – examine his own witness; on the ground that the question is leading and suggestive."

"It is leading," Judge Fisk said.

"I was simply trying to summarize his testimony," Ormsby said.

"I suggest that if Counsel is going to summarize the testimony of this witness he wait until he argues the case to the jury," Mason said.

Judge Fisk smiled. "I think that is right. Please reframe your question. Counselor."

"Oh, I have no further questions of this witness," Ormsby said irritably. "That's all."

"That's all. You may leave the stand," Judge Fisk said.

Ormsby said, "I want to call Lorraine Henley."

The woman who marched forward to the stand was in her early forties; a pinched – faced, rather slender woman with lips that were a thin line of determination.

When she had been sworn Ormsby asked, "Where do you live?"

"At the Larchmore Apartments."

"How long have you lived there?"

"Something over a year."

"Are you acquainted with the defendant Vivian Carson?"

"I am."

"Did she live near you?"

"She lived in the Larchmore Apartments Apartment B. That is directly across the car area from where I live."

"Can you explain what you mean when you refer to the car area?"

"Yes. The apartments are arranged in the form of a big L on slightly sloping ground. The apartments have a street entrance fronting on two streets. There is an alley on each side of the apartment houses, and this cement car area is accessible from either of the alleys. It is a lower area than the streets on which the apartments face.

"Now, I have to explain that. The corner where the streets intersect is the highest part of the ground. The main street keeps a rather uniform level, but the side street falls off rather abruptly. However, the apartments all have garages underneath them, with the exception of the four apartments on the corner. They have separate garages."

"Was there a garage under the apartment rented by the defendant Vivian Carson?"

"There was, a double garage."

"On the fifteenth day of March did you notice the defendant Vivian Carson?"

"I did indeed."

"At what hour of the day?"

"About eleven – fifteen or eleven – thirty in the morning"

"What was she doing?"

"She was opening the door other garage-that is, one of her garages."

"And then what happened?"

"I saw a man drive a car into the garage."

"Did you observe the man?"

"Very carefully."

"Did you ever see him again?"

"I did."

"Do you see him now?"

"I do. He is Morley Eden, one of the defendants in this case. The man sitting at that table right there."

"The one who is seated beside Vivian Carson?"

"Yes."

"And what did you observe with reference to the car?"

"Well, the man drove the car into the garage after Mrs. Carson opened the door. Then the man came out, she closed and locked the door and then the two of them walked rapidly away together."

"They didn't go into Mrs. Carson's apartment?"

"No, that is I didn't see them go in. There is a back entrance to the apartment house, but they walked down the car parking area to the alley and then turned out of sight."

"You may inquire," Ormsby said.

Mason's voice was almost gentle in its quiet courtesy. "What were you doing when the defendants were parking this car?"

"Watching them," she snapped.

There was a slight titter in the courtroom.

"And what had you been doing just before that?"

"Sitting by the window."

"Keeping an eye on the apartment rented by Vivian Carson?"

"Well, I saw it."

"Were you sitting there watching it?"