40- The Case of the Grinning Gorilla by Erle Stanley Gardner

Author:Erle Stanley Gardner [Gardner, Erle Stanley]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2012-02-19T10:04:10+00:00

Chapter 12

SHORTLY BEFORE NOON DELLA STREET’S TELEPHONE RANG. She answered it, said, “Yes … oh yes … just a mo-ment. I’ll see.”

She turned to Perry Mason and said, “Sidney Hardwick of Hardwick, Carson and Redding.” Mason nodded.

“Yes, Mr. Mason is here. He’ll talk with Mr. Hardwick. Put your party on, please.”

Mason picked up the telephone, said, “Hello, Mason speaking… . Hello, Mr. Hardwick.”

Hardwick said, “Mr. Mason, I’m in rather a peculiar position. I’d like to have a conference with you and Mr. James Etna.”

“When?” Mason asked.

“At your earliest convenience.”

“Where?”

“At any place you want. At your office if you wish.” “What about?”

“It’s about a matter that puzzles me, and, very frankly, Mr. Mason, it may be of some possible advantage or some possible disadvantage to your client, Josephine Kempton.

I am assuming that you’re anxious to get information concerning her connection with the case, and I’m anxious to get some information from you gentlemen.”

“How soon?” Mason asked.

“Just as soon as you conveniently can arrange it.”

Mason said, “Be over here in fifteen minutes. I’ll have Etna here.”

He hung up the phone, said to Della Street, “Get James Etna on the phone, Della, and tell him that we have an important conference with Hardwick. Tell him to come right over.”

Della Street nodded.

Mason said, “I’ll be back by the time Etna gets here,” and walked down the corridor to Paul Drake’s office.

“Drake in?” Mason asked the switchboard operator.

She nodded and said, “Go right on in, Mr. Mason. He’s alone. I’ll tell him you’re coming.”

“Thanks,” Mason said, opened the gate in the low par¬tition which walled off the small reception room, and walked down the long corridor to Drake’s office.

Drake was hanging up the phone just as Mason entered.

“Hello,” Mason said. “Anything new?”

“I’m digging away,” Drake said, “getting a lot of ma¬terial but I haven’t correlated it yet. It’s a lot of miscellane¬ous odds and ends.”

Mason said, “Sidney Hardwick, who was Benjamin Addicks’ attorney in his lifetime, and who presumably is representing the estate, is coming over right away to see me. I can tell from the way he’s acting that there’s something on his mind, something that is bothering him to beat the devil. Any idea what it is?”

.Drake shook his head. “Not yet I haven’t. Give me an¬other two or three hours and I’ll probably find out.”

“Give me fifteen minutes and I’ll find out,” Mason said, grinning.

Drake said, “A preliminary test shows that Addicks had .32 percent of alcohol in his blood when he was killed. That was enough to put him into a deep sleep. There is evidence indicating he had previously had an even greater concentration of blood alcohol.

“I don’t need to educate you on the mathematics of alcoholism, Perry, but generally the confused stage of intoxication starts with around .15 percent of alcohol in the blood. At .3 percent to .4 percent the subject is really and truly drunk, that is, stuporous, staggering drunk.

“Novy Benjamin Addicks had .32 percent of alcohol in his blood. The police know exactly when Mrs. Kempton arrived at the house.

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