The Case of the Screaming Woman (Perry Mason Series Book 52) by Erle Stanley Gardner

Author:Erle Stanley Gardner [Gardner, Erle Stanley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Della Street Press
Published: 2014-03-03T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

At eleven-thirty, Mason’s phone rang. Della Street picked up the receiver, said, “Yes, who is it, Gertie? … I’m quite sure Mr. Mason will want to talk with her. Put her on.”

Della Street nodded to Mason. “Mrs. Kirby,” she said.

Mason picked up the telephone.

Mrs. Kirby, her voice sounding almost hysterical, said, “It’s happened, Mr. Mason. Police came and took John into custody. They said they were picking him up on suspicion of being an accessory to murder.”

“All right,” Mason told her. “That’s that. Do you think he’ll follow my instructions and keep quiet?”

“I certainly hope he will. He knows now that the happiness of Ronnie is at stake as well as … well I hope he’ll keep quiet.”

“You’re not certain?”

“I’m not certain, Mr. Mason. Remember that my husband has been trained to try and explain, to convince, to persuade. If they’re clever —”

“They will be,” Mason interrupted. “Get in your car and get up to my office just as quick as you can. I’ll be waiting. How long will it take you?”

“Twenty or twenty-five minutes.”

“Try to make it less than that,” Mason said.

Mason hung up the telephone, said, “Well, Della, we’re in it now.”

Della Street, her eyes showing her worry, lowered her voice. “Chief, that book — Wouldn’t it be better to destroy it?”

He shook his head. “Not now. Later on, perhaps.”

“Now then, Della, get on the telephone. Cancel any appointments I have for today, and rush Mrs. Kirby in here just as soon as she comes to the office.”

Mason pushed back his chair, got to his feet, walked over to the window, jammed his hands down in his trousers pockets and stood looking down at traffic in the street, his concentration such that he was entirely oblivious of everything about him.

Twenty minutes later Della Street opened the door and said, “Mrs. Kirby.”

“Bring her in.”

“She’s here,” Della said.

Mrs. Kirby moved past Della on into the office.

“Sit down,” Mason said.

She said, “Oh, Mr. Mason, it was terrible! They came out and arrested John. I believe they’d have placed him in handcuffs if —”

“Sit down!”

She eased herself down into the client’s chair.

“Now talk,” Mason told her.

“What do you mean?”

Mason said, “You know about Dr. Babb. You participated in the conspiracy at the time Ronnie was supposed to have been born to you.”

“I was in on the scheme. I went to Dr. Babb’s maternity hospital, so-called, and I did what he told me to about making announcements to my most intimate friends. And, well — there was a period of about six weeks when I kept absolutely out of circulation, when I saw no one. If that’s what you call participating I participated.”

“When did you first know that there was going to be trouble about this thing?”

“About what?”

“About Ronnie.”

“Not until after — well not until after you pointed out the holes in my husband’s story.”

Mason said, “Your husband came home from a sales meeting. The next morning he told you this cock-and-bull story about having picked up a young woman carrying a

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