The Case of the Dubious Bridegroom

Twenty

Garvin, brought to the crowded courtroom by the deputy sheriff who had him in charge, whispered angrily to Mason, “What the hell is all this about you trying to frame my wife?”

“Shut up,” Mason whispered peremptorily.

“I won’t stand for it,” Garvin said. “I’ll ask permission of the Court to have another attorney substituted. Damn it, Mason, you can’t...”

Judge Minden entered, rapped court to order and gazed out over the crowded courtroom in which every available seat was occupied, every inch of standing room taken.

“People versus Garvin,” he called. “Are you ready to proceed, gentlemen? So is it stipulated that the defendant is in court, and the jurors are all present?”

“So stipulated,” Mason said.

“So stipulated,” Covington agreed.

Judge Minden looked at Covington, who started to get to his feet, but before lie could address the Court, Mason said, hurriedly, “If the Court please, there are one or two questions I would like to ask of Frank C. Livesey. May I be permitted to have him recalled for additional cross-examination?”

“What do you want to cross-examine him about?” Covington said sneeringly. “He was only called in a routine way in connection with the handling of the gun.”

Mason smiled, “Then there certainly should be no objection on the part of the district attorney to having him recalled.”

“There isn’t,” Covington said.

“Mr. Livesey, take the stand again for additional cross-examination,” Judge Minden said.

Livesey arose from the back of the courtroom, walked to the witness stand, his face twisted in a grin.

Mason waited until Livesey had seated himself, then said, suddenly,

“Mr. Livesey, do you know Virginia Bynum?”

Livesey frowned, “I’ve told you before, Mr. Mason, that I know so many people that I...”

“Yes or no?” Mason asked. “Do you or do you not know her?”

Livesey looked into the lawyer’s eyes, squirmed uncomfortably, said, “Yes, I know her.”

“Now then,” Mason said, “answer this question yes or no. Did you or did you not have a telephone conversation with Virginia Bynum shortly before ten o’clock on the night of September twenty-first of this year?”

Covington was suddenly on his feet, his expression puzzled, but his instinct as a trial attorney making him realize that some dramatic development was impending, a development which might bode no good for his side of the case. “Why, Your Honor,” he said, “this is not a routine cross-examination. This is going far afield. This is taking up matters which were not covered in the direct examination.”

“It is for the purpose of showing the interest of the witness,” Mason said.

“Well,” Judge Minden said, dubiously, “it seems to the Court the inquiry is certainly far afield, but counsel should have the widest latitude in a case of this kind, when it comes to showing personal interest or bias. I will overrule the objection and permit that question, but I warn counsel that I don’t intend to permit any fishing expeditions.”

“I’m not fishing,” Mason said.

“Very well, answer the question, Mr. Livesey.”

Livesey twisted his position in the witness chair, glanced appealingly at Covington, ran his hand over his bald head.

“Yes or no,” Mason said crisply. “Did you or did you not have such a conversation?”

Livesey cleared his throat, started to say something, then paused thoughtfully.

“Did you or didn’t you?” Mason thundered.

“Yes,” Livesey said, after a moment’s hesitation.

“Yes,” Mason said. “And at the time of that conversation Virginia Bynum was in Tijuana, wasn’t she?”

“Oh, I object, Your Honor,” Covington said. “That plainly calls for a conclusion of the witness. He couldn’t know where a party was telephoning from. All he could possibly know is what the other party said, and that would be hearsay.”

“Sustained,” Judge Minden said, but he was leaning forward now, looking over the edge of the bench, regarding Livesey with a thoughtful frown.

“And did you, over the telephone at that time, give Virginia Bynum substantially the following instructions? Did you tell her to take my automobile, which was parked at the Vista de la Mesa Hotel, and drive it to Oceanside?”

“Oh, Your Honor,” Covington said, “this is completely far afield. If Mr. Mason wants to make Mr. Livesey his own witness that’s one matter, but I only called Mr. Livesey in connection with a routine matter and...”

“Nevertheless, this might show his bias, his personal interest in the outcome of this trial,” Judge Minden said. “I may say that the Court is very much interested in hearing the answer to that question. Answer it, Mr. Livesey.”

Livesey’s hand was stroking his bald head now with rhythmic regularity.

“Yes or no,” Mason said. “Did you give her substantially those instructions?”

Livesey sat on the witness chair, his hand keeping an even tempo as it moved slowly and rhythmically across his forehead, back up over his head, down to the back of his neck, then back to his forehead again.

The silence in the courtroom was ominous and tense.

“Did you or didn’t you?” Mason asked.

There was no answer.

“Answer the question,” Judge Minden snapped.

Suddenly Livesey turned to the judge. “I refuse to answer that question,” he said, “on the ground that the answer would incriminate me.”

It took Judge Minden more than a minute to silence the courtroom. When he had restored order, he said, “The Court will take a fifteen-minute recess. At the end of that recess the spectators who return will be restricted to the number of spectators for whom there are chairs available. And the first sign of disorder will result in the courtroom being cleared of all spectators. The jury will heed the previous admonitions of the Court. Court is now adjourned for fifteen minutes.”

Mason grinned at Paul Drake. “Things are beginning to look up, Paul.”

“Darned if they aren’t,” Drake said.