The Case of the Sulky Girl

Chapter 23

Headlines streamed across the front page of the Star.

Perry Mason, with the paper propped up in front of him on the table, cracked his threeminute eggs and smiled with satisfaction. Down below the large headlines were smaller headlines:

Perry Mason salted and peppered his eggs, dropped in a square of butter, reached for a slice of crisp toast, and chuckled.

He read the verbatim account of the trial, noticed that the challenge which he had hurled at the prosecution was printed in blackfaced type, finished his breakfast, folded the newspaper, and went to his office.

"Any news?" he asked Della Street.

She regarded him with a wistful, halfmaternal smile on her lips.

"You've got it in your pocket," she said.

He grinned at her.

"If the District Attorney refuses to accept the challenge now, I've got the case won in front of the jury," he said.

"What will you do if he accepts the challenge?" she wanted to know.

Perry Mason walked to the window and stared thoughtfully out at the morning sunshine.

"Now that," he remarked, "calls for another question. Did you double your bet with Paul Drake?"

"Yes."

"Good girl!" he said.

"You think the D.A.'ll consent to the test?" she asked.

"Yes."

"How are you going to determine that it's a fair test?"

"I can't," he told her, "but there's no harm in trying."

"Well," she told him, "you've got some good advertisement in this case, anyway. Every morning newspaper is speculating what it is you've got up your sleeve. You're referred to a dozen times as 'The Old Fox of the Courtroom, and most of the reporters state that the chief trial deputy was plainly worried at the manner in which the case was expedited."

"You mean," he told her, "the newspapers figure I couldn't possibly be as dumb as I seem."

She laughed. "I'm betting on you," she said.

"The D.A.'s got a couple of surprise witnesses," Perry Mason said.

"Surprise to whom?" she inquired.

"That's the question," grinned Perry Mason, and walked to his inside office.

He had no sooner closed the door than the telephone rang.

"This is Drumm on the line now," said the voice of Della Street.

"Hello," said Perry Mason.

"Good morning, counselor. This is Drumm speaking. I have been thinking over your demand for a test of the vision of Don Graves, and have decided to consent to making a test under exactly identical circumstances. I shall ask the court for an adjournment over the week end to enable the test to be completed and thought I would let you know."

"Nice of you," said Mason.

"Not at all," snapped Drumm.

Mason chuckled.

"I meant letting me know," he said.

"Oh," said Drumm.

"Have you any plans worked out for making the test?"

"I will announce that in court," said Drumm. "Goodby."

Perry Mason was still chuckling as he slipped the receiver back on its hook.

Perry Mason pressed the button which called Frank Everly to his office.

"Everly," he said, "there's going to be a continuance granted in that trial this morning, so that arrangements can be completed for a test which is to be made. I'm not going up to court, but am going to send you up, to be there and arrange for the continuance. There will be nothing except the formality of getting the case continued over the week end. Drumm will undoubtedly have some scheme worked out under which he'll want the test made and he'll try to rush you into a consent to that scheme, while you are there in court in front of the jury.

"Simply tell him that you were sent up to represent me for the purpose of consenting to the continuance, and that you have no authority to conclude the terms under which the test is to be made. That will necessitate his getting in touch with me when we are not in front of a jury."

Frank Everly nodded his approval, and there was a look of admiration in his eyes.

"You forced him into it, eh?"

"I don't know. He's consenting to the test. That's all I want. I don't care why he's doing it."

"And by this means," said Everly, "you keep from having to quibble over the details in front of the jury?"

"Exactly," smiled Perry Mason. "Tell him that I'll be in my office this afternoon to arrange the details of the test with him, or that I'll meet him at any mutually satisfactory place. Be sure when you make the statement that you do it with an air of the utmost candor and frankness. The jury will be watching you closely and there's been a little too much talk in the newspapers about my being an old fox."

"Okay, Chief," said Everly, and swung out of the office, his face flushed with enthusiasm.

Perry Mason got Harry Nevers on the telephone.

"Just wanted to let you know," said Mason, "that the Deputy District Attorney just called up and told me he was going to consent to a continuance over the week end this morning, so that a test could be made."

The voice of Harry Nevers sounded in a husky, bored monotone over the telephone.

"I can go you one better on that," he said. "I was just going to call you and give you a tip. The D.A.'s office has a scheme framed up for that test. They're going to put it up to you in front of the jury. You won't like it, but you won't dare to argue with it in front of the jury."

"All right," Perry Mason said, "I can raise you one on that. I'm not even going to be in court. I've sent my assistant up to consent to a continuance. He hasn't any authority to stipulate in regard to the conditions of the test."

Harry Nevers laughed. "That sounds a little more like it," he said. "Will the court order the test?"

"No," Mason said. "I don't think the court will want to have anything to do with it. It's something that will have to be handled by stipulation. We'll make the test and then let the witnesses testify Monday morning."

"When are you going to figure out the details of the test?" asked the reporter.

"Probably right after the court adjourns," Mason told him. "Drumm will get in touch with me. I thought I'd give you a ring and let you know that I can't control the publicity that comes out of the D.A.'s office, but as far as I'm concerned you're going to have an exclusive on the details just as soon as I reach an agreement with the District Attorney's office."

Harry Nevers gave a dry chuckle:

"I guess," he said, "it's a good thing that I had the photographer get a couple of pictures of you when he was over in the office. Something seems to tell me we will be running them about Tuesday morning, or in the evening editions Monday night."

"There's one other thing I want you to do for me," Mason said.

"Gee, you're full of those suggestions," the reporter told him.

"That's all right. This is a simple thing."

"All right, shoot."

"When that test is arranged, I'm going to have things fixed so that Drumm and I will be downstairs in the automobile, and Graves will be upstairs. We'll summon him by some kind of a signal. When we give that signal, I want you to detain Graves up there in that room."

"For how long?" asked Nevers.

"As long as you can."

"What's the idea of that?"

"I want to get him rattled."

"You can't rattle that bird. He's a foxy guy, if I ever saw one."

"He may think he's foxy, but he can be rattled just the same. I want you to put up some proposition to him that will hold him behind until he has to appeal to the District Attorney."

"Now," said the reporter, "you're asking something that's making me suspicious."

"It doesn't need to," Mason told him. "If you'll do that, I'll give you a break afterwards so that you can claim you participated in the final result."

"Maybe I don't want to participate in the final result," said Nevers. "Those final results sometimes ain't so hot."

"You won't have to unless you want to," Mason pointed out. "I'll take all the responsibility. You can share in the credit."

"I think," Nevers told him, "I'd better come over and talk this thing over with you a little bit."

Mason chuckled.

"I knew you wouldn't forget it," he said.

"Forget what?" asked the reporter suspiciously.

"That bottle of whisky in my desk," said the attorney, and slipped the receiver back on the hook.