Miss Lizzie (13 page)

“Ah,” said Mr. Slocum. “Yes. Probably he lolled about on the beach for a time, and then swam away.”

“We don't know what the murderer did,” said Da Silva. “The beach was deserted yesterday. For the same reason that everyone on the street was inside, with their shades drawn. The heat.”

“What about forensic evidence? Did you find anything in the house that might help?”

Da Silva produced his quick cold frown. “Nothing.”

“But there must be something, old man. I mean, you don't commit a crime like that without leaving evidence about. In the room. On your person.”

“The drains,” said Miss Lizzie.

Everyone looked at her.

Over her pince-nez she asked me, “Is there a washroom upstairs? On the guest-room side of the house?”

I nodded. “A small one. Just a shower and a sink. And a toilet.”

She turned to Da Silva. “Have you looked in the drains?”

The chief glanced at Medley, who gave a small quick shake of his head. Da Silva turned to Miss Lizzie. “And why, exactly, would we do that?”

She said, “It's obvious, surely. He was probably stained with blood. Wouldn't his first thought be to wash it away before he went outside? Some it may have remained in the trap below the drain. If it did, I imagine there was very little he could do about it.”

Da Silva was smiling that hard small smile that was as cold as his frown. “
He
, Miss Borden?”

NINE

DURING THE INTERVIEW with Miss Lizzie, it was Chief Da Silva rather than Officer Medley who asked the questions. Once again, the rest of us became an audience. None of us spoke, except for Mr. Slocum, who interrupted from time to time, acting almost as a referee. And none of us moved, except for Mr. Boyle, who puffed quietly away, one by one, at a chain of cigarettes; and for the diminutive police stenographer, whose pen darted with swift metronomic efficiency across the pages of her notebook.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden, how long have you been residing at One-oh-two Water Street?

Miss Borden:
Since the beginning of May.

Chief Da Silva:
You rented the house for the summer?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Did you know the deceased, Mrs. Audrey Burton?

Miss Borden:
I did not.

Chief Da Silva:
But you were aware, were you not, that Mrs. Burton resided at One Hundred Water Street, next door to you?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Did you ever speak with her?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
Come now, Miss Borden. You expect us to believe that you lived next door to the deceased for several months and never once spoke with her? Not even to say hello?

Miss Borden:
What you believe, or disbelieve, is of very little interest to me.

Mr. Darryl Slocum:
Miss Borden has answered your question, Chief Da Silva. Perhaps we can go on.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden, you notified the police, by telephone, that Mrs. Burton had been murdered. Is that correct?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
How did you know this?

Miss Borden:
Miss Burton, young Amanda Burton, her stepdaughter, came to my front door and told me.

Chief Da Silva:
What time was this?

Miss Borden:
About twenty minutes after twelve.

Chief Da Silva:
At approximately twelve-twenty on the afternoon of August the second, is that correct?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
And what, exactly, did Miss Burton say?

Miss Borden:
That someone was dead and that there was blood all over.

Chief Da Silva:
Those were her exact words?

Miss Borden:
As I recall them.

Chief Da Silva:
Did you ask her who was dead?

Miss Borden:
I did.

Chief Da Silva:
And what was her reply?

Miss Borden:
That it was her mother.

Chief Da Silva:
How did she appear to you?

Miss Borden:
She appeared to be in shock.

Chief Da Silva:
Have you had any medical training, Miss Borden?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
Then what, exactly, qualified you to diagnose Miss Burton?

Mr. Slocum:
Hold on, old man. You asked her how the girl appeared to her. It seems to me that she's answered that question.

Chief Da Silva:
What were the symptoms of this shock you diagnosed?

Miss Borden:
She was quite pale. Her speech was disjointed.

Chief Da Silva:
What form of treatment did you prescribe?

Miss Borden:
Are you asking me what I did next?

Chief Da Silva:
Yes.

Miss Borden:
I took her inside and tried to comfort her.

Chief Da Silva:
How?

Miss Borden:
I wrapped her in a shawl and gave her some brandy.

Chief Da Silva:
What is your relationship with Amanda Burton?

Miss Borden:
She is a friend.

Chief Da Silva:
Do you often give her brandy?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
Have you ever given it to her before?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
Are you aware, Miss Borden, of the Volstead Act?

Mr. Slocum:
We're wandering a little far afield, aren't we? If you want to arrest everyone who's got a spot of medicinal brandy in the cupboard, you'd have to arrest half the town, including, I daresay, most of the police department.

Chief Da Silva:
We'll leave it for the moment. Miss Borden, why would Miss Burton come to you?

Miss Borden:
I am her neighbor and, as I said, her friend.

Chief Da Silva:
She's visited your house before?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Often?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
On a daily basis?

Miss Borden:
I shouldn't say that often.

Chief Da Silva:
Once a week? Twice a week? Three times a week?

Miss Borden:
Perhaps three times a week. Perhaps four times.

Chief Da Silva:
And what did the two of you do on these visits?

Miss Borden:
We played cards.

Chief Da Silva:
What sort of cards?
Mr. Slocum:
Surely that's irrelevant?

Chief Da Silva:
I'm trying,
counselor
, to establish the relationship between Miss Borden and the girl.

Mr. Slocum:
You've established it. They're friends and they played cards together. Whether they played gin or whist, or poker for that matter, has no bearing on the matter at hand.

Chief Da Silva:
Thank you for your advice, counselor.

Mr. Slocum:
Don't mention it, old man.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden, what did you do after you comforted Miss Burton with your brandy?

Miss Borden:
I went next door.

Chief Da Silva:
You mean to the Burton residence?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Why?

Miss Borden:
To verify what Amanda had told me.

Chief Da Silva:
I see. And what did you find?

Miss Borden:
I found Mrs. Burton.

Chief Da Silva:
What do you mean, you found her?

Miss Borden:
I found her in the guest room, dead.

Chief Da Silva:
How do you know she was dead? Did you examine her?

Miss Borden:
It was obvious from the nature of her wounds.

Chief Da Silva:
Did you touch her body?

Miss Borden:
I did not.

Chief Da Silva:
Did you touch anything in the room?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
But you did enter the room.

Miss Borden:
I took a step into the room. It was obvious even from the doorway that the woman was dead.

Chief Da Silva:
You found her in the guest room?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
You proceeded from your residence to the Burton residence and went directly to the guest room?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
How did you know she was there?

Miss Borden:
Miss Burton had told me.

Chief Da Silva:
But you say you went
directly
to the guest room. Had you ever been in the Burton residence before?

Miss Borden:
No.

Chief Da Silva:
Do you mean to say that while Miss Burton was in a state of shock, she gave you directions as to how to locate the guest room?

Miss Borden:
No, I do not mean to say that. Had I meant to say that, I should have done so. Miss Burton told me some three weeks ago where the guest room was.

Chief Da Silva:
Why would she do that?

Miss Borden:
We were discussing the similarities between our two houses. They are, for the most part, identical. She told me then where the guest room was.

Chief Da Silva:
And you remembered this three weeks later?

Miss Borden:
Do you find that remarkable?

Chief Da Silva:
I find it impressive.

Miss Borden:
That does not surprise me.

Mr. Slocum:
I think we've covered this point sufficiently, don't you, old man?

Chief Da Silva:
What did you do after you discovered the body of Mrs. Burton?

Miss Borden:
I returned to my house.

Chief Da Silva:
And then?

Miss Borden:
I made a telephone call.

Chief Da Silva:
To whom?

Miss Borden:
To my lawyer, in Boston.

Chief Da Silva:
You didn't telephone the police?

Miss Borden:
You know quite well that I did.

Chief Da Silva:
But only after you telephoned a lawyer.

Miss
Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Why is that, Miss Borden?

Miss Borden:
I wanted to protect Miss Burton's interests.

Chief Da Silva:
What led you to believe her interests might be in jeopardy?

Miss Borden:
I have had some small experience with the police before.

Chief Da Silva:
And when might that've been, Miss Borden?

Mr. Slocum:
I don't see that my client has any reason to answer that question.

Chief Da Silva:
Why not? Does she have something to hide, Mr. Slocum?

Mr. Slocum:
Any experience that Miss Borden may've had with the police would be a matter of record. And it would also be totally irrelevant to this inquiry.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden is not under arrest, counselor.

Mr. Slocum:
Ah. I thought that perhaps that small fact had escaped your notice.

Chief Da Silva:
Would you like to answer the question, Miss Borden?

Mr. Slocum:
As her lawyer, I advise Miss Borden not to answer it.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden?

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Would you like to answer the question?

Miss Borden:
I think not.

Chief Da Silva:
You refuse to answer the question?

Mr. Slocum:
She just said so. Does memory serve me correctly, or didn't you say something yesterday about not badgering witnesses?

Chief Da Silva:
Slocum, I'm growing a bit tired of you.

Mr. Slocum:
And here I thought we were getting along swimmingly.

Chief Da Silva:
And so, Miss Borden, you telephoned your lawyer. What was the result of that call?

Miss Borden:
He told me he would telephone a local lawyer, Mr. Slocum here, and ask him to come to my house.

Chief Da Silva:
Which of course, being the conscientious soul he is, Mr. Slocum immediately did.

Mr. Slocum:
Nicely phrased, old man.

Chief Da Silva:
Miss Borden, how many other telephone calls did you make before you called the police?

Miss Borden:
One.

Chief Da Silva:
To whom?

Miss Borden:
To Dr. Bowen.

Chief Da Silva:
For what purpose?

Miss Borden:
Miss Burton was in shock. I felt she needed a doctor.

Chief Da Silva:
And then, finally, you called the police.

Miss Borden:
Yes.

Chief Da Silva:
Do you have any idea who might've murdered Mrs. Burton?

Miss Borden:
None.

Chief Da Silva:
Can you tell us anything further that might help?