The Case of the Fenced-In Woman (8 page)

"Your client?"

"My client."

Tragg said, "How do you do, Mr. Eden. Why did you think there was going to be a murder here?"

"I didn't," Eden said.

"Then why did you think you needed Perry Mason?"

"For your information," Mason said, "I have just finished filing a suit for fraud against Loring Carson on behalf of Mr. Eden. That is why the newspaper reporters were here."

"I see, I see. And who is Loring Carson?"

"The man who built the house; the man who sold the lots; the defendant in the divorce action and the corpse down there on the floor."

"Well, well," Tragg said, "that seems to cover the situation pretty well. Now who's living on the other side of the house?"

"According to Judge Goodwin's ruling, that belongs to Vivian Carson."

"Wife of the man down there?"

"She is now a widow," Mason said.

"I stand corrected," Tragg observed with a bow of mock humility. "And do you have any idea where Mrs. Carson is now, Mr. Mason?"

"I would assume she was over in her side of the house."

"And how do I get to the other side of the house?"

"There are two ways," Mason said. "You can dive from the springboard of the swimming pool and swim under the barbed – wire fence, or you can go around the heavy post at the end of the driveway where the fence starts, then go up the other side of the driveway and through the side door of the house."

"Or," Tragg said, pursing his lips, "you might crawl under the fence?"

"You might crawl under the fence," Mason conceded, "but it would be a rather hazardous occupation for a man of even average build. That's a five – strand barbed – wire fence. The wire is heavy – gauge, and it's stretched just as tight as human ingenuity and modern mechanical appliances can stretch it."

"A woman with a slender figure could very probably wriggle under that lower wire without too much difficulty, particularly if she were stripped down to-to what one might call the bare essentials, Mason. Eh?"

"Or in a bikini," Mason said. "Bear in mind that the thought is yours, Tragg. I didn't suggest it to you, I only clothed your suspect."

"Oh, not my suspect, Mason. Not my suspect," Tragg said. "I was merely surveying the possibilities-the bare possibilities."

Tragg, frowning thoughtfully, moved over to stand for a brief moment in the center of the archway, surveying the living room.

One of the officers, catching his eye, called, "You'd better look over this way, Lieutenant. There's a significant wet spot here as though someone had spilled some water, perhaps out of a glass."

Tragg started to walk down the steps, paused, then, turning hack to Mason, said, "I think a slender woman could have slipped under the fence; a woman wearing a bikini, a wet bikini. Thank you very much for the suggestion, Perry. I'll remember it."

"It wasn't my suggestion," Mason said. "It was your idea."

"Exactly," Tragg said, smiling, "it was my idea and your suggestion."

Chapter Seven

MASON TOOK Morley Eden's arm, escorted him back a few feet into the hall.

"How did Loring Carson get in this house, Eden?" Mason asked.

"I wish I knew," Eden said. "The only explanation I have is that when Carson built the house he must have had duplicate keys made so that he could get in and out while he was putting on the finishing touches.

"You see, he erected the house and hung the doors but there was still a lot of work to be done on the interior and, of course, contractors don't like to have the public trooping in and out of a house."

"Carson didn't turn all the keys over to you when the house was completed?" Mason asked.

"I thought he did," Eden said somewhat irritably. "He turned over two complete sets of keys, but there must have been a third set which he retained."

"You had no idea he was going to be here in the house?"

"Of course not."

"Where were you?"

"I went to your office this morning to sign the verification to the complaint. You were out somewhere. I read the complaint and signed the verification. Miss Street acted as notary public. She said I was to meet you here at one o'clock and that I wasn't to let any reporters inside the house until you arrived."

"Then what did you do?"

"I went back to my office."

"And what happened after you reached your office?"

"There were lots of calls from newsmen asking about the suit you'd filed. I told everyone I would be at the house at one; that you'd be there then and that I'd give them a statement at that time and let them take photographs. I said that in the meantime I had nothing to say."

"You had no idea Carson's body was in the house?"

"Of course not."

"How long since you've seen him?"

"Some time."

Mason said, "Carson was in my office. He tried a lot of bluster, but as nearly as I could gather the main purpose of his visit was to try and keep me from filing any action on your behalf. He told me that he was engaged in some rather delicate negotiations and that having a lawsuit filed against him at this time would put him in a most embarrassing position."

Eden frowned. "I had an idea that he was negotiating some sort of a deal and wanted to avoid publicity until the deal was consummated."

"Any idea what sort of a deal it was?" Mason asked.

Eden shook his head.

Mason said, "The man had a breezy informality about him. I assume that was his natural manner. Knowing that I was about to file suit against him for fraud, I didn't want to discuss anything with him. I kept telling him to get an attorney. He told me he didn't need one, that he could talk with me, and chided me for being something of a stuffed shirt as far as legal ethics were concerned. Frankly he made me feel just a little embarrassed. He had a friendly manner of wanting to talk and get things settled on a man – to – man basis, and I had to adopt the position that I couldn't discuss things with him unless his attorney was present."

Eden said, "That was Carson's way. He'd put on the pressure and keep putting on the pressure. When he wanted something, he just kept boring right in."

"How did he get out to the house here?" Mason asked. "Did he come by car?"

"I don't know. There was no car parked here when I arrived except a couple that the newspapermen came in. Then two more press cars followed just behind me."

Mason said, "One thing is certain, he didn't walk out here. He either came in a taxicab or someone brought him. If he had someone with him, that person could have driven his car away. Did you come right out here from your office?"

"Actually I didn't," Eden said. "A woman phoned me and said she had some information on a piece of property I wanted to buy. She said that if I'd meet her out there in half an hour she'd show me how I could save ten thousand dollars on the deal and if I did that she'd want one thousand dollars as her cut."

"What did you do?"

"Told her I'd meet her there and listen to what she had to say."

"Who was she?"

"Wouldn't give her name, said she was a stranger to me but that she'd be wearing a dark green outfit with a white carnation corsage."

"Dark green," Mason said musingly. "That's where the original mix – up between Vivian Carson and Nadine Palmer took place. They were both wearing dark green. All right, you went out there. Did you meet the woman?"

"No. I waited half an hour. She never did show up."

Mason frowned. "That delayed you?"

"You might say.. although your secretary told me you had one person you had to see before you arrived and I didn't need to hurry-just so I got here at one."

"You didn't see anything of Mrs. Carson when you did get here?"

"No."

"Did you notice whether her car was there at her side of the house when you arrived?"

"No."

"Could it have been there without your noticing it?"

"Oh, sure. I had other things to think about. And it could have been in the garage. That's on her side of the fence."

Mason regarded him thoughtfully. "Let's get this time element straight, Eden," he said. "What time did you actually arrive here?"

"Heavens, I don't know," Eden said somewhat irritably. "It was a little before.. well maybe a little after one. There's no use trying to cross – examine me."

"I'm not cross – examining you," Mason said. "I'm simply trying to get at the facts. I also want to know when you left your office. The police are going to want all this information pinpointed down to the last minute."

"Well, I can't give it to them," Eden snapped. "I can't run my business on a stopwatch basis. I don't know just what time I left where."

"You were alone?"

"Yes, I went out there to this corner lot I was negotiating for, waited around for this woman in green, then after half an hour or so I decided I couldn't wait any longer and so drove straight out here."

"Did you see the knife that was in Carson's body?"

"Yes."

"Have you ever seen it before?"

"I think I have."

"Where?"

"I think it's part of a set; that is, a duplicate of the set that Carson gave me."

"Carson gave you a set of knives?" Mason asked.

"That's right," Eden said. "He completed the house and I gave him his check in final payment and he said he wanted to make me a little present; that he'd put up a magnetic bar for knives by the range in the kitchen. He had a whole set there, starting from small paring knives up to knives for slicing bread, knives for cutting roasts and a utility knife that had a wooden handle. I presume he got a set for himself at the same time. One of the knives in that set is very similar to the knife that was in Carson's body."

"But you don't know whether that knife came from the set he gave you or not?"

"Heavens, no, Mason. What are you trying to get at? I saw Carson's body lying there. I guess you saw it before I did. I tried my best to keep away from it. I went up close enough to make sure it was Carson. Then some of the reporters started questioning me. Actually I thought they had no business messing things up the way they were doing."

"They didn't," Mason said, "and don't become so annoyed with me for trying to get your story straightened out. The police are going to want to know everything about your movements. They'll want to know how much of your time can be accounted for. They'll ask you for the names of witnesses who can tell where you were."

"Well, I can't give them the names of witnesses. How long is all this going to cover-this period of time the police will want to know about?"

"That," Mason said, "will depend on what the autopsy surgeon finds as to the time of death."

"Well, they'll have to take my word for it," Eden said.

"They'll take your word for nothing," Mason said.

Mason stepped over to the archway leading to the living room where Tragg was down on the floor on his hands and knees, raising and lowering his head so as to get reflections of light from the moist spots on the floor.

"Will you want me anymore, Lieutenant?" Mason asked.

"Want you anymore," Tragg repeated. "Don't be silly, I haven't started with you yet. And don't let Morley Eden go away. I haven't started with him."

"What are you doing now?" Mason asked.

"Right at the moment," Tragg said, "I'm trying to account for these spots of water on the tile floor. Now do you suppose by any chance these came from melted ice cubes?"

"Meaning that Carson had a drink in his hand at the time of his death?" Mason asked.

"Exactly," Tragg said.

"I wouldn't know," Mason said, "but I have a suggestion that you might care to consider."

"What's that?"

"As I have previously pointed out, it's comparatively easy to go from one side of the fence to the other by using the swimming pool. That is, the fence goes right along the surface of the swimming pool but doesn't go under water. A swimmer could dive under the fence and come up on the other side with the greatest of ease."

"You think this water may have come from the swimming pool?"

"There's a chance," Mason said. "Water in the swimming pool is, I believe, chlorinated more heavily than drinking water. If you had some small bottles and could get that water before it evaporates…"

Tragg turned to one of the officers. "When Mason gets this cooperative he has something in mind, a very definite something. I was about to suggest that we collect this water so we can make a chemical analysis and, of course, Mason, noticing that I was inspecting the puddles of water and anticipating what I had in mind, has now made a very constructive suggestion."

Tragg got to his feet, dusted off the knees of his trousers and the palms of his hands and said to one of the men, "Get on the radio to Headquarters. Tell the dispatcher to rush a car out here with some sterile vials and some small sterile pipettes. I want to get as much of this water as possible before it evaporates."

The officer nodded, hurried out to the police car to get on the radio telephone.

Tragg turned to Morley Eden. "Now," he said, "how did Carson get in the house? You don't leave the door open, do you?"

Eden shook his head.

"That is another thing I was about to comment on," Mason said.

"Go right ahead," Tragg said. "I've forgotten now who it was that said fear the Greeks when they were bearing gifts, but as I remember it he took the gifts. I'll take all the verbal gifts you have to offer; but don't discount the fact that every suggestion you make increases my suspicions all the more."

"That's quite all right," Mason said, "just so we get the facts straight, then we can adjust them later."

"That, of course, is the big thing in a homicide. Get the evidence, preserve the facts. Now what were you going to suggest?"

Mason said, "I think you'll find that Loring Carson had a complete set of keys to this house. He built the house, you know, and then turned it over to Morley Eden. First he sold him the lots, then he went ahead and contracted to build the house on a basis of progress payments."

"I see," Tragg said. "Well, ordinarily we don't take anything from the body until after a representative of the coroner's office gets here, but in a situation of this kind time is of the greatest importance. I think we'll go through his pockets, men, and just make a list of the things we take out. We should have an official photographer here any minute and representatives of the coroner's office."

Tragg turned to Eden. "Could I trouble you for a sheet or a pillowcase, or something that we could put on the floor and into which we could put the things we take from the man's pockets?"

"I can get you a pillow slip right away."

"That will be fine," Tragg said.

He stood a few paces back from the body, surveying it with thought – troubled eyes.

"Something bothering you, Lieutenant?" Mason asked.

"A lot of things are bothering me," Tragg said. "Look at the man's shirt, a very expensive shirt, French cuffs; cufflinks that are enameled black, but you can see that they are diamond cuff links. Some substance was put over the diamonds and then the whole thing was enameled black."