“Now then, the Court is going to refuse to bind this defendant over, and as far as the Court is concerned, he is released from custody. The Court feels there’s opportunity for a lot of further investigation in this case; and I think this is the fair way to see that such an investigation is conducted in an unbiased and efficient manner. The defendant is released from custody and the Court is adjourned.”
The judge banged his gavel in a form of finality, effectively shutting off the half-hearted protests of the district attorney.
Chapter 28
Rob Trenton observed the surge of spectators crowding towards him, intent upon shaking his hand.
He moved over quickly to Dr. Dixon before the physician could leave the space reserved for attorneys and witnesses. “I want to thank you,” he said.
“You don’t have to,” Dr. Dixon told him. “I merely performed a complete post-mortem, which I contend should invariably be done in every case of unexplained death, particularly where the circumstances indicate a homicide.”
Rob led him to one side. “I have a favour I want to ask of you.”
“What’s that?”
“Isn’t there some way I can get out of here without going through that crowd of people?”
“They’re waiting to shake hands with you,” Dr. Dixon said, his shrewd eyes studying the young man’s face. “They want to congratulate you, and make something of a hero of you.”
“I know it,” Trenton said, “and if the judge had ruled the other way and bound me over for murder, they’d have been looking at me as though I were a snake.”
Dr. Dixon’s eyes softened. “What do you want me to do?”
“I think there’s a side door out of here,” Rob Trenton said. “I want to get out. Can you show me where it is?”
Dr. Dixon hesitated only briefly, then nodded. “You could go into the door over there which leads to the judge’s chambers, as though you were intending to thank the judge for what he’d done, and then you could go down through the corridor and there’s a door there that opens on a side street. Come on with me if you want.”
Rob Trenton moved towards the door to the justice’s chambers.
On the other side of the rail, Merton Ostrander gestured that he wanted to see Rob, and Rob, smiling, nodded vaguely, made an ambiguous gesture of his hand, and accompanied Dr. Dixon through the door to the judge’s chambers.
“It just happens,” Dr. Dixon said smilingly, “that I have my car parked out here and I’ll give you a ride across the bridge. Something seems to tell me it will be a little better for you to get out of the state.”
“Flight?” Rob asked.
“Changing your base of operations,” Dr. Dixon said. “And incidentally leaving the jurisdiction of a hostile district attorney who has sustained wounds to his vanity and his political prestige, and who may, therefore, try to recover lost ground by having you rearrested if he can only find some ‘new’ evidence. After an hour or two he’ll remember that the two smugglers who are in custody are only too willing to buy themselves immunity by turning ‘state’s evidence’. When that happens it’ll be well for you to be in another state, and to resist extradition.”
They moved down the corridor, out of the side door and found that as yet no one, not even the reporters, had anticipated such a move. The crowd was still either in the courtroom or milling around the doors on the main street, and Dr. Dixon and Rob Trenton entered the physician’s car and glided down the road without attracting any attention.
“I hope you realise,” Rob said, “that, regardless of what the district attorney may do, I’m just starting on this thing.”
Dr. Dixon looked at him in a sidelong glance of shrewd appraisal, then said conversationally, “I presume you know that Harvey Richmond was investigating the death of Madame Charteux. The body was exhumed and it was found there was enough arsenic in it to have killed a horse.”
“So I understand,” Trenton said.
“And,” Dr. Dixon went on, “just in order to keep the record straight, you’ll remember that the Customs men took two capsules containing a white powder from your bath robe, capsules which you said Merton Ostrander had given you to settle your stomach?”
Trenton glanced at him sharply.
Dr. Dixon’s face was enigmatic, completely without expression. His eyes were concentrated on the road ahead.
“Go on,” Trenton said.
“I don’t know exactly what you have in mind,” Dr. Dixon went on, “but the Customs men turned those capsules over to Harvey Richmond. When we searched his effects we couldn’t find those two capsules.”
“Good heavens!” Rob said. “I hope you didn’t think I thought the solution would be that simple.”
Dr. Dixon flashed him a keen-eyed glance. “I’m glad to hear you say that, young man. I’m afraid the solution isn’t simple at all, but rather complex.”
“What else do you know?” Trenton asked.
“Very little for certain,” Dr. Dixon said. “We have, of course, investigated all of the parties concerned, to the best of our ability. Linda Mae Carroll and Linda Carroll were in South America two years ago. Linda Mae Carroll was in Europe a year ago, and Linda Carroll was in Africa. They evidently like to travel.”
“Where did they get their money?”
“Apparently Linda’s father died, left her some money and some money to his sister, Linda Mae Carroll.”
“Just money?” Trenton asked.
“Well, there was a fair amount of cash, quite a few stocks and some savings bonds, and there were three pieces of property, farm property of three hundred and twenty acres, and the Londonwood apartment building, which went to Linda Carroll, and the house in Falthaven which went to Linda Mae Carroll.”
“How much of a search has been made for Linda Carroll?”
“No very great search. She has an apartment at 194 °Chestnut Avenue, Londonwood, the apartment house where her father lived. Linda Carroll went there immediately after she returned from her European trip. For some reason she seemed to want privacy and apparently gave that address to no one. When she obtained her passport she had been living with Linda Mae at the Falthaven address, so she used that passport address in this European trip.
“It would seem that both you and Merton Ostrander went to call on her at the Falthaven address. Linda Mae gave you both a run-around, but Ostrander was more lucky than you. He actually ran into Linda when she came to call on her aunt, presumably to give the aunt some instructions.”
“What sort of instructions?”
Dr. Dixon’s face was completely impassive. “I’m afraid that that’s as far as we can go. You apparently know the rest of it as well as we do.”
Dr. Dixon eased his car across the big concrete bridge, said, “Well, you’re now in a new state. Where do you want to get off?”
“I think I’d like to get off in Londonwood, if it’s all right with you.”
“She isn’t there,” Dr. Dixon said.
“I know. I think I’d like to get off there just the same.”
“Any place in particular?”
“Well,” Rob Trenton replied, “perhaps... no, just let me out anywhere.”
Dr. Dixon drove in silence until they entered Londonwood, then stopped the car near the centre of the town. “How’s this?” he asked.
“That’s fine,” Rob Trenton said.
Dr. Dixon shook hands.
“I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am,” Rob Trenton said.