"So Gideon wouldn't make a dealand take parole?"
"He said he couldn't. He saidhe didn't know anything about the money."
"How long's he in for?"Mason asked.
"He was released lastFriday" Drake said.
Mason was thoughtful. "And Isuppose the authorities have had shadows sticking to him like glue."
"That I wouldn't knowabout," Drake said, "but I can tell you this. It's one hell of a jobto keep a man under surveillance when he knows what the score is and doesn'twant to be shadowed. He can break away sooner or later.
"The best technique is to lethim make a first try and encourage him to believe that he's thrown off theshadows and then see what he does. For that reason authorities quite frequentlyhave a rough shadow who keeps the guy under surveillance in such a way that theshadow stands out like a sore thumb. Then the subject ditches the shadow bygoing into a crowded building which has several exits, or getting a car,driving through a traffic light or two just as it's changing, and all thefamiliar dodges. The rough shadow gets left behind and the smooth shadows takeover.
"Usually the subject will goand hole up somewhere in a little hotel under an assumed name and keepcompletely quiet for a couple of days. Then if he sees nothing suspicious, hethinks he has it made and goes out and walks right into the trap."
"Did this happen withGideon?"
"I don't know anything aboutGideon," Drake said. "The authorities aren't taking me into theirconfidence except to tell me that I'd better cooperate or else." Drakedrew an extended forefinger across his throat.
"You sit tight," Masonsaid. "If it comes to an absolute showdown where they threaten you withyour license, you can tell them that I gave you the fingerprints and that youreported to me. Let them talk with me and I'll tell them."
"Well," Drake said,"they'd still like the forty-seven thousand bucks."
"So they could make restitution?"Mason asked.
"Well, they would like to nailGideon again because of giving false information to officers."
"That's all been outlawed bythe statute of limitations a long time ago," Mason said.
"No, it hasn't," Drakesaid. "They played it smarter than that. They pulled out Gideon'sstatements about the office safe having been burglarized and so forth and toldhim they were investigating that crime. Gideon told them it had all beenoutlawed by the statute of limitations but they told him they wereinvestigating it anyway and asked him again to tell them about the burglary ofthe office and the loss of the forty-seven thousand dollars.
"They have some sort of statuteabout giving false information to officers who are investigating a crime and -"
Mason made an exclamation ofannoyance. "Gideon has served his time. He's paid his debt tosociety."
"But they don't like to have acrook get away with forty-seven thousand dollars and only serve a fewyears."
"I see," Mason saidthoughtfully. "Well, the police know that you know something aboutMargaret Neely You're going to have to handle the connection so all they haveis a blind alley."
"I'm terminating theconnection," Drake said. "I don't want any part of it. I'm washing myhands of the whole business."
Mason shook his head. "No youaren't."
"What do you mean by that,Perry? I have my licence at stake. I can't hold out information the police wantin the investigation of a crime."
Mason said, "The police aren'tgoing to prosecute anyone for anything. They'd like to impound forty-seventhousand dollars. That's all. I'd let you off the hook and get anotherdetective agency if I could, but I don't dare contact anyone else.
"Think what a mess would bestirred up if it became known Lorna Warren had been arrested! We can't let thathappen. We can't let that information get out."
"No one's letting it out,"Drake said. Mason was openly doubtful. "When the police get mad, Paul,their methods are sometimes pretty rough." Drake said nothing.
Mason said, "I want shadows,Paul. I want Mrs Warren kept under discreet surveillance. Don't let her get onto the fact she's being shadowed. Tell your men to let her get away rather thanarouse her suspicions.
"I also want Judson Olneytagged for a few days at least, and I want you to get a mug shot of CollisterGideon and see that all your operatives study the picture. If either of thepeople I've mentioned sees him, or if he gets in touch with them, I want toknow about it."
Drake groaned. "I was afraidyou'd have some idea like this. It's dangerous, Perry."
"Taking a bath is dangerous,Paul. Get started."
When Drake had left the office Della Street said, "Good heavens! You'd think she'dhave had more sense."
Mason said, "Look at it thisway. An impressionable young woman, she was completely hypnotized by an olderman's glib talk. She thought there was nothing wrong in what they were doing.She was fascinated by him, probably in love. It would have been relatively easyfor Gideon to have got her to take custody of the forty-seven thousandbucks."
"I know," Della Street said. "That part is all right, but shecertainly shouldn't let a misguided sense of loyalty to a clever crook trap herinto the present situation."
"Just what is the presentsituation?" Mason asked.
"Well," she said,"for one thing, her husband knows."
"Knows what?"
"About the forty-seven thousanddollars."
Mason said, "The chain ofcircumstantial evidence has some very significant missing links, Della. In thefirst place, the authorities don't know that Mrs Horace Warren is MargaretLorna Neely In the second place, the husband doesn't know anything about herpast, and in the third place, even if the authorities should question herhusband, he couldn't be interrogated as a witness because a husband can'ttestify against a wife, and she can't be forced to testify againstherself."
"All right," she said,"how about you? An attorney has to hold the communications of his clientprivileged, but that doesn't mean he can be inveigled into becoming anaccessory to a crime."
"A crime?" Mason asked.
"A crime," she said."Gideon was convicted. You can't conceal knowledge of a crime."
"And what do I reallyknow?" Mason asked. "What knowledge do I have?"
"You know about…about…"
Mason grinned. "Exactly, Della.I perhaps have some hearsay evidence but all I ever actually saw was a suitcasefilled with old newspapers. It's no crime to collect newspapers in asuitcase."
"And just where do we go fromhere?" she asked.
Mason said, "We have beenretained to protect Mrs Horace Warren against the person whose fingerprint wasgiven to us. That print was made by Margaret Lorna Neely We are, therefore,retained to protect Mrs Warren from herself."
"You're going to take theassignment literally?"
"There isn't any other way totake it," Mason said. "We're going to protect Mrs Horace Warren fromherself."
"Her past?"
"Her past, her present,everything."
"How can you do that?" sheasked. "Mrs Warren has already turned over the money."
"That doesn't mean that Gideonhas received the money," Mason said. "Let us assume that it is in transit.
"Horace Warren says the moneywas still in the suitcase up to a short time before he tried to show it to me.When we opened the suitcase newspapers had been substituted for the currency.
"Police would have beenfollowing Collister Gideon. He would have anticipated that. Therefore he wouldhardly have been so foolish as to go directly to the Warren residence and pick up the money. Thereforehe must have sent some intermediary."
"Some person who was present atthe party?" Della Street asked.
"We can't tell," Masonsaid. "It may have been one of the servants. Gideon is smart. He knew inadvance the date of his release. It is well within the limits of probabilitythat he could have planted an accomplice as a servant."
"Then Mrs Warren paid over themoney?"
"Or the servant stole it,"Mason said. "Or the husband stole it so his wife wouldn't be payingblackmail, and then retained me to protect her from the blackmailer."