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The Case of the Howling Dog :: Гарднер Эрл Стенли
Страница: 45 из 146You've heard the story about the irate husband who cut holes in the umbrella of a man who was entertaining his wife."
"Wait a minute," Mason said. "I'm not joking; I'm serious."
"Well, all right," Drake remarked. "Suppose you are serious? What does that buy us?"
"The theory of the district attorney's office is that Cartright complained about the howling dog merely in order to get Foley away from home, so Cartright could run off with Foley's wife."
"Well?" asked the detective.
"It doesn't make sense," the lawyer said. "In the first place, why go to all that elaborate trouble in order to get Foley away from home? In the second place, there must have been some previous talks between Cartright and his wife. He must have known where she was, and she must have known where he was. Those talks necessarily took place in the absence of Foley. Having decided that they were going to go back together and patch things up, why the devil didn't Cartright walk over to the place, cuss Foley out and take his wife?"
"Probably because he didn't have the guts," Drake said. "There are people like that."
"All right," Mason agreed patiently, "let's suppose you're right on that. Then he went to the law, didn't he?"
"Yes."
"How much simpler it would have been to go to the law and complain that Foley was living in a meretricious relationship with his wife, and have the law step in. Or, he could have hired me as his attorney, and I'd have gone out there and pulled the woman out of the house damned quick. That is, if she wanted to get away. Or, the woman could simply have walked out. After all, Cartright had all of the legal rights on his side."
Drake shook his head.
"Well," he said, "that's up to you. What you wanted me to do was to get the facts. You were going to put them together."
Mason nodded slowly.
"What do you think happened?" asked Drake.
"I don't know," Mason said, "but I'm telling you that the thing doesn't click. It doesn't fit together and it doesn't make sense, and the farther we go into it, the less sense it makes."
"Now, then Drake said, "who are you representing?"
"I'm not entirely certain," Mason said slowly. "I'm representing Arthur Cartright, and I may be representing his wife, or I may be representing Foley's wife. By the way, what happened to her?"
"You mean Forbes?" asked the detective.
"Foley or Forbes, it's all the same. I know him as Foley; that's the way I first met him, so that's the way I describe him.
"Wait a minute," Mason said. "I'm not joking; I'm serious."
"Well, all right," Drake remarked. "Suppose you are serious? What does that buy us?"
"The theory of the district attorney's office is that Cartright complained about the howling dog merely in order to get Foley away from home, so Cartright could run off with Foley's wife."
"Well?" asked the detective.
"It doesn't make sense," the lawyer said. "In the first place, why go to all that elaborate trouble in order to get Foley away from home? In the second place, there must have been some previous talks between Cartright and his wife. He must have known where she was, and she must have known where he was. Those talks necessarily took place in the absence of Foley. Having decided that they were going to go back together and patch things up, why the devil didn't Cartright walk over to the place, cuss Foley out and take his wife?"
"Probably because he didn't have the guts," Drake said. "There are people like that."
"All right," Mason agreed patiently, "let's suppose you're right on that. Then he went to the law, didn't he?"
"Yes."
"How much simpler it would have been to go to the law and complain that Foley was living in a meretricious relationship with his wife, and have the law step in. Or, he could have hired me as his attorney, and I'd have gone out there and pulled the woman out of the house damned quick. That is, if she wanted to get away. Or, the woman could simply have walked out. After all, Cartright had all of the legal rights on his side."
Drake shook his head.
"Well," he said, "that's up to you. What you wanted me to do was to get the facts. You were going to put them together."
Mason nodded slowly.
"What do you think happened?" asked Drake.
"I don't know," Mason said, "but I'm telling you that the thing doesn't click. It doesn't fit together and it doesn't make sense, and the farther we go into it, the less sense it makes."
"Now, then Drake said, "who are you representing?"
"I'm not entirely certain," Mason said slowly. "I'm representing Arthur Cartright, and I may be representing his wife, or I may be representing Foley's wife. By the way, what happened to her?"
"You mean Forbes?" asked the detective.
"Foley or Forbes, it's all the same. I know him as Foley; that's the way I first met him, so that's the way I describe him.