Presumed Puzzled

by Parnell Hall

“Aside from our client?”

  “Our client?”

  “She’s a spiteful bitch. You should see her at the bridge table. She’d frame me for murder just for misdefending a Three No Trump contract.”

  “I don’t know what that means. You’re not being rational. Let’s look at where we are.”

  “We’re in the bar at the Country Kitchen,” Cora said. “Because you ran out of scotch.”

  They were actually in a booth in the bar of the Country Kitchen and talking low, though no one appeared to be taking an interest in their conversation.

  “I don’t know what to do,” Becky said. “If I tell my client, she’s going to want to talk.”

  “Will you let her?”

  “I don’t know. I shouldn’t have to make that decision until I put on my case. I don’t think I can shut her up that long.”

  “I don’t, either.”

  “If I don’t tell her, she’s liable to sue me for malpractice.”

  “How can she sue you for malpractice if she doesn’t know we’ve got it?”

  “Cora.”

  “I’m just sayin’.”

  Becky sighed. “The puzzle provides the missing motive. It’s a prosecutor’s dream.”

  “Only if he can prove she saw it.”

  “She’s going to admit she saw it. She’s going to shout it from the housetops.”

  “So what if she saw it? It’s no motive unless she solved it.”

  “She did solve it.”

  “She doesn’t have to say so.”

  “Oh, great,” Becky said. “Now you got me suborning perjury.”

  “It’s not necessarily perjury. Our client says a lot of things. Some of them turn out to be true.”

  “Except following her husband to the hotel.”

  “She didn’t say she didn’t. She just didn’t mention it.”

  “A sin of omission,” Becky said.

  “Didn’t she say she had a perfect marriage, her husband would never do that?”

  “Yeah, but wives say that.”

  “I sure didn’t. Just ask Melvin.”

  Becky shook her head. “This is very bad. I have attorney-client privilege. You don’t. You are withholding evidence.”

  “Evidence of what? It’s a crossword puzzle. I don’t know where it came from. I don’t know it has anything to do with anything.”

  “My client told you it did.”

  “Oh, now it’s ‘my’ client. She’s your client, and I’m withholding evidence. Correct me if I’m wrong, but your client hasn’t identified this puzzle as the one she claims she saw, and it would be irresponsible on my part to go running to the police and level an accusation of that type based on such flimsy evidence.”

  “Accusation?”

  “I may have exaggerated a little. I’m not sure what degree of slander we’re talking about here.”

  Becky took a sip of her scotch, considered. “You make a strong case.”

  Cora shrugged. “That’s because I’m not a lawyer.”

  Chapter

  29

  Sherry squeezed in next to Cora in the front row.

  “Back again?” Cora said.

  “After last night I wouldn’t miss it.”

  “I’m hoping there’s nothing to miss.”

  “What are the odds of that?”

  “Not good.”

  “Does your client know about the you-know-what?”

  “Bite your tongue.”

  Court was called to order, and Bob Krantz resumed the stand.

  “Now, then,” Judge Hobbs said. “When we adjourned the prosecution was conducting its direct examination of Mr. Krantz. Mr. Firth, do you have any further questions for the witness?”

  “No, Your Honor. That’s all.”

  Becky got to her feet. “Mr. Krantz, you testified that you saw my client at the hotel?”

  “That’s right.”

  “On how many occasions?”

  “Just the one.”

  “And when would that be?”

  “On the sixth of June.”

  “And how do you fix the date?”

  “It’s one of the days her husband stayed there.”

  “Did she come with him?”

  “No.”

  “Did she ask for him at the desk?”

  “No, she did not.”

  “So you didn’t know it at the time.”

  Bob Krantz frowned. “I beg your pardon?”

  “There was nothing to connect my client to her husband at the time. So when you say she was there the same day he was there, you’re doing it in retrospect. You’re saying, ‘He was there on the sixth, so I must have seen her on the sixth.’ Isn’t that right?”

  “No, it is not.”

  “Correct me where I’m wrong.”

  “When I saw her I realized that was the woman I saw on the sixth. Her husband was also there on the sixth. I can’t help the fact she was there the same day as her husband, it just so happens she was. You may not like it, but it’s a fact.”

  “What thing, besides the presence of her husband, allows you to pinpoint the fact she was there on the sixth?”

  “Nothing in particular. I just remember that she was.”

  “How?”

  “I have a good memory.”

  “Having a good memory is one thing, Mr. Krantz, but you can’t remember something that you’ve never known. I put it to you that you never knew my client was there on the sixth, so you can’t remember it.”

  “Well, it’s probably not the first time you’ve been mistaken.”

  That sally was greeted by a burst of laughter from the courtroom.

  Becky smiled at the witness. “Mr. Krantz, I don’t mean to badger you, I’m just trying to understand your thought process. It’s not often we get a witness as observant as you are, with a memory as good as yours. When you saw my client, was there anything in particular that drew your attention to her?”

  “She was hesitant about being there. She paused in the doorway and waited until the elevator door had closed. Then she came in, went to the elevator bank, and looked up at the readout that indicates which floor it’s on. She didn’t wait for it, however. When the elevator started down, she turned around and went outside.”

  “Did she come back after that?”

  “No, she did not.”

  “When you saw her do this, was that right after her husband had come in and gotten in the elevator?”

  “I really couldn’t say. As you pointed out, I had not yet connected the two things in my mind. I know the time he came in because it’s in the registration. She didn’t register, so I’m guessing. I would guess it was around the time, but I’m not sure.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Krantz. No further questions.”

  “Any redirect?” Judge Hobbs said.

  “I have one or two more questions,” Henry Firth said. “Mr. Krantz, you say you can’t tell whether you saw the defendant in the lobby of the hotel at the same time her husband checked in?”

  “Yes, I can.”

  “You can? And was it the same time her husband checked in?”

  “No, it was not. When the defendant came in the front door, there was no one at the desk. I had a completely unobstructed view of the front door. If someone had been checking in, he’d have been in my line of sight.”

  “Is it possible she came in immediately after her husband checked in?”

  “It’s entirely possible, but I didn’t see it happen, so I can’t testify to it.”

  “And on the other day that her husband checked in, you did not notice her on that day?”

  “No, I did not.”

  “As far as you know, she was not there?”

  “I didn’t say that. All I can say is I didn’t see her. If she was there, I missed her.”

  “But you don’t know if she was there?”

  “No, I do not.”

  “Let me ask you this. On the day her husband was there that you didn’t see her there, did you see anyone
else?”

  “Lots of people. It’s a hotel. People check in, people check out.”

  “I mean anyone associated with this case.”

  “Oh. As a matter of fact, I did.”

  “Are you saying that on the other day her husband checked in, you saw someone in this courtroom other than the defendant in that hotel?”

  “That’s right.”

  “And who would that be?”

  “The woman in the front row right behind the lady lawyer asking all the questions.”

  Bob Krantz pointed his finger straight at Cora Felton.

  Chapter

  30

  “What a mess,” Becky said.

  “You’re telling me,” Cora said. “It’s enough to make me start smoking.”

  “It’s enough to make me start smoking crack. What the hell were you thinking?”

  Cora gave Becky a look. “Are you kidding me?”

  “No, I know what you were thinking. What made you think you could get away with it?”

  “Becky. You’re very young. Well, maybe not as young as you look. But you’re adorably naive. Getting away with it is not a high priority in my lifestyle. Enjoying the moment has a lot more appeal.”

  “You were having an affair with Roger Martindale.”

  “Does that surprise you?”

  “Nothing you do surprises me. Isn’t he a little young for you?”

  Cora grimaced. “Please. It’s bad enough to be accused of murder. Let’s not get personal.”

  Following the Bob Krantz revelation, Cora had been taken into custody. While a specific charge was not named, the smart money was on murder. The only real obstacle to a speedy prosecution was the fact that Henry Firth already had one suspect on trial. But there was no doubt he would be happy to swap defendants. Convicting Paula Martindale would be a feather in his cap. Convicting the Puzzle Lady would be a career maker.

  “It’s going to get personal, Cora. It’s going to get very personal. Every indiscretion you ever committed is going to get aired in open court.”

  “Are you going to let that happen?”

  “Not without a fight. But the questions I can block are going to hurt you worse than the ones you have to answer. People are going to think, What she’s hiding must be terrific.”

  “It was.”

  “Cora.”

  “I can’t help it. I got my heart broken for the thousandth time. Crowley has a girlfriend. And I like her, and I don’t want to bust them up. And that’s not a situation I’m used to dealing with. Is it any surprise I found somebody else?”

  “But Roger Martindale?”

  “What’s wrong with Roger Martindale? Aside from being dead, I mean.”

  “You play bridge with his wife.”

  “She’s a spiteful bitch. I don’t feel bad about cheating on Paula Martindale. Cheating on Paula Martindale is an added perk.”

  “Well, she happens to be my client, which is a bit of a problem.”

  “Why?”

  “You’ll have to get a lawyer.”

  “What?”

  “I can’t represent you both. It’s a conflict of interest. I’m not like a prosecutor. I’m not allowed to dump one defendant just because a better one comes along.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding.”

  “I’m not. Oh, I can do it. I’m a lawyer, I more or less do anything I want.”

  “May I quote you on that?”

  “But I’d like to do it in ways that don’t involve the bar association.”

  “If that’s the case, why are you talking to me now?”

  “Well, someone has to. But you really have to hire your own attorney.”

  “So get me out of here.”

  Becky made a face. “Well, that’s a problem. If I push ’em too hard, they’ll charge you. If they charge you, I’ll be in a position where I can’t represent you because it will be a conflict of interest. So I won’t be able to get you out because I won’t be able to represent you.”

  “Are you messing with me?”

  “Just a little. If my client asks me not to represent you—”

  “Why would she do that?”

  “You were sleeping with her husband.”

  “Oh, you think she might take offense?”

  “Cora.”

  “All right, all right, she probably doesn’t like me. I don’t like her, either. Why is this even an issue? As soon as Ratface gets done posturing about his wonderful courtroom revelation, it’s going to dawn on him that in the typical marital triangle it’s the aggrieved wife who gets pissed off enough to hack up her husband, not the woman who happens to like him.”

  “What if he was dumping her and going back to his wife?”

  “What, play the woman-scorned card? Not nearly as good. And speaking of likely suspects, who would you pick, the woman covered in blood clutching a butcher knife, or the woman who arrived with the chief of police and caught her at the crime scene with the murder weapon?”

  “Ordinarily, that would be true.”

  “Ordinarily? What, this is a special case? It’s the Puzzle Lady, let’s dork her?”

  “No, it’s the Puzzle Lady, and there’s a puzzle involved.”

  “Oh, for Christ’s sakes.”

  “See the problem?”

  “Are you going to tell them about the crossword puzzle?”

  “No, but my client will.”

  “She doesn’t know about it.”

  Becky said nothing.

  Cora’s eyes widened. “You’re going to tell her?”

  “She’s my client.”

  “I’m your client. The crossword puzzle has nothing to do with the current situation. Assuming it ever existed, she took it to the mall and burned it.”

  “It’s on your computer.”

  “A crossword is on my computer. You don’t know that it’s the one she was talking about. She couldn’t remember what it said. There’s so many other things on the table right now, why would you want to clutter up the scene with that?”

  Becky took a breath. “I’ll do what I can.”

  “Can you get me out of here?”

  “I’ll try.”

  Becky left the interrogation room, hunted up Henry Firth. “She’s not talking. Charge her or release her.”

  Chapter

  31

  Rick Reed was waiting to pounce. “Here’s Cora Felton now. Ms. Felton, is it true you were having an affair with the murdered man?”

  “Hi, Rick. Nice day. Good to see you.”

  “Can you answer the question?”

  “What question?”

  “Were you having an affair with the murdered man?”

  “The dead man?”

  “Yes.”

  “It’s very hard to have an affair with a dead man.”

  “Before he was killed.”

  “Before he was killed?”

  “Yes.”

  “Before he was killed, he wasn’t a dead man.” Cora smiled, patted him on the cheek. “You really seem confused about this, Rick. Figure it out and we’ll talk.”

  “From your evasive answers I’m inclined to think you were.”

  “Oh, I doubt that.”

  “You doubt that you were having an affair with the victim?”

  “No, I doubt that you’re inclined to think. I’ve never found you inclined to think, Rick. In fact, thinking is the last thing I ever would have suspected you of.”

  “And there you have it,” Rick said. “The Puzzle Lady, dodging questions like a common criminal. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.”

  There was a knock on Cora’s bedroom door. Aaron Grant came in. She muted the TV. “What’s up?”

  “Anything I should know?” Aaron said.

  Cora made a face. “Not you, too.”

  “No, not me, too,” Aaron said. “I’m not one of those buzzards circling to pick at the corpse. I just wondered if there was anything I could do to help.”

  “Con
fess to killing Roger Martindale.”

  “That wasn’t what I had in mind.”

  “That wasn’t what I had in mind, either. But somehow, that’s what people expect of me. Pretty stupid when you think about it. Why would I want to kill Roger Martindale?”

  “To protect your good name.”

  “What good name? The one my umpteenth husband Melvin is always dragging in the dirt? It’s not like a hint of scandal could hurt me.”

  “Yes and no.”

  “You’re the second person who’s done that to me lately. The first one, I almost took his head off. You care to explain, or are you auditioning to make the front page of the New York Post?”

  “A scandal doesn’t bother you. But it might bother Granville Grains.”

  “Oh, I don’t think so. I’ve been in the tabloids before.”

  “Not for killing an adulterous lover.”

  “Oh, God, you’re right.” Cora frowned. Considered. “Except.”

  “Except what?”

  “You’re talking about a motive. Why I killed Roger. Saying ‘to cover up the fact I killed Roger’ isn’t really fair.”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  “I know it isn’t. It’s only what you said. Becky Baldwin would love to have a go at you in court. Speaking of adulterous relationships.”

  Aaron’s mouth fell open. “I am not having an affair with Becky Baldwin.”

  “Neither was Barney Nathan, but everyone thought he was. I certainly hope you don’t fall into the same trap.”

  “Are you threatening me with Becky Baldwin?”

  “Absolutely not, and you can quote me on that: ‘Cora Felton denies saying anything about an affair between Aaron Grant and Becky Baldwin.’”

  Aaron put up his hands. “Hey, I wasn’t attacking you. I was only telling you how the prosecution’s going to see it.”

  “And I was telling you why it’s a stupid idea. As stupid as pairing you with Becky Baldwin. Which I have no intention of doing, by the way. But I see your point. Granville Grains would not be happy to see me in an affair with a married man. But the idea that a married man was threatening to expose his own affair with me just for the purpose of smearing my name, when it would get him in trouble as well, is really a stretch. And when you throw in the idea that I killed him to prevent that from happening, well, Becky Baldwin could defend that murder charge in her sleep.” Cora shrugged. “If it weren’t for the conflict of interest.”