Original subtitles

Since we are currently planning investment in the new field, you may

hearing from my partner and myself the earliest possible date.

I can finish the rest of this myself, Mr. Gorman. No, no, you've got all the

to the airport. Just take me a minute to pick up my suitcase.

Oh, but I know your wife's home, and I could take a taxi back to the office.

Wouldn't she like to drive you to the airport herself if she's going to be

by the time you get back?

Don't try to interfere, Betty.

You wait here.

I know Beth.

Next weekend?

The next?

You'll at least bring Harold Ames up to the cabin to talk about business, won't

you?

Alice, you know very well how important this summer period is. The liquidation,

our whole reinvestment. Our company, tis of thee, sweet corporate entity.

Honey, I'm sorry to have to run off like this our last night together.

But you'll be happier up in the mountains for a while, you know that.

Okay?

What about Jim?

Who?

You weren't even listening, were you?

Your nephew, Jim, is in town. Didn't your secretary tell you?

No.

You mean he phoned here at the house?

What kind of trouble is he in this time?

No, never mind. Don't tell me.

And don't tell me how much money he needs, either.

You mean there's no time for any member of your family?

Alice, I don't want to see him. No, and I don't want you talking to him, either.

We've no time for irresponsible, useless... You believe me, dear. I know

Carl, what do we have time for?

When this summer period is over, what's going to happen to me? Alice, for

heaven's sake, don't ask me to explain my plans for a new factory in a time

this.

New factory?

For a guy who knows best about everything.

Wow.

Yes, wow.

Sorry, Jim. Why?

off the last time.

Alice, we're going to teach him a lesson he'll never forget.

Well, aren't we?

Did you look in the safe deposit box?

He has the audit of his father's paper company.

I copied the only figures there were.

They're debts of his father's. He hoped he could repay sometime.

But now he's going into a business his father was dishonest in.

He could be ruined and he knows it.

Disgraced. But I don't want him to be disgraced.

I want a fair share of the money Carl and I struggled so hard to get, but...

Don't worry.

Nobody's really going to be hurt. I promise.

Now, look, do you have a key to Carl's office?

Jim, there's nothing in Carl's office worth our taking.

Now, let me decide these things.

There's a guy now.

Used to work for the company.

He can look around.

Tell me what's available.

But, darling... What's the matter?

Don't you trust me?

I'm getting cold feet.

What's the matter?

Wrong flavor?

I've been thinking.

They've been selling their assets left and right.

That means they're converting to cash, doesn't it, Stan?

What I want to know is how much and where it is.

Say, I know a guy that handles explosives.

Are you crazy?

It wouldn't be in there. Now, just wait a minute.

Here's some correspondence.

Well?

Well, there's at least $80 ,000 they've just deposited from one big sale.

Let me take a look at that. Wait.

Somebody else.

It's Mr.

Ames.

Listen, Jim, I just got fired, Mr. Outfit. He can't find me here. Wait a

You want to make $1 ,000 for helping me or not?

All right, you stay here.

Don't make any noise.

What in the name of... Hey, wake up.

Oh, it's you.

What are you doing here?

Oh, the janitor let me in.

Thought it might be all right if I slept here to wait for Carl.

He's out of town until tomorrow noon.

Did you talk to Alice?

Uh -uh.

No, I didn't want to get anybody else involved.

Oh, I could have gone to a hotel, I guess, but... Well, I was afraid I might

followed.

Followed? Yeah, some guys are tailing me. Gamblers.

Plan to owe them some money.

Harold, you don't suppose you... If you're in some kind of trouble, Jim, you

better wait and talk to Carl about it.

Oh, yeah?

Don't you remember some snapshots I took at that certain office party?

There's nothing I can do about it, Jim. Now, please, wait for Carl.

Oh, I'm sorry. I'm just upset.

How much money do you need?

Eighty thousand dollars.

Eighty what?

Well,

it's not that I really think they'd kill me if I didn't pay.

Well, at least I can get you a room at my club. They won't bother you there.

Come on. Thanks.

Oh, wait.

I'll get the lights. My coat's in there.

The janitor. I wanted to leave him ten bucks.

Haven't any change.

Be back in a second.

Just find out how they got that dough deposited.

See if it's where Carl can dig it up for us in a hurry. Jim, I don't want no...

part of this if you've got gamblers chasing you. Oh, will you relax? There

no gamblers.

Nobody's going to cut in on this deal but you, buddy.

Sure, for $5 ,000.

Just you.

Jim took that $10, sir.

Then down at the club, he conned my gullible partner out of a cool hundred

tips and drinks, he said. Plus another hundred for breakfast and emergencies.

It's typical. He's done it a million times.

This noon, he upset my secretary with the same wild story.

What about your wife?

Did he talk to her?

No, no, she'd have nothing to do with him.

Anyway, Alice is up in the mountains. Left first thing this morning.

This business of Jim being in danger from gamblers would be fairly easy to

verify.

I have an investigator who...

My nephew has been a liar and a troublemaker since he was five years

Nothing he says is true.

I only want you to understand I'm doing the right thing and calling a halt to

Jim, that's all.

You want me to arrange the dummy purchase of a small piece of your

he still seems to own?

I don't care if you pay him $1 ,000. Just get him out of here.

I want his name taken out of my will, too. I want my nephew crossed out of my

life. If it were possible, I'd have him restrained and enjoined from coming into

my house.

Hold on a minute, Mr. Gorman.

Della, read back those figures, would you please? The money Jim received from

Mr. Ames?

Jim took that $10, then down at the club, a cool $100, plus another $100 for

breakfast and emergencies.

$210.

More than petty larceny.

I want to know what you're talking about.

Well, in California law, getting money under false pretenses comes under the

definition of theft.

Theft? You mean we might bring criminal charges against him? Mr. Gorman.

I wasn't seriously suggesting such action.

Why are you so anxious to get something on your nephew?

Well, I don't understand you.

I was just wondering why you waited so long to rid yourself of such a person,

that's all.

Mr. Mason, he is my nephew. But everything has to come to an end

fed up.

Has he ever blackmailed you, Mr. Gorman?

Blackmail? Over what?

Mason, I'd kill anyone who ever tried such a thing.

It's just that I'm going into new ventures now.

It's true, I thought that what you suggested could somehow be used to get

out of my hair.

Let's see here if you're not interested. No, no, I'll look into it.

Thank you, Mr. Mason. Thank you.

Good day, Miss Treat. Good day.

I wonder what hold his nephew has over Mr. Gorman.

What is it, Betty?

In here, please.

Mr. Gorman, those men your nephew told you about before, those gamblers or

whatever they are.

Jim? What phone is he on? I'll fix that useless... No, no, it's long distance.

It's your wife. Those men were at the cabin waiting for her.

Alice? Hello, Alice. Are you all right?

Do you want me to call the police?

They want to make a business deal, Carl, to sell you these things.

I'm perfectly all right.

So far.

What?

Well, there's all this material on your background about your father's company.

Well, yes, I suppose they did get it from Jim. I don't know how, but they

I told him I wouldn't pay him one red penny.

Carl, listen to me.

These men work for gamblers. They're criminals. They won't stop at anything.

They say, don't you come. Send somebody else.

Yes, send Betty along. She'll be all right.

With $80 ,000.

That's blackmail and extortion.

And how do you know they'll give you anything?

Carl, they say they're only doing this to collect the money Jim owes them.

Please.

They haven't done anything to me yet, but I'm afraid of these men.

All right.

Tell him all right.

I'll send it.

And Alice, be brave.

I know... Yes, of course.

I was about to say, I know best.

Great performer.

Here.

Honey, he's selfish, stubborn and egotistical.

He nearly wrecked your life.

He never did.

I was just wondering what you are, that's all.

What you'll do to my life.

Honey, we've got at least four hours to wait.

Why don't I walk down the road and see if I can get the electricity turned on,

huh? No.

We can use the lanterns.

Jim, please don't leave me alone.

Mrs. Gorman?

Alice, can you hear me?

Alice, are you in there?

Honey, get a hold of yourself.

says, lady.

Tomorrow we'll be in Cuernavaca, lapping for our martini.

$80 ,000.

I'll do the counting.

Hey.

Hey, wait a minute. Who are you?

Never mind, buddy. You're Jim Ferris. You got some dough. You're coming with

What do you mean I'm coming with you? Now hurry up!

Keep running.

You think you love chocolate?

Well, nobody loves...

Betty has been my secretary for nearly six years. She could no more think of

hurting anyone or telling a lie about anything.

You only say she was questioned, Mr. Gorman. She hasn't been charged with

anything yet. I should hope not. She was only up there to deliver the money.

I had to explain that to the police, of course.

Your nephew Jim was murdered, however.

Discovery that Mr. Ferris' death was not caused by the fire came when doctors

reported finding a bullet lodged in his spine.

All right, but Betty didn't do it.

Who do you think did kill him, Mr. Gorman?

Mason, all I know is I need your help.

Go see where they've kept Betty downtown.

If she isn't charged with anything, why she can't leave?

Well, I'm sure she can.

But what about your wife?

After she got home last night, couldn't she remember what had happened?

Alice still isn't very coherent, I'm afraid. She's under sedation, in fact.

She's told the police all she could. The doctor didn't want her disturbed.

Did she mention seeing your nephew up there at the cabin?

Almost she had no idea that Jim was within miles of the place.

You see, a masked man was waiting for her when she drove up that afternoon.

He and another masked man were all that she saw.

If they were holding Jim prisoner there, she'd know inkling of it.

And after the money was delivered, the men gave your wife some personal papers

and released her.

Alice said she drove away as fast as she could.

What's so important about those papers, Mr. Gorman?

My father was once, unfortunately, prominent in this business that I'm

into, paper packaging.

He, uh, well, he went to prison for certain things he did.

I changed my name.

But see here, I'd never have paid $80 ,000 just to hide Jim's little

of facts about it if they hadn't been holding Alice.

If those men hadn't been professional criminals, gamblers... Excuse me just a

moment. Paul.

Tell Mr. Gorman what you found out from Tahoe and Las Vegas.

Well, your nephew's name is well known to gamblers, all right. Both his own and

an alias he uses.

Gossip travels pretty fast in those circles.

I shouldn't wonder.

Any man who's in debt for $80 ,000.

Go on, Paul.

Jim Ferris was known to be on a blacklist. No credit.

Every place we check, they just laugh at the idea of anybody even rolling dice

with him. Let alone ever expecting to collect more than five bucks.

In other words, Mr. Gorman...

The police investigation will probably prove that gamblers had nothing to do

with either shaking you down or murdering your nephew.

Of course, we know that the blackmail facts had to come from Jim himself, but

who else was involved?

The responsibility for all this, Mr. Gorman, may lie a good deal closer to

than you think.

No matter how it happened, I'll need your help.

Of course.

Thanks for bringing me home, Mr. Mason.

I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but I just didn't see any more.

Did you recognize the man's voice from the cabin? The one who told you to throw

the money out?

No, of course not.

That's the same sort of ridiculous question the police kept asking me all

Do you remember how things were arranged in here?

Or is there a maid that tidies up?

No, I'm the maid.

And that's why everything's such a mess.

Things look pretty neat now.

I guess that's why the police kept you downtown for a while.

But they have no right to just break in and search a person's room.

This is your landlady's building.

They probably looked through your car also.

But why, Mr. Mason? What could anybody possibly think I might have?

$80 ,000.

Mr. Mason, I don't have anything to do with this. I was just doing an errand.

Goodie.

Did you know Jim Ferris?

Yes.

Well, I mean, that is not very well.

He was once rather a pest around the office.

It was last year, that one little time when he worked there.

And then he went off to Mexico, I think.

Where in Mexico?

Some place in Cuernavaca.

He was always talking about it.

To the girls, I mean.

Oh, Mr. Gorman must have told you what Jim was like.

When was the next time you saw him?

Didn't he call the office early yesterday trying to reach Mr. Gorman?

Yes. And he phoned here the night before.

Here?

Yes, he wanted to know how to reach someone.

A man who used to work as an accountant in the office.

What was the man's name?

Piper.

Stanley Piper.

Stanley J. Piper, age 35, single, been fired from any number of jobs.

Well, I finally checked out of his rooming house early yesterday morning,

several hours before any of this happened.

Checked out for good?

Yep. Packed a bag and kissed the cleaning woman goodbye.

Real happy for some reason.

Maybe 80 ,000 reasons.

Better get somebody on his trail as quickly as possible.

Well, he shouldn't be too hard to trace.

Hold on a second, Paul.

Seven minutes.

There's so many curves, it took me almost eight minutes going the other way

here to the cabin.

Police still up there?

Mm -hmm. They were just leaving, driving out the other road.

Paul, when you get out here, check that description of Piper with the people in

the cabin area.

Oh, and bring some wire screening with you.

I want you to sift through anything that might be left from the fire.

Yes, I can reach you there.

Thanks.

You know, the cabin's just right up there, but the road winds all along the

ridge and back.

So if Betty left the money, took seven minutes to drive down here, started to

phone Gorman in town, then saw the fire, took eight minutes to drive up there

again... That's 15 minutes at least, Perry.

There could have been a fight over the money, the murder, the fire starting.

All sorts of things could have happened during that time.

Exactly. With all sorts of people.

Hello, Mrs. Gorman.

My name is Mason.

Yes, of course.

I thought of our own lawyer. Heard everything you can remember, Alice.

Oh, there's more of those reporters, I swear. Every newspaper in town.

All right, we'll get along, all right, for a minute or two. Go ahead.

I'm not going to pester you with any of the details, Mrs. Gorman.

They gave me all those pills.

I know.

I'm only going to ask you about the two men at the cabin.

Were you able to see either one of them clearly?

No.

No, they wore masks.

Perhaps one of them had a receding hairline, shaped something like a

peak.

Widow's peak?

Yes, I did see the one man.

He had a little scar up there on his forehead.

Does the name Stanley Piper mean anything to you?

No.

What about the second man?

I didn't see him very well.

Could he have kept out of your sight intentionally?

Could the second man have been your husband's nephew?

Could he have been Jim Ferris?

I'd like to hear the answer to that, too, Mrs. Gorman.

Alistair, Lieutenant Tragg has come back to... Please, please.

Don't let me interrupt you, Mr. Mason.

Go right ahead.

Well, uh, Ms. Gorman, did the second man speak to you at all so

that you might have been able to recognize his voice?

That's right. He didn't speak to me.

Now, I never once heard his voice.

He never even came close. I didn't even get a good look at him.

Is that what you mean?

It's good enough for me.

What do you mean by that?

Well, it was Jim Ferris, all right. That's why he was so bashful.

We located a forest ranger, and he got a good look at a man who stepped briefly

out of the cabin yesterday afternoon.

The description fits perfectly.

Yes, I... I guess it could have been Jim.

You mean Jim did everything?

Is that what you're trying to say?

Perhaps he hired a accomplice named Stanley Piper.

There's a woman mixed up in it, too, I'm afraid.

Perhaps more importantly.

A woman?

Yes, a woman was seen with Ferris the night before.

Your secretary, Mr. Gorman.

I think you should know that we're now prepared to charge Betty Wilkins with

murder in the first degree.

But she doesn't... She wants to apply for a marriage license with your nephew.

Perhaps you didn't know about that.

She also wrote him letters.

keeping him privately posted on your financial situation.

Not to mention that Ferris and a woman bought airplane tickets to Mexico.

And it was her gun which killed Ferris.

Oh, there's plenty of evidence against Betty Wilkins, all right.

Well, now, if your wife feels up to helping me with a few little details,

goodbye, Mr. Mason.

Mason, I had no idea. I didn't think Betty even knew Jim.

To think that all this time.

Well, I'm sorry, that's all I can say.

Sorry? For asking you to help.

Why, if I'd once thought that Betty had actually committed murder.

Mason, where are you going?

I'd say she needed a lawyer now more than ever.

Wouldn't you?

Here are straight answers to questions about your hearing.

Sure, I ask people to repeat themselves.

A lot.

Does that mean I have a hearing problem?

Maybe you do. The 200.

This was everything we got from Sifting the Ashes.

Here, that's what you were asking about.

Might be late.

What about Mr. Piper?

The police haven't all the points out for him.

Did you follow up on the plane ticket Jim Ferris bought? Two, from Tijuana

South. It could be that Piper grabbed him for a fast getaway.

Cuernavaca's not very far these days.

You'd better do some traveling.

All right. Say, why is Berger's office moving into this hearing in such a

And he put one of his best boys, Jack Alvin, on the case.

Think maybe that he's got a direct line to Piper, or possibly some of the money?

For the purpose of this hearing, they don't need either one.

It's our side that needs a witness.

Any witness.

The three lowest cervical vertebrae were completely shattered.

After passing through the lung, the bullet, in effect, simply ricocheted

the spine.

And he definitely died of that gunshot, not from any effects of the fire.

Mm -hmm.

Thank you, Doctor.

Mr. Mason?

you cannot state exactly when Mr. Ferris died?

Well, shortly before the fire, as I've explained.

There was no breathing after the flames reached him.

Can you be more accurate concerning the number of times Mr. Ferris was shot?

There was only the one bullet.

And yet I'm told the police recovered quite a number of empty shell casings

the ashes of the fire.

Doctor, you described considerable tissue damage to the body.

Is it possible that such damage could have kept you from detecting another

bullet wound?

Well, if any other bullet passed through his body in a place we couldn't detect,

it could only have been in one or two superficial locations.

Thank you, Doctor. That'll be all.

Yes, a comparison test was made with this weapon in a laboratory.

It definitely checks out as the murder gun.

Now, Lieutenant, you testified that an automatic of this Macon serial number

purchased three months ago at the Colfax Hardware Company by Miss Betty Wilkins.

Yes, and a permit was issued to Miss Wilkins the preceding day.

Your Honor, I have photostatic... I bought it for the office.

Mr. Gorman asked me to because there had been several robberies.

I ask that these be marked as People's Exhibit G.

Mr. Mason?

The defense has no objection, Your Honor.

Now, Lieutenant, would you tell us a little more about the search that you

of the cabin area on the day after the crime?

What were the results of that search?

Well, my men sifted through the ashes, the debris.

They recovered a belt buckle, key chain, the glasses prescription from Ferris'

charred wallet.

But what about the empty shell casings, the brass casings that are left after

bullets have been fired?

Yes, we found quite a few of them, too.

We found 14 .22 caliber shells, half a dozen .25 -20. I don't think it's

necessary to read the entire list, Lieutenant.

How do you account for there being so many?

Surely all that ammunition wasn't used on Mr. Ferris.

Well, it was a hunting cabin.

That's all.

Lieutenant Tragg, you neglected to read one item on that list.

How many .25 caliber shell casings were found of the type used in the murder

weapon?

Two.

An automatic ejects the shell casing the moment it fires. Is that correct?

It is.

How do you explain the second shell casing?

Well, the same way I explain all the shells.

Through the years, a great many people were up there with a great many weapons.

Were there any tests made to determine whether those shells had been fired from

the same gun?

Yes.

On an automatic, there are firing pin and pressure pin marks known as breach

block signature.

Now, what did these tests show, Lieutenant?

Well, as it happens, the fire destroyed the breach block signature.

But, Lieutenant, as firing pin marks are not absolute proof, such as the

ballistic check run on the slug itself, what were your conclusions?

Well, the best we can say is there was no difference.

The two casings could have been ejected from the murder weapon or half a million

other guns of the same type.

Now, Lieutenant, is that little .25 caliber purse weapon the sort of gun

commonly used for hunting?

No.

Thank you.

That'll be all.

Lieutenant?

How many slugs did you find in those ashes? That is, bullets that could have

been fired through the murder weapon.

Why, none.

There was only the one in the body, that's all.

Yes, but couldn't additional shots be embedded in the woodwork or in the walls

of the cabin?

No. No, we searched every inch.

It was just plain one shot that was fired, and that's all there is to it,

And do you have reason to believe those findings were confirmed in any way?

Yes. After my men finished their work, a private investigator, Mr. Paul Drake...

had permission to move in with his own men, and they sifted the ashes for some

time. With what results, do you know?

Oh, if they found anything, I'm sure they would have reported it to the

authorities.

Even if they didn't report it to anyone else.

That's all. No more questions.

Anything I read across, Mr. Mason?

Yes, Your Honor.

Lieutenant Tragg, did your men find any traces of money at the scene of the

crime? Money, sir?

Traces of burned silk thread.

Perhaps of bills of large denominations, such as $50 bills?

No.

We found no indication of any burned money.

Thank you, Lieutenant.

That'll be all.

Your Honor, it's quite apparent that the defense is either fishing or stalling.

However, since he has touched upon a point which I intended to hold until

I'd like to ask one more question of this witness.

All right, proceed.

Lieutenant, did you find traces of such money anywhere else?

Yes, sir.

On the night of the murder, we found a bundle of $50 bills, $5 ,000 in all.

And where did you find this money?

We found it in the automobile belonging to the defendant, Miss Betty Wilkins.

Now, Mrs. Gorman, think very carefully.

Did you actually see the money thrown from the defendant's automobile?

or see the man go pick it up.

Did you ever, in fact, see any money at all?

No. No, I didn't.

You only heard it spoken of, perhaps for your benefit.

Now, once more, what exact words were spoken?

Betty honked the horn and called my name.

And I called to her.

I'm all right.

Just do as you were told.

Just throw out the money.

And then I heard the car drive away.

That's all I know.

That's all there is.

After Alice's phone call, I went to the bank to get the cash for the transaction

I described.

I understand.

Then what you got was $80 ,000, all in $50 bills. Is that correct?

Yes. Were these bills marked in any way, the serial numbers recorded?

No. I didn't want to attract any attention.

Then what happened?

I put the money in Betty Wilkins' car and she drove off.

That's the last I knew until my wife came home that evening.

Now, tell me, Mrs. Ames, did you ever, last year that is, see Mr. Ferris and

Miss Wilkins together?

Yes. Yes, it was after a company party one night. I went out to get my car and

there was Betty and this Jim Ferris standing in the parking lot.

Oh, and what were they doing?

Kissing each other.

Hmm.

Now, on the night before the murder, did you again see Mr. Ferris and Miss

Wilkins?

Yes, I happened to drive by the company office, and I was on my way to see a

friend who was ill, and Betty's car was parked out in front.

Mr. Ferris was sitting inside.

Uh -huh. And that's all he was doing, just sitting?

I drove around the block.

By then, he was getting out of the car and going to meet her.

and Betty was coming out of the building.

I suppose that he'd been waiting for her.

And that's all you saw?

I couldn't very well drive around again.

But the next night I came by, just out of curiosity, and they had been gone by

then. Thank you, Mrs. Ames.

Counselor?

Mr. Mason, perhaps you'll agree to postponing your cross -examination. It's

nearly five o 'clock.

I've no objection, Your Honor.

All right, court is adjourned until 9 .30 tomorrow morning.

I'm sorry,

Perry, but I'm afraid we're out of luck.

Stan Piper just is not in Cuernavaca.

I have another idea, Paul.

You'll receive some notes from me.

I want you to put them in the mailbox at the hotel there.

We'll use them as bait.

Perry, two police detectives from Los Angeles beat me down here by a full day.

They've combed the place with Piper's picture.

They're just as anxious as we are to find out how much of that $80 ,000 he's

got. But the guy just plain went someplace else.

Well, stick around down here if you want me to. But you're just going to have to

write out that hearing without any witness.

I'm Elizabeth Ashley, and I have big news for anyone who wants... 1 -800

-INJURED We were, in other words, converting certain company assets into

Mm -hmm.

Would Betty Wilkins have known that?

Would she have known the exact dates when there'd be large amounts of money

the company's bank accounts?

Yes. She had access to that information.

Thank you, Mr. Ames. Mr.

Ames, your wife testified about visiting a friend evenings. You heard that

testimony, did you not?

Yes, sir.

Didn't cross -examine her on that subject, as I knew you would be called

stand.

Mr. Ames, do you remember a certain conversation in which your wife clearly

stated that on the night of the murder...

You were at home all evening?

I do.

I object, Your Honor, on the grounds that no proper foundation has been

established for an impeaching question.

The counsel must show the time, the place, and the persons present.

Well, the object of specifying time, place, and persons present is to give

witness an opportunity to recall the specific conversation.

Now, witness has stated that he does recall the conversation, and therefore

allow counsel to proceed. Let's continue, Mr. Mason.

Mr. Ames, if your wife went out visiting, drove past your office, not

night before the murder, but in her own words, the next night too, how could she

be certain of your exact whereabouts on either evening?

She couldn't, of course.

Harold! Never mind, Barbara.

She was trying to protect me, I presume.

Or to give you an alibi, you mean.

But what about her?

Hasn't it ever occurred to you, Mr. Ames, that some woman other than Betty

Wilkins could have been involved with Jim Ferris?

Objection. This line of questioning is entirely irrelevant and immaterial.

I'll agree you're getting pretty far afield, Mr. Counselor. I intend to

it up, Your Honor. I would like to continue my cross -examination of this

witness. But, Your Honor, there's no jury to be influenced here, Mr.

Prosecutor. I'll listen for a while.

Mr. Ames.

Were you ever blackmailed by the decedent? Of course not.

Was your wife ever blackmailed by Jim Ferris?

Now look here, sir.

I don't know what you're trying to prove or what you found out. Found in Jim

Ferris' effects were certain... Jim Ferris took a few pictures at an office

party one time. They don't mean a thing and never have.

I was foolish once or twice, that's all. My wife knows all about it. And for you

to try to... Were you being foolish, Mr. Ames, because your wife was foolish,

because your wife was secretly meeting Jim Ferris?

She is. There she sits. Now, ask her.

Judge, Your Honor, sit down. No, no, ask her your question. Ask Alice Gorman.

Your Honor, if I could be recalled, maybe I could explain.

Order, order, please.

Your Honor, the state is interested in finding the truth, not in gaining

convictions.

I have no objection to recalling a witness. However, it seems to me that

Gorman is perhaps the witness to recall at this moment.

Yes, Your Honor.

I believe it was Mrs. Gorman who was seen at the Pink Lady with Jim Ferris on

the night before the murder.

Perhaps if a certain cocktail waitress from the Pink Lady is asked to stand,

name is Frances Banks.

Your Honor, I'm often out of town, and I don't think there's any... Stop it!

Stop it! Stop it!

I did it! I did everything!

Jim and I planned the whole thing.

The phone call, having the money sent out, all of it.

And then a man came and he tried to take the money and a fire started.

If you'll take that lady into custody, let me step down, sir.

This case is dismissed.

Court's adjourned.

Mr. Mason, I told you, no matter how it happened, I'd need your help.

I still do.

I haven't forgotten.

As soon as we find that missing eyewitness... What, the man with the

He'll never be found.

Don't be too sure.

Paul Drake is still down in Cuernavaca.

So Perry was right.

You did turn up.

Sure never would have figured it this way.

But you were the witness, all right.

Where'd she get you?

Your arm?

Shoulder? You know, it was almost a perfect crime.

She ran away.

There was the money.

All you had to do was leave a body behind.

Stan Piper's body, right?

I said, is that right, Mr. Ferris?

Come to Preaching. Stay free brochure.

Well, you told me your nephew was full of tricks right at the beginning.

Yeah, but for him to cold -bloodedly shoot Piper, his friend.

Oh, Piper was just about to grab the money and leave him there.

Anyway, after Ferris shot him, it was a pretty easy identification switch.

But why didn't you find another bullet, Mr. Drake, if there were two shots fired

from that gun?

The fact that a second bullet wasn't found started me thinking.

There was one way for a bullet to have left that cabin, and that was in

somebody. It was in his shoulder.

But what I can't understand is how you trapped him.

Those letters you said you put in the hotel boxes.

That was his bright idea. I just planted them. They were all addressed to your

nephew over that little private alias he liked to use. It was one of those that

trapped him.

Let's see.

In one note we wrote, Don't worry, I'll join you soon. In another...

Flying down as soon as the trial is over.

Much love.

All done in a good imitation of your wife's handwriting. And signed, Alice.

Really got him worried. He was sure she'd figured the whole thing out.

I think Alice had Jim figured.

Well, at least enough to put the gun in her handbag.

Well, like so many of the things that happened, that gun was my fault.

I told her about the one in the office. That's how she knew where to get it.

But I don't think she intended to fire.

I really don't.

We don't either, Mr. Gorman.

But poor Betty here, having to bear all the burden.

Nonsense, Mr.

Gorman.

That's what secretaries are for, isn't it?

Weather with Sue Pelka, weeknights on Channel 5's 10 o 'clock news.