"I searched his bag, nothing." "Just a couple of engineering manuals." "There you see, what did I tell you?" "He's no policeman." "Come on." "Oh, Celia," "I missed you so much." "Those first weeks, they were pretty bad." "You missed me?" "Honey, it's been almost three months." "I expected you to write," "I was worried sick." "How do you think I felt?" "I don't know what you mean." "Steve, I don't understand." "I don't understand you." "I waited." "That night at the wharf I waited till almost midnight." "Until the watchman made me leave." "Then the next morning," "I went to the union office." "Steve, what happened?" "What happened?" "Honey, I sent you the telegram." "And you knew I wasn't coming in." "You said... you were crazy about me, you said it" "Hasn't changed." "Nothing's changed." "You still love me?" "Wait till we get to Anchorage." "You'll see." "Steve, that telegram." "I never got it." "Thank you, Miss Decker, I'll look after that right away." "Good evening." "Good night, Mr. Talman." "Oh, you're in the right stateroom, Mr. Talman." "I hope you don't mind doubling up." "It's just for tonight." "All the other unused cabins are loaded with storage." "So until one is cleared" "No, it's, uh- It's no problem." "Glad to have you." "Oh, good." "Oh, I found this book on your bed." "Are you in the lumber business?" "Oh, I work at it." "Been at it long?" "No, not long." "Mm-hm." "Why, uh-?" "Why did you leave your last place?" "I ran out of trees." "I am asking too many questions." "It's all right, I'm going out on deck and have a smoke." "Don't let me chase you." "Not at all." "Oh, marvelous." "Mr. Talman, you're turning into a real professional." "I forget to tell you, I was state champion in skeet." "For men, of course." "Dead, shot." "The Alaskan Star, two days out of Seattle, Washington, on the open sea." "At 2:15 p.m., a radiogram was received, placing the freighter under jurisdiction of the United States government." "From the home office, sir." ""Proceed to Ketchikan." ""Hold all passengers for investigation" ""by federal authorities." ""War Crimes Commission suggests you ascertain" ""Korean War background of all concerned with special reference to International Brigade."" "War Crimes Commission?" "That means Vale must have been after a..." "A war criminal." "Or at least it looks like it." "It also looks like the man Vale was after got to Vale first, hm?" "Well, sir, shall I assemble the passengers?" "Yes, Mr. Lund." "In the dining room, please." "Oh, what about the shakedown?" "Stem to stern, sir." "No sign of the gun." "Probably thrown overboard." "Vale's effects?" "Just this one suitcase." "His wallet?" "Wasn't on the body, sir." "It probably went overboard too." "The four Harpies of the sea:" "shipwreck, epidemic, mutiny, murder." "So far, I've been spared with nothing more serious than a squall off of Antibes." "And now this." "Now, go get the passengers, Mr. Lund." "Yes, sir." "Why are you pointing a finger at us?" "What about the crew?" "For the past 24 hours," "Mr. Lund and I have been cross-examining the crew, finding out where they were, what they might have seen." "What about the officers?" "I have written statements from all officers, including myself." "And in any event, Vale told me when he came aboard that he was here to identify and arrest one of the passengers." "Is the good captain going to act as both judge, jury and prosecutor?" "I am authorizing this hearing under maritime statutes, covering contingency and disaster." "I will turn my findings over to the federal authorities at Ketchikan." "Mr. Lund here will conduct the interrogation." "And it will be under oath." "Mrs. Banning." "No, I didn't hear the shot, but I heard the scream, and I ran with the others to... where Miss Decker was standing over Mr. Vale." "Who was with you at the time?" "Well, I was skeet shooting with Mr. Morehead, Mr. Talman and Miss Wyatt." "My husband was in a deck chair." "Did you or anyone else leave the skeet-shoot area just before you heard the scream?" "No, I didn't." "No, neither did the others." "When was the last time you saw Miss Decker before you heard her scream?" "Well, I hadn't seen her all day." "Oh, yes, you did." "I saw you just about an hour bef" "Before I found the body." "Oh, that's right, I forgot." "We met in the ladies' room off the salon." "Mrs. Banning, were you ever in the military service?" "Well, now, that's an odd question." "Were you?" "No." "Mrs. Banning." "Your statement" "All of your statements." "are being taken under oath." "Now, let's not run the risk of a charge of perjury." "I have forwarded the entire passenger list to the authorities." "Well, I was with the American Red Cross, but that's not military service, is it?" "When was this?" "Uh, the Korean outbreak." "I met my husband in Japan." "We were married in Kyoto." "Your birthplace is listed as, uh..." "That is, uh, Novgorod, Russia?" "Novgorod." "Uh, it's a village outside of St. Petersburg." "That was before the communists changed it to Leningrad." "I wouldn't have known you were foreign-born, Mrs. Banning." "You have no accent." "Well, I was 3 months old when my family fled for their lives." "They were white Russian." "I was educated in, uh, an American mission in Shanghai." "I'm very grateful to the Americans." "After I married George, I became an American citizen." "And proud of it." "Did you know Mr. Vale?" "No, I hadn't met him until yesterday." "Mrs. Banning, did you ever hear of the International Brigade?" "The International Brigade was a top-secret fighting unit, formed during the Korean War by the United Nations, to spearhead attacks behind enemy lines." "Ever hear of it?" "No." "Thank you, Mrs. Banning." "There may be more questions later." "I'm a controller for a plastic firm in Seattle." "I'm on a four-week leave." "Adrienne and I, uh, covered Europe and the States, so we thought it was about time we took a look at Alaska." "Maybe the Philippines and, uh, sort of a second honeymoon in Japan." "Did you know Mr. Vale?" "Never set eyes on him before." "And your last contact with him?" "At breakfast, with the others." "You were in Japan during the Korean outbreak?" "Supply officer, Hochon depot." "Eighth Army." "But I never heard of any International Brigade." "Now, then, Mr. Banning, where were you between breakfast time and the skeet shoot when you heard Miss Decker scream?" "That's right, I was planning to do some hunting." "What guns did you bring with you?" "A Wesley Richards 12 and 20 gauge, also a Holland and Holland among others, including the usual side arms." "As far as I know, they're tucked away in cargo, per regulations." "I might add, had any one of them been used, including the smallest, the Webley and Scott, it would have blown Vale's head off." "Mr. Morehead, nobody is saying that any of your guns is involved here." "I was anticipating." "Has the death weapon been found?" "No." "Carry on, Mr. Lund." "I expect it was thrown overboard, as would Mr. Vale, if the killer could've managed it." "And why do you say that?" "Well, he was a fairly heavy man." "I know, if I were to kill a man," "I wouldn't leave him lying around to be discovered." "Did you know him?" "No, sir, not at all." "Mr. Morehead, what about the skeet-shooting gun?" "Couldn't that have been used?" "No, I'm afraid not, my dear." "Skeet gun fires buckshot." "Mr. Vale was killed by a bullet." "Mr. Morehead, have you ever been in the army?" "Indeed I have." "World War II and Korea." "How did you serve in Korea?" "Infantry officer, Third Battalion," "Fieldstone Unit, operating out of Chonju." "A ragged time it was." "And when you were there, did you ever hear of the International Brigade?" "I did." "What do you know about it?" "Not very much." "My battalion was just another fighting unit, the International Brigade was very hush-hush and high priority." "You knew this officially?" "No, as rumor." "It was supposed to be a sizeable organization." "Fourteen nations represented in ratio to their Korean commitment." "The United States, Britain, Australia, France, Greece, others." "Do you know any reason, Mr. Morehead, why the War Crimes Commission would be interested in the International Brigade?" "Yes, I do." "Not many people know the Brigade was annihilated on its very first mission." "Oh, there may have been a few survivors." "Obviously there was a leak somewhere." "Secret information got through to the enemy." "A betrayal, everyone thought at the time." "But you yourself had no contact with the Brigade?" "None at all." "Mr. Lund, was Vale here to investigate the Brigade's destruction?" "Mr. Morehead, would you please allow us to ask the questions." "I have offered a great deal of information, and as this is informal- Mr. Morehead" "I think it might be helpful to know exactly who Vale was and what he was after." "Mr. Morehead, would you please confine yourself to answering?" "Now, Miss Decker, you, uh" "You were on the foredeck when you discovered the body." "What were you doing there?" "I was expecting to meet someone." "Who?" "Was it Vale?" "No." "Now, did you know Mr. Vale?" "No." "Just a moment, Mr. Lund." "Miss Decker, who was it you were expecting to meet?" "I can't say, just yet." "Miss Decker, do you realize the position that you are in?" "You discovered the body, you were at the scene expecting to meet...someone." "Now, I urge you" "It wasn't Vale." "Who was it?" "Miss Decker, I ask you again." "I didn't do it." "I never saw Mr. Vale before." "Mr. Lund, we'll return to this witness." "I, uh, had been hired by the Larkspur Lumber Company." "They have a new track opening there soon." "Were you in Korean service, Mr. Talman?" "No, I, uh... had a punctured eardrum." "I see." "Did you know Mr. Vale before he came aboard?" "Nope." "You shared your cabin with him." "When was the last time you saw him alive?" "In the cabin, about a half an hour before Miss Decker found him." "Then you were the last one to see him alive." "No, not exactly." "The murderer was." "Uh, no, I didn't hear the shot." "You were on the foredeck just after breakfast, were you not?" "Was I?" "I-I don't remember." "Yes, I saw you from the bridge, just before I went below." "Oh, well, I only stayed for- For a minute." "I assure you, I did not hear the shot." "And, captain, my hearing is very acute." "Thank you, Miss Wyatt." "Well, my apologies to all of you for this interrogation, all except one." "Especially since the authorities will be waiting for you at Ketchikan to put you through it again." "That'll be all for now." "Come in." "The captain would like to see you in his quarters, Mr. Talman." "I'll walk along with you." "All right." "Come in." "Thank you, Mr. Lund." "Sit down." "Mr. Talman, we live in a remarkable age." "I can remember when wireless was a fairly new thing on ships." "Today we have advanced technology." "We have radar, radiograms, ship-to-shore communications." "They've shrunk the oceans of this world." ""Larry Talman," ""1443 Cecil Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania." "Next of kin, Gladys Talman, sister."" "There is no Cecil Avenue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania." "There is no Gladys Talman nor Larry Talman listed in the directories of that city." "Now the information supplied me by the other passengers has all been verified and I'm satisfied that these people are who they say they are." "Lack of statistics is not a crime, captain." "Mr. Talman, it takes a unique talent to slither through the 20th century without numbers." "Now, I have to assume that you didn't suddenly spring into life like Dionysus from the thigh of Zeus." "At your age you must have, uh, earned your living for 10 or 15 years." "I've been around, yes." "Where?" "Here and there." "Well, name three or four places since you were 21." "I'd be very happy to have them checked out." "Um..." "I've forgotten most of the places I've worked" "I-I'm not a one-place guy." "Mr. Talman, I have no heart for inquisition, but I have even less heart for murder." "Now, unless you can properly identify yourself," "I'm gonna be forced to wire Ketchikan." "And tell them what?" "That you could be guilty." "A man with no past... may be hiding one." "Thirty-six hours to Ketchikan, Alaska." "Thirty-six hours till the moment when Larry Talman will be turned over to the federal authorities." "Come in." "Well, I expected to see you in irons, or whatever it is they do on American ships." "I saw Lund dragging you up to the bridge." "I gather you're high on the captain's list." "I didn't kill Vale, I had no reason to." "That's all our stories." "According to the straw vote in the salon, the captain was right..." "about you." "What was your vote?" "Abstained." "I was impressed by your placing yourself as the last on the list to see Vale alive." "It was a needless admission unless it was honest." "Thanks, I need a friend." "Uh, Mr. Morehead, you know a lot about guns." "Do you think you could tell from the wound what caliber bullet killed Vale?" "I think so." "Why?" "I have an idea he was killed with a small-caliber pistol." "If I'm right, I think I can clear myself." "It would clear me too." "I don't own a small-caliber pistol." "The body's down below." "I don't think the captain would appreciate our interest in the deceased." "Well, I have to find out." "I thought you might have helped me." "Oh... all right." "Let's find out what Mr. Vale can tell us about his death, huh?" "No doubt about it." "Small caliber." "Probably a.22 or.25." "My guess is, at extremely close range." "Well, I hope this helps." "I'm very grateful." "You can repay the favor by keeping me informed on anything you come up with." "I've got a stake in this too, you know." "Glad to." "What are you doing?" "Let me go or I'll scream for help." "You're going to explain that gun that fell out of your bag last night." "Gun?" "That.25 caliber pistol." "Where is it?" "I don't know what" "Vale was killed by a gun just like that." "Now, where is it?" "I never had it." "I never had it!" "Look, I found these in your dresser." "That's right." "I forgot." "I did have a pistol." "It was stolen yesterday morning" "Let's tell the captain about it." "All right." "Miss Decker, you certainly must be aware of the significance of these cartridges." "I told you, the gun was stolen." "Why were you carrying it in the first place?" "Captain, there was a search for the missing weapon, right?" "Yes." "And everyone was searched, all the cabins." "Why was this box of cartridges overlooked?" "I had no trouble finding it." "Mr. Lund, can you explain how this box of cartridges came to be overlooked when you searched Miss Decker's cabin." "Well, maybe, uh" "Maybe she hid them outside her cabin." "Hid?" "Oh, I never hid those cartridges at all." "What I want to know, captain, is why weren't they found in the shakedown?" "Why weren't they found, Mr. Lund?" "Tell them, Steve." "I asked you a question, Lund." "Lund?" "I never searched her cabin." "Why not?" "Because she's an old friend." "I" " I said I wouldn't bother her." "You wouldn't bother her?" "A murder is committed, and you wouldn't bother her!" "Well, as of Anchorage, you are off this ship, mister." "No, please, captain, don't fire him." "He didn't have to search my cabin." "He just knew I couldn't kill anybody." "Steve knows me too well for that." "But he couldn't tell you, captain, because you have rules about officers and passengers." "Miss Decker, would you please get to the point." "Celia, you don't have to." "It's all right, darling." "We're going to be married, Steve and me." "As soon as we get to Anchorage." "We fell in love just three months ago." "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, Miss Decker, but my first officer is married." "He has a wife and two kids." "Don't say that." "That isn't true." "I know it isn't true." "Steve would have told me if he were married." "Wouldn't you, Steve?" "We were going to be married before, captain." "Oh," "I waited for him." "Poor Steve, he tried so desperately to get there." "And then" "Then I talked to that other man." "A Mr. Carter at your union office." "He said that same thing." "About a wife, I mean." "Well, you know how women are, they believe anybody." "I went into this pawnshop, and I bought this little pistol and some bullets." "In that little box there." "And then I booked passage again, thinking these wicked, sinful thoughts." "Thinking that a fine, decent man had used me as though I were a cloth to wipe his shoe on," "but it just wasn't true." "I took one look at him and he told me about the telegram." "And all that talk about his being married, it just wasn't true anymore." "Miss Decker, I apologize to you." "And on behalf of the company, I apologize to you for your embarrassment." "Thank you." "Steve..." "Mr. Lund, I am relieving you of your duties." "Mr. Kaler will take over as first officer." "Yes, sir." "And, Mr. Talman, you will stay away from the rest of my passengers from now on." "I was just trying to prove my innocence, captain." "You will stay away from them, or I'll have you locked in your cabin!" "Oh, I'm sorry, but this business with Lund is" "Whew." "How would you like a cup of coffee?" "Mm, I would." "I had no reason to kill Vale, captain." "You can't ask me to just sit and wait for the hangman at Ketchikan." "When this boat docks, the killer goes free." "It makes sense, what you say." "And I have half a hunch you didn't kill Vale, but I'm forced to hold you, a man with no background." "When Vale came aboard he must have said something to you about what he was looking for, who he was looking for." "Anything like that would help me." "I was only with him a few minutes when he came aboard." "He had some documents he was going to leave with me." "Well, that might help, where are they?" "He decided to keep them with him." "Let's go take a look." "They weren't on him when he was found." "And they weren't in his luggage." "Apparently, the killer threw 'em overboard." "I'm sorry, Talman." "So am I." "Thanks for the coffee, captain." "Larry Talman can run no faster than the ship moves." "Twelve hours to Ketchikan and the waiting federal authorities." "In twelve hours, Larry Talman will be caught and with him, Richard Kimble." "It's very little to ask, captain." "You'd be my witness." "Thank you." "Yes, who is it?" "It's me, Celia." "Steve, come in." "Oh, come in." "It was nice of you to come." "I know you're in trouble with the captain." "Well, Celia, I want to talk to you." "About Anchorage?" "About us?" "Honey, what the captain said and what you heard at the union office back in Seattle, it's true." "You've got to understand that we can never be married." "I do have a wife." "Do you understand?" "Why don't we go up on deck." "It's a perfectly beautiful day." "Celia." "Now, listen." "You remember what we talked about?" "Up in Anchorage?" "Well, it isn't going to happen." "It can't happen." "I'm sorry." "God knows, I'm sorry, but it just can't happen." "No, Steve." "Don't say that." "It isn't true." "It is true." "I'm sorry, Celia." "I'm sorry." "Steve?" "Steve." "Come in." "Captain." "I just received this radiogram, Mr. Banning." "It concerns you." "There, uh, must be some mistake." "Embezzlement usually is a mistake, Mr. Banning." "I, uh..." "I can explain this, captain." "Well, you'll get a chance to do just that at Ketchikan." "Captain, I assure you that" "Oh, I am fed up with this rat's nest" "I've taken aboard this trip." "Philandering, embezzlement, murder..." "I just hope, for your sake, that this doesn't tie in, in any way, with Vale's death." "No." "I had nothing to do with it." "But how do you know this envelope belonged to Vale?" "It's, uh, got his initials on it." "P.V." "I found it, uh, wedged between his bunk and the wall." "What's in it?" "Letters." "I think they're important." "Are you going to show them to the captain?" "I don't think it would do much good." "They're in Greek." "Oh." "You know you were right." "The captain told me that Vale was with the War Crimes Commission." "Ah." "There were Greeks in the International Brigade." "Well, it's my guess that these letters are from one of the survivors." "It might well be." "Suppose something like this:" "the International Brigade was betrayed" "Now, there's no doubt about that." "the betrayer is seen at various times and places by the survivors." "They write to the War Crimes Commission, saying such a person was seen." "But if they knew who the guilty one was, then they would have reported it to the authorities long ago." "I mean, there must have been an investigation when the Brigade was lost." "But maybe the identity of the betrayer wasn't known at that time." "Maybe the Crimes Commission, after years of hunting, finally came up with a prime suspect, got in touch with the survivors, asking for information on him." "Or her." "I think that poor Vale was closing in on her." "Or him...or one of us." "Well, I think it's delicious." "Do you know what I think the captain ought to do?" "Miss Wyatt, why is it that you always seem to know more than the men?" "It must be very gratifying to be so smart." "What, hm?" "Oh, Mr. Morehead." "Mr. Talman." "Hm?" "There must have been a very good reason why Mr. Vale was put in your cabin." "Well, we were the only bachelors aboard." "He didn't have much choice." "Well, after all, he was assigned to you, old boy." "Well, aren't you going to show them to the captain?" "Yes, I will, uh..." "I thought maybe I could get a translation first, there's a man down in the engine room that speaks Greek." "I'm gonna go down and see him." "You know, he doesn't look like a traitor or a spy at all." "I'll have the letters." "Don't turn around!" "There are no letters, Mrs. Banning." "Just blank pieces of paper." "Open the envelope, give me the letters." "So you killed Vale before he could identify you." "Only you know it and I know it!" "I know it, Mrs. Banning." "Captain?" "I know it." "Back in the salon, I thought you were laying a trap." "A fine lot of help I am." "Get back." "Let me go!" "Let me go!" "Let me go!" "Vale knew you sold out to the communists, didn't he?" "Oh, you're really something, Mrs. Banning." "I didn't do it for the communists." "I did it for money, Mr. Talman." "For money." "What else is there?" "Let's get her inside." "Oh, Mr. Talman." "I just received a radiogram." "Adrienne Banning was actually Anna Janov." "She ran a waterfront dive in Korea." "Peddled booze, narcotics, anything the traffic would bear." "Apparently, this place was a pipeline to the enemy." "Are you all finished with the federal authorities?" "I gave my statement to the marshals." "I thought I'd stay over in Ketchikan a couple of days." "I'm sorry I gave you such a rough trip." "I've had rougher." "I guess they'll be facing a grand jury." "Twenty-three good men and true." "Twelve men." "What?" "I'm sorry." "I-I think you're right." "It is 23 men." "Yes." "You're quite right." "Larry?" "I wish you could make the rest of the trip with us." "I-it could've been fun." "Not necessarily, I might turn out to be just as devious as the Bannings." "Can you imagine." "You just don't know who you're talking to these days." "No, you don't." "Goodbye." "Larry Talman, freed of the suspicion of murder, leaves the Alaskan Star, but it is Richard Kimble, still under the sentence of death, who steps ashore." "He will stay in this place for as long as it is safe, and then he will move on." "It is said that there is no rest for the wicked, nor sometimes for the innocent."