"Good night, Mr. Hirsch." "Good night, sir." "Good evening, Mr. Whitcombe." "Good evening." "We're proofreading the new geography edition." "Mr. Garrison wants it at the printer's in the morning." "Yes?" "Any telephone messages, miss Mercer?" "Yes, sir." "The photo engravers want an ok on the proofs." "Havlock paper said they filled our order." "Mm-hmm." "Is that all?" "Yes, sir." "Ask, uh..." "Mrs. Kenet to come here, will you, please?" "She isn't here, sir." "Well, then, uh... bring me the Leeds manuscript." "The Leeds manuscript isn't here." "Well, it must be." "I sent Mrs. Kenet to my home for it hours ago." "Yes, sir, I know, but Mrs. Kenet hasn't returned." "Hmm." "She must have been delayed." "Ask her to bring it to me when she returns, will you?" "I don't think Mrs. Kenet will be back tonight, sir." "You see, her husband's been away for 2 years, and he's home, and he came here looking for her just after she left, and he was so anxious to see her that..." "I told him where he might find her if he hurried." "Oh, in that case," "I don't imagine we can expect to see her, at least not tonight, hey, miss Mercer?" "No, sir." "Not tonight." "Where do I sign?" "Right under where it says "corpus delicti."" "Sign all 3 copies." "This is Mr. Whitcombe." "Don't get up, Mr. Whitcombe." "Oh, how do you do?" "Nice of you to come down." "I'm Wallace, assistant district attorney." "Oh, I see you've identified your secretary." "This is shocking, Mr. Wallace." "What happened?" "She was strangled." "Rather an interesting case." "If I can be of any help, any information..." "Have you any?" "I don't know." "Perhaps it has no bearing, but her husband returned today after an absence of 2 years." "I didn't see him personally, but they told me at the office that he came in this afternoon, extremely agitated, looking for her, insisting on finding her at once." "It occurred to me that if you can find the husband- we have." "He's in there." "Oh." "Come along with me." "We can talk later." "Now, look, son, let's go over it once more." "You headed straight for the bridge when you heard the police siren, didn't you?" "I didn't hear any siren." "You lost control of the car and crashed through the bridge, is that it?" "The coroner's report." "Oh, yeah." "You were born and raised in this city, weren't you, Kenet?" "You know there's never more than 3 feet of water in that creek, not enough to drown in." "Now, look, son..." "After you strangled her, you wanted to make it look like an accident, uh, broken neck in an auto crash." "You knew you could walk away from that kind of accident." "That's it..." "Isn't it?" "I told you I killed her in the park, in milford picnic grove." "Then I tried to kill myself." "Well, that's good enough for me." "Have him sign a statement." "Isn't often they come this easy." "Uh-oh, Dave." "I've examined him." "Drunk?" "No." "He's been through some head surgery." "Well, what's that got to do with it?" "I can't pass him, Dave." "They'll have to look him over at psychiatric." "Now, look, Doctor" "I'm sorry." "He has to go to psycho first." "All right." "After you, sir." "Oh, thank you." "Hi, Dan." "Hello, Mike." "Come on, Jimmy." "Get up." "Hello, Mike." "Got some business for you." "What do you got?" "Murder rap." "Here's his stuff." "$32 in bills, 18 cents in change, a star-silver, I guess- some sort of war decoration." "Snapshot holder with one picture." "That all?" "That's it." "Snapshot holder, one" "Give me that!" "Take it easy, sweetheart." "I want that picture!" "Hold it!" "Let go of me!" "Good night, Dan." "Good night, Doctor." "Let go of me!" "I want that picture!" "Ok, baby, you'll get it." "Now will you be good?" "We'll take him." "He's all yours." "Everything goes on ice, including you." "Ward C, one of the side rooms." "Right." "Sign a receipt for me, will you, Jimmy?" "Staying around for some coffee?" "No, no." "It's too late." "We'll be seeing you." "So long." "The x-rays show a subdural hematoma of the left frontal lobe." "This blood clot is causing pressure on the brain." "As you know, such pressure can produce both physical and emotional changes." "True to form, the patient has shown irritability, hypersensitivity, local pain, periods of unconsciousness with lapses of memory." "That's all." "Light, please." "Hat and gloves." "Thank you, Doctor." "You've been very helpful." "Thank you, Dr. dunlap." "Good-bye." "Good-bye." "Dr. poward, who is this patient?" "Steven Kenet, his age, 31, admitted by court order for observation, confessed to murder of wife and attempted suicide." "He's in ward c." "What's the physical condition?" "Heart, blood pressure, respiration, normal." "Then there's no need for delay." "Prepare him for immediate surgery." "Yes, Doctor.Anything else?" "No." "That's all, Doctor." "All right." "Thank you." "May I have his report, please?" "Oh, Ann, I have an extra ticket to the opera tonight." "Mother isn't feeling well." "I'm sorry, but I've got 2 tickets myself." "Well, mine are in the fifth row." "Where are yours?" "Right behind third base." "The red socks are playing tonight." "Doctor, you know I'm here on my own free will." "Why am I in the delinquent ward?" "Oh, it's a very nice ward, Mr. Davis." "I've got to see you." "In a little while, tom." "Me, too." "It's very urgent." "My wife is coming to see me this afternoon." "Oh, I'm so glad." "I beg your pardon, Doctor, but may I speak to you just for a moment?" "It's most important." "I'll be back." "Tell me about it then." "I have to have some protection." "All of them steal all the time." "There isn't an honest person" "Nice quiet morning, Delaney." "Hello, Doctor." "Where's this new patient" " Steven Kenet?" "He's in 3." "Better watch this fella, Doctor." "He wouldn't even let us shave him." "He's real antisocial." "Good morning, Mr. Kenet." "I'm Dr. lorrison." "You may go, Delaney." "Uh, Doctor, I- wait outside, please." "You're going to be one of my patients, Mr. Kenet." "Would you care to tell me anything about yourself?" "Tell me about those headaches." "Are you feeling better this morning?" "Get out." "Mr. Kenet, we're very fortunate to have a neurosurgeon like Dr. Griffin with us." "He's diagnosed your case and feels certain he can remove the cause of your headaches." "He can." "Yes." "Now, if you'll just sign here, giving us your consent." "Surgery, huh?" "I've been through that before." "You can see what it got me." "Now get out of here and leave me alone!" "Cut up some other Guinea pig!" "Mr. Kenet, if you have any pain, just tell the orderly, and he'll call me." "Of course he refused the operation." "He'll continue to refuse." "You don't have to be a psychiatrist to know the game Kenet's playing:" "Sit the law out, stall for time, then come to court and get an acquittal on a plea of temporary insanity." "Well, that may be true, Mr. Wallace, but the court sent him here for observation, and we're proceeding along those lines." "Look, Doctor, the mother of a 6-year-old child has been strangled." "The million people in this county demand that our office bring Kenet to trial." "Oh, I recognize your responsibility, but please don't overlook ours." "You've had him 6 days." "It may take 6 months." "For what?" "I don't want Kenet psychoanalyzed." "I just want him cleared for trial." "He's sane." "I'm talking about legal sanity." "That's all the district attorney's office is interested in." "We don't care anything about neurosis, psychosis, or arterial thrombosis." "Did he know the difference between right and wrong when he killed her?" "That's the only question." "And did he, Mr. Wallace?" "Well, of course he did." "Examine his background." "He was a bomber pilot." "He married during the war." "Head injury in combat, operation performed in an army hospital, successfully." "When he came home, he was restless." "He had to keep moving." "After the war, he went to Burma, flying freight." "He left his old mother and his wife and his child here." "Mrs. Kenet got a secretarial job." "I suppose she had to." "What point are you making?" "A month ago in Burma, he was in a slight crackup." "In a company hospital, they gave him a complete check-up." "That's a cable from the Doctor in charge." ""Advised Kenet second operation imperative." ""Warned him possible violent headaches," ""impaired muscular coordination, fainting spells, and loss of memory."" "My diagnosis exactly." "You see, Mr. Wallace, the accident following surgery formed the blood clot that's pressing on his brain." "Sure, and that's his defense." "He was planning on using this Doctor's diagnosis as a license to murder his wife." "Why, he banked over $20,000 in the last 2 years." "He wasn't sharing any of that with his wartime wife." "Everything you've said, Mr. Wallace, only proves our contention." "We cannot certify to the patient's sanity until we observe him after he's had a second operation." "And he's refused surgery." "Well, his mother's consent's all you need." "She's a reasonable old lady, kind of sickly." "Shouldn't have any trouble with her." "We'd prefer getting his consent, of course, but if you insist, we'll see her today." "Will you and Dr. lorrison take care of that, please?" "Fine." "Let's get it over with." "Oh, uh, Doctor, he'll pull through all right, won't he?" "Certainly." "Good." "I'd hate to lose him." "We might ask the people next-door where they've gone." "Ha ha ha!" "Still don't rate a knife and fork?" "I told you, Mr. Kenet, when you're here awhile." "We do things gradually around here, one thing at a time." "You got a cot in your room today instead of that mattress, didn't you?" "Sure, sure." "Full house, huh?" "It's always full." "This is just the first of 3 shifts." "Just like the Waldorf." "You ain't kidding, and we got specials, I guess, on room service." "Go ahead." "Dig in." "I beg your pardon, sir, but would it bother you if the radio played?" "No, not at all." "You're quite sure, sir, you wouldn't mind?" "Of course not." "That's extremely kind of you, sir." "Thank you." "That's old man slocum." "How long has he been here?" "Oh, over 20 years." "Seems to agree with him." "He does all right- 3 squares a day, he likes music, and he gets it..." "And all on the county." "We're fortunate." "Usually the radio offers such a limited variety." "I hope this selection pleases you, sir." "Yeah, I like chopin." "Oh..." "Oh, you- you know music." "Oh, that's wonderful, sir." "I'm so happy to make your acquaintance." "You see, nobody in this entire institution loves music but me." "I brought dozens of records with me when I arrived here 3 weeks ago." "3 weeks?" "Yes." "But I soon learned to keep my music under lock and key." "You know, sir, we don't live in a very honest world." "On the day of my arrival, i brought out my Beethoven, the eroica." "The entire album was gone but I'll find it." "I listen for the eroica all the time, and I hear it..." "I hear it being played somewhere..." "All the time." "You'll hear it, too." "Won't you help me find it?" "Sure." "He'll help you." "Come on." "Finish your chow." "Oh, what a joy to find someone who appreciates music." "We'll become friends..." "Great friends." "We'll grow old together with our music." "Oh!" "Oh, you were only trying to be polite." "The music does annoy you." "Oh, please don't go." "I'll-I'll turn it off." "I'll" "want your cigarette?" "Yeah." "You know, getting upset don't pay." "I blew my big chance in the ring on account of getting upset right before the fight." "Walked right into the other guy, leading with my chin." "Besides, getting upset's bad for the digestion." "You know, you're something of a psychologist yourself, Delaney." "Oh, I dabble a bit." "What's wrong with that?" "You can't keep your nose to the grindstone all the time." "Man's got to have some outside interest." "Feeling better, Mr. Kenet?" "Oh, he's doing fine, Doctor." "Yesterday was visiting day." "Yes?" "Then why didn't I see my visitor?" "I got certain rights, even in a place like this." "Don't tell me my mother wasn't here." "There is no discrimination against any patient, Mr. Kenet." "You're entitled to see visitors." "Your mother was not here." "I told you that." "That's all, Delaney." "Is that the truth?" "There's no reason to lie, Mr. Kenet." "Thanks." "That's all I wanted to know." "That pleases you, doesn't it?" "You've been hoping your mother would know what you wanted and take your son away someplace where no one would know him and tell him." "You must have majored in psychology, Doctor." "Look, your time's valuable." "Don't waste it." "You can't talk me into that operation." "You've made up your mind?" "No operation, no trial." "Then I'm here permanently, right?" "Possibly." "Definitely." "How about getting me out of this chicken coop?" "I rate the ward, don't I?" "There are some pretty nice people in ward c, very friendly, like Mr. Slocum, a great lover of music." "Then you're really content to stay here?" "I don't know where a man could do better- 3 squares, chopin, Beethoven, all on the county." "Mr. Kenet, I'm sorry I have to tell you this, but your mother died last night." "We went into your house and found her lying on the floor." "You knew she'd been ill, chronic heart condition." "Apparently, recent events were too much for her." "But don't let that alter your decision to stay here, Mr. Kenet." "Your son will be taken care of in the county orphanage." "I know why you object to surgery." "You don't want to go to trial." "You know there's a chance of acquittal on the grounds of temporary insanity, but you don't want to risk a trial." "You don't want to be acquitted." "You'd rather spend the rest of your life here than face your son again." "You're afraid." "You feel you never can explain to him why you killed his mother." "You want to escape from reality, and you can." "But do you know what happens to a child when he suddenly loses his entire family?" "Do you know what life is like for an orphan in a public institution?" "Yes, you'll escape reality, Mr. Kenet, but your son will not." "Good-bye, Mr. Kenet." "Hello." "Anybody home?" "Who's there?" "It's me-Ann." "I'll be right in." "All right." "Really, Ann, there are times I can't keep up with you." "When I came home from the concert and found you had deposited that child here with harriett, bag and baggage..." "You'll be jailed for kidnapping." "It's all quite legal, aunt Martha." "The court's given me temporary custody." "I'm terribly sorry if you're upset, but I couldn't see a child in that state of shock put in a public institution." "When you were 6, it was a soggy cat out of the rain." "It needed aspirin to prevent the sniffles." "By the time you were 12, our cellar was a menagerie." "Every stray animal off the streets needed Doctoring." "He just won't touch anything, miss Ann." "Oh, dear." "He'll probably get sick, too." "He I sick, aunt Martha." "I'll take it up to him, harriett." "Hello, Richard." "I brought you something to eat." "I thought you might get hungry a little later on." "It's a little dark in here, isn't it?" "Do you mind if I turn on this lamp?" "No, ma'am." "There." "Oh, Richard, if you want anything later, I'll be downstairs." "You call me." "Do you know my name?" "Yes, ma'am." "It's Ann." "That's right." "If Kitty gets hungry, you feed her, too." "All right?" "Richard, I think you're going to like living here." "Granny said daddy was home." "I waited, but he never came." "Oh, you'll see your daddy a little later on." "He wants you to stay with me for a while." "Oh, I'll bet you the Kitty is hungry." "Suppose you feed her." "We'll put the saucer right here." "I'll be back a little later on when it's time for you to go to bed." "Hello?" "Yes?" "Congratulations, Ann." "But whatever method you used, it certainly did the trick." "Kenet actually asked for surgery." "Oh, that's fine." "Oh, I'm so pleased." "Thank you for telling me, Doctor." "Good night." "Now, look here, young lady," "I know it's not your fault, but unless the proper authorities permit me to see my client at once," "I'll take legal action!" "I'm trying to locate Mr. Kenet, sir." "I'm sure you are, but beyond that door, there's complete indifference to the rights of my client." "Reception." "You may see him now." "Take this man to Dr. lorrison's office, please." "Right." "Half the morning gone already." "Threat of legal action- that's the only way to cut through red tape." "Institutions, administrators, executives..." "Sometimes it's necessary to pull them up short, remind them they're salaried employees of the county..." "Civil servants!" "Dr. lorrison, for the past 3 weeks" "I'm Dr. Griffin." "Now, look here, Dr. lorrison, for 3 weeks, you have prevented me from seeing my client." "Dr. lorrison, I demand an explanation!" "Dr. lorrison." "I don't retract one word of it, Dr. lorrison." "I demand that you produce my client, Steven Kenet." "Mr. Kenet." "Sidney x." "Hackle, your attorney." "My attorney?" "Appointed by the court." "If you could hold up court proceedings for just a moment, counselor..." "I'm all through with him." "I think you'll find the operation's been completely successful." "It's up to you psychiatrists now." "Thank you, Doctor." "It's good to see you again, Mr. Kenet." "You're looking very well." "No more headaches, eh?" "Don't answer that." "Sit down, Mr. Kenet." "You, too, Doctor." "Thank you." "Now, there's a lot of ground to be covered." "Suppose we proceed in orderly fashion." "Uh, Mr. Hackle, there's one important- now, let me handle this, Mr. Kenet." "I haven't been asleep." "For 3 weeks, I've been thinking of nothing but our case." "We have nothing to worry about." "There are 3 approaches to our defense:" "Incurable insanity, temporary insanity, or the unwritten law." "The unwritten law." "Look here- believe me, you'll walk out of that courtroom a free man." "Mr. Kenet, I'm thorough." "I overlook nothing." "Public sympathy is a great asset in preparation for a trial." "Sign here." "The rights to your life story, serialized in daily installments right up to the day of the trial." "You're a holder of the distinguished service cross and the silver star." "Mr. and Mrs. America do not forget those who served them well." "Mr. Hackle, you're moving a little too fast for me." "My son is in a state institution." "I want you to arrange for his release and enter him in a good school." "That's the first thing." "You can't mean that.Why not?" "Man alive, you're knocking the props out from under our defense." "I'm counting on your son." "On the day the case goes to the jury," "I'm bringing that child into the courtroom in the gray institution clothes of the orphan asylum, his face pale, his eyes sunken." "Mr. Kenet, that frail, pathetic, hungry little creature is the backbone of our case." "Mr. Hackle, they've given me back my clothes, my belt, and my tie." "I don't want to go back to isolation." "That's the only reason" "I'm not going to break your neck." "Obviously, you're not prepared to discuss the merits of your defense at present." "Phone me when he's a little more rational." "8,000 decent lawyers in the state, and they had to pick him." "Doctor, how much longer before I'm sent back to the county jail?" "That's up to the hospital board." "They'll have a hearing soon." "Why?" "Once I'm out of here, I can hire the kind of a lawyer I need to get my son out of that orphanage and into a good school." "Mr. Kenet, I haven't seen you for quite some time." "Your son has not been in an institution." "He's living with a private family." "Well, how did that happen?" "Oh, I decided he needed personal care." "He's staying with a Mrs. Martha Ferguson." "The court's given her temporary custody." "She was delighted to have a youngster in the house." "I've seen Richard a few times." "He's doing nicely." "Doctor, I don't know how to thank you." "Oh, that's all right." "Now, before the hospital board can come to a decision about your case, Mr. Kenet," "I must prepare a full report." "We're going to start with some tests." "Just study this design and tell me what you see." "The boy's all right." "That's good." "I hope they don't ask me too many questions." "I get so nervous." "This is my third interview." "Mine is really a special case." "You're not getting out, and these hearings are just to encourage us." "Not one in a hundred gets out." "3 left last week." "Well, you're proving my point." "3 left out of how many?" "2,437." "That was the population as of yesterday, an increase of 314 in the last 6 months." "You can't argue against statistics, my friend." "Reconcile yourself." "You're not getting out." "I'm going home." "The Doctors told me I'm well." "My husband's coming for me today." "I'm so glad, Mrs. Miller." "I'm next, I believe." "Just wait, Mr. Kenet." "The Doctors will call you." "Yes, Doctor." "Oh, good." "That district attorney's been on my neck for days." "Let's have him in and out fast." "Before we release him, have you read my report?" "Frankly, I was unable to give an opinion on this patient." "Why?" "Well, there's no question he's concealing something..." "Many things." "So far, I have not been able to determine whether he's doing it deliberately or not." "He's consistently refused consent to narcosynthesis." "Ann, everything you say supports the district attorney's contention." "He refuses narcosynthesis because he knows the drug will force him to tell us the thing he's trying to conceal." "He deliberately planned to murder his wife and plead temporary insanity." "Now let's have the patient in." "You may go in now, Mr. Kenet." "Good morning." "Sit down, Mr. Kenet." "Thank you." "We've had you in for a few routine questions." "Let's have them, Doctor." "Prior to your operation here, you suffered lapses of memory." "You haven't filled in those gaps yet, have you?" "I don't know whether I have or not." "Is it that you can't remember, or you don't want to remember?" "Look, Doctor, I've regained my health and my sanity, thanks to you people." "There's only one more thing you can do for me- turn me over for trial." "I see you refuse to submit to narcosynthesis." "Yes, sir." "There's nothing to fear." "It's merely a mild injection of sodium pentothol to stimulate your memory." "Don't you think it would be helpful to fill in those memory lapses?" "Helpful to whom?" "I'm sorry, Doctor." "That's the way I'd prefer it." "That's my legal right, isn't it?" "Yes, it is." "But tell us, Mr. Kenet, why are you so intent upon an immediate trial?" "Well, I thought it out this way." "Guilty or not," "I'll be out of here and able to handle my finances and provide for my son's future." "That's the only important thing." "Do you love your son a great deal?" "Yes, sir." "Would you like to see him?" "Can I?" "When can I see him?" "Right now, Mr. Kenet." "He's in there." "No, he isn't there." "This is just a trick, a test to see what I'd do." "He's in there, Mr. Kenet." "Why did you bring him here?" "What kind of a place is this anyway?" "You can't push people around like this!" "What kind of Doctors are you?" "!" "No." "I'm sorry." "I didn't mean it." "It's just that I..." "Well, you understand." "It's better if I don't see him." "I wouldn't know how to explain to him." "You see, he's only 6." "Excuse me, please." "Doctor, they won't give me anything to eat." "I must speak to you privately, Doctor." "Doctor, has the board reached a decision about me yet?" "You'll be leaving here presently, Mr. Kenet." "I know you, Dr. poward." "I know you." "Won't you make them give me back my eroica?" "When am I going to leave, Doctor?" "Today?" "No." "Not that soon." "There's still some tests to make." "What's the delay?" "Mr. Kenet, there are 2,500 patients in this institution and only 12 Doctors." "Dr. lorrison will get around to you in due time." "How are my brain waves, Josephine?" "Oh, just fine." "How much longer is this going to take, Doctor?" "These tests may seem routine, but they are necessary to complete my report." "Don't be impatient." "Another 3 or 4 days." "3 or 4 days." "For what?" "Ever since the operation, there's been no question about me mentally or physically." "Except for those memory lapses, Mr. Kenet." "Nobody expects me to remember things that happened when I was out of my mind." "No mind, no memory." "That's going to be your line of defense, isn't it?" "Well, memory of things that happened before surgery could be a liability." "Sit down, Mr. Kenet." "We're going to record muscular control and neuromuscular coordination." "Hold these, please." "Try to keep the pressure the same." "You grip, relax." "Grip, relax." "Ready?" "First the left hand." "Grip, relax." "Grip, relax." "All right, now the right one, please." "Grip, relax." "Good." "Now both hands." "Grip, relax." "Grip... what's the matter, Mr. Kenet?" "Something seems to be disturbing you." "What is it?" "I don't know." "Is something bothering you?" "Could it happen in a single second?" "What, Mr. Kenet?" "Could you strangle someone in just one second?" "Boy." "Elevator boy." "Coming." "Oh, cronner." "Glad to see you back." "You've been sick, haven't you?" "My arthritis." "Flat on my back for over 3 weeks." "That was your secretary who got herself murdered by her husband, wasn't it, Mr. Whitcombe?" "Oh, terrible thing." "You know, that happened the same night I got sick." "I recognized your pictures in the newspapers." "I even read all about how you told the police she worked for you and what a fine woman she was." "Yes." "Could we start up now?" "When I got up this morning, I said to myself," ""I'm going to ask Mr. Whitcombe's advice."" "What is it, cronner?" "My Doctor said to me," ""Henry, you're never going to get better" ""in those drafty halls and in that elevator." ""What you need is Florida or California, warm sand and plenty of sunshine."" "I says, "that takes money, lots of money."" "This is my floor." "The advice I wanted to ask you, Mr. Whitcombe, is this:" "Do you think I ought to go to the police?" "The police for your arthritis?" "Mr. Whitcombe, I'm a man who knows things, not only what it says in the papers, but what it doesn't say." "But at the same time," "I'm a man who says that one hand washes the other." "That's why I thought you ought to know what the Doctor said to me about going to Florida." "Cronner, the penalty for blackmail in this state is very severe." "This is my floor." "I said, this is my floor." "Which is my visitor?" "That little guy over there." "Remember me, Mr. Kenet?" "Henry cronner- the janitor at 106 maple." "Yes." "You know, you and me have a lot in common- you facing the electric chair and my arthritis killing me." "Just what do you want, Mr. Cronner?" "Me?" "I don't want nothing but justice." "I followed your whole case in the papers, and, you know, they never mentioned anything about the three of you being in the apartment." "You're interested, huh?" "I might be." "What have you got?" "Uh-uh." "Like my arthritis, everything costs money, Mr. Kenet." "You know the old saying- one hand washes the other." "I'm not permitted to handle my own money at present, but I'll be out of here and in the county jail in a few days." "All right." "Wait a minute." "Can't you just tell me what it's all about?" "If I tell you, I won't have it anymore." "See you in the county jail, Mr. Kenet." "Come on, partner." "Delaney, could you get Dr. lorrison for me?" "I'd like to see her right away." "It's Wednesday, her day off." "Leave a message to see me first thing in the morning." "Take it easy, pal." "Tomorrow's Thursday." "She'll be at the children's clinic until 3:00." "All right, as soon as she gets here." "Cronner..." "Oh, good evening, Mr. Whitcombe." "Good evening." "I've been thinking about the problem of your arthritis." "I'm going to make you a loan of a few hundred dollars to take you to Florida." "I shall want you to pay me back, of course, but at your convenience." "We can't cure anything for a few hundred dollars, Mr. Whitcombe." "Arthritis is something you can't get rid of quick or cheap." "Some people understand, like the fella I met over in the nuthouse today." "He's doing fine now." "He's going to be out of there and in the county jail in a few days." "He wants me to testify for him." "What a generous fella he is." "Suppose I sent you to Florida for the entire winter." "That wouldn't prevent your arthritis from coming back next year and the year after that, would it?" "It's hard to say, Mr. Whitcombe." "It would be a shame to see you suffer year after year." "Aah!" "You've made a sale for yourself, Doctor." "I'm buying narcosynthesis." "I'm glad, Mr. Kenet." "Dr. Langley?" "This is Dr. lorrison." "Would you please look in on my 2 patients in hydrotherapy?" "I'm tied up this afternoon." "Thank you." "What made you change your mind?" "The other day I told you the blanks in my memory were an asset." "Yes." "Today they're a liability." "Why?" "Maybe I didn't kill her." "Since yesterday, I'm not so sure." "Well, we'll try this and see." "Narcosynthesis is really quite simple." "Yes, I know." "You do?" "I've seen it used." "How far under am I going, Doctor?" "Just below the surface." "You'll remember everything you say." "Well, about my loss of memory, that's only part true." "I suspected that." "Don't start at the beginning." "I remember getting off the plane, going home, seeing my mother." "I remember other things, too, only they're not important." "You can gain a lot of time by starting at 106 maple street." "I want to know everything that happened there." "That's where I'm hazy." "What's 106 maple street?" "I've never heard you mention that before." "That's right." "Just go ahead and question me about it." "Start there." "All right." "Now, just relax." "Flex your hand, please." "Now hold it that way." "Count backwards from a hundred, Steve." "100... 99... 98..." "Don't forget to start at 106 maple street." "97... 96... 94... 91..." "Steve, can you hear me?" "Yes." "We're going back, back to the municipal airport." "You're home, home from Burma." "Remember?" "Yes." "I remember." "Tell me about it, Steve." "Tell me everything." "We're circling the airport." "It's coming in on the east/west runway." "It's a good landing." "The airport hasn't changed a bit." "Are you glad to be home, Steve?" "Yeah." "It's great." "Wonderful." "What's funny, Steve?" "I just can't believe it." "He was riding a kiddie car when I left." "Steve!" "Steve!" "Steve!" "Hello, mom." "You're really home." "For the next hundred years, I hope." "You look wonderful." "Oh, I feel grand now, son." "I've prayed for this day a long time." "Where's Dickie?" "He's in school." "In school?" "I keep thinking he's still 4 years old." "Wait until you see him, son." "He's been the man of the house since you've been away." "Throw it down anywhere." "Ok, mom." "Anyplace, anyplace." "Oh, I'm so glad to have you home, son." "I'm glad to be home, mom." "Sit down, dear." "You must be tired." "No." "I'm not too tired, mom." "Hey, you've had this chair restuffed, haven't you?" "Where's Helen, out shopping?" "Oh, she's at the office." "What office?" "Well, Helen has been working more than a year now." "What for?" "The company sent you checks every month, didn't they?" "Of course." "Helen was bored around the house." "How about a cup of coffee?" "It's ready on the stove." "Wait a minute, mom." "Wait a minute." "What do you mean, bored?" "What about?" "Now, Steve, there really wasn't enough to keep Helen busy at home." "We wrote you all about it." "It still bothers you, doesn't it, son?" "No." "It's all right, mom." "Really." "I'll fix the coffee." "You didn't get that operation in Burma, did you?" "No." "You promised me you would in your last letter." "Well, I wanted to get home." "I'll have it done here." "It's nothing much." "How about you?" "What do the Doctors say?" "Oh, I'm through with Doctors now that you're finished with flying." "You are, aren't you, Steve?" "That's right, mom." "I'm grounded from here on in." "Oh, Professor Adams told me they're holding that research fellowship open for you at the university." "Yes, he wrote me." "Of course, the salary is still a joke, but I've budgeted everything." "And with the bonus money I've saved, we should be able to make it last at least 5 years." "I won't stand for any more of Helen's objections." "Now, Steve, money seems important to a young and pretty girl." "Sure, but she's got to learn there are other things in this world." "Has she got the car?" "Mm-hmm." "I think I'll run into town and ride back with her." "It's too early, Steve." "She doesn't get through until 5:00." "She'll be through when I get there." "I'll see to that." "I beg your pardon." "Mrs. Kenet." "Helen Kenet, please?" "She isn't in." "Has she gone for the day?" "What was it you wished?" "Well, I just came home." "I'm her husband." "Oh, of course." "The flier." "Helen is on an errand." "She left just a few minutes ago." "I think-wait." "Here's the address." "You'll catch her if you hurry." "Thank you." "Hurry!" "Electrician, plumber, carpenter..." "Mr. Whitcombe's apartment, please." "Oh, my back is killing me." "Second floor, end of the hall." "You'll have to walk." "I'm busy." "Forget your key, darling?" "I left the door open." "Oh, Steve." "Why, darling, if I'd have known you were coming," "I'd have flown to San Francisco to meet you." "Oh, no, Steve." "You're wrong." "Well, what you're thinking is wrong." "Well, you've got to let me explain." "Well, Steve, I tell you, I can explain." "Listen to me." "You're sick." "Let me take you home." "Steve, don't you hear me?" "Think of Richard." "You remember Richard, don't you?" "You remember your own son?" "Think, Steve!" "I'm his mother!" "Oh, no!" "No!" "No!" "Something's missing." "Something's missing." "Something in the apartment is missing." "What was that about a carousel?" "Probably a dream." "I don't know yet." "No, no." "Aside from that." "There's something missing." "Well, let's not worry about it now." "Often the first treatment is inconclusive." "We'll clear all the details up later when we have another try." "No." "I've got to find out now." "The apartment's the only answer." "If I could just see it again, if I could remember everything, maybe I didn't kill her." "We can get the court to give you an order and have the police take you to the apartment." "Everything I said in here is confidential between Doctor and patient, isn't it?" "Certainly." "Steve, do you remember what happened after you picked up her coat?" "Yeah." "I carried her down the fire escape and put her in the car, on account of mother and Richard." "I couldn't have her found in his apartment." "Then I drove the car off the bridge, tried to kill myself." "No." "It's before that, in the apartment." "If I could only remember what's missing." "Steve, be realistic." "Don't delude yourself." "There is only one thing missing." "You refuse to admit to yourself consciously the true motivation for killing her." "You had no proof that she'd been unfaithful to you." "It goes deeper than that, back into your own relationship with your wife." "It was a wartime romance, wasn't it?" "Yes." "I was home on leave." "We met and got married." "A week later, I was back in Europe." "You'd been an important man of the air corps- a full colonel - earning a large income." "After the war was over, the only job you really wanted- at the university- paid less than $200 a month, and Helen wouldn't stand for this kind of comedown, and so you went to Burma, hating it." "Steve, you've got to admit this to yourself consciously." "Those years in Burma alone, you were building up a deep, accumulating resentment against your wife." "Steve..." "Steve?" "I have a patient resting in my office." "Would you take him to Ward C about 8:00?" "Yes, Doctor." "Good night." "Good night." "Good night, Joe." "Good night, Doctor." "106 maple street, please." "It was very clever of you to pretend you were asleep." "Here's your window key, Doctor." "When this is discovered, it isn't going to help your case." "If you go back now, no one need ever know." "You're risking everything for nothing." ""For nothing." Even if I'm acquitted, I still can't face my son again." "How do you explain to a kid of 6?" "What do you tell him?" ""Forget it, Richard." "When I killed your mother, I was temporarily insane"?" "Maybe I say, "you're better off, Richard, without that kind of a mother, so I killed her."" "What can you do?" "Try to prove I didn't kill her." "It's the only way I'll be able to face him again." "It's worth taking any chance for." "Oh, Steve, you so desperately want to face your son again." "You're perfectly willing to accept the delusion of innocence." "Don't you realize there isn't a thread of evidence?" "Don't you know you can't confront a man in- who said anything about confronting anybody?" "Wait a minute, Doctor." "We're going to do this my way." "We're going in there to telephone." "You better not do anything to make me jumpy." "I'll kill you or anybody else that gets in my way." "2 coffees, please, and where's your telephone?" "Right over there." "Thank you." "I think- a hamburger?" "Sure." "2 hamburgers to go." "What do you want on them?" "Everything." "Hold it just a minute." "Do you want onions on yours?" "I won't have them if you don't." "Yes, onions on both." "I'm all out of change." "Pardon me." "Well, that's cozy." "A private room for the cost of 2 hamburgers." "There's nobody home." "Come on." "Don't do anything to make me nervous, Doctor." "Just stay right where you are." "Let's go back." "This doesn't make sense." "It's too dangerous." "I'll be right behind you just in case you slip." "I know this is against the law." "Steve, please- a murderer always returns to the scene of his crime." "You're thinking of that old Chestnut, aren't you?" "This is just sheer foolishness." "Don't give me so much static." "Come on." "Stand over here." "Right there." "Steve, this isn't going- now, let's see." "I came in." "You came from the kitchen." "You started to back away, guilt written all over you." "You want to take care of me." "You want a chance to explain, to take me home." ""Think of Richard." "Think of your son." You're his mother." "Yeah." "This is the exact spot." "But when I came to, she was..." "She was over by the divan." "How did she get way over here?" "The carousel." "What else- there's something missing." "That's what's missing." "It was smaller, but something like this." "Let me have your lipstick." "This is what was missing- Helen's overnight bag." "Somebody came in and took it while I was unconscious." "Don't you see?" "My fingers had scarcely closed around her throat when I blacked out." "I couldn't possibly have strangled her." "It was a perfect setup for Whitcombe." "Steve, let's go." "You don't believe me, do you?" "You think I'm imagining all this to square myself with Richard." "It's getting late." "We've got to get back." "Now, let's put everything in order just the way we found it." "Don't touch it." "Everything stays just the way it is." "It's getting late." "The patient has to get back." "Checking back in, Joe." "Ok, Doctor." "Keep going." "I'm going back in the way I came out." "All this is confidential between Doctor and patient, isn't it?" "You're in a hurry to get in and report this, aren't you?" "Well, I can't stop you, but just remember, you're the one who sold me on the idea of surgery, of fighting for an acquittal." "Why did you bother?" "The guard will be making the rounds any minute, now, Mr. Kenet." "Look, Doctor-Ann," "I came back here with you, didn't I?" "I didn't have to." "I could have run away." "Nobody will know I've been gone if you don't turn me in." "Now, you've got to give me a break." "If I go back to solitary now, there'll be no release, no trial." "I'll never be able to do anything for Richard." "You will keep quiet about it, won't you?" "All right." "You better go in now, Mr. Kenet." "Thanks." "Thanks very much." "Dr. dunlap?" "Yes." "I'm sorry to disturb you, but- that's quite all right." "This can wait." "Sit down, Ann." "I've had rather an odd experience with one of my patients- Mr. Steven Kenet." "Yes?" "I went down to my car a little while ago to go home, and the strangest thing happened..." "To me." "Yes?" "Suddenly, an idea concerning him hit me." "Well?" "Well, I thought it would be so much better if..." "Dr. dunlap, I'm sorry, but I don't think" "I can tell you my idea now." "It doesn't seem very clear to me somehow." "I'm not being very coherent." "I'm afraid you're not, Ann." "It was very stupid of me to come in and bother you this way, Doctor." "As I sat here telling the idea," "I realized it wasn't even formed in my own mind yet." "Well, suppose you sleep on it." "Ideas sometimes crystallize after a good night's rest." "That's true." "Good night, Doctor." "Good night, Ann." "Remind me to speak to poward about arranging a few days off for Dr. lorrison." "She's tired and nervous." "Why aren't you asleep?" "I'm expecting a visitor." "Sure." "Sure." "Is there a plane for Mexico city tonight?" "For just one." "Willard Whitcombe." "Yes." "I'll pick up the ticket in one hour." "Yes?" "When your telephone didn't answer at your home," "I knew I'd find you still at the office." "Your day is never done, is it, Willard?" "The entire board of directors is here at my home, and we've just concluded our quarterly meeting." "Monday will mark your 20th anniversary with brattle press, Willard." "It's a most appropriate day for you to become a vice president and member of the board." "Ha ha ha!" "He's speechless." "Of course it's a surprise." "It's a wonderful surprise." "Yes, reverend holmsby." "I- yes, it... will be a great incentive." "Thank you for your kindness." "Oh, yes, Mr. Grant." "Thank you, sir." "Yes, of course." "Good night, sir." "That reservation I made- Willard Whitcombe." "Mexico city." "I made it just a few minutes ago." "I want you to change it, please, to tomorrow night." "Thank you." "I made an appointment by telephone with Dr. dunlap." "Willard Whitcombe." "Oh, yes, sir." "He's expecting you." "Through there, first door to the left." "Mr. Whitcombe is on his way in." "I'm Dr. poward." "Oh." "Dr. dunlap will be with us in a moment." "Coming in, I saw quite a lot of the patients walking about in your park." "With all that freedom, this hardly seems to be an institution." "Well, freedom is a comparative thing, Mr. Whitcombe." "Yes." "When the patient's not violent, when they're almost well, I mean," "I suppose they're permitted occasionally to go into town, to the movies?" "Only under proper supervision." "And those who escape?" "Well, that happens occasionally- this isn't a prison- but we usually get them back." "Oh, Mr. Whitcombe, Doctor." "Oh, yes." "I'm sorry I was held up, Mr. Whitcombe." "It's perfectly all right, Doctor." "It's very kind of you to see me." "Not at all." "Very generous of you to take this interest in our patient." "Frankly, I'm a little ashamed that I waited this long." "Kenet's wife worked for Mr. Whitcombe, Doctor." "Oh, splendid girl and a devoted wife." "She was terribly upset about him in Burma." "His letters were becoming more and more irrational." "But, of course, you people know all about that." "He's better now?" "After the operation, I mean." "He's improved considerably." "Sufficiently to release him for trial." "That's fine." "Then my offer will be coming along at the right time." "I'm sure it will be appreciated." "We'll have him sent down to the visiting room right away, and an attendant will take you there." "I'm going there, Mr. Whitcombe." "Oh, well..." "Thank you." "Thank you very much." "Get me ward c." "Yes, sir." "Right away." "Mr. Kenet" "I've got a visitor." "How did you know?" "I've been expecting him." "Well, come on." "Let's get going." "He'll wait." "There's your visitor." "Ah." "You don't know me, Mr. Kenet." "I'm Willard Whitcombe." "Yes?" "You've been expecting me?" "Have I?" "I must apologize for not visiting you sooner." "You've been in here, um, quite a while, in and out." "Well..." "Your wife worked for me." "She worried about you a great deal..." "That is, your injury and your state of mind." "A very fine criminal lawyer." "He's positive he can get you an acquittal on the grounds of temporary insanity." "Naturally, a lawyer of his stature, his services come high, but you're not to be concerned about that." "I'm assuming all costs." "Why should you?" "Well, I feel that your wife..." "That is, I'm sure she'd want me to do all I can." "I'm sure she would." "Fine, Mr. Kenet." "Then I'll send this attorney around to you at once." "Don't bother." "But he can get you off." "You want to be acquitted, don't you?" "I will be." "Incidentally, that friend of yours, that fine criminal lawyer, hold on to him." "You might need him." "I know what you're thinking, Kenet, whom you're depending on." "That man has been here to see you, cronner the janitor." "You haven't heard?" "He can't testify for you." "Poor fellow met a tragic end." "Fell down the elevator shaft from my floor to the basement." "The police said he died instantly as a result of the accident." "Just a minute, Whitcombe." "Be sensible, Kenet." "My offer is your only way out." "Better accept it now." "I'm leaving tomorrow for some of that Southern sunshine cronner prized so highly." "Remember, any accusation you make against me will be ridiculed, the ravings of a pitiful lunatic." "Cronner is gone." "There's no possible way you can prove I killed your wife." "You did it." "Of course I did." "You admit it!" "Oh..." "I'll kill you!" "You did it!" "You admitted it!" "I'll kill- let go of me!" "He killed my wife!" "Don't let him get away!" "Stop him!" "Stop him from leaving town!" "Oh, so you're going to release him for trial." "Homicidal maniac." "No!" "That man killed my wife." "Didn't you hear him admit it?" "He killed 2 people." "Don't you see?" "He'll get away if we don't stop him." "This is Willard Whitcombe." "You have a reservation in my name for Mexico city tonight." "That's right." "Cancel it, please." "Yes." "He played me for a sucker, Delaney, and I went for it." "Don't you worry about anything." "That's going to make you feel much better." "I walked right into his parlor." "He had every move planned, just like a chess game." "You're going to feel great after this bath." "I'll never feel great, not until I get him." "He killed her, Delaney." "He admitted it." "Yeah." "I know he killed her." "Now, just take it easy." "Last night, when I was in his apartment, that's what brought him here." "He had to find out how much I knew." "Sure." "Last night when you were in his apartment." "This bath's going to do you a lot of good." "Look, Delaney, I got to see Dr. lorrison." "Get her for me, will you?" "Right away." "Sure, sure." "I'll go get her." "Here." "How's that for service?" "* oh, give me a home * where the buffaloes roam * where the deer and the antelope play * * where seldom is heard * a disparaging word * and the sky is so cloudy all day * beep beep." "Let me out!" "Let me out!" "This is where I came in." "Isn't this the guy that told you he liked this place?" "Wanting to spend the rest of his life here, all on the county?" "Well, the d.A.'S fixing it up for you, pal." "Dinner, gentlemen." "Let's get downstairs." "Come, gentlemen." "Faster, gentlemen." "Faster!" "Say, Hale, just a minute." "You get your dinner later." "You're on room service now." "But wait a minute." "I want to ask you something." "Come in." "Hello, George." "Ann, would you mind giving me a lift?" "Mother's got the car today." "I'd be glad to." "I ought to apologize to you." "You were 100% right about that patient Kenet." "What about him?" "If there was ever any doubt about him, it was cleared up today." "What happened?" "We almost released a homicidal maniac." "He tried to kill a man, a visitor." "He's back in isolation now, and we've asked the district attorney to apply for a permanent commitment." "I'll just drop these records." "All right." "* glory, glory, hallelujah * * glory, glory, hallelujah" "Steve." "Steve?" "Ann, here I am." "Steve." "What happened?" "Get me out of here." "I've got to get out." "Now, tell me calmly, Steve, what happened?" "Come in." "They said you tried to kill someone." "You afraid to come in?" "No, of course not." "Who was here today?" "Whitcombe." "I told you he'd come." "I lost my head." "It's as simple as that." "Whitcombe was desperate to find out how much I knew." "I thought I had him, but he got me instead." "You remember the janitor in the apartment house?" "Well, he's dead." "Whitcombe killed him." "How do you know?" "He told me so." "He confessed." "He told you he killed the janitor?" "Not only that." "He told me he killed Helen." "You see, he had to get rid of the janitor to keep him from testifying for me, so he killed him, made it look like an accident." "That's how he could come here and boast that he'd killed Helen right in my face." "Like a fool, I grabbed him." "That's exactly what he wanted me to do." "I see." "All right, Steve." "We'll tell the police." "It's too late." "Haven't you heard?" "They already told the district attorney." "I'm committed here for good." "Anything I say from now on will be the ravings of a maniac." "You will help me get out of here, won't you?" "Oh, of course I will." "Be patient." "We'll work hard together, but you don't understand." "I've got to get out tonight." "Whitcombe's leaving." "I've got to stop him." "There's only one way to do that." "If I can catch him in his apartment, I can make him talk." "I want you to get well, Steve." "There isn't anything I wouldn't do for that." "Trust me." "You think I belong in this room, too, don't you?" "Or maybe you don't know." "Maybe you're confused." "Well, I'm not." "I've got things to do in this world, good things:" "A son to take care of, a profession, work." "You know that." "If I don't make Whitcombe talk, I've got nothing." "I'm going out of here tonight!" "Steve." "Don't do it, Steve." "Please don't do it." "Steve!" "Steve, let me out." "Please unlock this door." "Doctor, Doctor Lorrison," "Doctor, they've been stealing the letters from my wife." "You see, there's no federal post- oh, Steve, please." "Steve, don't do it." "You'll lose all chances of being released." "They'll hunt you down, Steve." "Steve, listen to me." "Please listen to me, Steve!" "Pull her, please." "Hot stuff, coming through." "Thank you." "Main gate." "He just went through." "Are you willing to sign a complaint?" "Well, look, madam, if you're not willing to sign a complaint, there's nothing the police department can do." "No." "I'm sorry." "All districts, attention." "Signal 6-0." "Steven Kenet, homicidal, now at large." "All cars, districts 1, 7, and 10, take your ring positions" "South plam." "Districts 2, 5, 6, and 8, arterial roadblocks." "Description follows:" "Black Plymouth sedan, license number 398948." "Escaped maniac wearing white uniform of hospital attendant, escaped county insane asylum 6:53 P.M." "Telephoto transmission follows." "This man is homicidal." "I repeat, this man is homicidal." "There's only one way we'll ever know the truth." "When this man Whitcombe came here this afternoon and taunted Kenet, he thought- that's what Kenet told you." "You know it isn't true." "Do you know it is?" "I know one thing." "We've got to stop this manhunt." "He'll resist the police, and they'll shoot him down." "I've suspected for some time, Ann, that your interest in Kenet wasn't exactly clinical." "Now, look, Ann." "The man did escape, didn't he?" "Yes." "And he is under indictment for murder, isn't he?" "Yes." "Then you must understand there's nothing at all we can do about it now." "We could correct George's report to the police." "You know, it's just possible he's not a homicidal maniac, and he's not going to kill everyone he sees." "He's probably out for one thing- to get the truth and clear himself." "Hardly a professional diagnosis, Ann." "Most likely, he's gone out to kill the man he attacked before." "Get me police headquarters." "Cover maple street, the 100 block." "The hospital thinks he might be headed there." "Send 43, 61, and 72 and have halloran check in from the apartment of a man named Whitcombe at 106 maple." "Hello, Maggie?" "Dr. lorrison." "Will you call me a cab, please?" "Thank you." "How many?" "Fill her up." "Regular or special?" "Special." "Forgot the keys." "I'll be right back." "This concludes the police emergency broadcast." "We will return you to your original station." "I wouldn't do that, mister." "Oh!" "Ah..." "Well, my-my wife, you see, when it rains..." "And whenever she's at the movies," "I always call to see- who's in the house?" "Nobody but bessie and me, and bessie's at the movies." "Where does that go?" "Noplace." "It's just a closet." "See?" "Go right ahead." "Help yourself." "I'm going to have to trouble you for that raincoat." "Yes, sir." "Who does that car outside belong to?" "Oh, that's mine." "It's in good shape, too." "I mean, I just had the valves ground, and the keys are in it." "Well, you'll have your car and clothes back tomorrow." "How far is it to the state line?" "Oh, 80 Miles or so." "Get in." "Yes, sir." "You two men cover the cellar and the alley." "Davis, cover the roof." "I want this entrance and the entire block covered." "Get these cars off the street." "Remember, this man's a homicidal maniac." "Joe, just a minute." "Stop!" "Steve!" "Steve, I'm so glad I found you." "I've been cruising up and down these streets for over an hour." "Stop playing policeman, Doctor." "I'm not going back." "Oh, Steve." "You don't understand." "I want to help you." "I want to prove that you're right." "I know that you can't go back, not until you find Whitcombe." "I sat in my office thinking about things." "Psychiatry can never tell me what I must find out." "Steve, that's why I'm here." "We've got to get you away from here, Ann." "Your professional career, everything you've worked for will be ruined if you're found here with me." "Oh, Steve, don't you understand?" "It doesn't matter now." "Do you remember what you told me tonight?" "Well, that's true for me, too." "If Whitcombe..." "Isn't guilty, if he doesn't confess, then there's nothing." "There's nothing for either one of us." "How about another one, Charlie?" "No..." "I shouldn't be here." "Oh, I know I shouldn't be here." "Why don't you throw me out?" "Go on, throw me out in the rain." "I dare you to throw me out." "Ah, you won't talk, huh?" "Well, that's good enough for me." "Ok by me, Charlie." "Money's no good, nobody to talk to." "Well, I'll just find somebody." "Tom!" "My pal, tom conover." "When did you leave Cincinnati?" "I'm afraid you're mistaken." "You're not tom conover from Cincinnati?" "Are you kidding?" "Sorry, chum." "Do you mind?" "I'm deeply sorry, sir." "Madam." "Steve, we must wait here." "There's no way we can reach Whitcombe now." "Not "we," Ann." "Me." "I'll get in touch with him some way." "Steve, come to my house." "We can talk things over there." "You could see Richard." "I've had him ever since that first day." "The court gave me temporary custody." "Mrs. Ferguson is my aunt." "He's been with you all this time?" "Yes, he has." "You know something?" "I got to buy a drink for anybody that looks as much like tom conover as you do." "Uh, madam, my name is pinky." "May I inquire what is yours?" "Uh, Betty." "Look, can you please stop annoying my wife and me?" "We're busy." "All right, all right." "Simmer down, friend." "Just trying to pour a little of the milk of human kindness." "Uh, madam Betty, your very good health." "Thank you." "You're going back to the hospital." "I'm going to have another try at maple street." "Steve, be reasonable." "You're only committing suicide." "All this talk about your son..." "You've got to live for him if for no other reason." "If you thought it was so hopeless, why did you come prepared with that?" "How did I know there was going to be a cordon of police around the entire block?" "Please be reasonable, darling." "I want to help you, and I can." "But I can't if you insist on committing suicide, getting yourself shot down." "Oh, please, Steve." "Come to my house." "You can see Richard, and we can plan things calmly." "While Whitcombe calmly walks out of town, and I spend the rest of my life in a side room of ward c?" "We'll get the best lawyer in the state." "I have influential friends." "They'll listen to reason." "They've got to when they understand the facts." "Look, chum, I'm sorry if I seemed rude over at the table." "I happen to know another fellow by the name of conover." "Oh, yeah?" "What's his first name?" "Same as mine." "Tom." "Ah, wait a minute." "Wait a minute." "Your name is tom, and you knew a man named tom conover, but you're not tom conover from Cincinnati?" "No." "It's all very confusing." "Well, it just seems confusing." "Look, how would you like to hop in a cab and take a little ride with me?" "I'll explain the whole thing." "Fine... if this lovely lady can ride with us." "Lady's busy." "Has to look after a baby." "You and I will pay a visit to a very interesting fellow." "You're not going anyplace without me." "I should say not." "Betty, why don't you go on home, huh?" "Please, let's stop at Ann's house." "A foursome." "Now, that's what I call a real party." "I got a better idea, pinky." "Why don't you drop me off, you and Betty step out for some dancing?" "I'll take care of the baby alone." "Oh, I insist upon it, dear." "You trust her with me, tom." "Now, that's what I call a friend, a real friend." "Not tonight, pinky." "No matter what tom says," "I'm going with him." "I don't think he'll be able to take care of the baby by himself." "Yeah, just when I get all set for a big evening, you got to take care of a baby." "A real problem child, pinky." "Uh, what was that address again?" "106 maple street." "Pinky, it's been a real pleasure." "Sorry we couldn't make a night of it." "How about a rain check, huh?" "Even though it stopped raining?" "Ha ha ha ha!" "Oh, tom, you kill me." "Look, Betty, don't go home, I beg you." "It's early." "How about another drink, just a little itsy-bitsy one?" "Ha!" "My good friends." "My very good friends." "How about dinner Tuesday night, pinky?" "At my house!" "Fine, fine." "Oh, now, his money's no good, driver." "Oh, thanks, pinky." "See you later." "So long." "Oh, Betty, kiss the baby for me, huh?" "Yes, yes." "Good night, boy." "Good night." "Who is it?" "Halloran and Schaeffer again, Mr. Whitcombe." "Right." "Ok to use your phone again?" "Certainly." "Anything new?" "Nope." "This is halloran." "Give me upstairs." "Halloran, Sam." "Anything for me?" "Yeah?" "When?" "Ok." "We'll be around." "Call you back in an hour." "You can relax, Mr. Whitcombe." "Oh?" "They've caught him?" "Yeah, just about." "Picked himself up an outfit of clothes and a car at a gas station up near eastbury." "Headed for the state line." "State cops will pick him up in the morning." "Come on, schaeffer." "Let's get back on the job." "There's no hurry, gentlemen." "I'm a terrible host." "It's wet outside, and I haven't offered you a thing." "Oh, that's all right." "Now, how about a little snack?" "It won't take any time to make some coffee." "No, thanks." "Oh, Mr. Halloran?" "Yes?" "You're still staying around here, aren't you?" "I mean, you'll let me know when anything develops." "Don't worry." "We're not leaving." "Oh, I'm not worried." "Naturally, I'm interested." "To tell you the truth, I'm sorry for him." "The poor demented fellow seems to have nothing to look forward to except a lifetime in a padded cell." "He'd be better off dead." "He'll probably wind up that way." "See you later." "Yes." "Don't raise your voice." "Move away from that door." "The police, they'll be back." "Sure." "I'll call them when I want them." "They have orders to shoot." "You better give yourself up." "I'll kill you before anyone gets here." "There's nothing they can do to me but send me back to the asylum." "The law says I am insane, not responsible." "You fixed that." "Look." "I have an idea." "I'll hide you." "I've got money." "My bags are all packed in the bedroom." "Take them." "You can get out of the country." "I'll keep sending you funds, plenty of money, wherever you go." "I'm a partner in the firm now." "I can afford it." "You've just been given an injection of sodium pentothol." "You can't resist." "You're going to tell the truth." "Can you hear me, Mr. Whitcombe?" "Yes." "You're going back, back to the last time you saw Helen Kenet." "Remember?" "I remember." "Oh, darling." "Thank goodness you're here." "He tried to kill me." "I don't know why he came here." "I didn't even know he was coming home." "Darling, he was like a madman." "No matter how I tried to talk to him, he wouldn't listen." "He wouldn't believe anything." "He just kept coming toward me." "Then he fainted." "That's the only thing that saved me." "Would you stop being hysterical, Helen?" "But we have to think of something, darling, now, before he comes to." "We can't afford a scandal." "It would ruin your chance of a partnership." "Oh, there must be some way to keep this quiet for a while." "What we need is a little time, enough to get a divorce." "We won't have anything to worry about after you get that partnership." "Let Garrison and those old fossils object after we get married." "I'll laugh at them." "You'll be a member of the firm, and it will cost them plenty to buy you out." "You are being very hysterical, Helen." "Where are you going?" "Walking, Helen." "I'm going to take a long walk." "When I return, I shall expect to find you and your husband out of here." "You're not walking out on me." "We're in this together." "What you've worked 20 years for," "I'll smash in 20 minutes." "You'll never get that partnership." "He'll divorce me, all right, and you'll be named in every newspaper in town." "Please, darling, don't you see, I need you." "I'll be left with nothing." "He'll even take Richard from me." "You've got to think of me." "He's mad, out of his mind." "He'll never listen to reason." "How do I know he won't finish what he started?" "Aah!" "Aah!" "You're safe." "Helen's dead now, but you're safe." "Safe." "His hands are all scratched and torn as if he strangled her." "The police will blame Kenet, but you're clear." "Yes." "They'll blame Kenet." "They'd have to." "The marks on his hands, his injury." "His mind is gone." "Everyone knows that." "I'm getting out of here, back to the office." "Helen's overnight bag." "Where is it?" "I know." "Leave everything else." "Must get rid of the bag." "No one saw me come in." "Make sure nobody sees me carrying it out." "That's it." "Ok." "Everybody down at the D.A.'s office." "We'll get this on the record." "Wake up." "Wake up." "It's against the law for us to use drugs on prisoners, even a confessed killer." "But you will tell us the whole story again when we get you downtown, won't you, bub?" "Certainly not." "I shall demand to see my lawyer." "With that brilliant attorney friend of yours, Mr. Whitcombe, you should have no trouble." "Hospital's really quite comfortable." "3 squares a day, chopin, Beethoven..." "All on the county." "Let's go." "Come along, Kenet." "We'll need your testimony, too, Doctor." "Yes." "So this is where Richard's lived all this time." "Yes." "Where's his room?" "At the head of the stairs." "He hasn't seen you since he was 4 years old, and he's asleep, so I wouldn't- yeah, sure." "I'll take it easy." "I can handle it."