" What is it, George?" " Gas." " Suicide?" " No, sir, an accident." " Mrs. Tremayne was..." " All right, where is she?" "Upstairs." "We probably won't need that." "Just stand by." "It was like being smothered." "My head was pounding." "I tried to reach the balcony." "The doors were closed." " I called out for Charles." " All right, all right, Mrs. Tremayne." "Just relax the arm." "I was in my room, in bed, reading." " Where is your room?" " It's across the hall." "I thought I heard her cry out." "She was lying there." "The room was full of gas, so I pulled her out into the air." "I shouted to the butler, but I guess he didn't hear me." "I saw she was coming to so I left her to turn off the gas." "But the key wasn't there." "Someone took it, I tell you." "Someone tried to murder me." "Now, now, Mrs. Tremayne." " Key is here, now." " Well, that's the one from my room." "I went back across the balcony and got it." "Is this the other one down here?" " Where?" " Under the log." "She might've kicked it with her foot." "Unless you think she..." "Oh, no." "That's out of the question." "I'll telephone the drugstore to send up some pills which she can take when she wakes up." " Will you need us anymore, Doctor?" " No, thank you very much." "Now, will you show me your room, please?" "Yeah." "There's my bedroom." "And this is my study." "She's okay." "She didn't even need this." "The doctor gave her a sedative." "Hey." "Look, take it easy." "I told you she's gonna be fine." "Leave me alone, please!" "Now, look." "Come on, stop it." " Stop it!" " Let me alone, please!" "Now look, the manual says that's supposed to stop hysterics." "It doesn't say a word about getting slapped back." " I'm sorry." " It's all right." "Forget it." "I've been slapped by dames before." "That your mother?" "Stepmother." "Next time see if you can't remember to pull that punch a little bit." "Yes, I'll remember." "Wanna go for a cup of coffee?" "No, I promised Mary I'd call her." "She's waiting for me." " Lucky." " You know it." " See you tomorrow, Billy." " Good night, Frank." "Well, if it ain't the dead body jockey." "Sure, Harry, that's why I come here." "It's so much like the morgue." "That ain't funny." "What's happened to business anyway?" "Got nothing to do but sit here doping the horses." "How do you like Kelly in the seventh?" "She'll still be running when they start the eighth." " Hello." " Well, hello." " You do get around fast, don't you?" " I parked my broomstick outside." "Beer, Harry." " And what do witches drink?" " Just coffee." " Smoke?" " No." "Don't drink, don't smoke." "How old are you?" "Twenty, next month." "I had to get out." "I couldn't stay there after what happened." "What did happen?" "I don't know." "Father wouldn't even let me in the room." "He told me to call the doctor and just wait." "It was horrible not knowing." " Shouldn't someone answer it?" " Hey, get that phone, will you?" "Maybe it's for you." "Maybe it's the girl you were calling when I came in." "Now, what makes you so sure I was calling a girl?" "It would have to be." "Unless she's your wife." "What's the matter?" "Can't you hear the phone?" "Hello?" "I'm not married." "You here, Frank?" "Yes or no?" " Yeah, I'm here." " Yeah, he says he's here." "Hello?" "Yeah." "Where did I get to?" "Where were you when I called?" "But you know I can't hear the phone when I'm in the shower." "Darling, what's got into you?" "Nothing's got into me." "I'm just beat, that's all." " What was it?" "A rough call?" " Yeah, rough." " I'll see you tomorrow." " Tomorrow?" "But I've got everything ready." "Darling, you stay there." "I'll be right over and..." "I said we'll skip it for tonight." "Besides, I just had a sandwich." "Yeah." "Yeah, good night." "You know something?" "I haven't eaten either." "Well, let's go and eat." " Good night, Harry." " Good night." "Hey, now." "This yours?" "It's not a stock XK." "Twin stacks." "What is it?" "The Le Mans' job?" "That's right." "You know how to drive it?" "Oh, I think so." "Did you race professionally?" "Oh, yeah." "Midgets, hot rods, everything but Indianapolis." "I was getting ready to try that when the war came along." "That's when you started driving ambulances?" "No, I drove a tank till they shot me out of it." "Ambulance driving is just a job till I make enough money to open my own shop." "Jessup Automotive, racing car specialists." "I've got some ideas for a power plant that'll make this mill look sick." "Sounds exciting." "I think your carburetion's a little sloppy." "Perhaps it's a little hungry, too." "Oh, yeah, we were supposed to eat, weren't we?" "Be right there." "So, I figure, another $5,000, $6,000, I'm in business." "Of course, Mary has some money but..." " She was the one on the phone?" " Yeah." " Do you love her?" " You ask an awful lot of questions." "I know." "It's a very bad habit of mine." "You ask me some, just for a change." "All right, I will." " What does your father do?" " He's a very famous novelist." "He hasn't published anything since we came to America, after my mother was killed in a raid." "But he's started to write again, a novel." "He's been reading parts of it to me." "It's wonderful." "Catherine, that's my stepmother, she's very jealous because he only talks to me about his work." "I suppose it's only natural that she should be." "It's as if I'd robbed her of something, in a way." " Oh, sure, I suppose she feels..." " Here, let me do this." "I asked you." "Will you relax?" "I can pay the check, even on my salary." "But you're saving up for your shop and to get married, and..." "Who said anything about getting married?" "Well, Mary expects it, doesn't she?" "What's her last name?" "What does she do?" "Her last name is Wilton." "She's a receptionist at the hospital." "She has blond hair, blue eyes." "She weighs 105 pounds stripped." "She sleeps in pajamas." "She's a first-rate cook and she doesn't ask questions." "She does, too." "Anyway, let me pay my share, I insist." "All right, if that's the way you want it." "I'd like a night cap." "How about you?" "Oh, no, you don't smoke or drink, do you?" " I only ask questions and I love to dance." " Tonight?" "If I tell you something, will you promise not to laugh at me?" "No, but I'll promise to try not to laugh at you." "You're the first man I've danced with since I've been in America." " Except my father." " Really?" "You're doing all right." "Diane." "Daddy, why aren't you in bed?" "That's just what I was going to ask you, my dear." " Where've you been so late?" " For a drive." "I had to get out, just for a little while." " How is she?" " Sleeping quietly." "Have the police found out what really happened?" "Well, they suggested she might have accidentally kicked the key with her foot." "You don't think that she could've intended to commit..." "With her bridge club meeting tomorrow?" "You should know our Catherine better than that." "Good night, my pet." "God bless." "It was nice of you to come." "You must have been surprised getting a phone call from a complete stranger." "Frankly, I was." "You're no stranger to me." " Frank told me so much about you." " Frank?" "I was with him last night after he made the phone call from our house." "You must forgive me for that." "And him, too." "Frank is free to go out with whoever he pleases, Miss Tremayne." "But you're angry because he lied to you on the phone." "Wouldn't you be?" "Put yourself in the poor man's place." "What could he have said without hurting your feelings even more?" "You must know that I wouldn't be telling you this if it wasn't completely innocent." "Excuse me." "Don't be cross, please." " Miss Tremayne..." " Do call me Diane." "Diane, I'm sure your motives for telling me all this are good, but, frankly, I wish you hadn't." "But why?" "We spent most of the time talking about you." "And about his plans for his racing car place." "That's why I called." "I'm afraid I don't understand." "Mary, would you accept $1,000 from me to add to that garage fund?" "$1,000?" " But why..." " I have few friends, none actually." "And last night, after I left Frank, I got to thinking about you two." "And I thought that if I could help you both to realize your dream," "I'd have a little part in your life." "Well, that's very generous of you and all that, but I'm sure Frank feels the same..." "You mustn't tell him, ever." "It would be our secret." "Hasn't anyone ever told you about hospital salaries?" "How do you think I could explain away $1,000?" "You could say you won it on the radio or in a contest." "There are all sorts of ways." "And he wouldn't believe any of them." "Well, I can see my little plot didn't succeed." "Oh, I wouldn't say that." "You brought me here today because you wanted to shake my faith in Frank." "You have." "You wanted to find out how clever or stupid I am." "I guess you've done that, too." "So your little plot has succeeded after all." "And what do you intend to do about it?" "Nothing." "Not one thing." "I suppose I could pick up the check but I'm too practical." "You see, I have to work for my money." "I won't say goodbye, Diane." "I'm sure I'll see more of you." " What do you say, Janie?" " Hi, Frank." "Hi, honey." " Good night, dear." " Good night, Mary." "Hello, Frank." "Well, what'll it be?" "Gilmore Field or a drive-in movie?" "Aren't you too tired after your rough night?" "I'll buy you a T-bone twice as big and twice as beautiful if it takes my whole paycheck, which it will." "You do that, some other time." "Oh, honey, stop." "You're not gonna let a T-bone steak come between us." "Now, come on." "Dimple up." "All right." "I'd have been lousy company last night, honey." "Ten minutes after I left Harry's I was in the sack." "I can believe that." "Well, you can head for that same sack tonight." " I've got other plans." " Oh, you have?" " Yes, I have." " Okay." " Okay." " Okay!" "Quiet, please." "This is a residential district." "Now, don't tell me." "Just let me hope." "Hello, Bill." "You know, in times like these, a guy can offer a girl a handkerchief or a double old fashioned." " What'll it be?" " Both." "Come on, you redheaded double-crosser." "Who, me?" "Double-cross a pal?" "I should say." "What's the matter?" "Were you on Cly-boy, too?" "This time I'm making no fresh coffee, see?" "It's all right." "I don't care for any right now." "Go ahead, hit me." "First, I'll buy you dinner, then maybe I'll hit you." "I wish I could but the family expects me." "This is definitely not my day." "When I tell you what I did, you probably won't want to see me again, ever." "Sounds pretty grim." "I had lunch with Mary." "I told her about last night." "Oh, not everything." "Just that we went out together." "Well, why did you say that?" "I told her I..." "I only did it because I wanted to help get the garage." " Oh, you're a big help." " I offered Mary $1,000." "You offered her $1,000 just like that?" "And what did she say?" "She was rather angry." "I gathered she resented you knowing anybody else." "Look, I'm a free agent." "Mary admits that but you know what girls are." "It's only natural." "Look what I found." "They're running the Pebble Beach Road Races later on next month." "I thought that we could enter the car and you drive." "I drove that course in '41." "Well, then you're eligible even though you were a pro." "As long as you haven't raced for two years." "Two years?" "I haven't raced in 10." "You could tune it up, change anything you wanted, and we could take it out weekends." " Do you think Mary would mind?" " Oh, Mary has nothing to do with this." "We take that race, it'll mean a lot of publicity." "Make it a lot easier for me to get backing for the shop." "Come on, let's have dinner." "I'll talk to you about it." "I can't, the family." "I could get away later, though." " 10:00?" " Here." "Here." "Charles, if you must play that, would you mind turning it a little lower?" "I'll have another, Ito." "You needn't have turned it off." "Evening, family." "Well, we seem particularly festive this evening." "What is it?" " New dress?" " Yes, I got the bill this morning." "Really, Diane, when I gave you permission to pick up something simple..." "Oh, Catherine, darling, you know that the simple things always cost the most." "Ito, you're an angel." "Now, what is it tonight?" "Don't tell me, let me guess." "Pineapple certainly." "Orange." " What's the other?" " It's creme de fraises, dear." "I'm sure you knew it all along." "Tell Chiyo to hurry dinner, please." "I'm famished." "Catherine, don't you think we ought to have a chauffeur?" "I thought you enjoyed driving that horrible little jet-propelled torpedo." " Well, I do but you don't." " No argument there." "And, Catherine, you know how nervous and absent-minded you are" " after your bridge bouts." " Oh, I wouldn't say that." "Only three tickets last month for not observing stop signals." " Only one collision." " That was definitely not my fault, Charles." "I distinctly signaled I was making a left turn." "Dinner is served, please." "But you turned right, darling." "I think Diane has a point." "And, besides," "I think it would be a good idea to have another man in the house." "Might keep away the prowlers." "Please, Frank." "You could make just as much money as you do at the hospital." "There's an apartment over the garage." "Not very large, maybe, but at least it has a regular bed and not something that leaps out of a wall at you." "No, I don't think I'm quite the type for that." ""Yes, sir. " "No, ma'am. " "Home, Driver. " "Walk the dog, Franklin. "" "We don't have a dog and the family isn't like that." "Father never goes out, and Mother just goes to her bridge clubs, and I'm no trouble." "Just think, you could get set for Pebble Beach." "Well, what'll it be? "Home, James"?" "No, not yet." "What'd she say?" "I ask if she trimmed the toast for Miss Diane." "She said, "I always do it. "" "Then she got angry and said..." "Well, in American, I guess it would be, "Drop dead. "" "I thought the man wore the pants in Japan." "Maybe she has been too long with Mrs. Tremayne." "One acquires bad habits so easily." "I'll get it." "Hello?" "Is that you, Frank?" "How wonderful to hear your voice in the morning, even if it is just "hello. "" "You might have said," ""Awake thee, my Lady-love!" "Awake thee and rise!" ""The sun through the bower peeps Into thine eyes!"" "Or something like that." "Well, I might have, then again I might not." "Especially not over the intercom." "What do you mean "not romantic"?" "You try me some time later in the day." "And not on the phone." "Oh, I spoke to Catherine last night." "She seems interested." "No, really." "Come in." "Yeah, she wants to see you." "Have you got your figures ready?" " Good morning, Miss Diane." " Good morning, Ito." "I'll see you later." "You can tell me then in person." "I hope you find everything perfect, Miss Diane." " All looks wonderful, as usual, Ito." " Thank you, Miss Diane." "I was under the impression that these uncomfortable little cars were just a fad." "There's a great deal more to it than that, Mrs. Tremayne." "Why, you have over 5,000 sports car owners right here in this area." "So I see." " But aren't there any repair shops?" " Oh, sure, but most of them specialize in just one make." "With one big repair shop carrying all the important parts for all the leading sports cars, I don't see how it can miss." "I must say you're persuasive and your figures seem to make sense." "Of course, my lawyer will have to look them over." "And there are a few questions." "Anything you'd like to know, Mrs. Tremayne." "Very well." "Sit down, please." "Diane's told me a little about you." "That you were driving the ambulance the night of that accident and how she happened to run into you the next day." "I gather that was when you told her about your plans for this garage." "Yes, that's right." " We got to talking." " I see." "It doesn't really make any difference, but did you or she suggest the possibility of my investing in it?" "Mrs. Tremayne, when we talked about my shop" "I had no thought of coming here to work." " I've been saving my own money and..." " So it was Diane's suggestion?" " Well, with her interest in sports cars..." " Of course." "Well, thank you, Frank." "I'll call my lawyer today." "Oh, I don't want you to feel that you're a prisoner here." "In the evening, I mean." "Surely you have a girl?" "Yes, she's working the late shift at the hospital this month." "Oh, so that explains it." "Well, anytime you want the car and we're at home, don't hesitate to take it." " You'll hear from me, Frank." " Thank you, Mrs. Tremayne." "Arthur Vance, please." "Catherine Tremayne." "May I invade the sanctum sanctorum?" "Hello, Arthur?" "Can you picture me as the co-owner of a garage?" "In overalls, of course." "No, I'm really quite serious." "I have the facts and the figures right here." "I'd like you to look them over." "Oh, he's a very nice young man." "I'll send the papers over to you." "Or better still..." "Oh, I see." "Well, then, when you come back from San Francisco." "Call me." "Goodbye, Arthur." "Now that I've completed the timeworn gesture," " you expect me to ask the usual favor." " Do I?" "At this precise moment you are, with the speed of a mechanical brain, weighing and computing an infinite number of possibilities." "Such as?" "Well, one, he's spent this month's allowance." "Two, he's borrowed against next month's allowance." "Three, he's charged something at a store, which he promised, word of honor, he'd never do again." "And four, he's just kissed you because he's very sorry and he loves you very much." " And are you guilty on all four counts?" " All, especially the fourth." "Oh, I'm terribly sorry, darling, but the moment I saw that dress" "I knew there was only one person in the world who could wear it, my own dearly beloved and horribly spoiled Diane." "I dashed into the shop." ""Is that a size 10?" I asked." "It was. "I'll take it," I said, "and hang the cost. "" "It was $300 plus sales tax." "I have just enough for the tax." "Charles, at times your charm wears dangerously thin." "Right now it's so thin I can see through it." "You mean that $300 can so alter your perspective?" "Don't speak so contemptuously of $300." "How long has it been since you've earned that much?" " I've been working incessantly." " Working!" "Sitting in your study sharpening pencils." "Listening to music." "You used to write a whole chapter at one sitting." "At least, that's what you told me." "True, my dear." "That was before I met you." "You're not that late." "Frank, look what I found in her wastepaper basket." "Your figures." "I don't get this." "Did she talk to the lawyer already?" "Of course she hasn't." "I checked." "He's out of town." "Well, then why did she talk to me like she was..." "This isn't against you." "It's to get at me." "She's done this to me so often before." "Just because I wanted her to put up the money for you." "Well, she could have said no right away, couldn't she?" "That's too easy, don't you see?" "It wouldn't hurt." " It doesn't make sense to me." " But of course it doesn't." "But that's the way her mind works." "Act the lady bountiful, raise your hopes and then..." " Oh, Frank, I'm so sorry." " Don't take it so hard." "You had a nice idea." "It just didn't work, that's all." "I'm so sorry for you." "She changed her mind." "Forget it." " We'll make a big night of it, huh?" " Not tonight." " Now why?" " It would be safer not to." "We have to be careful for a few days, more than ever now." "What do we have to be careful of now?" "Well, if she finds out, she'll dismiss you and I couldn't stand to lose you now." "So she fires me and I get another job." "Maybe it's better that way." "At least we won't have to play around like this, hiding like kids..." "You don't know her, Frank." " She'd lock me in." " Don't be silly." "How could she lock you in?" "She could do anything to me because of my father." "If I try to fight her, she makes him pay for it, and she knows I can't stand that." "Please, try to understand." "Okay, if that's the way you want it." "Well?" "You little beast." "Oh, I concede." "You could win any time you wanted if you really tried." "You know that." " More brandy?" " Just a little." "Thank you." "Ambulance dispatch desk, please." "Hello, Mary?" "Oh, Janie, this is Frank." "Yeah, I have been busy." "No, I tried the apartment." "Your milk and biscuits are by your bed, and your cigarettes and matches." "What would I do without you?" " Good night, Daddy." " Good night, sweet." "Sleep tight." "No, no message." "All right." "Good night, Janie." "Frank?" "Yeah?" " Something wrong?" "What time is it?" " No, don't turn the light on." "Oh, Frank." "Now, calm down." "What's the matter?" "I can't help you if you don't tell me." "What is it?" "I'd gone to bed." "I don't know for how long." "I couldn't sleep." "I was thinking of you." "But I must have dozed because the next thing I had a feeling that someone was in my room." "I was too scared to move." "And then I saw her." " You saw who?" " Catherine." "She stood there looking down at me." " Didn't she say anything?" " No." "It was so strange." "I wanted to speak and I couldn't." "Then she went over and closed the window." "I heard her cross the room." "She seemed to pause at the fireplace." "I couldn't see from my bed." "And then I heard her go out and very quietly close the door." "I lay there for a second and then I heard it, the gas, that awful hissing sound it makes." "I jumped out of bed and turned it off and waited." "I didn't dare leave the room." "Then after a while I looked out into the hall." "There was no one there." "So I came over here." " Did you tell your father about this?" " How could I?" "Well, we're going to have to tell it to the police." "No, Frank!" "We mustn't do that." "Why not?" "She'd deny it and we have no proof." "The police couldn't do anything." "They didn't before." "Now, I've been thinking about that, too." "If she's trying to kill you, why did she turn on the gas in her own room first?" "To make it look as though somebody else were guilty." " Is that what you did?" " Frank, are you accusing me?" "I'm not accusing anybody, but if I were a cop, and not a very bright cop at that," "I'd say that your story was as phony as a $3 bill." "How can you say that to me?" "Oh, you mean, after all we've been to each other?" "Diane, look, I don't pretend to know what goes on behind that pretty little face of yours," "I don't want to." "But I learned one thing very early, "Never be the innocent bystander. "" "That's the guy that always gets hurt." "You want to play with matches, that's your business." "But not in gas filled rooms." "It's not only dangerous, it's stupid." "I think you ought to go on back to the house and get in bed and do some serious thinking." "Yes, Frank, I will." "I'm very tired." "Yeah, that I can believe." " Frank." " Hi." "Come in." " Why didn't you call me?" " Oh, I have to call ahead of time now?" "I thought maybe you forgot the number." "You ought to stick around more." "I called last night, twice." "I was out with Bill." "I've got to get dressed." "I'm on early duty." "That's all right." "I've been here before." " Remember?" " Yes, I remember." " Had your breakfast?" " Yeah." "There's some coffee in the pot if you like." "Help yourself." "What did you call me about last night, Frank?" "Oh, I had some time off." "Why didn't you show up then?" "Bill was sure that you'd get there." "Show up where?" "Where?" "I suppose it was some other guy who entered the singles in the hospital bowling tournament." "Oh, that." "I've been busy." "You have?" " How did Bill make out in the tournament?" " Wonderful!" "He rolled a 245 in the second game." "He's been making out all right with you, too, huh?" "Bill was very sweet to me, Frank, after you walked out." "I took a job that pays better than being a lousy ambulance driver." "Is that a crime?" "Is taking the boss's daughter to the Mocambo part of the job?" "They got a good band there." "Remind me to take you sometime." " Who told you?" " Oh, things get around." "Are you driving her car at Pebble Beach?" "I don't know." "I've been thinking about quitting." "It's a weird outfit." "Not for me." "Here, zip me up, will you, Frank?" "Are you planning on coming back to the hospital?" "No." "I was a dope to stay there that long." "What's the score, Mary?" "Has Bill taken over or do I still rate?" "That's a hard question to answer, Frank, and I don't think a fair one to ask." "It's a very simple question." "Yes or no?" "Bill or me?" "Can't you make up your mind?" "Yes, but I want to be sure you can make up yours." "Can't we let it go at that for a while?" "Oh, I'm on probation?" "Okay." "How about tonight?" "We got a date?" "Why not?" "You know something?" "You're a pretty nice guy, for a girl." " Where are you going?" " I'm quitting." " Why?" " Oh, let's just say it's the altitude." "Living up here makes my heart pound." "Now let's face it." "I never should have taken this job." "You shouldn't have asked me." " It's not that I mind..." " Leave me alone." "You know I'm right." "You have your world, I have mine." "You've got beautiful clothes, a big house." "Someday you'll come into a lot of money." "I've got a pair of hands, not much else." "All I want is you." "I can't let you go now." "I won't." "It's no good, I tell you." "I'm not getting involved." "Involved in what?" "How stupid do you think I am?" "You hate that woman and someday you're gonna hate her enough to kill her." "It's been in the back of your mind all along." "So she's fooled you, too." "Just like she has everyone else." "You don't know what she's done to my father." "I told you he was writing a wonderful book." "I believed it." "Until one day, last year," "I went into his study to hide a present in his desk." "Just something between him and me." "And I found that in the drawer where he's supposed to keep his manuscript" "there was nothing but a stack of blank paper." "He hasn't written a line since she married him." "So he got tired." "A writer marries a rich widow, what do you expect him to write, besides checks?" " Don't joke about my father." " Okay." "Okay." "She's humiliated him and destroyed him." "There's never been anything in my life that she hasn't begrudged or spoiled somehow." "Well, there's no law that says you have to stay here, you know." "Lots of other girls work for a living." "Do you think I'd stay one day longer if it weren't for him?" "That's where I came in." "I guess that's where I leave." "Frank, please!" "Will you tell me one thing?" "Do you love me at all?" "I must know." "Well, I..." "I suppose it's a kind of love." "But, with a girl like you, how can a man be sure?" "Will you take me with you?" "You had it all figured out, didn't you?" "You mean, you'd really leave your father and everything here?" "If I have to, to keep you." "I could be wrong about you." "I have my jewels so we can raise a little money." "I can sell my car and we'll get you a shop." "Not the big one that we'd planned but something." " I know it won't be very easy." " It'll be rough." "Maybe you'd better think it over." "I want to be sure that you know what you're getting into." "But I am sure." "Aren't you?" "That must be her now." "You better get out of here." "We'll think it over for a couple of days." "You won't leave?" "You won't go without me?" "Promise." "I promise." "Ito." "What's the matter?" ""Heavy," she says." "The only trouble with the America, it spoils the women." "Oh, yeah!" "I put a new set of spark plugs in this." "It ought to run a lot better." " Sounds very good." " Have a nice day." "Chiyo." "Oh, Chiyo." "Chiyo." " Is she in here?" " No, Thursday off." "Oh, could you help me, dear?" "I've looked everywhere." "I can't find a single pair of gloves." "I don't know where they've all gone." " Take a pair of mine." " Thank you, dear." "Will these do?" "But they're new." "I'd hate to lose them." "Haven't you..." "Please take them." "I'd like you to." "Why, thank you, dear." "You can be so sweet at times." "Oh, dear, I must rush." "Oh, Diane, now I can't find Frank." "Do you know where he is?" "That man's never there when you want him." " Frank?" " Yes." "I don't know what's got into him the last few days." "I'm so sorry." "It's my fault." "I completely forgot." "It's something to do with the tappet rod." "I said he could take my car and pick it up." "You forgot?" "You know I have to be in Santa Barbara by 12:00." " Well, maybe he'll be back soon." " Maybe?" "They don't just hold up bridge tournaments, you know!" " Well, I'll drive you." " Oh, no, thank you." "I'll drive myself." "Goodbye, dear." "Wish me luck." "Oh, where are the keys?" "In the car." " Catherine." " I'm in a dreadful hurry, Charles." "I was wondering if you'll drop me in Beverly." "I'm very late." "Any other time." " Why don't you ask Diane?" " Her car's not here." "Very well, I'll drop you." "But hurry, please." "Wonderful." "This way I can keep my appointment." "I won't take you out of your way, my darling." "I promise." "Just drop me off at Wilshire and Rodeo." " Hello, Frank." "How you been?" " Fine, Ed." "How are you?" "Well." "Sit down." "You know, I was asking about you just the other night." " That redheaded partner of yours." " Oh, Bill." "I haven't seen much of him lately." "Driving for people like the Tremaynes made you kind of exclusive, huh?" "I wouldn't say that." "The job just kept me pretty busy, that's all." "Looks like you'll have to find a new one now with the Tremaynes dead." " How long were you up there?" " About a month." "How'd you happen to land that job, anyway?" "Just happened to fall into it." "We got a call from up there one night." "Yeah, I know." "I got the report right here." "Asphyxiation case." "Mrs. Tremayne, probably accidental." " Sure makes you wonder, don't it?" " What do you mean?" "She claimed somebody tried to murder her." "She was hysterical." "Why would anyone try to murder her?" "Are you kidding?" "A woman with her kind of money?" "Oh, by the way, Frank, what sort of a girl is this stepdaughter," "Diane?" "Very nice girl." "Very pretty girl." " Any boyfriends?" " None that I ever saw." "She and her father were very close." "But didn't get along with the stepmother, huh?" "I didn't say that, Ed." "Okay." "When was the last time you drove the Tremayne car?" "This morning when I took it out of the garage." " You notice anything wrong with it?" " Not a thing." "Well, do you remember whether you left it in gear?" "In reverse maybe?" "No." "No, I'd say not." "With me, it's automatic to shift into neutral before I cut a motor." "Yeah?" "Oh." "Is that so?" "All right, bring it in." "Getting back to the stepdaughter." "You say she had no boyfriends, huh?" "Well, not that I know of." "You and the girl weren't planning to run off together now, were you?" "No." "Then how do you account for her suitcase in your room?" " Well, that is the suit..." " Hold it." "If I were in your spot, Frank, I'd hire myself a lawyer." "You can imagine what a shock it was." "I'd known Catherine for 20 years." "Her father was one of my first clients." " Did you draw up the will?" " Two years ago." "Tremayne was to get a fixed income as long as he lived." "He wasn't very practical about money." "The bulk of the estate was to go to Diane." "The district attorney will use that against us." " Hello, Kelly." " Oh, hello, Mr. Barrett." "We're here to see Miss Diane Tremayne." "Come in." " You're looking good, boy." " Thanks." " This is Mr. Barrett, Sergeant." " Hello, Sergeant." " And Arthur Vance." " Good morning." "Good morning, Sergeant." "I wish you wouldn't speak too much about her father." "Today's the first day that she's gone without sedatives." "She idolized the man, Fred." "It's no wonder her nerves have cracked." "Teresa." " Hello, Teresa." " Hello." "Right over there." "Legal eagle Barrett." "That Tremayne dame really must be in trouble." "Quiet, Warner!" "That's no way to talk!" "Tremayne?" "Miss Tremayne, your lawyers are here." "Diane, this is Fred Barrett." "He's going to handle your defense." "Fred is just about the best trial man in the country and we were very lucky to get him." "But I don't want anyone to defend me." "I know just how you feel." "It's the most natural reaction in the world." "I would want my daughter to feel the same." "She's just about your age." "But, Diane, a girl of 20 has her whole life ahead of her." "You must not permit your grief, understandable as it may be..." " But I did it..." " You mustn't say such things." "That's all right." "Let her talk." "Go ahead." "I did it all by myself." "Not Frank." "You're a very sick girl." "You know that, don't you?" "Otherwise you wouldn't be here." "I know what I'm saying." "Sure." "But the doctor doesn't want you to make any statement." "That's why he hasn't permitted the district attorney to question you yet." "But Frank is innocent." "The law says you're both innocent until proved guilty." "Both, do you understand?" "Now I want you to listen, Diane, very carefully." "Everything the district attorney has, all the evidence, links you and Frank together." "The motive, the means, the opportunity." "It wouldn't do either one of you any good to shoulder the blame or to pass it on." "It would only convince a jury you're both lying, both guilty." "But I'm telling the truth." "The truth is what the jury decides, not you, not me, not Frank." "If you quit, he's through, too." "But if you want to fight, he has a chance." "I think a pretty good chance." "I don't have to cooperate, Mr. Barrett, and I already have my own attorney." "You'll keep your own lawyer." "Mr. Lewis is not going to leave the case." "Of course not." "But I don't think we should disregard Mr. Barrett's offer." "To be very blunt, Mr. Jessup, I'm not particularly interested in saving your neck." "My only concern is with my client, Diane Tremayne." "Yeah, that's what I figured." "But the point is, you have a much better chance together than separately." "And the evidence actually points much more to you than it does to her." "The fact that an automobile was involved..." "If she thinks she can get away with that, she's lost her mind." "No one's trying to get away with anything." "But, in cases like this, you can't overlook the personal equation." "She'll get a lot of sympathy." "A pretty girl, deeply devoted to her father, on the best of terms with her stepmother, who was a kind and generous woman, as you well know." "Oh, do I?" "The family lawyer told me she was planning to set you up in a garage business." "That's not what Diane said." "Somebody's lying." "Probably a misunderstanding but it's not important." "What I want to know is whether you're willing to follow our strategy." "Frank, you ought to bear in mind Mr. Barrett's record." " He's never lost a case yet." " Let's not say "never. "" "Suppose you tell us what you have in mind, Mr. Barrett?" "Your client and mine are getting married." " We're what?" " Just a moment." "I don't quite follow you on this marriage idea." "It's very simple." "All the world loves a lover." " Juries are no exception." " No, Mr. Barrett, nothing doing." "The DA is going to make a lot of that suitcase in his room." "He'll accuse them of having an affair." "We'll make a virtue of it." "Certainly they were lovers and not ashamed to admit it." "But a tragic accident and the intervention of the police prevented their elopement." "But even prison bars cannot change their love or halt the marriage." "But wouldn't the district attorney block it?" "He wouldn't dare stand in the path of true love with an election coming up in November." "Think it over, Mr. Jessup." "Let me know his decision as soon as possible." "I now pronounce you man and wife." "Congratulations." "You're married now." "You may kiss the bride." " May I take just one?" " No pictures, please." "Never let it be said this wedding was arranged with any thought of publicity." " Congratulations." " All the happiness in the world." "Sorry we can't stay to the party." "We thought you'd like a cake so the girls chipped in." "There ain't much we can say but, kids, we sure hope you beat the rap." "Have you reached any decision about the plea?" "Not guilty." "Isn't that too much of a gamble?" "Well, what happens if we plead insanity?" "They turn her over to the DA's psychiatrists." "You know what that means." "Questions, answers." "No, we wouldn't want that." "And what if they did find she was off?" "That wouldn't help the man, would it?" "Insanity's not contagious, at least we can't prove it." "Besides, it would tie up the estate." "Will you please continue, Mr. Miller?" "So that rod, connected to the gearshift lever on the steering post, comes down here" "and is coupled to the bell crank here by a cotter pin." "Will you demonstrate just how that operates, Mr. Miller?" "Yes, sir." "If someone will be good enough to shift in reverse for me." " Well, I'll try." " Thank you." "Just a moment." "All right, now." "You see the bell crank moves forward, in drive, back." "But if I were to remove this cotter pin and uncouple this shifting rod, a very simple operation, as you can see, then no matter what you do with the shift lever, the bell crank remains as it was," "in drive, neutral or reverse, wherever it may happen to be." "Thank you." "You made it quite clear." "Now, Mr. Miller, will you point out the throttle retractor spring" " and explain its purpose?" " Yes, sir." "Now, this is the throttle retractor spring." "Its function is to control the amount of gasoline released when you've stepped on the accelerator." " Was this spring found in the wrecked car?" " No, sir." "This part, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, was missing from the wrecked Tremayne car." "Now, will you explain what happens if this spring is removed?" "Well, a person stepping down on the accelerator opens it wide, like putting the gas pedal right to the floor." "In other words, giving the motor full throttle?" " Yes, sir." " Thank you." "Now, this motor was removed from the wrecked Tremayne car under your supervision?" "Yes, sir." "And what did you find in connection with the gearshift rod?" "That there was no connection." "It had been disconnected and the cotter pin had been removed." "May the answer be stricken." "The witness cannot know that the pin or any other part was removed or that anything had been disconnected." "Motion granted." " But the cotter pin was missing?" " That is correct." "And so was the throttle retractor spring." "It was off, too." "And in what position was the bell crank?" "In neutral, in drive or reverse?" "It was in reverse." "And will you tell the jury in what position was the shift lever on the steering wheel?" "It was pointed at drive." "Now, Mr. Miller, would you say that in your opinion the Tremayne car had been tampered with?" "Objection." "As a qualified expert, the witness is permitted to express his opinion as to the result of his investigation." "Exception." "Well, Mr. Miller?" "Yes, sir." "I would say that it had been tampered with." "You may cross-examine, Mr. Barrett." "Mr. Miller, it has been testified that the Tremayne automobile fell a total distance of 150 feet, hitting and bouncing off rocks in its descent." "And now you say that, strangely enough, certain parts of this motor are missing or damaged." "As I look at this heap of metal before me," "I can't help but wonder that any part of it escaped undamaged." "And as for missing parts," " do you see a carburetor, for instance?" " No, sir." "It was either unrecognizable or couldn't be found, but there wasn't as much damage done to the shift mechanism." "Couldn't the throttle spring have been dislodged by the impact of the crash?" "The very fact that it was a spring with play in it, would make me be inclined to think..." "Forgetting your inclinations for the moment, Mr. Miller." " Isn't it a possibility?" " Well, yes, I'd have to say that." "You testified the lever on the steering wheel was found pointing to drive while the car was actually in reverse." "Now I ask whether, in your opinion, this lever could not have been jarred from one position to the other" " during the course of the drop?" " It might, but..." "And this missing connection, couldn't that have broken off when the car struck on the rocks?" "No, sir." "Not in my opinion." "If it had, you'd expect to see a part of the sheared-off cotter pin in one of the holes, or scratches or marks or some bending to show where it had pulled out." "There wasn't a sign." "Excuse me, but could I ask the witness a question?" "By all means." "Is it improper to ask if maybe this cotter pin mightn't have been defective?" "I only ask because I had one bust off when I was fixing my kid's express wagon last week." "That's a very good question, sir." "Mr. Miller, will you answer the juror?" "He asks, "Might not the cotter pin have been defective?"" " Maybe one in a million might be but..." " Mr. Miller, would you be willing to stake your life on there being only one defective cotter pin in a million?" "Think carefully now." "Remember, our juror came across one just last week." " Well, maybe not a million but..." " Maybe one in a thousand?" "Maybe one in a hundred?" "Your Honor, the question is argumentative." "I object to counsel badgering the witness over this relatively minor point." "No point is minor when the lives of two innocent people..." "Now, gentlemen, let's have no bickering." "Defense counsel is quite within his rights, Mr. Judson." " Overruled." " Thank you, Your Honor." " Could I ask another question now?" " You certainly may." "Well, what I'd like to know from Mr. Miller is whether rigging a car, like he says, is a very complicated thing or could anyone do it?" " Even a woman?" " Tell the juror, Mr. Miller." "Well, as I said before, it's a very simple mechanical operation, once it had been explained." "I'm sure you could do it yourself, sir, in a matter of minutes." "Thank you." "Thank you." " Mr. Miller, you live in Detroit, do you not?" " Yes, sir." "Then will you please tell the jury who brought you out here from Detroit and employed you to make this investigation?" "Objection." "Counsel has no right to question the integrity of the witness." "Your Honor, since Mr. Miller is employed by the same insurance companies who wrote the Tremayne policies, and stand to save in excess of $300,000 if murder rather than a simple accident can be proved..." "If Your Honor please, counsel's remarks are out of order and prejudicial!" "Sustained." "Jurors are instructed to disregard counsel's statement." "With his knowledge of mechanics and her familiarity with the victims' habits," "they plotted this murder." "Premeditated cold-blooded murder." "But the plot did not stop there." "They planned every detail, even beyond the crime itself." "Her breakdown, when taken to the morgue to identify the bodies of Charles and Catherine Tremayne, was a calculated bid for public sympathy." "However, they made one seemingly insignificant mistake." "Diane Tremayne's suitcase was found in the garage apartment of Frank Jessup." "And then, in desperation, when confronted with the growing chain of evidence, they sought to remedy the situation by getting married" "and playing the part of the two young lovers for the benefit of every tabloid scandal sheet in the country." "I say the word "love" is profaned when applied to their unhealthy, shameless passion!" "And their marriage, under these circumstances, is a travesty." "I could have stopped it, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, but I did not." "Because, in the last analysis," "I knew it would damn them as utterly in your eyes as it did in mine." "I must admit I had a few anxious moments under the spell of the district attorney's brilliant eloquence." "For a while, he almost had me believing the prosecution had a case." "Until you strip away the opulent phrases and get down to facts and then you discover he has no case." "He argues that Frank Jessup's mechanical skill and knowledge was necessary to transform the automobile into a murder weapon." "Yet, his own witness, in answer to a question put by one of you, ladies and gentlemen, clearly stated that anyone without any special technical skill could have rigged that car in a few minutes in the way the district attorney imagines it was rigged." "But why linger on details when the district attorney has not presented one bit of conclusive evidence that the car ever was tampered with." "And here, I must remind you, the burden of proof is on the prosecution." "If there's the slightest bit of doubt left in your minds, then your verdict must be "not guilty. "" "But the district attorney asked you to send these two young people to the gas chamber for yet another reason, because they're in love." "Ladies and gentlemen, I was shocked and surprised to hear Mr. Judson blacken the characters of a man and woman whose only offense to society is that they happened to fall in love." "A young girl wanted to leave a luxurious home, elope with a hard-working, ambitious war veteran and build a simple life together." "Is this profane and shameless?" "I leave the answer to you, ladies and gentlemen." "If love is a crime," "Diane and Frank Jessup are guilty." "But this is the only crime that can be, or has been, proved against them." "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict?" "We have, Your Honor." "The clerk will please read the verdict." ""People of the State of California v. Frank Jessup and Diane Tremayne Jessup," ""number 542341." ""We, the jury in the above entitled action," ""find the defendants not guilty. "" "Quiet, please!" "Order in the court!" "Well, we deserve a little rest, all of us." " Won't you come in, Arthur?" " Some other time maybe." " I've hardly seen my family in weeks." " Thanks again, Mr. Vance." "The best of luck to both of you." "Goodbye, Diane." "Welcome home, Mr. And Mrs. Jessup." "Very happy occasion." " Thank you both." " Hello, Ito, Chiyo." " Lunch is ready anytime, Miss Diane." " Not quite yet, Ito." " We'll let you know." " Yes, sir." "Well, somebody thinks we ought to celebrate." "Why not?" "Champagne?" "I'd much rather have bourbon but I guess this'll do." " I'll get some bourbon for you." " Don't bother." " Oh, it's no trouble at all." " I said never mind!" "I guess I don't feel like a drink anyway." "I don't suppose you'll ever forget or forgive me for..." "I shouldn't even have asked." "But I want you to know one thing and believe it." "I would give my life gladly to bring them back, both of them." "I was only 10 when my mother was caught in that air raid." "I had no friends so my father became everything to me." "And then he met Catherine." "I resented her from the first." "I remember I used to play a game, a game of pretend." "It always began, "If Catherine were dead. "" "I used to imagine all the wonderful things that Daddy and I would do together." "Death was only a word." "I never really knew what it meant until I saw his body and hers, hurt and broken." "And then I suddenly realized that she had loved him, too, and had done actually nothing to harm me." "Well, it's done." "All the talk in the world won't change it." "Please don't leave me." "I wouldn't know what to do with my life without you." "Oh, you'll make out." "You're in the clear now." "You don't need me anymore." "We've gone through all this together..." "We've gone through all this together because a smart lawyer had his jury figured right and for no other reason." "Don't try to make anything else of it." "I don't blame you for being bitter but I did try to tell the truth." "I wanted to confess." "He told me they wouldn't believe me and they'd find you guilty, too." "Oh, I see." "This was all for my sake." "Well, all right, if that makes you feel any better." "But you might as well tell your lawyer to start preparing the divorce papers because I'm clearing out." "Mary won't take you back." "You want to bet?" "She wouldn't want to spend the rest of her life wondering whether her husband really committed a murder." "What do you know about a girl like Mary?" "You don't even think the same." "No, and we don't love the same either." "It wouldn't matter to me what you were or what you did, and you know it." "You don't hate me, really." "You couldn't hate anybody who loves you as much as I do." "No, I don't hate you but I'm getting out just the same." " Do you still want to make that bet?" " Name it." "Remember, I'm not in the same league with you, financially." "Take my car." "If I'm wrong, it's yours." "If I'm right, bring it back." "You mean, bring the car back." "That's right." "Fair enough." "I could say I just happened to be passing by." " Come in, Frank." " Thanks." "Mary, it meant a lot to me to see you in court every day," " knowing that you were rooting for me." " That's all right." "Hey!" "I might have known it." "One cold beer in the house and you show up." "It's all yours." "We couldn't get near you in court this morning." "Anyhow, I guess you know without our saying." "Let's skip it." "I'd like to forget the whole thing." "Right now I'd like to talk to Mary alone." "Objection." "And I'm not going to be overruled by anyone either." "Anything you want to say to Mary, you can say in front of me." "Okay." "Mary, about my marriage," "I just want you to know that there never really was anything to it." "Just something that Barrett cooked up for the trial." "I'm getting a divorce." "And that's supposed to make everything just dandy, huh?" "I'm not talking to you, Bill." "This is between Mary and me." " No, it's between Mary and me." " Please, let's not have any fuss." "I'm not making any fuss." "Just set him straight, that's all." "I'm trying to, if you'll give me the chance." "I'm sorry, Frank, but Bill is right." "You can't just walk in the door and say, "I'm getting a divorce"" "and expect me to fall into your arms." "I don't expect that." "I know I was off base." "I'll make it up to you." "All I'm asking is a chance, unless he's afraid of the competition." "Okay, if you want to talk it over, it's okay with me." "No, Bill, don't go." "I guess I'm the one that's afraid of the competition." "Frank, you know the night at the hospital when the call came in from the Tremayne place?" "Yeah." "Yeah, if it had just come five minutes later." "That's what I told myself at first." "And I wished, with all my heart, it had happened that way." "But Bill was on that call, too." "Remember?" "Frank, with you I'd always be worrying because there are a lot of Dianes around." "And I want a marriage, not a competition." "I want a husband, not a trophy I have to defend over and over again." "Maybe you would keep coming back but that's not for me." "You're sure you're not just saying this because you think maybe I am guilty after all?" "No, Frank." "I never believed that." "I guess that's it." "So long, you two." " Bill, do you think he'll go back to her?" " Why ask me?" "I never could figure what he saw in the dame in the first place." "For that, you deserve a big kiss." "You know, I got a hunch this'll be flat before I ever get around to it." "You dog." "You are going away?" "Yes, I'm closing the house, possibly for a long time." "You wish us to find other employment right away?" "No, take all the time you need." "I want to be sure you find a good place." "Well, then." " You are very kind, Miss Diane." " Yes." "Good night, Miss Diane." "Ito!" "Ito!" " Good morning, miss..." "I mean, madam." " Are you going into town?" "Yes, I'm going to the agency, look for another job." "Can you wait a moment and take me down to Beverly Hills?" "Yes, Miss Diane." " Has he come in?" " I'm sorry but Mr. Barrett hasn't called in yet." "There must be some way of reaching him." "It's like I told you this morning, Mrs. Jessup." "When he left yesterday he warned us not to expect him." "He was tired." "Now I know he isn't at home and I've tried all the other numbers I dare try." " Hello, Shirley." " Mr. Barrett." "Diane, what brings you here?" "I thought you'd seen enough of me to last a lifetime." "I didn't know you were waiting." "Would you like a drink?" "Perhaps a little sherry?" "No, thank you." "I want to make a statement." "I want someone to copy it down." "And I want to sign it in the presence of witnesses." "Well, mind telling me first what the statement's about?" "I want it taken down just as I say it." "You want to sign it and have it witnessed." "Very well." "Will you send someone in, Shirley?" "Anything to please a client, especially such a lovely client." "Miss Preston, Mrs. Jessup would like to make a statement." "Will you take it down, please?" "Go ahead." "I want to say that it was I, and I alone," "who killed my stepmother, Catherine Tremayne, and..." "Hold on now." "Never mind, Miss Preston." "Just forget that." "Please stay here." "I want it taken down, every word." "Diane, why go all through that again?" "You've been tried, you've been acquitted." "There's only one thing to do, forget it." "Put it out of your mind completely as though it never happened." "You wouldn't listen before." "You wouldn't believe me." "But now you must listen." "Frank has been freed and I can tell the truth." "Now may I tell it and will she please take it down?" "All right." "If you insist." "I killed them both and Frank knew nothing about it." "That is, he knew I hated Catherine, at least I did then," "and he suspected me." "I let him think that he'd talked me out of it." "And then one day, when he was working on her car," "I got him to explain how the automatic transmission worked." " So he did show you how to fix the car?" " No." "No." "But I know how to get things out of people." "I ask a lot of questions." "It's a habit of mine." "And people are so accustomed to it they answer without even thinking why I want to know." " And you actually did it all by yourself?" " On that Thursday." "Frank left right after Ito and Chiyo." "And then before Catherine came down..." "It only took a few minutes, just as that Mr. Miller described at the trial." "At last, a technical expert who knows his stuff." "Well, do you feel better now that it's off your conscience and..." "It will never be off my conscience, Mr. Barrett." "But now that Frank has left me," "I've got nothing to live for." "I can't believe he's really serious about leaving you." "No young man in his right mind is going to run away from a girl like you and a half-million dollar inheritance." "He's gone to the girl he loved before he met me." "She's taken him back, I think." "He didn't come home last night." "So now may I please sign that, and will you take me to the district attorney's?" "Listen, Diane, once you've been tried for a crime and acquitted, you can never be tried again or punished for it." " But I'm guilty." " It doesn't matter." "The law calls it double jeopardy." "You could sign that statement a dozen times in front of a dozen witnesses, you could shout it from the housetops, read it over the radio, and there isn't a thing anyone can do about it." "No, I'll take that back." "There is one thing." "They'd probably put you in an insane asylum." "Do you want that?" "Keep it." "And so the Tremayne tragedy came to a happy ending after all." "With her acquittal, Diane gets full control of the Tremayne estate, and it is expected that she and her chauffeur husband will take a belated honeymoon trip abroad." "None of the principals was available to confirm this rumor." "However..." "Well, you win your bet." "Here." "Thanks for the use of the car." "You needn't have packed." "Ito could have brought your things over." "To Mexico?" "That's where I'm going." " Have you ever been there before?" " No." "It's wonderful." "Mexico City." "Acapulco." "The roof of the Casablanca, dancing under the stars." "The night air is warm, and way down below is the harbor, all the fishing boats, the orchestra playing Clair de Lune." "I'm sorry, my bus leaves in 40 minutes." "Frank, take me with you." "I can't let you go, darling." "I just can't." "You just never quit trying, do you?" "No." "Will you give me 40 minutes more to try?" "Let me take you to the bus station." "I've already called a taxi." "Only 40 minutes." "Diane, what's the use?" "It's all over." "It's finished." "We've said everything there is to say." "Just this one last chance." "Well, you're just making it rough on yourself, but okay." "I'll only be a minute." " Here are the keys." " Thanks." "You know, it would be fun to drive this clear to Mexico." "Yeah." "Why don't you do that sometime?" " What's this?" " We didn't drink it yesterday." "Two glasses?" " Since when do you drink?" " Might as well begin sometime." "Watch it!"