notice Miss Wilder through the window.”
“The window?”
“Yes. Mr. Castleton’s office and Miss Wilder’s office were side by side. There was a window between them.”
“You saw her through the window?”
“Yes.”
“Could she see you?”
“No. It’s a one-way glass.”
“What caught your attention at the time?”
“The screen of her word processor.”
“What about it?”
“I have to explain. She was supposed to be typing memoirs. In other words, prose. But that wasn’t what was on the screen of her terminal. From that distance, I could tell exactly what it was, but I could tell it wasn’t prose. Screens were coming on, one after another, with symbols and instructions on them. That doesn’t happen when you’re typing. That happens when you’re working in the Disk Operating System of the computer.”
“Had Kelly Wilder any reason to be working in the Disk Operating System?”
“Absolutely none. Her job was simply to use a word processor that was functioning as a typewriter.”
“I see. And from this, what conclusion did you draw?”
“Objection,” Fitzpatrick said.
“Sustained.
Steve Winslow leaned across Kelly Wilder, tugged Fitzpatrick’s arm. “Let this go in,” he whispered.
Dirkson thought a moment. “Tell me, at that time, in your own mind, did you form any opinion about the defendant, Kelly Clay Wilder?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And what was that?”
“She was an industrial spy.”
“That was your evaluation of her?”
“Yes, it was.”
“Can you tell me why you formed that opinion?”
“I could think of no other reason why she would be playing with the computer terminal.”
“That terminal was hooked into the main computer?”
“Yes, it was.”
“It would have access to the records of Castleton Industries?”
“Absolutely. The computer in Milton Castleton’s office carried all the data of the entire company.”
“Does Castleton Industries have industrial secrets worth stealing?”
Fitzpatrick looked at Winslow. Steve shook his head. “Let it go in.”
Danby smiled. “I would imagine a competitor would pay a small fortune to get the inside track on Castleton Industries.”
“I see,” Dirkson said. “So how did you feel when you saw this?”
“I was outraged, of course. You have to understand. I have a great sense of loyalty to Castleton Industries and Milton Castleton.”
“So what did you do?”
“I tried to stop her.”
“How?”
“I ran out of the office to her office door. I took out a key and unlocked it.”
“The door was locked?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“That was one of the specifications of the employment. That she would work alone in an office with the door locked.”
Dirkson nodded, as if that arrangement were perfectly reasonable, and did not follow up on the subject. “I see,” he said. “So you unlocked the door and opened it?”
“Yes, I did.”
“What did you find?”
“Miss Wilder was sitting at the word processor. When she saw me, she leapt up.”
“What did you do?”
“I made for the machine.”
“What did she do?”
“When she saw what I was doing she lunged for the machine, pressed a button on the keyboard.”
“What happened?”
“Whatever had been on the screen disappeared and was replaced by the page she’d been typing.”
“Did you get a look at what had been on the screen before?”
“No, I did not.”
“What did you do then?”
“I confronted her, demanded to know what she’d been doing.”
“Did she answer?”
“No, she didn’t. She kept backing away from me, around the desk.”
“What did you do?”
“I followed her.”
“What happened then?”
“When the desk was between me and the door, she turned and ran.”
“Out the door?”
“Yes.”
“What did you do?”
“I chased her.”
“What did she do?”
“Ran down the hall and out the front door of the apartment.”
“What did you do then?”
“I ran to the front door. By the time I got there, she was gone.”
“I see,” Dirkson said. “Tell me, Mr. Danby. What was the defendant wearing at that time?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“She was naked.”
“Naked? And why was that?”
“That was one of the requirements of the job. Mr. Castleton’s secretaries typed nude. That was why it was specified they would work alone in their own office with the door locked.”
“I see,” Dirkson said. “So for the two weeks the defendant had been working there, she had been working naked?”
“That is right.’
“She was naked when you confronted her and accused her of being an industrial spy?”
“That’s right.”
“She was naked when she ran out of her office and out the front door?”
“Yes, she was.”
“I see,” Dirkson said. “Tell me, Mr. Danby. From the time she ran out the front door of Milton Castleton’s apartment, did you ever see the defendant again?”
Danby shook his head. “Not until today.”
“Let me ask you this. Did you ever
“Yes, I did.”
“And when was that?”
