'And when you were at the office?'
'In my middle desk drawer on the left side. I locked it.'
'And at night?'
'Under my mattress.'
'In your bedroom?'
'Yes.'
'Where is this weapon now?'
'I, uh, lost it.'
'How? I mean, if you kept it in your handbag and you locked it in the desk drawer and you kept it under the mattress at home, how did you manage to lose it? Is there a possibility that somebody stole the gun from your drawer at work?'
'I don't think… Maybe.'
'So what happened to the gun?'
'I guess maybe… it must have fallen out of my bag.'
'Was this after you shot Delaney?'
'Objection. Come on, Counsellor, there's been no admission -'
'We have Mrs Stoddard's confession -'
'Which she has recanted, as you well know. It was given under duress, she was emotionally disturbed at the time…'
'Did you lose the gun after Delaney was killed, Mrs Stoddard?' Parver said, cutting off Venable's objection.
'I still don't like the question. I would prefer that you ask her when she lost it.'
'All right, Mrs Stoddard, when did you lose the gun in question?'
'I'm not sure. I first noticed it when I got home from work Thursday night.'
'That was the night Delaney was killed, was it not?' Parver looked at the Venable and raised an eyebrow.
'Yes,' Mrs Stoddard said.
'Now, Mrs Stoddard, did you know anything about guns when you purchased this Smith and Wesson .38?'
'No.'
'Did you take lessons?'
'Yes, that's right, I took lessons.'
'To become proficient in its use, right?'
'Yes.'
'And where did you take these lessons?'
'On Pershing Street, the Shooting Club.'
'How proficient did you become, Mrs Stoddard?'
'That's a relative question, Counsellor. Would you rephrase, please?'
'Relative to what?' Parver demanded.
'Mrs Stoddard has already stated that she knew nothing about guns. She has no point of reference for a comparison.'
'Mrs Stoddard, did you stop taking lessons?'
'Yes.'
'Why?'
'The instructor told me I was good enough.'
'Everything, right? Loading, cleaning it, shooting?'
'Yes.'
'And you became good enough to discontinue the lessons, is that a fair statement?'
'I guess so.'
'Did the instructor agree that you didn't need any further lessons?'
'Yes.'
'And you purchased bullets for this weapon?'
