'Now, let’s go back again, if we may, to your very important job as a member of the Civilian Patrol. When you’ve been on patrol at night during recent months and weeks, is it true that you’ve repeatedly seen one particular car parked behind Lula Peak’s house?'
'Yessir.'
'Do you know whose car it is?'
'Yessir, it’s Harley Overmire’s. Black Ford licence number PV628. He parks it behind the juniper bushes in the alley. I’ve seen it there a lot, couple nights a week anyway, during the past year. Also seen Harley goin’ to Lula Peak’s house sometimes in the middle of the day when she ain’t workin’. Parks his car on the square, goes in the restaurant as if he’s havin’ lunch and hits out the back door and takes the alley to her house, which is just around the corner.'
'And you’ve seen Lula Peak with someone else lately.'
'Yessir, I have, and truth to tell, I hate to say it in public. Nobody wants to hurt a boy that age, but he’s probably too young to realize-'
'Just tell us what you’ve seen, Mr. MacReady,' Collins interrupted.
'Harley’s young son, Ned.'
'That’s Harley Overmire’s son, Ned Overmire?'
'Yes, sir.'
'Tell us how old you’d guess Ned Overmire is.'
'Oh, I’d say fourteen or so. Not over fifteen, that’s for sure. He’s in the ninth grade anyway, I know that ’cause my niece, Delwyn Jean Potts is his teacher this year.'
'And have you seen Lula Peak with Ned Overmire?'
'Yessir. Right in front of Vickery’s. She was sweepin’ again-she always sweeps when she wants to… well… you know… latch herself a man, you might say. Anyhow, young Ned comes along the sidewalk one day a couple weeks ago and she stops him like I’ve seen her stop dozens of others, stickin’ that long fingernail of hers into his shirtfront and tickling his chest. She said it was hot, he should come on inside and she’d give him some free ice cream. I could hear it plain as day-heck, I think she wanted me to hear it. She always sort of taunted me, too, after that time I found her with that railroad man. Ice cream-humph!'
'And did the boy follow her inside?'
'He did. Thank heavens he came out again in just a couple minutes with a strawberry ice cream cone and Lula follows him to the door and calls after him, 'Come back now, hear?’'
'And did he?'
'Not that I saw, no.'
'Well, thank the lord for that,' muttered Collins, drawing a rap from the gavel but the approval of the jury for his reaction.
'But you’re sure about Lula having sexual encounters with these others you’ve named.'
'Yessir.'
'And to the best of your knowledge, did Lula Peak ever succeed in drawing the attention of Will Parker?'
'No, sir, she never did, not that I knew about, no.'
'Your witness.'
Slocum’s attempt to discredit Nat MacReady as senile, hard of hearing or short of sight proved futile. MacReady had an intimidating memory, and embellished his recollections with anecdotes that were so obviously real that his cross-examination proved more advantageous for the defense than for the prosecution.
When Nat stepped down from the witness stand, Collins stood to announce, 'Defense calls Norris MacReady.'
Norris stepped up, wearing, like his brother, his scratchy World War I uniform with the collar fitting loosely around his wrinkled throat. His high forehead shone from a recent scrubbing, setting off the liver spots like brown polka dots. Slocum squeezed his lips and cursed beneath his hand, then ran a hand through his hair, wrecking his rooster comb.
'State your name.'
'Norris MacReady.'
'Occupation?'
'I retired from the icehouse the same year as Nat.'
There followed a series of questions regarding the establishment of the Whitney Civilian Town Guard and its function before Collins got down to the meatier inquiries.
'On the night of August 17, 1943, while making a curfew check, did you overhear a conversation at the back door of the Carnegie Municipal Library of Whitney?'
'I did.'
'Would you tell us about it, please.'
Norris’s eyes widened and he glanced from the attorney to the judge. 'Do you think I ought to repeat it just like Lula said it?'
The judge answered, 'Exactly as you heard it, yes.'
'Well, all right, judge… but the ladies in the courtroom ain’t gonna like it.'
'You’re under oath, Mr. MacReady.'
'Very well…' As a gentleman of the old order, Norris hesitated. Then he asked another question, 'You think it’d be okay if I read it instead?'
Slocum leaped to his feet, spouting objections.
'Allow me, your honor, to establish the allowability of the reading material,' Collins interjected quickly.
'Objection overruled, but establish it with a single question, is that understood, Mr. Collins?'
'It is.' Collins turned to Norris. 'From what would you like to read?'
'Why, from our log. Nat and me, we keep a log faithfully, don’t we, Nat?'
'We sure do,' answered Nat from the gallery.
Nobody raised an objection this time. The place was as still as outer space.
'You keep a log while you’re on patrol?' Collins prompted.
'Oh, we got to. The government says. Got to record every plane sighting and every person who breaks curfew. This war is different than the Great War. In that one we never had to worry about spies in our own backyard like we have to this time, that’s why we got to keep such close records.'
'You may read your entry for August seventeenth, Mr. MacReady.'
From an inside pocket of his uniform Norris withdrew a green-covered book with worn edges. He settled a pair of wire-rimmed spectacles over his nose, taking long moments to hook the springy bows behind his ears. Then he tipped back his head, licked a finger and turned pages so slowly that titters began in the room before he finally found the correct spot.
'’August 17, 1943,’' he began in a crackly voice, then cleared his throat. '’Nat and me went on patrol at nine. All quiet except for Carl and Julie Draith returning from bridge game at the Nelsons’ house next door. Ten o’clock- coming up along Comfort Street heard someone entering back door of library. I stayed at the edge of the building while Norris reconnoitered behind the hedge to see who it was. Norris signaled me over and we waited. Less than 5 minutes later the door flew open and a high-heeled shoe came flying out and hit Nat on the shoulder causing a purple lump to form later. Big fight going on between Will Parker and Lula Peak. Parker pushes her out the back door of library and yells, 'If you’re in heat Lula go yowl beneath somebody else’s window.' He slams the door in her face and she bangs it with her fist a few times and calls him a goddamn peckerhead and an asshole and a toad-sucking Marine. Then she screams (loud enough to wake the dead) 'Your dick probably wouldn’t fill my left ear anyway.' Such language for a woman.’'
Norris blushed. Nat blushed. Will blushed. Elly blushed. Collins politely took the MacReadys’ logbook and entered it as exhibit C before turning his witness over for cross-examination.
This time Slocum used his head and excused Norris without further questions. Throughout the courtroom a restlessness had begun. Murmurs sounded continuously from the gallery and spectators edged forward on their seats as Collins called his next witness.
'Defense calls Dr. Justin Kendall.'
Kendall strode down the center aisle, an imposing man of well over six feet, wearing a sharply tailored suit of brown serge, his receding hairline framing a polished forehead that looked as if he’d just scrubbed it with a surgical
