The Case of the Singing Skirt

'Well, let me give you a little advice,' Mason told him. 'Just so you don't stick your neck out too far, Tragg, don't make any statements about that gun until you know what you're talking about.'

'What do you mean?'

'I think you'll find that gun has absolutely no significance whatever.'

'What do you mean, no significance whatever?'

'Just what I said. I can't elaborate. I'm giving you a personal, friendly tip, Lieutenant.'

'Thanks,' Tragg said. 'I could hardly hold down my job if it wasn't for your personal, friendly tips, Perry.'

'This one may be a little more significant than you think at the moment.'

'Why? What do you know?'

'Not very much as yet,' Mason said. 'But there is a chance I may know more than my client.'

'Should you hold out on her that way?' Tragg asked sarcastically.

'It may be for the best interests of all concerned,' Mason said.

Tragg said, 'Miss Robb, would you mind letting me take your fingerprints so I can make a comparison with certain photographs?'

Ellen Robb looked questioningly at Perry Mason.

'Let him take your fingerprints,' Mason said.

Tragg opened the bag he was carrying, took out a portable fingerprint outfit, took Ellen Robb's fingerprints, then studied them carefully with a magnifying glass.

He looked up at Ellen Robb, said, 'You knew that Helman Ellis had a yacht that he called Cap's Eyes?'

She nodded.

'You've been aboard that yacht?'

'Yes.'

'When was the last time?'

'Early Tuesday evening.'

'What time?'

'I don't know. About… oh, I'd say along about dusk.''

'What were you doing aboard?'

'Looking 'for Mrs. Ellis.'

'Did you find her?'

'No one was aboard. I heard that she and her husband were going on a cruise. I wanted to catch her before they left.'

'Why were you so anxious to see her?'

'I wanted to talk with her.'

'What about?'

'About various things. About… well, frankly, because I wanted to discuss her husband with her.'

'Why should you be discussing her husband with her?'

'I think she had become jealous of me.'

'Why?'

'I worked at The Big Barn, and her husband, Helman, spent some time there.'

'And you talked with him?'

'At The Barn?'

'Yes.'

'Of course I talked with him. That was part of my job, to keep the customers feeling good.'

'And Mrs. Ellis resented that?'

'Frankly, I don't know. I heard she was jealous and I wanted to see her.'

'Why?'

'I wanted to tell her there was absolutely no ground for any jealousy whatever.'

'So you went aboard the yacht?'

'Yes.'

'And you had this gun with you?'

'No.'

'No?'

'No. Definitely not. That was before the gun was put in my bag.'

'How do you know?'

'Well, I… well, I'll say this. That was before I discovered the gun in my bag.'

'That's better. You don't know when it was put there?'

'Not definitely, no.'

'And you left The Big Barn that night?'

'Later on, yes.'

'And you didn't see Mrs. Ellis on the yacht?'

'No.'

'Did you see Mr. Ellis that night?'

'I saw him later, shortly before the trouble with George Anclitas.'

'Did you tell him you were looking for his wife?'

'He told me his wife had been looking for me, and I told him that there was absolutely no reason for her to be jealous, at least as far as I was concerned.'

'And what did Helman tell you?'

'He said his wife got these unreasoning spells of jealousy, and when she did, that you couldn't reason with her or anything. He said that he had been planning on going on a cruise with her but that she'd taken the skiff and gone ashore and left him marooned on the boat.'

'And when was that?'

'That was Tuesday night.'

'Did you also talk with him last night?'

'Now, just a minute,' Mason said. 'I think this questioning has gone far enough, Lieutenant.'

'Okay,' Lt. Tragg said rather cheerfully. 'I just want to ask Miss Robb one question. Did you at any time ever enter the cabin of Ellis' yacht, the Cap's Eyes?'

'At any time?'

'At any time.'

'No.'

'You knew the yacht?'

'Yes.'

'You'd been aboard it?'

'Well… yes, I went aboard once with Helman, when he was showing me around.'

'Did you go in the cabin then?'

'I… I may have.'

'When was that?'

'Oh, some time ago.'

'How long ago?'

'Two weeks ago.'

'Did you kill Nadine Ellis while you were on that yacht?'

'Did I kill Nadine Ellis? What are you talking about?'

'I'm talking about murder,' Tragg said. 'Did you see her Wednesday and kill her?'

'Good heavens no! I didn't- Why? Is she- You mean she's been-?'

Mason said, 'Now, I'm going to give you some instructions, Ellen. Don't answer any more questions. You have given Lieutenant Tragg a very fair, straight and direct statement. There is no reason for Lieutenant Tragg to browbeat you, bully you, cross-examine you or try to give you a third-degree. If, however, Lieutenant Tragg wants you to accompany him, do so. But don't make any statement under any circumstances. Don't say one more word about this case or about your relations with George Anclitas, about the suit that I'm going to file or about anything, unless I am present and instruct you to make a statement.'

'All right, Mason,' Tragg said. 'You've spoken your piece. You can leave now. There was a chance we might have been able to get an explanation which would have prevented a lot of notoriety for Miss Robb. But in view of your instructions to her, she's going to have to come to Headquarters.'

'That's fine,' Mason said. 'She'll go to Headquarters-How long are you going to hold her there?'

'Probably until we can have some test bullets fired from this gun,' Tragg said, 'and have the test bullets compared by the ballistics department with the fatal bullets which killed Mrs. Ellis.'

'Go right ahead,' Mason said. 'Accompany him, Miss Robb. Make no statement to newspaper reporters. Don't talk to anyone. Simply clam up and keep quiet. You've made your statement. Now then, when Lieutenant Tragg tells you that you can leave, get in touch with me at once.'

'You mean if,' Tragg said, 'not when.'

Mason grinned. 'Once more, Lieutenant, you have failed to understand me. I mean when. I said when and I meant when.'