The police suggested that Norda Allison pay no attention to the clippings she was receiving in the mail. After all, they pointed out, the situation had existed now for some time and if Mervin Selkirk had really intended to resort to violence, he would have done so quite a bit earlier.
Norda reminded them of Nathan Benedict’s broken jaw, but the police shrugged that aside. After all, the evidence in that case was in sharp conflict. Even Nathan Benedict admitted that he had “stumbled” over Selkirk’s foot. He had felt that Selkirk had deliberately tripped him; but the cocktail lounge was crowded, the light was poor, Benedict had been looking towards the bar and not down on the floor, and he could only surmise what must have happened. Since Selkirk was abundantly able to respond in damages, Benedict’s recourse was a civil action for violent and unprovoked assault.
It was at this point that Lorraine Selkirk Jennings again telephoned Norda Allison.
“Norda,” she said excitedly, “I have news for you. I can’t tell it to you over the phone. It’s something we can do that I feel certain will be of a lot of help. You can help me and I can help you. Can’t you possibly come down? If you could catch a plane after office hours, my husband and I could meet you, and you could get back on the first plane in the morning. Or you could come Friday, have the week end for a talk and get back without being all tired out.”
Lorraine sounded full of enthusiasm, but refused to give Norda even a hint of what she had in mind. So Norda agreed to fly down on Friday night, stay over Saturday and come back Sunday.
The next day she received two tickets in the mail, a flight down on United, a return flight on Western. There was a note from Lorraine:
My husband and I will meet the flight. Wear gloves, keep the left-hand glove on and carry your right-hand glove in your left hand. I don’t drive any more. An accident I had left an indelible imprint but Barton is a wonderfully clever driver. We’ll both meet you.
We got a ticket back on another airline just in case anyone should be having you followed. Please take all precautions after you leave the office. Get a cab, be certain you’re not being followed, then go to one of the hotels and switch to another cab before going to the airport. We’ll meet you.
Norda read the letter with amusement. She saw no reason to pay out all that money in cab fares. She confided in Nate and it was Nate who picked her up in his car an hour and a half before the plane was scheduled to leave, made a series of complicated maneuvers to be certain he was not being followed, and then drove her to the airport.
Chapter Two
Coming up the runway at the Los Angeles Airport, at ten o’clock that night, Norda Allison looked anxiously at the little group of people who were surveying incoming passengers. She wore one glove on her left hand, carrying the right-hand glove conspicuously in her left hand.
Suddenly there was a flurry of motion and Lorraine was hugging her.
“Oh, Norda,” she said, “I’m so glad — so glad you could make it! This is Barton Jennings, my husband — why, you’re beautiful! No wonder Mervin is crazy about you!”
Norda shook hands with Barton Jennings, a stocky, quiet, substantial individual, and listened to Lorraine carry on a conversational marathon while they walked to the baggage claiming counter.
“You’re going to stay with us,” Lorraine said. “We have a nice spare room and we can put you up without any trouble. Barton is going over and get the car, then he’ll drive around to pick us up and by that time your baggage will be ready. Let me have your baggage check, dear. I have a porter here who knows me.”
“What’s it all about?” Norda asked.
“Norda, it’s one of the greatest things you’ve ever seen. We’re going to come out on top. I have the nicest attorney. His name is A. Dawling Crawford. Did you ever hear of him?”
Norda shook her head, said, “I’ve heard of Perry Mason down here in this part of the state. I was told to get in touch with him if—”
“Oh, Perry Mason is for murder cases,” Lorraine interrupted, “but Art Crawford — that’s his name, Arthur, but he always signs it A. Dawling Crawford for some reason — is an all-around lawyer. He handles criminal cases and everything else. Norda, I’m so excited! We’re going to get sole custody of Robert. I’m going to want you to testify, and—”
“Want me to testify!” Norda exclaimed.
Lorraine, handing Norda’s baggage check to a porter, said, “Why, yes, of course, Norda. You understand the situation and I know that you are fond of Robert.”
“But wait a minute,” Norda protested, “I thought from what you said over the telephone this was something that was going to benefit me. All I want to do is to get Mervin Selkirk out of my hair. I want to get away from him. I want him to forget me. I want to quit receiving those newspaper clippings. I certainly don’t want to get involved with him again.”
“But that’s just the point,” Lorraine explained. “Mr. Crawford tells me that if you appear in court and testify on our behalf, then it’s almost certain that Mervin will make some threats against you and then we can go to the judge and state that those threats were made because you are a witness in the case. Then the judge will make an order restraining him. Then it will be contempt of court if he does anything further.”
“Listen,” Norda said patiently, “he’s done everything short of attempting murder and I’m not at all satisfied but what he’ll do that next. It isn’t going to be much satisfaction for me to be a corpse and to know that Mervin Selkirk is held for contempt of court. I don’t care how good an attorney you have, you have to have proof before you can do anything. And that’s just what we can’t get at the present time — proof.”
“But we have proof,” Lorraine said. “We have a witness to whom Mervin said he didn’t really have any love for Robert, that he only wanted part-time custody of him to teach me a lesson.”
“That’s fine,” Norda said coldly, “for you. It doesn’t help me with my problem.”
“But you aren’t going to let me down,” Lorraine wailed.
“I don’t know,” Norda said, “but I do know I’m not going to get mixed up in any of Mervin Selkirk’s affairs until I know exactly where I stand. I’m going to see an attorney of my own.”
“This is Friday night,” Lorraine said. “You can’t see anyone over the week end. Mr. Crawford has made arrangements to be at his office tomorrow shortly before noon so he can take your affidavit.”
Norda stood by the incoming baggage platform, thoughtfully silent.
“You aren’t going to let us down. You can’t,” Lorraine went on. “It isn’t only for me, it’s for Robert. You’ve seen him. You know what this means to Robert. You’re anxious to get away from the Selkirk family, but think of poor Robert.
“I’ve been trying for the last two years to get Robert’s exclusive custody. Every time the matter comes up, Mervin goes into court and blandly testifies to absolute falsehoods. I am cast in the role of a woman who is trying to strike at my former husband, and Mervin is poised, suave and quite sure of himself. The last time this thing came up I told of how frightened Robert was of his father and Mervin gravely told the judge that I was solely responsible for Robert’s attitude, that I had carefully and deliberately poisoned Robert’s mind. Then Mervin produced witnesses who swore Mervin was the personification of fatherly love when Robert was with him.