Mason picked up his telephone. “Hello, Homer, this is Perry.”
The voice which came over the line sounded guarded. “Oh, yes. Hello, Perry.”
“Are you where you can talk?” Mason asked.
“Only to a very limited extent,” Garvin said.
Mason said, “I have had a visit from a tall brunette with gray eyes who has a forty per cent interest in a company in which you’re interested. She’s been approached by certain interests that have something to do with...”
“Hold it!” Garvin said. “Don’t go any further. I’ll call you back. Where can I reach you in... in an hour?”
“I’ll wait here at the office,” Mason said.
“Wait there for an hour, and I’ll give you a ring. Good-bye.”
Garvin hung up the telephone.
“Well,” Mason said, “that gives me an hour to work on this brief. That’ll be after five. Ask Gertie if she’d mind staying for...”
“Gertie has a date tonight,” Della Street said. “I’ll be glad to stay, Chief.”
Mason said, “There’s so darn much mystery about this... Oh well, Garvin probably was talking from a phone in the lobby or something of that sort. We’ll hold everything until we hear from him.”
Mason plunged back into the lawbooks, his powers of concentration such that the other matter was absolutely dismissed from his mind. He was to all intents and purposes oblivious of the passing time.
Della Street saw that the office closed at five o’clock, then went out and sat at the switchboard until twenty minutes past five when the Garvin call came through.
Mason picked up the receiver, heard the long distance operator say, “Your party is on the line,” then heard the sound of coins being dropped in the coin box.
“What the thunder?” Mason said as soon as he heard Garvin’s voice on the line. “Why didn’t you call collect? You have an account here, you know.”
“I know,” Garvin said. “Can you tell me generally what this is all about, Perry? Be careful not to mention names.”
“Well, the young woman that I spoke to you about has received an offer. A mysterious Mr. X, who may be a representative of interests having headquarters where you are now, is going to talk with her tomorrow.
“She felt that it might be well for you and her to take concerted action. Any separate action would simply result in leaving the other party out on the end of a limb.”
“I see,” Garvin said.
“I hope I didn’t disturb you,” Mason went on. “I had the devil of a time locating you.”
“That’s all right... How did you locate me, Perry?”
“Through Marie Arden — Marie Barlow.”
“But I didn’t tell her where I was.”
“She knew where you would be staying in Las Vegas.”
“Well, why the devil didn’t you call my office? Why go get some secretary who hasn’t been with me for a year and...”
“Hold everything!” Mason said. “I talked with your secretary, Eva Elliott. She couldn’t give me any information.”
“She what?”
“Couldn’t tell me where you were.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Garvin said. “I’ve been in touch with Eva. I always keep in touch with the office.”
“Well, perhaps your call came through after I talked with her,” Mason said. “I was down there about... Oh, I don’t know... around two-thirty or two-forty-five, and she said she couldn’t tell me a thing.”
“I talked with her at eleven-thirty and again at one-forty-five in the afternoon.”
“Well, she may have felt I wasn’t entitled to the information,” Mason said. “Don’t get worked up about it.”
“Worked up about it!” Garvin exclaimed. “Why, I... Oh well, I guess you’re right, Mason. Now look, can you get the name of the party with whom this woman is dealing?”
“So far she’s referred to him as a mysterious Mr. X.”
“I’ve an idea who this fellow is,” Garvin said. “He’s tried to keep under cover. He’s dangerous.
“Now here’s what I want you to do, Mason. I want that woman protected. Tell her that you’re representing my fifteen per cent until I can get on the job personally. Find out who this party is who has been in touch with her, get his name and address, and the minute you get them, communicate them to me. Simply ring up the Double-O here and, if I’m not in, ask for Lucille. Give her the name and address.”
“Just ask for Lucille?”
“That’s right.”
“Do you want to fix a price on your stock?” Mason asked.
“Not now,” Garvin said. “I want to find out exactly how much money the other side is willing to pay. This person probably won’t make any offer, but I want you to let him know that you’re in the picture and that I’m in the picture. If he thinks he’s dealing with only one person and that that person is a woman, you can’t tell what will happen.
“Now look, Mason, I have only a minute to talk. There’s another party coming to meet me, and... Oh-oh, I’m sorry. That’s all. Take care of yourself. Good-bye.”
The phone clicked at the other end of the line.
Chapter Four
Stephanie Falkner showed up on the stroke of ten for her appointment.
Mason regarded her thoughtfully. “I’ve heard from Homer Garvin.”
“Where is he?”
“He called me,” Mason said, “from a pay station telephone. He was in Las Vegas when he telephoned. He wants me to act as his representative. He wants me to call on this party whom you refer to as Mr. X. He wants me to size the man up and feel him out. He doesn’t want to put any price on his stock until after I have explored the situation.”
“I see,” she said thoughtfully.
“Is that all right with you?” Mason asked.
“It’s not what I had in mind, but anything Mr. Garvin wants is all right with me.”
“Would you care to tell me who Mr. X is and where I can find him?”
She hesitated a moment, said, “His name is George Casselman. I am to meet him at Apartment 211 at the Ambrose Apartments at eight-thirty tonight, and to save you the trouble of looking up the address, it’s 948 Christine Drive.
“Please remember to tell Mr. Garvin for me that I will be guided by his wishes in the matter. I will keep my appointment but only for the purpose of holding the situation open.
“Thank you very much for having been so patient with me and for seeing me, Mr. Mason, and good morning.”
She arose, smiled, turned her back abruptly and walked out.
Della Street said to Perry Mason, “I’d be willing to bet that her abrupt departure was because there’s something she was afraid you were going to ask her if she waited.
“Let me go out and talk with Gertie. Gertie gets some wild ideas at times, but she notices things while clients are waiting in the outer office and there are times when Gertie is almost psychic.”
Della Street left to talk with the receptionist, was back in a matter of seconds with a newspaper.
“No wonder!” she said.
“What?”
“Homer Garvin, Jr. returned home on an afternoon plane yesterday. He brought his bride with him. He was married in Chicago.”
“Oh-oh,” Mason said.
“Leave it to Gertie,” Della Street said. “She’s an incurable romanticist. She faithfully reads the society columns and all about the weddings. Would you like to look at a picture of Homer Garvin and his bride taken at the plane?”
Mason regarded the picture thoughtfully.
“A good-looking girl,” he said at length. “Anything about her background?”
“She has been a publicity model at once of the Las Vegas resorts,” Della Street said. “Young Garvin met her there a couple of months ago.”
“He works fast,” Mason said.