A. Then do you understand that my wife stab. me?
Q. Yes, sir, I understand that. She has, in admitted stabbing you.
A. Well, good, at least she had the decency that!
Q. Do you remember telling her that she also a bad habit of washing your dirty linen public?
A. No, I don't remember that.
Q. Of taking your dirty linen to the church washing it for the priest?
A. No, why would I say anything like that?
Q. Washing it for Father Michael Birney.
A. No. No.
Q. Telling him about certain personal : you were having.
A. We weren't having any personal problems.
Q. Mr. Farnes, did you strike your wife with divider from an ice-cube tray?
A. No.
Q. Mr. Farnes, I show you this tray-divider was recovered from apartment 12C at 1 Grover Park South and tagged as evidence Detectives Carella and Hawes of the Precinct. Do you recognize it?.
A. I do not.
Q. Mr. Farnes, you are aware, are you not, your fingerprints were taken when you arrived here at the station house?
A. I am.
Q. And you are aware, of course, that the Police Department's Fingerprint Section can recover latent prints from inanimate objects and compare those prints with, for example, your fingerprints taken here at the station house?
A. I am aware of that.
Q. Do you still say you do not recognize this tray-divider?
A. I never saw it in my life.
Q. Mr. Farnes, I show you the broken neck of a bottle recovered from the sink in apartment 12C at 157 Grover Park South and tagged as evidence by Detectives Carella and Hawes of the 87th Precinct. Keeping in mind what I just told you about fingerprints, I ask you now did you strike your wife with the bottle this neck was once a part of?.
A. I did not.
Q. That is to say, a bottle containing what remained of a fifth of Tanqueray gin?
A. I did not.
Q. Mr. Farnes, where were you on Easter Sunday?
A. What?
Q. I asked you where you were on Easter Sunday.
A. Home, where do you think I was? Easter? Of course I was home.
Q. All day?
A. All day.
Q. Didn't you tell Detectives Hawes and C that you went to St. Catherine's sometime that afternoon?
A. Oh. Yes. I'd forgotten that.
Q. Did you go to the church that afternoon?
A. Yes.
Q. Why?
A. To talk to Father Michael.
Q. What about?
A. A letter I'd written to him. We'd ha, misunderstanding about the letter. I wanted clear it up with him.
Q. What time did you get to the church?
A. I don't remember.
Q. Would it have been between two-thirty three?
A. I really don't know. There was a police outside.
Oh, Jesus, Carella thought, there it goes, up the chimney! Both Nathan Hooper and O'Donnell claimed to have heard the priest m with either a man or a woman, depending whose story you believed'm sometime two-thirty and three. But if Edward's car was there when Farnes came to the church, th had to sometime after the argument had taken place. unless Farnes was lying...
Q. Can you describe that car for me?
Trying to make certain the car had actually been there when he arrived.
She'd been briefed before the questioning began, she knew that the half hour between two-thirty and three was critical. If Farnes had come to the church after that time, then he could not have been the person arguing with Father Michael.
A. It was a police car. What's there to describe about a police car?
Q. Do you remember the markings on it?
A. No. A blue-and-white car, like any other police car in this city.
Q. Mr. Farnes, where were you between seven and seven-thirty on the night of May twenty-fourth?
The night of the murder. She was going for the gold. Never mind beating around the bush. Farnes could either account for his time while the priest was being murdered - or he could not.
A. When was that? May twenty-fourth?
Q. Last Thursday. Do you remember where you were?
A. Last Thursday.
Q. Yes.
A. I'm trying to remember. I think I worked late last Thursday. I think I was at the store inventory.
Q. What do you mean by the store?
A. My store. I sell men's clothing.
Q. Where is this store, Mr. Farnes?
A. On The Stem. Between Carson and Coles. called C&C Men's Furnishings. Because of cross streets. Carson and Coles. Up p Twentieth. Across the street from the Mcdonald' s.
Q. And you say you were there taking “on the night of May twenty-fourth.
A. Yes. I'm pretty certain that's where I was.
Q. Were you there at seven P.M.?
A. If I was there, then yes, I was there at P.M.
Q. And if you were there, were you also seven-thirty P.M.?
A. Yes, if I was there, I would have been that time, too.
Q. And at eight P.M.?
A. Yes.
Q. And at nine?
A. Yes. All night.
Q. If you were there.
A. Yes. But I'm fairly certain I was there.
Q. But you're not positive.
A. No, I'm not positive.
Q. Was anyone with you?
A. No.
Q. You were alone.
A. Yes.
Q. Do you normally take inventory alone?
A. Yes.
Q. So if you were at the store that night, you were there alone.
A. Yes.
Q. Which means we have only your word for your whereabouts on the night of May twenty-fourth.
A. Well, if I was there, there'd be a record.
Q. Oh? What kind of record, Mr. Farnes?
A. My inventory sheets would have a date on them. An inventory is worthless, you see, unless it's dated. The whole purpose of an inventory is to keep you up to date on what you have'in stock. That's the whole purpose.
Q. Yes. And where would you have indicated this date?
A. In the inventory log. The date, and the quantity and size and color of any particular item. So I'll know when to reorder. That's the purpose of an inventory.
Q. Yes. Do you still have this inventory log?
A. I'm sure I do.
Q. Where is it?
A. At the store, most likely. I usually keep it at the store.
Q. And can you lay your hands on it at any time?
A. To check the date? So that you can positively say you were in the store taking “night long on May twenty-fourth?
Q. Unless it's missing for one reason or Missing? Why would it be missing?
A. Well, you know this city. Things get stolen the time.
Q. Are you saying that someone may have your inventory log?
A. It's possible.
Q. Why would anyone want to steal an log?
A. This city, who knows?
Q. So what you're saying, actually, Mr. Farnes that if the inventory log has been stolen, have no way of verifying when inventory-taking happened.
A. Or lost. The inventory log.
Q. Stolen or lost or misplaced, you would way of verifying where you were on the of May twenty-fourth.
A. What has this got to do with my wife me?
Q. It has to do with someone stabbing a priest, Farnes.
A. Is that supposed to be a surprise?
Q. I beg your pardon?
A. I mean, you're oh-so-very smart here, you, with your trick questions and your all around the mulberry bush,, do you you're dealing with a fool here? I have a successful business, I've been at the same location for fifteen years, I'm not a fool.
Q. No one said you were, Mr. Farnes.
A. Oh, no, you didn't come right out and say it, of course not. With the tape going? And this man taking notes? Of course not. But don't you think I realize what you're trying to do here? You're trying to make a mountain out of a molehill. You're trying to say that because I had an argument with Father Michael, that means...
Q. Did you have an argument with him?
A. I told you we had a misunderstanding.