"Sorry. Miss Bettiger."

Uncle w.i.l.l.y said hotly, "I think it's a d.a.m.ned outrage to suggest any such thing. Mary is a good girl. She's unpredictable, but basically good. She'd be no part of any cheap arrangement like that. If she was I'd... I'd throw her out of my home. I'm raising three daughters here." I saw the bulge of his brown forearms and was convinced.

"I still think we have to consider that as a possibility," Captain Kruslov said.

"Now, Mr. and Mrs. Raymond. Did you notice anything at all suspicious about Sat.u.r.day night?"

They looked at each other and I read Nancy's lips as she said to go ahead.

"No," Dodd said.

"It was a perfectly standard evening."

"Did Miss Olan drink too much?"

"I... well, yes. Frankly, she did."

"Was she in the habit of drinking too much?"

"No."

"Why did she drink so much Sat.u.r.day?"

"I don't think she intended to. I think she made a mistake ordering. She got thirsty playing golf and she should have started on something tall instead of c.o.c.ktails."

"Did you witness the quarrel between her and Mr. Sewell?"

"Yes, I did."

"Would you tell us about it?"

"That's very simple. Clint was trying to help her. He wanted her to stop drinking. She got nasty about it, but Clint didn't. He just kept coaxing her and after she made quite a little scene at the bar, she let him lead her out of there. I thought he handled it rather well. It really wasn't anything important."

"A drunken woman is a despicable thing," w.i.l.l.y said firmly.

"It is always important."

"I mean the quarrel wasn't important, Mr. Pryor."

"Did you or your wife notice anyone hanging around, or see anything you thought odd at the time?"

"No sir. I guess we left a few minutes before Mr. Sewell left with Miss Olan. I understand he planned to drive her home and take a cab from here. Later he told me that "Never mind that. You saw nothing out of line."

"No sir."

Kruslov turned to me. He moved closer to me than he had to the others. He looked more intent. I gave him exactly the same story I had given the two cops. He took me over it twice. I didn't especially care for his manner. I wondered if he was getting even for the times I had chewed out his brother.

"So when she drove away you went right to bed."

"I've told you that."

"What time was it?"

"Two-thirty. Something like that."

"You went right to sleep."

"Yes. I was tired."

"Your landlady says you didn't get in until four."

"Does she? I can't help that. I was in by two-thirty, and asleep by no later than two-thirty-five. She must be mistaken."

"She is positive that a car drove in at four."

"Captain, I'm a very sound sleeper. Your sergeant over there can verify that. It is entirely possible that one of my less responsible friends drove in at four and couldn't wake me and drove away again."

He dropped that line and went back to the questions he had asked the others.

"Did you see anything suspicious? Did any car follow you? Anything like that?"

"No, I didn't see..."

"What's the matter?"

"I just remembered something. Mary and I sat out in her car in my driveway for a few minutes and talked.

Somebody came into the driveway, backed out and went away. I figured they were just turning around. I just now remembered it."

Kruslov gave a grunt of satisfaction.

"There's a new fact. It could mean something. Did the car lights shine on you?"

"Yes they did. The top was down. I'll tell you more than I have to, Captain. At the moment we were illuminated, I happened to be kissing Miss Olan."

"Are you in love with her?"

"I wouldn't say that. I kiss her goodnight. Now here's some more while we're at it. We made a date to go up to the lake yesterday. I went anyway, thinking she'd show up. She was going to pick me up at noon. It was entirely possible that I would have been pounding my ear, so I gave her a key. I went in and got it, and took it out to her.

So that if I was still sleeping she could come in and drag me out of the sack so we wouldn't be held up. But I a.s.sure you, Captain, that the key I gave her is not the love nest key she spoke to Miss Bettiger about. I had no such designs on Miss Olan. No, that doesn't sound right. I had designs, I'm that normal. But they didn't include setting up a menage of that special type."

The phone on the free form desk rang. The police stenographer jumped, picked it up timidly, spoke into it in an inaudible voice.

He held the phone out.

"For you, Captain sir."

Kruslov walked heavily over and took the phone.