Q. “What time was that?”
It would be necessary to lie here. But he must be careful and evasive wherever possible.
A. “It was twenty minutes after ten.”
Q. “Did you see Miss Ballau?”
A. “No, she had just left.”
Q. “Did you ask any questions of anyone?”
Ah, they had Cort up their sleeve. They would produce him next and confound him with the man’s testimony. De Medici’s eyes glanced slowly around the room as if in quest of a memory. Cort was not to be seen.
A. “I don’t remember to whom I spoke. I recall asking someone where Miss Ballau was and they told me she had left.”
Q. “Did you think it strange that Miss Ballau should leave the theater in the middle of the show?”
Ah, now they were closing in. His eyes rested intently upon the reddish face of Lieutenant Norton. The man was watching him, as he had watched him that night in the apartment.