“We’re working on a case for you. Remember?”
“Yes indeed. Do come in and sit down.”
I heard the floor creak with Bertha’s weight moving across it, then she settled herself in a chair with a plunk and said, “Your cheque bounced, dearie.”
“What do you mean?”
“The cheque that you gave us for two hundred dollars. It wasn’t any good. Damn it, I told Donald to tell you. I thought I’d find him here.”
“Why, it must have been good. I had money in the bank.”
“The bank says you didn’t. The bank says a cheque that you had thought was deposited was taken for collection. It was a cheque on an out-of-the-state bank. It was no good, so they debited your account.”
“Well, I like that! That cheque is just as good as gold.”
“Whose cheque was it?” -
“I’m afraid I can’t tell you that, Mrs. Cool, but I’ll certainly be glad to go to the bank with you.”