“With what result?”
She said, “I was advised that Mr. Bilback hadn’t been seen this morning — that he wasn’t in his room.”
Mason said, “You’ve gone to a lot of trouble in this case keeping me groping in the dark.”
She smiled. “I was trying to protect Mr. Peltham,” she said. “Under the circumstances, you can appreciate my position.”
“That was your only reason?”
“Why, yes, of course.”
Mason said, “On Monday night Mr. Tidings had an appointment with a woman, a woman who was in a position to cause him a great deal of trouble. When he left his office, he was in a hurry to keep that appointment.”
Her face was a studied mask.
Mason said, “Suppose you tell us about that appointment, Miss Hastings.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”