“Servants?”
“One housekeeper is all. After Mrs. Sabin left for her world tour, we closed up virtually all the house, and let the servants go. I didn’t realize why that was done at the time, but, of course, I understand now that Dad knew Helen Watkins Sabin wouldn’t return, and was intending to close up the house.”
“And the parrot?” Mason asked. “Did your father take the parrot with him on his trips?”
“Most of the time the parrot was with Dad. There were times when he left it home — with Mrs. Sabin, mostly. Incidentally, Mrs. Sabin was very much attached to the parrot.”
Mason turned to Waid. “Did Steve have any motive for murder, any hatred of Mr. Sabin?”
“Steve himself couldn’t have murdered Mr. Sabin,” Waid said positively. “I know that Mr. Sabin was alive at ten o’clock Monday night, the fifth of September. Steve and I left for New York right after I’d received that telephone call. We didn’t arrive in New York until late Tuesday afternoon. You see, there’s a four-hour time difference, what with the difference in sun time and the additional hour of daylight saving time.”
Mason said, “The certified decree of divorce, which Mrs. Sabin handed you in New York, was a forgery.”
“Was what?” Waid exclaimed, startled.
“A forgery,” Mason repeated.
“Look here, Mr. Mason, that decree was passed on by Mr. Sabin’s New York attorneys.”