Mason said, “We’re going to go and see the sheriff as soon as we get there. He may be willing to put the cards on the table.”
Della Street said, “Chief, she simply can’t be guilty of murder. She really loved him.”
“I know,” Mason said, “but she certainly left a lot of circumstantial evidence hanging around loose... Incidentally, there’s a nice legal point involved. If she actually is the widow of Fremont C. Sabin, then she inherits a share of his property, because the will is invalid as to her.”
“How so?” Drake asked.
“A will,” Mason said, “is revoked by the subsequent marriage of the testator. On the other hand, a will in which he makes no provision for his wife, and in which it appears that the omission was not intentional, is also subject to attack. The farther we go into this thing, Paul, the more possibilities it has.”
They drove for several miles in thoughtful silence, then suddenly, from the back seat, came the hoarse voice of the parrot: “Put down that gun, Helen! Don’t shoot! Squawk. Squawk. My God, you’ve shot me!”
Drake said, “We have two suspects in this case, both of them named Helen. Perry, if you introduce that parrot in evidence to show that Helen Watkins Sabin fired the shot, the district attorney will turn your own evidence against you to show that Helen Monteith did it.”
Mason grinned, “That parrot may make a better witness than you think, Paul.”
Sheriff Barnes had an office in the south wing of the old courthouse. Afternoon sunlight, beating through the windows, illuminated battered furniture, a floor covered with linoleum, which, in several spots, had been completely worn through. Bulletin boards on the wall were adorned with printed circulars of persons wanted for crime. Across from these posters, and on the wall on the opposite side of the room, were glass-framed display cases, in which various lethal weapons, which had figured in historic murder cases in the county, were on display.
Sheriff Barnes sat behind the old-fashioned roll-topped desk, in a dilapidated swivel chair, which squeaked monotonously as he teetered back and forth.