“What are the two things?”
“One of them,” Mason said, “is whether Aileen Fell’s story will stand the test of cross-examination. The other one is why you’re lying about putting in that call from the social hall.”
“You don’t trust me?” she asked.
Mason said, “I’m afraid to trust you. There’s too much at stake. I’m afraid to let you tell your story until I know you’re telling the truth. You lied once because you thought you could get away with it. You’ll do it again if you think you can get away with it. And don’t overlook the fact that you can’t tell your story to the officers without telling them why you wanted the money. You can’t do that without disclosing that your husband was Carl Moar and that you thought the money had been embezzled.”
That’s going to come out anyway,” she said in a dull, hopeless voice.
“It’s going to come out that he’s Carl Moar,” Mason said, “but it isn’t going to come out for a few hours. And during those few hours, I’m going to get busy with the Products Refining Company. There’s something queer about that embezzlement. Rooney, the head auditor, holds his job because he’s related to the president. I have an idea he may be incompetent and the books may be in such shape he can’t show definitely who took the money. Now, if that’s the case and he knows Moar’s dead, he’ll make a flat accusation and perhaps doctor up the records to make that accusation stick. That will save his own face. But if there’s some legitimate reason why the Products Refining Company has been afraid to get out a felony warrant for Carl Moar, I’m going to find out what that is and spike their guns before they realize he’s dead.”
“Then you mean the embezzlement would never come out?”
He nodded.
“That would mean everything to Belle,” she said.
“Yes,” Mason said. “ If I can find some weakness in their auditing system and capitalize on that weakness before they know it’s Carl Moar who’s dead. But that means I’ll have to dash out just as soon as we dock. It means I’ll have to leave you to the mercy of the police officers and the newspaper men.”