“Do you remember what the trouble was about and what said?”
“Well, they said a good deal,” Ollie answered. “They fussed because Joe didn’t get up when Isom called him.”
Joe felt his heart contract. It seemed to him that Ollie need not have gone into that; it looked as if she was bent not alone on protecting herself, but on fastening the crime on him. It gave him a feeling of uneasiness. Sweat came out on his forehead; his palms grew moist. He had looked for Ollie to stand by him at least, and now she seemed running away, eager to tell something that would sound to his discredit.
“You may tell the jury what happened that morning, Mrs. Chase.”
Hammer’s objection fell on barren ground, and Ollie told the story under the directions of the judge.
“You say there was a sound of scuffling after Isom called him?” asked the prosecutor.
“Yes, it sounded like Isom shook him and Joe jumped out of bed.”
“And what did Joe Newbolt say?”
“He said, ‘Put that down! I warned you never to lift your hand against me. If you hit me, I’ll kill you in your tracks!’”
“That’s what you heard Joe Newbolt say to your husband up there in the loft over your head?”