"'You read it—the last tablet,' I said. 'And you know you've done all this evil for nothing. The flight can't take place. If you—if you stop me from telling the police, Porter will tell them. He knows everything.'
"He took my wrist and dragged me to the studio and forced me into the closet and locked the door. I could hear him crumpling and burning papers for a long time.
"At last he came close to the door and said, 'There, my dear! Try to prove that the tablets ever existed!'
"When he was gone, I screamed and pounded on the door until I was exhausted. A frightful thing was going to happen and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
"Only once—only one time since this all began have I opposed my husband successfully. And it had no effect on the outcome. When I typed up the text of the last tablet, I made a carbon copy and put it in my handbag. I have it here. I believe it will be evidence enough to prove that Simon Kane is a murderer."
Nalja Kane reached in her flat beaded bag and found a folded sheet, which she handed to Donner. He smoothed it on his knees with hands that trembled a little.
"May he read it aloud, Mrs. Kane?" asked Caples.
"Certainly, if he wishes. But the first part is technical data on a flight by an inventor named Axtel. The two last paragraphs contain the evidence I am offering you."