The Case of the Mischievous Doll

“I’m not in a position to amplify that statement,” Tragg said. “I’ll say that the publicity came from the report and not from me.”

“I see,” Mason said.

“That is,” Tragg amended, “the initial publicity. But after it appeared that the papers had the story, your client filled in the details.”

“My client?” Mason asked.

“Minerva Minden.”

“I’ve tried to tell you she’s not my client. My client is Dorrie Ambler, who was abducted from the Parkhurst Apartments... What have you found out about her, Lieutenant?”

“Precisely nothing, as far as I’m concerned,” Tragg said. “I understand informally that the FBI is working on the case, although they haven’t entered it officially as yet. You know how they are. Their purpose in life is to collect information, not to give it out.”

“That would seem to be a logical attitude,” Mason said. “I’m a little surprised at Minerva Minden. I thought perhaps she would prefer to have the story kept under wraps, but it’s all here in the paper, all the details and ramifications, including the fact that this may reopen the entire question of her inheritance.”

“You’d think she wouldn’t want that broadcast,” Tragg said, “but she’s not particularly averse to newspaper notoriety.”

“I’ve noticed,” Mason said.

“Well, I just wanted to call you up and explain.”

“Thanks for calling,” Mason told him. “I’m tremendously concerned about Dorrie Ambler.”

“I think you have a right to be,” Tragg told him. “We’re doing everything we can, I know that. No matter whether it’s an abduction or a murder and flight, we want to find her.”

“Will you let me know as soon as anything turns up?” Mason asked.

Tragg’s voice was cautious. “Well, I’ll either let you know or see that she has an opportunity to do so.”

“Thanks,” Mason said. “And thanks again for calling.”

“Okay,” Tragg told him. “I just wanted you to know.”

The lawyer cradled the telephone, returned to the newspaper.

“Well,” he said at length, “it’s certainly all in here — not only what she told them but some pretty shrewd surmises.”

“What effect will that have,” Della asked, “on the matter Dorrie Ambler wanted to have you work on?”

“She wanted to be sure she wasn’t a Patsy,” Mason said. “She wanted to have it appear that...”

“Yes?” Della Street prompted, as the lawyer suddenly stopped midsentence.

“You know,” Mason said, “I keep trying to tell myself that it needn’t have been an abduction — that this thing could have all been planned.”

“Including the murder?”

“Not including the murder,” Mason said. “We don’t know what caused that murder, but we have a premise to start with. Our client was rather an intelligent young woman, and rather daring. She was quite willing to resort to unconventional methods in order to get one thing.”

“And that one thing?” Della Street asked.

“Newspaper publicity,” Mason said. “She wanted to have the story of the look-alikes blazoned in the press. She said she wanted it because she didn’t want to be set up as a Patsy in some crime that she hadn’t committed.”

Della Street nodded.

“Now of course,” Mason said, “that may not have been the real reason. The real reason may have been that she wanted to publicize her resemblance to Minerva Minden and then let the newspaper reporters get the bright idea they were related and have her case all built up in the newspapers.”

“And that would have helped her case in court?” Della asked.

“Not only would it have been of help to her case in court,” Mason said, “but it would put her in a prime position to make a compromise with Minerva Minden.”

Della Street nodded.

“But,” Mason said, “thanks to the quick thinking on the part of Minerva Minden, the scheme for newspaper publicity in connection with the airport episode fizzled out. So, under those circumstances, what would an alert young woman do?”

“Try to think of some other scheme for getting her name in the papers,” Della Street said.

Mason tapped the paper on the desk with the back of his hand.

“Well, I’ll be darned,” Della Street said. “You think she arranged the whole business? The abduction, the—”

“There are certainly some things that indicate it,” Mason said. “I keep hoping that’s the solution. It would have been difficult if not impossible for a man or two men to have taken an unwilling woman out of that apartment house. The police were on the scene within a matter of minutes. The way the elevator was placed they didn’t dare use the elevator. They would have had to use the stairs. Unless they had another apartment, they could hardly have taken her from the building.”

Della’s eyes were sympathetic. “You keep trying to convince yourself it was all part of a scheme,” she said, “and I find myself trying to help you — even when I don’t believe it.”

Mason said, “It’s quite a problem getting a woman to leave the house against her will.”

“They could have held a gun on her, or a knife at her back,” Della Street said.

“They could have,” Mason said, “but remember that just about the time they reached the street the police cars were converging on the place.”