The Case of the Stuttering Bishop Read Online Free PDF Page A

frightened and keep them that way. Try to play square with them and they'll slip out from under."
    She ignored the comment, turned to Perry Mason and said, "I'll play square with you. I answered an ad in a paper."
    "And met the bishop that way?"
    "Yes."
    "What was the ad?"
    She hesitated a moment, then tilted her chin and said, "He advertised for a trained nurse who was dependable and trustworthy."
    "You're a trained nurse?"
    "Yes."
    "How many other people answered the ad?"
    "I don't know."
    "When did you answer it?"
    "Yesterday."
    "Did the bishop give his name and address?"
    "No, only a blind box."
    "So you answered the ad. Then what happened?"
    "Then the bishop telephoned me and said he liked my letter and wanted a personal interview."
    "When was that?"
    "Late last night."
    "So you went to the hotel this morning for that interview?"
    "No, I went to the hotel last night, and he hired me."
    "Did he say what for?"
    "He said he wanted me to nurse a patient."
    "You're a registered nurse?" Paul Drake interrupted.
    "Yes."
    "Show me," Drake said.
    She opened the suitcase, took out a manila envelope, handed it to the detective and immediately turned her eyes back to Mason. She was more sure of herself now, more calmly competent, more wary, and more watchful.
    "So Bishop Mallory hired you?" Mason asked.
    For a moment her eyes wavered. Then she shook her head and said, "No."
    "What paper was it in?"
    "I can't remember. It was in one of the evening papers a day or two ago. Someone called the ad to my attention."
    "So Bishop Mallory hired you?" Mason asked.
    "Yes."
    "Did he say what was wrong with the patient?"
    "No, he didn't. I gathered that it was a case of insanity in the family or something of that sort."
    "Why all the packing up?" Paul Drake asked, handing back the manila envelope.
    "Because Bishop Mallory told me I'd have to go with him and the patient on a trip."
    "Did he say where?"
    "No."
    "And he told you to meet him in the hotel?"
    "Yes. And I wasn't to talk with him in the lobby. He was to nod if everything was all right, and I was to go up to his room after five minutes."
    "Why all the mystery?" Drake asked.
    "I don't know. He didn't tell me, and I didn't ask him. He was a bishop, so I knew he was all right, and he was paying good wages. Also, you know how some mental cases are. They go wild if they think they're under treatment or even observation."
    "So you went up to the room," Mason said. "What did you find?"
    "I found things all topsy-turvy. The bishop was lying on the floor. He had a concussion. His pulse was weak but steady. I picked him up and got him to bed. It was a job – an awful job."
    "Did you see anyone in the room?"
    "No."
    "Was the door locked or unlocked?"
    "It was open an inch or two."
    "Did you see anyone in the corridor?" Mason asked.
    "You mean when I went up to see the bishop?"
    "Yes."
    "No."
    "Did you see anyone coming down in the elevator just as you went up?"
    "No."
    "Why didn't you notify the hotel authorities when you found the bishop?"
    "I didn't think there was any need. They couldn't have done anything. I went out and telephoned for an ambulance."
    "And then came here and got ready to skip out?" Drake asked sneeringly.
    "I wasn't getting ready to skip out. I'd done this earlier in the day because the bishop said I'd have to travel. He said the patient was sailing on the Monterey."
    "What're your plans now?"
    "I'm just going to wait here until I hear from the bishop. I don't think he's seriously hurt. He'll be conscious in an hour or two at the latest unless there are sclerotic conditions."
    Mason got to his feet and said, "Okay, Paul, I think she's told us everything she knows. Let's go."
    Drake said, "You're going to let her get away with this, Perry?"
    The lawyer's eyes were stern. "Of course I am. The trouble with you, Paul, is that you deal so much with crooks you don't know how to treat a woman who's on the square."
    Drake sighed and said, "You win. Let's go."
    Janice Seaton came close