o the house, entering the little
room at the rear where all sorts of sports equipment are kept--fishing
rods and tackle, golf clubs, bows and arrows, skis, etc. She was
carrying the gun, unscrewing the silencer as we walked. It is my habit
to keep the pistol and the silencer in a drawer in a little corner
cupboard--"

"Locked, up?" Dundee asked sharply.

"Usually locked, but not always, I am afraid," Judge Marshall answered
reluctantly.

"And you saw Mrs. Selim place the gun and the silencer in the drawer?"

"I--thought I did, but I was really not watching closely. As a matter of
fact, I stopped to look over a fishing rod, with a view to trying it out
the first good fishing weather--"

"Was Mrs. Selim wearing a coat or cloak?" Dundee cut in impatiently.

"Why, I don't know--"

"Yes, she was, Hugo!" Karen cried out eagerly. "It was quite chilly last
Sunday morning. Remember? We all had on coats or sweaters. Nita wore a
dark-green leather jacket with big pockets--"

"And she left in a great hurry, without even waiting for a drink," Flora
Miles contributed triumphantly. "I tell you, she took them away in her
pockets."

"Your guess may be correct, Mrs. Miles," Dundee agreed, "but I think we
had better not come to any definite conclusion until we know that Judge
Marshall's automatic and silencer are really missing.... Is there anyone
at your house now, Judge, whom you can ask to look for it?"

"Certainly. The butler.... Shall I telephone him?"

Accompanied by Captain Strawn, the ex-judge went to the telephone in the
little foyer between Nita Selim's bedroom and the main hall. And within
five minutes he was back, nodding his head gravely.

"Hinson tells me that the Colt's and the silencer are both missing,
sir.... May I express my profound regret that my possession of--"

"Some other time, Judge Marshall!" Dundee interrupted curtly, and
hurried from the room, followed by Strawn, who nodded to Sergeant
Turner, still lounging wearily in a far corner of the living room, to
stand guard vigilantly.

"Well, Bonnie, here's the devil to pay," Strawn gloomed, but Dundee made
for the telephone without answering.

He called a number, then curtly demanded: "Dr. Price, please!... Yes, I
know he's busy on an autopsy. Just tell him that Dundee, of the district
attorney's office, wants to speak to him."

There was a long pause, then: "Hello, Dr. Price!... Dundee.... What are
the caliber and type of bullet that killed Nita