The Innocent Woman

until he got in touch with Sergeant Stams.”
    “That must have been confusing,” Steve said. “First he’s telling her she can’t come in, then he’s telling her she can’t go out.”
    “Oh, I don’t think she was that confused,” Dirkson said. “Anyway, that’s when she tried to leave, and that’s when he made the arrest. A radio patrol car brought her in, and she’s had nothing to say ever since.”
    “Can you really blame her?” Steve said. “A private citizen comes to the cops of her own accord, to give them some information regarding a crime. In return for her good citizenship, she’s bullied and interrogated and placed under arrest.”
    “Save it for the jury, Winslow. I’m sure you can sway some of them, but, personally, you’re breaking my heart.”
    Dirkson held up his hand. “Now then, let me assure you everything’s been done according to Hoyle. Miss Garvin’s had a full Miranda warning, and been given an opportunity to contact her attorney. Witness the fact that you are here.” He shrugged. “So, we have a situation that can be either adversarial or friendly. It’s entirely up to you. If Miss Garvin would like to explain what she was doing, I have no desire to charge her. If she doesn’t want to explain what she was doing, I have no choice. So what do you think? Would you like to let her talk, or should we go ahead with formal proceedings?”
    Steve smiled. “Frankly, gentlemen, Miss Garvin knows more about this than I do. Tracy, what do you want to do?”
    Tracy smiled. “I would like to cooperate with the police in their investigation in every way. That is why I came to see Sergeant Stams at the crime scene in the first place.”
    “And just why were you looking for Sergeant Stams?” Dirkson said.
    Tracy looked at Steve. “You mind if I answer that?”
    “Not unless you feel it might tend to incriminate you.”
    “Don’t be silly,” Tracy said. She turned to Dirkson. “I was looking to Sergeant Stams to tell him we had located a witness who had seen people going in and out of the jewelers earlier in the evening prior to the murder.”
    Dirkson frowned. He picked up a paper on his desk. “Would that be Mr. Oliver Branstein, the proprietor of the music store at that address?”
    “Oh, then he did contact you,” Tracy said. “He said he was going to, but you can never tell with these witnesses. They start out with the best of intentions, and then they start thinking what a hassle it will be, dealing with the police.”
    Stams narrowed his eyes, cocked his head. “Wait a minute. You’re telling me you went to the crime scene at one in the morning to tell me about this guy, Branstein?”
    Harry Dirkson put up his hand. “Ah, Sergeant. I’ll ask the questions, if you don’t mind. Miss Garvin, was that the only reason you were looking for Sergeant Stams?”
    “Yes, it was.”
    “That was the information you wished him to have?”
    “Yes, it was.”
    “That is why you went to the crime scene at one o’clock in the morning?”
    “That’s right.”
    “And when you were informed Sergeant Stams wasn’t there...?”
    Tracy smiled. “I wanted to see for myself. So very often, they tell you the officer you want isn’t available just so they won’t be disturbed.”
    Dirkson frowned.
    “Will that be all?” Steve said. “It is a little late, and I for one would like to get some sleep.”
    “That’s not quite all,” Dirkson said. “This witness Branstein—the one you were so eager to tell us about—just why did you call on him this evening?”
    “Don’t be silly,” Tracy said. She jerked her thumb at Steve Winslow. “He’s Amy Dearborn’s attorney. As you well know. We are therefore investigating all aspects of the crime.”
    “That’s not what I asked you,” Dirkson said. “What made this particular witness important. More to the point, what made you think this man might even be a witness.”
    “Well,” Tracy said, “without betraying any professional confidences, I think I can assure you that since Amy Dearborn’s arrest we have been doing everything possible to investigate the crime. Since there was a music store on the ground floor of the building, one of the first things we looked into was whether the store was open earlier that evening, and if so, who was working there at the time. The answer was Mr. Branstein. We interviewed him, it turned out he had seen something, and I thought Sergeant Stams should know.”
    “At one in the