Part 30 (1/2)
Cora put up her hand. ”Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Melvin came up here first? She came up and joined him?”
”That's right.”
”How'd she get here?”
”Huh?”
”If they came up separately, why don't they have two cars?”
”She took a bus.”
”Oh?”
”He picked her up in Danbury.”
”When?”
”Day before the hearing.”
Cora frowned. ”I'm confused again. He picked her up the day before the hearing. But she wasn't here when he took the teller to dinner?”
”No, that was last week.”
”Last week!”
”Yeah. He came up early to 'check out the witnesses.' He tried to check out Lilly Clemson, all right.”
”Melvin's been in town since last week?”
”Yeah.”
”How do you know?”
”How do you think?”
Cora frowned. ”And all he did was romance the teller?”
”He didn't romance her.”
”Whatever you want to call it. That's all he did?”
”He also had a talk with the other witness.”
”What other witness?”
”The bank manager who testified.”
”The one who got killed?”
”Yeah.”
”Melvin had a talk with him?”
”That's right.”
Cora had completely forgotten her cigarette. The ash was nearly two inches long. It fell to the floor. ”Before or after he had dinner with the teller?”
”Both.”
”Huh?”
”He talked to him in the bank. Right after he talked to the teller. He went from her window to his desk. That night he took her to dinner.”
”Okay, that's before. You say he also talked to the bank manager after he took the teller to dinner?”
”That's right.”
”The next day?”
”No. After he testified.”
Cora's mouth fell open. ”Melvin talked to the bank manager the same day he testified?”
”You know Melvin. He'd want to review the guy's performance.”
”He talked to him right after court?”
”No. He saw him later.”
”In the bank?”
”No.”
”Where did he see him?”
”In his house.”
CHAPTER.
39.
Melvin's smile was smug. ”I knew you'd be back.”
”I'm not back. I'm here because you're in trouble and you're too arrogant to know it.”