Marked Woman Page #3

Are you crazy, or am I?

- Come on, Louie.

- Now, wait a minute.

Cut it out, will you?

What is this?

Halloween.

We're putting on a masquerade.

Can't you get it through your skull...

...that she doesn't want her sister

to know what she's doing?

- I get it now.

- I thought you'd get it sooner or later.

Oh, come on, will you, quit kidding.

You've never seen so much

excitement in your life.

For weeks the whole school has talked

about nothing else but this football game.

See, the boys who we're playing come

from college right near us.

We know most of them all, and...

And, you know...

- Sweet.

- Like sugar.

So we decided to come and see it.

It didn't cost much, Mary.

Besides, I was dying to see you.

Oh, I'm glad you came, darling.

Gee, it must be fun going to school.

Oh, it's not exciting,

if that's what you mean.

Mostly going to classes and studying.

Of course, once in a while we have

dances and parties, and that's about all.

I don't think you'd like it.

It sounds easier than

standing on your feet all night...

- How long are you going to stay, Betty?

- Just for the day.

We're going to the game,

then going right back.

You're coming with us, aren't you?

No. No, you go with your friends.

L... I think I'll just stay home and rest.

You're tired, aren't you?

You all look so tired.

You must work awfully hard

in that dress shop.

Oh, no, no. It just happened

that this week was a very busy week.

Yeah, sugar. They practically

rushed us right off our feet.

I wish there was something

I could do, Mary.

- You keep right on going to school.

- I know.

But it sort of makes me

feel so helpless.

I go to school

and a have good time...

...and you have to work so awfully hard

to keep me there.

I'll pay you back for it someday, Mary.

You'll pay me back every time

I look at you.

That must be my friends. I'll answer it.

- Which one of you is Mary Dwight?

- I am.

Know a fella named Ralph Krawford?

Ralph Krawford?

Yes, I was out with him last night.

Did you ever see this before?

Sure. Sure, I gave it to him.

- What about it?

- Nothing.

Only it was in his pocket

when we found him. Murdered.

- Murdered?

- We found him in an alley this morning.

What's that got to do with me?

You'll find out when we get down

to headquarters. Get dressed.

No, I don't want to go.

Tell me what I'm being arrested for.

Well, if you must know, sister,

we're holding you on suspicion of murder.

The rest of you get your clothes on.

Well, you don't think

it took all of us to kill him.

You'll get a chance to answer that.

Get going.

And these four men approached you

and asked you to recommend a nightclub?

Yes, sir.

- Why did you send them to Club Intimate?

- No particular reason.

It was just the first place

that popped into my head.

Because you were paid so much a head

by Vanning for steering suckers in there?

Vanning? Who's Vanning?

Never heard of him.

Never heard of two years

in jail for perjury either?

I make a living out of tips.

If a guest in the hotel asks me a question,

it's part of my job to answer it.

What he does and where he goes after that

is none of my business.

That's all. Thanks.

Well, I guess that's that.

He was lying,

and so were the rest of them.

They all know how and why that man

was murdered and who was back of it.

Just as you and I do.

It's marvelous, isn't it?

One man, Johnny Vanning,

completely terrorizes the city.

Commits every crime

from murder to mayhem.

We all know it,

yet we can't do a thing about it.

Look, son.

My files are bulging

with quashed indictments...

...hung juries,

verdicts of "not guilty."

So long as Vanning is able to buy

politicians and hire unscrupulous lawyers...

...who take advantage

of every technicality of the law...

...who coach and buy

perjured testimony...

...and so long as Vanning is able to

continue intimidating witnesses, it's futile.

Well, how long is it gonna keep on

being futile?

I don't know.

We've got to wait for Vanning

to make that one false move.

Yeah, well, I don't like waiting.

- Do you wanna take the case into court?

- Sure.

- With those witnesses?

- Sure, why not?

If Vanning can get away with intimidation,

why can't I?

You're a young man, Dave.

At this stage of your career,

a fiasco isn't going to help you much.

- Yeah, well, I'll take that chance.

- All right.

From now on, it's your case.

Go to it.

- Thanks.

- Good luck.

- Did you pick up those girls?

- They're in with the others.

- Would you mind stepping into my office?

- Not at all.

You too, Casey.

Right this way, gentleman.

Step right over here.

- Oh, Casey, will you close that blind?

- Yes, sir.

Ferguson, have all those girls line up

facing this way.

Stand up, please.

Those the girls

you were with last night?

You've got nothing to be afraid of.

They can't see you.

- Were those the girls?

- Yes, sir. Yeah.

- All except that one on the end.

- Which one?

The one with the leather coat.

The girl with the leather coat,

step forward.

- Sure you didn't see her around the club?

- Yes, sir.

All right, which one was with Krawford?

- The one on the end, the blond.

- That's Mary Dwight.

Ferguson, bring Mary Dwight

into my office right away.

All right, thank you. That's all.

- Mary Dwight?

- That's right.

Sit down.

Go ahead, sit down.

All right.

- You work at the Club Intimate?

- Are you telling me or asking me?

- Those other girls, they work there too?

- You know everything.

That little girl with the leather coat,

what does she do?

She's got nothing to do with this.

- We'll find out about that later.

- No, we'll find out about that right now.

That kid's my sister.

And she was down here visiting me...

...when those gorillas of yours blew in

and pulled us all in.

And I'll tell you something else.

If you get her mixed up in this, I'Il...

I'm not. If she had nothing to do with it,

I'll let her go.

Just as I'll let you go,

if you had nothing to do with it.

Now, last night about 10:00

four men came into the club.

And they sat down with you girls.

You had some drinks and you danced.

There isn't any law against that,

is there?

One of those men was Ralph Krawford.

He was with you.

The other four left about 1:00.

You and he stayed.

He lost a lot of money gambling.

Then you left together in a cab.

- Where'd you go?

- Home.

- What'd you do when you got there?

- Nothing.

I got out, and he went off in the cab.

Where?

I don't know.

The cab driver testified minutes ago...

...that you told him to take Krawford

to the Waldorf-Ritz Hotel.

How do you account for that?

- Supposing I did?

- Then you did know where he was going?

Well, I knew where he was starting for,

but I didn't know where he'd wind up.

You didn't see him between the time

he checked out of his hotel...

...and the time we found him murdered?

- No.

Can you prove you didn't?

Can you prove I did?

- You're a pretty smart girl.

- So they tell me.

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