I locked the car and dodged traffic to get across thestreet, as though I'd never heard of laws against jaywalking.
There were still plenty of people in the Casino. The bar was full, andthe dice and card games were going full blast. The slot machines werejingling out their infernal din while fools fed coins into theirinsatiable innards.
But the roulette room was closed, and a couple of be-Stetsoned deputieswere standing guard over the entrance. I headed straight for them.
Both of them stood pat, blocking my way, so I stopped a few feet infront of them.
"Hello, counselor," said one. "Sorry, the roulette room's closed."
I knew the man slightly. "Let me in, Jim," I said. "I want to seeThursby."
The men exchanged glances. Obviously, the D.A. had given them orders.
"Can't do it, counselor," said Jim. "We're not to let anyone in."
"Tell Thursby I'm out here and that I want to see him."
He shrugged, opened the door, stuck his head inside, and called toDistrict Attorney Thursby to tell him that I was outside. I could hearThursby's muffled "Damn!" from within. But when he showed up at thedoor, his face was all smiles.
"What's the trouble?" he asked pleasantly.
I smiled back, giving him my best. "No trouble at all, Thursby. I justwanted to watch the experiment."
"Experiment?" He looked honestly surprised, which was a fine piece ofacting. "We're just checking to see if the table's wired, that's all. Ifit is, your client may be in the clear; maybe we can hang it on thecroupier."
"And get a conspiracy charge on my client, too, eh? Well, if you don'tmind, I'd like to watch that table check myself. You know how it is."
Thursby hesitated, then he scowled. "Oh, all right. Come on in. But stayout of the way."
I grinned. "Sure. All I want to do is protect my client's interests."
Thursby just grunted and opened the door wider to let me in. He was ashrewd lawyer, a good D.A., and basically honest, even if he did have atendency to bend under pressure from higher up.
* * * * *
They were checking the table, all right. They had three specialistsgoing over it with everything from fine tooth combs to Geiger counters.They found nothing. No magnets, no wires, no mechanical gimmicks.Nothing.
It took them an hour to take that table apart, check it, and put it backtogether again. When it was all over, Thursby glanced at me, then said:"O.K., boys; that does it. Let's go."
The men looked at him oddly, and I knew why.
"Aren't you going to test my client's gadget?" I asked innocently.
Thursby looked angrily baffled for a moment, then he clamped his lipsgrimly. "As long as we're here, I guess we might as well."
I knew perfectly well it was what he had intended to do all along.
"One of you guys spin that wheel," he said to the technicians. One ofthem gave the wheel a spin and dropped the ball. It clattered on itsmerry way and dropped into a slot. Forty-two.
Thursby took the gadget out of his pocket. It was still set at Thirteen.
The men who had surrounded Howley on the night of his arrest had beenkeeping their eyes open, and they had seen how Howley had handled thething. Well--_almost_ how. Thursby had the lens opening pointed at thewheel, but his thumb and fingers weren't touching the silver platesproperly.
"Spin it again," he said.
Everyone's eyes were on the ball as it whirled, so I had time to get myown copy of Howley's gadget out and set it at Thirteen. I hoped thething would work for me. I concentrated on Thirteen, making sure mythumb and fingers were placed right.
Evidently they were. The ball fell into Thirteen, Black, Odd, and Low.
A huge grin spread over Thursby's face, but he was man enough not toturn and grin at me. "Try it again," he said.
Thirteen, Black, Odd, and Low.
"I wonder how the thing works?" said Thursby, looking at the gadget in asort of pleased awe.
"You'd better be able to prove that it _does_ work, Thursby," I said,trying to put irritation into my voice.
This time, he did grin at me. "Oh, I think we can prove that, allright." He turned back to the technician. "Spin it once more, Sam, andshow the defense counsel, here, how it works."
The technician did as he was told. "Thirteen, Black, Odd, and Low," hechanted, grinning.
"Let's try another number," Thursby said. He turned the dial to One. Andthis time, when he pointed it, his fingers were touching the plates inthe right places.
"Just a minute," I said. "Let me spin that thing."
"Be my guest, counselor," said Thursby.
I spun the wheel and scooted the ball along the rim. It dropped into aslot. One, Red, Odd, and Low. I looked as disappointed and apprehensiveas I could.
"Co-incidence," I said. "Nothing more. You haven't proved anything."
Thursby's grin widened. "Of course I haven't," he said with a soothing,patronizing tone. "But I don't have to prove anything until I get tocourt."
Then he looked at the technicians and jerked his head toward the door."Let's go, boys. Maybe the counselor wants to look over the table forhimself. Maybe he thinks we've got it rigged."
There was a chorus of guffaws as they walked out. I just stood there,scowling, trying to keep from laughing even harder than they were.
* * * * *
Jason Howley sat next to me at the defense table, just inside the lowpartition that divided the court from the public. There weren't manypeople in the auditorium itself; listening to some poor dope get himselfsentenced for cheating at gambling is considered pretty dullentertainment in the State of Nevada.
Thursby had managed to push the indictment through the grand jury in ahurry, but, as he sat across the room from me at the prosecution table,I thought I could detect a false note in the assumed look of confidencethat he was trying to wear.
Howley tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around, and he whispered:"How much longer?"
I tapped my wrist watch. "Couple minutes. Judge Lapworth is one of thoseprecisionists. Never a moment late or early. Getting jumpy?"
He shook his head gently and smiled. "No. You've handled this evenbetter than I'd have imagined. You thought of things I didn't even knowexisted. I'm no lawyer; I can see that."
I returned the smile. "And I don't invent gimmicks, either. So what?"
His eyes looked at me from behind the distorting negative lenses. "I'vebeen wondering, counselor--why are you so interested in this? I mean, Ioffered you a pretty good fee, and all that, but it seems to me you'retaking an unusual interest in the case."
I grinned at him. "Mr. Howley, my profession is Law--with a capital L.The study of the Law isn't like the study of physics or whatever; theseare manmade laws--commands, not descriptions. They don't necessarilyhave anything to do with facts at all. Take the word 'insanity,' forinstance; the word isn't even used by head-shrinkers any more becauseit's a legal definition that has nothing whatever to do with thecondition of the human mind.
"Now, any such set of laws as that can't possibly be self-consistent andstill have some use on an action level. A lawyer's job is to find thelittle inconsistencies in the structure, the places where the pieceshave been jammed together in an effort to make them look like astructured whole. To find, in other words, the loopholes and use them.
"And when I find a loophole, I like to wring everything I can out of it.I'm enjoying this."
Howley nodded. "I see. But what if something--"
I held up my hand to silence him, because the door to the judges'chambers opened at that moment, and Judge Lapworth came in as thebailiff announced him. We all stood up while the bailiff intoned his"Oyez, oyez."
Thursby made a short preliminary speech to the jury, and I requested andwas granted permission to hold my own opening statement until thedefense was ready to present its case.
Thursby was looking worried, although it took a trained eye to see it. Iwas pretty sure I knew why. He had been pushed t
oo hard and had gone toofast. He'd managed to slide through the grand jury too easily, and I hadmanaged to get the trial date set for a week later. Thursby's case wasfar from being as tight as he wanted it.
* * * * *
I just sat still while the prosecution brought forth its witnesses andevidence. The croupier, the deputies, several employees of the GoldenCasino, and a couple of patrons all told their stories. I waivedcross-examination in every case, which made Thursby even edgier than hehad been.
When he called in the head of the technicians who had inspected thetable at the casino, I