"What progress have you made since I saw you?" asked Mme. Storey.
"I have been progressing backward," the Inspector bitterly answered.
She laughed and pushed the cigarettes towards him. "Well, it isn't the first time we've been stumped, old friend."
"It seems as if there was a regular conspiracy to baulk me!" he went on, pounding his thigh. "Matson, who runs the homicide bureau in the district attorney's office, won't act. Says the case is a mare's nest. In short, he leaves me holding the bag. On the other hand, the three suspects have engaged Jim Shryock to represent them. The cleverest and most unscrupulous shyster in New York! He's been a thorn in my side for years!"
"Has he made any move?"
"Yes. He's given me forty-eight hours to have his clients arraigned before a magistrate, or
