“I am happy to represent you,” the little man replied. “Please sit down, and I’ll tell you what is going to happen this morning.” Everyone sat down, and Sir Leslie continued. “This will be a short meeting of the court at which the presiding judge will ask the prosecutor if he has sufficient evidence to bring a charge of murder to trial. Then we will ask for bail, and I’m told you have a yacht which might serve as your security.”

“Wait a minute,” Stone said. “Won’t the prosecution have to present evidence of the crime? I was hoping we might get a dismissal.”

“Oh, no,” Sir Leslie replied. “The judge will simply take Sir Winston’s affidavit that he has enough evidence for trial; it’s all very gentlemanly.”

“It’s all very unheard of,” Stone said.

“Stone, you must understand that although our court system is based on English law, over the years, in the interest of efficiency, certain procedures that the court thinks superfluous have been pared away from the process.”

“Superfluous? This court thinks that the presenting of evidence in a preliminary hearing is superfluous?”

“I’m afraid so,” Sir Leslie said. “I assure you that if Sir Winston wants this to go to trial, it will go to trial, no matter what evidence might be presented, and no matter how we might challenge that evidence.”

“Leslie,” Stone said, “this crime—I mean the alleged crime—occurred on the high seas, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Can’t we ask for a dismissal on jurisdictional grounds?”

“Oh, no,” Sir Leslie said. “You see, many of the cases tried in our courts over the past two hundred years were based on crimes that occurred at sea. The local rule is that the defendant will be tried in the jurisdiction of the first port he puts into after the act.”

Stone nodded dumbly.

“Now, Mrs. Manning,” Sir Leslie continued, “I understand you have a yacht which might be used to secure your bail, is that correct?”

“Yes,” she replied.

“What is the value of the yacht?”

“I don’t really know,” she said. “I’m sure it’s expensive.”

Stone spoke up. “A minimum of a million and a half dollars American.”

“Oh, that should be quite sufficient. And where does the yacht lie?”

“In English Harbour.”

“Good, good.”

“Leslie,” Stone said, “Mrs. Manning will need to live aboard the yacht until this matter is disposed of.”

“I’m sure His Lordship would agree to that.”

“Who?”

“The judge, Lord Cornwall.”

“Oh.”

“Stone, did you ever see the film Witness for the Prosecution?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that is a pretty good model for how court is conducted. I expect you’ve seen other such films as well.”

“Yes, I suppose so. Oh, Allison, I brought you some things.” He shoved the duffel across the table. “I couldn’t find a…I hope these are all right.”