“I’ve been looking all over town for you. You owe me seven-and-a-half hours overtime. That burglar has decided he will have you enter a not-guilty plea. He waited hours for you, and then sent his retainer over by messenger. All in cash.”

“Call me a cab,” Malone said, “before pneumonia carries me off.”

“And,” Maggie said, “A girl has been calling you for hours. She just said to tell you she’s That Blonde.”

Malone leaped up, blankets falling to the floor. “Call her back and tell her I’ll be there as soon as I change my clothes.”

“But Mr. Malone,” Maggie wailed, “you’ll catch cold.”

The little lawyer paused at the door. “Who, me? I never catch cold.” He waved, said a cheerful “Good-bye, good-bye,” and walked out whistling “The Willow Tree In The Garden.”

LOCKED DOORS

Mary Roberts Rinehart

Detective: Hilda Adams

MARY ROBERTS Rinehart (1876-1958), the creator of what is generally known as the “Had-I-But-Known” school, regularly had her plucky heroines put themselves in situations from which they needed to be rescued. That school of detective story has often been parodied and maligned, but it was so well handled that Rinehart was, for decades, one of the most successful and beloved mystery writers in America, producing the first mystery novel ever to appear on the bestseller list, The Man in Lower Ten in 1909. She had written it first as a serial for the first pulp magazine, Munsey’s. She later serialized her novel The Circular Staircase in the same pulp, but it was released in book form in 1908, a year before The Man in Lower Ten was issued as a book.

Probably her most successful work, she and Avery Hopwood adapted The Circular Staircase for the stage as The Bat in 1920, by which time she had become the highest-paid writer in America. The book had already served as the basis for a silent film, The Circular Staircase (1915) and then the play, which had some differences from the novel, inspired more than one film, including the silent The Bat (1926), and a sound version titled The Bat Whispers (1930).

Rinehart’s most famous character is Hilda Adams, whose propensity for getting involved in crimes and mysteries garnered her the nickname “Miss Pinkerton” after Allan Pinkerton, the famous real-life detective. She was encouraged in her sleuthing endeavors by George Patton, a small-time country detective who goes on to become a police inspector. He is a recurring presence in the series and appears to be interested in deepening his relationship with the dedicated nurse; she calls it “nonsense,” though there are numerous hints that she welcomes the attention and returns some of the attraction. She overhears private conversations, listens to people who are sick or wounded so not at their peak strength, and provides information to Patton. It is her stated conviction that she is betraying no trust and, since criminals act against society, then society must use every means at its disposal to bring them to justice.