07x01 - The Case of the Nebulous Nephew

[bunniefuu]

(theme song playing)

All right, one final run-through
without details.

Caleb Stone the First.

Patent medicine king.

Died , age .

Only you don't know
he's dead, Brooks.

Don't forget that.

BROOKS:
Great-Aunt Sophia, age .

Great-Aunt Nineveh, age .

Leonard, the houseman,
the family chauffeur.

Maureen Kelly and the so-called
Caleb Stone IV.

Picture taken
in the Stone mansion library.

All right, turn on the light.

Now the interior of the house.

Where's the library?

To the left,
off the entrance hallway.

An elk's head
over the stone fireplace.

g*n racks on the wall.

On the floor, a bearskin
with a b*llet hole in its skull.

(crickets chirping)

Now, there it is.

The old Caleb Stone mansion.

Pretty impressive, huh?

That and all the money
we'll ever need, Brooks,

provided you play the cards
I've given you correctly.

Good luck.

(car engine starting)

(car retreating)

No peeking, Nineveh.

Who's peeking?

Well, maybe I was...
just a little.

I'll draw from you, dear.

Goodness, I should have
taken the other one.

You should have, indeed.

Game.

Fives, queens, eights.

How many?

.

(doorbell rings)

Wasn't that the doorbell,
Sophia?

Well, it certainly wasn't
the air raid alarm, dear.

Who could it be
at this time of night?

It's almost : .

Well, Leonard will let us know
if it's anyone important.

, you said?

Let me see.

(clucks tongue)
I thought so.

,

which means
that you now owe me cents.

Sophia, after years,

I'm beginning to believe
you're a cardsharp.

Nonsense. (laughs)

It's just that you didn't
inherit the Stone family brains.

Yes, Leonard?

A man who says
he has news of...

of young Caleb.

- Young...?
- Young Caleb?

SOPHIA: Come in, young man.
Come in.

What is this news
you have for us?

I shouldn't have come this late,

but I may be shipping out
tomorrow,

so I took the chance
that you'd still be up.

But... but you're Caleb.

Oh, yes, you've come back.

Please, Miss Nineveh.

I'm not Caleb.

Only a friend of his.

John Brooks.

A friend?

But you look
just the way I imagined.

SOPHIA:
Nonsense.

He doesn't resemble Caleb
in the least.

How did you know
her name was Nineveh?

BROOKS:
Well, I guess because

Caleb told me
about you both so many times...

before he died.

Died?

Caleb's dead?

Dead when?

Two years ago.

Of typhoid
in a hospital in Shanghai.

Red China?

What was he doing there?

We were deckhands on a Canadian
freighter delivering grain.

This is the first time I've been
on the West Coast since then.

I could have written,

but I didn't know
if you wanted to know about him

or see the things
that he left with me.

Things? What things?

A locket containing a photograph

of the man
he said was his father.

Caleb III.

In his Air Force uniform.

This must have been taken
just before...

his plane was lost.

His birth certificate.

A marriage certificate.

Caleb Stone III
and Maureen Kelly.

You knew, of course,

that she was a housemaid here,

and that the marriage
was declared void.

Yes, I knew.

After the funeral expenses,

there was $ left.

You'd better count it.

Sophia, look.

What are you doing, Mr. Brooks?

Doing?

Oh, the b*llet hole.

I wanted to see
if it was still there

as Caleb remembered.

He used to touch the bear's head
just that way.

Are you absolutely sure
you're not Caleb?

Nineveh!

You must have been very close
to Caleb, Mr. Brooks,

for him to have told you

things like b*llet holes
in bearskin rugs.

We grew up together,
Miss Sophia.

You were with him
in St. Mary's Orphanage?

I was there when he came.

We were both about six
at the time,

so, naturally, we became,
well, almost like brothers.

And then at ,
he decided to run away to sea.

And I ran away, too.

Well, I must be going.

It's a long haul
back to the harbor, so...

Oh, well, you mustn't go.

Not until we've heard everything
about Caleb.

Won't you stay here tonight?

You can sleep in his room.

Nineveh!

Don't shake your head
at me, Sophia.

Half this house
happens to be mine.

I'm sure you must be hungry.

Little Caleb always was.

Leonard, find something
for Mr. Brooks to eat

and something for him to...

I've heard
that sailors drink rum,

but I'm afraid
all we have is sherry.

Sherry will be fine,
Miss Nineveh.

Oh, good.

Show Mr. Brooks where
he can wash up, Leonard,

and then bring a tray in here.

If you'll come this way, sir.

Nineveh, you are a complete
and utter idiot.

I won't sleep a wink tonight.

Why, he could be anything.

A confidence man,
a thief, an imposter.

But, Sophia, dear,
he said he wasn't Caleb,

so how could he be an imposter?

I must see if there's any of
that Queen Victoria sherry left

that Father was so fond of.

(romantic instrumental
music playing)

(phone ringing)

Irene, it's early.

You can still be out
with perfect propriety.

So why answer?

If it's Ernest,
he'll ring every ten minutes

the rest of the night.

Yes?

Who is this?

Oh, Sophia,
I didn't recognize your voice.

No, Ernest isn't here.

He's in Ithaca, New York.

The National
Trapshooting Contest.

Said he died where?

Isn't it a bit risky
letting the young man stay?

Insists? Why?

Yes, I'll tell Ernest
when he calls

and have him call you.

No, you didn't, dear.

I was just reading...

and listening to some music.

Good night, dear.

Who was that?

One of Ernest's aunts.

Ah, pixilated
Stone sisters, huh?

That was Sophia.

And Nineveh seems to be the one
that's pixilated at the moment.

Oh?

She thinks
some mysterious young man

who appeared
on their doorstep tonight

might be Caleb Stone IV.

Not the patent medicine baby

there was all that hullabaloo
about after the w*r?

I heard the mother died after
the marriage was proved a fraud.

She did, but, Wayne,

that wouldn't prevent
the little boy from growing up.

They've asked him to stay?

Well, the pixilated one has.

Ernest isn't going to like this.

A new claimant
to the Stone millions.

Ernest will take care of him
when he comes home.

No, I will.

As your family lawyer,

I'm the one who takes care
of things for Ernest.

Hadn't you heard?

♪♪

(door closes)

You finished, Mr. Brooks?

Yes, thank you.

I've just been on the phone
with my nephew's house.

That's Ernest Stone.

He'll be here sometime tomorrow
to talk to you.

He's off hunting somewhere?

Hunting?

Caleb told me
he's an expert with a shotgun.

Yes, he is.

Are you sure you want to stay,
Mr. Brooks?

If you'd prefer, I'll go.

No.

That would disappoint Nineveh.

I imagine she has Caleb's room
ready by now.

I'll have Leonard show you up.

Don't bother.

Last room to the left

at the head of the big stairway?

Good night, Miss Sophia.

LEONARD: I think you'll find
everything you need, Mr. Brooks.

Uh, pajamas, robe and slippers,

and in the bathroom,
toilet articles.

I, uh, trust you'll
be comfortable.

I'm sure I will.

Mr. Brooks?

Yes?

They k*lled her
with their persecution

just as surely as if they
had k*lled her with a g*n.

k*lled who?

The little boy's mother,
Maureen.

They said she lied,
but they did.

Old Mr. Stone and the others,

they lied.

NINEVEH:
Is Mr. Brooks in there, Leonard?

Yes, Miss Nineveh.

I suppose you think
I'm a silly old woman,

but I always brought
little Caleb

a hot water bottle at night.

The bed being so...

big and cold.

You always brought
a glass of warm milk, too.

Yes, I did.

What are you looking for?

Lions,

tigers,

elephants.

What's become of them?

Changed the wallpaper.

And the hook over the bed?

It's gone, too.

Hook?

Where the parakeet cage
used to hang.

The birthday parakeet
that you taught to say "Caleb."”

Don't you remember?

Oh, yes.

I remember, Caleb, darling.

I remember.

MASON: A very considerable
amount of money is involved.

You've known this young man
less than hours.

Don't you think he should
be investigated first?

Mr. Mason, I know here
he's Caleb,

the little Caleb
I loved so dearly.

I don't care whether he
calls himself John Brooks

or Ezra Snodgrass.

I want my money to go to him.

As your attorney, Miss Nineveh,
I must tell you

I believe that you're acting
precipitantly and unwisely.

I know,

and I know you're trying
to look out for me,

but I have made up my mind.

And if you won't change my will,

I'll just have to find
another lawyer.

All right, Miss Stone.

You'll do it today?

I'll try.

Oh, you must do
much more than try.

I want this settled at once.

Good day, Miss Street.

Good-bye, Miss Stone.

Well, Della, it looks as though
we have no choice

but to draw up a new will.

Poor thing is obviously
being victimized.

And if it is a confidence game,

it's as nearly foolproof
as any I've ever heard of.

Imposters have preyed
on little old ladies before.

But he isn't saying
he's Caleb Stone IV.

In fact, he's saying he isn't.

That's the rub.

What can you do?

Well, there's nothing
to prevent us

from investigating
this John Brooks on our own.

And you have one ally, at least,

in Great-Aunt Sophia.

Yes, obviously, she wants

-no part of this young man.
-(knock at door)

Miss Stone gone?

Leaving us in even more
of a rush than before.

Let's have your highlights.

Well, this is going to come out
a little jumbled.

Genealogy first.

Old Caleb Stone,
the patent medicine king,

had four children:

Caleb ll, Sophia,
Nineveh and Samuel,

who died in World w*r ,
leaving a son, Ernest, now .

And Caleb ll?

Survived by Caleb lll,

one of our three
main characters,

along with Maureen Kelly,
the Stone housemaid,

and her patent medicine baby.

Patent medicine baby?

I'll come to that.

Late in ' ,

Caleb Ill was commissioned
lieutenant in the Air Corps

and sent to a base
near Charleston, South Carolina.

A few days before he was to fly
overseas, Maureen joined him.

According to her,

they were married the night
before he took off on a plane

that went down somewhere
over the Atlantic.

Why do you say,
"according to her,"” Paul?

Wasn't there
a marriage certificate?

There was, which made her

and the baby that followed
and was named Caleb IV

members of the family.

Until ,
when the roof fell in.

The roof fell in?

How?

Through an investigation

started by old patent medicine
king Caleb himself,

and a crotchety old goat of ,

which proved that
their certificate was a forgery.

Well, what happened then?

A real beaut of a court battle.

It all added up
with a little boy,

nicknamed the Patent
Medicine Baby by the press,

being declared illegitimate.

Poor little fella--
it was none of his doing.

(buzzing)

Yes, Gertie?

Mother and child were allowed
to leave the state.

She died in Charleston
a year later,

back where it all started.

Miss Stone's back.

Have her come in.

The boy was put into
a Catholic institution there.

Quite a change--

heir to millions,
then a penniless orphan.

Mr. Mason,
I want something done

without an argument,
done at once.

I want my will changed
so that my money goes

to a young man
named John Brooks.

Good evening, sir.

I'll tell Miss Sophia and
Miss Nineveh you're here, sir.

Thank you.

Mr. Mason.

I'm Irene Stone.

Yes, I know your husband.

Who's on his way
from the airport now

with Wayne Jameson,
his attorney.

Mr. Mason,
are you actually drawing up

new wills for the two sisters?

Did they tell you I was?

Yes, and how can you?

Mr. Jameson says there's
no possible doubt

that they're being deceived.

They don't seem to think so.

Don't you?

Wayne says,
if this man were honest,

is really Caleb, he'd say so.

Evidently, all you're
interested in is your fee.

Well, there won't be one,
Mr. Mason.

- No?

Because, for one thing,

Ernest isn't a doddering
sentimental old lady.

And for another,
he knew the little boy, too,

and no act
or fancied resemblance

is going to fool him.

You must be the lawyer.

Care for some sherry?

Not right now, thank you,
Mr. Brooks.

I suppose you've come
to deliver a warning.

"Clear out, young man,
before you land in jail."

Well, why should I?

I haven't done anything wrong,
and I don't intend to.

Do you feel that making
two elderly ladies

believe you are somebody
you're not isn't doing wrong?

You've got it just backwards.

They're making me
into something I'm not.

And I'm beginning to believe
it's not such a bad idea.

Oh, it's a fine idea,
providing it doesn't backfire.

Tell me, how did you
win over Miss Sophia?

Once, to amuse little Caleb,

she taught him to dial the safe.

It was a secret between them.

And when she came in and found
me opening it this morning,

she was won over, as you put it.

Either you're
the most brazen scoundrel

I ever encountered or...

Or what, Mr. Mason?

Could it be that I'm about
to win you over, too?

NINEVEH:
Oh, there you both are.

You've the documents, Mr. Mason?

Only the preliminary drafts,
Miss Sophia.

There are a number of details
to be worked out.

Oh, and we so hoped
it would be all settled tonight.

Yes, tonight.

Why are you both in such a rush?

Wouldn't you be in a rush,
Mr. Mason,

if, after long years,

you had a chance
to cleanse yourself of guilt?

MASON:
Guilt?

Yes, guilt.

We want you to hear this, too,
dear, so please stay.

We both loved little Caleb,
loved him very much.

But after the trial,

we let him be cast out.

NINEVEH: Because we hadn't
the courage to defy Father.

And it was only after he died,
when Caleb was ...

SOPHIA:
That we tried to find him.

NINEVEH:
And by then, he'd vanished.

Now you understand why
we're in a rush, Mr. Mason?

Yes.

But Mr. Brooks maintains
he isn't Caleb.

Now, suppose this
were definitely proven.

But we happen to know

he is Caleb.

So, how could it be proven?

(door closes)

IRENE:
They're in the library.

Ernest, at last.

Aunt Sophia, Aunt...

Ernest, this is Mr. Brooks.

The Mr. Brooks.

I suppose you're
a little big now

for that Shetland pony
with the spotted left foreleg.

Spotted right foreleg,
Mr. Stone.

Yes.

So it was.

And so it was...

Caleb.

Even if he is Caleb,
which I still doubt,

you could have kept
your big mouth shut.

Now nothing-- but nothing--

can stop
those two crazy old ladies

from willing him every penny
they possess in the world.

And what pennies.

Two-thirds of the Stone estate,

millions that should be ours.

Why can't we fight him on the
grounds that he's illegitimate?

We're not fighting him
on any grounds, darling.

On the fringe of bankruptcy,

living from hand to mouth.

Every dollar
you've inherited, gone,

and most of my money, too.

And you won't fight.

Irene, you're a very
lovely woman

with, uh, just one fault.

You never seem to know
when to mind your own business.

How can you sit there smirking

when you've just
lost yourself not one,

but two inheritances?

I'll let you in
on a little secret:

I haven't lost a thing.

My two esteemed aunts
drew up wills years ago,

leaving everything to charity.

Then, all this time, you've been
lying to me about inheriting.

How else could I have kept you
from leaving me, darling?

(door slams)

Beginning to be afraid
you might have missed the plane.

Well, it was only by the skin
of my teeth I didn't.

You, uh, had some luck, then?

Yeah, but mostly bad.

In the first place,
there's no possible way

of checking the Shanghai
death records

short of sending a spy
behind the Bamboo Curtain,

which is one assignment
I'd just as soon pass up.

What about
the Canadian freighter

that Brooks said he and Caleb
were on at the time?

Well, I ran that one down.

The Saskatchewan Queen.

Company headquarters
in Vancouver have

a John Brooks and a Caleb Stone
listed as crew members

on a Red China trip in ,

with a notation that they both
jumped ship in Shanghai.

Well, at least part
of Brooks' story is true.

Only, which one died there?

Well, actually, Perry,
what difference does it make?

Well, if the young man's Caleb,

he can wait indefinitely
for his great-aunt's money.

But if he's John Brooks
making them think he's Caleb,

he may decide
before somebody proves he isn't

to hurry things up.

You mean,
for Nineveh and Sophia,

a bathtub accident,
a fall down stairs?

You actually think
that's a possibility?

Yes.

Otherwise,
I wouldn't have called

Lieutenant Anderson at Homicide,

nor would I have paid
for two round-trip tickets

to Charleston, South Carolina.

Yeah, first class, too.

You must be worried.

♪♪

Sister Theresa?

Yes?

Two gentlemen who say they have
an appointment to see you.

They say they talked to you
on the telephone?

Yes, of course.

Show them in, please.

Mr. Mason?

Yes.
This is Mr. Paul Drake.

- How do you do?
- I'm Sister Theresa.

Won't you sit down, please?

Thank you.

I have the two boys'
records here.

What did you want to know?

Well, everything
you can tell us, Sister.

Uh, were you able to find
any photographs?

We don't do much photography,
Mr. Mason.

We feel,
while they boys are here,

they're entitled to privacy.

Perhaps you feel our coming here
is an invasion of privacy.

No, in view of what you've told
me, I believe I'm justified

in giving you
what information I can.

John Brooks,

admitted July , .

Doorstep baby,
approximately five days old.

Parents unknown.

Where'd he get his name?

John? From Father John,
who taught the boys carpentry,

and, uh, Brooks from
an English poet, I believe.

As for Caleb, he already

had a name when his mother
left him here

a few weeks before she died.

Admitted December , ,

age six.

(chuckles softly)

Two of my favorites.

Why did they run away?

Because of something cruel

and completely unnecessary
that happened to Caleb.

A newspaper story entitled

"What Became of
the Patent Medicine Baby?"

Locating him here,

and providing a lurid rehash
of the whole case.

And his friend, John Brooks,
vanished at the same time?

But they didn't quite vanish,
Mr. Drake.

Christmas cards
from both the boys.

' , ' ,

Liverpool, Vancouver.

And then from John Brooks alone,

Hong Kong, Buenos Aires, Bombay.

The other man
who was asking about them

said it was obvious
they'd become sailors.

Other man?

When was this?

Several months ago.

He said he was
a private detective,

tracing Caleb
for some relatives.

Do you think they could've been
the two great-aunts?

No, I don't think so.

Um, what was the man's name?

Oh, I don't recall
that he told me.

Can you describe him, Sister?

Well-dressed, well-spoken.

I don't suppose you can
recognize him from that.

No, but we'd like to see

if you recognize the man
in this photograph.

Paul?

It was taken
with a telephoto lens,

but it's still a good likeness.

(gasps)
My, how he's grown.

John Brooks, Sister?

Or Caleb Stone?

You say believing this boy
is their own flesh and blood

has made the great-aunts happy?

Yes.

Then let them continue
to believe, Mr. Mason.

Let them.

Caleb.
Oh, I'm sorry, dear.

I meant John.

We thought,
if you're going to read late,

perhaps you'd like
some sandwiches.

- And...
- No, now, let me tell him.

You spoke at lunch
of an English ale you liked,

so we ordered some.

Is there anything else
you'd like?

No. You've done
far too much already.

Don't read too late, dear.

Remember, we're car shopping
in the morning.

I've decided
I don't really need a car.

If you're worried
about the expense, it's nothing.

Compared to our joy
of having you here with us.

- Good night.
- Good night, dear.

Miss Sophia, Miss Nineveh.

There's something I...

Yes, dear?

Good night.

(phone rings)

Hello?

Yes, he's here.

Just a minute.

It's for you, Ernest.

Yes?

Can it wait till morning?

You're what?

Oh, no, you're not.

I'll be right over.

A friend, in trouble.

I'm afraid our game
is over, Wayne.

Unless you want
to play with Irene.

A tempting offer, but I think
I'd better buzz off...

after I've finished my drink.

Well, I'll see you tomorrow.

Oh, uh, don't wait up for me.

This may take a little time.

All right, darling.

Wayne, that was John Brooks.

Brooks?

- Are you sure?
- Yes.

And I'm also sure there's
something strange going on.

I saw them talking yesterday
in Ernest's car,

and now this.

Maybe they just
took a liking to each other.

It didn't sound that way.

No, it didn't.

Aren't you going
to finish your drink?

Drink?
Oh, no, I've had enough.

I'll see what I can dig out
of Ernest tomorrow.

You'll call me?

Don't I always?

♪♪

Oh, Mr. Ernest.

Where is he?

Mr. Brooks?

He was here.

I'll find him.

Close the doors, Brooks.

Now, what's all this nonsense
about pulling out?

It isn't nonsense, Mr. Stone.

I am pulling out tonight.

Unless you get a bigger cut.

That's the next step, isn't it?

No, sir, I want out, period.

You mean that seriously?

But why?

You thought it was a great idea
when I first got hold of you.

That was before I found out
a few things about your aunts,

and about you, Mr. Stone.

A police lieutenant
by the name of Anderson

was here this afternoon,

and he intimated
he'd be very unhappy

if anything should happen
to Miss Sophia or Miss Nineveh.

So what?

You're not going to harm them.

After they sign the wills,

all you have to do
is just sit around and wait.

Yes, but the question is:

Will you just
sit around and wait?

You think I might
do something to them,

my own flesh and blood?

Didn't you do something
to your own flesh and blood

just years ago?

To little Caleb
and to his mother?

What are you talking about?

One of the things I learned
from Leonard, the houseman.

He believes you were responsible

for what happened to them.

He's insane.

Is he?

After he talked to me,

I went through
old Mr. Stone's papers

and I found this.

A report that you sent him

in from South Carolina.

No record of marriage
between Caleb Stone lll

and Maureen Kelly

in the Bureau
of Vital Statistics.

No memory on the part of the
alleged justice of the peace

and the witnesses
of ceremony performed.

And an affidavit declaring
the marriage certificate

to be a forgery.

How much did all that cost,
Mr. Stone?

Plenty, if you must know,
but try and prove it.

Anyway, what do you care?

Your friend Caleb's dead.

I care about what happens to
your aunts, even if you don't.

So I'm leaving,

and tomorrow,
I'm writing everything down,

and I'm giving it to someone,

in case you get any more ideas,
Mr. Stone.

Just a second.

Aren't you forgetting something?

That agreement you signed
could land you in jail.

And you, too.

All right, then a bigger cut--
- .

- !

Get out of my way, Mr. Stone.

No, you're staying if I've got
to knock your head off!

(groans)

Are you all right, Mr. Stone?

I guess I...

What in the world
are you doing, dear?

I'm leaving, Miss Nineveh.

It's an emergency.

But don't worry--
I'll keep in touch.

Ernest is making you leave,
isn't he?

I heard you quarreling.

Well, he can't.

I'll not let him.

NINEVEH:
Dear.

It's all right.

You don't have to go.

Ernest is dead.

Body found in the library,

shotgun apparently used
as a club,

John Brooks held,
first-degree m*rder.

Well, you sure were right
in your forebodings,

only you got the wrong victim.

I most certainly did.

Ernest Stone
must have gotten proof

that Brooks wasn't Caleb
and confronted him with it.

- Mr. Mason!
- You must help Caleb.

- He didn't k*ll Ernest.
-I did.

No, dear, I did.

Well, one of us did,
so you must help him.

Gradually, I realized
what a cruel thing

it was to do
to two such nice old ladies.

But then, when Mr. Stone
first came to me,

all I could think about
was the money.

Then this remembering things

that seemingly only Caleb
could have remembered

was the result of his coaching?

Except for a few things

that Caleb told me
when we were kids.

Why are they charging me with
first-degree m*rder, Mr. Mason?

I didn't k*ll him intentionally.

The State is going to contend
that you k*lled him

to keep the money for yourself.

It may even suggest that you

k*lled Caleb
to initiate the plot.

But Caleb isn't dead.

I can call him and prove he...

Call him where, John?

Where?

I don't want to involve him
in this.

Finding him will only bring

all that
Patent Medicine Baby stuff

down on him again.

But he is alive?

No, Mr. Mason,
not as far as I'm concerned.

All right, then.

We'll see you in court.

Paul, I'd like you
to call Caleb Stone.

Call Caleb Stone? Where?

Try Information.

New York City first.

It may take a little time.

A little time.

Death resulted
from a massive brain hemorrhage

caused by a violent blow
on the base of his skull.

From my examination
of the wound,

I'd say the blow was delivered
by a cylindrical metal object.

BURGER:
A metal object...

Mr. Mason, the shotgun hit him
on the temple,

not on the back of the head.

Yes, quite possibly.

Thank you, sir.

Mr. Mason?

Uh, Doctor, did your examination
disclose evidence

of any other blows?

Well, a minor contusion
on the left temple,

but there was no fracture.

I see.

Now, as to the fatal blow,

could a cylindrical
metal object, such as a shotgun,

have been wielded
with sufficient force

by a woman to have caused death?

DOCTOR:
Yes, most certainly.

MASON: Thank you, Doctor.
That'll be all.

JUDGE:
Witness may stand down.

Now, Lieutenant,
what did you find,

in addition to the body
and the shotgun,

there in the library?

An open wall safe,

a partially filled glass
of sherry on a table,

and then on the body itself,

folded up in the wallet
of the decedent,

we found that piece of paper,
uh, that document.

BURGER: Would you read this
document aloud for us, please?

"July , .

"I, John Brooks, hereby

"promise that whatever property
and sums of money

"I inherit from Sophia Stone

"or Nineveh Stone, or both,
I will divide with Ernest Stone

on a ratio of % for him
and % for me."”

It's signed, "John Brooks."

Indianapolis Information?

Uh, I'd like the telephone
number of Caleb Stone, please.

No, I don't know the address.

No Caleb Stone?

Thank you very much.

No luck?

Nope. Uh, I'll shuffle off
to Buffalo next,

and you try Salt Lake City.

Code number's .

Yes, I'm positive it was
John Brooks who telephoned.

And what did your husband say
to him, Mrs. Stone?

Well, something like, uh,
"Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

And then, "Oh, no, you're not.

I'll be right over.”

And then he hung up
and said for me not to wait up,

and then he left.

And never came back.

Mrs. Stone told me who it was,

and it was just enough
of a mystery to cause me

to drive home
by way of the Stone mansion.

BURGER:
And what did you see there?

WAYNE:
Ernest,

Mr. Stone,
going into the house.

I said, "Ernest, are you dead?"

And when he didn't answer,

I ran out and told Caleb
the good news.

The good news, Miss Stone?

It meant that Caleb could stay.

Mr. Mason?

Just one question, Miss Stone.

Did you k*ll Ernest?

Yes, I did.

MASON:
Thank you.

JUDGE:
Miss Stone, upon being told

of her legal
and moral obligation

to testify truthfully,

your sister retracted
her statement.

Now, you must tell
the truth, too.

Al right.

I didn't k*ll Ernest, either.

But neither did Caleb.

Miss Stone, do you mean that,
in spite of the agreement

that was read here
in this court,

you still believe John Brooks
to be your nephew?

Of course.

And so does Nineveh.

When did you tell John Brooks

that Ernest Stone
was responsible

for ruining
Maureen Kelly's life?

The afternoon of the m*rder.

You had proof of this?

Knowing Maureen
was proof enough.

She was a sweet, truthful girl,

incapable of deceiving anyone.

What made you select Ernest
as the villain of the piece?

He was the only one
who stood to gain.

MASON: Why did you tell all this
to John Brooks?

Was it because
you also believed he was Caleb?

Yes, Mr. Mason.

I did believe, and I
still do believe he's Caleb,

come back to avenge his mother,

which he did.

I know, operator,
but please keep on ringing.

Perry, we finally found
Caleb Stone.

In Albany, New York.

How on Earth did you find...?

I finally got an answer
from South Carolina.

What did Stone say?

Well, he said to call him back,

and he'd let me know what plane
he was going to catch.

But it, uh, sounds
like he didn't wait.

He was willing
to help us, though?

He was bowled over
by Brooks's trouble,

which he hadn't read about,
and said he'd fly out here

before I even had a chance
to ask him to.

Find out what plane
he takes out of Albany,

then what connecting plane
he catches for Los Angeles,

and meet him at the airport.

That'll probably
be tomorrow morning.

MASON: Well, bring him straight
to court if you have to.

Will do.

Della?

I think we may have
a few rabbits

to pull out of a hat
in court tomorrow.

Gentlemen, before we begin,
I'd like to remind you,

this is a homicide hearing,
rather than a genealogical one,

fascinating as that aspect
of the case may be.

The State agrees completely,
Your Honor.

I see Mr. Mason
has reservations,

to which, of course,
he's entitled.

May I have a moment, Your Honor?

Certainly.

Perry, I tried to phone you
at the office, but you'd left.

It's Caleb Stone--
he was picked up by the police

the minute he stepped off
the plane, and, Perry, he's...

I know, Paul. I know.

Well, that was very considerate
of you, Perry.

To find Caleb Stone
ahead of the Albany Police.

Saves the State the expense
of flying him out here.

Your Honor, as the State's
first witness today,

I call Caleb Stone.

The color of a person's skin
doesn't mean much

to six-year-olds.

So we became friends,
Caleb and I.

Brothers, really.

So that when he ran away,

after the stories
in the newspapers,

I ran away, too.

Once outside,
we decided to exchange names.

Knowing that even though
I called myself Caleb Stone,

nobody would ever accuse me of
being the Patent Medicine Baby.

For a couple of years at sea,
I took correspondence courses,

education courses, mostly,

'cause I wanted to help
homeless kids like myself.

When I finished the courses,
we were in Shanghai.

I decided to go back
to the States,

but Caleb was afraid

that somebody might still
be trying to... to trace him.

Some newspaper man, maybe.

So we agreed to say, if asked,
that, uh, the white

Caleb Stone had died
in Shanghai.

And you knew nothing
of what was going on here?

Well, Caleb wrote me
about a month ago.

He... he seemed kind of bitter.

He said
that some relative of his

had come looking for him,
but didn't recognize him,

so that now
he had a chance to pay back

the Stone family, in part,
for what they'd done to him

and his mother.

Did he say how?

Not exactly.

He said that the ironic thing

was that it involved
his pretending to be himself.

Did he say who it was

who had given him
this chance for revenge?

No, but obviously,
it was the man

that Sister Theresa
wrote me about,

the man who came looking
for him at St. Mary's.

No, it wasn't Ernest
at the orphanage.

He wasn't away
at the time you say.

You're positive?

And are you equally positive

you weren't away
from your apartment

the night of the m*rder?

Now, what would you say,
Mrs. Stone,

if ll produced another witness

who saw you outside
the French doors to the library?

Leonard.

He was in the library.

I thought perhaps he looked out,
and he saw me when I saw him.

Did you see him
k*ll your husband?

Of course not.

He was just looking
down at the body,

smiling,
and then he left the room.

All right, Mrs. Stone.

Did you k*ll your husband?

No. Why would I?

I understand
he was quite heavily insured.

I didn't k*ll him.

I didn't even go
into the library.

Wayne can tell you that.
He met me when I ran

into the house
by the other door.

Didn't you, Wayne?

It's understandable

why I wouldn't want
to come forward, isn't it?

Not wanting to become involved,
even innocently.

Innocently?

That's a curious word
for you to use, Mr. Jameson.

If you arrived as Ernest
was entering the house,

you must have been there
in plenty of time

to witness the quarrel and
the struggle over the shotgun.

Now, why didn't you intervene?

Or at least report
what had happened?

It was none of my business.

I suggest it
was very much your business,

as the instigator
and hidden partner

in the plot
to cheat the two great-aunts.

And I further suggest,
when you saw the plot explode,

leaving you no share
of the Stone fortune

and possible exposure,
you decided

the next best thing
would be Ernest Stone's wife.

His wife and his insurance.

Nonsense.

I was never in any plot.

I never knew anything about one.

Didn't you, Mr. Jameson?

Sister Theresa,

would you point out for us
the man who came to St. Mary's

asking the whereabouts
of Caleb Stone?

No, no, never mind.

I knew
that if Ernest were exposed,

he'd drag me down with him

and we'd both lose out
on a fortune.

Well, I didn't want it
to happen.

He was sitting on the floor,

only half conscious.

It was perfect.

I went inside,
picked up the shotgun and...

You were right.

There was still his insurance,
his wife.

Yes, I k*lled him.

I k*lled him.

What started me
on the right track

was the attitude
of Sister Theresa.

Neither affirming
nor denying you were Caleb.

You figured, if the man
in the photo was an imposter,

she would have said so.

MASON:
She could see no harm

in Caleb being accepted
here as Caleb,

nor in letting the exchange
of names remain a secret.

Until the death
of Ernest Stone, of course.

But what kept me on the track

was the faith
you two had in Caleb.

Faith which, incidentally,
paid off in another way,

because it turned the spirit
of his revenge into, uh...

What shall I say, Caleb?

The only words.

Love, Mr. Mason.

We knew that
would happen all the time.

You did?

NINEVEH:
Why, yes, Miss Street.

Because, as you just said...

BOTH:
We had faith.

(theme music plays)