Lessingham and Sydney stared at me in silence as I dragged them out and laid them on the floor. The dress was at the bottom,—it was an alpaca, of a pretty shade in blue, bedecked with lace and ribbons, as is the fashion of the hour, and lined with sea-green silk. It had perhaps been a ‘charming confection’ once—and that a very recent one!—but now it was all soiled and creased3 and torn and tumbled. The two spectators made a simultaneous pounce4 at it as I brought it to the light.
‘My God!’ cried Sydney, ‘it’s Marjorie’s!—she was wearing it when I saw her last!’
‘It’s Marjorie’s!’ gasped5 Lessingham,—he was clutching at the ruined costume, staring at it like a man who has just received sentence of death. ‘She wore it when she was with me yesterday,—I told her how it suited her, and how pretty it was!’
There was silence,—it was an eloquent6 find; it spoke7 for itself. The two men gazed at the heap of feminine glories,—it might have been the most wonderful sight they ever had seen. Lessingham was the first to speak,—his face had all at once grown grey and haggard.
‘What has happened to her?’
I replied to his question with another.
‘Are you sure this is Miss Linden’s dress?’
‘I am sure,—and were proof needed, here it is.’
He had found the pocket, and was turning out the contents. There was a purse, which contained money and some visiting cards on which were her name and address; a small bunch of keys, with her nameplate attached; a handkerchief, with her initials in a corner. The question of ownership was placed beyond a doubt.
‘You see,’ said Lessingham, exhibiting the money which was in the purse, ‘it is not robbery which has been attempted. Here are two ten-pound notes, and one for five, besides gold and silver,—over thirty pounds in all.’
Atherton, who had been turning over the accumulation of rubbish between the joists, proclaimed another find.
‘Here are her rings, and watch, and a bracelet,—no, it certainly does not look as if theft had been an object.’
‘I have to thank you for this.’
‘You are hard on me, Lessingham, harder than I deserve,—I had rather have thrown away my own life than have suffered misadventure to have come to her.’
‘Yours are idle words. Had you not meddled11 this would not have happened. A fool works more mischief12 with his folly13 than of malice14 prepense. If hurt has befallen Marjorie Lindon you shall account for it to me with your life’s blood.’
‘Let it be so,’ said Sydney. ‘I am content. If hurt has come to Marjorie, God knows that I am willing enough that death should come to me.’
While they wrangled15, I continued to search. A little to one side, under the flooring which was still intact, I saw something gleam. By stretching out my hand, I could just manage to reach it,—it was a long plait of woman’s hair. It had been cut off at the roots,—so close to the head in one place that the scalp itself had been cut, so that the hair was clotted16 with blood.
They were so occupied with each other that they took no notice of me. I had to call their attention to my discovery.
‘Gentlemen, I fear that I have here something which will distress17 you,—is not this Miss Lindon’s hair?’
They recognised it on the instant. Lessingham, snatching it from my hands, pressed it to his lips.
‘This is mine,—I shall at least have something.’ He spoke with a grimness which was a little startling. He held the silken tresses at arm’s length. ‘This points to murder,—foul, cruel, causeless murder. As I live, I will devote my all,—money, time, reputation!—to gaining vengeance18 on the wretch19 who did this deed.’
Atherton chimed in.
‘To that I say, Amen!’ He lifted his hand. ‘God is my witness!’
‘It seems to me, gentlemen, that we move too fast,—to my mind it does not by any means of necessity point to murder. On the contrary, I doubt if murder has been done. Indeed, I don’t mind owning that I have a theory of my own which points all the other way.’
Lessingham caught me by the sleeve.
‘Mr Champnell, tell me your theory.’
‘I will, a little later. Of course it may be altogether wrong;—though I fancy it is not; I will explain my reasons when we come to talk of it. But, at present, there are things which must be done.’
‘I vote for tearing up every board in the house!’ cried Sydney. ‘And for pulling the whole infernal place to pieces. It’s a conjurer’s den8.—I shouldn’t be surprised if cabby’s old gent is staring at us all the while from some peephole of his own.’
We examined the entire house, methodically, so far as we were able, inch by inch. Not another board proved loose,—to lift those which were nailed down required tools, and those we were without. We sounded all the walls,—with the exception of the party walls they were the usual lath and plaster constructions, and showed no signs of having been tampered20 with. The ceilings were intact; if anything was concealed21 in them it must have been there some time,—the cement was old and dirty. We took the closet to pieces; examined the chimneys; peered into the kitchen oven and the copper;—in short, we pried22 into everything which, with the limited means at our disposal, could be pried into,—without result. At the end we found ourselves dusty, dirty, and discomfited23. The cabman’s ‘old gent’ remained as much a mystery as ever, and no further trace had been discovered of Miss Lindon.
‘Now what’s to be done? There seems to be just nothing in the place at all, and yet that there is, and that it’s the key to the whole confounded business I should be disposed to swear.’
‘In that case I would suggest that you should stay and look for it. The cabman can go and look for the requisite25 tools, or a workman to assist you, if you like. For my part it appears to me that evidence of another sort is, for the moment, of paramount26 importance; and I propose to commence my search for it by making a call at the house which is over the way.’
I had observed, on our arrival, that the road only contained two houses which were in anything like a finished state,—that which we were in, and another, some fifty or sixty yards further down, on the opposite side. It was to this I referred. The twain immediately proffered27 their companionship.
‘I will come with you,’ said Mr Lessingham.
‘And I,’ echoed Sydney. ‘We’ll leave this sweet homestead in charge of the cabman,—I’ll pull it to pieces afterwards.’ He went out and spoke to the driver. ‘Cabby, we’re going to pay a visit to the little crib over there,—you keep an eye on this one. And if you see a sign of anyone being about the place,—living, or dead, or anyhow—you give me a yell. I shall be on the lookout28, and I’ll be with you before you can say Jack29 Robinson.’
‘You bet I’ll yell,—I’ll raise the hair right off you.’ The fellow grinned. ‘But I don’t know if you gents are hiring me by the day,—I want to change my horse; he ought to have been in his stable a couple of hours ago.’
‘Never mind your horse,—let him rest a couple of hours extra to-morrow to make up for those he has lost to-day. I’ll take care you don’t lose anything by this little job,—or your horse either.—By the way, look here,—this will be better than yelling.’
Taking a revolver out of his trousers’ pocket he handed it up to the grinning driver.
‘If that old gent of yours does appear, you have a pop at him,—I shall hear that easier than a yell. You can put a bullet through him if you like,—I give you my word it won’t be murder.’
‘I don’t care if it is,’ declared the cabman, handling the weapon like one who was familiar with arms of precision. ‘I used to fancy my revolver shooting when I was with the colours, and if I do get a chance I’ll put a shot through the old hunks, if only to prove to you that I’m no liar30.’
Whether the man was in earnest or not I could not tell,—nor whether Atherton meant what he said in answer.
‘If you shoot him I’ll give you fifty pounds.’
‘All right!’ The driver laughed. ‘I’ll do my best to earn that fifty!’
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1
outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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2
linen
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| n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的 | |
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3
creased
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| （使…）起折痕，弄皱( crease的过去式和过去分词 )； （皮肤）皱起，使起皱纹； 皱皱巴巴 | |
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4
pounce
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| n.猛扑；v.猛扑，突然袭击，欣然同意 | |
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5
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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6
eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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7
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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8
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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9
glowering
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| v.怒视( glower的现在分词 ) | |
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10
meek
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| adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的 | |
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11
meddled
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| v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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13
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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14
malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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15
wrangled
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| v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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16
clotted
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| adj.凝结的v.凝固( clot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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17
distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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18
vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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19
wretch
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| n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人 | |
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20
tampered
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| v.窜改( tamper的过去式 )；篡改；（用不正当手段）影响；瞎摆弄 | |
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21
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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22
pried
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| v.打听，刺探（他人的私事）( pry的过去式和过去分词 )；撬开 | |
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23
discomfited
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| v.使为难( discomfit的过去式和过去分词)；使狼狈；使挫折；挫败 | |
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24
chagrin
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| n.懊恼；气愤；委屈 | |
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25
requisite
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| adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品 | |
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26
paramount
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| a.最重要的，最高权力的 | |
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27
proffered
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| v.提供，贡献，提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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28
lookout
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| n.注意，前途，瞭望台 | |
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29
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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30
liar
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| n.说谎的人 | |
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