Bridget sat for a minute motionless beside him. She said:
“Gordon?”
Luke nodded.
“Gordon? Gordon—a murderer? Gordon the murderer? I never heardanything so ridiculous in all my life!”
“That’s how it strikes you?”
“Yes, indeed. Why, Gordon wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
Luke said grimly:
“That may be true. I don’t know. But he certainly killed a canary bird,and I’m pretty certain he’s killed a large number of human beings aswell.”
“My dear Luke, I simply can’t believe it!”
“I know,” said Luke. “It does sound quite incredible. Why, he never evenentered my head as a possible suspect until the night before last.”
Bridget protested:
“But I know all about Gordon! I know what he’s like! He’s really a sweetlittle man—pompous, yes, but rather pathetic really.”
Luke shook his head. “You’ve got to readjust your ideas about him, Brid-get.”
“It’s no good, Luke, I simply can’t believe it! What put such an absurdidea into your head? Why, two days ago you were quite positive it was Ell-sworthy.”
Luke winced1 slightly.
“I know. I know. You probably think that tomorrow I shall suspectThomas, and the day after I shall be convinced that it’s Horton I’m after!
I’m not really so unbalanced as that. I admit the idea’s completely startlingwhen it first comes to you, but if you look into it a bit closer, you’ll see thatit all fits in remarkably2 well. No wonder Miss Pinkerton didn’t dare to goto the local authorities. She knew they’d laugh at her! Scotland Yard washer only hope.”
“But what possible motive3 could Gordon have for all this killing4 busi-ness? Oh, it’s all so silly!”
“I know. But don’t you realize that Gordon Whitfield has a very exaltedopinion of himself?”
Bridget said: “He pretends to be very wonderful and very important.
That’s just inferiority complex, poor lamb!”
“Possibly that’s at the root of the trouble. I don’t know. But think, Brid-get—just think a minute. Remember all the phrases you’ve used laugh-ingly yourself about him — lèse- majesté, etc. Don’t you realize that theman’s ego5 is swollen6 out of all proportion? And it’s allied7 with religion. Mydear girl, the man’s as mad as a hatter!”
Bridget thought for a minute.
She said at last: “I still can’t believe it. What evidence have you got,Luke?”
“Well, there are his own words. He told me, quite plainly and distinctly,the night before last, that anyone who opposed him in any way alwaysdied.”
“Go on.”
“I can’t quite explain to you what I mean—but it was the way he said it.
Quite calm and complacent8 and—how shall I put it?—quite used to theidea! He just sat there smiling to himself…It was uncanny and rather hor-rible, Bridget!”
“Go on.”
“Well, then he went on to give me a list of people who’d passed out be-cause they’d incurred9 his sovereign displeasure! And, listen to this, Brid-get, the people he mentioned were Mrs. Horton, Amy Gibbs, Tommy Pierce,Harry10 Carter, Humbleby, and that chauffeur11 fellow, Rivers.”
Bridget was shaken at last. She went very pale.
“He mentioned those actual people?”
“Those actual people! Now do you believe?”
“Oh, God, I suppose I must…What were his reasons?”
“Horribly trivial—that’s what made it so frightening. Mrs. Horton hadsnubbed him, Tommy Pierce had done imitations of him and made thegardeners laugh, Harry Carter had abused him, Amy Gibbs had beengrossly impertinent, Humbleby had dared to oppose him publicly, Riversthreatened him before me and Miss Waynflete—”
Bridget put her hands to her eyes.
“Horrible…Quite horrible…” she murmured.
“I know. Then there’s some other outside evidence. The car that randown Miss Pinkerton in London was a Rolls, and its number was the num-ber of Lord Whitfield’s car.”
“That definitely clinches12 it,” said Bridget slowly.
“Yes. The police thought the woman who gave them that number musthave made a mistake. Mistake indeed!”
“I can understand that,” said Bridget. “When it comes to a rich, powerfulman like Lord Whitfield, naturally his story is the one to be believed!”
“Yes. One appreciates Miss Pinkerton’s difficulty.”
Bridget said thoughtfully:
“Once or twice she said rather queer things to me. As though she werewarning me against something… I didn’t understand in the least at thetime…I see now!”
“It all fits in,” said Luke. “That’s the way of it. At first one says (as yousaid), “Impossible!” and then once one accepts the idea, everything fits in!
The grapes he sent to Mrs. Horton—and she thought the nurses were pois-oning her! And that visit of his to the Wellerman Kreutz Institute—some-how or other he must have got hold of some culture of germs and infectedHumbleby.”
“I don’t see how he managed that.”
“I don’t either, but the connection is there. One can’t get away from that.”
“No… As you say, if fits. And of course he could do things that otherpeople couldn’t! I mean he would be so completely above suspicion!”
“I think Miss Waynflete suspected. She mentioned that visit to the insti-tute. Brought it into conversation quite casually—but I believe she hopedI’d act upon it.”
“She knew, then, all along?”
“She had a very strong suspicion. I think she was handicapped by hav-ing once been in love with him.”
Bridget nodded.
“Yes, that accounts for several things. Gordon told me they had oncebeen engaged.”
“She wanted, you see, not to believe it was him. But she became moreand more sure that it was. She tried to give me hints, but she couldn’t bearto do anything outright13 against him! Women are odd creatures! I think, ina way, she still cares about him….”
“Even after he jilted her?”
“She jilted him. It was rather an ugly story. I’ll tell you.”
He recounted the short, ugly episode. Bridget stared at him.
“Gordon did that?”
“Yes. Even in those days, you see, he can’t have been normal!”
Bridget shivered and murmured:
“All those years ago…all those years….”
Luke said:
“He may have got rid of a lot more people than we shall ever knowabout! It’s just the rapid succession of deaths lately that drew attention tohim! As though he’d got reckless with success!”
Bridget nodded. She was silent for a minute or two, thinking, then sheasked abruptly14:
“What exactly did Miss Pinkerton say to you—in the train that day? Howdid she begin?”
Luke cast his mind back.
“Told me she was going to Scotland Yard, mentioned the village con-stable, said he was a nice fellow but not up to dealing15 with murder.”
“That was the first mention of the word?”
“Yes.”
“Go on.”
“Then she said, ‘You’re surprised, I can see. I was myself at first. I reallycouldn’t believe it. I thought I must be imagining things.’”
“And then?”
“I asked her if she was sure she wasn’t—imagining things, I mean—andshe said quite placidly16, ‘Oh, no! I might have been the first time, but not thesecond, or the third or the fourth. After that one knows.’”
“Marvellous,” commented Bridget. “Go on.”
“So of course I humoured her—said I was sure she was doing the rightthing. I was an unbelieving Thomas if there ever was one!”
“I know. So easy to be wise after the event! I’d have felt the same, niceand superior to the poor old dame17! How did the conversation go on?”
“Let me see—oh! she mentioned the Abercrombie case—you know, theWelsh poisoner. Said she hadn’t really believed that there had been a look—a special look—that he gave his victims. But that she believed it now be-cause she had seen it herself.”
“What words did she use exactly?”
Luke thought, creasing18 his brow.
“She said, still in that nice ladylike voice, ‘Of course, I didn’t really believethat when I read about it—but it’s true.’ And I said, ‘What’s true?’ And shesaid, ‘The look on a person’s face.’ And by Jove, Bridget, the way she saidthat absolutely got me! Her quiet voice and the look on her face—likesomeone who had really seen something almost too horrible to speakabout!”
“Go on, Luke. Tell me everything.”
“And then she enumerated19 the victims — Amy Gibbs and Carter andTommy Pierce, and said that Tommy was a horrid20 boy and Carter drank.
And then she said, ‘But now—yesterday—it was Dr. Humbleby—and he’ssuch a good man — a really good man.’ And she said if she went toHumbleby and told him, he wouldn’t believe her, he’d only laugh!”
Bridget gave a deep sigh.
“I see,” she said. “I see.”
Luke looked at her.
“What is it, Bridget? What are you thinking of?”
“Something Mrs. Humbleby once said. I wondered—no, never mind, goon. What was it she said to you right at the end?”
Luke repeated the words soberly. They had made an impression on himand he was not likely to forget them.
“I’d said it was difficult to get away with a lot of murders, and sheanswered, ‘No, no, my dear boy, that’s where you’re wrong. It’s very easy tokill—so long as no one suspects you. And you see, the person in question is justthe last person anyone would suspect….’”
He was silent. Bridget said with a shiver:
“Easy to kill? Horribly easy—that’s true enough! No wonder those wordsstuck in your mind, Luke. They’ll stick in mine—all my life! A man likeGordon Whitfield—oh! of course it’s easy.”
“It’s not so easy to bring it home to him,” said Luke.
“Don’t you think so? I’ve an idea I can help there.”
“Bridget, I forbid you—”
“You can’t. One can’t just sit back and play safe. I’m in this, Luke. It maybe dangerous—yes, I’ll admit that—but I’ve got to play my part.”
“Bridget—”
“I’m in this, Luke! I shall accept Miss Waynflete’s invitation and staydown here.”
“My darling, I implore21 you—”
“It’s dangerous for both of us. I know that. But we’re in it, Luke—we’rein it—together!”
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收听单词发音
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1
winced
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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remarkably
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| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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ego
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| n.自我，自己，自尊 | |
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6
swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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7
allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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8
complacent
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| adj.自满的；自鸣得意的 | |
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9
incurred
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| [医]招致的，遭受的； incur的过去式 | |
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harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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chauffeur
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| n.(受雇于私人或公司的)司机；v.为…开车 | |
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12
clinches
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| n.（尤指两人）互相紧紧抱[扭]住( clinch的名词复数 )；解决（争端、交易），达成（协议）v.（尤指两人）互相紧紧抱[扭]住( clinch的第三人称单数 )；解决（争端、交易），达成（协议） | |
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13
outright
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| adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的 | |
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14
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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15
dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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placidly
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| adv.平稳地，平静地 | |
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dame
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| n.女士 | |
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18
creasing
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| （使…）起折痕，弄皱( crease的现在分词 )； （皮肤）皱起，使起皱纹； 挑檐 | |
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19
enumerated
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| v.列举，枚举，数( enumerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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20
horrid
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| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
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implore
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| vt.乞求，恳求，哀求 | |
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