So apprehensive2 was Lord Caterham of being consulted by George that hespent the whole morning making a tour of his estate. Only the pangs3 ofhunger drew him homeward. He also reflected that by now the worstwould surely be over.
He sneaked4 into the house quietly by a small side door. From there heslipped neatly5 into his sanctum. He flattered himself that his entrance hadnot been observed, but there he was mistaken. The watchful6 Tredwell letnothing escape him. He presented himself at the door.
“You’ll excuse me, my lord—”
“What is it, Tredwell?”
“Mr. Lomax, my lord, is anxious to see you in the library as soon as youreturn.”
By this delicate method Tredwell conveyed that Lord Caterham had notyet returned unless he chose to say so.
Lord Caterham sighed, and then rose.
“I suppose it will have to be done sooner or later. In the library, yousay?”
“Yes, my lord.”
Sighing again, Lord Caterham crossed the wide spaces of his ancestralhome, and reached the library door. The door was locked. As he rattledthe handle, it was unlocked from inside, opened a little way, and the faceof George Lomax appeared, peering out suspiciously.
His face changed when he saw who it was.
“Ah, Caterham, come in. We were just wondering what had become ofyou.”
Murmuring something vague about duties on the estate, repairs for ten-ants, Lord Caterham sidled in apologetically. There were two other men inthe room. One was Colonel Melrose, the chief constable7. The other was asquarely built middle-aged8 man with a face so singularly devoid9 of expres-sion as to be quite remarkable10.
“Superintendent Battle arrived half an hour ago,” explained George. “Hehas been round with Inspector11 Badgworthy, and seen Dr. Cartwright. Henow wants a few facts from us.”
They all sat down, after Lord Caterham had greeted Melrose and ac-knowledged his introduction to Superintendent Battle.
“I need hardly tell you, Battle,” said George, “that this is a case in whichwe must use the utmost discretion12.”
The superintendent nodded in an offhand13 manner that rather took LordCaterham’s fancy.
“That will be all right, Mr. Lomax. But no concealments from us. I un-derstand that the dead gentleman was called Count Stanislaus—at least,that that is the name by which the household knew him. Now was that hisreal name?”
“It was not.”
“What was his real name?”
“Prince Michael of Herzoslovakia.”
Battle’s eyes opened just a trifle, otherwise he gave no sign.
“And what, if I may ask the question, was the purpose of his visit here?
Just pleasure?”
“There was a further object, Battle. All this in the strictest confidence, ofcourse.”
“Yes, yes, Mr. Lomax.”
“Colonel Melrose?”
“Of course.”
“Well, then, Prince Michael was here for the express purpose of meetingMr. Herman Isaacstein. A loan was to be arranged on certain terms.”
“Which were?”
“I do not know the exact details. Indeed, they had not yet been ar-ranged. But in the event of coming to the throne, Prince Michael pledgedhimself to grant certain oil concessions14 to those companies in which Mr.
Isaacstein is interested. The British Government was prepared to supportthe claim of Prince Michael to the throne in view of his pronounced Brit-ish sympathies.”
“Well,” said Superintendent Battle, “I don’t suppose I need go furtherinto it than that. Prince Michael wanted the money, Mr. Isaacstein wantedoil, and the British Government was ready to do the heavy father. Just onequestion. Was anyone else after those concessions?”
“I believe an American group of financiers had made overtures15 to HisHighness.”
“And been turned down, eh?”
But George refused to be drawn16.
“Prince Michael’s sympathies were entirely17 pro-British,” he repeated.
Superintendent Battle did not press the point.
“Lord Caterham, I understand that this is what occurred yesterday. Youmet Prince Michael in town and journeyed down here in company withhim. The Prince was accompanied by his valet, a Herzoslovakian namedBoris Anchoukoff, but his equerry, Captain Andrassy, remained in town.
The Prince, on arriving, declared himself greatly fatigued18, and retired19 tothe apartments set aside for him. Dinner was served to him there, and hedid not meet the other members of the house party. Is that correct?”
“Quite correct.”
“This morning a housemaid discovered the body at approximately 7:45a.m. Dr. Cartwright examined the dead man and found that death was theresult of a bullet fired from a revolver. No revolver was found, and no onein the house seems to have heard the shot. On the other hand the deadman’s wristwatch was smashed by the fall, and marks the crime as havingbeen committed at exactly a quarter to twelve. Now what time did you re-tire to bed last night?”
“We went early. Somehow or other the party didn’t seem to ‘go,’ if youknow what I mean, Superintendent. We went up about half past ten, Ishould say.”
“Thank you. Now I will ask you, Lord Caterham, to give me a descriptionof all the people staying in the house.”
“But, excuse me, I thought the fellow who did it came from outside?”
Superintendent Battle smiled.
“I daresay he did. I daresay he did. But all the same I’ve got to know whowas in the house. Matter of routine, you know.”
“Well, there was Prince Michael and his valet and Mr. Herman Isaac-stein. You know all about them. Then there was Mr. Eversleigh—”
“Who works in my department,” put in George condescendingly.
“And who was acquainted with the real reason of Prince Michael’s beinghere?”
“No, I should not say that,” replied George weightily. “Doubtless he real-ized that something was in the wind, but I did not think it necessary totake him fully20 into my confidence.”
“I see. Will you go on, Lord Caterham?”
“Let me see, there was Mr. Hiram Fish.”
“Who is Mr. Hiram Fish?”
“Mr. Fish is an American. He brought over a letter of introduction fromMr. Lucius Gott—you’ve heard of Lucius Gott?”
Superintendent Battle smiled acknowledgement. Who had not heard ofLucius C. Gott, the multimillionaire?
“He was specially21 anxious to see my first editions. Mr. Gott’s collectionis, of course, unequalled, but I’ve got several treasures myself. This Mr.
Fish was an enthusiast22. Mr. Lomax had suggested that I ask one or two ex-tra people down here this weekend to make things seem more natural, so Itook the opportunity of asking Mr. Fish. That finishes the men. As for theladies, there is only Mrs. Revel—and I expect she brought a maid or some-thing like that. Then there was my daughter, and of course the childrenand their nurses and governesses and all the servants.”
Lord Caterham paused and took a breath.
“Thank you,” said the detective. “A mere23 matter of routine, but neces-sary as such.”
“There is no doubt, I suppose,” asked George ponderously24, “that themurderer entered by the window?”
Battle paused for a minute before replying slowly.
“There were footsteps leading up to the window, and footsteps leadingaway from it. A car stopped outside the park at 11:40 last night. At twelveo’clock a young man arrived at the Jolly Cricketers in a car, and engaged aroom. He put his boots outside to be cleaned—they were very wet andmuddy, as though he had been walking through the long grass in thepark.”
George leant forward eagerly.
“Could not the boots be compared with the footprints?”
“They were.”
“Well?”
“They exactly correspond.”
“That settles it,” cried George. “We have the murderer. This young man—what is his name, by the way?”
“At the inn he gave the name of Anthony Cade.”
“This Anthony Cade must be pursued at once, and arrested.”
“You won’t need to pursue him,” said Superintendent Battle.
“Why?”
“Because he’s still there.”
“What?”
“Curious, isn’t it?”
Colonel Melrose eyed him keenly.
“What’s in your mind, Battle? Out with it.”
“I just say it’s curious, that’s all. Here’s a young man who ought to cutand run, but he doesn’t cut and run. He stays here, and gives us every fa-cility for comparing footmarks.”
“What do you think, then?”
“I don’t know what to think. And that’s a very disturbing state of mind.”
“Do you imagine—” began Colonel Melrose, but broke off as a discreetknock came at the door.
George rose and went to it. Tredwell, inwardly suffering from having toknock at doors in this low fashion, stood dignified25 upon the threshold, andaddressed his master.
“Excuse me, my lord, but a gentleman wishes to see you on urgent andimportant business, connected, I understand, with this morning’stragedy.”
“What’s his name?” asked Battle suddenly.
“His name, sir, is Mr. Anthony Cade, but he said it wouldn’t convey any-thing to anybody.”
It seemed to convey something to the four men present. They all sat upin varying degrees of astonishment26.
Lord Caterham began to chuckle27.
“I’m really beginning to enjoy myself. Show him in, Tredwell. Show himin at once.”
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收听单词发音
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1
superintendent
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| n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长 | |
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apprehensive
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| adj.担心的，恐惧的，善于领会的 | |
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pangs
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| 突然的剧痛( pang的名词复数 )； 悲痛 | |
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4
sneaked
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| v.潜行( sneak的过去式和过去分词 )；偷偷溜走；（儿童向成人）打小报告；告状 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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6
watchful
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| adj.注意的，警惕的 | |
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7
constable
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| n.(英国)警察，警官 | |
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8
middle-aged
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| adj.中年的 | |
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9
devoid
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| adj.全无的，缺乏的 | |
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10
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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inspector
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| n.检查员，监察员，视察员 | |
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12
discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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offhand
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| adj.临时，无准备的；随便，马虎的 | |
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14
concessions
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| n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权 | |
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overtures
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| n.主动的表示，提议；（向某人做出的）友好表示、姿态或提议( overture的名词复数 )；（歌剧、芭蕾舞、音乐剧等的）序曲，前奏曲 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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fatigued
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| adj. 疲乏的 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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enthusiast
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| n.热心人，热衷者 | |
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23
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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ponderously
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dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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chuckle
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| vi.／n.轻声笑，咯咯笑 | |
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