The inquest took place on the following morning. It was extraordinarilyunlike the inquests as pictured in sensational1 fiction. It satisfied evenGeorge Lomax in its rigid2 suppression of all interesting details. Superin-tendent Battle and the coroner, working together with the support of thechief constable3, had reduced the proceedings4 to the lowest level of bore-dom.
Immediately after the inquest, Anthony took an unostentatious depar-ture.
His departure was the one bright spot in the day for Bill Eversleigh.
George Lomax, obsessed5 with the fear that something damaging to his de-partment might leak out, had been exceedingly trying. Miss Oscar and Billhad been in constant attendance. Everything useful and interesting hadbeen done by Miss Oscar. Bill’s part had been to run to and fro with count-less messages, to decode6 telegrams, and to listen by the hour to George’srepeating himself.
It was a completely exhausted7 young man who retired8 to bed on Sat-urday night. He had had practically no chance to talk to Virginia all day,owing to George’s exactions, and he felt injured and ill-used. Thank good-ness, that Colonial fellow had taken himself off. He had monopolized9 fartoo much of Virginia’s society, anyway. And of course if George Lomaxwent on making an ass10 of himself like this—His mind seething11 with re-sentment, Bill fell asleep. And, in dreams, came consolation12. For hedreamt of Virginia.
It was an heroic dream, a dream of burning timbers in which he playedthe part of the gallant13 rescuer. He brought down Virginia from the top-most storey in his arms. She was unconscious. He laid her on the grass.
Then he went off to find a packet of sandwiches. It was most importantthat he should find that packet of sandwiches. George had it but instead ofgiving it up to Bill, he began to dictate14 telegrams. They were now in thevestry of a church, and any minute Virginia might arrive to be married tohim. Horror! He was wearing pyjamas15. He must get home at once and findhis proper clothes. He rushed out to the car. The car would not start. Nopetrol in the tank! He was getting desperate. And then a big General busdrew up and Virginia got out of it on the arm of the baldheaded Baron16.
She was deliciously cool, and exquisitely17 dressed in grey. She came over tohim and shook him by the shoulders playfully. “Bill,” she said. “Oh, Bill.”
She shook him harder. “Bill,” she said. “Wake up. Oh, do wake up!”
Very dazed, Bill woke up. He was in his bedroom at Chimneys. But partof the dream was with him still. Virginia was leaning over him, and wasrepeating the same words with variations.
“Wake up, Bill. Oh, do wake up! Bill.”
“Hullo!” said Bill, sitting up in bed. “What’s the matter?”
Virginia gave a sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness. I thought you’d never wake up. I’ve been shaking youand shaking you. Are you properly awake now?”
“I think so,” said Bill doubtfully.
“You great lump,” said Virginia. “The trouble I’ve had! My arms areaching.”
“These insults are uncalled for,” said Bill, with dignity. “Let me say, Vir-ginia, that I consider your conduct most unbecoming. Not at all that of apure young widow.”
“Don’t be an idiot, Bill. Things are happening.”
“What kind of things?”
“Queer things. In the Council Chamber19. I thought I heard a door bangsomewhere, and I came down to see. And then I saw a light in the CouncilChamber. I crept along the passage, and peeped through the crack of thedoor. I couldn’t see much, but what I could see was so extraordinary that Ifelt I must see more. And then, all of a sudden, I felt that I should like anice, big strong man with me. And you were the nicest and biggest andstrongest man I could think of, so I came in and tried to wake you upquietly. But I’ve been ages doing it.”
“I see,” said Bill. “And what do you want me to do now? Get up andtackle the burglars?”
Virginia wrinkled her brows.
“I’m not sure that they are burglars. Bill, it’s very queer—But don’t let’swaste time talking. Get up.”
Bill slipped obediently out of bed.
“Wait while I don a pair of boots—the big ones with nails in them. How-ever big and strong I am. I’m not going to tackle hardened criminals withbare feet.”
“I like your pyjamas, Bill,” said Virginia dreamily. “Brightness withoutvulgarity.”
“While we’re on the subject,” remarked Bill, reaching for his secondboot, “I like that thingummybob of yours. It’s a pretty shade of green.
What do you call it? It’s not just a dressing20 gown, is it?”
“It’s a negligé,” said Virginia. “I’m glad you’ve led such a pure life, Bill.”
“I haven’t, said Bill indignantly.
“You’ve just betrayed the fact. You’re very nice, Bill, and I like you. Idaresay that tomorrow morning—say about ten o’clock, a good safe hourfor not unduly21 exciting the emotions—I might even kiss you.”
“I always think these things are best carried out on the spur of the mo-ment,” suggested Bill.
“We’ve other fish to fry,” said Virginia. “If you don’t want to put on a gasmask and a shirt of chain mail, shall we start?”
“I’m ready,” said Bill.
He wriggled22 into a lurid23 silk dressing gown, and picked up a poker24.
“The orthodox weapon,” he observed.
“Come on,” said Virginia, “and don’t make a noise.”
They crept out of the room and along the corridor, and then down thewide double staircase. Virginia frowned as they reached the bottom of it.
“Those boots of yours aren’t exactly domes25 of silence, are they, Bill?”
“Nails will be nails,” said Bill. “I’m doing my best.”
“You’ll have to take them off,” said Virginia firmly.
Bill groaned26.
“You can carry them in your hand. I want to see if you can make outwhat’s going on in the Council Chamber. Bill, it’s awfully27 mysterious. Whyshould burglars take a man in armour28 to pieces?”
“Well, I suppose they can’t take him away whole very well. They disar-ticulate him, and pack him neatly29.”
Virginia shook her head, dissatisfied.
“What should they want to steal a mouldy old suit of armour for? Why,Chimneys is full of treasures that are much easier to take away.”
Bill shook his head.
“How many of them are there?” he asked, taking a firmer grip of hispoker.
“I couldn’t see properly. You know what a keyhole is. And they only hada flashlight.”
“I expect they’ve gone by now,” said Bill hopefully.
He sat on the bottom stair and drew off his boots. Then, holding them inhis hand, he crept along the passage that led to the Council Chamber, Vir-ginia close behind him. They halted outside the massive oak door. All wassilent within, but suddenly Virginia pressed his arm, and he nodded. Abright light had shown for a minute through the keyhole.
Bill went down on his knees, and applied31 his eye to the orifice. What hesaw was confusing in the extreme. The scene of the drama that was beingenacted inside was evidently just to the left, out of his line of vision. A sub-dued chink every now and then seemed to point to the fact that the in-vaders were still dealing32 with the figure in armour. There were two ofthese, Bill remembered. They stood together by the wall just under theHolbein portrait. The light of the electric torch was evidently being direc-ted upon the operations in progress. It left the rest of the room nearly indarkness. Once a figure flitted across Bill’s line of vision, but there was notsufficient light to distinguish anything about it. It might have been that ofa man or a woman. In a minute or two it flitted back again and then thesubdued chinking sounded again. Presently there came a new sound, afaint tap-tap as of knuckles33 on wood.
Bill sat back on his heels suddenly.
“What is it?” whispered Virginia.
“Nothing. It’s no good going on like this. We can’t see anything, and wecan’t guess what they’re up to. I must go in and tackle them.”
He drew on his boots and stood up.
“Now, Virginia, listen to me. We’ll open the door as softly as possible.
You know where the switch of the electric light is?”
“Yes, just by the door.”
“I don’t think there are more than two of them. There may be only one. Iwant to get well into the room. Then, when I say ‘Go’ I want you to switchon the lights. Do you understand?”
“Perfectly.”
“And don’t scream or faint or anything. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“My hero!” murmured Virginia.
Bill peered at her suspiciously through the darkness. He heard a faintsound which might have been either a sob34 or a laugh. Then he grasped thepoker firmly and rose to his feet. He felt that he was fully18 alive to the situ-ation.
Very softly, he turned the handle of the door. It yielded and swunggently inwards. Bill felt Virginia close beside him. Together they movednoiselessly into the room.
At the farther end of the room, the torch was playing upon the Holbeinpicture. Silhouetted35 against it was the figure of a man, standing36 on a chairand gently tapping on the panelling. His back, of course, was to them, andhe merely loomed37 up as a monstrous38 shadow.
What more they might have seen cannot be told, for at that momentBill’s nails squeaked39 upon the parquet40 floor. The man swung round, dir-ecting the powerful torch full upon them and almost dazzling them withthe sudden glare.
Bill did not hesitate.
“Go,” he roared to Virginia, and sprang for his man, as she obedientlypressed down the switch of the electric lights.
The big chandelier should have been flooded with light; but instead, allthat happened was the click of the switch. The room remained in dark-ness.
Virginia heard Bill curse freely. The next minute the air was filled withpanting, scuffling sounds. The torch had fallen to the ground and extin-guished itself in the fall. There was the sound of a desperate struggle goingon in the darkness, but as to who was getting the better of it, and indeed asto who was taking part in it, Virginia had no idea. Had there been anyoneelse in the room besides the man who was tapping the panelling? Theremight have been. Their glimpse had been only a momentary41 one.
Virginia felt paralysed. She hardly knew what to do. She dared not try tojoin in the struggle. To do so might hamper42 and not aid Bill. Her one ideawas to stay in the doorway43, so that anyone trying to escape should notleave the room that way. At the same time, she disobeyed Bill’s express in-structions and screamed loudly and repeatedly for help.
She heard doors opening upstairs, and a sudden gleam of light from thehall and the big staircase. If only Bill could hold his man until help came.
But at that minute there was a final terrific upheaval44. They must havecrashed into one of the figures in armour, for it fell to the ground with adeafening noise. Virginia saw dimly a figure springing for the window,and at the same time heard Bill cursing and disengaging himself fromfragments of armour.
For the first time, she left her post, and rushed wildly for the figure atthe window. But the window was already unlatched. The intruder had noneed to stop and fumble45 for it. He sprang out and raced away down theterrace and round the corner of the house. Virginia raced after him. Shewas young and athletic46, and she turned the corner of the terrace not manyseconds after her quarry47.
But there she ran headlong into the arms of a man who was emergingfrom a small side door. It was Mr. Hiram P. Fish.
“Gee! It’s a lady,” he exclaimed. “Why, I beg your pardon, Mrs. Revel48. Itook you for one of the thugs fleeing from justice.”
“He’s just passed this way,” cried Virginia breathlessly. “Can’t we catchhim?”
But even as she spoke30, she knew it was too late. The man must havegained the park by now, and it was a dark night with no moon. She re-traced her steps to the Council Chamber, Mr. Fish by her side, discoursingin a soothing49 monotone upon the habits of burglars in general, of whichhe seemed to have a wide experience.
Lord Caterham, Bundle and various frightened servants were standingin the doorway of the Council Chamber.
“What the devil’s the matter?” asked Bundle. “Is it burglars? What areyou and Mr. Fish doing, Virginia? Taking a midnight stroll?”
Virginia explained the events of the evening.
“How frightfully exciting,” commented Bundle. “You don’t usually get amurder and a burglary crowded into one weekend. What’s the matterwith the lights in here? They’re all right everywhere else.”
That mystery was soon explained. The bulbs had simply been removedand laid in a row against the wall. Mounted on a pair of steps, the digni-fied Tredwell, dignified50 even in undress, restored illumination to thestricken apartment.
“If I am not mistaken,” said Lord Caterham in his sad voice as he lookedaround him, “this room has recently been the centre of somewhat violentactivity.”
There was some justice in the remark. Everything that could have beenknocked over had been kocked over. The floor was littered with splinteredchairs, broken china, and fragments of armour.
“How many of them were there?” asked Bundle. “It seems to have beena desperate fight.”
“Only one, I think,” said Virginia. But, even as she spoke she hesitated alittle. Certainly only one person—a man—had passed out through the win-dow. But as she had rushed after him, she had a vague impression of arustle somewhere close at hand. If so, the second occupant of the roomcould have escaped through the door. Perhaps, though, the rustle51 hadbeen an effect of her own imagination.
Bill appeared suddenly at the window. He was out of breath and pantinghard.
“Damn the fellow!” he exclaimed wrathfully. “He’s escaped. I’ve beenhunting all over the place. Not a sign of him.”
“Cheer up, Bill,” said Virginia, “better luck next time.”
“Well,” said Lord Caterham, “what do you think we’d better do now? Goback to bed? I can’t get hold of Badgworthy at this time of night. Tredwell,you know the sort of thing that’s necessary. Just see to it, will you?”
“Very good, my lord.”
With a sigh of relief, Lord Caterham prepared to retreat.
“That beggar, Isaacstein, sleeps soundly,” he remarked, with a touch ofenvy. “You’d have thought all this row would have brought him down.” Helooked across at Mr. Fish. “You found time to dress, I see,” he added.
“I flung on a few articles of clothing, yes,” admitted the American.
“Very sensible of you,” said Lord Caterham. “Damned chilly52 things, pyja-mas.”
He yawned. In a rather depressed53 mood, the house party retired to bed.
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1
sensational
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| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
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rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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constable
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| n.(英国)警察，警官 | |
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proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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obsessed
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| adj.心神不宁的,鬼迷心窍的,沉迷的 | |
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decode
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| vt.译（码），解（码） | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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monopolized
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| v.垄断( monopolize的过去式和过去分词 )；独占；专卖；专营 | |
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ass
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| n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人 | |
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seething
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| 沸腾的，火热的 | |
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consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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dictate
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| v.口授；(使)听写；指令，指示，命令 | |
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pyjamas
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| n.（宽大的）睡衣裤 | |
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baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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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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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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unduly
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| adv.过度地，不适当地 | |
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wriggled
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| v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的过去式和过去分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等） | |
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lurid
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| adj.可怕的；血红的；苍白的 | |
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poker
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| n.扑克；vt.烙制 | |
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domes
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| n.圆屋顶( dome的名词复数 )；像圆屋顶一样的东西；圆顶体育场 | |
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groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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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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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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applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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knuckles
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| n.（指人）指关节( knuckle的名词复数 )；（指动物）膝关节，踝v.（指人）指关节( knuckle的第三人称单数 )；（指动物）膝关节，踝 | |
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sob
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| n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣 | |
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silhouetted
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| 显出轮廓的，显示影像的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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loomed
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| v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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monstrous
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| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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squeaked
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| v.短促地尖叫( squeak的过去式和过去分词 )；吱吱叫；告密；充当告密者 | |
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parquet
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| n.镶木地板 | |
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momentary
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| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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hamper
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| vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子 | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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upheaval
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| n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱 | |
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fumble
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| vi.笨拙地用手摸、弄、接等，摸索 | |
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athletic
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| adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的 | |
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quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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revel
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| vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢 | |
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soothing
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| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
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dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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52
chilly
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| adj.凉快的，寒冷的 | |
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depressed
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| adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的 | |
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