CHAPTER XXXIV
"What's that?" rapped out Cleek, sitting up sharply. His interesthad been trapped, just as Mr. Narkom knew that it would. "Vanishedfrom a glass-room into which people were looking at the time? Andyet nobody saw the manner of his going, do you say?"
"That's it precisely. But the most astonishing part of the businessis the fact that, whereas the porter can bring at least threewitnesses to prove that he showed the boy into that glass-room,and at least one to testify that he heard him speak to the occupantof it, the two watchers who were looking into the place at thetime are willing to swear on oath that he not only did not enterthe place, but that the room was absolutely vacant at the period,and remained so for at least an hour afterward. If that isn't amystery that will want a bit of doing to solve, dear chap, then youmay call me a Dutchman."
"Hum-m-m!" said Cleek reflectively. "How, then, am I to regard thepeople who give this cross testimony--as lunatics or liars?"
"Neither, b'gad!" asseverated Narkom, emphatically. "I'll stake myreputation upon the sanity and the truthfulness of every mother's sonand every father's daughter of the lot of them! The porter whosays he showed the boy into the glass-room I've known since hewas a nipper--his dad was one of my Yard men years ago--and thetwo people who were looking into the place at the time, and whoswear that it was absolutely empty and that the lad _never_ cameinto it----Look here, old chap, I'll let you into a bit of familyhistory. One of them is a distant relative of Mrs. Narkom--anaunt, in fact, who's rather down in the world, and does a bit ofdressmaking for a living. The other is her daughter. They are twoof the straightest-living, most upright, and truly religious womenthat ever drew the breath of life, and they wouldn't, either of'em, tell a lie for all the money in England. There's where thepuzzle of the thing comes in. You simply have _got_ to believethat that porter showed the boy into that room, for there arereliable witnesses to prove it, and he has no living reason to lieabout it; and you have _got_ to believe that those two women arespeaking the truth when they say that it was empty at that periodand remained empty for an hour afterward. Also--if you will take onthe case and solve at the same time the mystery attending thedisappearance of both father and son--you will have to find outwhere that boy went to, through whose agency he vanished, and forwhat cause."
"A tall order that," said Cleek with one of his curious, one-sidedsmiles. "Still, of course, mysteries which are humanly possible ofcreation are humanly possible of solution, and--there you are. Whois the client? Miss Larue? If so, how is one to be sure that she willnot again call a halt, and spoil a good 'case' before it is halfwayto completion?"
"For the best of reasons," replied Narkom earnestly. "Hers isnot the sole 'say' in the present case. Added to which, she is nowconvinced that her suspicions in the former one were not wellgrounded. The truth has come out at last, Cleek. She stopped allfurther inquiry into the mysterious disappearance of her brotherbecause she had reason to believe that the elder Mr. Trent hadkilled him for the purpose of getting possession of those jewelsto tide over a financial crisis consequent upon the failure of someheavy speculations upon the stock market. She held her peace andclosed up the case because she loves and is engaged to be married tohis son, and she would have lost everything in the world soonerthan hurt his belief in the honour and integrity of his father."
"What a ripping girl! Gad, but there _are_ some splendid women in theworld, are there not, Mr. Narkom? What has happened, dear friend,to change her opinion regarding the elder Mr. Trent's guilt?"
"The disappearance of the son under similar circumstances to that ofthe father, and from the same locality. She knows now that theelder Mr. Trent can have no part in the matter, since he is atpresent in America, the financial crisis has been safely passed, andthe son--who could have no possible reason for injuring the lad, whois, indeed, remarkably fond of him, and by whose invitation hevisited the building--is solely in charge and as wildly anxious asman can be to have the abominable thing cleared up without delay.He now knows why she so abruptly closed up the other case, and heis determined that nothing under heaven shall interfere with theprosecution of this one to the very end. It is he who is the client,and both he and his fiancee will be here presently to lay the fulldetails before you."
"Here!" Cleek leaned forward in his chair with a sort of lunge ashe flung out the word, and there was a snap in his voice that fairlystung. "Good heavens above, man! They mustn't come here. Get wordto them at once and stop them."
"It wouldn't be any use trying, I'm afraid, old chap; I expect theyare here already. At all events, I told them to watch from the otherside of the way until they saw me enter, and then to come in and gostraightway to the public tearoom and wait until I brought you tothem."
"Well, of all the insane----Whatever prompted you to do a madman'strick like that? A public character like Miss Larue, a woman whomhalf London knows by sight, who will be the target for every eye inthe tearoom, and the news of whose presence in the hotel will be allover the place in less than no time! Were you out of your head?"
"Good lud! Why, I thought I'd be doing the very thing that wouldplease you, dear chap," bleated the superintendent, despairingly."It seemed to me such a natural thing for an actress to take teaat a hotel--that it would look so innocent and open that nobody wouldsuspect there was anything behind it. And you always say that thingsleast hidden are hidden the most of all."
Cleek struck his tongue against his teeth with a sharp, clickingsound indicative of mild despair. There were times when Mr. Narkomseemed utterly hopeless.
"Well, if it's done, it's done, of course; and there seems onlyone way out of it," he said. "Nip down to the tearoom as quicklyas possible, and if they are there bring them up here. It's onlyfour o'clock and there's a chance that Waldemar may not have returnedto the hotel yet. Heaven knows, I hope not! He'd spot you in a tick,in a weak disguise like that."
"Then why don't you go down yourself and fetch them up, old chap?He'd never spot _you_. Lord! your own mother wouldn't know you fromAdam in this spiffing get-up. And it wouldn't matter a tinker's cursethen if Waldemar was back or not."
"It would matter a great deal, my friend--don't deceive yourselfupon that point. For one thing, Captain Maltravers is registered atthe office as having just arrived from India after a ten years'absence, and ten years ago Miss Margaret Larue was not only unknownto fame, but must have been still in pinafores, so how was he tohave made her acquaintance? Then, too, she doesn't expect to seeme without you, so I should have to introduce myself and stop toexplain matters--yes, and even risk her companion getting excited andsaying something indiscreet, and those are rather dangerous affairsin a public tearoom, with everybody's eyes no doubt fixed upon thelady. No, you must attend to the matter yourself, my friend; so nipoff and be about it. If the lady and her companion are there,just whisper them to say nothing, but follow you immediately. If theyare not there, slip out and warn them not to come. Look sharp--thesituation is ticklish!"
And just how ticklish Mr. Narkom realized when he descended andmade his way to the public tearoom. For the usual four o'clockgathering of shoppers and sightseers was there in full force,the well-filled room was like a hive full of buzzing bees whowere engaged in imparting confidences to one another, the name of"Margaret Larue" was being whispered here, there and everywhere, andall eyes were directed toward a far corner where at a little roundtable Margaret Larue herself sat in company with Mr. HarrisonTrent engaged in making a feeble pretence of enjoying a tea whichneither of them wanted and upon which neither was bestowing asingle thought.
Narkom spotted them at once, made his way across the crowded room,said something to them in a swift, low whisper, and immediatelybecame at once the most envied and most unpopular person in thewhole assembly; for Miss Larue and her companion arose instantlyand, leaving some pieces of silver on the table, walked out with himand robbed the room of its chief attraction.
All present had been deeply interested in the entire proceeding, butnone more so than the tall, distingui
shed looking foreign gentlemanseated all alone at the exactly opposite end of the room from thetable where Miss Larue and her companion had been located; for hishad been the tensest kind of interest from the very instant Mr.Narkom had made his appearance, and remained so to the last.
"Count Irma has told," said Narkom. "It's all out atlast and ... I know now. I'm to lose you."]
Even after the three persons had vanished from the room, he continuedto stare at the doorway through which they had passed, and therather elaborate tea he had ordered remained wholly untouched. A softstep sounded near him and a soft voice broke in upon his unspokenthoughts.
"Is not the tea to Monsieur's liking?" it inquired with all thedeference of the Continental waiter. And that awoke him from hisabstraction.
"Yes--quite, thank you. By the way, that was Miss Larue who just leftthe room, was it not, Philippe?"
"Yes, Monsieur--the great Miss Larue: the most famous of all Englishactresses."
"So I understand. And the lame man who came in and spoke to her--whois he? Not a guest of the hotel, I am sure, since I have never seenhim here before."
"I do not know, Monsieur, who the gentleman is. It shall be thefirst I shall see of him ever. It may be, however, that he is anew arrival. They would know at the office, if Monsieur le Barondesires me to inquire."
"Yes--do. I fancy I have seen him before. Find out for me who he is."
Philippe disappeared like a fleet shadow. After an absence of abouttwo minutes, he came back with the desired intelligence.
"No, Monsieur le Baron, the gentleman is not a guest," he announced."But he is visiting a guest. The name is Yard. He arrived about aquarter of an hour ago and sent his card in to Captain Maltravers,who at once took him up to his room."
"Captain Maltravers? So! That will be the military officer fromIndia, will it not?"
"Yes, Monsieur; the one with the fair hair and moustache who lunchedto-day at the table adjoining Monsieur le Baron's own."
"Ah, to be sure. And 'passed the time of day' with me, as they sayin this peculiar language. I remember the gentleman perfectly. Thankyou very much. There's something to pay you for your trouble."
"Monsieur le Baron is too generous! Is there any other service----"
"No, no--nothing, thank you. I have all that I require," interposedthe "Baron" with a gesture of dismissal.
And evidently he had; for five minutes later he walked into theoffice of the hotel, and said to the clerk, "Make out my bill,please--I shall be leaving England at once," and immediatelythereafter walked into a telephone booth, consulted his notebook, andrang up 253480 Soho, and, on getting it, began to talk rapidly andsoftly to some one who understood French.
Meantime Mr. Narkom, unaware of the little powder train he hadunconsciously lighted, had gone on up the stairs with his twocompanions--purposely avoiding the lift that he might explainmatters as they went--piloted them safely to the suite occupied by"Captain Maltravers," and at the precise moment when "Baron Rodolfde Montravanne" walked into the telephone booth, Cleek was meetingMiss Larue for the first time since those distressing days ofeleven months ago, and meeting Mr. Harrison Trent for the firsttime ever.