CHAPTER VII
Half an hour later The Thinking Machine walked in, unannounced, uponDick Herbert. The front door had not been locked; Blair was somewhere inthe rear. Herbert, in some surprise, glanced up at his visitor just intime to see him plank himself down solidly into a chair.
"Mr. Herbert," the scientist began, "I have gone out of my way to proveto the police that you were not in the automobile with Miss Meredith,and that you did not steal the gold plate found in your possession. Now,I happen to know the name of the thief, and----"
"And if you mention it to one living soul," Dick added suddenly, hotly,"I shall forget myself and--and----"
"His name is George Francis Hayden," the scientist continued.
Dick started a little and straightened up; the menace dropped from himand he paused to gaze curiously into the wizened face before him. Aftera moment he drew a sigh of deep relief.
"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Oh!"
"I know that that isn't who you thought it was," resumed the other, "butthe fact remains that Hayden is the man with whom Miss Meredithunwittingly eloped, and that Hayden is the man who actually stole theplate and jewels. Further, the fact remains that Hayden----"
"Is dead," Dick supplemented grimly. "You are talking through your----"He coughed a little. "You are talking without any knowledge of what youare saying."
"He can't be dead," remarked the scientist calmly.
"But he _is_ dead!" Dick insisted.
"He can't be dead," snapped the other abruptly. "It's perfectly silly tosuppose such a thing. Why, I have proven absolutely, by the simplestrules of logic, that he stole the gold plate, therefore he cannot bedead. It's silly to say so."
Dick wasn't quite certain whether to be angry or amused. He decided tohold the matter in abeyance for the moment and see what other strangething would develop.
"How long has he been dead?" continued the scientist.
"About two years."
"You _know_ it?"
"Yes, I know it."
"_How_ do you know it?"
"Because I attended his funeral," was the prompt reply. Dick saw ashadow of impatience flash into his visitor's face and instantly pass.
"How did he die?" queried the scientist.
"He was lost from his catboat," Dick answered. "He had gone out sailing,alone, while in a bathing-suit. Several hours after the boat drifted inon the tide without him. Two or three weeks later the body wasrecovered."
"Ah!" exclaimed The Thinking Machine.
Then, for half an hour or so, he talked, and--as he went on, incisively,pointedly, dramatically, even, at times--Dick Herbert's eyes openedwider and wider. At the end he rose and gripped the scientist's slenderwhite fingers heartily in his own with something approaching awe in hismanner. Finally he put on his hat and they went out together.
That evening at eight o'clock Detective Mallory, Hutchinson Hatch, Mr.Randolph, Mr. Meredith, Mr. Greyton, and Dollie Meredith gathered in aparlour of the Greyton home by request of The Thinking Machine. Theywere waiting for something--no one knew exactly what.
Finally there came a tinkle at the bell and The Thinking Machineentered. Behind him came Dick Herbert, Dr. Clarence Walpole, and astranger. Mr. Meredith glanced up quickly at Herbert, and Dollie liftedher chin haughtily with a stony stare which admitted of no compromise.Dick pleaded for recognition with his eyes, but it was no use, so he satdown where he could watch her unobserved.
Singular expressions flitted over the countenance of the SupremeIntelligence. Right here, now, he knew the earth was to be jerked outfrom under him and he was not at all certain that there would beanything left for him to cling to. This first impression wasstrengthened when The Thinking Machine introduced Doctor Walpole with anostentatious squint at Mr. Mallory. The detective set his teeth hard.
The Thinking Machine sat down, stretched out his slender legs, turnedhis eyes upward, and adjusted his fingers precisely, tip to tip. Theothers watched him anxiously.
"We will have to go back a few years to get the real beginning of theevents which have culminated so strangely within the past week," hesaid. "This was a close friendship of three young men in college. Theywere Mr. Herbert here, a freshman, and Harry Meredith and George FrancisHayden, juniors. This friendship, not an unusual one in college, wasmade somewhat romantic by the young men styling themselves The Triangle.They occupied the same apartments and were exclusive to a degree. Ofnecessity Mr. Herbert was drawn from that exclusiveness, to a certainextent by his participation in football."
A germ of memory was working in Hatch's mind.
"At someone's suggestion three triangular watch charms were made,identical in every way save for initials on the back. They bore a symbolwhich was meaningless except to The Triangle. They were made to orderand are, therefore, the only three of the kind in the world. Mr. Herberthas one now on his watch chain, with his own initials; there is anotherwith the initials 'G. F. H.' in the lot of jewelry Mr. Mallory recoveredfrom Mr. Herbert. The third is worn by Harry Meredith, who is now inBuenos Ayres. The American Consul there has confirmed, by cable, thatfact.
"In the senior year the three young men of The Triangle were concernedin the mysterious disappearance of a valuable diamond ring. It washushed up in college after it seemed established that Mr. Herbert was athief. Knowing his own innocence and seeing what seemed to be anexclusive opportunity for Harry Meredith to have done what was charged,Mr. Herbert laid the matter to him, having at that time an interviewwith Harry's father. The result of that interview was more than ever toconvince Mr. Meredith of Mr. Herbert's guilt. As a matter of fact, thethief in that case was George Francis Hayden."
There were little murmurs of astonishment, and Mr. Meredith turned andstared at Dick Herbert. Dollie gave him a little glance out of a cornerof her eye, smiled, then sat up primly.
"This ended The Triangle," resumed the scientist. "A year or so laterMr. Herbert met Miss Meredith. About two years ago George Francis Haydenwas reported drowned from his catboat. This was confirmed, apparently,by the finding of his body, and an insurance company paid over a largesum--I think it was $25,000--to a woman who said she was his wife. ButGeorge Francis Hayden was not drowned; he is alive now. It was acarefully planned fraud against the insurance company, and it succeeded.
"This, then, was the situation on last Thursday--the night of themasked ball at Seven Oaks--except that there had grown up a love affairbetween Miss Meredith and Mr. Herbert. Naturally, the father opposedthis because of the incident in college. Both Miss Meredith and Mr.Herbert had invitations to that ball. It was an opportunity for anelopement and they accepted it. Mr. Herbert sent word to her whatcostume to wear; she did not know the nature of his.
"On Thursday afternoon Miss Meredith sent her jewel-casket, withpractically all her jewels, to Mr. Herbert. She wanted them, naturally;they probably planned a trip abroad. The maid in this house took thecasket and gave it into Mr. Herbert's own hands. Am I right?" He turnedsquarely and squinted at Dollie.
"Yes," she gasped quickly. She smiled distractingly upon her father andhe made some violent remarks to himself.
"At this point, Fate, in the guise of a masked Burglar, saw fit to stepinto the affair," the scientist went on after a moment. "Aboutnine-thirty, Thursday evening, while Mr. Herbert was alone, the maskedBurglar, George Francis Hayden, entered Mr. Herbert's house, possiblythinking everyone was away. There, still masked, he met Mr. Herbert,who--by something the Burglar said and by the triangular charm hewore--recognised him as _Harry Meredith_. Remember, he thought he knewGeorge Francis Hayden was dead.
"There were some words and a personal encounter between the two men.George Francis Hayden fired a shot which struck Mr. Herbert in the rightshoulder--in front--took the jewel-casket in which Mr. Herbert hadplaced his card of invitation to the ball, and went away, leaving Mr.Herbert senseless on the floor."
Dollie's face blanched suddenly and she gasped. When she glancedinvoluntarily at Dick she read the love-light in his eyes, and hercolour returned with a r
ush.
"Several hours later, when Mr. Herbert recovered consciousness," theunruffled voice went on, "he went to Doctor Walpole, the nearestphysician, and there the bullet was extracted and the wound dressed.The ball was thirty-two calibre?"
Doctor Walpole nodded.
"And Mr. Cunningham's revolver carried a thirty-eight," added thescientist. "Now we go back to the Burglar. He found the invitation inthe casket, and the bold scheme, which later he carried out soperfectly, came to him as an inspiration. He went to the ball just as hewas. Nerve, self-possession, and humour took him through. We know therest of that.
"Naturally, in the circumstances, Mr. Herbert, believing that HarryMeredith was the thief, would say nothing to bring disgrace upon thename of the girl he loved. Instead, he saw Miss Meredith, who would notaccept his denial then, and in order to get her first--explanationsmight come later--he confessed to the theft, whereupon they planned thesecond elopement.
"When Miss Meredith returned the plate by express there was noanticipation of a second theft. Here is where we get a betterunderstanding of the mettle of the real Burglar--George Francis Hayden.He went back and got the plate from Seven Oaks. Instantly that upset thesecond elopement plan. Then Mr. Herbert undertook the search, got aclew, followed it, and recovered not only the plate, but a great lot ofjewels."
There was a pause. A skyrocket ascended in Hatch's mind and burst,illuminating the whole tangled story. Detective Mallory sat dumbly,thinking harsh words. Mr. Meredith arose, went over to Dick Herbert, andsolemnly shook his hand, after which he sat down again. Dollie smiledcharmingly.
CHAPTER VIII
"Now that is what actually happened," said The Thinking Machine, after alittle while. "How do I know it? Logic, logic, logic! The logical mindcan start from any given point and go backward or forward, with equalfacility, to a natural conclusion. This is as certain as that two andtwo make four--not _sometimes_, but _all_ the time.
"First in this case I had Mr. Hatch's detailed examination of eachcircumstance. By an inspiration he connected Mr. Herbert and MissMeredith with the affair and talked to both before the police had anyknowledge at all of them. In other words, he reached at a bound whatthey took days to accomplish. After the second theft he came to me andrelated the story."
The reporter blushed modestly.
"Mr. Hatch's belief that the thing that had happened to Mr. Herbert andMiss Meredith bore on the theft," resumed the scientist, "wassusceptible of confirmation or refutation in only one way, this being sobecause of Mr. Herbert's silence--due to his loyalty. I saw that. But,before I went further, I saw clearly what had actually happened _if_ Ipresupposed that there _had_ been some connection. Thus came to me, Imay say here, the almost certain knowledge that Miss Meredith had abrother, although I had never heard of him or her."
He paused a little and twiddled his thumbs thoughtfully.
"Suppose you give us just your line of reasoning," ventured Hatch.
"Well, I began with the blood-stains in the automobile to either bringMr. Herbert into this affair or shut him out," replied the scientist."You know how I made the blood tests. They showed conclusively that theblood on the cushion was not Mr. Herbert's. Remember, please, that,although I knew Miss Meredith had been in the automobile, I also knewshe was not wounded; therefore the blood was that of someone else--theman.
"Now, I knew Mr. Herbert had been wounded--he wouldn't say how. If athome, would he not go to the nearest physician? Probably. I got DoctorWalpole's name from the telephone-book--he being nearest the Herberthome--and sent Mr. Hatch there, where he learned of the wound in front,and of the thirty-two calibre ball. I already knew the police revolverswere thirty-eight calibre; therefore Mr. Herbert was not wounded whilein the automobile.
"That removed Mr. Herbert as a possibility in the first theft, despitethe fact that his invitation-card was presented at the door. It wasreasonable to suppose that invitation had been stolen. Immediately afterthe plate was returned by express, Mr. Herbert effected a reconciliationwith Miss Meredith. Because of this and for other reasons I could notbring myself to see that he was a party to the second theft, as I knewhim to be innocent of the first. Yet, what happened to him? Why wouldn'the say something?
"All things must be imagined before they can be achieved; thereforeimagination is one of the most vital parts of the scientific brain. Inthis instance I could only imagine why Mr. Herbert was silent. Remember,he was shot and wouldn't say who did it. Why? If it had been an ordinarythief--and I got the idea of a thief from the invitation-card being inother hands than his--he would not have hesitated to talk. Therefore, itwas an _extraordinary_ thief in that it connected with something nearand dear to him. No one was nearer and dearer to him than Miss Meredith.Did she shoot him? No. Did her father shoot him? Probably not, butpossibly. A brother? That began to look more reasonable. Mr. Herbertwould probably not have gone so far to protect one less near to her thanbrother or father.
"For the moment I assumed a brother, not knowing. How did Mr. Herbertknow this brother? Was it in his college days? Mr. Hatch brought me alist of the students of three years before his graduating year andthere I found the name, Harry Meredith. You see, step by step, purelogic was leading me to something tangible, definite. My next act was tosee Mr. Meredith and ask for the address of his son--an only son--whomat that time I frankly believed was the real thief. But this son was inSouth America. That startled me a little and brought me up against thefather as a possible thief. He was in Baltimore on that night.
"I accepted that as true at the moment after some--er--some pleasantwords with Mr. Meredith. Then the question: Was the man who stole fromMr. Herbert, probably entering his place and shooting him, masked? Mr.Herbert said he was. I framed the question so as to bring HarryMeredith's name into it, much to Mr. Herbert's alarm. How had herecognised him as Harry Meredith? By something he said or wore? Mr.Herbert replied in the affirmative--both. Therefore I had a maskedBurglar who could _not_ have been either Harry Meredith or HarryMeredith's father. Who was he?
"I decided to let Mr. Hatch look into that point for me, and went to seeDoctor Walpole. He gave me the bullet he had extracted from Mr.Herbert's shoulder. Mr. Hatch, shortly after, rushed in on me with thestatement that Miss Meredith had admitted that Mr. Herbert had confessedto her. I could see instantly _why_ he had confessed to her. Then Mr.Hatch undertook for me the investigation of Herbert's and HarryMeredith's career in college. He remembered part of it and unearthed theaffair of The Triangle and the theft of a diamond ring.
"I had asked Mr. Hatch to find for me if Harry Meredith and Mr. Herberthad had a mutual intimate in college. They had. George Francis Hayden,the third member of the Triangle. Then the question seemed solved, butMr. Hatch upset everything when he said that Mr. Hayden was dead. I wentimmediately to see Mr. Herbert. From him I learned that, although Mr.Hayden was _supposed_ to be dead and buried, there was no positive proofof it; the body recovered had been in the water three weeks and wasconsequently almost unrecognisable. Therefore, the theft came inevitablyto Mr. Hayden. Why? Because the Burglar had been recognised by somethinghe said and wore. It would have been difficult for Mr. Herbert torecognise a masked man so positively unless the masked man _wore_something he absolutely _knew_, or _said_ something he absolutely_knew_. Mr. Herbert _thought_ with reason that the masked man was HarryMeredith, but, with Harry Meredith in South America, the thief wasincontrovertibly George Francis Hayden. There was no going behind that.
"After a short interview as to Hayden, during which Mr. Herbert told memore of The Triangle and the three watch charms, he and I went outinvestigating. He took me to the room where he had found the plate andjewels--a place in an apartment-house which this gentleman manages." Thescientist turned to the stranger, who had been a silent listener. "Heidentified an old photograph of George Francis Hayden as an occupant ofan apartment.
"Mr. Herbert and I searched the place. My growing idea, based on theestablished knavery of George Francis Hayden, that he was the real thiefin the colle
ge incident, was proven when I found this ring there--thering that was stolen at that time--with the initials of the owner init."
The Thinking Machine produced the ring and offered it to DetectiveMallory, who had allowed the earth to slip away from him slowly butsurely, and he examined it with a new and absorbed interest.
"Mr. Herbert and I learned of the insurance fraud in anothermanner--that is, when we knew that George Francis Hayden was not dead,we knew there had been a fraud. Mr. Hayden has been known lately asChester Goodrich. He has been missing since Mr. Herbert, in his absence,recovered the plate and the jewels in his apartments. I may add that, upto the day of the masked ball, he was protected from casual recognitionby a full beard. He is now clean-shaven."
The Thinking Machine glanced at Mr. Mallory.
"Your man--Downey, I think it was--did excellent work," he said, "intracing Miss Meredith from the time she left the automobile until shereturned home, and later leading you to Mr. Herbert. It was not strangethat you should have been convinced of his guilt when we consider thegoods found in his possession and also the wound in his shoulder. Theonly trouble is he didn't get to the real insides of it."
That was all. For a long time there was silence. Dollie Meredith'spretty face was radiant and her eyes were fastened on her father. Mr.Meredith glanced at her, cleared his throat several times, then aroseand offered his hand to Dick Herbert.
"I have done you an injustice, sir," he said gravely. "Permit me toapologise. I think perhaps my daughter----"
That was superfluous. Dollie was already beside Dick, and a rousing,smacking, resounding kiss echoed her father's words. Dick liked it someand was ready for more, but Dollie impetuously flung her arms aroundthe neck of The Thinking Machine, and he--passed to his reward.
"You dear old thing!" she gurgled. "You're just too sweet and cute foranything."
"Dear me! Dear me!" fussed The Thinking Machine. "Don't do that. Itannoys me exceedingly."
* * * * *
Some three months later, when the search for George Francis Hayden hadbecome only lukewarm, this being three days before Miss Meredith'swedding to Dick Herbert, she received a small box containing a solitairering and a note. It was brief:
In memory of one night in the woods and of what happened there, permit me to give this--you can't return it. It is one of the few things honest money from me ever paid for.
BILL, THE BURGLAR.
While Dollie examined the ring with mingled emotions Dick stared at thepostmark on the package.
"It's a corking good clew," he said enthusiastically.
Dollie turned to him, recognising a menace in the words, and took thepaper which bore the postmark from his hands.
"Let's pretend," she said gently--"let's pretend we don't know where itcame from!"
Dick stared a little and kissed her.
* * * * *
Transcriber's Notes:
Repaired obvious spelling and punctuation typos. Period spellings andunusual grammatical usages retained.
Both "waggon" and "wagon" were used in this text, consistent withincharacter voices--retained.
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