CHAPTER VIII
LEE DARWIN
The coroner's retort, if he made one, was lost to me, for at this momentloud voices were heard in the hall and a burly policeman came hurriedlyinto the room.
"What is it, Riley?" asked the coroner in an annoyed tone.
"Beggin' yer pardon, sorr, but there's a young man out here and a divilof a strong young man he is, yer honor," said the policeman.
"What does he want?"
"Shure an' he says he's Lee Darwin, but Oi'm on to their little tricks.An' shure by the looks of him I'd say he was one of thim fresh cubreporters that worries the life out of us huntin' for noos."
"Reporter be hanged!" exclaimed a wrathful voice, as a young man strodeinto the room.
Here the details of the scene before him, the frowning coroner, theamazed jury, the dignified lawyer, sank into his consciousness and hestopped abruptly a few feet from the table.
"What is the meaning of all this?" he inquired, but in a more subduedtone. "Mr. Cunningham, what are all these people doing here?"
Before the lawyer could answer him, he cried out suddenly, "My uncle!What has happened to him!"
"Mr. Darwin was shot last night," answered the coroner.
"Shot? You--you mean murdered?" in a horrified whisper.
The coroner nodded, then said briskly: "I am glad you are here. Thereare several questions I should like to ask you."
"I am at your service."
The defiant lift of the head as he spoke, and the fiery look he castaround the room as if challenging us to contradict him, were so like theactions of a creature at bay that I examined him more attentively. Hewas a tall, broad-shouldered, dark, young man, with a pair of snappingblack eyes that roamed restlessly about the room during his entireexamination. It was evident that he was laboring under some strongemotion, for much as he controlled his voice and strove to appear calmthe muscles of his face betrayed him by their involuntary twitching, andhis hands were clenched convulsively at his sides.
"You had a misunderstanding with your uncle yesterday morning. Is myinformation correct?"
No answer, only a savage look in Orton's direction, as though he divinedthe source of the coroner's knowledge of his affairs.
"I should like an answer, if you please," with some asperity.
The young man laughed harshly. "I'd call it a quarrel," he said.
"A quarrel, eh? What was the subject of this quarrel?"
A slight pause while he mentally debated the wisdom of replying, thenwith a sudden abandonment of his former brief manner, he said quickly:"I objected to the way my uncle treated his wife. He took umbrage atwhat he called my impertinence and told me to clear out. I did. It wasnone too congenial here."
"What do you mean by that last statement?"
"My uncle was always at dagger's points with his father-in-law."
"For what reason?"
"I do not know. I fancy, though, that it was something pretty strongthat my uncle held over Mr. Trenton. I have heard him say things thathad I been Mr. Trenton, instead of listening meekly, I'd have jumped upand knocked him down."
"What was Mr. Trenton's attitude toward your uncle?"
"He was always very pleasant to him, and never seemed to take offense atwhat my uncle said."
The coroner made a note on one of his many papers and then resumed hisquestions. "What brought you back this morning if you had left the housefor good?"
"I came to get the rest of my belongings. I left rather suddenlyyesterday."
"When did you last see your uncle?"
"In this study when I quarreled with him yesterday morning."
"Did you notice whether he was wearing a ring on the little finger ofhis left hand?"
Was it my fancy, or did he pale?
"My uncle never wore any rings," Lee Darwin answered.
"Yet the physician testified that a ring had been pulled off hisfinger."
"He wore none when I saw him last." How proudly, and it seemed to me howsadly, that was said.
"Mr. Darwin, did you ever see that handkerchief before?"
As the coroner held up the dainty trifle the young man started and witha quick indrawn breath he leaned closer to examine it. Then with a lookof relief he straightened to his full height.
"No, I do not recognize it," he said.
"Whose did you think it was when I first held it up?" Again CoronerGraves surprised me by his astuteness.
"Why--why, Ruth's--Mrs. Darwin's," stammered the young man, somewhattaken aback.
"And it isn't hers?" persisted the coroner.
"No, I'm positive it isn't."
Certainly he was a young man after my own heart.
"Would you swear to that fact?" went on the coroner inexorably.
"Look here, do you think I'm lying to you?" demanded Lee Darwin,angrily.
"Would you swear to that fact?" repeated the coroner monotonously,taking no notice of the outbreak.
A dull red suffused the young man's dark face and his eyes smoldered ashe glanced at the coroner. "I refuse to answer," he said, sullenly.
The coroner shrugged, having won the battle by creating just theimpression that he desired, namely that the handkerchief was Ruth's andthat for some reason Lee was trying to protect her. I swore softly belowmy breath at the blunder young Darwin had committed in becoming angered,for though I knew he could possibly have no motive for shielding Ruth,having heard none of the previous evidence, he had yet managed tostrengthen the case against her by his strange attitude.
"Mr. Darwin, did you ever hear of Cora Manning?" suddenly inquired thecoroner.
Lee Darwin had himself better in hand this time, for his face did notchange from its sullen aspect, but he could not help clenching hisclosed hand tighter until the knuckles showed white through the flesh.That action alone told me that he knew the woman whose name was onPhilip Darwin's unfinished will. It also told me that he would deny it.So I was not surprised when he said, a little stiffly, as though hefound it hard to speak at all:
"No, I do not know her."
"When you first recognized my official capacity what made you thinksomething had happened to your uncle?"
For a moment he seemed nonplussed, then he answered readily enough, "Isuppose it was because I was entering his house and the thought of itsmaster and our last meeting was uppermost in my mind."
"You are sure that it wasn't because you knew beforehand that he wasdead?"
I thought he was going to faint, so pale did he become, but he ralliedinstantly and said, haughtily, "Do you presume to intimate that I killedmy uncle?"
"Not at all, since you could not possibly have been in the room at thetime," responded the coroner. "I merely wished to learn, whether whenyou were standing outside the house late last night, you saw whatoccurred in the study."
This statement created an immense sensation. Everyone looked at everyoneelse and then at Lee Darwin, who stood before the coroner with blazingeyes and head flung high.
"I came here to get my belongings and not to be questioned about anaffair of which I know nothing!" he exclaimed angrily. "I refuse toanswer further."
The coroner shrugged. "Of course it is not really important. You cantell your story in court when you have been arrested as an accessoryafter the fact."
"I know nothing about it, I tell you!" cried Darwin in exasperation.
"Your footprints were found in the flower-bed, outside the study window.What were you doing there at that time of night?"
Lee Darwin laughed outright, whether with relief or hysteria I don'tknow, though I incline to the former.
"Your honor, your minions are not as clever as they seem to think. Imade those footprints yesterday morning when I left the house throughthe study window. I turned around and stood there a moment to shake myfist at my uncle," he said, sarcastically.
"Just a moment, Mr. Darwin. Mason," called the coroner.
The old butler came forward timidly. "Did you see Mr. Lee Darwin leavethe house yesterday morning?
" inquired the coroner.
"No, sir. I knew he was in the study after breakfast but I did notnotice whether he came out," he answered, peering anxiously at the youngman.
"That will do. Mr. Orton, please."
The secretary rose and took the butler's place, and as though he hadanticipated the question he said eagerly, "Mr. Lee Darwin left the houseby the window yesterday morning."
It struck me he was trying to curry favor with young Darwin by the wayhe spoke and fawned upon him.
"You are positive of this?" said the coroner.
"Yes, Mr. Lee was just leaving the house when his uncle said somethingto him and he followed him into the study. I was waiting for Mr. Darwinin the hall, and after the quarrel, I entered the study at Mr. Darwin'ssummons in time to see Mr. Lee leave by the window and then turn backagain, as he said."
"Now that the word of a gentleman has been vouched for by that of amiserable spy, I trust you will permit me to go to my apartments." Thesneer that accompanied the words made Orton wince, but the coronerremained imperturbed. He granted the permission with a wave of the hand.
"Would it be asking too much to allow me to see my uncle's body?"inquired the young man, pausing in the doorway.
"Unfortunately your uncle has been removed to the undertaker's,"responded the coroner affably. "If you care to call on them----"
With a gesture of disgust the young man left the room and the coronerwas human enough to enjoy his advantage after his own discomfiture atyoung Darwin's hands.
And now only Ruth remained to be questioned. Would he tell me or Ortonto summon her? To my surprise he called Cunningham to him and after awhispered consultation the lawyer left the room and I heard himascending the stairs.
This unexpected move the coroner explained in a few curt words. "Underthe circumstances Mrs. Darwin is entitled to counsel," he said. "Mr.Cunningham has kindly consented to act in that capacity this afternoon."
Had the case against her progressed to the point where she needed legaladvice? Then, indeed I had nothing to hope for from the interview whichwas now about to take place.