If Sinners Entice Thee
Page 8
causedeath. Immediate attention could not have saved her."
A thrill of horror ran through the crowded court. Nearly everyonepresent had seen Nelly Bridson, with her smiling happy face, ridingabout the village and roads in the vicinity, and the knowledge that shehad met with an end so terrible yet mysterious, appalled them.
Some further questions were put to the doctor, after which GeorgeStratfield entered. As he raised the greasy copy of Holy Writ to hislips, his eyes fell upon Liane. She was sitting, pale and rigid, with astrange haggard expression upon her beautiful countenance such as he hadnever before beheld. He gazed upon her in alarm and surprise.
The Coroner's questions, however, compelled him to turn towards thejury, and in reply he explained how, on that fateful evening after hisfather's death, he was riding along Cross Lane, and was horrified bydiscovering the body of Nelly Bridson. In detail he described everyincident, how he had lifted her up, and finding her quite dead, hadridden on into the village to obtain assistance.
Liane listened to his story open-mouthed. Her hands were closedtightly, and once or twice, when questions were put to him by Coroner orjury, she held her breath until he had answered. She was as oneparalysed by some unknown fear. Their gaze met more than once, and oneach occasion he fancied he detected, even through her veil, that hereyes were dark and haggard, like one consumed by some terrible dread.
"You have, I believe, some knowledge of this miniature," the Coronerobserved, again taking the small oval bejewelled portrait in his hand.
"Yes," he answered. "It is undoubtedly the one which has been missingfrom my late father's collection for more than twenty years. It wassupposed to have been stolen, but by whom could never be ascertained.My father had several times offered handsome rewards for its recovery,as it is a family portrait."
"You have no idea, I suppose, by what means it could have come into theunfortunate girl's possession?"
"None whatever. The unexpected discovery amazed me."
"You have not told us what caused you to ride along Cross Lane on thatevening," the foreman of the jury observed presently.
Again Liane held her breath.
"I had an appointment," he answered, not without considerablehesitation, "and was proceeding to keep it."
"Did you know Miss Bridson?"
"We had met on several occasions."
The detective from Scotland Yard bent across the table and uttered somewords, after which the Coroner, addressing George, said,--
"Inspector Swayne desires to ascertain whether it was with the deceasedyou had an appointment?"
"No," he replied promptly.
Again the Coroner and the inspector exchanged some hurried words.
"Who was the person you intended to meet?" the Coroner asked, lookinginquiringly at the witness.
"A lady."
"Am I right in presuming that it was Miss Brooker?"
George paused for an instant, bit his lip in displeasure at being thuscompelled to publicly acknowledge his clandestine meetings with Liane,and then nodded in the affirmative.
"Then you were about to meet Miss Brooker, but instead, found MissBridson lying in the roadway dead?" the Coroner observed.
"I did."
"Are you aware that Miss Brooker wrote to you expressing her inabilityto keep the appointment?" the Coroner asked.
"She has told me so," he answered. "The letter was given, I believe, tothe unfortunate young lady to post, but I have not received it."
"There appears to be some mystery about that letter," the Coroner said,turning to the jury. "I have it here. It was discovered in fragmentsyesterday by the police, thrown into a ditch at the roadside not farfrom where the body was found;" and taking from among his papers a sheetof foolscap whereon the pieces of Liane's letter had been pastedtogether, he handed it to the jury for their inspection.
At that instant a sudden thought occurred to George. This last factpointed alone to one conclusion, namely, that Nelly being given theletter by Liane, and knowing its contents, kept the appointment herself,desiring to speak to him alone upon some subject the nature of which hecould not, of course, guess. This would not only account for herpresence at the spot where he found her, but also for her dismountingand resting at the gateway where they had discovered the curious marksin the dust, and for the fragments of the letter being recovered near.
A similar theory appeared to suggest itself to the minds of the jury,for a moment later the foreman asked--
"Would the deceased have any definite object in seeking an interviewwith you?"
"None whatever," he promptly replied, puzzled nevertheless that theremains of Liane's note should have been recovered in Cross Lane.
"You assisted the police to search the road for any traces of theassassin, I believe, Mr Stratfield," continued the Coroner. "Did youdiscover anything?"
George raised his eyes and met the curious gaze of the woman he loved.At that moment her veil failed to hide the strange look of dread andapprehension in her face, so intense it was. Her lips, slightly parted,quivered, the pallor of her cheeks was deathlike, and her whole attitudewas that of one who feared the revelation of some terrible truth.
"During my search I discovered a lady's hairpin lying in the grass atthe roadside," George replied, after a silence, brief but complete. Hewas not thinking of the question, but was sorely puzzled at theextraordinary change in the woman who had promised to become his wife.The transformation was amazing.
"That pin is here," the Coroner explained to the jury, passing it acrossfor their inspection. "I will call Henry Fawcett, hairdresser, ofReading, who will give evidence regarding it."
The man referred to was called in, and in reply to a formal question,took the hairpin in his hand, saying,--
"I have, at the instigation of the police, minutely compared this pinwith those worn by the young lady at the time of her death, and alsothose found upon her dressing-table. I find that although apparentlythe same make it is nevertheless entirely different. Some of them foundupon her dressing-table were of similar length and size, but while thepins she used were of the ordinary kind, such as may be purchased at anydraper's, this one is of very superior quality. By the shape of itspoints, together with its curve, I can distinguish that this is the pinmanufactured solely by Clark and Lister, of Birmingham, and sold byfirst-class hairdressers."
"Your theory is that this pin was never worn by the deceased?" theCoroner said, thoughtfully stroking his grey beard.
"I feel confident it never was, for the pin is quite new, and they aresold in large boxes," was the reply.
"In that case it seems probable that another woman was with herimmediately before her death," observed the foreman to his brotherjurors.
George looked again at Liane. Her eyes were still staring into space,her lips were trembling, her face was ashen pale. She started at theominous words which fell upon her ear, then feigned to busy herself inre-buttoning the black glove she had removed before taking the oath.
"It, of course, remains for the police to prosecute further inquiriesand to discover the owner of that hairpin," the Coroner said. "Most ofus are aware that ladies frequently use various kinds of pins indressing their hair, but in this case not a single one of the peculiarsort found on the spot was discovered in the deceased's possession; andthis fact in itself certainly lends colour to a suggestion thatimmediately prior to the tragedy Miss Bridson was not alone."
George having concluded his evidence, had taken a seat beside hiswell-beloved. Only once she glanced at him, then evaded his gaze, forin her grey eyes was an expression as though she were still haunted bysome unknown yet terrible dread. His statement regarding the hairpinhad unnerved her. Did she, he wondered, wear similar pins in her owndark, deftly-coiled tresses?
Instantly, however, he laughed the wild, absurd idea to scorn. That shefeared lest some startling truth should be elucidated was apparent; butthe suspicion that a pin from her own hair had fallen unheeded upon thegrass he dismissed as utterl
y preposterous. Was she not hisenchantress? Surely he had no right to suspect her of all women, for heloved her with all his soul. Yet neither police, jury, nor he himselfhad inquired where she had been at the hour the tragedy was enacted.The thought held him appalled.
While these and similar reflections passed through his mind some wordsof the Coroner suddenly arrested his attention. The court was at oncehushed in expectation, every word being listened to with eagerattention.
"In the dress-pocket of the deceased has been found this letter, of asomewhat extraordinary character. As it is written in French it may bebest if I read an English translation," he said, spreading out themissive before him. "It is on superior note-paper of English make,bears traces of having been written by an educated person,