Who?

by Elizabeth Kent

  CHAPTER VII

  THE INQUEST

  On entering the hall Cyril found that a seat on the right hand of thecoroner had been reserved for him, but he chose a secluded corner fromwhich he could watch the proceedings unobserved.

  On the left of Mr. Tinker sat a tall, imposing-looking man, who, oninquiry, proved to be Inspector Griggs.

  The first part of the inquest developed nothing new. It was only whenMustapha stepped forward that Cyril's interest revived and he forgot theproblem of his _protegee's_ identity.

  The Turk, with the exception of a red fez, was dressed as a European,but his swarthy skin, large, beak-like nose, and deep, sombre eyes, inwhich brooded the mystery of the East, proclaimed his nationality.

  Cyril tried in vain to form some estimate of the man's character, toprobe the depths of those fathomless eyes, but ignorant as he was of theOriental, he found it impossible to differentiate between Mustapha'sracial and individual characteristics. That he was full of infinitepossibilities was evident--even his calmness was suggestive of potentialpassion. A man to be watched, decided Cyril.

  Mustapha gave his testimony in a low, clear voice, and although he spokewith a strong foreign accent, his English was purer than that of hisfellow servants.

  That he had nothing to do with the murder seemed from the firstconclusively proved. Several of the servants had seen him enter hisroom, which adjoined that of the butler, at about half-past nine--thatis to say, an hour and a half before Lord Wilmersley's death could, inthe doctor's opinion, have taken place--and Douglas on cross--reiteratedhis conviction that Mustapha could not have left his room without hishaving heard him do so, as he, Douglas, was a very light sleeper.

  In answer to questions from the coroner, Mustapha told how he hadentered the late Lord Wilmersley's service some fifteen yearspreviously, at which time his master owned a house on the outskirts ofConstantinople. As he dressed as a Mussulman and consorted entirely withthe natives, Mustapha did not know that he was a foreigner till hismaster informed him of the fact just before leaving Turkey.

  When questioned as to Lady Wilmersley, he was rather non-committal. No,he had never believed her to be dangerous.--Had she seemed happy? No,she cried often.--Did his lordship ever ill-treat her? Not that he knewof. His lordship was very patient with her tears.--Did he know how shecould have obtained a pistol? Yes, there was one concealed on hismaster's desk. He had discovered that it was missing.--How could apistol lie concealed _on_ a desk? It was hidden inside an ancient steelgauntlet, ostensibly used as a paperweight. Mustapha had found it oneday quite accidentally.--Did he tell his lordship of his discovery? No.His master was always afraid of being spied upon.--Why? He did notknow.--Did Mustapha know of any enemy of his lordship who was likely tohave sought such a revenge? No. His master's enemies were not inEngland.--Then his lordship had enemies? As all men have, so hadhe.--But he had no special enemy? An enemy is an enemy, but his master'senemies were not near.--How could he be so sure of that? He would havehad word.--How? From whom? From his, Mustapha's friends.--Did hislordship fear his enemies would follow him to England? At first,perhaps, but not lately.--If his lordship's enemies had found him, wouldthey have been likely to kill him? Who can tell? The heart of man isvery evil.--But he knew no one who could have done this thing? Noone.--Did he believe his mistress had done it? Mustapha hesitated forthe first time. "They say so," he finally answered.

  "But you, what do you think?" insisted the coroner.

  "The ways of women are dark."

  "Do you believe her ladyship killed your master--Yes or No?" repeatedthe coroner impatiently.

  "It is not for me to say," replied Mustapha with unruffled dignity.

  The coroner, feeling himself rebuked, dismissed the man with a hurried"That will do."

  Mrs. Valdriguez was next called.

  She was a tall, thin woman between fifty and sixty. Her black hair,freely sprinkled with silver, was drawn into a tight knot at the back ofher small head. Her pale, haggard face, with its finely-chiselled nose,thin-lipped mouth, and slightly-retreating chin, was almost beautifiedby her large, sunken eyes, which still glowed with extraordinarybrilliancy. Her black dress was austere in its simplicity and she woreno ornament except a small gold cross suspended on her bosom.

  The woman was obviously nervous. She held her hands tightly clasped infront of her, and her lips twitched from time to time. She spoke so lowthat Cyril had to lean forward to catch her answers, but her English wasperfectly fluent. It was chiefly her accent and intonation whichbetrayed her foreign birth.

  "You lived here in the time of the late Lady Wilmersley, did you not?"began the coroner.

  "Yes, sir."

  "In what capacity?"

  "As lady's maid, sir."

  "When did you leave here, and why?"

  "I left when her ladyship died."

  "Did you return to Spain?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "How did you happen to enter the present Lady Wilmersley's service?"

  "Lord Wilmersley sent for me when he was on his wedding journey."

  "Had you seen him after you left Geralton?"

  "From time to time."

  "Do you know whether his lordship had any enemies?"

  "Not of late years."

  "Then you did know some. Who were they?"

  "Those that he had are either dead or have forgiven," Valdriguezanswered, and as she did so, she fingered the cross on her breast.

  "So that you can think of no one likely to have resorted to such aterrible revenge?"

  "No one, sir."

  "On the night of the murder you did not assist her ladyship to undress,so I understand?"

  "I never did. From the time her ladyship left her room to go to dinner Inever saw her again till the following morning."

  "And you noticed nothing unusual that evening?"

  "I can't say that. Her ladyship was very much excited. She cried andbegged me to help her to escape."

  A murmur of excitement ran through the hall.

  "What did you say to her?"

  "I told her that she was his lordship's lawful wife; that she had vowedbefore God to honour and obey him in all things."

  "Had she ever made an attempt to escape?"

  "No, sir."

  "Did she ever give you any reason for wishing to do so?"

  "She told me that his lordship threatened to shut her up in a lunaticasylum, but I assured her he would never do so. He loved her too much."

  "You consider that he was very devoted to her?"

  The woman closed her eyes for a second.

  "He loved her as I have never before known a man love a woman," sheanswered, with suppressed vehemence.

  "Why then did he send for the doctors to commit her to an institution?"

  "I do not know."

  At this point of the interrogation Cyril scribbled a few words, which hegave to one of the footmen to carry to the coroner. When the latter hadread them, he asked:

  "Did you consider her ladyship a dangerous lunatic?"

  "No, sir."

  "Why, then, did you prophesy that she would kill your master?"

  The woman trembled slightly and her hand again sought the cross.

  "I--I believed Lord Wilmersley's time had come, but I knew not how hewould die. I did not know that she would be the instrument--only Ifeared it."

  "Why did you think his lordship's days were numbered?"

  "Sir, if I were to tell you my reasons, you would say that they were notreasons. You would call them superstitions and me a foolish old woman. Ibelieve what I believe, and you, what you have been taught. God shalljudge. Suffice it, sir, that my reasons for believing that his lordshipwould die soon are not such as would appeal to your common-sense."

  "H'm, well--I confess that signs and omens are not much in my line, butI must really insist upon your giving some explanation as to why youfeared that your mistress would murder Lord Wilmersley."

  The woman's lips twitched convulsively and her eyes glowed wi
th sombrefire.

  "Because--if you will know it--he loved her more than was natural--heloved her more than his God; and the Lord God is a jealous God."

  "And this is really your only reason for your extraordinarysupposition?"

  "For me it is enough," she replied.

  "Well, well--very curious indeed!" said the coroner, regarding the womanintently.

  He paused for a moment.

  "How did you pass the evening of the murder?" he asked.

  "In my room. I had a headache and went early to bed."

  "I suppose somebody saw you after you left Lady Wilmersley's room whocan support your statement?"

  "I do not know. I do not remember seeing any one," answered Valdriguez,throwing her head back and looking a little defiantly at Mr. Tinker.

  "Ah, really? That is a pity," said the coroner. "However, there is noreason to doubt your word--as yet," he added.

  Mrs. Eversley was next called. The coroner questioned her exhaustivelyas to the missing Priscilla Prentice. He seemed especially anxious toknow whether the girl had owned a bicycle. She had not.--Did she knowhow to ride one? Yes, Mrs. Eversley had seen her try one belonging tothe under-housemaid.--Did many of the servants own bicycles? Yes.--Hadone of them been taken? She did not know.

  On further inquiry, however, it was found that all the machines wereaccounted for.

  It had not occurred to Cyril to speculate as to how, if Prentice hadreally aided her mistress to escape, she had been able to cover the ninemiles which separated the castle from Newhaven. Eighteen miles in oneevening on foot! Not perhaps an impossible feat, but very nearly so,especially as on her way back she would have been handicapped by LadyWilmersley, a delicate woman, quite unaccustomed--at all events duringthe last three years--to any form of exercise.

  It was evident, however, that this difficulty had not escaped thecoroner, for all the servants and more especially the gardenersand under-gardeners were asked if they had seen in any of theless-frequented paths traces of a carriage or bicycle. But no one hadseen or heard anything suspicious.

  The head gardener and his wife, who lived at the Lodge, swore that thetall, iron gates had been locked at half-past nine, and that they hadheard no vehicle pass on the highroad during the night.

  At this point in the proceedings whispering was audible in the back ofthe hall. The coroner paused to see what was the matter. A moment laterDouglas stepped up to him and said something in a low voice. The coronernodded.

  "Mrs. Willis," he called.

  A middle-aged woman, very red in the face, came reluctantly forward.

  "Well, Mrs. Willis, I hear you have something to tell me?"

  "Indeed no, sir," exclaimed the woman, picking nervously at her gloves."It is nothing at all. Only when I 'eard you asking about carriages inthe night, I says to Mrs. Jones--well, one passed, I know that.Leastways, it didn't exactly pass; it stayed."

  "The carriage stayed; where?"

  "It wasn't a carriage."

  "It wasn't a carriage and it stayed? Can't you explain yourself moreclearly, Mrs. Willis? This isn't a conundrum, is it?"

  "It was a car, a motor-car," stammered the woman.

  "A car! And it stopped? Where?"

  "I couldn't say exactly, but not far from our cottage."

  "And where is your cottage?"

  "On the 'ighroad near the long lane."

  "I see." The coroner was obviously excited. "Your husband is one of thegardeners here, isn't he?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "So there is doubtless a path connecting your cottage with the castlegrounds?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "About how far from your cottage was the car?"

  "I didn't see it, sir; I just 'eard it; but it wasn't far, that I know,"reiterated the woman.

  "Did you hear any one pass through your garden?"

  "No, sir."

  "Could they have done so without your hearing them?"

  "They might."

  "Was the car going to or coming from Newhaven?"

  "It was coming from Newhaven."

  "Then it must have stopped at the foot of the long lane."

  "Yes, sir; that's just about where I thought it was."

  "Is there a path connecting Long Lane with the highroad?"

  "Yes, a narrow one."

  "What time was it when you heard the car? Now try and be very accurate."

  "I wouldn't like to swear, sir, but I think it was between eleven andtwelve."

  "Did your husband hear it also?"

  "No, sir, 'e was fast asleep, but I wasn't feeling very well, so I hadgot up thinking I'd make myself a cup of tea, and just then I 'eard acar come whizzing along, and then there was a bang. Oh, says I, they'veburst their wheel, that's what they've done, me knowing about cars. Iknow it takes a bit of mending, a wheel does, so I wasn't surprised whenI 'eard no more of them for a time--and I 'ad just about forgotten allabout them, so I had, when I 'ears them move off."

  "And they did not pass your cottage?"

  "No, sir, I'm sure of that."

  "Did you hear anything else?"

  "Well, sir"--the woman fidgeted uneasily, "I thought--but I shouldn'tlike to swear to it--not on the Bible--but I fancied I 'eard a cry."

  "What sort of a cry? Was it a man or a woman's?"

  "I really couldn't say--and perhaps what I 'eard was not a cry atall----"

  "Well, well--this is most important. A motor-car that is driven athalf-past eleven at night to the foot of a lane which leads nowhere butto the castle grounds, and then returns in the direction it camefrom--very extraordinary--very. We must look into this," exclaimed thecoroner.

  And with this the inquest was adjourned.