by Diana Palmer
"That makes it acceptable even to me," she assured him.
He started to speak just as three burly men with cut and bruised faces came storming out into the hall while a policeman they glimpsed on the floor of the apartment called for them to stop.
"Shall we?" Matt asked Tess.
"Ofcourse we shall."
He tripped the first man and helped him headfirst into the wall. Tess walked into the second one with her knee, and when he bent double with the pain, she brought her knee up again andlaidhim out cold on the floor with the force of it.
The last one skidded to a stop just as the policeman came staggering out into the hall with a pistol and cocked it with a loud warning shout.
The man stuck his arms up, gaping at the two men on the floor and the people who'd put them there.
"Sir, I'm eternally grateful." The policeman panted, dabbing at a deep cut on his forehead.
"Oh, I only settled one for you. She"—he indicated Tess—"knocked the second one down."
The policeman stared at her. "She did?"
"I'm an old Indian fighter," she told himwitha straight face.
"I'm not quite an old Indian," Matt murmured, smiling slowly, "but she can still throw me when she wants to."
The policeman chuckled, not quite sure what to believe. He called to the men in the wagon, who came and dragged the three men out.
"We'll need the ambulance, too," the policeman called to the driver. "They'd almost done in their poor father in there."
"We'll send it."
"Iam a trained practical nurse," Tess said. "May I be of help?"
"Indeed you may!"
She was led to the man, who was cut and bruised and concussed. She did what little she could for him while Matt spoke to the policeman.
"They told us we might find you here," Matt said to the policeman after he'd introduced himself and Tess and explained why he'd come.
"What I need to know is what sort of condition the Colliers' kitchen was in when you got there," Matt asked straight out.
The man looked taken aback by the odd question, but he recovered quickly. "Well, it was a mess," he said. "She'd butchered a chicken in there and left feathers and parts of it in the sink after she'd boiled the rest. She told us that she'd gotten it from a neighbor who killed it for her but didn't dress it. She did that and cooked it for a guest they had earlier that night, and in the rush to get to her women's meeting, she'd left the cleaning up. I never thought that quite rang true."
Itwasn't true, Matt thought, remembering what Kilgallen had told him. The mobster had said that he'd knocked Dennis down the stairs and takenNanaway, calling for help from her sister and brother-in-law. There hadn't been time to clean the kitchen first. And it did indeed verify whatNanhad told Tess about where the blood on her gloves had come from. He could have cursed. He was still no nearer a solution to the murder, andNanwas running out of time. The trial was next week.
He pursued one more line of questioning before he gave it up. "I wondered if anyone told you about Collier having loose women in his apartment when his wife wasn't home?"
"Good Lord, no," the policeman said. Then he paused thoughtfully. "Well, not loose women," he amended. "Someone certainly saw a woman run out of the apartment just after Collier screamed on the night he was murdered. But she was dressed in dark clothing and wearing a hat. The witness I talked to said that she was skinny and hatchet-faced." He shrugged. "That didn't sound like Mrs. Collier to me, but you know how witnesses can mix things up sometimes."
"Yes, I do." He was trying to put a face to that description. Tess beat him to it. Her eyes met his, and she was suddenly pale. She knew who fit that description to a tee. And it was the last person she'd ever have accused of murder. Until now.
She didn't say a word to Matt, though, in front of the policeman. She did what she could for the downed man until the horse-drawn ambulance came. The two attendants knew Tess from the hospital, and they smiled politely and asked after her health as they loaded the victim onto a stretcher and took him away.
"Thank you for your help," Matt told the policeman.
"Thank you for yours," he returned with a wary, still not quite believing glance at Tess. "They've got Mrs. Collier in jail for the murder, you know," he added.
"We know," Tess said. She wished him a good evening, grabbed Matt's hand, and pulled him out the door.
"You've remembered something, haven't you?" he asked her once they were clear of the building and out of earshot.
"Yes, I have! Matt, don't you remember meeting someone who meets the description the policeman just gave us?" she asked, her eyes wide and bright with excitement. "Someone who hated Dennis Collier and admitted that she was glad he was dead?"
"Of course!" He let out a breath. "My God,Nan's sister—Edith Greene!"
"Exactly!" Tess exclaimed. "Don't you see, she was sending us on wild goose chases, giving us false clues, trying to keep us from seeing that she was the one with the best motive for murder, afterNan."
"Is she that hard-hearted," he asked slowly, "that she'd let her own sister be hanged for what she did?"
"Ihave a feeling that she did it on the spur of the moment, that perhaps he tried to hit her or threatened to go afterNanand kill her. I don't think she went there to do it."
"Neither do I," he concurred. "Well, Miss Detective, where do we go from here?"
"Let's go and visit Mrs. Greene and see if we can flush her out!"
"Officer Greene will be at home," Matt said. He shook his head. "God, I hate it for his sake. He'll never live it down, not at his age."
"With a good attorney, she might get off. God knows, there's no law against killing treacherous poisonous snakes," she muttered coldly.
He chuckled amusedly at some secret joke.
"What are you laughing at?"
"In our own language, we are Lakota, or 'alliance of friends.' But the whites called us Sioux. Some people say that it means 'enemy,' though in what language I do not know. Others say it's a shortened version of an Ojibwa word,nadewisou, which means 'treacherous snake.'"
"You never told me that," she reminded him.
"I'm not a treacherous snake," he pointed out. He grinned. "But Collier was. And maybe we can offer Mrs. Greene hope. I know a damned good trial lawyer inTexaswho'd come up here and defend her if I asked him to. He was with us inCuba, inRoosevelt's volunteer regiment."
Her breath caught. "You never told me that, either—that you were inCuba! Neither did Dad. He knew?"
"Yes. We decided to spare you. You'd have worried," he said simply.
"I suppose you were sure of that?"
He turned and looked down at her with old eyes. "I suspected you loved me with passion when you were fourteen. You grew older and never married, and your father said you still talked about me constantly, years after I came toChicago. He, too, suspected you were in love with me. I never minded that you came toChicago. I was only trying to cope with my doubts about our differences. I was protecting you, just as I always have. It's only today that I've suddenly realized how little you require protection. You truly have the heart of a warrior." He smiled as he saw her surprised look. "Didn't you realize that I could have refused to meet you at the station? If I hadn't wanted you around, I could have helped you get a job in another city. I could have taken you to one of the Christian homes, any one of which would gladly have given you board. But I didn't, did I?"
She shook her head. She sighed. "You wanted me here?"
"I love you. Didn't you realize?"
It was snowing a little. The chill was getting so bad that even her warm wool topcoat didn't help much. Her feet were freezing inside her cotton stockings. And still she stood there, gaping up at his beloved face.
"Why else would I have asked Old Man Deer to marry us?" he whispered, touching her cheek with a gentle hand. "And denied myself women for twelve years?"
"Denied yourself?" She did gasp out loud then. "But you said…!"
"I said that I'
d had encounters with sophisticated women," he replied pleasantly. "And I have. I've held them and kissed them, and caressed them." He grinned. "But I never slept with them. I was a married man, for God's sake!"
She hit his chest and shook him and groaned furiously, and he pulled her into his arms right there in the middle of the sidewalk and kissed her breathless.
When he let her go, they were getting pointed stares from passersby, not all of whom were outraged. Some were frankly amused.
"Now, let's go and see what we can do for Mrs. Greene. We can wait.Nancan't."
He took her arm and drew her along with him. Seconds later his fingers locked firmly into her own, and she wondered if it wasn't to hold her down to the sidewalk. She surely would have floated, in her state of utter euphoria, if he'd let go of her hand.
* * *
Mrs. Greene invited them into her house with a curious expression and led them to the sitting room. She offered coffee and they accepted, passing the time of day with a courteous but very puzzled Officer Greene, who'd arrived home from work only minutes before.
When Mrs. Greene brought the coffee tray, Matt got up to take it from her. Her hands were shaking. She smiled perfunctorily and sat down next to her husband as Matt placed the tray on the side table.
"Would you pour, Miss Meredith?" Edith Greene asked in a tight voice. "My nerves are unsettled today; I can't think why!" She laughed nervously.
Tess obliged her, passing cups of coffee to everyone before she settled her cup and saucer gingerly on her lap.
"This is a strange time to come calling, if you'll forgive me saying so," Officer Greene said.
"I'm afraid it isn't a social call," Matt replied solemnly. "We've done some investigating, and we have a suspect in the Collier murder case. In fact," he added with studied carelessness, "we know who did it."
"For God's sake, girl!" Greene exclaimed as his wife spilled coffee all over herself.
Her hand was scalded, and she covered it with her napkin for just an instant before she looked at Matt with hunted eyes. "How did you find out?" she asked in a strained tone.
"A neighbor saw you run out of the apartment."
"That's a lie!" Greene exploded, but Matt silenced him with a lean hand and a quick glare. "Let me say at once that I don't believe you capable of cold-blooded murder, Mrs. Greene," he added quickly. "And I know an attorney who will represent you at trial. He'll get you off. Collier was a rat and everyone knew it, and enough people could swear that he was beating your sister frequently to convince a jury of his character."
Mrs. Greene could barely get her breath through sobs and tears. She put the napkin to her eyes and leaned forward over her lap while her husband sat and gaped at her with pure horror.
"Iwould have told, rather than let her go to the gallows. You must believe that." She wept harshly. "I was afraid, so afraid!"
"There's no reason to be so afraid," Tess brokein."Please tell us what happened."
She dabbed at her eyes and fought for control, glancing nervously and apologetically at her husband before she began.
"Nanhad come to that meeting looking like death warmed over and with bruises on her pretty face. She said that Dennis had sworn to come after her and kill her, and she didn't even want to go home with us because she was so afraid that he might hurt us." She smiled dully. "We persuaded her. But he"—she nodded toward her husband—"had to go back to work. And he'd no sooner left thanNangot really scared."
She paused for breath. "I went to see him and told him I'd sendNanhome if he'd promise not to hit her again. I didn't mean it, of course. I just wanted to put him off. He seemed to me to be dangerously drunk. Well, he said if she didn't show up, he'd bring his pistol over and kill her. And the way he was talking, I didn't doubt for an instant that he might actually do it.
"Iwas scared to death, but I thought that maybe I could talk him out of doing anything stupid. I thought I could scare him into backing off and leaving her be. You can reason with most people if you really try, can't you?" she added plaintively.
"Not with a drunk man, you can't, and you shouldn't have tried, you crazy woman!" Greene groaned, catching her hand tightly in his.
"Iknow that now, dear, but I was afraid to let you know because he might have killed you if you'd gone instead of me." She drew another breath, and her complexion paled. "I left. Then I decided to go back. It was dark in the front hall of the apartment. He came into the foyer. It was so dark that he didn't recognize me. He said 'Nan?' real loud, so loud that you could have heard him on the landing. I closed the door and leaned back against it. My knees were shaking, and my mouth was so dry, I couldn't do much more than say his name. And then he moved, and I saw it."
"Saw what?" Matt prompted.
"The pistol," she continued. "He had a pistol. It was lying on the table beside him. He laughed real softly and said he was going to take care of me once and for all, but first he was going to make me give him what I was giving that rich mobster I was going around with. He still thought I wasNan. He was drunk. Staggering drunk."
"Go on," Tess said.
Mrs. Greene's eyes looked haunted. "He got up and came toward me. He started cursing me, and he raised his fist. I knew he was going to hit me, and if he did, I wouldn't have a chance.Nan's sewing basket was sitting on top of her treadle machine, where she always kept it. I fumbled in the basket and felt for her scissors. He came at me and I ducked so that his fist hit the door instead. He screamed and I just…"She had to swallow down nausea. Her eyes closed as she shuddered."Istabbed out wildly. He staggered backward, still screaming, and fell. I didn't even wait to see where I'd stabbed him; I just jerked open the door and ran." She bit her lip, sobbing. "I never meant to kill him. As God is my witness, I was just trying to keep him from killing my poor sister!"
Tess went to sit beside her on the rosewood sofa and put her arms around the older woman. She began to rock her gently.
"Ishould have said all this right away, the very minute they arrestedNan." She wept piteously. "But I was so afraid of the shame I'd bring on my husband and my little children! It just tormented me. I'm glad it's over," she added in a defeated tone. "I don't care if they hang me. I killed a man.Ihave to be punished."
"You killed a snake," Matt said. "They ought to give you a medal. Don't worry," he told Greene with a confident smile. "I'll cable Jared Dunn inFort Worthand ask him to defend you. He'll come, even though he and his wife spend most of their time watching their baby son grow," he added amusedly.
"You think this Dunn fellow can save my wife?" Greene asked huskily.
"Iknow it," Matt told him."Itwas a clear case of self-defense, and I can dig up twenty witnesses who'll swear to Collier's low character and your wife's sterling one." And he could, because Kilgallen would provide them—after all, Edith was soon to be his sister-in-law.
Greene was still powerfully worried, but his face cleared a little. "Well, my darlin'," he said, "I guess we'd better make a trip down to the station house."
She nodded, wiping her eyes. She gave Tess a watery smile. "I'm sorry. I've never even hurt an animal."
"Collier was worse than an animal," Matt said coldly. "He got what he deserved. I'm only sorry that you and your sister were caught in the middle."
"You're very kind, Mr. Davis," she said.
"You'll cable this Mr. Dunn, then?" Greene asked him.
"Atfirst light," Matt promised. He got to his feet along with Tess. "We'll go with you to the station and take Mrs. Collier to a hotel…"
"You'll do no such thing," Greene said gruffly. "She'll come to us, where she belongs."
"You're a kind soul yourself, Officer Greene," Tess said gently.
He almost blushed. "Well,Nan's a good girl, even if it might seem to be a different story. What with the child and all," he said uncomfortably.
"Ithink you've got a few surprises coming aboutNanand that baby," Matt murmured. "But I'll let you find them out yourself. One shock in a night is enough."
* * *
Nanwas released, to her joy and sorrow, because her sister had to take her place in the cell. She thanked Tess and Matt profusely and then went home with her dejected brother-in-law.
She could help him with the children, she said, and smiled at the thought of her own expected child.
"What will Kilgallen do, do you think?" Tess asked when they were outside the station house in the biting cold wind.
"Ithink he'll marry her out of hand without waiting anywhere near a decent period of mourning," he chuckled. "That's what I'd do."
"You? The very conservative Mr. Davis?"
He looked down his long nose at her. "I don't feel as conservative as I've been in past years," he confessed, smiling. "Perhaps I'm about to break out of my own mold."
