The Charing Cross Mystery, J. S. Fletcher [portable ebook reader .txt] 📗

Mr. Hollis. That’s an episode which I had put out of my mind⁠—until you recalled it.”

“But⁠—your loss?” suggested Hollis. “Close on four thousand pounds, wasn’t it?”

Mr. Malladale raised one of his white hands to his grey beard and coughed. It was a cough that suggested discretion, confidence, secrecy. He smiled behind his moustache, and his spectacled eyes seemed to twinkle.

“I think I may venture a little disclosure⁠—in the company of two gentlemen learned in the law,” he said. “To a solicitor whom I know very well, and to a barrister introduced by him, I think I may reveal a little secret⁠—between ourselves and to go no further. The fact of this matter is, gentlemen⁠—I had no loss!”

“What?” exclaimed Hollis. “No⁠—loss?”

“Eventually,” replied the jeweller. “Eventually! Indeed, to tell you the truth plain, I made my profit, and⁠—er, something over.”

Hollis looked his bewilderment.

“Do you mean that⁠—eventually⁠—you were paid?” he asked.

“Precisely! Eventually⁠—after a considerable interval⁠—I was paid,” replied Mr. Malladale. “I will tell you the circumstances. It is, I believe, common knowledge that I sold the diamond necklace to Mrs. Whittingham for three thousand, nine hundred pounds, and that the cheque she gave me was dishonoured, and that she cleared off with the goods and was never heard of after she escaped from Hannaford. Well, two years ago, that is to say, eight years after her disappearance, I one day received a letter which bore the New York postmark. It contained a sheet of notepaper on which were a few words and a few figures. But I have that now, and I’ll show it to you.”

Going to a safe in the corner of his parlour, the jeweller, after some searching, produced a paper and laid it before his visitors. Hetherwick examined it with curiosity. There was no name, no address, no date; all that appeared was, as Malladale had remarked, a few words, a few figures, typewritten:⁠—

Principal £3,900 8 years’ Interest @ 5% £1,560 £5,460

Draft £5,460 enclosed herein: kindly acknowledge in London Times.

“Enclosed, as is there said, was a draft on a London bank for the specified amount,” continued Mr. Malladale. “£5,460! You may easily believe that at first I could scarcely understand this: I knew of no one in New York who owed me money. But the first figures⁠—£3,900⁠—threw light on the matter⁠—I suddenly remembered Mrs. Whittingham and my lost necklace. Then I saw through the thing⁠—evidently Mrs. Whittingham had become prosperous, wealthy, and she was honest enough to make amends; there was my principal, and eight years’ interest on it. Yet, I felt somewhat doubtful about taking it⁠—I didn’t know whether I mightn’t be compounding a felony? You gentlemen, of course, will appreciate my little difficulty?”

“Um!” remarked Hollis in a noncommittal tone. “The more interesting matter is⁠—what did you do? Though I think we already know,” he added with a smile.

“Well, I went to see Hannaford, and told him what I had received,” answered the jeweller. “And Hannaford said precisely what I expected him to say. He said ‘Put the money in your pocket, Malladale, and say nothing about it!’ So⁠—I did!”

“Each of you feeling pretty certain that Mrs. Whittingham was not likely to show her face in Sellithwaite again, no doubt!” observed Hollis. “Very interesting, Mr. Malladale. But it strikes me that whether she ever comes to Sellithwaite again or not, Mrs. Whittingham, or whatever her name may be nowadays, is in England.”

“You think so?” asked the jeweller.

“Her picture’s recently appeared in an English paper, anyway,” said Hollis.

“But pictures of famous American ladies appear in English newspapers,” suggested Mr. Malladale. “I have recollections of several. Now my notion is that Mrs. Whittingham, who was a very handsome and very charming woman, eventually went across the Atlantic and married an American millionaire! That’s how I figured it. And I have often wondered who she is now.”

“That’s precisely what I want to find out,” said Hetherwick. “One thing is certain⁠—Hannaford knew! If he’d been alive he could have told us. Because in whatever paper it was that this print appeared there would be some letterpress about it, giving the name, and why it appeared at all.”

“You can trace that,” remarked Hollis.

“Just so,” agreed Hetherwick, “and I may as well get back to town and begin the job. But I think with Mr. Hollis,” he added, turning to the jeweller, “I believe that the woman is here in England: I think it possible, too, that Hannaford knew where. And I don’t think it impossible that between the time of his cutting out her picture from the paper and the time of his sudden death he came in touch with her.”

“You think it probable that she, in some way, had something to do with his murder⁠—if it was murder?” asked Mr. Malladale.

“I think it possible,” replied Hetherwick. “There are strange features in the case. One of the strangest is this. Why, when Hannaford cut out that picture, for his own purposes, evidently with no intention of showing it to anyone else, did he cut it out without the name and letterpress which must have been under and over it?”

“Queer, certainly!” said Hollis. “But, you know, you can soon ascertain what that name was. All you’ve got to do is to get another copy of the paper.”

“Unfortunately, Hannaford’s granddaughter doesn’t know what particular paper it was,” replied Hetherwick. “Her sole recollection of it is that it was some local newspaper, sent to Hannaford by post, the very morning that he left here for London.”

“Still⁠—it can be traced,” said Hollis. “It was in some paper⁠—and there’ll be other copies.”

Presently he and Hetherwick left the jeweller’s shop. Outside, Hollis led his companion across the street, and turned into a narrow alley.

“I’ll show you a man who’ll remember Mrs. Whittingham better than anybody in Sellithwaite,” he said, with a laugh. “Better even than Malladale. I told you she stayed at the White Bear when she was here? Well, since then the entire staff of that eminent hostelry has been changed, from the manager to the boots⁠—I don’t think there’s a man or woman there who was there ten years ago. But there’s a man at the