The Middle of Things

by J. S. Fletcher

  CHAPTER V

  LOOK FOR THAT MAN!

  At these words Viner drew back with an exclamation of astonishment, butin the next instant he stepped forward again, holding out his hand.

  "Hyde!" he said. "Then--that's what I remembered! Of course I know you!But good heavens, man, what does all this mean? What's brought you tothis--to be here, in this place?"

  The prisoner looked round at his captors, and back at Viner, and smiledas a man smiles who is beginning to realize hopelessness to the full.

  "I don't know if I'm allowed to speak," he said.

  Drillford, who had been watching this episode with keen attention,motioned to the two policemen.

  "Wait outside," he said abruptly. "Now, then," he continued when he,Viner and Hyde were alone, "this man can say anything he likes to you,Mr. Viner, so long as you've asked to see him. This is all irregular, butI've no wish to stop him from telling you whatever he pleases. Butremember," he went on, glancing at the prisoner, "you're saying it beforeme--and in my opinion, you'd a deal better have said something when youwere in court just now."

  "I didn't know what to say," replied Hyde doubtfully. "I'm pretty muchon the rocks, as you can guess; but--I have relatives! And if it'spossible, I don't want them to know about this."

  Drillford looked at Viner and shook his head, as if to signify hiscontempt of Hyde's attitude.

  "Considering the position you're in," he said, turning again to Hyde,"you must see that it's impossible that your relations should be keptfrom knowing. You'll have to give particulars about yourself, sooner orlater. And charges of murder, like this, can't be kept out of thenewspapers."

  "Tell me, Hyde!" exclaimed Viner. "Look here, now, to begin with--youdidn't kill this man?"

  Hyde shook his head in a puzzled fashion--something was evidently causinghim surprise.

  "I didn't know the man was killed, or dead, until they brought me here,from that pawnbroker's this morning!" he said. Then he laughed almostcontemptuously, and with some slight show of spirit. "Do you think I'dhave been such a fool as to try to pawn or sell a ring that belonged toa man who'd just been murdered?" he demanded. "I'm not quite such anass as that!"

  Viner looked round at Drillford.

  "There!" he said quietly. "What did I tell you? Isn't that what I said?You're on the wrong track, Inspector!"

  But Drillford, sternly official in manner, shook his head.

  "How did he come by the ring, then?" he asked, pointing at his prisoner."Let him say!"

  "Hyde!" said Viner. "Tell! I've been certain for an hour that you didn'tkill this man, and I want to help you. But--tell us the truth! What doyou know about it? How did you get that ring?"

  "I shall make use of anything he tells," remarked Drillford warningly.

  "He's going to tell--everything," said Viner. "Come now, Hyde, thetruth!"

  Hyde suddenly dropped into a chair by which he was standing, and pressedhis hand over his face with a gesture which seemed to indicate a certainamount of bewilderment.

  "Let me sit down," he said. "I'm weak, tired, too. Until this morning Ihadn't had a mouthful of food for a long time, and I'd--well, I'd beenwalking about, night as well as day. I was walking about all yesterday,and a lot of last night. I'm pretty nearly done, if you want to know!"

  "Take your time," said Drillford. "Here, wait a bit," he went on after asudden glance at his prisoner. "Keep quiet a minute." He turned to acupboard in the corner of the room and presently came back with somethingin a glass. "Drink that," he said not unkindly. "Drop of weak brandy andwater," he muttered to Viner. "Do him no harm--I see how it is withhim--he's been starving."

  Hyde caught the last word and laughed feebly as he handed the glass back.

  "Starving!" he said. "Yes--that's it! I hope neither of you'll know whatit means! Three days without--"

  "Now, Hyde!" interrupted Viner. "Never mind that--you won't starve again.Come--tell us all about this--tell everything."

  Hyde bent forward in his chair, but after a look at the two men, hiseyes sought the floor and moved from one plank to another as if he foundit difficult to find a fixed point.

  "I don't know where to begin, Viner," he said at last. "You see, you'venever met me since we left school. I went in for medicine--I was atBart's for a time, but--well, I was no good, somehow. And then I went infor the stage--I've had some fairly decent engagements, both here and inthe States, now and then. But you know what a precarious business thatis. And some time ago I struck a real bad patch, and I've been out of ajob for months. And lately it's gone from bad to worse--you know, orrather I suppose you don't know, because you've never been in thatfix--pawning everything, and so on, until--well, I haven't had a penny inmy pockets for days now!"

  "Your relations?" questioned Viner.

  "Didn't want them to know," answered Hyde. "The fact is, I haven't beenon good terms with them for a long time, and I've got some prideleft--or I had, until yesterday. But here's the truth: I had to clear outof my lodgings--which was nothing but an attic, three days since, andI've been wandering about, literally hungry and homeless, since that. Ifit hadn't been for that, I should never have been in this hole! Andthat's due to circumstances that beat me, for I tell you again, I don'tknow anything about this man's murder--at least, not about it actually."

  "What do you know?" asked Viner. "Tell us plainly."

  "I'm going to," responded Hyde. "I was hanging about the Park and aroundKensington Gardens most of yesterday. Then, at night, I got wanderingabout this part--didn't seem to matter much where I went. You don't know,either of you, what it means to wander round, starving. You get into asort of comatose state--you just go on and on. Well, last night I waswalking, in that way, in and out about these Bayswater squares. I gotinto Markendale Square. As I was going along the top side of it, Inoticed a passage and turned into it--as I've said, when a man's in thestate I was in, it doesn't matter where he slouches--anywhere! I turnedinto that passage, I tell you, just aimlessly, as a man came walking out.Viner, look for that man! Find him! He's the fellow these police want! Ifthere's been murder--"

  "Keep calm, Hyde!" said Viner. "Go on, quietly."

  "This man passed me and went on into the square," continued Hyde. "I wentup the passage. It was very dark, except in the middle, where there's anold-fashioned lamp. And then I saw another man, who was lying across theflags. I don't know that I'd any impression about him--I was too sick andweary. I believe I thought he was drunk, or ill or something. But yousee, at the same instant that I saw him, I saw something else which drovehim clean out of my mind. In fact, as soon as I'd seen it, I neverthought about him any more, nor looked at him again."

  "What was it?" demanded Viner, certain of what the answer would be.

  "A diamond ring," replied Hyde. "It was lying on the flags close bythe man. The light from the lamp fell full on it. And I snatched it up,thrust it into my pocket and ran up the passage. I ran into somebody atthe far end--it turns out to have been you. Well, you saw me hurryoff--I got as far away as I could, lest you or somebody else shouldfollow. I wandered round Westbourne Grove, and then up into the HarrowRoad, and in a sort of back street there I sneaked into a shanty in ayard, and stopped in it the rest of the night. And this morning I triedto pawn the ring."

  "Having no idea of its value," suggested Viner, with a glance atDrillford, who was listening to everything with an immovable countenance.

  "I thought it might be worth thirty or forty pounds," answered Hyde. "Ofcourse, I'd no idea that it was worth what's been said. You see, I'mfairly presentable, and I thought I could tell a satisfactory story if Iwas asked anything at the pawnshop. I didn't anticipate any difficultyabout pawning the ring--I don't think there'd have been any if it hadn'tbeen for its value. A thousand pounds! of course, I'd no idea of that!"

  "And that's the whole truth?" asked Viner.

  "It's the whole truth as far as I'm concerned," answered Hyde. "Icertainly picked up that ring in that passage, close by this man who waslying there. But I did
n't know he was dead; I didn't know he'd beenmurdered. All I know is that I was absolutely famishing, desperate, in nocondition to think clearly about anything. I guess I should do the samething again, under the circumstances. I only wish--"

  He paused and began muttering to himself, and the two listeners glancedat each other. "You only wish what, Hyde?" asked Viner.

  "I wish it had been a half-crown instead of that ring!" said Hyde with aqueer flashing glance at his audience. "I could have got a bed forfourpence, and have lived for three days on the rest. And now--"

  Viner made no remark; and Drillford, who was leaning against his desk,watching his prisoner closely, tapped Hyde on the shoulder.

  "Can you describe the man who came out of the passage as you entered it?"he asked. "Be accurate, now!"

  Hyde's face brightened a little, and his eyes became more intelligent.

  "Yes!" he answered. "You know--or you don't know--how your mentalfaculties get sharpened by hunger. I was dull enough, in one way, butalert enough in another. I can describe the man--as much as I saw of him.A tall man--neither broad nor slender--half-and-half. Dressed in blackfrom top to toe. A silk hat--patent leather boots--and muffled to theeyes in a white silk handkerchief."

  "Could you see his face?" asked Drillford. "Was he clean-shaved, orbearded, or what?"

  "I tell you he was muffled to the very eyes," answered Hyde. "One ofthose big silk handkerchiefs, you know--he had it drawn up over his chinand nose--right up."

  "Then you'd have difficulty in knowing him again," observed Drillford."There are a few thousand men in the West End of London who'd answer thedescription you've given."

  "All right!" muttered Hyde doggedly. "But--I know what I saw. And if youwant to help me, Viner, find that man--because he must have come straightaway from the body!"

  Drillford turned to Viner, glancing at the same time at the clock.

  "Do you want to ask him any more questions?" he inquired. "No? Well,there's just one I want to ask. What were you doing with that knife inyour possession?" he went on, turning to Hyde. "Be careful, now; youheard what the doctor said about it, in court?"

  "I've nothing to conceal," replied Hyde. "You heard me say just now thatI'd had engagements in the States. I bought that knife when I was outWest--more as a curiosity than anything--and I've carried it in my pocketever since."

  Drillford looked again at Viner.

  "He'll have to go, now," he said. "If you're going to employ legal helpfor him, the solicitor will know where and when he can see him." Hepaused on his way to the door and looked a little doubtfully at hisprisoner. "I'll give you a bit of advice," he said, "not as an official,but as an individual. If you want to clear yourself, you'd better giveall the information you can."

  "I'll send my own solicitor to you, Hyde, at once," said Viner. "Beabsolutely frank with him about everything."

  When Viner was once more alone with Drillford, the two men looked ateach other.

  "My own impression," said Viner, after a significant silence, "is thatwe have just heard the plain truth! I'm going to work on it, anyway."

  "In that case, Mr. Viner, there's no need for me to say anything,"remarked Drillford. "It may be the plain truth. But as I am what I am,all I know is the first-hand evidence against this young fellow. So hereally was a schoolmate of yours?"

  "Certainly!" said Viner. "His people live, or did live, in the north. Ishall have to get into communication with them. But now--what about theinformation he gave you? This man he saw?"

  Drillford shook his head.

  "Mr. Viner," he answered, "you don't understand police methods. We've gotvery strong evidence against Hyde. We know nothing about a tall man in awhite muffler. If you want to clear Hyde, you'd better do what hesuggested--find that man! I wish you may--if he ever existed!"

  "You don't believe Hyde?" asked Viner.

  "I'm not required to believe anything, sir, unless I've good proof ofit," said Drillford with a significant smile. "If there is any mystery inthis murder, well--let's hope something will clear it up."

  Viner went away troubled and thoughtful. He remembered Hyde well enoughnow, though so many years had elapsed since their last meeting. And hewas genuinely convinced of his innocence: there had been a ring of truthin all that he had said. Who, then, was the guilty man? And had robberybeen the real motive of the murder? Might it not have been that Ashtonhad been murdered for some quite different motive, and that the murdererhad hastily removed the watch, chain, purse, and rings from the bodywith the idea of diverting suspicion, and in his haste had dropped one ofthe rings?

  "If only one knew more about Ashton and his affairs!" mused Viner. "Evenhis own people don't seem to know much."

  This reminded him of his promise to call on Miss Wickham. He glanced athis watch: it was not yet one o'clock: the proceedings before themagistrate and the subsequent talk with Hyde had occupied comparativelylittle time. So Viner walked rapidly to number seven in the square,intent on doing something toward clearing Hyde of the charge broughtagainst him. The parlour-maid whom he had seen the night before admittedhim at once; it seemed to Viner that he was expected. She led himstraight to a room in which Mrs. Killenhall and Miss Wickham were inconversation with an elderly man, who looked at Viner with considerablecuriosity when his name was mentioned, and who was presently introducedto him as Mr. Ashton's solicitor, Mr. Pawle, of Crawle, Pawle andRattenbury.