The Mad Hatter Mystery dgf-2

Home > Other > The Mad Hatter Mystery dgf-2 > Page 21
The Mad Hatter Mystery dgf-2 Page 21

by John Dickson Carr


  Dalrye got up out of his chair and faced them. He was flushed and his eyes burned brightly.

  `I'm drunk" he said, wonderingly. 'I'm drunk. I hadn't noticed it, not till this; minute. Lester Bitton got rid of what I owed, and never said a word. And when you accused him to-right — and he shot himself — you see why I had to tell you….'

  He stood straight, a little wrinkle between his brows.

  `I told you I was a swine, he went on in an even voice, `but I'm not so bad as that. I know what it means. It means the rope. They, won't believe me, of course, after what I did to cover myself; and I can't blame them. They shoot you out of a door, and it's all over in a few seconds…. I can't think how I came to be so drunk. I don't drink much, as a rule…. What was I saying? Oh yes. If you hadn't blamed it on Major Bitton, if you gave out that you hadn't been able to find out who the murderer was, I'd have kept quiet. Why not? I love Sheila. Some day I might have… Never mind. I'm not going to let you think I'm pitying myself. It's only that I appreciate people who are kind to me. I never had much kindness. People all thought I was too much of a joke. But, by God old joke parson-face had the police guessing, didn't he?' Momentarily there was a blaze in his face. `Old — joke — parson-face!' said Robert Dalrye…. The fire was sinking now. Dalrye, his hand clenched, stared across the dusky room. He had spoken for a long time. There was a faint hint of dawn in the windows towards the garden.

  Hadley rose quietly from his chair.

  `Young man,' he said, 'I have an order for you. Go out into one of the other rooms and sit down. I'll call you back in a moment. I want to speak to my friends. There is one other thing. On no account speak a word to anybody until you are called back.'

  `Oh, well,' said Dalrye. `Oh, well. Go ahead and phone for your Black Maria, or whatever you use. I'll wait.:.. By the way, there was something I didn't tell you. I'm afraid I nearly scared that poor devil Arbor into a fit. I didn't mean to. I was in the Warders' Hall on the other side of the Byward Tower, where the visitors were detained when he was coming out from your conference. And I was talking to your sergeant, only about ten feet away from Arbor. He hadn't recognized my voice before, but I was afraid he did then. It nearly killed him…. I say! I feel as though I had no legs. I hope I'm not staggering. That would be the devil of a way to go to gaol. Excuse me….'

  With his shoulders back, he moved with careful steps towards the door.

  `Well?' asked Dr Fell, when he had gone.

  Hadley stood before the dying fire, a stiff military figure against the white-marble mantelpiece, and in his hand were the notes he had taken of Dalrye's recital. Hadley hesitated. There were lines drawn slantwise under his eyes; he shut his eyes now.

  'I told you,' he said, quietly, 'I was getting old. I am sworn to uphold the law. But I don't know. I don't know. The older I get, the more I don't know. Ten-years, ago I should have said, "Too bad, and… You know what I'm thinking, Fell. No jury would ever believe that boy's testimony: But I do.'

  `And without speaking of Lester Bitton,' said the doctor, `the case can remain unsolved. Good man, Hadley! You know what I think. If this is a tribunal, will you put it up to a vote?'

  `Lord help me,' said Hadley, `I will. Well, Fell?' He assumed a stern air, but a curious, wise, ancient smile crept about his mouth. `Dr Fell, your vote?'"Unsolved," he said.`Mr Rampole?'

  "Unsolved,"' said Rampole instantly.

  The dying firelight lit Hadley's face as he half turned.; He upturned his hand; the white note-sheets fluttered from it and drifted down into the blaze. They caught fire and leaped in a puff. Hadley's hand remained motionless, the ancient, wise smile still on his face.

  "Unsolved," ' he said.

  FB2 document info

  Document ID: 9785b4d1-a842-465e-bbf2-e7214c534ecd

  Document version: 1

  Document creation date: 11.11.2012

  Created using: calibre 0.9.6, FictionBook Editor Release 2.6 software

  Document authors :

  Document history:

  1.0 — создание файла fb2

  About

  This file was generated by Lord KiRon's FB2EPUB converter version 1.1.5.0.

  (This book might contain copyrighted material, author of the converter bears no responsibility for it's usage)

  Этот файл создан при помощи конвертера FB2EPUB версии 1.1.5.0 написанного Lord KiRon.

  (Эта книга может содержать материал который защищен авторским правом, автор конвертера не несет ответственности за его использование)

  http://www.fb2epub.net

  https://code.google.com/p/fb2epub/

 

 

 


‹ Prev