United States or Madagascar ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
To suspect Rattar of actually conniving at, or taking any part in the actual crime itself is, on the face of it, to convict either Rattar or oneself of lunacy!" "I knew Sir Reginald pretty well," said Ned, "but of course I didn't know much about his business affairs. He hadn't been having any trouble with Rattar, had he?" Carrington threw him a quick, approving glance.
Yet after his first greeting, and when he was seated under Simon's inscrutable eye, there stole into his own a hint of quite another emotion. If ever an eye revealed apprehension it was Malcolm Cromarty's at that instant. "Well, Mr. Rattar, here I am again, you see," said he with a little laugh; but it was not quite a spontaneous laugh. "I see, Mr. Cromarty," said Simon laconically.
Superintendent Sutherland entered first, then the constable, and Carrington last. The superintendent went straight up to the lawyer, his large face preternaturally solemn. Touching him on the shoulder he said: "I arrest you in the King's name!" The man in the chair half started up and then fell back again. "What for?" he asked huskily. "The murder of Simon Rattar."
"Call again to-morrow morning." Carrington's manner altered at once into his usual easy-going air. "Very well, then, Mr. Rattar," said he as he rose. "By the way," said Simon, "you have been out at Keldale this morning, I presume?" "Yes," said Carrington carelessly, "but there is really nothing new to be found." Simon looked at him hard. "No fresh evidence?" Carrington laughed.
Who would ever think that the Simon Rattar who walked into his office and grunted at his clerks on Wednesday morning, wasn't the same Simon Rattar who walked in and grunted on Tuesday morning? And then I had one tremendous pull in knowing all the ropes from old days. Simon was a conservative man, nothing was ever changed not even the clerks, so I had the whole routine at my fingers.
Rattar had finished breakfast and was seated beside the fire with a bundle of legal papers on a small table beside him, just as he always sat, absorbed in work, before he started for his office. The master's library impressed Mary vastly. The furniture was so substantial, new-looking, and conspicuous for the shininess of the wood and the brightness of the red morocco seats to the chairs.
His visitor thanked him, placed a cigarette in his amber holder, lit it, and let his eyes follow the smoke upwards. Mr. Rattar, on his part, seemed in his closest, most taciturn humour. His grunt and his nod had, in fact, seldom formed a greater proportion of his conversation. He made no further comment at all now, but waited in silence for his visitor to proceed.
So it had only been a rat! Mary felt vastly relieved; and yet not altogether easy. One could not venture to doubt the master, but it was a queer-like sound for a rat to make. Mr. Rattar had brought back a great many papers to-day, and sat engrossed in them till dinner.
Yes, that's the proper line!" She looked at him curiously but evidently judged it tactful in the present delicate situation to ask no more. He rose now and went, still thoughtful, to the door. "What a dreadful thing of Simon Rattar to do! Wasn't it, Ned?" she said indignantly, her eyes as bright as ever again. He turned as she went out. "The whole thing has been damnable!"
They turned in through Simon's gates and then the four stopped. "We part here," whispered Carrington. "Good luck!" "Same to you," said Ned briefly, and strode up the drive. As he came out into the gravel sweep before the house, he looked hard into the darkness of the garden, but beyond the tossing shapes of trees, there was not a sign of movement. "Mr. Rattar in?" he enquired.
Word Of The Day