it certainly was not an easy task to come to a conclusion about miss pearl. ralph took her for a beautiful, amiable, stupid woman, narrowed by her early training into a perfect specimen of what a wife should be--that is, a wife to an ordinary british philistine. but sir joseph was not a prim, conventional man after the style of a suburban clerk, but a clever individual who knew how to use his brains. he might certainly admire miss pearl for her calm maternal beauty, but shawe was satisfied that he could not possibly tolerate such a milk-and-water character. miss pearl was more suitable to be the wife of a sunday-school teacher than the second lady branwin.
and this consideration brought the barrister round to wonder if miss pearl had not been playing a very clever game with him. he had been with her for quite an hour, and all the time she had been so taken up with telling him about herself that he had not been able to cross-examine her. in a dexterous manner she had contrived to keep him at arm's length, and he left the quiet bloomsbury house about as wise as when he entered it.
considerably puzzled over the present aspect of affairs, the young man sought out perry toat, and described his visit to miss pearl. he also repeated what audrey had overheard as passing between badoura and eddy vail.
miss toat listened in silence, and her shrewd little eyes twinkled. "it's really a most puzzling case," she said at length. "of course, this clue of the scent is a very slight one to go by. sir joseph is fond of this especial kind of cloth, and probably asked miss pearl to favour him by having a dress made of the same material. but eddy vail might also have a suit of the cloth, and he might be the person who lurked in the passage."
"i think he must be guilty myself," said ralph, insistently, "for if he was innocent he certainly would not have altered the clock."
"quite so. let us consider the matter. now, my theory--"
"i beg your pardon, miss toat," interrupted shawe, rather crossly, "but i am a trifle tired of your theories; they lead to nothing."
miss toat was not at all put out. "oh, to theorise is the only way to get at the truth of the matter. one may have a dozen theories, and then can abandon each one in turn as it seems improbable. let me conduct this business in my own way, mr. shawe."
"well"--ralph resigned himself to what seemed to him to be a futile discussion--"let us have your latest theory."
"bearing in mind what badoura said about the clock being wrong, and eddy vail being the husband of madame coralie, i think he is the sole person who had any reason to have a skeleton key made for the door in the wall of the court. probably he wished to enter and leave the house at his convenience without bothering his wife."
"but what would be the use of his entering the court," objected shawe, "seeing that he could not get into the house? the door was always locked."
"yes, and the key was usually on a nail in the still-room," said perry toat, cleverly. "i found that out when i was staying at the pink shop for treatment. eddy vail could easily have taken that key when he chose, and have opened the inner door; then he got a key made for the outer door, and thus would be free of the house."
"but this is all imagination, miss toat."
"i am only constructing a theory on the evidence. let us admit that things are as i say. well, then, on the night eddy vail either had both keys in his pocket or only one--that of the outer door. for some reason quite unconnected with lady branwin's stay--since he could not have known of it--he entered the court at the time madame coralie was in the bedroom with her patient. looking through the window he would see the diamonds produced, which madame coralie--as you declare--says that lady branwin gave her. madame coralie put lady branwin to bed, and the diamonds were replaced in the red bag under the pillow. then madame coralie left the room, say at ten minutes to eight o'clock, whereupon eddy vail scrambled in at the window and strangled the woman. he takes the jewels out of the bag and puts them into his pocket; then, to lose no time, he leaves by the bedroom door, and runs up the stairs to the still-room, arriving there at five minutes to the hour, in order to put back the clock to half-past seven. thirty odd minutes later madame coralie, who has been in the shop, comes up, and eddy draws her attention to the time as five minutes past eight. but, as we now know, it is really close on half-past eight. madame coralie goes down at once to see miss branwin, to say that her mother will stop for the night, and this will bring the time to that mentioned by miss branwin as the hour she arrived at walpole lane on her way to the theatre. afterwards eddy vail goes out by the street door, and returns to the court to drop the label and to leave the key in the lock of the court wall door, so as to encourage the idea of burglars. what do you think of that?"
"it's a very feasible theory," said ralph, after a pause, "but it falls to the ground in the face of madame coralie's admission that lady branwin gave her the jewels."
"it only makes her an accomplice after the fact," said perry toat, cheerfully.
ralph shook his head. "she would not approve of the murder of her own sister, miss toat," he said gently.
"yes, you hinted something about the two women being sisters. i forget exactly what you said, as i have been so busy with the case of colonel ilse and his missing daughter. i am trying to find a photograph of the hospital nurse who stole the child, you know. tell me exactly the relationship and all about it. i shall listen carefully."
shawe related all that he knew, and the little woman nodded her head.
"this, of course, complicates matters. still, it does not exonerate madame coralie. she is not a straight woman."
"what do you mean?"
"never mind. since you are to marry miss branwin, my advice to you is to keep her away from madame coralie. i know something about her."
"something bad?"
"very bad."
"what is it?" asked shawe, with considerable curiosity.
"oh, don't ask me just now," said perry toat, impatiently. "i shall tell you when i am more certain. meanwhile, go and get your special licence and marry miss branwin. the sooner she is out of that pink shop the better."
"i agree with you," said ralph, drily, as he stood up to take his leave; "but while i am on my honeymoon, i wish you to examine into the truth of miss pearl's statement that she was asleep the whole time. also, as to the reason why sir joseph was in walpole lane on that night."
perry toat looked at him suddenly. "you have a theory also?" she said sharply.
"well"--ralph drew on his gloves slowly--"it seems to me that sir joseph, who knew that his wife was staying at the pink shop, might have enlisted the services of eddy vail, and have borrowed that key you mention. he might have entered the court and have strangled his wife, while sending eddy vail upstairs to put the clock wrong. he could easily have strangled his wife and have left again by the court door to come round to walpole lane. thus he would be able to prove an alibi."
"i don't think so," said miss toat, thoughtfully; "for, although the clock in the still-room was wrong, mrs. mellop, who saw him, knew the correct time. she would know that he was in the lane at half-past eight and not at eight, which was the time lady branwin was strangled. i don't think much of your theory, mr. shawe. as well say that miss pearl, learning that her rival was in the house, might have crept down to kill her, wearing that harris tweed frock you mentioned."
"she might have done so," said ralph, bluntly; "but i am certain of one thing, that either she or sir joseph were in that passage about nine o'clock when parizade came down for her lover's present."
"in that case sir joseph is innocent, as he had left the house," said miss toat, triumphantly. "well, well, it's all theory, as you say. but one thing is certain, that eddy vail knows something or he would not have provided himself with an alibi by putting the clock wrong. i shall see him."
ralph shook his head. "he won't speak."
"oh!"--perry toat looked wise--"i shall frighten him and badoura into speaking. go away on your honeymoon, and don't worry. i shall attend to the matter during your absence."
the young barrister thought that this was a very fair division of labour, and took his departure. there was no difficulty, now that he had ample funds, in procuring a special licence. with this in his pocket he went to the vicar of a kensington church and arranged for the marriage to take place next day at a certain hour. having settled this important point he wrote a note to lady sanby, and then took his way to the pink shop. it was necessary to see audrey in order to explain what he had done. after some difficulty madame coralie agreed that he should speak to audrey in her presence in the pink shop, and sent the four assistants upstairs to the still-room, so that the lovers might converse undisturbed.
the hour was eight o'clock, and the shop was closed. only a pink-shaded lamp hanging in one of the alcoves shed a rosy light over the anxious faces of audrey and ralph, on which--very naturally--recent events had left their marks. near them stood madame coralie, wearing her yashmak. she looked a weird figure in the delicate light, muffled up and swathed in her turkish dress with many veils. her eyes watched the pair attentively, and she signified her approval of the barrister's scheme for an immediate marriage.
"it is the very best thing you can do," she said, in her harsh voice; but there was a catch in her voice as she spoke. "it will never do for audrey to stay with me here, as people are talking about the shop. not that there is anything wrong," said madame coralie, drawing herself up proudly, "for i have always kept it highly respectable. but i think that audrey should go."
"it's so sudden," faltered the girl.
"we cannot help that," rejoined ralph, soothing her; "your father has, so to speak, forced our hand. at present you are in a very awkward position, if it were known that you have left your father and taken refuge with madame coralie. even the excuse for figure-treatment will not serve with some women--especially venomous cats like mrs. mellop. but as my wife--"
"your wife!" said audrey, under her breath. "oh! ralph, i should love to be your wife. but i have no clothes."
"yes you have," said her aunt, suddenly. "your father sent all your boxes this evening. you see, he is determined that you shall not re-enter your old home, my dear. better become mrs. shawe without further delay."
"audrey, do say yes," urged the young man, impatiently. "you must see in what a difficult position you are placed."
"well, then, yes," said the girl, and ralph kissed her.
so it was arranged, and ralph took a long farewell of the girl who was to be his wife on the morrow. madame coralie accompanied him to the door. "i must ask you to be kind to audrey, mr. shawe," she said softly; "make up to her for all the unhappiness she has undergone."
"audrey and i will be as happy as the day is long," said shawe, with a gay laugh, for he felt that a weight was removed from his mind by the girl's reluctant consent to the ceremony.
the next day ralph arrived at the kensington church with lady sanby, and shortly afterwards audrey, quietly dressed, made her appearance, to be eagerly welcomed by the fairy godmother. lady sanby kissed her fondly, and tears came into the poor girl's eyes, for she valued sympathy and had received very little of it during her short life.
"child, child, this will never do," said lady sanby, wiping away the tears with her own handkerchief. "a bride must not weep; it's unlucky."
"nothing can be unlucky while i am with ralph," sobbed audrey; "but if you knew, lady sanby--"
"my dear, i know everything. ralph has told me all. and now you had better get married at once, as time is passing."
shawe returned at this moment, and then the vicar made his appearance in his surplice. it was an exceedingly quiet wedding. lady sanby gave the bride away, and the verger was one of the witnesses to the ceremony. a few idlers had, as usual, collected in the body of the church, and commented on the good looks of the bride, but the female portion of the idlers admired the handsome bridegroom. when the knot was safely tied ralph kissed his wife, and this example was followed by lady sanby.
"and now, dear, you can call me grannie," said the old dame, which was a wonderful mark of favour to be shown, as audrey well knew.
but lady sanby's kindness did not stop here. she took the young couple to a fashionable restaurant and gave them a wedding-breakfast, and finally drove them in her motor to the railway station, whence they departed for a quiet seaside town on the south coast. when the train started, and the married pair were alone, audrey threw herself into ralph's arms.
"oh, darling, i am happy at last," she said. "let us forget the past."
but although ralph kissed her and agreed, he knew that perry toat was yet working at the pink shop mystery.
