inspector battley nodded his head gravely.
"i suppose i ought not to tell you these things," he said. "but i understand you are a friend of mr. charlock's; in fact, so far as i know, you are the only friend he has. of course, this may not be more than a mere coincidence, but you might mention the matter to him, and no doubt an explanation will be forthcoming. i could not take any action at present."
"of course you couldn't," grey exclaimed, "especially in view of the evidence which i have already given you myself."
"that is exactly the point," battley said eagerly. "according to what you say, you heard a cry of distress and hastened off at once in the direction of the sundial. there you found the unfortunate lady lying dead in the fountain. i suppose you are quite sure that it was her voice you heard?"
"well, that's rather a large order," grey said. "but, on the other hand, if it wasn't mrs. charlock, who could it have been? i am pretty sure that i am right, and that my evidence would convince any jury that mr. charlock had nothing to do with his wife's death."
"it is a good point," the inspector said. "still, the lady was in the house before you came, beyond all doubt. it would be a good thing if we could ascertain what brought her here. i hope you will recognise that i am doing my best to help mr. charlock."
"oh, i quite see that. and as to mrs. charlock's presence here before i came, that can be easily explained. there is no secret in the fact that mr. charlock and his wife were on exceedingly bad terms, owing to the wife's extravagance. so far as i can gather, she did not seem to have the least idea of the value of money. she spent all she could get in reckless fashion, and she did not hesitate to pledge charlock's credit to the utmost capacity. rightly or wrongly, she became possessed of the idea that he was merely a money-making machine, a kind of slave to minister to her wants. charlock is a peculiar, self-contained man, like most people with deep-seated feelings, and this reserve has given him the reputation of being an unfeeling brute who did not deserve such a wife as mrs. charlock. at any rate, that is the view that most of their friends take, and at one time, i confess, it was my opinion, too. of course, it was foolish of charlock to turn his wife out of the house——"
"did he do that?" the inspector asked.
"well, that is what it came to. he had made up his mind to sacrifice everything with a view to getting out of debt. he had taken a small cottage, where he intended his wife to do the domestic work, and where he meant to remain as long as a penny was owing. perhaps it was natural that mrs. charlock should refuse to fall in with this suggestion. charlock took the bull by the horns by stripping the house entirely, and when mrs. charlock came back one evening she found the place as bare as you see it now. two courses were open to her—either to go to her own friends or follow her husband. there was one more alternative, and that was to live for the time being on the sale of her jewellery, of which she possessed a considerable quantity. but the jewellery had been stolen, or, at least, so charlock tells me. he seemed to be under the impression that the french maid, hortense, had had some hand in the robbery. my impression is that mrs. charlock came an hour or so before the time appointed for the interview in order thoroughly to search the house for the missing gems. i think you will find that charlock hasn't the slightest idea that she has been here at all."
"oh, it is possible," battley remarked. "perhaps you will be good enough to mention this matter to mr. charlock. i don't want to allude to it for the present. i have been candid with you, and perhaps you will do your best to get an explanation of this peculiar point."
before grey could reply, charlock returned. he asked impatiently how much longer grey would be. he seemed to be put out about something.
"i am coming now," grey said. "by the way, i have had an interesting conversation with inspector battley. he wants to know why mrs. charlock was here for some time before i came in response to your letter."
"who says she was here?" charlock demanded.
"inspector battley is in a position to prove it," grey said significantly. "lying on a chair yonder is the wrap she was wearing when she left her hotel last night, and the wrap was found on a chair by the french window, perfectly dry, so that it must have been discarded before she found her way into the water. you were also wearing a pair of tennis-shoes last night, the prints of which inspector battley says he traced to the back of the sundial. of course, the inspector doesn't suggest——"
charlock burst into a hoarse laugh.
"oh, no, he doesn't suggest anything," he cried. "he hints all sorts of mysterious things, which is a great deal worse. he will be saying next that i had a hand in removing the woman who was such a hindrance and encumbrance to me. not that it in the least matters, because if he doesn't say so, somebody else will. there are scores of people who regarded my wife as an injured saint and myself as a monster of cruelty. i didn't see my wife last night. if she was here, as you say, i know nothing whatever about it. she had her own reasons for coming, no doubt, and her visit was made in absolute secrecy. possibly she was looking for her lost jewels, of which she had a quantity. i ought to know, because i paid for them, like the fool that i was. i understand that the jewels were stolen, and i don't mind admitting i was very pleased they were. they were bought at a time when i had no means of paying for them; they were the final cause of all my trouble. but that doesn't matter. you may depend upon it, my wife came back to have another look for the missing stones, and, for certain reasons of her own, she didn't want me to know it. and now, if you have anything else to say, perhaps you will say it to me honestly and straightforwardly."
there was something truculent in charlock's expression. a gleam of defiance lighted his eyes. the inspector reddened slightly.
"i beg your pardon," he said. "i am bringing no accusation against you. i merely remarked that your wife was here last night, and that you had said nothing about the fact. i admit now that you did not know of it. you may regard this as a mere detail, but in our profession trifles often turn out to be of the greatest importance. i asked mr. grey to mention this matter to you in an entirely friendly spirit. i did not expect that he would have done so just yet."
"there was nothing to be gained by delay," grey said.
battley curtly agreed, and took himself off without delay. in his queer, sardonic way, charlock seemed to be amused about something, for he chuckled to himself as he walked up and down the room.
"what foolish things clever men can do sometimes," he said. "now, you see perfectly well what that fellow has got in his mind. nothing will persuade him that i hadn't a hand in my wife's death. he is convinced that i had an interview with her before you came into the house. it is lucky for me that you can give evidence to the contrary."
"are you not a little foolish yourself?" grey ventured. "you might have taken what the inspector said in a more friendly spirit, and you admit that there are plenty of people who regard you as a most undesirable man to marry any woman. of course, i know i am going rather far——"
"my dear fellow, nothing of the kind. i know you are only too ready to help me, and in my own way i am grateful. besides, i am certain that i am right. let us assume for a moment that hortense stole those jewels. the night my wife left here on her foolish mission with arnold rent she intended to take her diamonds with her. with all her saint-like purity and innocence, she did not forget their value. but the diamonds were gone. it did not matter so very much, however, seeing that my wife was to find an asylum with mrs. rent and remain under that lady's roof till i should generously make a fool of myself and give her the chance of getting rid of me altogether. but when mrs. rent figures as a woman of firmness and determination the whole situation is changed. then it becomes necessary to secure those gems. that is why my wife came here. and you needn't be afraid about what people say of me. what does it matter what they say? what does anything matter? my life has been blackened and ruined because i was fool enough to mistake a cold-blooded, self-seeking creature for a good and true woman. if they like to say that i had a hand in her death, they can if they please. they ought to be grateful to me for giving them something to talk about!"
it was in vain that grey protested, for charlock turned a deaf ear to him. then the artist walked out of the room across the grass towards the sundial.
