the information supplied by mr. samuel wilkins, so far from dispelling the cloud of mystery that hung over the blackmore case, only enveloped it in deeper obscurity, so far as i was concerned. the new problem that thorndyke offered for solution was a tougher one than any of the others. he proposed that i should identify and give a name to this mysterious woman. but how could i? no woman, excepting mrs. wilson, had been mentioned in connection with the case. this new dramatis persona had appeared suddenly from nowhere and straightway vanished without leaving a trace, excepting the two or three beads that we had picked up in jeffrey's room.
nor was it in the least clear what part, if any, she had played in the tragedy. the facts still pointed as plainly to suicide as before her appearance. jeffrey's repeated hints as to his intentions, and the very significant preparations that he had made, were enough to negative any idea of foul play. and yet the woman's presence in the chambers at that time, the secret manner of her arrival and her precautions against recognition, strongly suggested some kind of complicity in the dreadful event that followed.
but what complicity is possible in the case of suicide? the woman might have furnished him with the syringe and the poison, but it would not have been necessary for her to go to his chambers for that purpose. vague ideas of persuasion and hypnotic suggestion floated through my brain; but the explanations did not fit the case and the hypnotic suggestion of crime is not very convincing to the medical mind. then i thought of blackmail in connection with some disgraceful secret; but though this was a more hopeful suggestion, it was not very probable, considering jeffrey's age and character.
and all these speculations failed to throw the faintest light on the main question: "who was this woman?"
a couple of days passed, during which thorndyke made no further reference to the case. he was, most of the time, away from home, though how he was engaged i had no idea. what was rather more unusual was that polton seemed to have deserted the laboratory and taken to outdoor pursuits. i assumed that he had seized the opportunity of leaving me in charge, and i dimly surmised that he was acting as thorndyke's private inquiry agent, as he seemed to have done in the case of samuel wilkins.
on the evening of the second day thorndyke came home in obviously good spirits, and his first proceedings aroused my expectant curiosity. he went to a cupboard and brought forth a box of trichinopoly cheroots. now the trichinopoly cheroot was thorndyke's one dissipation, to be enjoyed only on rare and specially festive occasions; which, in practice, meant those occasions on which he had scored some important point or solved some unusually tough problem. wherefore i watched him with lively interest.
"it's a pity that the 'trichy' is such a poisonous beast," he remarked, taking up one of the cheroots and sniffing at it delicately. "there is no other cigar like it, to a really abandoned smoker." he laid the cigar back in the box and continued: "i think i shall treat myself to one after dinner to celebrate the occasion."
"what occasion?" i asked.
"the completion of the blackmore case. i am just going to write to marchmont advising him to enter a caveat."
"do you mean to say that you have discovered a flaw in the will, after all?"
"a flaw!" he exclaimed. "my dear jervis, that second will is a forgery."
i stared at him in amazement; for his assertion sounded like nothing more or less than arrant nonsense.
"but the thing is impossible, thorndyke," i said. "not only did the witnesses recognize their own signatures and the painter's greasy finger-marks, but they had both read the will and remembered its contents."
"yes; that is the interesting feature in the case. it is a very pretty problem. i shall give you a last chance to solve it. to-morrow evening we shall have to give a full explanation, so you have another twenty-four hours in which to think it over. and, meanwhile, i am going to take you to my club to dine. i think we shall be pretty safe there from mrs. schallibaum."
he sat down and wrote a letter, which was apparently quite a short one, and having addressed and stamped it, prepared to go out.
"come," said he, "let us away to 'the gay and festive scenes and halls of dazzling light.' we will lay the mine in the fleet street pillar box. i should like to be in marchmont's office when it explodes."
"i expect, for that matter," said i, "that the explosion will be felt pretty distinctly in these chambers."
"i expect so, too," replied thorndyke; "and that reminds me that i shall be out all day to-morrow, so, if marchmont calls, you must do all that you can to persuade him to come round after dinner and bring stephen blackmore, if possible. i am anxious to have stephen here, as he will be able to give us some further information and confirm certain matters of fact."
i promised to exercise my utmost powers of persuasion on mr. marchmont which i should certainly have done on my own account, being now on the very tiptoe of curiosity to hear thorndyke's explanation of the unthinkable conclusion at which he had arrived—and the subject dropped completely; nor could i, during the rest of the evening, induce my colleague to reopen it even in the most indirect or allusive manner.
our explanations in respect of mr. marchmont were fully realized; for, on the following morning, within an hour of thorndyke's departure from our chambers, the knocker was plied with more than usual emphasis, and, on my opening the door, i discovered the solicitor in company with a somewhat older gentleman. mr. marchmont appeared somewhat out of humour, while his companion was obviously in a state of extreme irritation.
"how d'you do, dr. jervis?" said marchmont as he entered at my invitation. "your friend, i suppose, is not in just now?"
"no; and he will not be returning until the evening."
"hm; i'm sorry. we wished to see him rather particularly. this is my partner, mr. winwood."
the latter gentleman bowed stiffly and marchmont continued:
"we have had a letter from dr. thorndyke, and it is, i may say, a rather curious letter; in fact, a very singular letter indeed."
"it is the letter of a madman!" growled mr. winwood.
"no, no, winwood; nothing of the kind. control yourself, i beg you. but really, the letter is rather incomprehensible. it relates to the will of the late jeffrey blackmore—you know the main facts of the case; and we cannot reconcile it with those facts."
"this is the letter," exclaimed mr. winwood, dragging the document from his wallet and slapping it down on the table. "if you are acquainted with the case, sir, just read that, and let us hear what you think."
i took up the letter and read aloud:
"jeffrey blackmore, decd.
"dear mr. marchmont,—
"i have gone into this case with great care and have now no doubt that the second will is a forgery. criminal proceedings will, i think, be inevitable, but meanwhile it would be wise to enter a caveat.
"if you could look in at my chambers to-morrow evening we could talk the case over; and i should be glad if you could bring mr. stephen blackmore; whose personal knowledge of the events and the parties concerned would be of great assistance in clearing up obscure details.
"i am,
"yours sincerely,
"john evelyn thorndyke
"c.f. marchmont, esq."
"well!" exclaimed mr. winwood, glaring ferociously at me, "what do you think of the learned counsel's opinion?"
"i knew that thorndyke was writing to you to this effect," i replied, "but i must frankly confess that i can make nothing of it. have you acted on his advice?"
"certainly not!" shouted the irascible lawyer. "do you suppose that we wish to make ourselves the laughing-stock of the courts? the thing is impossible—ridiculously impossible!"
"it can't be that, you know," i said, a little stiffly, for i was somewhat nettled by mr. winwood's manner, "or thorndyke would not have written this letter. the conclusion looks as impossible to me as it does to you; but i have complete confidence in thorndyke. if he says that the will is a forgery, i have no doubt that it is a forgery."
"but how the deuce can it be?" roared winwood. "you know the circumstances under which the will was executed."
"yes; but so does thorndyke. and he is not a man who overlooks important facts. it is useless to argue with me. i am in a complete fog about the case myself. you had better come in this evening and talk it over with him as he suggests."
"it is very inconvenient," grumbled mr. winwood. "we shall have to dine in town."
"yes," said marchmont, "but it is the only thing to be done. as dr. jervis says, we must take it that thorndyke has something solid to base his opinion on. he doesn't make elementary mistakes. and, of course, if what he says is correct, mr. stephen's position is totally changed."
"bah!" exclaimed winwood, "he has found a mare's nest, i tell you. still, i agree that the explanation should be worth hearing."
"you mustn't mind winwood," said marchmont, in an apologetic undertone; "he's a peppery old fellow with a rough tongue, but he doesn't mean any harm." which statement winwood assented to—or dissented from; for it was impossible to say which—by a prolonged growl.
"we shall expect you then," i said, "about eight to-night, and you will try to bring mr. stephen with you?"
"yes," replied marchmont; "i think we can promise that he shall come with us. i have sent him a telegram asking him to attend."
with this the two lawyers took their departure, leaving me to meditate upon my colleague's astonishing statement; which i did, considerably to the prejudice of other employment. that thorndyke would be able to justify the opinion that he had given, i had no doubt whatever; but yet there was no denying that his proposition was what mr. dick swiveller would call "a staggerer."
when thorndyke returned, i informed him of the visit of our two friends, and acquainted him with the sentiments that they had expressed; whereat he smiled with quiet amusement.
"i thought," he remarked, "that letter would bring marchmont to our door before long. as to winwood, i have never met him, but i gather that he is one of those people whom you 'mustn't mind.' in a general way, i object to people who tacitly claim exemption from the ordinary rules of conduct that are held to be binding on their fellows. but, as he promises to give us what the variety artists call 'an extra turn,' we will make the best of him and give him a run for his money."
here thorndyke smiled mischievously—i understood the meaning of that smile later in the evening—and asked: "what do you think of the affair yourself?"
"i have given it up," i answered. "to my paralysed brain, the blackmore case is like an endless algebraical problem propounded by an insane mathematician."
thorndyke laughed at my comparison, which i flatter myself was a rather apt one.
"come and dine," said he, "and let us crack a bottle, that our hearts may not turn to water under the frown of the disdainful winwood. i think the old 'bell' in holborn will meet our present requirements better than the club. there is something jovial and roystering about an ancient tavern; but we must keep a sharp lookout for mrs. schallibaum."
thereupon we set forth; and, after a week's close imprisonment, i once more looked upon the friendly london streets, the cheerfully lighted shop windows and the multitudes of companionable strangers who moved unceasingly along the pavements.
