bates had laid his plans very carefully and very well indeed. in many respects rigby had got the best of the detective, but this was as much due to circumstances as anything else. still, when it came to the technical side of the case, rigby was no match for the inspector. it was nearly nine o'clock before bates called at carrington's rooms and asked to see the latter. there was no occasion yet for bates to assume the very effective disguise with which he was to trick anstruther. there would be plenty of time for that. carrington was just finishing his dinner--so his man said. he was not very well, and did not care to see anybody. but bates put the man aside in his own easy way, and walked into the dining-room without the trouble of announcing himself.
that carrington was suffering from some mental and physical excitement was perfectly plain. his face was ghastly pale, his eyes were bloodshot, and there was a twitching of his lips which told a plain tale to an experienced officer like bates. carrington scowled, and demanded the meaning of this unwarrantable intrusion.
"i don't think you will find it unwarrantable when you have heard me to the finish," bates said. "nor will it pay you to take this tone with me. i am an inspector from scotland yard, and unless you answer my questions freely, i shall have to put them in a more disagreeable form."
carrington changed his note altogether. his face became still more pallid. he motioned bates to a chair. he would have found it hard to have spoken just then. bates waited a moment to give the other time to recover. carrington at length found words to ask bates what his business was with him.
"it is with regard to your affair at the bank," the inspector explained. "you may not be aware of the fact, but the case has been placed in my hands by my superiors."
"oh, you are alluding to the burglary," carrington said.
"we will call it a burglary for the present," bates replied, with a significance that there was no mistaking. "i have gone into the matter carefully, and i have come to the conclusion that there was no burglary at all."
carrington jumped to his feet with a well-simulated air of indignation. he advanced towards bates threateningly.
"you insolent scoundrel!" he cried. "what do you mean? do you know you are dealing with a gentleman and man of honor?"
"softly, softly," bates replied. "i think we had better understand one another. i have in my possession at the present moment a warrant for your arrest for fraud and embezzlement, relating to certain jewels and other valuables deposited in your keeping by various clients. it is in my power to execute that warrant at once. the case is much too serious a one for bail, and it is for you to say whether you will remain for the present in your comfortable quarters, or pass, at any rate, the next two months in jail."
carrington made no further show of fight. he collapsed into his chair, and wiped his wet forehead distractedly.
"you don't mean that," he groaned. "there must be some terrible mistake here. why, all the evidences pointed to an ingenious and daring burglary. the night watchmen were drugged, as you know, and the thieves employed dynamite to blow up the safes. no one regrets the loss of all those valuables more than i do, but even banks are not secure against the modern burglar. those safes were crammed full of valuables, as i could easily prove."
"they were," bates corrected. "but i am in a position to prove a few things, too. you would give a great deal, i suppose, to know where those valuables are?"
carrington replied to the effect that he would give half his fortune for the desired information. bates smiled.
"you need not worry about it," he said. "i have a list in my pocket of the big pawnbrokers in london where most of the goods were pledged. in three cases the pawnbrokers in question are in a position to swear to the identity of the man who handled the jewels. you would not, of course, mind meeting these people?"
but carrington had no reply. he looked so helplessly at bates that the latter could not but feel sorry for him. "i am afraid the game is up, sir," he said. "my investigations of this case prove most conclusively that you are at the bottom of the whole thing. we know perfectly well that recent speculations of yours have brought about a financial crisis in your bank. in your desperate need, you realized the securities which certain clients had left in your hands. it was only when lady barmouth called for her gems that the situation became acute. but that will form the basis of another charge."
"but that was all a mistake," carrington gurgled eagerly. "i sent lady barmouth her gems, but they proved to be those belonging to somebody else. i assure you that was quite an error."
bates shrugged his shoulders impatiently. he was getting annoyed with this, man, who refused to follow his lead. "we know all about that ingenious fraud," he said. "we are quite aware of that clever business of the paste gems, for which you gave ￡200 at clerkenwell. you paid for that rubbish with bank of england notes marked with the stamp of your establishment. it was a very happy idea of yours and anstruther's."
carrington groaned feebly; he began to fear the very worst.
"you seem to know everything," he said. "perhaps you can tell me the story of the burglary?"
"i am coming to that presently," bates said coolly. "now you were at your wits' ends to know what to do. you knew perfectly well that many of your clients would require their jewels for lady barmouth's dance. they were not forthcoming, for the simple reason that they had been pledged elsewhere. you had not the necessary cunning to devise some scheme to shift the blame from your shoulders, so you called in your friend anstruther. it was he who hit upon the idea of the burglary. it was you who placed temptation in the way of the night watchmen through the medium of a couple of bottles of drugged port wine. after that the rest was easy. you had only to enter the bank with your own keys----"
"stop a moment," carrington cried eagerly. "you seem to forget that even i cannot enter the vaults of the bank without duplicate keys in the possession of various cashiers."
"now, listen to me," bates said impressively. "this discussion is absolutely irregular. it is my plain duty to arrest you at once and convey you to bow street. but if you help me, i may be in the position later on to do you a service. we know precisely how anstruther used the dynamite; we know precisely what happened in the vaults, and how most of the few valuables that remained were conveyed to your own private safe. more than that, we are perfectly well aware what fee anstruther demanded for his trouble. need i go into the matter of that service of cellini plate?"
carrington threw up his hands with a gesture of despair. he was crushed and beaten to the ground by the tremendous weight of evidence with which bates was overwhelming him.
"it is no use fighting any longer," he said. "i confess to everything. i shall plead guilty, and afford you every information in my power. do you want me to come along with you now?"
on the whole, bates rather thought not. he had effected his purpose, and sooner or later carrington would have to become his prisoner. he knew that the latter would speak freely enough, like the craven coward that he was; but there was anstruther to be thought of. bates rose to leave.
"you can remain where you are for the present," he said. "but if you will take my advice, you will make no attempt to escape--you are too carefully watched for that; and now, good-night."
bates went off in the direction of the city feeling that the last hour had not been wasted. on the strength of recent information, he would have felt justified in arresting anstruther also. but he had a wholesome admiration for that individual, and the more evidence secured against him the better. therefore it was that bates was about to carry out the latter part of the programme, in which he was to play the part of substitute for "simple charlie." the programme had been easily arranged. there had been no difficulty in persuading the burglar to write the desired letter to anstruther, and bates had made up his mind from the first that the mythical maggs should be none other than himself. from first to last the thing worked admirably. anstruther was utterly deceived by the detective's admirable disguise, which he had assumed after leaving carrington, and had fallen headlong into the trap.
therefore it was that the two men stood facing one another in carrington's office. anstruther white and furious, bates coolly contemptuous, with a revolver in his hand.
"what have you to say for yourself?" bates asked. "have you any reason to show why i should not take you straight to bow street on the charge of burglary?"
anstruther was fighting hard to regain possession of himself. bates could not but admire the marvelous courage of the man. anstruther's laugh had something quite genuine about it.
"we are making a great fuss over a little thing," he said. "i came here because mr. carrington was not well enough to accompany me. there are certain things of mine in my friend's private safe here, and unfortunately he has lost the key. it was imperative that i should have my property to-night, and that will, perhaps, explain my presence here. does that satisfy you?"
"i should be easily satisfied if it did," bates said coolly. "i should like to know, for instance, why you require the assistance of a professional burglar. i know perfectly well that you called in the assistance of 'simple charlie,' but i was in a position to force that individual's hand--hence my appearance in his place."
"really, mr. bates," anstruther smiled. "i had expected better things from you. you are perfectly well aware of the fact that i am acquainted with half the thieves in london. it was no use asking any safe-maker in london to try to pick that lock, because it happens to be a french make. in such awkward circumstances as this it is no new thing to call in a cracksman when things are wanted in a hurry."
"i am afraid that won't do," bates said. "you had plenty of time to call in legitimate assistance, whereas so recently as last night you visited 'simple charlie' and left a note for him."
anstruther smiled politely. he was perfectly cool and collected now--a match for any detective in the force.
"we can settle the matter in two minutes," he said. "all you have to do is to call in one of your men from outside and send a note to carrington, who will reply to the effect that i am here with his full knowledge and consent."
"can't do it," bates said curtly. "i have no man to send. as a matter of fact, i am alone in this business."
anstruther bent down his head to conceal a smile. there was something devilish in the cunning ferocity of his eyes. he had discovered an important fact, and bates did not seem to understand for the moment what he had given away. he felt quite sure that he had matters in his own hands now. he strolled slowly round the table, and proceeded to examine carefully the lock of the safe.
"do you really think you could open this?" he asked. "if you could i should have no difficulty in proving to you----" anstruther broke off suddenly; his left foot shot out dexterously, and bates came half stumbling on his knees. like lightning anstruther grabbed for the revolver. he had bates's wrist in a grip of steel, forcing his hand back till the fingers were bound to relax their grip on the weapon. a moment later the revolver was kicked away, and the two men were struggling desperately on the floor.
there was no mistaking the look on anstruther's face. he was going to murder bates if he could. it would never do for any living soul to know that he was here to-night. once bates's mouth was silenced forever, he could hurry back to panton square, and there prove such an alibi as would hold good in any legal court in the world. all these things passed through that wily brain as his hands clutched closer at bates's throat.
it was touch and go with the latter. the only thing he could do was to fight for his breath, and husband his strength for a final effort later on. he looked straight into the gleaming eyeballs of his assailant now, but he could not see the faintest suggestion of pity there. the world began to dance before his eyes; a thousand stars seemed to be bursting from the dark sky; then came along the corridor the echo of fast-approaching footsteps.
"curse it," anstruther muttered. "another moment, and i should have been safe. take that, you hound."
with one final blow he jumped to his feet, and, sprinting across the office floor, darted into the shadow of the night.
