CHAPTER VII
THE OUTRAGE AT THE GARAGE
I
WHEN Mr. Walters descended the broad staircase of The Towers on the Sunday morning he found two things to disturb him—Sir Lyster's note on the hall-table, and the Japanese valet "lost" in the conservatory.
He read the one with attention, and rebuked the other with acrimony. Having failed to find the missing key himself, he proceeded to the housekeeper's room, and poured into the large and receptive ear of Mrs. Eames the story of his woes.
"And this a Sunday too," the housekeeper was just remarking, in a fat, comfortable voice, when Richards, the chauffeur, burst unceremoniously into the room.
"Someone's taken the pencils from all the magnetos," he shouted angrily, his face moist with heat and lubricant.
"Is that your only excuse for bursting into a lady's room without knocking?" enquired Mr. Walters, with an austere dignity he had copied directly from Sir Lyster. "If you apply to me presently I will lend you a pencil. In the meantime"
"But it's burglars. They've broken into the garage and taken the pencils from every magneto, every blinkin' one," he added by way of emphasis.
At the mention of the word "burglars," Mr. Walters's professional composure of feature momentarily forsook him, and his jaw dropped. Recovering himself instantly, however, he hastened out of the room, closely followed by Richards, leaving Mrs. Eames speechless, the oval cameo locket heaving up and down upon her indignant black-silk bosom. A man had sworn in her presence and had departed unrebuked.
On reaching the garage Mr. Walters gazed vaguely about him. He was entirely unversed in mechanics, and Richards persisted in pouring forth technicalities that bewildered him. The chauffeur also cursed loudly and with inspiration, until reminded that it was Sunday, when he lowered his voice, at the same time increasing the density of his language.
Mr. Walters was frankly disappointed. There, was no outward sign of burglars. At length he turned interrogatingly to Richards.
"Just a-goin' to tune 'em up I was," explained Richards for the twentieth time, "when I found the bloomin' engines had gone whonky, then"
"Found the engines had gone what?" enquired Mr. Walters.
"Whonky, dud, na-poo," explained Richards illuminatingly, whilst Mr. Walters gazed at him icily. "Then in comes Davies," he continued, nodding in the direction of a little round-faced man, with "chauffeur" written on every inch of him "and 'e couldn't get 'is blinkin' 'arp to 'urn neither. Then we starts a-lookin' round, when lo and be'old! what do we find? Some streamin', saturated son of sin an' whiskers 'as pinched the ruddy pencils out of the scarlet magnetos."
"The float's gone from my carburettor."
The voice came from a long, lean man who appeared suddenly out of the shadows at the far-end of the garage.
Without a word Richards and Davies dashed each to a car. A minute later two yells announced that the floats from their carburettors also had disappeared.
Later Richards told how that morning he had found the door of the garage unfastened, although he was certain that he had locked it the night before.
This was sufficient for Mr. Walters. Fleeing from the bewildering flood of technicalities and profanity of the three chauffeurs, he made his way direct to Sir Lyster's room. Here he told his tale, and was instructed instantly to telephone to the police.
At the telephone further trouble awaited him. He could get no reply from the exchange. He tried the private wire to the Admiralty; but with no better result.
He accordingly reported the matter to Sir Lyster, who was by then with Lord Beamdale in the library. It was the Minister of War who reminded his host of Malcolm Sage's strange request that whatever happened the police were not to be communicated with.
"But Sage could not have anticipated this—this monstrous outrage," protested Sir Lyster, white with anger. He had already imperiously put aside Lord Beamdale's suggestion that the whole affair might be a joke.
"Still, better do as he said," was the rejoinder and, as later Mr. Llewellyn John concurred, Sir Lyster decided to await the arrival of Malcolm Sage before taking further steps.
One by one the guests drifted down to breakfast, went out to the garage to see for themselves, and then returned to discuss the affair over coffee and kidneys, tea and toast.
It subsequently transpired that without exception the cars had been entirely put out of commission. From each the pencil had been removed from the magneto, and the float from the carburettor. From the bicycles the pedals had been taken away, with the exception of those belonging to Miss Blair and one of the housemaids, the only two ladies' machines in the place.
"A veritable Claude Duval," someone remarked; but this brought little consolation to the owners of the wrecked cars. It was a fine day, too, which added to their sense of hardship.
As Sir Lyster left the breakfast-room he encountered Miss Blair crossing the hall. She looked very fresh and pretty, with a demure, almost childlike expression of feature. Her cheeks were flushed with health and exercise.
"Would you like me to cycle over to Odford to the police?" she enquired. "My machine is quite all right. I have just been for a spin."
"No—er—not at present, thank you, Miss Blair," said Sir Lyster, a little embarrassed at having to refuse to do the obvious thing. He passed across the hall into the library, and Miss Blair, having almost fallen over the Japanese valet, "lost" in a corridor leading to the billiard-room, went out to condole with Richards and tell him of a strange epidemic of mishaps that seemed to have descended upon the neighbourhood. She herself had passed a motor-cycle, two push-bicycles, and a Ford car, all disabled by the roadside.
All that morning the Prime Minister, Sir Lyster, and Lord Beamdale waited and wondered. Finding the strain of trying to look cheerful too much for them, they shut themselves up in the library on the plea of pressing official business; this, in spite of Sir Lyster's well-known week-end rule.
Hour after hour passed; yet not only did Malcolm Sage fail to put in an appearance, but nothing was heard or seen of the promised bogus official messengers.
At luncheon more than one guest remarked upon the distrait and absent-minded appearance of the three Ministers, and deduced from the circumstance a grave political crisis.
The afternoon dragged its leaden course. Throughout the house there was an atmosphere of unrest. Among themselves the guests complained because no action had been taken to track down the despoiler of their cars. Walters had rendered the lives of the domestic staff intolerable by insisting upon search for the missing key being made in the most unlikely and inaccessible places, although in his own mind he was convinced that it had been stolen by the errant Japanese.
In the library sat the three Ministers, for the most part gazing either at one another or at nothing in particular. They were waiting for something to happen: none knew quite what.
Dinner passed, a dreary meal; the ladies withdrew to the drawing-room; but still the heavy atmosphere of foreboding remained. It was nearly half-past nine when Walters entered and murmured something in Sir Lyster's ear.
An eager light sprang into Mr. Llewellyn John's eyes as the First Lord rose, made his apologies, and left the room. It was only by the exercise of great self-control that the Prime Minister refrained from jumping up and bolting after him.
Two minutes later Walters again entered the dining-room, with a request that Mr. Llewellyn John and Lord Beamdale would join Sir Lyster in the library.
As Walters threw open the library-door, they found Malcolm Sage seated at the table, his fingers spread out before him, whilst Sir Lyster stood by the fireplace.
"Ask Miss Blair if she will come here to take down an important letter, Walters," said Sir Lyster.
"Well?" cried Mr. Llewellyn John, as soon as Walters had closed the door behind him. "Have you got it?"
"The document is now in a strong-room at the General Post Office," said Malcolm Sage without looking up. "I thought it would be safer there."
"Thank God!" cried Mr. Llewellyn John, collapsing into a chair.
Malcolm Sage glanced across at him and half rose.
"I'm all right, Sage," said Mr. Llewellyn John; "but coming after this awful day of anxiety, the news was almost too much for me."
"Who took it from the safe then?" enquired Sir Lyster. "I" he stopped short as the door opened, and Miss Blair entered, notebook in hand, looking very dainty in a simple grey frock, relieved by a bunch of clove carnations at the waist. Closing the door behind her, she hesitated for a moment, a smile upon her moist, slightly-parted lips.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, Miss Blair," began Sir Lyster, "but Mr. Sage——" he paused.
"It was Miss Blair who removed the document from the safe," said Malcolm Sage quietly, his eyes bent upon the finger-tips of his right hand.
"Miss Blair!" cried Sir Lyster, his hand dropping from the mantelpiece to his side.
For the fraction of a second the girl stood just inside the door; then as the significance of Malcolm Sage's words dawned upon her, the smile froze upon her lips, the blood ebbed from her face, leaving it drawn and grey, and the notebook dropped from her fingers. She staggered forward a few steps, then, clutching wildly at the edge of the table, she swayed from side to side. With an obvious effort she steadied herself, her gaze fixed upon her accuser.
Slowly Malcolm Sage raised his eyes, cold, grey, inflexible, and fixed them upon the terrified girl.
The three Ministers appeared not yet to have realised the true nature of the drama being enacted before them.
"Miss Blair," said Malcolm Sage quietly, "what are your relations with Paul Cressit?"
Twice she essayed to speak, but no sound came.
"I—I—er—know him," she faltered at length.
"I wondered," said Malcolm Sage slowly.
"What does this mean, Mr. Sage?" enquired Sir Lyster.
"I will tell you," said Malcolm Sage, whilst Lord Beamdale placed a chair into which Miss Blair collapsed. "Last night whilst you were at dinner Miss Blair opened your safe with a duplicate key made from a wax impression. She abstracted a valuable document, putting in its place some sheets of blank paper." He paused.
"Go on," almost gasped Mr. Llewellyn John.
"She took the document to her room and hid it, a little uncertain as to how she should get it to her accomplice. This morning she saw Sir Lyster's note on the hall-table, and emboldened by the thought that the theft had not been discovered, she cycled out to Odford and posted the document to Paul Cressit at his chambers in Jermyn Street." Again Malcolm Sage paused and drew from his pocket a note.
"In the envelope was enclosed this note." He handed to Mr. Llewellyn John a half sheet of paper on which was typed:
"Paul, dearest, I have done it. I will ring you up to-morrow. I shall ask for Tuesday off. You will keep your promise, dear, and save me, won't you? If you don't I shall kill myself.—G."
"Miss Blair," said Sir Lyster coldly, "what have you to say?"
"N-nothing," she faltered, striving to moisten her grey lips.
"If you will tell the truth," said Malcolm Sage, "you still have a chance. If not"; he paused significantly.
She gulped noisily, striving to regain her power of speech.
"You—you promise?" She looked across at Mr. Llewellyn John.
"Whatever Mr. Sage says we endorse," he replied gravely.
"Both of us?" she repeated.
"Both," said Malcolm Sage.
"I—I love him," she moaned; then after a pause she added: "It was to save the disgrace. He promised, he swore he would if I did it."
"Swore he would do what?" said Malcolm Sage.
"Marry me."
Malcolm Sage raised his eyes to Sir Lyster, who was standing implacable and merciless.
The girl's head had fallen forward upon the table, and her shoulders were heaving convulsively.
Rising, Malcolm Sage walked across and placed his hand upon her arm.
"It will be better for everybody if you will try and control yourself," he said gently, "and above all tell us the truth."
As if surprised at the gentleness of his tone, she slowly raised her drawn face and looked at him in wonder.
"Now listen to me," continued Malcolm Sage, drawing up a chair and seating himself beside her, "and tell me if I am wrong. Whilst you were acting as Sir Lyster's secretary you met Paul Cressit at the Admiralty, and you were attracted to him."
She nodded, with a quick indrawing of her breath.
"He made violent love to you and you succumbed. Later you took him into your confidence in regard to a certain matter and he promised to marry you. He put you off from time to time by various excuses. You were almost distracted at the thought of the disgrace. He persuaded you to take a wax impression of Sir Lyster's key, on the chance of it one day being useful."
Again she nodded, whilst the three men listened as if hypnotised.
"Finally he swore that he would marry you if you would steal this document, and he showed you a special license. Am I right?"
She nodded again, and then buried her head in her arms.
"I suppose," said Malcolm Sage quietly, "he did not happen to mention that he was already married?"
"Married!" She started up, her eyes blazing. "It isn't true, oh! it isn't true," she cried.
"I'm afraid it is," said Malcolm Sage, with feeling in his voice.
With a moan of despair her head fell forward upon the table, and hard dry sobs shook her frail body.
"Miss Blair," said Malcolm Sage presently, when she had somewhat regained her self-control, "my advice to you is to write out a full confession and bring it to me at my office to-morrow morning. It is your only chance: and now you must go to your room."
He rose, assisted her to her feet, and led her to the door, which he closed behind her.
"That I think concludes the enquiry," he said, as he walked over to the fireplace and, leaning against the mantelpiece, he began to fill his pipe. "Unless," he added, turning to Mr. Llewellyn John, "you would like to see Cressit."
The Prime Minister looked across at Sir Lyster and then at Lord Beamdale. Both shook their heads.
"What we should like, Sage," said Mr. Llewellyn John, "is a little information as to what has been happening."
With great deliberation Malcolm Sage proceeded to light his pipe. When it was drawing to his entire satisfaction, he turned to Mr. Llewellyn John and, with the suspicion of a fluttering at the corners of his mouth, remarked:
"I hope you have not been inconvenienced about the telephone."
"We could get no reply from the exchange," said Sir Lyster, "and the wire to the Admiralty is out of order."
"I had to disconnect you after I left this morning," said Malcolm Sage quietly. "My chauffeur swarmed up one of the standards. Incidentally he wrecked an almost new pair of breeches."
"They'll have to go in the Naval Estimates," cried Mr. Llewellyn John, who was feeling almost jovial now the tension of the past twenty-four hours had been removed.
"From the first," proceeded Malcolm Sage, "it was obvious that this theft was planned either at the Admiralty or at the War Office."
"That is absurd!" cried Sir Lyster with heat, whilst Lord Beamdale leaned forward, his usually apathetic expression of indifference giving place to one of keen interest.
"I accepted the assurance that only three people in this house knew of the existence of the document," Malcolm Sage proceeded, as if there had been no interruption. "There was no object in any of those three persons stealing that to which they had ready access."
Lord Beamdale nodded his agreement with the reasoning.
"Therefore," continued Malcolm Sage, "the theft must have been planned by someone who knew about the document before it came here, and furthermore knew that it was to be here at a certain time. To confirm this hypothesis we have the remarkable circumstances that the blank paper substituted for the original document was, in quality and the number of sheets, identical with that of the document itself."
"Good," ejaculated Lord Beamdale, himself a keen mathematician.
Mr. Llewellyn John and Sir Lyster exchanged glances.
"It was almost, but not quite, obvious that the exchange had been effected by a woman."
"How obvious?" enquired Mr. Llewellyn John.
"'Few women pass unperfumed to the grave,'" quoted Malcolm Sage. "I think it was Craddock who said that," he added, and Mr. Llewellyn John made a mental note of the phrase.
"The handle of the safe door was corrugated, and the lacquer had worn off, leaving it rough to the touch. When I kneeled down before the safe it was not to examine the metal work, but to see if the thief had left a scent."
"A scent?" repeated Sir Lyster.
"On the handle of the door there was a distinct trace of perfume, very slight, but I have a keen sense of smell, although a great smoker. On the document itself there was also evidence of a rather expensive perfume, not unlike that used by Miss Blair. Furthermore, it was bent in a rather peculiar manner, which might have resulted from its being carried in the belt of a woman's frock. It might, of course, have been mere chance," he added; "but the envelope did not show a corresponding bend."
Again Lord Beamdale nodded appreciatively.
"Although several people have had an opportunity of taking a wax impression of the key, the most likely were Miss Blair and Walters—that, however, was a side issue."
"How?" enquired Sir Lyster.
"Because primarily we were concerned with making the criminal himself or herself divulge the secret."
"That's why you would not allow the loss to be made known," broke in Mr. Llewellyn John.
"The thief," continued Malcolm Sage, with a slight inclination of his head, "would in all probability seize the first safe opportunity of getting rid of the plunder."
"But did you not suspect the Japanese?" broke in Lord Beamdale.
"For the moment I ruled him out," said Malcolm Sage, "as I could not see how it was possible for him to know about the existence of the document in question, and furthermore, as he had been in the house less than two days, there was no time for him to get a duplicate key."
"What did you do then?" queried Sir Lyster.
"I motored back to town, broke in upon the Postmaster-general's first sleep, set on foot enquiries at the Admiralty and War Office, in the meantime arranging for The Towers to be carefully watched." Malcolm Sage paused for a moment; then as none of his hearers spoke he continued:
"I had a number of people in the neighbourhood—motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians. No one could have left the house and grounds without being seen.
"Miss Blair found the morning irresistible, and took an early spin on her bicycle to Odford, where she posted a packet in a pillar-box situated in a street that was apparently quite empty."
"And you secured it?" enquired Mr. Lewellyn John, leaning forward eagerly.
"I'm afraid I quite spoilt the local postmaster's Sunday by requesting that a pillar-box should be specially cleared, and producing an authority from the Postmaster-general. After he had telegraphed to head-quarters and received a reply confirming the letter, he reluctantly acquiesced."
"And it was addressed to this man Cressit?" enquired Sir Lyster.
"Yes. He is a temporary staff-clerk in the Plans Department. Incidentally he is something of a Don Juan, and the cost of living has increased considerably, as you know, sir," he added, turning to the Prime Minister.
Mr. Llewellyn John smiled wanly. It was his political "cross," this cost-of-living problem.
"And what shall we do with him?" enquired Sir Lyster. "The scoundrel," he added.
"I have almost done with him as a matter of fact," said Malcolm Sage.
"Done with him?" exclaimed Lord Beamdale.
"I sent him a telegram in Miss Blair's name to be at Odford Station to-night at seven: then I kidnapped him."
"Good heavens, Sage I What do you mean?" cried Mr. Llewellyn John, with visions of the Habeas Corpus Act and possible questions in the House, which he hated.
"We managed to get him to enter my car, and then we went through him—that is a phrase from the crook-world. We found upon him the marriage certificate, and later I induced him to confess. I am now going to take him back to my office, secure his finger-prints and physical measurements, which will be of interest at Scotland Yard."
"But we are not going to prosecute," said Mr. Llewellyn John anxiously.
"Mr. Paul Cressit will have forty-eight hours in which to leave the country," said Malcolm Sage evenly. "He will not return, because Scotland Yard will see that he does not do so. There will probably be an application to you, sir," Malcolm Sage continued, turning to Mr. Llewellyn John, "to confirm what I tell them."
"Excellent!" cried Mr. Llewellyn John. "I congratulate you, Sage. You have done wonders."
"But I failed to understand your saying that you would be here this morning," said Sir Lyster, "and under an assumed name with"
"A foreign accent," suggested Malcolm Sage. "The thief might have been an old hand at the game, and too clever to fall into a rather obvious trap. In that case I might have been forced, as a foreigner, to salute the hands of all the ladies in the house. I learnt to click my heels years ago in Germany." Again there was a suspicious movement at the corners of Malcolm Sage's mouth.
"But" began Sir Lyster.
"To identify the scent?" broke in Mr. Llewellyn John.
Malcolm Sage inclined his read slightly.
"The Foreign Office messengers?" queried Lord Beamdale.
"I decided that pedestrians and cyclists would do as well. I merely wanted the house watched. There were quite a number of casualties to cars and bicycles in the neighbourhood," he added dryly.
"But why did you cut us off from the telephone?" enquired Mr. Llewellyn John.
"The accomplice might have got through, and I could afford to take no risks."
"Well, you have done splendidly, Sage," said Mr. Llewellyn John heartily, "and we are all greatly obliged. By the way, there's another little problem awaiting you. Someone broke into the garage last night and wrecked all the cars and bicycles"
"Except two," said Malcolm Sage.
"Then you've heard." Mr. Llewellyn John looked at him in surprise.
"The man who did it is in my car outside with Cressit."
"You've got him as well?" cried Mr. Llewellyn John excitedly. "Sage, you're a miracle of sagacity," he added, again mentally noting the phrase.
"The missing pencils, floats, and pedals you will find on the left-hand side of the drive about half way down, under a laurel bush," said Malcolm Sage quietly.
"And who is this fellow who did this scandalous thing?" demanded Sir Lyster.
"My chauffeur."
"Your chauffeur!"
"I could not risk the thief having access to a fast car."
"But what if this fellow Cressit refuses to go?" enquired Lord Beamdale.
"He won't," said Malcolm Sage grimly. "D.O.R.A. is still in operation. I had to remind him of the fact."
Malcolm Sage picked up his hat and coat and walked towards the door.
"I must be going," he said. "I have still several things to attend to. You won't forget about the plunder from the garage?" he added.
"But what am I to do about Miss Blair?" asked Sir Lyster.
"That's a question I think you will find answered in the Gospel of St. Luke—the seventh chapter and I think the forty-seventh verse"; and with that he was gone, leaving three Ministers gazing at one another in dumb astonishment.
Had a cynic been peeping into the library of The Towers a few minutes later, he would have discovered three Cabinet Ministers bending over a New Testament, which Sir Lyster had fetched from his wife's boudoir, and the words they read were: "Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much."
"Strange," murmured Lord Beamdale, "very strange," and the others knew that he was referring not to the text, or to the unhappy girl— but to Malcolm Sage.
"We are always surprised when we find Saul among the prophets," remarked Mr. Llewellyn John, and he made a mental note of the phrase. It might do for the "Wee Frees."