夜雨聆风Colonel Melchett asked:
“What made this Mr. Jefferson do that?”
Josie was stroking the cuff of her jacket. There was a constraint in hermanner. Again Colonel Melchett had a feeling that something was beingwithheld. She said rather sullenly:
“He’s an invalid. He—he gets all het up rather easily. Being an invalid, Imean.”
Melchett passed on from that. He asked:
“Who was the young man with whom you last saw your cousin dan-cing?”
“His name’s Bartlett. He’d been there about ten days.”
“Were they on very friendly terms?”
“Not specially, I should say. Not that I knew, anyway.”
Again a curious note of anger in her voice.
“What does he have to say?”
“Said that after their dance Ruby went upstairs to powder her nose.”
“That was when she changed her dress?”
“I suppose so.”
“And that is the last thing you know? After that she just—”
“Vanished,” said Josie. “That’s right.”
“Did Miss Keene know anybody in St. Mary Mead? Or in this neighbour-hood?”
“I don’t know. She may have done. You see, quite a lot of young mencome into Danemouth to the Majestic from all round about. I wouldn’tknow where they lived unless they happened to mention it.”
“Did you ever hear your cousin mention Gossington?”
“Gossington?” Josie looked patently puzzled.
“Gossington Hall.”
She shook her head.
“Never heard of it.” Her tone carried conviction. There was curiosity init too.
“Gossington Hall,” explained Colonel Melchett, “is where her body wasfound.”
“Gossington Hall?” She stared. “How extraordinary!”
Melchett thought to himself: “Extraordinary’s the word!” Aloud he said:
“Do you know a Colonel or Mrs. Bantry?”
Again Josie shook her head.
“Or a Mr. Basil Blake?”
She frowned slightly.
“I think I’ve heard that name. Yes, I’m sure I have—but I don’t remem-ber anything about him.”
The diligent Inspector Slack slid across to his superior officer a pagetorn from his notebook. On it was pencilled:
“Col. Bantry dined at Majestic last week.”
Melchett looked up and met the Inspector’s eye. The Chief Constableflushed. Slack was an industrious and zealous officer and Melchett dis-liked him a good deal. But he could not disregard the challenge. The In-spector was tacitly accusing him of favouring his own class—of shieldingan “old school tie.”
He turned to Josie.
“Miss Turner, I should like you, if you do not mind, to accompany me toGossington Hall.”
Coldly, defiantly, almost ignoring Josie’s murmur of assent, Melchett’seyes met Slack’s.
