Country homes -- England -- Fiction; Detective and mystery stories; Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction
“This is Neville Shandon, true enough,” the secretary reported. The
identification had taken longer, since the body lay on its face.
“Mustn’t disturb anything, Torrance. The police may be able to make
something out of it if we leave things alone.”
He rose from his knees and mechanically dusted his trousers as he
spoke. Howard was struck by the extraordinary matter-of-fact way in
which Stenness had treated the whole affair. One might have expected
some sign of emotion, surprise at the very least; but Stenness had
gone through the whole business without showing the slightest
disturbance. But as Howard reflected on the matter, he was forced to
admit that, after all, it was much what one might have anticipated.
Stenness, he remembered, had always been chary of showing any emotion
whatever. Probably this was just a case of carrying the normal to an
extreme where it became noticeable. Stenness, doubtless, took a pride
in that mask of coolness.
The secretary stooped for a moment over Neville Shandon’s body and
examined the left hand which lay clenched on the grass.
“There’s a piece of paper there. It looks as if it had been wrenched
out of his hand and a scrap left in his grip. Let’s see what one can
make of it without touching it.”
He knelt down and scrutinised the fragment painfully.
“Some of his notes on the Hackleton case, perhaps. I can read
‘Hackl . . .’ on it plain enough.”
Howard did not trouble to look at the paper at close range.
“What do you make of it?” he demanded, as the secretary rose to his
feet again.
“I? Nothing much. It might be someone trying to put Neville Shandon
out of business while the Hackleton case is on. That might account for
the notes being taken. Or it might be someone with a grudge against
Roger. He had some enemies. A threatening letter came from a man only
the other day.”
Howard digested these suggestions for a few moments without speaking;
then he offered an objection.
“But d’you think it’s likely that two murderers would choose an
identical moment for their attacks. Two simultaneous crimes is a bit
of a record, it seems to me.”
“Think so?” the secretary responded, carelessly. “It’s happened this
time, for all that.”
Howard had to admit the truth of this.
Stenness looked at his watch.
“I must be getting off to the outside of the Maze. The police will be
here very soon, and they’ll need a guide. I’ll take you back to Skene,
if you like.”
Howard nodded assent and once more Stenness led the way through a
tangle of alleys.
“Here’s Helen’s Bower,” he said, nodding towards its entrance. “You
can sit down there till I bring the police.”
Howard watched his figure disappear round a corner of the corridor and
then turned his steps to the entrance of the little enclosure where
Roger Shandon’s body lay. As he entered it, he was surprised to see
Skene on his knees at the foot of the hedge, evidently collecting some
small objects.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account