Detective and mystery stories; England -- Fiction; Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction
Haskins laughed, and did all that was desired, as it was just as well
to keep Tod from fretting after the wife he had left at Amsterdam. But
Macandrew did not do things by half: having come over to help his
friend, he did not keep reminding him of the sacrifice he had made.
Tod ate an excellent dinner, and laughed at a musical comedy, and went
to sleep in Gerald's extra bedroom, after a smoke and a glass of
whisky slightly diluted with water. Macandrew, as became a native of
Scotland, liked his drink strong.
Next morning the two friends went down to the west of England in very
good spirits. At Exeter Tod alighted to see Arnold--having obtained
the Monmouth Hotel address from Gerald--and the other amateur
detective proceeded to Silbury, where as usual he put up at the
Prince's Head. Mrs. Jennings was pleased to see him, but could tell
him very little about the murder likely to throw any light on its
darkness. It seemed to Gerald that she took very little interest in
the matter.
"That crazy girl can't be found," she told her guest, "so I expect,
poor soul, she has been drowned--that is the general opinion, sir. As
that is the case, and Miss Bellaria is buried in Leegarth graveyard,
there is no more to be said."
"What of the Pixy's House?"
"Major Rebb has shut it up--in a way, that is. For that mad girl's
rooms were beautifully furnished. I saw them myself," added Mrs.
Jennings breathlessly, "when I went over after the inquest, to
Leegarth. But Major Rebb has been living in those rooms, with his
man----"
"Geary?"
"No, sir. Geary is still the landlord of the Devon Maid. He was
fiddling with a pistol and hurt himself: but he is all right now.
Major Rebb brought his own man from town, who cooks and looks after
the place. I expect the Major likes better to live in the Pixy's House
than in the hotel at Denleigh. I would not live in that wicked house
myself," ended Mrs. Jennings, with a shudder. "I should be afraid of
Miss Bellaria's ghost."
"Is Major Rebb there now?" asked Gerald quickly.
"He comes again to-morrow or the next day, I believe," answered the
landlady, who knew all the gossip of the neighborhood, "and they say
that he intends to repair the house against his marriage with a London
lady."
Haskins nodded, and took his way over the hills to Denleigh. It was
apparent that Rebb really believed Mavis to be drowned, according to
common report, and, since no one was likely to question his right to
the income or the house, he intended to reap as a married man the
fruit of his villainy. It seemed strange to Gerald that Mavis should
not have any relative who would dispute the will, but he knew how
often old families dwindle down to a single person. In this case, he
believed that there were two twigs still sprouting from the Durham
family tree, in the persons of the twin girls.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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