Part 18 (1/2)

”You don't understand, don't you? We don't understand either. But, I must say, we thought _you_ did!”

With that he turned to go. But Robin caught him by the arm.

”Listen to me, Horace,” he said. ”I'm not going to quarrel with you in this house of death. But you're going to tell here and now what you meant by that remark. Do you understand? I'm going to know!”

Horace Trevert shook himself free.

”Certainly you shall know,” he answered with _hauteur_, ”but I must say I should have thought that, as a lawyer and so on, you would have guessed my meaning without my having to explain. What I mean is that, now that Hartley Parrish is dead, there is only one man who knows what drove him to his death. And that's yourself! Do you want it plainer than that?”

Robin took a step back and looked at his friend. But he did not speak.

”And now,” the boy continued, ”perhaps you will realize that your presence here is disagreeable to Mary ...”

”Did Mary ask you to tell me this?” Robin broke in.

His voice had lost its hardness. It was almost wistful. The change of tone was so marked that it struck Horace. He hesitated an instant.

”Yes,” he blurted out. ”She doesn't want to see you again. I don't want to be offensive, Robin..”

”Please don't apologize,” said Greve. ”I quite understand that this is your sister's house now and, of course, I shall leave at once. I'll ask Jay to pack my things if you could order the car ...”

The boy moved towards the door. Before he reached it Robin called him back.

”Horace,” he said pleasantly, ”before you go I want you to answer me a question. Think before you speak, because it's very important. When you got into the library yesterday evening through the window, you smashed the gla.s.s, didn't you?”

Horace Trevert nodded.

”Yes,” he replied, looking hard at Robin.

”Why?”

”To get into the room, of course!”

”Was the window bolted?”

The boy stopped and thought.

”No,” he said slowly, ”now I come to think of it, I don't believe it was. No, of course, it wasn't. I just put my arm through the broken pane and shoved the window up. But why do you ask?”

”Oh, nothing,” answered Robin nonchalantly. ”I just was curious to know, that's all!”

Horace stood and looked at him for an instant. Then he went out.

A quarter of an hour later, Hartley Parrish's Rolls-Royce glided through the straggling main street of Stevenish. A chapel bell tinkled unmusically, and on the pavements, gleaming with wet, went a procession of neatly dressed townsfolk bound, prayer-book in hand, for their respective places of wors.h.i.+p. A newsboy, sorting out the Sunday newspapers which had just come down by train from London, was the only figure visible on the little station platform. Robin bought a selection.

”There's all about Mr. Parrish,” said the boy, ”'im as they found dead up at 'Arkings las' night. And the noospapers 'asn't 'arf been sendin'

down to-day ... reporters and photographers ... you oughter seen the crowd as come by the mornin' train ...”

”I wonder what they'll get out of Manderton,” commented Robin rather grimly to himself as his train puffed leisurely, after the habit of Sunday trains, into the quiet little station.