THE TOWER
MICHAEL was a little perturbed in mind. He took a more serious view of
the closed car than did the girl, and the invitation to the “pretty
lady” to step inside was particularly disturbing. Since the events of
the past few days it had been necessary to withdraw the detective who
was watching the girl’s house, and he decided to re-establish the guard,
employing a local officer for the purpose.
After he had driven Adele home, he went to the police station and made
his wishes known; but it was too late to see the chief constable, and
the subordinate officer in charge did not wish to take the
responsibility of detaching an officer for the purpose. It was only when
Michael threatened to call the chief on the telephone that he
reluctantly drew on his reserves and put a uniformed officer to patrol
the street.
Back again at Knebworth’s house, Michael examined the two articles which
the girl had found. Butyl chloride was a drug and a particularly violent
one. What use would the Head-Hunter have for that, he wondered.
As for the handcuff, he examined it again. Terrific force must have been
employed to snap the connecting links. This was a mystery to him, and he
gave it up with a sense of annoyance at his own incompetence.
Before going to bed he received a ’phone message from Inspector Lyle,
who was watching Griff Towers. There was nothing new to report, and
apparently life was pursuing its normal round. The inspector had been
invited into the house by Sir Gregory, who had told him that Bhag was
still missing.
“I’ll keep you there to-night,” said Michael. “To-morrow we will lift
the watch. Scotland Yard is satisfied that Sir Gregory had nothing to do
with Foss’s death.”
A grunt from the other end of the ’phone expressed the inspector’s
disagreement with that view.
“He’s in it somehow,” he said. “By the way, I’ve found a bloodstained
derby hat in the field outside the grounds. It has the name of Chi Li
Stores, Tjandi, inside.”
This was news indeed.
“Let me see it in the morning,” said Michael after long cogitation.
Soon after breakfast the next morning the hat came and was inspected.
Knebworth, who had heard most of the story from Michael, examined the
new clue curiously.
“If the coon wore Lawley’s hat when he arrived at Mr. Longvale’s, where,
in the name of fate, did the change take place? It must have been
somewhere between the Towers and the old man’s house, unless——”
“Unless what?” asked Michael. He had a great respect for Knebworth’s
shrewd judgment.
“Unless the change took place at Sir Gregory’s house. You see that,
although it is bloodstained, there are no cuts in it. Which is rum.”
“Very rum,” agreed Mike ruefully. “And yet, if my first theory was
correct, the explanation is simple.”
He did not tell his host what his theory was.
Accompanying Knebworth to the studio, he watched the char-à-banc drive
off, wishing that he had some excuse and the leisure to accompany them
on their expedition. It was a carefree, cheery throng, and its very
association was a tonic to his spirits.
He put through his usual call to London. There was no news. There was
really no reason why he should not go, he decided recklessly; and as
soon as his decision was taken his car was pounding on the trail of the
joy wagon.
He saw the tower a quarter of an hour before he came up to it: a squat,
ancient building, for all the world like an inordinately high sheepfold.
When he came up to them the char-à-banc had been drawn on to the grass,
and the company was putting the finishing touches to its make-up. Adele
he did not see at once—she was changing in a little canvas tent, whilst
Jack Knebworth and the camera man wrangled over light and position.
Michael had too much intelligence to butt in at this moment, and
strolled up to the tower, examining the curious courses which generation
after generation had added to the original foundations. He knew very
little of masonry, but he was able to detect the Roman portion of the
wall, and thought he saw the place where Saxon builders had filled in a
gap.
One of the hands was fixing a ladder up which Roselle was to pass. The
story which was being filmed was that of a girl who, starting life in
the chorus, had become the wife of a nobleman with archaic ideas. The
poor but honest young man who had loved her in her youth (Michael
gathered that a disconsolate Reggie Connolly played this part) was ever
at hand to help her; and now, when shut up in a stone room of the keep,
it was he who was to rescue her.
The actual castle tower had been shot in Arundel. Old Griff Tower was to
serve for a close-up, showing the girl descending from her prison in the
arms of her lover, by the aid of a rope of knotted sheets.
“It’s going to be deuced awkward getting down,” said Reggie
lugubriously. “Of course, they’ve got a rope inside the sheet, so
there’s no chance of it breaking. But Miss Leamington is really
fearfully awfully heavy! You try and lift her yourself, old thing, and
see how you like it!”
Nothing would have given Michael greater pleasure than to carry out the
instructions literally.
“It’s too robust a part for me, it is really,” bleated Reggie. “I’m not
a cave man, I’m not indeed! I’ve told Knebworth that it isn’t the job
for me. And besides, why do they want a close-up? Why don’t they make a
dummy that I could carry and sling about? And why doesn’t she come down
by herself?”
“It’s dead easy,” said Knebworth, who had walked up and overheard the
latter part of the conversation. “Miss Leamington will hold the rope and
take the weight off you. All you’ve got to do is to look brave and
pretty.”
“That’s all very well,” grumbled Reggie, “but climbing down ropes is not
the job I was engaged for. We all have our likes and our dislikes, and
that’s one of my dislikes.”
“Try it,” said Jack laconically.
The property man had fixed the rope to an iron staple which he had
driven to the inside of the tower, the top of which would not be shown
in the picture. The actual descent had been acted by “doubles” in
Arundel on a long shot: it was only the close-up that Jack needed. The
first rehearsal nearly ended in disaster. With a squeak, Connolly let go
his burden, and the girl would have fallen but for her firm grip on the
rope.
“Try it again,” stormed Jack. “Remember you’re playing a man’s part.
Young Coogan would hold her better than that!”
They tried again, with greater success, and after the third rehearsal,
when poor Reggie was in a state of exhaustion—
“Camera!” said Knebworth shortly, and then began the actual taking of
the picture.
Whatever his other drawbacks were, and whatever his disadvantages, there
was no doubt that Connolly was an artist. Racked with agony at this
unusual exertion though he was, he could smile sweetly into the upturned
face of the girl, whilst the camera, fixed upon a collapsible platform,
clicked encouragingly as it was lowered to keep pace with the escaping
lovers. They touched ground, and with one last languishing look at the
girl, Connolly posed for the final three seconds.
“That’ll do,” said Jack.
Reggie sat down heavily.
“My heavens!” he wailed, feeling his arms painfully. “I’ll never do that
again, I won’t really. I’ve had as much of that stuff as ever I’m going
to have, Mr. Knebworth. It was terrible! I thought I should die!”
“Well, you didn’t,” said Jack good-humouredly. “Now have a rest, you
boys and girls, and then we’ll shoot the escape.”
The camera was moved off twenty or thirty yards, and whilst Reggie
Connolly writhed in agony on the ground, the girl walked over to
Michael.
“I’m glad that’s over,” she said thankfully. “Poor Mr. Connolly! The
awful language he was using inside nearly made me laugh, and that would
have meant that we should have had to take it all over again. But it
wasn’t easy,” she added.
Her own arm was bruised, and the rope had rubbed raw a little place on
her wrist. Michael had an insane desire to kiss the raw skin, but
restrained himself.
“What did you think of me? Did I look anything approaching graceful? I
felt like a bundle of straw!”
“You looked—wonderful!” he said fervently, and she shot a quick glance
at him and dropped her eyes.
“Perhaps you’re prejudiced,” she said demurely.
“I have that feeling too,” said Michael. “What is inside?” He pointed.
“Inside the tower? Nothing, except a lot of rock and wild bush, and a
pathetic dwarf tree. I loved it.”
He laughed.
“Just now you said you were glad it was over. I presume you were
referring to the play and not to the interior of the tower?”
She nodded, a twinkle in her eye.
“Mr. Knebworth says he may have to take a night shot if he’s not
satisfied with the day picture. Poor Mr. Connolly! He’ll throw up his
part.”
At that moment Jack Knebworth’s voice was heard.
“Don’t take the ladder, Collins,” he shouted. “Put it down on the grass
behind the tower. I may have to come up here to-night, so you can leave
anything that won’t be hurt by the weather, and collect it again in the
morning.”
Adele made a little face.
“I was afraid he would,” she said. “Not that I mind very much—it’s
rather fun. But Mr. Connolly’s nervousness communicates itself in some
way. I wish you were playing that part.”
“I wish to heaven I were!” said Michael, with such sincerity in his
voice that she coloured.
Jack Knebworth came toward them.
“Did you leave anything up there, Adele?” he asked, pointing to the
tower.
“No, Mr. Knebworth,” she said in surprise.
“Well, what’s that?”
He pointed to something round that showed above the edge of the tower
top.
“Why, it’s moving!” he gasped.
As he spoke a head came slowly into view. It was followed by a massive
pair of hairy shoulders, and then a leg was thrown over the wall.
It was Bhag!
His tawny hair was white with dust, his face was powdered grotesquely.
All these things Michael noticed. Then, as the creature put out his hand
to steady himself, Michael saw that each wrist was encircled by the half
of a broken pair of handcuffs!