"Now," said John Speed to William Brenton, "we have got Stratton fairly
started on the track, and I believe that he will ferret out the truth
in this matter. But, meanwhile, we must not be idle. You must remember
that, with all our facilities for discovery, we really know nothing
of the murderer ourselves. I propose we set about this thing just as
systematically as Stratton will. The chances are that we shall penetrate
the mystery of the whole affair very much quicker than he. As I told
you before, I am something of a newspaper man myself; and if, with the
facilities of getting into any room in any house, in any city and in any
country, and being with a suspected criminal night and day when he never
imagines any one is near him--if with all those advantages I cannot
discover the real author of that crime before George Stratton does, then
I'll never admit that I came from Chicago, or belonged to a newspaper."
"Whom do you think Stratton suspects of the crime? He told the sheriff,"
said Brenton, "that he had the name in his pocket-book."
"I don't know," said Speed, "but I have my suspicions. You see, he has
the names of all the guests at your banquet in that pocket-book of his;
but the name of Stephen Roland he has marked with two crosses. The name
of the servant he has marked with one cross. Now, I suspect that he
believes Stephen Roland committed the crime. You know Roland; what do
you think of him?"
"I think he is quite capable of it," answered Brenton, with a frown.
"Still, you are prejudiced against the man," put in Speed, "so your
evidence is hardly impartial."
"I am not prejudiced against any one," answered Brenton; "I merely know
that man. He is a thoroughly despicable, cowardly character. The only
thing that makes me think he would not commit a murder, is that he is
too craven to stand the consequences if he were caught. He is a cool
villain, but he is a coward. I do not believe he has the courage to
commit a crime, even if he thought he would benefit by it."
"Well, there is one thing, Brenton, you can't be accused of flattering
a man, and if it is any consolation for you to know, you may be pretty
certain that George Stratton is on his track."
"I am sure I wish him success," answered Brenton, gloomily; "if he
brings Roland to the gallows I shall not mourn over it."
"That's all right," said Speed; "but now we must be up and doing
ourselves. Have you anything to propose?"
"No, I have not, except that we might play the detective on Roland."
"Well, the trouble with that is we would merely be duplicating what
Stratton is doing himself. Now, I'll tell you my proposal. Supposing
that we consult with Lecocq."
"Who is that? The novelist?"
"Novelist? I don't think he has ever written any novels--not that I
remember of."
"Ah, I didn't know. It seemed to me that I remembered his name in
connection with some novel."
"Oh, very likely you did. He is the hero of more detective stories than
any other man I know of. He was the great French detective."
"What, is he dead, then?"
"Dead? Not a bit of it; he's here with us. Oh, I understand what you
mean. Yes, from your point of view, he is dead."
"Where can we find him?"
"Well, I presume, in Paris. He's a first-rate fellow to know, anyhow,
and he spends most of his time around his old haunts. In fact, if you
want to be certain to find Lecocq, you will generally get him during
office hours in the room he used to frequent while in Paris."
"Let us go and see him, then."
* * * * *
"Monsieur Lecocq," said Speed, a moment afterwards, "I wish to introduce
to you a new-comer, Mr. Brenton, recently of Cincinnati."
"Ah, my dear Speed," said the Frenchman, "I am very pleased indeed to
meet any friend of yours. How is the great Chicago, the second Paris,
and how is your circulation?--the greatest in the world, I suppose."
"Well, it is in pretty good order," said Speed; "we circulated from
Chicago to Paris here in a very much shorter time than the journey
usually occupies down below. Now, can you give us a little of your time?
Are you busy just now?"
"My dear Speed, I am always busy. I am like the people of the second
Paris. I lose no time, but I have always time to speak with my friends."
"All right," said Speed. "I am like the people of the second Chicago,
generally more intent on pleasure than business; but, nevertheless, I
have a piece of business for you."
"The second Chicago?" asked Lecocq. "And where is that, pray?"
"Why, Paris, of course," said Speed.
Lecocq laughed.
"You are incorrigible, you Chicagoans. And what is the piece of
business?"
"It is the old thing, monsieur. A mystery to be unravelled. Mr. Brenton
here wishes to retain you in his case."
"And what is his case?" was the answer.
Lecocq was evidently pleased to have a bit of real work given him.
[Illustration: The detective.]
Speed briefly recited the facts, Brenton correcting him now and then
on little points where he was wrong. Speed seemed to think these points
immaterial, but Lecocq said that attention to trivialities was the
whole secret of the detective business.
"Ah," said Lecocq, sorrowfully, "there is no real trouble in elucidating
that mystery. I hoped it would be something difficult; but, you see,
with my experience of the old world, and with the privileges one enjoys
in this world, things which might be difficult to one below are very
easy for us. Now, I shall show you how simple it is."
"Good gracious!" cried Speed, "you don't mean to say you are going to
read it right off the reel, like that, when we have been bothering
ourselves with it so long, and without success?"
"At the moment," replied the French detective, "I am not prepared to say
who committed the deed. That is a matter of detail. Now, let us see what
we know, and arrive, from that, at what we do not know. The one fact, of
which we are assured on the statement of two physicians from Cincinnati,
is that Mr. Brenton was poisoned."
"Well," said Speed, "there are several other facts, too. Another fact is
that Mrs. Brenton is accused of the crime."
"Ah! my dear sir," said Lecocq, "that is not pertinent."
"No," said Speed, "I agree with you. I call it very impertinent."
Brenton frowned, at this, and his old dislike to the flippant Chicago
man rose to the surface again.
The Frenchman continued marking the points on his long forefinger.
"Now, there are two ways by which that result may have been attained.
First, Mr. Brenton may have administered to himself the poison;
secondly, the poison may have been administered by some one else."
"Yes," said Speed; "and, thirdly, the poison may have been administered
accidentally--you do not seem to take that into account."
"I do not take that into account," calmly replied the Frenchman,
"because of its improbability. If there were an accident; if, for
instance, the poison was in the sugar, or in some of the viands served,
then others than Mr. Brenton would have been poisoned. The fact that one
man out of twenty-six was poisoned, and the fact that several people are
to benefit by his death, point, it seems to me, to murder; but to be
sure of that, I will ask Mr. Brenton one question. My dear sir, did you
administer this poison to yourself?"
"Certainly not," answered Brenton.
"Then we have two facts. First, Mr. Brenton was poisoned; secondly, he
was poisoned by some person who had an interest in his death. Now we
will proceed. When Mr. Brenton sat down to that dinner he was perfectly
well. When he arose from that dinner he was feeling ill. He goes to bed.
He sees no one but his wife after he has left the dinner-table, and he
takes nothing between the time he leaves the dinner-table and the moment
he becomes unconscious. Now, that poison must have been administered to
Mr. Brenton at the dinner-table. Am I not right?"
"Well, you seem to be," answered Speed.
"Seem? Why, it is as plain as day. There cannot be any mistake."
"All right," said Speed; "go ahead. What next?"
"What next? There were twenty-six people around that table, with two
servants to wait on them, making twenty-eight in all. There were
twenty-six, I think you said, including Mr. Brenton."
"That is correct."
"Very well. One of those twenty-seven persons has poisoned Mr. Brenton.
Do you follow me?"
"We do," answered Speed; "we follow you as closely as you have ever
followed a criminal! Go on."
"Very well, so much is clear. These are all facts, not theories. Now,
what is the thing that I should do if I were in Cincinnati? I would find
out whether one or more of those guests had anything to gain by the
death of their host. That done, I would follow the suspected persons. I
would have my men find out what each of them had done for a month before
the time of the crime. Whoever committed it made some preparation. He
did something, too, as you say, in America, to cover up his tracks. Very
well. By the keen detective these actions are easily traced. I shall at
once place twenty-seven of the best men I know on the track of those
twenty-seven persons."
"I call that shadowing with a vengeance," remarked the Chicago man.
"It will be very easy. The one who has committed the crime is certain,
when he is alone in his own room, to say something, or to do something,
that will show my detective that he is the criminal. So, gentlemen, if
you can tell me who those twenty-seven persons are, in three days or a
week from this time I will tell you who gave the poison to Mr. Brenton."
"You seem very sure of that," said Speed.
"Sure of it? It is simply child's play. It is mere waiting. If, for
instance, at the trial Mrs. Brenton is found guilty, and sentenced, the
one who is the guilty party is certain to betray himself or herself
as soon as he or she is alone. If it be a man who hopes to marry Mrs.
Brenton, he will be overcome with grief at what has happened. He will
wring his hands and try to think what can be done to prevent the
sentence being carried out. He will argue with himself whether it is
better to give himself up and tell the truth, and if he is a coward he
will conclude not to do that, but will try to get a pardon, or at least
have the capital sentence commuted into life imprisonment. He will
possibly be cool and calm in public, but when he enters his own room,
when his door is locked, when he believes no one can see him, when he
thinks he is alone, then will come his trial. Then his passions and
his emotions will betray him. It is mere child's play, as I tell you,
and long before there is a verdict I will give you the name of the
murderer."
"Very well, then," said Speed, "that is agreed; we will look you up in a
week from now."
"I should be pained," said Lecocq, "to put you to that trouble. As soon
as I get the report from my men I will communicate with you and let
you know the result. In a few days I shall give you the name of the
assassin."
"Good-bye, then, until I see you again," answered Speed; and with this
he and Brenton took their departure.
"He seems to be very sure of himself," said Brenton.
[Illustration: Jane Morton.]
"He will do what he says, you may depend on that."
The week was not yet up when Monsieur Lecocq met John Speed in Chicago.
"By the look of satisfaction on your face," said Mr. Speed, "I imagine
you have succeeded in unravelling the mystery."
"Ah," replied the Frenchman; "if I have the appearance of satisfaction,
it is indeed misplaced."
"Then you have not made any discovery?"
"On the contrary, it is all as plain as your big buildings here. It
is not for that reason, but because it is so simple that I should be
foolish to feel satisfaction regarding it."
"Then who is the person?"
"The assassin," replied the Frenchman, "is one whom no one has seemed to
think of, and yet one on whom suspicion should have been the first to
fall. The person who did Monsieur Brenton the honour to poison him is
none other than the servant girl, Jane Morton."