A GOOD NIGHT'S WORK.
"Is that all you have to tell us," inquired Ronald, "of what came to
your knowledge in London and on your journey here?"
"That is all," replied Mr. Rivers.
"Since you took up your quarters in this hotel what have you
discovered?"
"Nothing more than I have already told you--that Mr. Nisbet lives in
a house about two miles away. I have been expecting your arrival, and
my orders are that I place myself at your service. The command is in
your hands now."
"Have you seen the house?"
"No."
"From whom did you obtain your information?"
"From one of the waiters here, who is ready enough to talk about
everything and everybody in the place. I pumped him cautiously, and
learned a lot that I didn't care to hear and a little that I did."
"Do you speak French and German?"
"I can just make myself understood, and the waiter can just make
himself understood in English. He is anxious to know more of our
language, as he intends to go to London and make his fortune, so I
have been teaching him a bit. We are very good friends already,
François and I."
"Is that his name?"
"I don't know; I call all foreign waiters François."
"I suppose you have not discovered whether Mr. Nisbet lives alone?"
"I haven't got as far as that; I thought it advisable to leave it to
you gentlemen. It stands to reason that there must be someone in the
house to do the domestic work. I have an idea, if you care to listen
to it."
"We will listen to everything that is likely to assist us."
"This is likely to do so. François will wait upon us at dinner. One of
you, Mr. Emery for choice--you have a solid look about you, sir, if
you don't mind my saying so--is an hotel keeper in London, and when
François gets to London, if you haven't a vacancy in your own
establishment, you will be able to assist him to obtain a situation in
another. That will be a sufficient bribe, and it will insure our being
waited upon properly as long as we remain here."
"I will play the part with pleasure," I said. "It is a good idea."
So it was arranged, and at dinner François waited upon us with
neatness and dispatch, having received a hint from Mr. Rivers as to my
supposed vocation in London. In his hearing I dropped a hint or two
which I perceived he caught up in praise of his politeness and
dexterity, and I saw that, thus encouraged, he would be of service to
us. He was also led to understand from our conversation that it was
our intention to make a stay here of several days, and in this and
other ways we endeavored to lead up to the success of our scheme. It
would have been unwise, however, in my opinion, to make any sudden and
specific inquiries respecting Mr. Nisbet; I felt that we could not
proceed too carefully, and I determined to leave these inquiries till
the following day.
Meanwhile we had a difficulty with Ronald. Dinner over, he announced
his intention of walking to Mr. Nisbet's house in our company, and it
was long before we could dissuade him.
"Why should I not go?" he asked.
"Why should you go?" I asked in return. "You can do nothing until we
have laid our plans. If it should happen that Mr. Nisbet sees you, all
our labor is thrown away. It is right that the house should be
reconnoitered without delay, but for us to do that in a body would be
inviting defeat. Mr. Rivers and I will undertake this alone, and you
must remain here with your uncle and Barbara."
He consented unwillingly, and we were about to set forth when Barbara
plucked my sleeve.
"Well, my child?" I said.
"If yer going to see Molly, sir," she said, with tears in her eyes,
"won't yer take me with yer?"
The fears that oppressed me with respect to her sister rendered this
imploring appeal of solemn import.
"We don't know that we shall see Molly, my dear," I said gravely. "We
must look about us first before we can decide what to do. I am afraid
Mr. Nisbet is not a good man, and we must be very careful. You must
leave everything to us, Barbara."
"Yes, sir, in course I must do that. But if yer _do_ see Molly, yer'll
give 'er my love, won't yer, and arks 'er if I can come to 'er?"
"If we see her, my dear, we will be sure to tell her all about you."
"She _will_ be surprised, won't she, sir?"
"Yes, Barbara, yes," I said, and I left her with a heavy heart.
On the road it occurred to me that, in keeping Mr. Rivers in complete
ignorance of the nature of our suspicions respecting Mr. Nisbet, I
might be placing difficulties in our way, and weakening the assistance
he was ready to give us. Therefore I enlightened him to some extent,
being careful to make no mention of the supernatural visitants which
had made me take up the matter.
"What I have related," I said in conclusion, "is under the seal of
confidence, and is not to be mentioned unless the mystery is brought
to light. Just at this moment I confess to feeling dispirited; the web
of conjecture is so slight that I am oppressed by the feeling that we
may, after all, be following a will-o'-the-wisp, and that there is no
ground for the suspicions that have led me on."
"That is one way of putting it," observed Mr. Rivers, "but as you
suspect that a crime has been committed, would it not be a relief to
you to find that there is no ground for the suspicion?" I was at a
loss to reply to this question, and he proceeded. "It may be due to
the occupation I follow, but I generally place the worst construction
upon these matters. If I were otherwise inclined, I should place the
worst construction upon this, and my belief is that Mr. Nisbet has
been guilty of nothing less than murder. Every circumstance in the
case points to the conclusion, which is strengthened by the impression
he has produced upon me. He is a man capable of any desperate deed, or
I am no judge of character. I am obliged to you for the confidence you
have placed in me; it certainly renders me less powerless in the
assistance I may be able to render. I have a starting point, you see.
Just at present there are two questions in my mind to which we must
endeavor to find an answer. First, what has become of the girl Molly?
I should know how to work her if I could lay hands on her. Second,
what is the meaning of the association of Mr. Nisbet and Dr. Cooper?
To their former association, when Mr. Nisbet and his stepdaughter were
living in Lamb's Terrace, where the poor lady met her death, there is
an absolutely plain answer. Mr. Nisbet wanted a death certificate from
a doctor who was imperfectly acquainted with the facts, and he paid
Dr. Cooper to supply it. This certificate being accepted at the
inquest, and the body cremated, Mr. Nisbet was safe. In the absence of
proof, of what practical value would mere suspicion be? He could snap
his fingers at it. But the circumstance of his taking Dr. Cooper
suddenly and unexpectedly from London, and of the doctor being in his
house at this moment, puzzles me."
"Mr. Nisbet requires his assistance again," I suggested.
"That is the natural inference, and we have to discover the exact
nature of this required assistance. If bold measures are necessary we
must adopt them."
"I am ready. Have you any theory as to Molly?"
"I can think of more than one. The girl was young at the time of the
lady's death; Barbara is by no means bad looking; Molly was pretty, I
dare say; she was poor, she was ignorant; Mr. Nisbet may have taken a
fancy to her----"
I interrupted him. "No, Mr. Rivers, I cannot entertain the theory that
Molly consented to become Mr. Nisbet's mistress."
"I will not force it upon you," said he dryly, "but perhaps I am a
better judge of human nature than yourself. However, we shall soon
discover something; we shall not be kept long in the dark."
We had little difficulty in finding the house inhabited by Mr. Nisbet,
and its appearance deepened my apprehensions. In saying that we found
the house I am not quite exact, for a high wall surrounded it, and
only the gables could be seen. This wall was of surprising extent, and
could have occupied not less than an acre of ground. It was of stone,
and might have been built round a prison. We walked cautiously around
it, keeping close in its shadow and prepared at any moment to stroll
carelessly away in the event of an inmate issuing from either of the
gates--one in the front, the other in the rear--which afforded ingress
to it.
Night had fallen, and there was no moon, so that we were comparatively
safe from observation, but this did not make us less cautious in our
movements. We were waging our silent battle with a wary foe, and to be
taken unaware would be fatal to us.
There was no other house near the building. At no great distance were
towering ranges of rock and tree which intensified the gloom of the
habitation. Retreating to a hillock we ascended it, and from that
height perceived lights in some of the upper windows.
"A pleasant residence," said Mr. Rivers, with a slight shiver. "One
can imagine any deed of darkness being perpetrated within those walls.
Hush! Don't move!"
I saw the reason for the caution. The hill on which we stood faced the
gate in the rear of the house, and as Mr. Rivers laid hold of me and
whispered in my ear, this gate was slowly opened and a form issued
from it. I could not at that distance distinguish whether it was the
form of a man or a woman; what I could distinguish was that the figure
paused a moment or two and seemed to peer within the grounds. Then,
closing the gate with an appearance of caution, the figure came into
the open, and limped away.
"Step softly," whispered Mr. Rivers, and taking me by the hand we
followed the figure, which we presently discerned to be that of an old
woman, who walked as if she were lame. I stepped almost as softly as
my companion, and we succeeded in approaching close to her without
being observed. She was carrying something in her hands, covered with
a white cloth. Night's shadows befriended us, and it was evident that
the woman had no notion that she was being followed. Mr. Rivers did
not speak, nor did I. We must have walked half a mile when the woman
stopped before a wretched hut, which she entered without knocking.
"We must see what she's up to," whispered Mr. Rivers. "She belongs to
Mr. Nisbet's house, and has crept away in secret. It is my opinion
we're in luck."
Stealing round the hut we came to a window at the back over which
there was no curtain, so that, although the glass was to some extent
obscured by dust and mud, we could see what was passing within. On the
ground lay a gaunt man, and by his side on a low stool sat a girl
about twelve years of age, as nearly as I could judge. The girl had
jumped up at the entrance of the old woman, but the man appeared to be
too weak to raise himself. This was proved by the woman kneeling by
him on one side and the girl kneeling by him on the other; by their
united efforts they lifted him into a sitting posture, and then the
woman removed the white cloth from the article she had carried from
Mr. Nisbet's house; it was a large dish filled with food, and though
she had come some distance the ascending steam proclaimed that it was
still warm. The woman fed him with a spoon, and presently drew from a
capacious pocket a bottle of red wine; he ate sparely, but he drank
with avidity. When he had finished the girl partook of the food, and
the eager way in which she ate reminded me of the night we found
little Barbara in Lamb's Terrace. There was a pathos in the scene that
touched me to the heart, but of course I could not hear what was said
by the poor actors therein.
We waited till the old woman left the hut; she took the empty dish and
the white cloth with her. When she came out we followed her back to
Mr. Nisbet's house, which she entered by the back gate, adopting
similar precautions to those which had marked her departure from it.
"A winning move," said Mr. Rivers in a tone of satisfaction as we
retraced our steps to the Hôtel-Pension zur Tellsplatte.
"In what way?" I asked, for though I was impressed by what I had
witnessed, I did not at the moment see in what way it could be turned
to our advantage.
"The food and wine were stolen from Mr. Nisbet," replied Mr. Rivers,
"and in that wretched hut we shall obtain the key to his house. We
have done a good night's work."
During our absence Ronald and Bob had not been idle. By promising
François pecuniary assistance to enable him to reach the paradise of
waiters, they had won him completely over, and he had disclosed
everything he knew relating to Mr. Nisbet's domestic affairs, and to
the estimation in which he was held. He was not in favor, it appeared;
he kept himself aloof from everybody in the place, and lived the life
of an eccentric and a recluse. Reputed to be rich, he had not been
known to do a single act of kindness to the poor peasantry in the
district. There had been an explosion in a mine, there had been a
conflagration, a neighboring village had been inundated, and he did
not contribute a franc to the relief of the sufferers. Some people
declared that he possessed "the evil eye," and that he could "will"
misfortune upon those who offended him. As for his establishment, it
consisted of himself, a young female, who was said to be daft, and an
old woman who acted as cook and general housekeeper. The old woman's
name was Bernstein, the young woman's was not known. She had not been
seen for years outside the walls of the house. When Mr. Nisbet went
away Mme. Bernstein was left in charge of the establishment, and
neither then nor at any other time was any person admitted inside the
grounds. Food and wine were taken in at the gates, by the master
himself when he was at home, by Mme. Bernstein when he was absent.
This was the sum total of the information which had been elicited from
François.
After hearing this we related to Bob and Ronald our own adventure, and
then we fell to discussing the next step to be taken, and Ronald urged
that an endeavor should be made to obtain admission to the house.
"It will be dangerous to attempt such a thing," said Bob, "while Mr.
Nisbet and Dr. Cooper are there. François tells us that the master is
sometimes seen out searching for herbs or specimens. If he continues
the practice it is likely that Dr. Cooper will accompany him on these
expeditions. Then will be the time."
"My opinion is," I said, "that, before we attempt so bold a move, we
shall win Mme. Bernstein over to our side."
"I undertake to accomplish that," said Mr. Rivers, "and not later than
to-morrow night. But first let us have François in. I should like to
get something more out of him."
François was summoned, and wine was ordered. When he brought the
bottle in, Mr. Rivers held a conversation with him. Was he acquainted
with Mme. Bernstein? No, he was not, but he had heard something of her
brother. Ah, she had a brother? Yes, a poor fellow very near death's
door, and without a sou in the world. She had a little niece also, the
brother's child. Where did they live? He described the hut to which
Mme. Bernstein had taken the food and wine. Was Mme. Bernstein kind to
them? He did not know--he had not heard; nobody took any trouble about
them; the child begged of passing tourists, but she got very little,
not enough to keep body and soul together. François could tell us
nothing more.
Before we went to bed we decided to keep watch on Mme. Bernstein the
next night, and to be guided by what occurred. Needless to say that
Barbara was not present at this discussion. She was too young to be
admitted fully into our confidence. We kept ourselves very quiet
during the following day, and when night set in the four of us set out
for Mr. Nisbet's house. Ronald insisted upon accompanying us, and we
could not but submit.