CHAPTER XIX_The Man Without a Memory

MURDER

Some horror-filled moments passed before I grasped the full

significance to me of the unfortunate woman's death. I turned dizzy and

bewildered like a drunken man, and could do nothing but just stare at

the body, literally stupefied by the suddenness of it.

It wasn't the fact of death that startled me; I had seen too many dead

bodies at the Front to be much concerned.

But I made a big effort to pull myself together. I examined her to be

certain that she was really dead, for the body was still warm. There

was no doubt about it. The poor thing had been choked, and the marks of

the murderer's fingers showed on her throat.

There had been a struggle in the room, and some of the wretched

furniture had been overturned. My wits were beginning to clear by that

time; and I was glancing about the room wondering who had been brute

enough to commit the murder and what I had better do, when I made a

discovery that told me everything and turned the blood in my veins icy

cold.

In examining the body I had disarranged the bedclothes slightly, and by

the side of the neck, just where it would have fallen from the

murderer's finger, lay a ring.

Von Erstein's! The puzzle ring he had once shown and explained to me!

It was impossible to mistake it; and there was probably not another

ring like it in Berlin.

I didn't lose my head that time; the instinct of self-preservation was

too strong to allow of any other feeling. My one absorbing thought was

to get away before any one could come.

I darted back into the sitting-room and snatched at my hat which I had

left on the table. In my flurry I fumbled. It fell to the floor and

rolled under the table; and when I grabbed for it again, the quaint

little card case which Rosa had given me lay open just beside it.

Too obsessed by the desire to get out of the place, I had no other

feeling than a faint satisfaction at finding it again; not realizing

for an instant the full significance of the incident I pocketed the

thing, picked up my hat and left the flat. I took care to shut the

door; this would serve to postpone the discovery of the murder; went

down the staircase without undue hurry, made sure there was no one to

see me leave, walked leisurely away until I turned the first corner and

then made off at a rapid pace.

A sensation of profound relief that I was safe for a time at any rate

was followed by some minutes of acute reaction in which I was incapable

of consecutive thought. A mental blank from which I awoke pretty much

as a man might wake from sleep-walking. I gazed about me unknowingly,

and seeing the gate of a small public garden close at hand, I went in

and sat down.

I soon began to get my wits in working order and bit by bit pieced

things together. Curiously enough, almost the first thought was about

the comparative trifle of the card case. I remember that I took it out

and looked at it, wondering stupidly when I could have dropped it in

Anna's room. Then I recalled that I had missed it in the morning when

with von Gratzen. It couldn't have been in my pocket therefore when I

went to Anna; and in a few seconds I understood.

The last time I had touched it was on the previous night when I had

taken Rudolff's statement out of it to show von Erstein and he had

tried to snatch the paper away and had only got the little case. I

remembered that he had thrown it down close to him and had fiddled with

it nervously afterwards.

It was clear that he had taken it away with him and had intentionally

left it in Anna's room to shift his villainous deed on to me. It was

worthy of him; and it would have succeeded but for that wonderful slice

of luck--ineffably blessed luck, indeed--by which I had found the card

case.

That helped me to piece the rest together. Panic-stricken by what I had

told her about von Gratzen, Anna had no doubt threatened to expose

everything; Erstein's whole scheme would be ruined the moment she

opened her lips: and this had roused the brute in him until he had been

driven to strangle her. The ring had slipped from his finger without

his noticing the loss of it in his rage. Then he must have tossed my

card case down under the table to connect me with the crime.

He had obviously left the door ajar for the same reason; had probably

rushed to the first public telephone box and called me up in a voice

which was enough like a woman's to mislead me; and intended to send

some one to catch me red-hot on the scene of the crime.

Two points were not clear. Why no one had caught me? There had been

ample time, supposing that he was hiding in wait for my arrival. And

why had the murder been committed in Anna's room, seeing that she had

gone from me to find him?

One of two suggestions seemed to answer the last question. Either she

had not found him at first and had left a sufficiently urgent message

to make him hurry to her, or that after a first interview he had

induced her to go home and had followed at once. The plan to kill her

must have been in his mind then, and obviously he couldn't do it in his

own rooms.

The first question--why I had not been caught--wasn't so readily

solved; but the ring might well account for it, if he had only

discovered the loss of it in the interval of waiting for me. With that

damning bit of evidence against himself, the bottom had dropped out of

his scheme against me, and he would not dare to try and have me caught

in the act.

And now I had fortunately shut the door against him. He couldn't go

back for the ring even if he had the pluck, which I doubted.

This was another stroke of luck, indeed; and it was needed in all

truth, for the mess was bad and black enough to need a heap of it, if I

was to escape being charged with the murder. Such a charge would ruin

me lock, stock and barrel. Even if I could clear myself--and that was

almost impossible--all the truth about myself would be ferretted out,

and it was thousands to one that I should be shot for a spy.

Only one expedient occurred to me at first--to bolt. But that looked

hopeless in the new circumstances. It would be tantamount to a

confession of guilt; von Erstein would tell some plausible lie about

the ring belonging to Anna; and it would be believed easily enough if

suspicion were lifted from him by my flight; the hue and cry would be

raised all over the country; old Graun would tell his story--that I had

a workman's papers in the name of Liebe; and my arrest would be a

matter of hours possibly, certainly one of days at the outside.

That idea had to be set aside, therefore. Before there could be any

thought of flight suspicion must be fastened on von Erstein. But how?

Not by sitting on a public seat and nibbling my nails; so I got up and

started back to the centre of things.

I had completely recovered from the disturbing panicky condition which

had so confused me in the first rush of things. I don't think I was

even afraid. My chief feeling was that I was in the very devil's own

mess and that I should go under, unless my own wits could save me. If

Feldmann had been in Berlin I should have gone to him; but he wasn't,

and it was no use wishing he had been.

There was only one other man in the whole city--von Gratzen; and the

moment that became clear and plain, I hailed a taxi and was driven

straight to his office.

He was still there, but refused to see me, sending von Welten to ask my

business. I said that it was on personal business I wished to see his

chief.

This didn't work, however. Von Welten returned, saying the Baron was

exceedingly busy and would I state my business in writing. This looked

ugly; but after thinking a second, I wrote on my card: "Please see me

for the sake of the Untergasse affair;" placed it in an envelope and

sent it in. If anything would induce von Gratzen to have me in, that

would.

I was right. Von Welten came back smiling. "The chief will see you in a

minute or two, Herr Lassen. I'm glad." He was an exceedingly pleasant

fellow and stayed chatting with me until von Gratzen's bell rang and I

was shown in.

"You're giving me a lot of trouble, young man, as you can see," he

said, pointing to a portfolio in which there appeared to be a lot of

papers on the top of which were the coveted tickets for Nessa and me.

"And now what about this Untergasse affair? Found anything out that's

valuable? I can't give you many minutes."

"I'm in a devil of a mess, sir, but it has nothing to do with that. I

wrote that because I was compelled to see you."

"I agree with you. You've been in one ever since you reached the city,

it seems to me, indeed. Nothing fresh, I trust?"

"There is, and the worst of all, sir. I'm in danger of being charged

with murder."

"With what?" he cried in amazement. "Phew! Well, tell me."

"When I saw you this morning I gathered that the reason those tickets

for Miss Caldicott and myself could not be used was because of the

trouble about the woman, Anna Hilden."

"True, but you yourself said you wished it cleared up first."

"So on leaving here I went to see her again."

"Good God, you don't mean to say you lost your head and laid hands on

her in this awful way?" The thought of it appeared to affect him deeply.

"Oh dear no, sir. I hope I'm not capable of such a thing. From what she

said, I became certain the whole thing was a fraud and----"

"So it is," he interposed, nodding. "You are right. We know all about

the woman already. Go on."

"I tried persuasion first; but that was no use, so I let her know that

the matter was in your hands."

"I hope that frightened her."

"It did, sir. She was almost out of her wits and promised to tell me

everything this afternoon. I was to call at five o'clock."

"Where did you go next?" he shot in abruptly.

"To the von Reblings."

"To tell Miss Caldicott about these, I suppose?" holding up the tickets.

"Yes. I knew she would be very anxious."

He put the pinned set of tickets, etc., into the portfolio, under a

couple of papers, and leant back, with his fingers interlocked, and

stared at me with frowning intentness. "You're not a fool, my boy, and

you must see that your zeal on that young lady's account is likely to

rouse a lot of suspicion. What do the von Reblings say about it?"

"They are extremely anxious that she should be allowed to go home."

"Umph!" a grunt and a nod, both of which were repeated. "And where did

you go next after leaving them?"

I started and hesitated.

"Are you going to tell me the whole truth? We get to know many strange

things here, you know."

"I went to see a man named Graun----"

"I know you did. You were followed and he was questioned. I won't ask

you why you got what you did from him; but don't attempt to use it. Now

go on about this other affair. Just everything; everything, and quite

frankly."

"I will, sir. Let me get my thoughts in order again. You've taken me

considerably by surprise." I paused a few seconds and then told him

exactly what had occurred, from the moment of my receiving the

telephone call, down to my discovery of von Erstein's ring under Anna's

body.

He jumped up excitedly at that. "Why didn't you tell me that first?" he

cried. "There isn't a moment to lose. I must see about it instantly;"

and he hurried out of the room.

For the second time the tickets were within reach and I was alone in

the room. He had apparently forgotten them in his excitement, and that

I had only to stretch out my hand and secure them. Or had he gone out

deliberately intending to give me the chance? He knew how eager I was

to get away; the old Jew's tale must have shown that.

I didn't hesitate this time. I whipped them out of the portfolio and

pocketed them. Had I better bolt, or stay to face him? A mighty

difficult question. If I ran away, he might suspect; if I stayed, there

was a chance that he might not miss them. If they were missed, they

wouldn't be worth a pfennig. We should certainly be stopped at the

station; there would be a scene and Nessa would be hopelessly

compromised. That was unthinkable.

There was nothing for it, therefore, but to stay and face it out. It

wasn't easy to do; and nothing in the world except the thought of the

consequences to Nessa, could have glued me to my chair for the minutes

I had still to wait for von Gratzen. It was a positive relief when the

strain ended and he came back.

He was looking very grave and stern, and there were still traces of the

excitement he had shown when he had left me.

How I watched him! The next moment would decide everything for me. He

was thinking closely, paused with his hand to his forehead when halfway

to the desk, nodded in response to a thought, and went on to his chair.

I had to hold my breath, as he sat down and laid his hand on the

portfolio. I was ready to throw up the sponge as he slightly lifted the