THE TRIAL.
"You see," said Drek, complacently, "that it is quite easy to get up a
case against you, Mr. Lovel; yet I feel convinced from your late
actions that you are innocent. Therefore you will understand that I am
inclined to doubt even the strong evidence you have obtained against
Mr. Chaskin. He may be as guiltless as you are. The evidence against
Herne is as strong; yet you think his hands are clean of blood. Why,
then, should you suspect Chaskin so much?"
"He refused to explain the loss of the pistol."
"So far as that goes, he refused because he did not think either you
or Mexton had any right to examine him. But if a person like myself,
having authority----"
"Go and see him, Drek, and find out if he will confess to you!" said
Paul, eagerly.
"No; I shall take no steps in the matter until this trial of Dr.
Lester's is concluded."
"And in the meantime Chaskin will run away," said Lovel, bitterly.
"I don't think so," rejoined the inspector, nettled by the sneering
tone of the young man, which cast a reflection on his judgment. "The
conduct of Mr. Chaskin does not augur that he intends to fly; and if
he did, I would take means to prevent his flight."
"You will have him watched?"
"I will have both him and Herne watched."
"And what about Mother Jimboy, who is so important a witness in this
case?" said Paul, suddenly; "she is seriously ill, and being so old it
is not improbable that she may die at any moment."
"True," said Drek, thoughtfully. "You think of everything, Mexton.
I'll have her deposition taken as soon as I learn that she is in
danger. At the present moment Dr. Lester, who is in attendance on her,
assures me that the chances of recovery are in her favour. Oh, you may
trust me," concluded the inspector, rising, "I'll do my best to bring
the assassin of Miss Lester to justice."
"Chaskin!" cried Lucas, emphatically.
"Or yourself, or Herne," retorted Drek, putting on his hat. "Don't
forget my argument about the evidence, Mr. Lovel. Take my advice, and
keep quiet until Lester is discharged; then we shall see what is to be
done."
"Arrest me, I suppose!"
"Sir!" cried Drek, with indignation, "I am this much of an Arab, that
did I intend to be your enemy, and act so traitorous a part, I should
not have broken bread with you; in other words, I should have declined
your whisky-and-soda and the very excellent cigar which I have just
smoked."
"I beg your pardon, Drek; I take back my words. Good-day."
"Good-day, Mr. Lovel; good-day, Mr. Mexton. At present we know not
what is before us," and Inspector Drek left the room with an air of
great dignity. When the door was closed after him Lovel turned towards
his friend.
"What do you think of the position now?" he asked.
"I think that we had better wait and see the outcome of Lester's
trial."
"Bah! I know the outcome! He will be acquitted."
"Well," said Paul, who was tired of the discussion, "let us wait till
he is acquitted, and then renew our search for the assassin."
"I say Chaskin--he is the assassin!"
"And I say, Herne. Time and opportunity will be needed to prove which
of us is in the right," said Paul; after which the conversation
concluded, and each of the young men went his different way. With
their opinions so diametrically opposed to one another, they felt that
continued companionship might result in a quarrel; and at the present
stage of their acquaintance, and seeing that they were mutually
interested in bringing to justice the assassin of Milly Lester, they
were unwilling that a rupture should take place. Hence, they very
wisely parted.
During the following week there was great excitement in Marborough.
The Assizes were being held, and the Barnstead crime occupied the most
prominent place in the list of cases which had been set down for
trial. It was rumored that Lester was innocent, but at Marborough the
precise way in which his innocence was to be proved was not known. In
Barnstead itself, thanks to Miss Clyde and the indefatigable Mrs.
Drass, the inhabitants were better informed, and looked upon the
coming trial as a mere farce for the discharging of Dr. Lester. But
there was a new source of excitement in the village, as it was
reported that Mr. Inspector Drek had found the assassin, and would
have him condemned on the most irrefutable evidence. But the name of
the accused was not given, and many were the surmises as to who the
criminal might prove to be. Thanks to the discretion of Paul, Lovel,
and Drek, not a word was breathed hinting that Mr. Chaskin had
anything to do with the matter.
In the meantime the illness of Mother Jimboy took a bad turn, and it
was evident that her days were numbered. Drek visited her, and she
held to the story of Chaskin's guilt, but point blank refused to make
any sworn deposition to that effect. Her obstinacy on this point led
the inspector to believe that the old woman was lying, but for what
purpose he could not conceive. Drek did all he could to force her to
sign a confession, but in vain, and the day for Lester's trial arrived
without the accomplishment of this object. Nevertheless Paul Mexton
haunted the tent of the gipsy and loudly declared that he would not
leave until she was dead or had signed a confession. So obstinate was
he on this point that not even the trial could seduce him into
Marborough, and the "Tory Times" had to employ another reporter in his
place. For this kindness on the part of the editor, Mexton promised
that the confession of Mother Jimboy should be published in that
paper; when the country would be astonished. Paul did not know at the
time how truly he spoke.
On the second day of the Assizes the trial of Dr. Lester came on. The
court was crowded, and Iris, dressed in mourning, with a heavy veil
over her face, was present, under the charge of Mrs. Mexton. She would
rather have stayed away, but having been subpoenaed as a witness on
behalf of the Crown, she was obliged to attend. Miss Clyde was also
present, and with her Mrs. Drass. Indeed, the court was full,
principally of Barnstead folk, who thought that they had a right
to the best seats on account of the murder having taken place in
their village. Lovel came in shortly before the trial began, and
while standing in the crowd--for he did not wish to make himself
prominent--he felt a light touch on his arm, and was surprised on
turning to find himself face to face with the Polish violinist. She
looked paler than usual, and more than a trifle anxious; but Lovel was
quite unable to account for these signs of emotion.
"Catinka!" he said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I came down to see the trial," she replied. "I saw the body of the
poor girl, and I desire to behold the wicked murder man."
"You won't see him here, then. No one knows who killed Miss Lester."
"But this doctor----"
"Is innocent," interrupted Lovel. "The trial is a mere farce. When Dr.
Lester is discharged we must look for the real assassin. Can you help
us?"
"I, my dear?" Catinka shrugged her shoulders. "No; I told to that good
Mexton all that I know. Where is he?"
"At Barnstead--on business."
"And my good friend, Mr. Herne?"
"Yonder he is, standing beside that clergyman."
"The priest? And who is that priest?"
"Mr. Chaskin, the Vicar of Barnstead."
"He is a ver' handsome man," said Catinka, calmly. "Hush, Mistar
Lovel; we will listen to what they say. Lester is in his place, and
his lawyer talks."
"No, no; that is counsel for the Crown."
"Ah; but, my friend, it is no matter, no matter at all."
To this speech Lovel made no reply, as he was listening intently to
the opening speech of the counsel for the Crown. This barrister--an
eminent man in his profession--set forth all the circumstances of the
crime, detailing the supposed movements of the prisoner on the night
of the murder, and ended with an allusion to the witnesses he proposed
to call in order to prove his guilt. Then one by one those who had
appeared at the inquest, including Lovel and Iris, gave their
evidence, which, as may be guessed, incriminated Lester in a very
decided fashion. To the majority of the spectators, ignorant of what
had been discovered since the inquest, it seemed probable that Lester
was guilty, that he would be convicted, sentenced, and ultimately
hanged.
Thinking thus, those present in the court were astonished to see how
serene was the demeanour of the prisoner. Dr. Lester, dressed in
mourning for his child--a fact which the female portion of the
audience resented as hypocrisy--stood quite composed in the dock, and
paid the greatest attention to the accusations which were leveled
against him. Only once did he wince, and that was when allusion was
made to his drunken habits and frequent states of dangerous frenzy
induced by intoxication. Otherwise he was unmoved.
"You say this one not wicked!" whispered Catinka to Lovel, who had
returned to his seat after giving his evidence. "I think they all say
he kill that poor daughter."
"Wait till you hear both sides of the question," replied Lovel, in the
same low tones; "the doctor has yet to make his defence."
Counsel for the accused made a very short speech. He stated that the
prisoner had been drunk on the night and at the time of the murder;
that he had taken a loaded pistol, and had gone out in search of Mr.
Lovel at half-past eight o'clock. After leaving the house, he
recollected no more until he returned home at dawn; and the Crown
relied on this state of forgetfulness, caused by intoxication, to
prove the prisoner's guilt. Under the circumstances it indeed was hard
to tell if the prisoner had not shot the deceased in mistake for Mr.
Lovel; but fortunately, in the interests of justice, he, the counsel
for the accused, could produce, and intended to produce, a lady of
well-known veracity, who could prove that the man in the dock was
entirely innocent, and had not committed the crime alleged against
him. Counsel stated also that he had only one witness, a lady, and
that lady Miss Clyde, but that she would be able to refute all the
evidence brought against the prisoner by the prosecution. As the jury
now understood what he proposed to do, he, counsel for the defense,
would call Selina Clyde.
Miss Clyde at once stepped into the witness-box, and was duly sworn.
She gave in detail the evidence of her taking the pistol off Lester,
and related almost in the same words the story which she had told to
Mexton. Counsel for the Crown cross-examined her severely, but nothing
could shake her testimony; and when she left the witness-box the tide
had turned in favour of Lester, and all present believed him to be
guiltless. The summing up of the judge inclined towards this view; and
the jury, without leaving the box--so great was the impression
produced by Miss Clyde's evidence--pronounced the prisoner innocent. A
verdict of not guilty was given; the judge discharged the doctor, and
Lester stepped down from the box a free man, amid the applause of the
court.
"So he did not kill after all?" said Catinka, who looked rather
disappointed with the verdict.
"No," replied Lovel coldly. "You have heard the evidence; Lester is
innocent."
"And who is guilty?"
"I don't know."
Catinka laughed in a scoffing manner. "I thought you would have known
by this time," she observed with a shrug.
"Do you know?" demanded Lovel sharply.
"I do. I was told by the man himself."
"The man himself! Who is he?"
"Wait; you will hear in a few minutes."
"In this court?"
"Yes. See!" Catinka stretched out her arm. "Mr. Herne knows who killed
the poor lady; see, my dear, he rises to tell the name."
And indeed Herne, in spite of an attempt on the part of Chaskin to
prevent him, was on his feet, demanding permission to speak. Before
the judge could retire, before the lawyers could rise from the table,
before the jury could leave the box, or a single person the court,
Herne, without waiting for the permission he had asked for, was making
a speech. His face was flushed with excitement, his eyes flashed, and
he spoke rapidly, clearly, and to the point. His words solved the
problem of Milly's death, and they were few.
"My lord," he cried, "and you, gentlemen of the jury, you have
liberated one man as guiltless of the death of my promised wife; now I
require you to order the arrest of another man--of the man who came by
stealth and killed her, to save her soul from ill. You wish to know
who killed Millicent Lester. Here is the man!" Herne struck himself on
the breast. "I killed her! I saved her soul! I--I--I!"