"I doubt if I could fool you if I wanted to." She met his eye and suddenly smiled at him. "You can feel my ribs if you want to, but as for looking at them-"
"Oh, no. No, thank you. Good-night. Good-night, Miss Lovchen."
I went with them and extended the courtesies of the hall, and when they were out I shot the night bolt on the door. Then I went back to the office and stood and looked down at Wolfe's colossal countenance, immobile with closed eyes, and treated myself to an unrestricted stretch and yawn.
"Hvala Bogu," I declared. "I like Montenegrin girls, but it's time to go to bed. They're all right. I offered to take them home and they refused to let me. In spite of which, I have to run up to 48th Street before I turn in, to get the damn roadster I left there. This is a very peculiar case. I've got a feeling in my bones that there is going to be a strange romantic twist to it by the time we get through. I have an inner conviction that when the full moon comes I'll be standing right here in this office asking you formally for the hand of your daughter in marriage. You've got something there, gospodar. Only you'll have to help me break her of lying."
"Shut up."
"Shall I go up for the roadster?"
"I suppose you'll have to." Wolfe shuddered. Out into the night like that. "What time will Saul be here in the morning?"
"Nine o'clock."
"Phone him and tell him to bring that envelope."
"Yes, sir. Are you really going to hand it over to her?"
"I am. I want to see what she is going to do with it. Will Fred and Orrie also be here at nine?"
"Yes, sir. Who do you want to tail whom?"
"Tailing may not be necessary. On the other hand, it may be, for her protection. Mr Faber wanted that paper."
"Not only did he want it, he knew where to look for it," I yawned. "And since Carla put it there, did she tell him about it? Or did he learn it from a member of your family?"
"I have no family."
"A daughter is commonly considered to be a member of one's family. In this case it would hardly be too much to say that a daughter is a family." I made my voice grave and respectful. "When I marry her, I guess it will be unavoidable for me to call you Dad."
"Archie, I swear by all-"
"And I would be your heir in case you die. I would be the beneficiary on your life insurance. We could play in father and son golf tournaments. Later on you could hold the baby. Babies. When the time comes for the divorce-now what the hell!"
The doorbell was ringing.
Chapter Nine
At half past one in the morning, with me yawning my head off and an outside errand still to do, the doorbell should ring.
I went to the front and unlocked, leaving the chain bolt on so that the door only opened to a five-inch crack, and peered through at the male figure standing there.
"Well?"
"I want to see Nero Wolfe."
"Name, please?"
"Open the door!" He was a bit peremptory.
"Tut-tut," I said. "It's after office hours. If you don't like your own name, make up one. But it had better be a good one, at this time of night."
"My name is Donald Barrett."
"Oh. Okay. Hold that pose. I'll be back."
I went to the office and told Wolfe. He opened his eyes, frowned, muttered something and nodded. I returned to the front and let the night-walker in, flunkeyed for him, and escorted him to the office. In the bright light he looked handsome and harassed, with his white tie somewhat crooked and his hair disarranged. He blinked at Wolfe and said he was Donald Barrett.
"So I understand. Sit down."
"Thanks." He lodged his sitter on the edge of a chair in a temporary manner. "This is a frightful stink, this thing."
Wolfe's brows went slightly up. "This thing?"
"This-up at Miltan's. Ludlow. It's murder, you know."
"I believe it is. You were among those present."
"Yes, I was, damn it. Of course, you got that from this fellow you sent up there."
"Excuse me," Wolfe murmured. "I thought you two had met. Mr Barrett, this is Mr Goodwin, my assistant."
"Oh, we met. We spoke a few words. He was guarding the door, and I asked him to let a young lady through to keep an important appointment, and he wouldn't do it."
Wolfe nodded. "That was Miss Reade."
"Oh? He told you that too?"
"Mr Goodwin tells me everything."
"I suppose he would. Naturally. He was damn bull-headed about letting Miss Reade out. He said the worst thing she could do was to leave the place and start the cops looking for her; and then, by God, he gets out himself somehow and starts them looking for him!"
"I know. He goes by whim." Wolfe was sympathetic. "Is that what you came to see me for? To reproach me for Mr Goodwin's behaviour?"
Barrett looked at him suspiciously, but Wolfe's expression was bland. "No," he said, "I just mentioned it. He was damn bull-headed. There was no reason in the world why Miss Reade should have been kept there. As far as I myself was concerned, I was perfectly willing to stand the inconvenience. But I came to see you regarding another. well, another angle. This fellow that you sent up there-you sent him to represent Miss Tormic, didn't you?"
"What fellow?"
"Your assistant, damn it!" His head went sidewise in my direction. "Goodwin."
"Yes. I'm not really obtuse, Mr Barrett, only I like the custom of designating people by their names; it's so handy. Yes, Mr Goodwin was there in the interest of Miss Tormic."
"That's what he said."
"She agreed, didn't she?"
"Sure. That was all right. But that was about that business of Driscoll's diamonds-the damn fool. What I want to know is, are you still representing her? I mean, in connexion with the murder."
"Do you ask that question as a curious friend?"
"Why, I-a friend, yes. It's not just curiosity."
"Well, I am representing Miss Tormic. What moved you besides curiosity?"
"Oh, just. " He hesitated. He put his hand up to smooth his straggled hair, shifted in his chair, and cleared his throat. "Frankly, just that I'm a little interested in Miss Tormic, and I should hate it. you know? Such a frightful stink! I only met her a couple of months ago, and I got her and Miss Lovchen their jobs at Miltan's-and I feel some responsibility about that too. She's a stranger in New York, and I wanted to be sure she has proper and competent advice. Of course, if you're representing her. "
"I am "
"That ought to settle it "
"Thank you "
"Provided you. " He smoothed his hair, and cleared his throat again. It was plain that he was having trouble getting the cork out. "Provided you appreciate that it's important that she shouldn't be tangled up in the thing at all. For instance, take that rumour that she was seen putting something in that fellow-in Goodwin's overcoat pocket. If that got to the police it would start a hell of a row. Although I don't believe she did any such thing. I doubt if anybody did " He turned to me. "You ought to know. Did you find anything in your overcoat pocket?"
"Sure " I grinned at him. "Driscoll's diamonds "
"No, damn it-"
Permit me," Wolfe said brusquely. "If we are in possession of any secrets which we think should remain secret in the interest of Miss Tormic, we certainly aren't going to disclose them. Neither to the police nor to anyone else. Including you, sir. If you came here for information of that kind, you may expect a famine "
"I am a friend of Miss Tormic "
"Then you should be glad that she has discreet advisers "
"That's all right. Certainly. But sometimes you fellows like to stand in with the police. You know? And it would be bad if they got hold of that talk about her putting something in Goodwin's pocket. They'd go after her plenty and they'd turn her inside out. It was bad enough that she had been in there fencing with Ludlow, and this would make it ten times worse. I wanted to be sure you appreciate-"