“Was that why she committed suicide?” asked Ellery.
“Yes. After the inquiry, which completely exonerated her, she had a nervous breakdown and went temporarily insane.” The doctor’s face was wet with perspiration. “The accident occurred in 1918. I went out there when I heard about it, saw I couldn’t do anything, and returned to the States. That was early in 1919.” He paused for no apparent reason, then went on. “Dr. Leith had died in 1916, during the War, so Karen was left alone with Esther. Then in 1924 I learned that Esther had drowned herself and in 1927 Karen pulled up roots and came to New York. I didn’t even know she was coming — the first I learned of it was mention of her name in the literary column of a Boston newspaper. Naturally I looked her up and... everything followed.” He wiped his face slowly. “So you see why I say it’s nonsense about Esther being the woman who lived in this room.”
Eva stiffened. “I know! It’s all so simple. Karen just reconstructed this room, with all of her sister’s clothes and things, out of sentiment. Of course — that’s it! Daddy’s right — she isn’t alive at all.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that,” said Terry Ring, studiously examining his fingernails. “What did Karen do — save her sister’s hairbrush with some of the hair on it?”
“Wait!” Eva held her throat. “Or it’s possible she is alive, but... a little mad. daddy, you said she went insane after the accident. That might account for — for Karen’s keeping up the pretence of her suicide and... having her live here. If she was harmless — maybe Karen didn’t want to put her in an institution—”
The Inspector looked thoughtful. “Say, there’s something in that, Miss MacClure.”
Ellery went over to the writing-desk and fingered some papers. He looked troubled. “Well, you’d better get on the job, dad. You have a pretty full description, and she can’t have been gone long, whoever she is.”
“I’ve already put Thomas on it. He’s going to check with Japan by cable on the death certificate, and so on. If we find anything phony about her death, we’ve got samples of her handwriting for a cross-check — some of these old letters.”
“I tell you it can’t be,” said the doctor futilely.
Inspector Queen went to the head of the stairs and shouted: “Kinumé! Hey, come up here, Kinumé — attic!” He turned back and went on in a grim tone:
“There’s one check we can make right now. Karen Leith didn’t keep a woman hidden up here for years without help. Somebody had to assist her. If the woman is Esther Leith, it’s certain this old Japanese woman was in on it. She came over with Miss Leith, didn’t she? Kinumé!”
Dr. MacClure said hoarsely: “I don’t think she—”
“Somebody had to clean up this place. Fact, it was cleaned only a few days ago, as I said before. Somebody had to watch. And if the woman was cracked, somebody had to do the dirty work. Come up here, Kinumé.”
The old woman ascended slowly, stopping on each step to catch her breath. When she finally appeared her oblique eyes were filled with fear; her frail figure was trembling. She glanced about the attic-room involuntarily, as if to see if someone she knew was there; and then lowered her eyes and folded her hands in her sleeves and waited.
“Kinumé”, said the Inspector, “where is Esther?”
Kinumé said calmly: “’Lo, Eva, ’lo, Dr. MacCloo.”
“Did you hear what I said? Where’s Esther Leith!”
Kinumé bowed. “Missie Esther dead. She die long time. She die in big water.”
“Who lived in this room?”
“Missie Karen. She live here some time.”
“Nobody else, huh?”
“Missie Karen, she live here.”
“Did you clean this room a few days ago?”
“Missie no let nobody this room. Missie holluh.”
“All right,” sighed the Inspector. “Get out. When a Jap won’t say anything, he just won’t, that’s all.”
And Kinumé bowed again and went sedately down the stairs, unmindful of his carelessness with pronouns.
“Suppose you two go on home and get some rest,” continued the Inspector. “There’s nothing more you can do to-day. When I get something on this Esther business, I’ll ring you.”
“Good-bye,” said Eva in a low voice to no one in particular. But as she and Dr. MacClure, who looked grateful, began to descend the stairs Terry Ring stirred himself, as if to follow.
“No,” said the Inspector softly. “Not you, Terry.”
13
“Oh,” said Terry Ring, and he stopped. The Inspector went to the attic door and closed it.
Ellery sighed and stepped to the window to look down at the garden. It was peaceful in the dusk, and quite empty. He wondered if on the evening of Karen Leith’s garden-party the woman who had lived in this attic had not stood where he was standing now, with the lights off, looking down even as he was looking down. And he wondered, too, what had been in her heart.
He noticed that shutters were folded back from the window — heavy wooden shutters, with just a few decorative holes for air. And rolled up there was a midnight-blue shade. Yes, he thought, it was very like a cell.
“It’s incredible,” he remarked without turning around, “how a human being could have lived here for years without a single person even suspecting. It’s the strangest thing I ever heard of.”
“Never mind that now,” said Inspector Queen. “Terry!”
“What is it this time, pop?” sighed the brown man. “The bracelets? Come on, act your age.”
Ellery turned. The two men stood facing each other like polite duellists, and each was smiling a little.
“I’ve known you for a good many years,” said Inspector Queen mildly. “You’ve always been a good boy. You’ve kidded some of the men at Headquarters at times, but I’ve never known you to do a crooked thing or, for that matter, a mean one. I’ve always liked you, Terry.”
“That goes double, pop,” said Terry gravely.
“Why don’t you tell me where you figure? You can help us, Terry. There’s a lot behind this thing. What do you know?”
“Well, if the Giants fold again, I’ll root for the St. Louis Browns next year, so help me,” said Terry.
“I can’t see,” replied the Inspector without turning a hair, “that you’ve got anything to gain by working against us. Who’s going to pay your fee? Karen Leith’s dead.”
The shot went home, but only for an instant did it show. Then the brown man grinned. “When’s the funeral?”
“Now that’s pretty sad,” said the old man, “pretty sad, my boy. You see, if I didn’t know your record I’d hold you as a material witness. Lone-wolf private dicks don’t appeal to me. They’re a pretty shady lot, most of them. Blackmailers, strong-arm men, labor spies, ex-lushes — a bad crew. But you’re different, Terry.”
“That’s swell, pop. I can use a recommendation like that,” said Terry heartily. “Can I quote?”
“You can quote this,” said the Inspector. “If you don’t talk you’ll be in the Tombs before the week is out.” Terry Ring began to look around the room. “What are you looking for?”
“A ’phone. I’ve got to call my lawyer. Isn’t that what all crooks do when the law gets its monkey up?”
The Inspector’s voice rose. “By God, I’ll book you on a charge that’ll stick!”
“Gosh,” said Terry. “Then it looks as if I’m in for it.”
The old man’s face darkened with fury. He jumped to the stairway and yelled: “Thomas! Where the devil are you? Thomas! Come up here!”
Terry waited complacently while the thunder of large feet shook the room beneath them; and then Sergeant Velie’s colossal figure surged into view.