I left the room and went down to the main hall. The divisional surgeon, with McQuade and his men had already proceeded to the scene of the tragedy, and as I did not suppose that I would be wanted there, I left the house and started out across the beautiful lawns, now partially covered with the fallen leaves of oak and elm, my mind filled with conflicting thoughts and emotions. As I passed out, I met Miss Temple coming along the porch, wearing a long cloak, and evidently prepared for a walk, so I suggested, rather awkwardly, remembering her look of annoyance during the examination by Sergeant McQuade, that I should be happy to accompany her. Somewhat to my surprise she accepted "Certainly not," I said. "And, if you will permit me to say so, Miss Temple, I think you would have been wiser had you been entirely frank with him." "What do you mean?" she asked, indignantly. I felt disappointed, somehow, at her manner. "Miss Temple," I said, gently, "you at first refused to admit that you had sought an interview with Mr. Ashton at midnight. I fully understood your reasons for your refusal. It was an unconventional thing to do, and you feared the misjudgment of persons at large, although to me it appeared, in the light of my knowledge of the case, a most natural action. Mr. Ashton still retained the jewel, and, if he gave it up after your warning, he could not have complained of the consequences. But I am "Why does he believe that?" she asked, spiritedly. "Because, in the first place, he found footprints—the footprints of a woman's shoe, in the gravel walk, from the west corner of the porch to the main entrance. They led only one way. After questioning you, he searched your room, and found the skirt and shoes which you wore, both wet and covered with mud. The rain did not stop until three or four this morning. The footprints were made after the rain, or they would have been washed away and obliterated by it. For these reasons, he fully believes you were out of the house close to daybreak, which was the time of the murder." "The brute," said Miss Temple, indignantly, "to enter my rooms!" "It is after all only his duty, Miss Temple," I replied. "Well, perhaps you are right. But suppose I did go outside at that time—suppose I had decided to run away from Mr. Ashton, and my father, and their wretched conspiracy against my happiness, what guilt is there in that? I came back, did I not?" "Why," I inquired, "did you come back?" She glanced quickly at me, with a look of fear. "I—I—that I refuse to explain to anyone. After all, Mr. Morgan, I certainly am not obliged to tell the police my very thoughts." Her persistency in evading any explanation of her actions of the morning surprised and annoyed me. "You will remember, Miss Temple, that I said the footprints led in one direction only, and that was toward the house. Mr. McQuade does not "What on earth does he believe then?" she inquired with a slight laugh, which was the first sign of brightness I had seen in her since she left me with a smile the night before. I could not help admiring her beautiful mouth and her white, even teeth as she turned inquiringly to me. Yet my answer was such as to drive that smile from her face for a long time to come. "He believes this, Miss Temple, or at least he thinks of it as a possibility: Whoever committed the murder reached the porch roof by means of the window at the end of the upper hall, and, after entering and leaving Mr. Ashton's room, descended in some way from the porch to the pathway, and re-entered the house by the main entrance. Your footsteps are the only ones so far that fit in with this theory." "It is absurd!" said my companion, with a look of terror. "How could the "In answer to the first objection, he claims that someone interested in the murderer's welfare might have rebolted the window upon entering the room. That would of course mean either your father or myself. To the second, that whoever committed the crime feared to enter the hall by the window after the house had been aroused. To the third, there is positive evidence of the presence of someone having been upon the roof, at Mr. Ashton's window." "What evidence?" She seemed greatly alarmed; her clenched hands and rapid breathing indicated some intense inward emotion. "The faint print of a hand—in blood, upon the window sill. With these things to I felt alarmed, and indeed greatly disappointed at her manner. Limiting the crime to three persons, one of whom must have been upon the porch roof a little before daybreak, I saw at once that suspicion must inevitably fall upon either Miss Temple or After luncheon, Sergeant McQuade asked Major Temple to meet him in the library, accompanied by Li Min, and at the Major's request I joined them. The Chinaman was stolidly indifferent and perfectly collected and calm. His wooden face, round and expressionless, betrayed no feeling or emotion of any nature whatsoever. I observed, as did the detective, that his right hand was bound up with a strip of white cloth. He spoke English brokenly, but seemed to understand quite well all that was said to him. "Li Min," said Major Temple, addressing the man, "this gentleman wishes to ask you some questions." He indicated Sergeant McQuade. "All light." The Chinaman faced McQuade with a look of bland inquiry. "Where did you spend last night?" asked the detective suddenly. "Me spend him with blother at Exeter." "Where, in Exeter?" "Flog Stleet." "What time did you leave this house?" "P'laps 'leven o'clock, sometime." "Was it raining?" "Yes, velly much lain." "You did not go to bed, then?" "No, no go to bed, go Exeter." The Sergeant looked at him sternly. "Your bed was not made this morning. You are lying to me." "No, no lie. Bed not made flom day before. I make him myself." The detective turned to Major Temple. "Is this fellow telling the truth?" he asked. "Does he make his own bed?" "Yes," replied the Major. "The other servants refused to have anything to do with him. They are afraid to enter his room. He cares for it himself." "What did you do in Exeter?" asked McQuade. "P'laps talkee some, smokee some, eatee some—play fantan—bimby sleep." "What's the matter with your hand?" asked the detective suddenly. "Me cuttee hand, bloken bottle—Exeter." "What kind of a bottle?" "Whiskey bottle," answered Li Min, with a childlike smile. McQuade turned away with a gesture of impatience. "There's no use questioning this fellow any further," he growled. "He knows a great deal more about this affair than he lets on, but there's no way to get it out of him, short of the rack and thumb-screw. Do any of the other servants sleep near him? Perhaps they may know whether or not he left the house last night. Who attends to locking the house up?" "I have always trusted Li Min," said Major Temple. "He sleeps in a small room on the third floor of the east wing, which has a back stairway to the ground "Did she do so last night?" "No. I did so myself. I locked the rear entrance before I retired shortly before midnight." "After Mr. Ashton had left you to retire?" "Immediately after." "Then, if Li Min had left the house by that time, you would not have known it?" "No, I should not. I heard no sounds in the servants' quarters and presumed they had retired. I sat up with Mr. Ashton, discussing various matters until quite late—perhaps for two hours or more after dinner." "You were alone?" "Yes, both my daughter and Mr. Morgan had retired some time before." "Did you have any quarrel with Mr. Ashton before he left you?" Major Temple glanced at me with a slight frown. "We had some words," he said, hesitating slightly, "but they were not of any serious consequence. We had a slight disagreement about the price he was to be paid for his services in procuring for me the emerald in addition to the other arrangement, of which I have already told you." "And the matter was not settled before he left you?" "No—" the Major hesitated perceptibly and seemed to be choosing his words with the utmost care—"it was not—but we agreed to leave it until the morning." "You were displeased with Mr. Ashton, were you not? You quarreled violently?" "I—we did not agree," stammered the Major. "Did Mr. Ashton threaten to take the "He mentioned something of the sort, I believe," said the Major. "To which you objected strongly?" "I protested, most certainly. I regarded the stone as my property. He acted as my agent only." McQuade remained silent for some moments, then turned to Major Temple. "Major Temple," he said, "I am obliged to go into the town for the remainder of the afternoon, but I shall be back here this evening. I shall leave one of my men on the premises. When I return, I should like very much to have you tell me the complete history of this jewel, this emerald Buddha, which has evidently been the cause of all this trouble. No doubt Mr. Ashton told you the story of his efforts to obtain it, while in China, and of the way in which he succeeded. Possibly, when we have a better understanding of what this jewel may mean "I shall be very happy indeed to do so," said Major Temple. "It is a most interesting and remarkable story, I can assure you." After McQuade had gone, I strolled about the grounds for the larger part of the afternoon, trying to get my mind off the gloomy events which had filled it all the morning to the exclusion of everything else. I said to Major Temple before I left him that I regretted the necessity of remaining as an uninvited guest at his house pending the inquest, and suggested that I might remove myself and my belongings to Exeter, but he would not hear of it. I strolled into the town, however, later in the afternoon, after trying vainly to make some sketches, and dispatched a telegram to my mother, in Torquay, advising her that I would be delayed in joining her. On my way back I |