opened as he read:
Jane Finn found. Come Manchester Midland Hotel immediately – PEEL EDGERTON.
Julius took the form back and folded it up.
‘Queer,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘I thought that lawyer chap had quit!’
‘My train got in half an hour ago,’ explained Julius, as he led the way out of the station. ‘I reckoned you’d come by this before I left London, and wired accordingly to Sir James. He’s booked rooms for us, and will be round to dine at eight.’
‘What made you think he’d ceased to take any interest in the case?’ asked Tommy curiously.
‘What he said,’ replied Julius dryly. ‘The old bird’s as close as an oyster! Like all the darned lot of them, he wasn’t going to commit himself till he was sure he could deliver the goods.’
‘I wonder,’ said Tommy thoughtfully.
Julius turned on him.
‘You wonder what?’
‘Whether that was his real reason.’
‘Sure. You bet your life it was.’
Tommy shook his head unconvinced.
Sir James arrived punctually at eight o’clock, and Julius introduced Tommy. Sir James shook hands with him warmly.
‘I am delighted to make your acquaintance, Mr Beresford. I have heard so much about you from Miss Tuppence’ – he smiled involuntarily – ‘that it really seems as though I already know you quite well.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ said Tommy with his cheerful grin. He scanned the great lawyer eagerly. Like Tuppence, he felt the magnetism of the other’s personality. He was reminded of Mr Carter. The two men, totally unlike so far as physical resemblance went, produced a similar effect. Beneath the weary manner of the one and the professional reserve of the other, lay the same quality of mind, keen-edged like a rapier.
In the meantime he was conscious of Sir James’s close scrutiny. When the lawyer dropped his eyes the young man had the feeling that the other had read him through and through like an open book. He could not but wonder what the final judgment was, but there was little chance of learning that. Sir James took in everything, but gave out only what he chose. A proof of that occurred almost at once.
Immediately the first greetings were over Julius broke out into a flood of eager questions. How had Sir James managed to track the girl? Why had he not let them know that he was still working on the case? And so on.
Sir James stroked his chin and smiled. At last he said:
‘Just so, just so. Well, she’s found. And that’s the great thing, isn’t it? Eh! Come now, that’s the great thing?’
‘Sure it is. But just how did you strike her trail? Miss Tuppence and I thought you’d quit for good and all.’
‘Ah!’ The lawyer shot a lightning glance at him, then resumed operations on his chin. ‘You thought that, did you? Did you really? H’m, dear me.’
‘But I guess I can take it we were wrong,’ pursued Julius.
‘Well, I don’t know that I should go so far as to say that. But it’s certainly fortunate for all parties that we’ve managed to find the young lady.’
‘But where is she?’ demanded Julius, his thoughts flying off on another tack. ‘I thought you’d be sure to bring her along?’
‘That would hardly be possible,’ said Sir James gravely.
‘Why?’
‘Because the young lady was knocked down in a street accident, and has sustained slight injuries to the head. She was taken to the infirmary, and on recovering consciousness gave her name as Jane Finn. When – ah! – I heard that, I arranged for her to be removed to the house of a doctor – a friend of mine, and wired at once for you. She relapsed into unconsciousness and has not spoken since.’
‘She’s not seriously hurt?’
‘Oh, a bruise and a cut or two; really, from a medical point of view, absurdly slight injuries to have produced such a condition. Her state is probably to be attributed to the mental shock consequent on recovering her memory.’
‘It’s come back?’ cried Julius excitedly.
Sir James tapped the table rather impatiently.
‘Undoubtedly, Mr Hersheimmer, since she was able to give her real name. I thought you had appreciated that point.’
‘And you just happened to be on the spot,’ said Tommy. ‘Seems quite like a fairy tale?’
But Sir James was far too wary to be drawn.
‘Coincidences are curious things,’ he said dryly.
Nevertheless, Tommy was now certain of what he had before only suspected. Sir James’s presence in Manchester was not accidental. Far from abandoning the case, as Julius supposed, he had by some means of his own successfully run the missing girl to earth. The only thing that puzzled Tommy was the reason for all this secrecy? He concluded that it was a foible of the legal mind.
Julius was speaking.
‘After dinner,’ he announced, ‘I shall go right away and see Jane.’
‘That will be impossible, I fear,’ said Sir James. ‘It is very unlikely they would allow her to see visitors at this time of night. I should suggest tomorrow morning about ten o’clock.’
Julius flushed. There was something in Sir James which always stirred him to antagonism. It was a conflict of two masterful personalities.
‘All the same, I reckon I’ll go round there tonight and see if I can’t ginger them up to break through their silly rules.’
‘It will be quite useless, Mr Hersheimmer.’
The words came out like the crack of a pistol, and Tommy looked up with a start. Julius was nervous and excited. The hand with which he raised his glass to his lips shook slightly, but his eyes held Sir James’s defiantly. For a moment the hostility between the two seemed likely to burst into flame, but in the end Julius lowered his eyes, defeated.
‘For the moment, I reckon you’re the boss.’
‘Thank you,’ said the other. ‘We will say ten o’clock then?’ With consummate ease of manner he turned to Tommy. ‘I must confess, Mr Beresford, that it was something of a surprise to me to see you here this evening. The last I heard of you was that your friends were in grave anxiety on your behalf. Nothing had been heard of you for some days, and Miss Tuppence was inclined to think you had
