the girl muttered and she quickly got out of the room.
“ She’s my children’s nanny and she was the one to find my son in the shocked condition I was telling you about.” Houg said and then continued “I’ll give you the other explanations only in case you accept my offer.”
“ In that case, I’ll let you know” Ernest answered and motioned towards Roni that the visit was done.
“ I hope to have your news as soon as possible” Houg said escorting them to the door.
Ernest nodded his head and got out heading towards the car. Roni instead stayed behind and he stopped to talk with Houg.
“ This is all a bit weird.” Ernest commented with Roni once they had left.
“ What?” Roni asked.
“ Everything. The ghost story; Houg who wants to engage me to solve the problem. Doesn’t it make any sense to you?”
“ No, personally I don’t see anything weird about it. I just hope you're not sore at me for not telling you anything.” Roni answered.
Listen, I don't understand something. Why would a person with Houg’s influence and power want to hire me for this case? If he wanted, he could have an army of investigators, not to mention the fact that he can count on the total availability of Scotland Yard. Why just one man? Why?” Ernest wondered again, muttering to himself.
Roni felt anyway as if he wanted to talk: “Yes, all that you're saying it's true, but if you paid attention you must've guessed he had a bad experience a year ago, when his wife died. The majority of the press talked about that for a long time and some newspapers even wrote that the fault of his wife's death was his, Houg’s.”
“ What do you mean by it was Houg’s fault?” Ernest asked intrigued.
“ Well…it’s not very clear. I only know that his wife spent her last months of life in a psychiatric hospital because she was suffering from a major depression. It seems that she had become violent and dangerous so it wasn’t possible to keep her at home. The official version on her death is that she died after a strong nervous breakdown that caused her a heart attack. In certain articles it even came out that it was suicide and that Houg had given her a hand.”
“ In other words: a murder.” Ernest interrupted him, then asking “But why on earth would he do that?”
“ Nobody knows it. Someone wrote that being him a famous businessman, a wife in a state like that represented an embarrassment.”
“ This fails to convince me. How can a man kill his own wife just because he feels embarrassed?” Ernest muttered shaking his head.
“ In fact that's all talk. After a while they didn’t speak about the case anymore and Houg declared that he would have sued all the journalists who did similar insinuations. After all, it was clear to everyone he loved his wife.”
“ Even this is really weird.” Ernest said and continued “Why did the newspapers write that a suicide was simulated?”
“ I don’t know this.” Roni replied.
“ But is it possible that a strong nervous breakdown can cause a heart attack?
“ I don’t know Ernest, that is why you have to talk with a doctor, I can’t tell you anything. But why are you so interested in this story?” Roni asked who couldn’t understand where his friend was going with that.
“ Our Mr. Houg is full of enigmas, don’t you think?” Ernest considered.
“ He’s just a rich man, and like all the other rich men he is very envied and much attacked. Naturally he has made some mistakes, but saying that he is a murderer it’s a bit exaggerated.” Roni replied.
“ But why did the newspapers write that a suicide was simulated, how does this make sense? If the cause of death was a heart attack why should've a suicide been simulated?” Ernest asked again, demonstrating he didn’t care about Roni’s words.
The latter was becoming nervous for his friend's obsession. To Roni the story of how Houg’s wife died was the past and now cleared. He wanted to change subject, but he knew that with Ernest this was very difficult. Once he set his mind on something he didn't hear the end of it.
“ But it’s very weird, don't you think? Really weird! Thinking about it, the official version doesn't make sense… I mean… on Mrs. Houg’s death certificate I suppose it’s written that she died after a heart attack, but someone wrote that a suicide was simulated. I keep asking myself why.” Ernest kept talking and it looked like he was waiting a reply from Roni.
“ Please, Ernest, stop repeating the same thing a hundred times! However, that is history, and it doesn’t matter and after all they were all talks and nothing more!” Roni exclaimed and to change subject asked “Anyway, did you see what a beautiful nanny has Mr. Houg?”
“ Yes, she’s a really pretty girl. When I saw her she looked like someone I know; maybe I’ve already seen her somewhere, but I don’t remember where.”
“ She gave me the same impression as well when I saw her for the first time. But this happens because she has a too common face.” Roni said, happy that the conversation was taking another turn.
But he didn’t calculate Ernest's ability to keep anchored to a subject until he didn’t see the light.
“ I guess you know which newspapers wrote about Houg and his wife's death, right?”
“ Pretty much all of them, but now I don’t really remember which ones because it was more than a year ago. Tell me the truth Ernest, why are you asking me all these questions now? Why are you so interested in how Margaret Houg died?” Roni asked to his friend.
“ Because I’ll be the one to face Mrs. Houg’s ghost and I believe I should know how she died, don't you think?” the detective answered, staring at his friend’s eyes.
“ So that means you’ll accept the offer?” Roni asked impatiently.
“ Of course. How could I reuse an offer like this? I won’t even have to work a lot, since Houg already gave me two trails to follow.”
“ What would these two trails be?” Roni asked again.
“ One: there will have to be a logic explanation. Two: his son’s imagination could have caused everything…” Ernest replied, who looked a bit too nervous.
“ You don’t really like Mr. Houg, or am I wrong?”
“ Especially, he doesn't look like a very clean person.” Ernest replied again and continued “I’ve known him for a short while, but I think he’s not saying all the truth and I don’t like his arrogant way of speaking.”
“ Personally I think he’s very kind.” Roni commented.
“ It could be. But I didn’t like him trying to affect me, saying that maybe his son imagined everything.”
“ I don’t think Houg wanted to affect you. He’s just worried about the situation and he tried to give you his opinion about it. I don't see anything bad in this. Anyway
