登陆注册
20043200000010

第10章 CHAPTER IV. MISS PENELOPE MORSE(3)

"I am Miss Morse," she replied,--"Miss Penelope Morse.""You were to have lunched here with Mr. Hamilton Fynes," the detective continued. "When, may I ask, did the invitation reach you?""Yesterday," she told him, "by marconigram from Queenstown.""You can tell us a few things about the deceased, without doubt,"Mr. Jacks said,--"his profession, for instance, or his social standing? Perhaps you know the reason for his coming to Europe?"The girl shook her head.

"Mr. Fynes and I were not intimately acquainted," she answered.

"We met in Paris some years ago, and when he was last in London, during the autumn, I lunched with him twice.""You had no letter from him, then, previous to the marconigram?"the inspector asked.

"I have scarcely ever received a letter from him in my life," she answered. "He was as bad a correspondent as I am myself.""You know nothing, then, of the object of his present visit to England?""Nothing whatever," she answered.

"When he was over here before," the inspector asked, "do you know what his business was then?""Not in the least," she replied.

"You can tell us his address in the States?" Inspector Jacks suggested.

She shook her head.

"I cannot," she answered. "As I told you just now, I have never had a letter from him in my life. We exchanged a few notes, perhaps, when we were in Paris, about trivial matters, but nothing more than that.""He must at some time, in Paris, for instance, or when you lunched with him last year, have said something about his profession, or how he spent his time?""He never alluded to it in any way," the girl answered. "I have not the slightest idea how he passed his time."The inspector was a little nonplussed. He did not for a moment believe that the girl was telling the truth.

"Perhaps," he said tentatively, "you do not care to have your name come before the public in connection with a case so notorious as this?""Naturally," the girl answered. "That, however, would not prevent my telling you anything that I knew. You seem to find it hard to believe, but I can assure you that I know nothing. Mr. Fynes was almost a stranger to me."The detective was thoughtful.

"So you really cannot help us at all, madam?" he said at length.

"I am afraid not," she answered.

"Perhaps," he suggested, "after you have thought the matter over, something may occur to you. Can I trouble you for your address?""I am staying at Devenham House for the moment," she answered.

He wrote it down in his notebook.

"I shall perhaps do myself the honor of waiting upon you a little later on," he said. "You may be able, after reflection, to recall some small details, at any rate, which will be interesting to us.

At present we are absurdly ignorant as to the man's affairs."She turned away from him to the clerk, and pointed to another door.

"Can I go out without seeing those others?" she asked. "I really have nothing to say to them, and this has been quite a shock to me.""By all means, madam," the clerk answered. "If you will allow me, I will escort you to the entrance."Two of the more enterprising of the journalists caught them up upon the pavement. Miss Penelope Morse, however, had little to say to them.

"You must not ask me any more questions about Mr. Hamilton Fynes," she declared. "My acquaintance with him was of the slightest. It is true that I came here to lunch today without knowing what had happened. It has been a shock to me, and I do not wish to talk about it, and I will not talk about it, for the present."She was deaf to their further questions. The hotel clerk handed her into a taximeter cab, and gave the address to the driver.

Then he went back to his office, where Inspector Jacks was still sitting.

"This Mr. Hamilton Fynes," he remarked, "seems to have been what you might call a secretive sort of person. Nobody appears to know anything about him. I remember when he was staying here before that he had no callers, and seemed to spend most of his time sitting in the palm court."The inspector nodded.

"He was certainly a man who knew how to keep his own counsel," he admitted. "Most Americans are ready enough to talk about themselves and their affairs, even to comparative strangers."The hotel clerk nodded.

"Makes it difficult for you," he remarked.

"It makes the case very interesting, the inspector declared, "especially when we find him engaged to lunch with a young lady of such remarkable discretion as miss Penelope Morse.""You know her?" the clerk asked a little eagerly.

The inspector was engaged, apparently, in studying the pattern of the carpet.

"Not exactly," he answered. "No, I have no absolute knowledge of Miss Penelope Morse. By the bye, that was rather an interesting address that she gave.""Devenham House," the hotel clerk remarked. "Do you know who lives there?"The inspector nodded.

"The Duke of Devenham," he answered. "A very interesting young lady, I should think, that. I wonder what she and Mr. Hamilton Fynes would have talked about if they had lunched here today."The hotel clerk looked dubious. He did not grasp the significance of the question.

同类推荐
  • 素问识

    素问识

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 齐乘

    齐乘

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 佛说迦叶禁戒经

    佛说迦叶禁戒经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 尊孟辨

    尊孟辨

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 青眉

    青眉

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 佣兵成相

    佣兵成相

    她,现代首席佣兵,狠戾无情,出手毒辣,凶名为各国特种军官所知,当生命走到尽头时,人生亦是就此重谱。他,凤朝重臣,却功高盖主,为帝王忌。一朝红颜内敛,官服披就,她与他生命就此纠缠。爱,可以粗茶淡饭,亦可以坐拥天下···她,从来不知道,这样的自己是如何能令得他的目光停驻,只是,当习惯了那个人的守候后,自己是否还能承受得了所谓的生离死别!*****************************************************************厚着脸皮各种求!!喵喵~~~
  • 绝世狂妃:废材逆天大小姐

    绝世狂妃:废材逆天大小姐

    极品间碟穿越到废材身上,“丫的,让老娘来告诉你们什么叫天才”遇到绝世强者,“宝贝儿,和本座一起畅游天下,本座陪你吃,陪你喝,以天下为聘,娶你”翻了一个白眼“我认识你吗”……
  • 极品炼器

    极品炼器

    连个门派都无法入的垃圾废物,却在得道高人的帮助下成为了极品的炼器专家。神器、圣器还是仙器?这些还不是手到擒来?我的追求是……
  • 上古世纪:太阳之子

    上古世纪:太阳之子

    这是一个被誉为光芒与玫瑰的时代,火与泪,爱与恨,交织在上古世纪相互征战的东西两个大陆之间,但是返回故土的梦想,迫使着双方携手迈向远征的道路。远征的号角早已吹响,冰冷的原大陆上将再次唱响生灵的赞歌。而在这个英雄辈出的年代,游戏中惨遭浴血军团围攻战死的穆武,居然意外的重生到了上古世纪的东大路,成为一名哈里兰少年。历史滚滚前进的浪潮中,忽然出现一条不属于这里的鱼儿,是否会改变历史的走向?
  • TFBOYS之冰岛之恋

    TFBOYS之冰岛之恋

    TFBOYS由队长王俊凯,成员王源和易烊千玺组成。三个努力向上的少年。他们代表着正能量!他们,是四叶草的光。也是,她们的命!她们不断拼搏,只为能够配得上他们!一起来聆听他们的恋爱史吧!
  • 快穿攻略之旅

    快穿攻略之旅

    【快穿文】【谢谢七叶倾城舞做的封面,很美腻,偶很稀饭O(∩_∩)O~~】这其实就是舒宁带着系统君大白去嫖男人之旅,其中被嫖过的男人有:傻子王爷景逸白——冷酷冰山牧言简——暂定这些……穿越的世界:傻傻王爷我来爱
  • 屌丝逆袭之雄起

    屌丝逆袭之雄起

    换了个时空,男主魂传到传说中的灵狐体内。巧遇飞龙族下任宗主启天,顺便就多了个强大的便宜哥哥,一路上各种俊男靓靓女齐齐来袭!无关于性别,只因爱上了;不在乎别人的眼光,可是为你而在乎。且看男主修炼至巅峰时来抉择做男做女!
  • 许你荣华

    许你荣华

    她苦心经营,助夫得富贵,却死在了他的阴谋之下。好吧,既然重生了,就不能再让他得逞!该还的都要一一还回来!只是那个绝色绝情的男子真的只能与她只谈利益不谈感情么?他说,我要许你一世荣华!
  • 《血染刹天》

    《血染刹天》

    当现实世界崩塌,游戏世界会成为人类最后的依赖吗?……《宿命》是当今社会唯一的精神贯通类型的游戏,也就是说当现实的你死亡,而正在玩《宿命》时的你,并不会死亡!而是以一种全新的型式活在《宿命》的世界中!……这一切是科学家的纯贡献,还是……
  • 杀手皇妃邪魅帝

    杀手皇妃邪魅帝

    为什么是高高在上俯瞰万里山河的一刻心中却还是空空如也?曾经的爱情,被他亲手葬送,年少时候纯净笑容再也不可能向他展开。人生,是他自己布好的局,机关算尽,算尽每一个人,却忘了还有他自己。原来终有一天,亏欠别人的,要如数尽还。原来终有一天,暮然回首,那人已不在灯火阑珊处。情节虚构,切勿模仿