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Page 32
"But when the captain and the woman came on to London we discovered
that we had done him a great injustice. He let us know, when the
first chance offered, that he was trying to redeem himself, to round
up a dangerous band of spies by pretending to be one of them. He
said that it was his mission in London to meet Von der Herts, the
greatest of them all; and that, once he had located this man, we
would hear from him again. In the weeks that followed I continued
to keep a watch on the countess; and I kept track of the captain,
too, in a general way, for I'm ashamed to say I was not quite sure
of him."
The colonel got up and walked to the window; then turned and
continued: "Captain Fraser-Freer and Von der Herts were completely
unknown to each other. The mails were barred as a means of
communication; but Fraser-Freer knew that in some way word from the
master would reach him, and he had had a tip to watch the personal
column of the Daily Mail. Now we have the explanation of those four
odd messages. From that column the man from Rangoon learned that
he was to wear a white aster in his button-hole, a scarab pin in
his tie, a Homburg hat on his head, and meet Von der Herts at Ye
Old Gambrinus Restaurant in Regent Street, last Thursday night at
ten o'clock. As we know, he made all arrangements to comply with
those directions. He made other arrangements as well. Since it
was out of the question for him to come to Scotland Yard, by
skillful maneuvering he managed to interview an inspector of police
at the Hotel Cecil. It was agreed that on Thursday night Von der
Herts would be placed under arrest the moment he made himself known
to the captain."
Hughes paused. Bray still idled with his pile of letters, while
the colonel regarded him gravely.
"Poor Fraser-Freer!" Hughes went on. "Unfortunately for him, Von
der Herts knew almost as soon as did the inspector that a plan was
afoot to trap him. There was but one course open to him: He located
the captain's lodgings, went there at seven that night, and killed
a loyal and brave Englishman where he stood."
A tense silence filled the room. I sat on the edge of my chair,
wondering just where all this unwinding of the tangle was leading us.
"I had little, indeed, to work on," went on Hughes. "But I had
this advantage: the spy thought the police, and the police alone,
were seeking the murderer. He was at no pains to throw me off his
track, because he did not suspect that I was on it. For weeks my
men had been watching the countess. I had them continue to do so.
I figured that sooner or later Von der Herts would get in touch
with her. I was right. And when at last I saw with my own eyes
the man who must, beyond all question, be Von der Herts, I was
astounded, my dear Inspector, I was overwhelmed."
"Yes?" said Bray.
"I set to work then in earnest to connect him with that night in
Adelphi Terrace. All the finger marks in the captain's study
were for some reason destroyed, but I found others outside, in the
dust on that seldom-used gate which leads from the garden. Without
his knowing, I secured from the man I suspected the imprint of his
right thumb. A comparison was startling. Next I went down into
Fleet Street and luckily managed to get hold of the typewritten
copy sent to the Mail bearing those four messages. I noticed that
in these the letter a was out of alignment. I maneuvered to get a
letter written on a typewriter belonging to my man. The a was out
of alignment. Then Archibald Enwright, a renegade and waster well
known to us as serving other countries, came to England. My man
and he met--at Ye Old Gambrinus, in Regent Street. And finally,
on a visit to the lodgings of this man who, I was now certain, was
Von der Herts, under the mattress of his bed I found this knife."
And Colonel Hughes threw down upon the inspector's desk the knife
from India that I had last seen in the study of Captain Fraser-Freer.
"All these points of evidence were in my hands yesterday morning
in this room," Hughes went on. "Still, the answer they gave me was
so unbelievable, so astounding, I was not satisfied; I wanted even
stronger proof. That is why I directed suspicion to my American
friend here. I was waiting. I knew that at last Von der Herts
realized the danger he was in. I felt that if opportunity were
offered he would attempt to escape from England; and then our proofs
of his guilt would be unanswerable, despite his cleverness. True
enough, in the afternoon he secured the release of the countess,
and together they started for the Continent. I was lucky enough to
get him at Dover--and glad to let the lady go on."
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