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Page 34
We walked along a moment in silence. All about us the lurid special
editions of the afternoon were flaunting their predictions of the
horror to come. The face of the colonel was grave.
"How long had Von der Herts held his position at the Yard?" I asked.
"For nearly five years," Hughes answered.
"It seems incredible," I murmured.
"So it does," he answered; "but it is only the first of many
incredible things that this war will reveal. Two months from now
we shall all have forgotten it in the face of new revelations far
more unbelievable." He sighed. "If these men about us realized the
terrible ordeal that lies ahead! Misgoverned; unprepared--I
shudder at the thought of the sacrifices we must make, many of them
in vain. But I suppose that somehow, some day, we shall muddle
through."
He bade me good-by in Trafalgar Square, saying that he must at once
seek out the father and brother of the late captain, and tell them
the news--that their kinsman was really loyal to his country.
"It will come to them as a ray of light in the dark--my news," he
said. "And now, thank you once again."
We parted and I came back here to my lodgings. The mystery is
finally solved, though in such a way it is difficult to believe
that it was anything but a nightmare at any time. But solved none
the less; and I should be at peace, except for one great black fact
that haunts me, will not let me rest. I must tell you, dear lady
--And yet I fear it means the end of everything. If only I can
make you understand!
I have walked my floor, deep in thought, in puzzlement, in
indecision. Now I have made up my mind. There is no other way
--I must tell you the truth.
Despite the fact that Bray was Von der Herts; despite the fact that
he killed himself at the discovery--despite this and that, and
everything--Bray did not kill Captain Fraser-Freer!
On last Thursday evening, at a little after seven o'clock, I myself
climbed the stairs, entered the captain's rooms, picked up that
knife from his desk, and stabbed him just above the heart!
What provocation I was under, what stern necessity moved me--all
this you must wait until to-morrow to know. I shall spend another
anxious day preparing my defense, hoping that through some miracle
of mercy you may forgive me--understand that there was nothing
else I could do.
Do not judge, dear lady, until you know everything--until all my
evidence is in your lovely hands.
YOURS, IN ALL HUMILITY.
The first few paragraphs of this the sixth and next to the last
letter from the Agony Column man had brought a smile of relief to
the face of the girl who read. She was decidedly glad to learn
that her friend no longer languished back of those gray walls on
Victoria Embankment. With excitement that increased as she went
along, she followed Colonel Hughes as--in the letter--he moved
nearer and nearer his denouement, until finally his finger pointed
to Inspector Bray sitting guilty in his chair. This was an
eminently satisfactory solution, and it served the inspector right
for locking up her friend. Then, with the suddenness of a bomb
from a Zeppelin, came, at the end, her strawberry man's confession
of guilt. He was the murderer, after all! He admitted it! She
could scarcely believe her eyes.
Yet there it was, in ink as violet as those eyes, on the note paper
that had become so familiar to her during the thrilling week just
past. She read it a second time, and yet a third. Her amazement
gave way to anger; her cheeks flamed. Still--he had asked her not
to judge until all his evidence was in. This was a reasonable
request surely, and she could not in fairness refuse to grant it.
CHAPTER VIII
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