The Chestermarke Instinct Part 34

"Just a few small inquiries, sir," replied Easleby. "I haven't the pleasure of knowing your name--Mr.----?"

"Stipp's my name, sir," answered the manager promptly. "Stipp--James Stipp."

"Thank you, sir," said Easleby, with great politeness. "Well, Mr. Stipp, you see from our cards who we are. We've called on you--as representing Mr. G.o.dwin Markham--on behalf--informally, Mr. Stipp--of Mrs. Lester, of Lowdale Court, Chesham."

Mr. Stipp's face showed a little surprise at this announcement, and he glanced from one man to the other as if he were puzzled.

"Oh!" he said. "Dear me! Why--what has Mrs. Lester called you in for?"

Easleby, who had brought another marked newspaper with him, laid it on the manager's desk.

"You've no doubt read of this Scarnham affair, Mr. Stipp?" he asked, pointing to his own blue pencillings. "Most people have, I think. Or perhaps it's escaped your notice."

"Hardly could!" answered Mr. Stipp, with a friendly smile. "Yes--I've read it. Most extraordinary! One of the most puzzling cases I ever did read. Are you in at it? But this call hasn't anything to do with that, surely? If it has--what?"

"This much," answered Easleby. "Mrs. Lester has told us, of course, that her son, the young officer, is in debt to your governor. Well, last week, Mrs. Lester handed a certain sum of money to the Mr. Frederick Hollis who's been found dead at Scarnham, to be applied to the settlement of her son's liability in that respect."

Mr. Stipp showed undoubted surprise at this announcement.

"She did!" he exclaimed. "Gave Mr. Hollis money--for that? Why!--Mr.

Hollis never told me of it!"

In the course of a long professional experience Easleby had learned to control his facial expression; Starmidge was gradually progressing towards perfection in that art. But each man was hard put to it to check an expression of astonishment. And Easleby showed some slight sign of perplexity when he replied.

"Mr. Hollis has--called on you, then?" he said.

"Hollis was here last Friday afternoon," answered Mr. Stipp. "Called on me at five o'clock--just before I was leaving for the day. He never offered me any money! Glad if he had--it's time young Lester paid up."

"What did Hollis come for, then, if that's a fair question?" asked Easleby.

"He came, I should say, to take a look at us, and find out who he'd got to deal with," replied the manager, smiling. "In plain language, to make an inquiry or two. He told me he'd been empowered by Mrs. Lester to deal with us, and he wanted the particulars of what we'd advanced to her son, and he got them--from me. But he never made me any offer. He just found out what he wanted to know--and went away."

"And, evidently, next day travelled to Scarnham," observed Easleby.

"Now, Mr. Stipp, have you any idea whether his visit to Scarnham was in connection with the money affair of yours and young Lester's?"

Again the look of undoubted surprise; again the appearance of genuine perplexity.

"I?" exclaimed Mr. Stipp. "Not the least! Not the ghost of an idea! What could his visit to Scarnham have to do with us? Nothing!--that I know of, anyway."

"You don't think it rather remarkable that Mr. Hollis should go down there the very day after he called on you?" asked Starmidge, putting in a question for the first time.

"Why should I?" asked Mr. Stipp. "What do I know about him and his arrangements? He never mentioned Scarnham to me."

Easleby laid a finger on the marked newspaper.

"You see some names of Scarnham people there, Mr. Stipp?" he observed.

"Those names--Horbury--Chestermarke. You don't happen to know 'em?"

"I don't know them," replied the manager, with obvious sincerity.

"Banking people, all of them, aren't they? I might have heard their names, in a business way, some time--but I don't recall them at all."

"You said that Mr. Markham was here yesterday," suggested Starmidge.

"Did you tell him--you'll excuse my asking, but it's important--did you tell him that Hollis had called last Friday on behalf of Mrs. Lester?"

"I just mentioned it," replied Mr. Stipp. "He took no particular notice--except to say that what we claim from young Lester will have to be--paid."

"You don't know if he knew Hollis?" inquired Starmidge.

The manager shook his head in a fas.h.i.+on which seemed to indicate that Hollis's case was no particular business of either his or his princ.i.p.al's.

"I don't think he did," he answered. "Never said so, anyhow. But, I say!

you'll excuse me, now--what is it you're trying to get at? Do you think Hollis went to Scarnham on this business of young Lester's? And if you do, why?"

Easleby rose, and Starmidge followed his example.

"We don't know yet--exactly--why Hollis went to Scarnham," said the elder detective. "We hoped you could help us. But, as you can't--well, we're much obliged, Mr. Stipp. That your governor over the chimney-piece there?"

"Taken a few years ago," replied Mr. Stipp carelessly. "I say--you don't know what Hollis was empowered to offer us, do you?"

The two detectives looked at each other; a quiet nod from Starmidge indicated that he left it to Easleby to answer this question. And after a moment's reflection, Easleby spoke.

"Mr. Hollis was empowered to offer ten thousand pounds in full satisfaction, Mr. Stipp," he said. "And what's more--a cheque for that amount was found on his dead body when it was discovered. Now, sir, you'll understand why we want to know who it was that he went to see at Scarnham!"

Both men were watching the money-lender's manager with redoubled attention. But it needed no very keen eye to see that the surprise which Mr. Stipp had already shown at various stages of the interview was nothing to that which he now felt. And in the midst of his astonishment the two detectives bade him good-day and left him, disregarding an entreaty to stop and tell him more.

"My lad!" said Easleby, when he and Starmidge were out in the street again, "that chap has no more conception that his master is Gabriel Chestermarke than we had--twenty-four hours since--that Gabriel Chestermarke and G.o.dwin Markham are one and the same man. He's a clever chap, this Gabriel--and now you can see how important it's been for him to keep his secret. What's next to be done? We ought to keep in touch with him from now."

"I'm expecting word from Gandam at noon at headquarters," answered Starmidge, who had already told Easleby of the visit of the previous night. "Let's ride down there and hear if any message has come in."

But as their taxi-cab turned out of Whitehall into New Scotland Yard they overtook Gandam, hurrying along. Starmidge stopped the cab and jumped out.

"Any news?" he asked sharply.

"He's off, Mr. Starmidge!" replied Gandam. "I've just come straight from watching him away. He left his house about nine-twenty, walked to the St. John's Wood Station, went down to Baker Street, and on to King's Cross Metropolitan. We followed him, of course. He walked across to St.

Pancras, and left by the ten-thirty express."

"Did you manage to find out where he booked for!" demanded Starmidge.

"Ecclesborough," answered Gandam. "Heard him! I was close behind."

"He was alone, I suppose?" asked Starmidge.

"Alone all the time, Mr. Starmidge," a.s.sented Gandam. "Never saw a sign of the other party."

Starmidge rejoined Easleby. For the last twenty-four hours he had let his companion supervise matters, but now, having decided on a certain policy, he took affairs into his own hands.

"Now, then," he said, "he's off--back to Scarnham. A word or two at the office, Easleby, and I'm after him. And you'll come with me."