The Mysterious Affair at Greenhampton
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PEUGEOT observed the three chairs holding our now writhing female captives. He paused to push one chair and its occupant slightly forward to align it with more geometric precision to the others, then turned to me.
“I give you,” he announced dramatically, “the gang!”
Moving behind the chairs, he snatched the hoods off one by one to reveal Daphne Ellsworth, Julia Ellsworth, and Lady Brenda Ellsworth!
For a moment I was completely stunned and could only stare in disbelief. I turned from Peugeot to the prisoners and back several times. Finally, I recovered the power of speech.
“Are you quite mad, Peugeot?” I cried. “How could you trick me into helping you do such an insane and beastly thing?”
I took a step toward Brenda, intending to free her. Peugeot stepped between us.
“Bosworth,” he said in a tone of command one would hardly have expected from the little Belgian. “Remember the promise you made this morning when the sun was so bright and the little ideas of Henri Peugeot seemed not so mad.”
His serious expression stopped me in my tracks. Though I was still inclined to think him mad, I remembered his warning that I would probably think him ‘of the mind lost.’
“All right, Peugeot, I’ll hear what you have to say. But I warn you: if I’m not convinced by your explanation of this, I intend to free the ladies and recommend your... I suppose I mean our immediate prosecution.”
Peugeot bowed.
“You are most fair, mon ami.”
He turned to the women.
“I must say, milady et mesdemoiselles, that those who have read Major Bosworth’s accounts of my cases know that when I address all the suspects at the end of a case they are usually not bound hand and foot and gagged. But in this most unusual circumstance, I find the precaution quite appropriate.”
Julia and Daphne struggled against their bonds and protested into their gags. Brenda alone sat quietly, looking steadily at Peugeot.
For a minute or so, Peugeot paced up and down before the prisoners as he gathered his thoughts. As upset with him as I was, I could not help but see the humorous aspect of the little tableau: three beautiful and shapely women, bound tightly to chairs, their lovely eyes wide above the sticking-plaster covering their mouths, about to be lectured by the little man with the egg-shaped head and the curling moustaches.
“To begin with, when Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne came to us with their story, I was struck by the fact that the attacks had occurred at regular intervals, two weeks apart, and always on a Sunday, or in one case a Monday night. What could be the reason that these attacks were timed so?
“Perhaps the most striking fact was that, though these apparent abduction attempts were planned with method and well executed, they were always abandoned at point of success. There were no apparent reasons to give up, since the plans were working to perfection. In one case, Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne had already been placed in the getaway car and driven some distance from the estate before the attempt was stopped. That seemed very strange.
“Here I came to the question of motive. Was this gang really attempting to abduct these young women or merely making it appear that they were being abducted. Their victims were bound and gagged and left in public places with their breasts bared. That suggested some kind of public embarrassment might be the actual motive, but I was unsure.”
Peugeot ceased his pacing and stood before Daphne and Julia.
“I was also very curious about the attitude of the two of you during our interview. Though you spoke of ‘perils’ and ‘trials’ in your note, you seemed to be barely able to suppress your laughter when you arrived at our rooms. I saw that the good-hearted Bosworth thought that this was due to shyness and nervousness over meeting a very famous detective, which I am. But despite your youth, I saw two well-possessed women of the upper class who would not be in the least awe over meeting any detective. A film star perhaps, but a little foreign detective no.”
He turned his gaze from one sister to the other.
“And the manner in which you related your accounts of being attacked was equally curious. Far from being frightened, I heard in the voices of both sisters, especially Mademoiselle Daphne, a barely suppressed excitement, a relish in the retelling, almost a savouring of the experience once again. Mademoiselle Daphne used phrases such as ‘in the hands of unseen enemies’ and ‘reasons I knew not.’ Surely these are phrases from the pens of women who write the novels of romantic mystery, not from the speech of a frightened girl of twenty. I sensed here not genuine terror, but a performance of terror.
“I confirmed my suspicion later by turning on you both in feigned anger at your inaction in involving the police. Your reaction was not tears, which one would expect from the truly fearful, who ask for help and are rebuffed, but the anger of those who get not the reaction of sympathy they desire.
“I also noticed your habit of continually looking at one another, as though checking your performances, and Mademoiselle Daphne’s tendency to look away after speaking. I felt that Mademoiselle Julia was directing their little comedy, and that she had recommended that her sister avoid too much contact of the eyes for fear of revealing something. Mademoiselle Julia also tried to keep Mademoiselle Daphne from overplaying her part when the subject of Bell was brought up. She interrupted and softened what Mademoiselle Daphne said about him. It was difficult to understand her apparent certainty about his innocence.”
Peugeot resumed his pacing. His eyes had the green glow of the cat I knew so well.
“When we returned to our rooms that afternoon, we found Miss Lime bound, gagged, blindfolded, and shut in the closet, her blue dress taken for the purpose of impersonation. It seemed that the visit of the young woman claiming to be Miss Lime’s friend was the source of the gang’s knowledge about our plans, but my curiosity was directed one step farther back: how did this gang know to send this impersonator to us to gain this knowledge? How did they know that Mesdemoiselles Julia and Daphne would consult us? This indicated inside knowledge on their part. Someone very close to the three of you was privy to your plans.
“My fear that Miss Lime would be impersonated proved to be correct, resulting in the binding and gagging of Mesdemoiselles Julia and Daphne as well as Constable Meredith, Josephine, and two maids of the hotel staff. But again, there seemed to be no serious attempt to take you from the hotel. The evidence found at the hotel provided seven important clues.
“First, it was proved beyond any lingering doubt that all of the victims were truly bound. There was no fakery involved. The ropes and knots were tight and secure.
“Second, the gang was entirely made up of women. Miss Lime, the policewoman, and Josephine all confirmed this fact, something that the first accounts of Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne had omitted. Also, the scratches received by Miss Lime and Constable Meredith indicated that these women let their fingernails grow long. What sorts of women grow the fingernails and care for them so? Not Miss Lime who must do the typing, nor Josephine nor Constable Meredith who might snag them on many things in their daily work. But actresses do. Ladies of the upper classes and actresses both need to care for their appearances and take the time and trouble to care for their nails. It also seemed curious that Miss Lime and the policewoman were scratched in their only encounter with the gang while the sisters were not in several attacks. Perhaps there was something more serious in the resistance of Miss Lime and Miss Meredith.
“Third, the many accents of the attackers, German, Welsh, and west of England, led us in several directions. But surely it is very odd for les allemandes to address each other in German-accented English. They would be more likely to speak German to each other, a fact noted even by Chief Inspector Sapp. It seemed logical to consider that these accents were false.
“Fourth, while Mademoiselle Daphne and Mademoiselle Julia were almost completely undressed, the others were not. While some of their outer clothing was removed it was usually used for purposes of impersonation, such as Miss Lime’s dress, the maids’ uniforms, and the policewoman’s uniform.
“Fifth, the condition of the hotel room was very unusual. Despite what you said later in your stories, the bed where the sisters had been left was hardly disordered, the sheets barely wrinkled. A glass of water stood on the night table undisturbed. While pretending to be overly discreet while trying to release you, I noticed that while you were truly bound, you had made very little struggle with your bonds. Your wrists were not badly scraped or bruised compared to the others. Mademoiselle Daphne made an appearance of struggling in her bonds, but this was mostly a show for us, which succeeded admirably with Major Bosworth and Chief Inspector Sapp.”
He paused and gave all three prisoners a significant look.
“But the two most important items were absence of a typewriter in the room, and the finding of Miss Lime’s dress!
“The absence of the typewriter was significant because it meant that the note left with the bound Josephine had to have been brought by the gang already typed. But that made no sense. Why would this gang have gone on a raid against the Ellsworth sisters expecting not to find them? Why leave a note warning them that the gang was stalking them in London? Why attack Josephine in the absence of the real intended victims? All of these things would increase your vigilance against them.
“The attacks of the next day made even less sense. One of the ways the gang could have known that you were consulting Peugeot was by following you very closely. If the gang’s object was really to abduct or terrorize you, why did they not simply continue to follow you and attack you away from your hotel, or lure you to some location of their choice where they could have made off with you more easily? It seemed the height of imbecility to wait for you to return to your hotel and allow police protection nearly enough time to arrive before moving against you. There was only one reason for all this to have happened: the attacks on Miss Lime, Josephine, Constable Meredith and the others provided evidence other than your own testimony that there was a plot against you. And this was evidence of a kind that could not be easily ignored.
“And the dress...”
He raised a forefinger for emphasis.
“Around the collar of the dress was make-up, not the ordinary make-up of the average English girl, but that of the stage actress. A pattern began to emerge for me at that point. The accents and the easy ability to impersonate various characters, Miss Lime, her supposed friend, the charity collectors, and hotel maids, all suggested actresses. Then there were the two young men in the lift, men who appeared unreal to Constable Meredith, and who seemed to be trying to stand out from rather than blend into their surroundings. I recognized that this might be disguise in reverse, and these men might be actors as well. The statement of the lift operator confirmed this.”
He stood before Brenda, smiling enigmatically.
“And you, Lady Ellsworth, were the link between your stepdaughters and actresses. I reasoned that you might know much about this gang of whom Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne might be willing or unwilling victims.
“I was relieved when we met the following day and you seemed genuinely fond of your stepdaughters. However, I sensed that you did not seem concerned for their safety. That indicated that either you were behind the plot against them or that you knew there was no real danger. When Chief Inspector Sapp told me that two young actresses, Susan Noble and Cheryl Ford, had also been bound and gagged by intruders it became imperative that I find the link between them and you.”
He turned to Julia and Daphne.
“You told your stories of the hotel attack with the same excitement as before, and Mademoiselle Julia made a rather significant mistake when she said that you were bound en crapaudine by your assailants. That was a most curious phrase to hear from one who used not the French. It is a term used by the légionnaires of France to indicate the connection of the bonds of the wrists and ankles, not something one would hear in polite conversation. In vain I waited to hear you use French in any other way. Finalement, yesterday at lunch I used some simple phrases to you: the little quote from Flaubert, the adage of the flies and the vinegar, and so on, but you obviously did not understand them. Mademoiselle Riddle and Lady Ellsworth did, but you did not, saying that German is the only language you have studied. It seemed unlikely that you would know this term of French soldiers binding prisoners without some real interest in the subject. Then I knew that you were a party to the attacks upon you.”
Peugeot resumed his pacing.
“Mademoiselle Riddle appeared on the scene in most concealing clothing, spectacles, and a noticeable American accent, as though making it clear that she could not be one of your many-accented assailants. But all these things did not disguise her long, well-manicured fingernails, nor the fact that she was the right height and colouring to be the woman who called herself ‘Miss Galway’ and later impersonated Miss Lime. I learned that her accent was false by asking some silly questions about oysters and the letter R, things which are difficult for an English person to say with an assumed American accent.
“After this most enlightening time at your hotel, I stopped at the Cranmer Theatre and learned two more things. The publicity photographs for Murder at the Manor included two young men dressed identically to the men seen by Constable Meredith and the lift operator. And the performance schedule of the play would have allowed members of the cast to be in the gang, or to be victims of Sunday night attacks by the gang.”
Peugeot again paused in the centre of his little lecture audience. He pressed his fingertips together and placed his chin on them, much like a professor about to deliver the central point of his thesis.
“I then went to my armchair to build the card houses and repose myself, allowing the grey matter to work. Voilà, when I was done, I saw it all clearly. This was some sort of game being played by Mademoiselle Julia, Mademoiselle Daphne, and several of Lady Brenda Ellsworth’s young actress friends, including Melinda Riddle, Cheryl Ford, Susan Noble, and possibly others, one of whom we subsequently learned was Margaret Shaw. One or two players were selected each week for capture by the others, alternately here in Greenhampton and in London. They were to make some token resistance, though all enjoy, to some extent, being bound and gagged. For some reason, perhaps planned, perhaps not, the stakes had been raised to the leaving of the victim or victims in places open to the public, resulting in some embarrassing gossip and scandal. Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne did not know what to do, so they came to London to seek the advice of Lady Ellsworth. A plan was made to involve Peugeot and the police in a limited way, so as to make it seem that there really was some kind of plot against the Ellsworth sisters.
“The attack upon Josephine and the leaving of the note provided independent physical evidence of the threat against you. So did the attack upon Miss Lime and the others, with the leaving of Major Bosworth’s book of one of my famous cases adding a direct challenge to me, ensuring my unknowing participation in the hoax. The two suspicious young men seen by Constable Meredith and the lift operator were actors from the company of Murder at the Manor employed by you, either for pay or as a favour, to make an appearance as the scarlet kippers.”
“Red herrings,” I corrected.
Peugeot shrugged and continued.
“The accents of the gang members were supposed to lead us onto other trails, especially away from Mademoiselle Riddle. You planted suspicions about Bell that you knew would be confirmed when we investigated here. All these gave us many directions in which to go, but you knew that all these trails would lead to nothing. That was exactly what you wished to be found. The famous Henri Peugeot is called in, but he can discover nothing. The police expend much energy, but end up shaking their heads. ‘A clever gang’ all will say. The attacks stop. Soon the incidents will be forgotten. The ugly gossip will cease.
“When we arrived in Greenhampton my suspicions were confirmed by the villagers at the local inn, who talked quite freely to a quaint foreigner. Most of the gossip was harmless, but one or two stories were truly vicious, and it was understandable that you wished them to be silenced. The fact that Lady Ellsworth was working in London for two months kept her unaware of the rumours, and made her appear the possible villainess to some.
“At the manor, first Mademoiselle Daphne then Mademoiselle Julia worked on the sympathies of Major Bosworth by having him rescue them from dangers that they themselves contrived, possibly with the help of Mademoiselle Riddle. Finally, in a desperate attempt to make the entire charade convincing, you arranged for Lady Ellsworth to be overpowered by the gang. This would effectively silence all the talk about her being behind any plot, and would also convince those of the sceptical mind that this whole affair was more than a series of pranks. Even the good Chief Inspector Sapp and Sergeant Carrington now believe that this is true.”
The women now sat quietly. Daphne and Julia exchanged a look, then looked at Brenda. She made no sign or move, but turned back to Peugeot.
“You made the great mistake when you came to Peugeot, ladies. You thought yourself too clever for the little foreigner. How can I find anything when there is, in truth, nothing to find? You even tried to pull the moustaches of Peugeot when you left that book at the hotel. You challenged me to use my grey matter.”
He wagged his finger at them in the manner of a schoolmaster berating some mischievous students.
“But I am like the old dog who keeps on the scent. You throw to me the bones enough that I chew and chew on them, and finally find the truth. Remember that when you came to me Mademoiselle Daphne asked me to work on your behalf, but I chose my words with care and promised only to find the truth. Voilà, I have done so.
“And now I must warn you that there can be no continuation of these games. What you do for your own pleasure or amusement is of little consequence to me, or the police, or the villagers. But you have committed real crimes when you attacked and bound Miss Lime, the hotel maids, the policewoman, and your own faithful Annie and Josephine. They do not play the games of their own choice. This is properly assault, and you should be prosecuted for it.”
All of our bound captives shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. Julia and Daphne cast their eyes down, but Lady Brenda looked steadily at us.
“But Papa Peugeot is merciful. I have the heart for those who intend no evil and harmed no one. So I will tell the police that all indications are that this is the work of a foreign gang that had apparently fled the country. The people of the village will hear this rumour and be most sympathetic. All will pass.”
The girls raised their heads and looked at one another with shining eyes.
“I do this on the condition that the peace of the public, here and in London, is not disturbed, and that no one is bound who is not a willing player of the game. Be discreet, I charge you. I will prepare a letter revealing the truth to Chief Inspector Sapp should there be any more incidents.”
Peugeot turned to me.
“Now, my good Bosworth, if you would be so kind as to free Lady Ellsworth’s legs and release her from the chair, we shall go to the drawing room. I wish to tell her precisely what I shall put in this letter to the police.”
I did as Peugeot had ordered, untying the ropes around Brenda’s ankles and knees and freeing her from the chair. I helped her to stand and reached for the cords about her wrists, only to have her fingers push me away. Still gagged and with her hands and arms bound, she accompanied us across the hall.
“I say, Peugeot,” I remarked as we were about to enter the drawing room, “Shouldn’t one of us stay with Julia and Daphne? It isn’t safe to leave them alone like that.”
“Have no fear,” he replied. “I believe that Elizabeth is watching from the terrace, as she did from the balcony of the hotel in London.”
My expression must have been quite astonished. Peugeot nodded.
“You recall how one member of the gang, dressed neither as a maid nor as Miss Lime, disappeared after the sisters were bound, leaving only three to overcome Constable Meredith and Josephine? I think that the fourth member was Elizabeth, who could not risk being seen by anyone who might identify her. Rooms at Mockridge’s shared small balconies, which were separated only by a low wall. The room next to Mademoiselle Daphne and Mademoiselle Julia was occupied by a woman calling herself ‘Miss Norworthy’ who was rarely seen and used the room very little, even for sleeping. I believe that this was a false name given by one of the young actresses. Elizabeth watched over the prisoners from the balcony until we began knocking on the door. It was a simple matter for her to climb over the wall and step into the room, and slip away after the door was broken in. Lady Ellsworth can confirm or correct us on a few more points if you will remove the gag, my friend.”
I gently peeled the plaster from Brenda’s lips and helped her remove the packing handkerchief. She nodded gratefully. A carafe of water had been left on the table. I poured a glass and helped her take several sips.
Peugeot waited patiently until she was ready.
“You are quite right on every count, Monsieur Peugeot,” she said. “When Josephine brought me your note this evening, I suspected that you had probably arrived at the truth, though I did not guess what you had in mind for us. And from the expressions of both you and dear Major Bosworth, it is obvious that you know even more of the situation than you told Julia and Daphne. If you wish, I can supply more of the details.”
“If you would be so kind, Lady Ellsworth,” said Peugeot with a polite bow.
“When I started working in the theatre,” she began, “I became infatuated with several actors with whom I worked, actors who tended to be in leading or featured roles while I was doing minor parts. Without exception, these affairs of the heart ended unhappily, even acrimoniously. I was quite disillusioned by the self-absorption and egoism of my fellow players, and not only the men. I determined then that if I ever married he would be a kind man, and it seemed unlikely that indicated a man in theatre.
“However, like many creative people, I have a passionate nature and found that life without any erotic excitement was very dull.”
I must have looked a bit shocked at this point.
“I’m sorry if I shock you, dear Major Bosworth,” she said with a kind but frank look. “But I will not affect any airs of Victorian propriety. I am a woman who says plainly and truly what I think.”
“I understand, Lady Ellsworth,” I replied, returning a smile.
“One of my first featured roles required me to be bound and gagged onstage,” she continued. “I thought very little of it until one of the final rehearsals when the ropes literally fell off me. Our director insisted that the actors doing the tying be more realistic in their work. Perhaps the thrill of being in my first important part and the effort I put into playing the helpless, though secondary, heroine caused the struggles in my bonds to produce an extremely pleasurable sensation. The more performances we did the stronger the feelings.
“I felt somewhat guilty about this at first, but when I considered the behaviour and habits of some of my fellow actors, my pleasure in being bound seemed both mild and harmless.
“There were a few other roles that offered me similar opportunities in subsequent plays. Of course, this was not the only type of part that interested me, which is fortunate, since the binding of a woman onstage is not that common.
“On one occasion, while preparing for a role, my desire to be truly bound offstage became so strong that I asked Elizabeth to bind me, ostensibly so that I could prepare the physical actions I needed to do. But she understood at once what I really desired, and would oblige me with discretion and care. In time, we found other young actresses who enjoyed the same games.”
She looked seriously from Peugeot to me and back again.
“Mind you, gentlemen, I’m not speaking of affairs between women or anything of that nature. It was simply an outlet for our desires while we were without male companionship.”
“That is quite obvious, Lady Ellsworth,” murmured Peugeot. “Pray continue.”
“I met Garrick Ellsworth at a reception following a very successful play. He was a man of much kindness and warmth, though still suffering greatly from the loss of his wife. We became acquainted, enjoyed each other’s company, and began to see one another. When marriage became the likely next step, I confided in him my passion for being bound. Perhaps because he found so much excitement in the dangers of intelligence work, he understood and accepted this. In return, he required that I accept his work, and never ask him to give it up. He told me to resign myself to viewing our every parting as a final one, knowing that it someday might prove true. I gave him up for lost on two other occasions, but both times he, quite miraculously, survived.
“Before he left for Bavaria, nearly four months ago, Garrick warned me that this assignment was the most dangerous he had ever undertaken. Considering the reigning political party in Germany, you gentlemen can understand why.”
“The man with the moustaches so unpleasing makes the lives of his enemies unpleasing also,” commented Peugeot.
She nodded sadly.
“He had been gone less than three weeks when Colonel Pikeham’s agents reported to me that he was missing and they suspected the worst. Though Garrick had beaten long odds before, somehow I knew that this time he would not. For some reason, the German government would not openly admit his death at the time, but claimed no knowledge of his whereabouts until last week.”
Her eyes moistened and she had to pause to compose herself.
“I went to London, presumably to work on a play but actually to do my grieving away from the presence of my stepdaughters. I could not hide my pain at the loss of my husband from them. I came home for a few weekends, and gave little thought to the incident with Daphne being found gagged and bound in the grounds. She and Julia had begun playing tie-up games with Melinda and her friends, and unknown to me they had left her outside the house to make things more exciting. They never suspected Annie would find her before one of them could release her. I’m afraid that while I was in London things got very much out of hand.”
“You’ve explained clearly enough how you became involved in these games,” I said. “But how did Daphne and Julia become interested?”
“If Lady Ellsworth will permit,” interposed Peugeot, “I would say that it was the romantic attentions of her stepson’s unsavoury friends that prompted her to protect them by, let us say, diverting their romantic energies. Am I correct, milady?”
Brenda nodded with that delightful rueful smile of hers.
“Quite right again, monsieur. When Jarvis Carmody and Lawrence Butler and the others first began coming here, the girls were so young that they were hardly noticed. But when Richard was home recuperating last year and they came to visit him, they saw the girls in a new light. Richard had grown well in his years in the Navy, but Carmody and the others were unchanged. Since Richard would have little to do with them, they amused themselves by flirting with Daphne and Julia.”
Her expression grew stern, her voice cold.
“The Carmody boy was utterly charming and totally without decency, and I think you gentlemen know that I am not being prudish when I use that word. He had his sights set on Daphne, and I was determined that he should not cause her the misery he has caused his parents, the innocent people he has harmed in a hundred ways, and the young women he has used and cast aside. Knowing he is in debt to gamblers, I offered him a considerable sum to stay away from Daphne. He merely laughed and told me that not only would he have her, but also his friend Butler would have Julia. That way they could both count on good incomes to support their high spending ways at the expense of loyal women who would not question them.
“It was much for me, gentlemen, yet I knew that outward opposition to them would not work with Daphne and Julia. So I called Melinda and hatched a plan. She came down here for a visit with Cheryl and Susan. After dinner one night, they very casually brought up the subject of how exciting it was to be bound and gagged when in a play. Julia and Daphne were intrigued, and the experiments began almost immediately. Soon they had lost all interest in Carmody and Butler.”
I looked at Peugeot in amazement.
“How did you know all this?” I asked.
Peugeot shook his head.
“Only the English would deny the pleasure a woman might feel in the ligotage, the pleasure that the girls always seemed to feel when recounting their ordeals. Just after our arrival here I had the conversation with Lady Ellsworth about influencing her daughters in the ways most indirect. Finally, Sergeant Carrington told us that Richard Ellsworth was reformed, yet his friends continued to visit him. What reason could they have had? If I were a young man, I would find Mademoiselle Julia and Mademoiselle Daphne excellent reasons for dropping in on a friend.”
Peugeot turned to Brenda.
“If I may ask, milady, am I not correct in saying that you sometimes took part in these games, even taking the side against your daughters?”
“Again, you are correct, Monsieur Peugeot,” she answered. “You have undoubtedly deduced that the blindfolding of the captives allowed Elizabeth and me to participate when needed.
“My official position as stepmother to Julia and Daphne and mentor to Melinda and the others was to be mildly disapproving but indulgent of the games at first. I was even taken prisoner a couple of times so I could go through the pretence of being won over. I always emphasized safety and discretion though, and was genuinely distressed when I found all the upset this had caused in the village.”
“And the little charade this morning was just to throw us off the track?” I asked.
Peugeot took a few quick steps toward the door.
“I think that I have heard all that I need to hear,” he announced. “It seems that you have some matters to discuss in private, so I will not intrude. Of course, there is no letter to Chief Inspector Sapp, milady, but I would be very displeased to hear of such events becoming public again.”
“I understand, Monsieur Peugeot,” said Brenda. “I believe that the necessity for the games is nearing an end. Julia has applied to a university to continue her studies in art and Daphne will be attending an acting studio very soon. Our little scheme to deflect their interests worked better than I had hoped.”
“For that I am grateful,” said Peugeot. “I wish you good night.”
With a quick bow he was gone, closing the door behind him.
“What was that all about?” I asked.
Brenda regarded me with amused fondness.
“Oh, darling, you are exactly the person you portray on paper!” she said happily.
When she saw my uncomprehending look, she continued:
“The ‘little charade’ this morning was partly to mislead the police, but it was largely for your benefit.”
“What?”
“You were obviously torturing yourself with guilt about me all afternoon and evening. When you told me you were leaving by the first train this morning, Melinda and Elizabeth and I put our heads together. We called Margaret Shaw and had her drive down from London early this morning. She and Melinda and Elizabeth tied me up, then Melinda and Maggie tied Elizabeth, leaving the plaster off one of her eyes so she could hop back to the sofa after she’d bolted the door behind them. While she tried to press the plaster on, Maggie went to the front door in the policewoman’s uniform to get Randall and Bell away from the house. Then Melinda went looking for you to rescue me.”
She gave me a shy, coquettish look.
“It was my idea that I should be naked,” she added softly.
The information was so startling that I was unable to reply for a moment.
“And if you’re outraged about them helping a married woman seduce you, don’t be. They all know about Garrick. We’ve kept it from Julia and Daphne, but the others know, even Elizabeth.”
Her voice grew softer, her eyes warmer.
“Every look you gave me during the police questioning told me that you knew as well. If you only knew how much I wanted simply to wave them all away and be alone with you.”
The expression of amused tenderness remained as I looked at her. I leaned down and kissed her, holding one of her bound hands behind her back. She squeezed my hand.
I drew back, a bit guilty. She looked earnestly at me.
“A good man like you must think me shameless in no longer being in mourning for Garrick. I have grieved for him these past three months, and though there must be a period of public mourning after his death is announced, I am ready to go on. My husband lived precariously. He loved his work, and I could not persuade him to give it up.
“And I know that life is short and that good men are fairly rare. We have few enough chances for happiness, and must seize those we can.”
Her face was radiant as she looked up at me, her eyes shining with the light of love and hope.
I kissed her again and held her close. As I gazed at her I was almost unable to believe my good fortune.
“I can hardly believe we’ve been so lucky to find one another,” I whispered.
She laughed softly.
“There was more than luck involved. I’m sure that you don’t remember it, but we met briefly about seven or eight years ago. You were the celebrity then, with four or five books out, and I was doing a small part in a play. You attended a reception after the opening and were pointed out to me. We spoke a few words later, and you seemed a breath of fresh air with your modesty, honesty, and humour. Afterward, I thought ‘That’s the sort of man I shall marry.’ From that meeting and your writing I knew you to be good, humble and kind.”
“How could you possibly know that I was being truthful? I might have been an unprincipled cad and a clever liar.”
“An unscrupulous liar would have made himself appear equally as clever as M. Peugeot. The fact that you downplayed yourself and gave him all the credit showed that you were as good as you were truthful.
“And it was your goodness that convinced me to send the girls to you and M. Peugeot when we had to find a way out of the scandal we were in. I knew that if he managed to solve the case he would be discreet, if he were the man you described so well. And consulting him made it more likely that we would meet again.”
She lowered her eyes for a moment. When she raised them, she spoke again.
“I have bared more than my soul to you in the past few days, Allen. You know my secret passion and you share it. We can enjoy it together. If I seem the brazen woman, I can bear the charge. I believe that we have a right to all the happiness we can create for ourselves on this earth, and I intend to be a happy woman.”
I gazed lovingly at the remarkable creature in my arms, still bound and looking at me with mingled love and expectation.
“Lady Ellsworth, —“ I began.
“I am happy to be Miss Alexander again. Richard is now the baronet. In fact, he is on his way back to England. Everything here goes to the children, and soon I shall be only an occasional visitor to Ellsworth Manor. Garrick left me a modest income, but I intend to move out and make my own way again as soon as the girls have recovered.”
“Will you marry me, Brenda?” I asked. “I’m only a rather dim ex-soldier and former secretary to a lowly MP, but I promise to make all the happiness I can for us.”
“Of course, I shall marry you!” she replied happily.
We kissed again and talked briefly about our plans. A thought struck me.
“Good heavens!” I said, perplexed. “What should I do with you?”
She smiled mischievously.
“You must start practicing,” she declared. “Begin by putting the gag back in my mouth, take me across the hall and tie me to my chair again. Elizabeth will free us soon, but while it lasts it will be a fitting punishment for the annoyance we’ve caused you and M Peugeot.”
I smiled back just as wickedly.
“You’re quite right about that!” I agreed.
I regagged her and marched her across the hall. Soon she was tied in her chair in the dining room. Julia and Daphne seemed a bit surprised but not angry at my announcement that this was to be their punishment.
With a light heart, I returned to my room.
When we came down to breakfast next morning, the three chairs were back in their places, and there was no sign of rope, sticking-plaster or Peugeot’s little box.
The ladies joined us soon after. They greeted us warmly and behaved quite naturally for the most part, though Julia and Daphne displayed flashes of the giddiness we had seen on their first visit to us. The meal was punctuated by several knowing looks and noticeable silences on their parts.
We took our leave at mid-morning and caught the noon train to London. Peugeot and I sat in the dining car watching the green fields rush by us once more.
“You know, Peugeot,” I remarked, “you had me quite in the dark with that bit of information about Bell being in the employ of Butler and Carmody. Though I never had a chance to tell you, I had a bit of an encounter with them yesterday.”
Peugeot smiled.
“In the small villages the news travels with great speed. Though I do not approve of the fisticuffs, I am quite certain that you were entirely justified in this instance.”
I was somewhat embarrassed by his praise, however faint, for the incident.
“Part of the reason for all that was that he recognized me as your associate. He may have suspected that I was there to spy on them. And as a matter of fact, I did overhear a few things they were saying about Bell quitting them and how they couldn’t make any money with us and the police at the manor.”
Peugeot nodded.
“Yes, they were trying to make money from what was going on at Ellsworth Manor, but not in the way you probably thought. They merely saw the combination of crime and beautiful women as of great interest to the sensational press. They hired Bell to get details of any further bindings and disrobings of the sisters, and even supplied him with a camera to take photographs should he have had an opportunity.”
“So when I saw Bell meeting them the other day...?”
“He was telling them that he would no longer work for them. He may be a disreputable sort, but Monsieur Bell is no fool. Certainly he would not have been fool enough to be one of the garishly dressed men in the lift at Mockridge’s Hotel. He would know that his own clothes would have made him less conspicuous the than the ‘unreal’ appearance of the actors.”
I was struck by another of his remarks.
“And why did you mention the temperature on one of the nights that neither Daphne nor Julia was attacked?”
“After we learned that the Ellsworth sisters and some young actresses in London were alternately bound and left outdoors, there was only one incident that did not occur on a Sunday evening. I had Miss Lime research the weather for all those evenings and found that an every one the nights had been warm enough that the victims would not have been uncomfortable, save that one. And in that case, the following night had been suitable. What could be more obvious than that they were taking turns?”
I shook my head in wonder at the little man and his powers.
“It’s another great triumph for you, Peugeot,” I said. “But, though I was pretty well fogged by the case, I came out of it rather well too.”
Quietly, I told him of what had passed between Brenda and me after he had departed.
“My friend, I am delighted!” he exclaimed. “Miss Alexander is a very rare woman, even rarer in that she prefers the good man to the figure of great romance.”
“I think that I’m quite romantic in my own fashion, Peugeot,” I protested.
“Oh, you are mon cher ami, you are,” he said hastily. “But the women! Too many of them think that their love will reform the gambler, the drunkard, the womaniser. It never does, yet they will not believe it. I am heartily glad for you both. Even had I not such a large cheque in my pocket, I would be glad.”
He looked thoughtfully out of the window at the passing countryside.
“But now,” he sighed, “who will tell the world of the cases of Peugeot?”
“Nonsense!” I scoffed. “Nothing will stop me from working with you.”
“Oh, do not protest, Bosworth,” he said with his little wave of dismissal. “You shall go to ranch the cattle in Canada or America or perhaps the Argentine. I think that we shall not work together so much as before.”
A waiter brought us luncheon menus.
“We’ve been through too much for that,” I insisted. “We have bonds between us as strong as any old school tie.”
“What an appropriate comparison for this case, mon ami,” said Henri Peugeot. “How very fitting!”
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