CHAPTER XIII
I found my lady in her own sitting room. She started and looked annoyedwhen I mentioned that Sergeant Cuff wished to speak to her.
"MUST I see him?" she asked. "Can't you represent me, Gabriel?"
I felt at a loss to understand this, and showed it plainly, I suppose,in my face. My lady was so good as to explain herself.
"I am afraid my nerves are a little shaken," she said. "There issomething in that police-officer from London which I recoil from--Idon't know why. I have a presentiment that he is bringing trouble andmisery with him into the house. Very foolish, and very unlike ME--but soit is."
I hardly knew what to say to this. The more I saw of Sergeant Cuff, thebetter I liked him. My lady rallied a little after having opened herheart to me--being, naturally, a woman of a high courage, as I havealready told you.
"If I must see him, I must," she said. "But I can't prevail on myselfto see him alone. Bring him in, Gabriel, and stay here as long as hestays."
This was the first attack of the megrims that I remembered in mymistress since the time when she was a young girl. I went back to the"boudoir." Mr. Franklin strolled out into the garden, and joined Mr.Godfrey, whose time for departure was now drawing near. Sergeant Cuffand I went straight to my mistress's room.
I declare my lady turned a shade paler at the sight of him! Shecommanded herself, however, in other respects, and asked the Sergeantif he had any objection to my being present. She was so good as to add,that I was her trusted adviser, as well as her old servant, and that inanything which related to the household I was the person whom it mightbe most profitable to consult. The Sergeant politely answered that hewould take my presence as a favour, having something to say about theservants in general, and having found my experience in that quarteralready of some use to him. My lady pointed to two chairs, and we set infor our conference immediately.
"I have already formed an opinion on this case," says Sergeant Cuff,"which I beg your ladyship's permission to keep to myself for thepresent. My business now is to mention what I have discovered upstairsin Miss Verinder's sitting-room, and what I have decided (with yourladyship's leave) on doing next."
He then went into the matter of the smear on the paint, and statedthe conclusions he drew from it--just as he had stated them (only withgreater respect of language) to Superintendent Seegrave. "One thing,"he said, in conclusion, "is certain. The Diamond is missing out of thedrawer in the cabinet. Another thing is next to certain. The marks fromthe smear on the door must be on some article of dress belonging tosomebody in this house. We must discover that article of dress before wego a step further."
"And that discovery," remarked my mistress, "implies, I presume, thediscovery of the thief?"
"I beg your ladyship's pardon--I don't say the Diamond is stolen. Ionly say, at present, that the Diamond is missing. The discovery of thestained dress may lead the way to finding it."
Her ladyship looked at me. "Do you understand this?" she said.
"Sergeant Cuff understands it, my lady," I answered.
"How do you propose to discover the stained dress?" inquired mymistress, addressing herself once more to the Sergeant. "My goodservants, who have been with me for years, have, I am ashamed to say,had their boxes and rooms searched already by the other officer. I can'tand won't permit them to be insulted in that way a second time!"
(There was a mistress to serve! There was a woman in ten thousand, ifyou like!)
"That is the very point I was about to put to your ladyship," said theSergeant. "The other officer has done a world of harm to this inquiry,by letting the servants see that he suspected them. If I give them causeto think themselves suspected a second time, there's no knowing whatobstacles they may not throw in my way--the women especially. At thesame time, their boxes must be searched again--for this plain reason,that the first investigation only looked for the Diamond, and that thesecond investigation must look for the stained dress. I quite agree withyou, my lady, that the servants' feelings ought to be consulted. But Iam equally clear that the servants' wardrobes ought to be searched."
This looked very like a dead-lock. My lady said so, in choicer languagethan mine.
"I have got a plan to meet the difficulty," said Sergeant Cuff, "ifyour ladyship will consent to it. I propose explaining the case to theservants."
"The women will think themselves suspected directly," I said,interrupting him.
"The women won't, Mr. Betteredge," answered the Sergeant, "if I can tellthem I am going to examine the wardrobes of EVERYBODY--from her ladyshipdownwards--who slept in the house on Wednesday night. It's a mereformality," he added, with a side look at my mistress; "but the servantswill accept it as even dealing between them and their betters; and,instead of hindering the investigation, they will make a point of honourof assisting it."
I saw the truth of that. My lady, after her first surprise was over, sawthe truth of it also.
"You are certain the investigation is necessary?" she said.
"It's the shortest way that I can see, my lady, to the end we have inview."
My mistress rose to ring the bell for her maid. "You shall speak to theservants," she said, "with the keys of my wardrobe in your hand."
Sergeant Cuff stopped her by a very unexpected question.
"Hadn't we better make sure first," he asked, "that the other ladies andgentlemen in the house will consent, too?"
"The only other lady in the house is Miss Verinder," answered mymistress, with a look of surprise. "The only gentlemen are my nephews,Mr. Blake and Mr. Ablewhite. There is not the least fear of a refusalfrom any of the three."
I reminded my lady here that Mr. Godfrey was going away. As I said thewords, Mr. Godfrey himself knocked at the door to say good-bye, and wasfollowed in by Mr. Franklin, who was going with him to the station.My lady explained the difficulty. Mr. Godfrey settled it directly. Hecalled to Samuel, through the window, to take his portmanteau up-stairsagain, and he then put the key himself into Sergeant Cuff's hand. "Myluggage can follow me to London," he said, "when the inquiry is over."The Sergeant received the key with a becoming apology. "I am sorry toput you to any inconvenience, sir, for a mere formality; but the exampleof their betters will do wonders in reconciling the servants tothis inquiry." Mr. Godfrey, after taking leave of my lady, in a mostsympathising manner, left a farewell message for Miss Rachel, theterms of which made it clear to my mind that he had not taken No for ananswer, and that he meant to put the marriage question to her once more,at the next opportunity. Mr. Franklin, on following his cousin out,informed the Sergeant that all his clothes were open to examination,and that nothing he possessed was kept under lock and key. Sergeant Cuffmade his best acknowledgments. His views, you will observe, had beenmet with the utmost readiness by my lady, by Mr. Godfrey, and by Mr.Franklin. There was only Miss. Rachel now wanting to follow their lead,before we called the servants together, and began the search for thestained dress.
My lady's unaccountable objection to the Sergeant seemed to make ourconference more distasteful to her than ever, as soon as we were leftalone again. "If I send you down Miss Verinder's keys," she said to him,"I presume I shall have done all you want of me for the present?"
"I beg your ladyship's pardon," said Sergeant Cuff. "Before we begin,I should like, if convenient, to have the washing-book. The stainedarticle of dress may be an article of linen. If the search leads tonothing, I want to be able to account next for all the linen in thehouse, and for all the linen sent to the wash. If there is an articlemissing, there will be at least a presumption that it has got thepaint-stain on it, and that it has been purposely made away with,yesterday or to-day, by the person owning it. Superintendent Seegrave,"added the Sergeant, turning to me, "pointed the attention of thewomen-servants to the smear, when they all crowded into the room onThursday morning. That may turn out, Mr. Betteredge, to have been onemore of Superintendent Seegrave's many mistakes."
My lady desired me to ring the bell, and order the washing-book. She
remained with us until it was produced, in case Sergeant Cuff had anyfurther request to make of her after looking at it.
The washing-book was brought in by Rosanna Spearman. The girl hadcome down to breakfast that morning miserably pale and haggard, butsufficiently recovered from her illness of the previous day to do herusual work. Sergeant Cuff looked attentively at our second housemaid--ather face, when she came in; at her crooked shoulder, when she went out.
"Have you anything more to say to me?" asked my lady, still as eager asever to be out of the Sergeant's society.
The great Cuff opened the washing-book, understood it perfectly in halfa minute, and shut it up again. "I venture to trouble your ladyship withone last question," he said. "Has the young woman who brought us thisbook been in your employment as long as the other servants?"
"Why do you ask?" said my lady.
"The last time I saw her," answered the Sergeant, "she was in prison fortheft."
After that, there was no help for it, but to tell him the truth. Mymistress dwelt strongly on Rosanna's good conduct in her service, andon the high opinion entertained of her by the matron at the reformatory."You don't suspect her, I hope?" my lady added, in conclusion, veryearnestly.
"I have already told your ladyship that I don't suspect any person inthe house of thieving--up to the present time."
After that answer, my lady rose to go up-stairs, and ask for MissRachel's keys. The Sergeant was before-hand with me in opening the doorfor her. He made a very low bow. My lady shuddered as she passed him.
We waited, and waited, and no keys appeared. Sergeant Cuff made noremark to me. He turned his melancholy face to the window; he put hislanky hands into his pockets; and he whistled "The Last Rose of Summer"softly to himself.
At last, Samuel came in, not with the keys, but with a morsel of paperfor me. I got at my spectacles, with some fumbling and difficulty,feeling the Sergeant's dismal eyes fixed on me all the time. There weretwo or three lines on the paper, written in pencil by my lady. Theyinformed me that Miss Rachel flatly refused to have her wardrobeexamined. Asked for her reasons, she had burst out crying. Asked again,she had said: "I won't, because I won't. I must yield to force ifyou use it, but I will yield to nothing else." I understood my lady'sdisinclination to face Sergeant Cuff with such an answer from herdaughter as that. If I had not been too old for the amiable weaknessesof youth, I believe I should have blushed at the notion of facing himmyself.
"Any news of Miss Verinder's keys?" asked the Sergeant.
"My young lady refuses to have her wardrobe examined."
"Ah!" said the Sergeant.
His voice was not quite in such a perfect state of discipline as hisface. When he said "Ah!" he said it in the tone of a man who had heardsomething which he expected to hear. He half angered and half frightenedme--why, I couldn't tell, but he did it.
"Must the search be given up?" I asked.
"Yes," said the Sergeant, "the search must be given up, because youryoung lady refuses to submit to it like the rest. We must examine allthe wardrobes in the house or none. Send Mr. Ablewhite's portmanteauto London by the next train, and return the washing-book, with mycompliments and thanks, to the young woman who brought it in."
He laid the washing-book on the table, and taking out his penknife,began to trim his nails.
"You don't seem to be much disappointed," I said.
"No," said Sergeant Cuff; "I am not much disappointed."
I tried to make him explain himself.
"Why should Miss Rachel put an obstacle in your way?" I inquired. "Isn'tit her interest to help you?"
"Wait a little, Mr. Betteredge--wait a little."
Cleverer heads than mine might have seen his drift. Or a person lessfond of Miss Rachel than I was, might have seen his drift. My lady'shorror of him might (as I have since thought) have meant that she sawhis drift (as the scripture says) "in a glass darkly." I didn't see ityet--that's all I know.
"What's to be done next?" I asked.
Sergeant Cuff finished the nail on which he was then at work, looked atit for a moment with a melancholy interest, and put up his penknife.
"Come out into the garden," he said, "and let's have a look at theroses."