XIX
THE ENGLISHWOMAN OF BOULEVARD INKERMANN
"To sum up what I have just learned."
Juve was seated at his desk, and those who knew the private life of thegreat detective would assuredly have guessed that he was gravelypreoccupied. He was trying to extract some useful information from thenotary's visit, some hints essential to the investigation he had takenin hand, and that at all hazards he meant to pursue to a successfultermination. The task was fraught with difficulties and even peril. Butthe triumph would be great if he should succeed in putting the"bracelets" on the "genius of crime," as he had called him to his friendFandor.
"Lady Beltham had gone to visit Gerin. She was an astute woman afterall, and knew how to get her own way. There must have been powerfulmotives which urged her to write that confession. What were thosemotives?
"Remorse? No. A woman who loves has no remorse. Fear? Probably, but fearof what?"
Juve, without being aware of it, had just written on the paper of hisnote-book the ill-omened name which haunted him.
"Fantomas!"
"Why, of course, Fantomas killed Lady Beltham, and killed her in thehouse of Doctor Chaleck, an accomplice. And Loupart, a third accomplice,got his mistress to write to me, and I believed the denunciation.Loupart got us to dog him, led me unawares behind the curtains in thestudy, and made me witness that Chaleck was innocent. Oh, the ruse was aclever one. Josephine herself, by the two shots she received some dayslater at Lariboisiere, became a victim. In short, the scent was crossedand broken."
The detective snatched up his hat, saw carefully to the charges of hispocket revolver, then gravely and solemnly cried:
"It is you and I now, Fantomas!" with which he left his rooms.
* * * * *
Juve and Fandor were entering a taxi-cab.
"To Neuilly Church," cried Juve to the driver. "And, now, my dearFandor, you must be thinking me crazy, as less than two hours ago Isent you off to write an article, and here I come taking you from yourpaper and carrying you away in this headlong fashion. But just listen tothe tale of this morning's doings."
Juve then gave a full account of Maitre Gerin's visit and wound up bysaying: "It is through Lady Beltham that we must unearth that monster,Fantomas."
"That's all very well," replied Fandor, "but as the lady is dead, howare we going to set about it?"
"By reconstructing the last hours of her life. We are now on our way toLady Beltham's residence, Boulevard Inkermann."
"And what are we to do when we arrive there?"
"I shall examine the house, which is probably empty, and you are to'pump' the neighbours, to ask questions of the tradespeople. I shouldattract too much attention if I were to do this myself, and that is whyI dragged you away from your work."
Some moments later the taxi pulled up at the corner of BoulevardInkermann.
"The house is number--" said Juve as he took Fandor by the arm. "Blessme, you remember the house! It is the one in which I arrested Gurnthree years ago; that famous day he came to see Lady Beltham, disguisedas a beggar."
The two friends soon found themselves at their destination. Through thegarden railing, which was wholly covered with a dense growth of ivy, thetwo saw the house, which now looked very dilapidated.
"It doesn't look as if it had been inhabited for a long while," saidFandor.
"That's what we want to make sure of. Go and make your inquiries."
Fandor left his companion and made his way back to the commercialsection of Neuilly. He stopped opposite a sign which read:
"Gardening done."
"Anyone there?" he inquired.
An old woman, standing in the doorway, came forward. "What can I do foryou, sir?"
"If I am not mistaken, it was you who attended to Lady Beltham'sgarden?"
"Yes, sir, we kept her garden in order. But my husband hasn't workedthere for several months, as Lady Beltham has been away."
"I heard she was coming back to Paris, and called to-day, but found thehouse closed up."
"Oh, I am sorry. Lady Beltham's an excellent customer and Mme. Raymondalso bought flowers of us."
"Mme. Raymond. She is a friend of Lady Beltham?"
"Her companion. It is now close to a year that Mme. Raymond has beenliving with her. Oh! a very pleasant lady; a pretty brunette, veryelegant and not at all proud."
Fandor thought it well not to seem astonished.
"Oh, yes, of course," he cried, "Mme. Raymond. I remember now. LadyBeltham's life is so sad and lonely."
"True enough," the woman replied, and, lowering her voice: "And then,what with all these tales of noises and ghosts, the house can't be toopleasant to live in, eh?"
Fandor pretended to be well posted. "People still talk of theseincidents?"
"Oh, yes, sir."
Fandor did not venture to press the subject, and, taking leave of theworthy woman, he made his way back to the Boulevard. As soon as Juvecaught sight of him in the distance he ran up eagerly.
"Well?"
"Well, Juve, what have you found out during my absence?"
"In the first place that it is exactly sixty-four days since LadyBeltham left Neuilly. I discovered this by the dates on a lot ofcirculars in the letter box. I also had a talk with a butcher's man andlearned that Lady Beltham had a companion."
"Oh! I was bringing you that same news!"
"This Mme. Raymond is young, dark, very pretty. Can't you guess who sheis?"
Fandor stared at Juve.
"You mean----"
"Josephine. It's perfectly clear. We know Lady Beltham wrote aconfession, that Fantomas suspected this and murdered her to get hold ofit, and further that in this murder Loupart was involved. Josephine wasintroduced to Lady Beltham by Fantomas. A spy going there to betray thegreat lady and possibly entice her later to the Cite Frochot. Let usmake haste, lad. We thought we had to follow the trail of Loupart andChaleck, but we mustn't lose sight of Josephine. She may be the means ofhelping us to the truth."