第36部分(第1/6 頁)

le　suspicion　could　attach　to　Richard　Knighton。　But　like　all　great　men　…　and　the　Marquis　was　a　great　man　…　he　had　his　weaknesses。　He　fell　genuinely　in　love　with　Miss　Grey；　and　suspecting　her　liking　for　Derek　Kettering；　he　could　not　resist　the　temptation　to　saddle　him　with　the　crime　when　the　opportunity　presented　itself。　And　now；　Monsieur　Van　Aldin；　I　am　going　to　tell　you　something　very　curious。　Miss　Grey　is　not　a　fanciful　woman　by　any　means；　yet　she　firmly　believes　that　she　felt　your　daughter's　presence　beside　her　one　day　in　the　Casino　Gardens　at　Monte　Carlo；　just　after　she　had　been　having　a　long　talk　with　Knighton。　She　was　convinced；　she　says；　that　the　dead　woman　was　urgently　trying　to　tell　her　something；　and　it　suddenly　came　to　her　that　what　the　dead　woman　was　trying　to　say　was　that　Knighton　was　her　murderer！　The　idea　seemed　so　fantastic　at　the　time　that　Miss　Grey　spoke　of　it　to　no　one。　But　she　was　so　convinced　of　its　truth　that　she　acted　on　it　…　wild　as　it　seemed。　She　did　not　discourage　Knighton's　advances；　and　she　pretended　to　him　that　she　was　convinced　of　Derek　Kettering's　guilt。〃

〃Extraordinary；〃　said　Van　Aldin。

〃Yes；　it　is　very　strange。　One　cannot　explain　these　things。　Oh；　by　the　way；　there　is　one　little　point　that　baffled　me　considerably。　Your　secretary　has　a　decided　limp　…　the　result　of　a　wound　that　he　received　in　the　ost　decidedly　did　not　limp。　That　was　a　stumbling…block。　But　Miss　Lenox　Tamplin　happened　to　mention　one　day　that　Knighton's　limp　had　been　a　surprise　to　the　surgeons　who　had　been　in　charge　of　the　case　in　her　mother's　hospital。　That　suggested　camouflage。　When　I　was　in　London　I　went　to　the　surgeon　in　question；　and　I　got　several　technical　details　from　him　which　confirmed　me　in　that　belief。　I　mentioned　the　name　of　that　surgeon　in　Knight