'He didn't leave at all. He had some lunch brought in on account of Miss Lovchen.'
'She got here at eleven-twenty.'
'Yes.' The secretary was getting no warmer. 'How did you know that? How did you know she was here?'
'Intuition. I'm an intuitive genius.' I shifted to Driscoll. 'So you didn't kill Faber, huh?'
He stammered, 'You mean… you must mean Ludlow-'
'I mean Rudolph Faber. A little before noon to-day he was found in the apartment occupied by Neya Tormic and Carla Lovchen lying on the floor, dead. Stabbed. Miss Tormic and I went there looking for Miss Lovchen, and found him.'
The secretary looked impressed. Driscoll's eyes widened and his mouth stood open. I snapped at Carla:
'He was there when you went there. Either alive or dead, or alive and then dead.'
'I didn't-I wasn't there-'
'Can it. What do you think this is-hide and seek? They were tailing you. You went in there at eleven- five and came out again at eleven-fifteen. Faber was there.'
She shivered again. 'I didn't kill him.'
'Was he there?'
She shook her head and took a deep, jerky breath. 'I'm not… going to say anything. I am going away, away from America.' She clasped her hands at me. 'Pliz, you must help me! Mr Driscoll would help me! Oh, you must, you must-'
Driscoll demanded in an improved voice, 'You say Faber was there in her apartment stabbed to death?'
'Yes.'
'And she had just been there?'
'She left there about thirty minutes before the body was found.'
'Good God.' He stared at her. The secretary was staring at her, too.
I said briskly, 'She says she didn't do it. I don't know. The immediate point is that Nero Wolfe wants to see her before the cops get hold of her. What were you going to do-help her get away?'
Driscoll nodded. Then he shook his head. 'I don't know. Good God-she didn't tell me about Faber. She said…' He flung out his hands. 'Damn it, she appealed to me! She swore she had nothing to do with-Ludlow- but she didn't need to! She has been damn fine with me down there-that fencing-greatest pleasure I ever had in my life-she has been damn fine and understanding! She is a very fine young woman! I would be proud to have her for a sister, and I've told her so! Or daughter! Daughter would be better! She came here and appealed to me to help her get away from trouble; and, by God, I was doing it; and I didn't consult any lawyer either! And, by God, I'll still do it! Do you realize that she appealed to me? I don't care if her apartment was as full of dead bodies as the morgue, that young woman is no damn murderess!'
'I understand,' said the secretary with ice still in her voice-box, 'that it is perfectly legal to help anyone go anywhere they want to, provided they have not commited a crime.'
'I don't give a damn,' Driscoll declared, 'whether it's legal or not! To hell with legal!'
'Okay.' I pushed a palm at him. 'Don't yell so loud. The point-'
'I want you to understand-'
'Pipe down! I understand everything. You're a hero. Skip it. Here's the way it stands. You can't go ahead and send her on a world cruise, because to begin with you don't stand a chance of getting her out of here and away, and to end with I won't let you. Nero Wolfe wants to see her. Whatever Nero Wolfe wants he gets, or he has a tantrum and I get fired. I have no idea whether she's a very fine young woman or a murderess or what, but I do know that the next thing on her programme is a talk with Nero Wolfe, and I'm in charge of the programme.'
'I suppose,' said the secretary crushingly, 'that you stand a chance of getting her out of here.'
'Chance is right,' I agreed grimly. 'May I use your phone?'
She pushed it across the desk and I asked the ante-room employee to get me a number. In a moment I had the connexion.
'Hallo. Hotel Alexander? Let me talk to Ernie Flint, the house detective.'
In two minutes I had him.
'Hallo, Ernie? Archie Goodwin. That's right. How's about things? Fine, thanks, everything rosy. I'm studying to be a detective. Not on your life. Say, listen, I'm pulling a stunt and I want you to do me a favour. Send a bellboy in uniform over to the Maidstone Building, Room 3259. Wait, get this: a small one, about five foot three, and not a fat one. With a cap on, don't forget the cap. With a dark complexion if you've got one like that. Yep, dark hair and eyes. Good. Have him bring a parcel with him containing all his own clothes, everything, including hat. Right. Oh, not long. He can be back there within an hour, only you'll have to give him another uniform. Oh, no. Just a stunt I'm pulling. I'm playing a trick on a feller. I'll describe it when I see you. Make it snappy, will you, Ernie?'
I rang off, took the expense roll from my pocket, peeled off a ten, and tendered it to the secretary. 'Here, run down to the nearest store and get a pair of black, low-heeled oxfords that will fit her. Like what a bellboy might wear. Step on it.'
She looked critically at Carla's feet. 'Five?'
