Dallas’ eyes gleamed as he took the trinket in his hand. He said no more as he walked thoughtfully by the side of his companions, till at length Stevens turned into a shady street, where he entered a dingy public-house. Without the slightest hesitation Dallas followed. He had quite made up his mind what he was going to do. For the time being, at any rate, the public-house was empty. Stevens was sitting in an armchair behind a partition with a glass in his hand. He started and his face changed colour as his eyes fell upon Dallas. The Inspector’s manner was genial enough, but there was a grimness on his face that Stevens did not relish.
“What can I do for you, gentlemen?” he stammered.
“Well, unless I am greatly mistaken, you can do a great deal,” Dallas replied. “That matter of the Delahay murder, you know. You remember what you told us at the inquest?”
“Yes, and every word of it was true,” Stevens said tremulously. “If it is the last word I ever say, it was true.”
“And I believe it,” Dallas went on. “The only fault I find in your evidence is that you did not tell us enough. Why didn’t you finish your story while you were about it?”
Stevens looked stealthily at his tormentor. He gulped his glass of liquor down hastily, for there was a queer dryness at the back of his throat that almost choked him.
“Come,” Dallas said, with a quick and sudden sternness. “Speak out, or it will be all the worse for you. Tell us who it was who murdered Mr. Louis Delahay?”
XLIII
The Whole Truth
Stevens stared helplessly at the speaker. He tried to speak, but his jaw dropped. He mumbled something that was quite impossible to understand. But, at the same time, he recognised the peril of his position. There was a ghastly green tinge on his face, his hand trembled. Dallas regarded him pleasantly enough. There was nothing harsh or stern in the detective’s manner. His quiet air of assured triumph struck a greater terror into Stevens than any sternness would have done. The shabby little man wriggled about in his seat looking very much like a rat behind the bars of a cage.
“Take your time,” Dallas said quietly. “You will find in the long run that it will pay you a great deal better to tell the truth.”
“I have always told the truth,” Stevens stammered.
“Up to a certain point, yes. But you didn’t go far enough. For instance, you might have told the coroner that you saw Mr. Delahay’s lady visitor a second time. You might have gone further, and told the court that Mr. Delahay had other visitors long after his first one had gone. You see, that would have helped the police a good deal, and it would have effectually cleared an innocent lady whom we suspected of having a hand in the murder. Now who was it that called at the studio in the early hours of the morning?”
“How should I know?” Stevens said sullenly.
“That, my good man, is for you to say. But you need not answer unless you like. It so happens that you are waiting here for the individual in question this very moment.”
The greenish hue crept over Stevens’ face again. He could only stare at the speaker with open-mouthed astonishment. Dallas’ manner grew a little more stern and curt as he rose from his seat.
“You will stay where you are,” he said, “and with these two gentlemen I will go into the next box. I think I can trust you not to betray our presence there. In fact, your safety, to a large extent, depends upon your actions in the next hour or so.”
“I have done nothing,” Stevens burst out. “I swear I have done nothing. I had no hand in it at all.”
“That I quite believe,” Dallas replied. “It was afterwards that you began to see your way to make some money out of it. And now let me tell you something. You don’t deserve any consideration at my hands, but I am prepared to spare you as far as possible. Oh, I know you will play me false at the first chance. But let me tell you, I know all about your visit to your friend, Perks, of Cannon Green. I know how you disposed of certain stolen goods which, until the night of the murder, were in the possession of Mr. Louis Delahay. After that, I don’t think you will deem it prudent to try any of your nonsense with me.”
Dallas turned away, and, with his two companions, entered the next box. It was gloomy enough there, so that their presence was not likely to be detected by anyone who came in. Walter turned eagerly to Dallas. His curiosity was aroused now. He wanted to know how it was that the inspector knew so much.
“It was mere conjecture on my part,” Dallas said. “Of course, what you told me gave me a great deal of assistance; but I did not begin to see my way quite clearly until we followed Stevens here. The landlord of this public-house has never got into trouble as yet. But we know perfectly well that a good deal of stolen property is disposed of, and when I saw Stevens turn in here, things became plain enough. He was coming to meet his accomplice, and hand over his share of the money which he had obtained from Perks. Before half an hour is over, the real culprit will be here. Please stop talking directly anybody comes in. It will spoil everything if our presence here becomes known.”
It was precisely as Dallas had said. Some twenty minutes later a man lounged into the bar and called for something to drink. He seemed to suspect nothing, he appeared to be perfectly at his
