“What you say makes me feel more than ever like throwing up the case. I’m not bound to go on if he won’t be frank with me.”
“Don’t throw it up. We must give the fellow every chance. It’s difficult for you, I know, but do the best you can. I expect your idea of a good hectoring counsel is the best that can be managed. After all, they have no direct evidence.”
“I’m afraid what they have is good enough.”
“Oh, you never know, with a jury.”
“What came into my head was that the best possible line of defence, if it can be arranged, would be to throw suspicion on someone else. Not enough to do the other person any real damage, but just enough to create a reasonable doubt.”
Woodman made no reply for a moment. Then he said, “That’s all very well; but where do you propose to find the person and the evidence?”
“First of all, it is surely very probable that George Brooklyn was actually killed by Prinsep. There is good evidence for that, you’ll agree.”
“Good enough to make a case, and it may even be true, though I don’t think it is.”
“Well, I propose to argue strongly that it is true, and I think we can create enough doubt to make it impossible to convict Mr. Brooklyn on that head. That leaves the murder of Prinsep.”
“Unfortunately, that is just where the evidence against Walter Brooklyn is strongest.”
“I know it is; and I want you to help me to find someone else who could reasonably be suspected of killing Prinsep. Never mind the evidence. I’ll find that if you’ll help me to the person. It won’t need to be enough to do the suspected person any real damage. It isn’t as if we wanted to get anyone convicted: I only want to throw dust in the jury’s eyes.”
“I’m sorry; but I can’t help you there,” said Woodman shortly.
“What about the servants?”
“Out of the question. They’re as innocent as you are.”
“What does it matter if they are innocent? Can they be proved so?”
Carter Woodman brought his fist down on the table with a bang. Then he said very deliberately, “I am anxious to use all legitimate means of getting Mr. Walter Brooklyn acquitted; but I must tell you once and for all, Thomas, that I decline to be a party to attempt to throw the guilt on any innocent persons.”
“My dear fellow, what is the use of talking about legitimate means in a case like this? You know as well as I do that only illegitimate means can give my client a dog’s chance.”
“Then I’m sorry I can’t help you.”
With that the interview ended. Thomas left Woodman’s office more firmly than ever convinced of Walter Brooklyn’s guilt, but also determined to follow up his stratagem of shifting the suspicion, or at least some part of it, elsewhere. The more he thought of the plan, the more it appealed to him. It wasn’t much of a dodge in itself; but it seemed to offer more hope than anything else in this case. If the fellow did get hanged after all, he would have only himself to blame. Thomas would have done his best.
Following up this line of thought, Thomas made up his mind that the first thing to do was to get full information about the servants.
Thus, Walter Brooklyn’s legal adviser, though with a very different idea in his mind, set to work upon an aspect of the case which had already been considered and investigated by the police. It will be remembered that Inspector Blaikie had cross-examined the two menservants, and that subsequently he and Superintendent Wilson had agreed to have the two men watched—not that they were much disposed to believe that either of them had anything directly to do with the murders, but because their complicity or knowledge, or even their guilt, was just barely conceivable. Morgan’s presence at the house of his friends at Hammersmith on the Tuesday night, and his return to Liskeard House at about a quarter to eleven, had been duly verified; but his statement that he had gone straight to bed, and remained there until the morning, rested wholly on Winter’s evidence. There was no reason to suspect this, unless it should turn out that Winter was himself involved. The police had, therefore, directed most of their attention to the butler, who had certainly gone up to his room with Morgan at a quarter to twelve. Had he stayed there, or had he come down again and played some part in the night’s doings? On this point the police could find no evidence at all. Morgan stated that Winter was in his room in the morning, that his bed had been slept in, and that he rose at his usual hour. But Morgan had slept heavily, and he could not positively say that Winter had remained in his room all night. This fact, however, was clearly no evidence at all against Winter, and there had been nothing in his demeanour to suggest that he was in any way concerned. His past history, too, seemed to make him a most unlikely criminal. Accordingly, now that the evidence seemed to point conclusively to the guilt of Walter Brooklyn, the police, while they still kept some perfunctory watch on the two servants, practically dismissed them from their minds.
Thomas, when he had ascertained the main facts about the two menservants, did not for a moment suspect that either of them was guilty, or think it likely that either had any knowledge of the crimes. His first step was to ask Walter Brooklyn himself whether he supposed that either of the servants could throw any light on the matter. Supposing his client to be at the least fully cognisant of the night’s events, he thought that the question could hardly fail to give him some guidance. But Walter Brooklyn displayed little interest, and by doing so confirmed the lawyer’s opinion that the
