Arthur Upfield - The Devil_s Steps

He reached the hut in time to see a guest named Bonaparte going in, and he thought that this guest wanted the yardman to run an errand or do something for him the next day. After Bonaparte left the hut, Daniel stuck up the yardman, but the yardman swore that Bonaparte had taken the pens. Daniel put the yardman to sleep, but he found that he had spoken the truth because the pens were not on him. He went after Bonaparte, and then he saw him coming back to the hut. After Bonaparte had been inside for a few minutes, Daniel got him to open the door by playing a ruse. He stuck up Bonaparte and got the pens from him.

I forgot to state that before sticking up the yardman, Daniel changed into an old suit of clothes and made a mask for his face out of a neckerchief.

Bonaparte went away from Wideview Chalet late that night and did not return till the following afternoon.

Eventually, after waiting for the police to calm down, I telephoned to Daniel and he arranged to come to the city. We met in a cafe and Daniel produced the pens. I found in the end of each a screw which, I knew, was attached to a spool round which was wound the microfilm inside either pen.

The guest named Bonaparte must have removed the micro-film while he was away from the yardman’s hut, and he must have taken it to the city to hand it over to someone there.

I have viewed the body of my brother, Daniel. The foul work done on him before he was killed is the kind of work that the German “Order of the Swords” would do to get from him the whereabouts of the contents of the pens. Who Sleeman and Bonaparte are working for, I don’t know, but I am sure neither of thembelong to the “Order,” as they would not be eligible.

Bony set down the statement on the desk and, without commenting, manufactured a cigarette. Bolt remained silent until after Bony had struck a match, and then said:

“Well, whatd’youthink of that?”

“Have you seen Colonel Blythe and shown this statement to him?” enquired Bony.

“Yes. He says that O’Leary was an espionage agent employed by the BritishGovernment, and that the first part of the statement might be substantially correct.”

“That’s my view, Super. With regard to several matters in the latter part, I think that the statement is far from being correct. O’Leary denies complicity in the actual poisoning of Grumman, saying that his brother added a sleeping potion to Grumman’s last drink, and yet when he walked down the lawn in Bagshott’s shoes he was carrying a very heavy object, that object being the body of Grumman. However, those details can wait for the time being. Of more immediate interest is the brother’s fate.”

“Too right!” agreed Bolt. “You have no idea even who they might be? What about this Sleeman?”

“Sleeman may be in that, but Sleeman has not been away from the Chalet excepting for a few hours yesterday afternoon when he went for a walk. Let us imagine a tale of fiction with the bare facts in our possession. A party suspected that George-we’ll refer to Daniel O’Leary as George-killed Grumman and stole the pens. They kidnapped George in the city after he had left his brother-who, by the way, does not state what happened to the pens after they discovered the micro-film had been extracted from them. They find the pens on George, and they find that the secrets they contained have vanished. What had George done with the micro-films? George won’t talk. They apply pressure, and perhaps under pressure, George relates the adventure he had with Bisker and me. They say that is a tall one to put over. Who was the man he met that day in the city? George won’t tell. They apply more pressure. Still George won’t speak, won’t say anything which might lead his torturers to his brother. And so in the end they shoot him. I am inclined to believe that George died a hero.

“Well, then, having killed the stubborn George, they will recall the story about his adventure with Bisker and me, and doubtless they will endeavour to check up on it. H’m! That might prove interesting.”

“You’ll find it so if they apply to you their methods of-persuasion,” Bolt said slowly, with emphasis.

For the first time Mason offered an observation.

“Might not the people who collared George be friends of our pal Marcus?” he said. “Marcus did call at the Chalet to see Grumman. He knew Grumman.”

Bolt waited for Bony to counter Mason’s suggestion.

“It is quite likely, though we have no evidence. O’Leary in his statement makes no such suggestion, although he must have known that the man who killed Rice had called to see Grumman. However, neither of the brothers would know what we know about Marcus. Although without evidence, I am much inclined to the thought that Marcus is at the back of killing George.”

“And that being so, you and Bisker might be for it,” Bolt said.

“Let me think,” pleaded Bony.

“Don’t think,” urged Bolt. “Tell us where Marcus is, if you know.”

Bony smiled and Bolt felt like leaning over the desk and clouting him.

“Tell me, how did you come to get O’Leary to make that statement?” Bony asked.

“Well, after we picked him up on the gag of taking him to Headquarters for questioning, the body of George was put into the mortuary, and I took O’Leary to the mortuary to identify it-if he would. When he saw the body, O’Leary broke down, and I don’t blame him for that. After a bit, he calmed down, and then he said that the dead man was his brother, and that he would make a statement in order that he would himself gain safety in gaol. Subsequently, it came out that he firmly believes that the people who dealt it out to George are members of that secret German ‘Order’ who have been covering Grumman ever since he landed in America.”

“And he might well be right, Super,” Bony added. “No, we won’t pounce on Marcus yet. Neither will we raise an argument with our Mr. Sleeman. Not yet awhile. We’ll give this torturing crowd a chance to make a move.”

The huge Superintendent slouched over the desk and glared into Bony’s eyes. When he spoke, his voice was like the sound of tearing corrugated iron.

“Assuming that they take you for a ride and bump you off good and proper, how do we get to nabbing Marcus? If you know him and where he is, tell us before you get nabbed and tortured and bumped off.”

Slowly, and returning Bolt’s baleful glare with steady eyes, Bony said:

“If I am bumped off I shall be astonished, as I’ve never been bumped off before. Now, good night. And you watch that blood pressure of yours.”

Revellers Three

BISKER WAS not the only member of Miss Jade’s staff who was supplied with an alarm clock, the other member being Mrs. Parkes, the cook. Unlike Bisker, she was unable to voice hatred of clocks and Miss Jade and the world in general, for the reason that she never slept with her teeth in her mouth and was in any case speechless until she had moistened her throat with hot tea.

On opening the kitchen door this particular morning, she was astounded to find the place in total darkness. Not only were the lights not on-there were no fires lit in the range-there was no pot of tea made by the waiting Bisker-and there was no Bisker.

Following this decided shock Mrs. Parkes thought that her clock had called her much too early. Then she saw by the kitchen clock that her alarm had not played a trick on her. It was, indeed, five minutes past six.

Five minutes past six! And no fires lit-no pot of tea made-and the boots to be cleaned for forty-odd guests! No tea made! That fool of a Bisker must have forgotten to set his clock and even then was sleeping away what little brain he had left.

Toothless and now in a towering rage Mrs. Parkes swept across the kitchen, switched on the hot-point of the electric stove placed thereon the kettle and sallied forth to arouse Bisker. She shivered as she advanced through the darkest hour before the dawn, and her arm-muscles tensed and relaxed in preparation for the real work ahead.