The cab-driver whipped his horse. Charles wished to return to the house, but found the gate locked. He had closed it himself when he came out, and it could not be opened from the outside. On the other hand, it was useless to ring, as there was no one in the house.
It was almost an hour before the arrival of the police. When they came, Charles told his story and handed the bank-notes to the commissary. A locksmith was summoned, and, after considerable difficulty, he succeeded in forcing open the garden gate and the vestibule door. The commissary of police entered the room first, but, immediately, turned to Charles and said:
"You told me that the room was in the greatest disorder."
Charles stood at the door, amazed, bewildered; all the furniture had been restored to its accustomed place. The small table was standing between the two windows, the chairs were upright, and the clock was on the centre of the mantel. The debris of the candelabra had been removed.
"Where is.... Monsieur le Baron?" stammered Charles.
"That's so!" exclaimed the officer, "where is the victim?"
He approached the bed, and drew aside a large sheet, under which reposed the Baron d'Hautrec, formerly French Ambassador at Berlin. Over him, lay his military coat, adorned with the Cross of Honor. His features were calm. His eyes were closed.
"Some one has been here," said Charles.
"How did they get in?"
"I don't know, but some one has been here during my absence. There was a stiletto on the floor—there! And a handkerchief, stained with blood, on the bed. They are not here now. They have been carried away. And some one has put the room in order."
"Who would do that?"
"The assassin."
"But we found all the doors locked."
"He must have remained in the house."
"Then he must be here yet, as you were in front of the hou
Get ALL YOU CAN BOOKS absolutely FREE for 30 days. Download our FREE app and enjoy unlimited downloads of our entire library with no restrictions.
Have immediate access and unlimited downloads to over 200,000 books, courses, podcasts, and more with no restrictions.
Everything you download during your trial is yours to keep and enjoy for free, even if you cancel during the trial. Cancel Anytime. No risk. No obligations.
For just $24.99 per month, you can continue to have unlimited access to our entire library. To put that into perspective, most other services charge the same amount for just one book!
As avid readers, we understand the joy of immersing ourselves in a captivating story or getting lost in the pages of a good book. That's why we founded All You Can Books back in 2010, to create a platform where people can access an extensive library of quality content and discover new favorites.
Since our founding days, we’ve continuously added to our vast library and currently have over 200,000 titles, including ebooks, audiobooks, language learning courses, podcasts, bestseller summaries, travel books, and more! Our goal at All You Can Books is to ensure we have something for everyone.
Join our community of book lovers and explore the world of literature and beyond!
So Leblanc obligingly changed the name.
And I don't know why it makes me laugh so hard, but just the fact he changed it over to Herlock Sholmes had me chortling.
I know! I didn't think