1951 - In a Vain Shadow by James Hadley Chase

Author:James Hadley Chase [Chase, James Hadley]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

chapter eleven

Among the tricks I learned when serving with the Commandos was to make an effective booby-trap, and it crossed my mind that such a booby trap could be used to sock the fear of death into Sarek.

Now I had convinced her I was going to murder him, I had to pretend to put the first move of the plan into operation, and the first move was to frighten him so badly he would want to run for his life.

So the following morning I decided to go to London and collect for my booby-trap a gadget I had lifted from the Army stores before getting my ticket. This gadget was used extensively during the war to hand out death by remote control, and I had snaffled it, as I had snaffled a lot of other bits of Army property, as a souvenir of the best years of my life.

I remembered this gadget was in a suitcase of junk I had left with Netta, and the thought of seeing Netta again excited me. An hour or two of her company would make a quiet change from Rita’s sultry violence.

I was sitting before the fire, thinking about Netta in the way men think about women, while I waited for Rita to finish making the bed, when the telephone bell rang. With my mind still on Netta I automatically picked up the receiver and said.

‘Hello.’

Except for the faint humming on the line I heard nothing for a second or so, then Emmie’s voice said ‘Is that Mitchell?’

All right, I admit it. The sound of that whining voice stopped my heart for a second. It congealed my blood too.

I was supposed to be miles away from Four Winds, and yet here I was at nine o’clock in the morning, having obviously spent the night in the house alone with Sarek’s wife, and answering the telephone with Emmie of all people on the line. I could see my whole plan blowing up in my face.

‘Hello? Is that you, Mitchell?’

My brain went scurrying around in my skull like a frightened mouse. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even move. I was in such a panic I could scarcely breathe.

‘Hello? Hello?’

Rita came flying into the room. One look at my white, sweating face told her what was happening.

‘Tell her it’s a wrong number, you fool!’ she hissed at me.

‘What number do you want?’

I didn’t recognize my voice; it sounded like the croak of a frog.

‘Topham 229. Is that you, Mitchell?’

‘Sorry; wrong number,’ and I hung up.

‘You fool! You stupid fool!’

‘All right, all right. Don’t shout at me!’

‘If she tells him...’

‘Oh, shut up! She couldn’t have recognized my voice.’

The bell rang again.

She pushed me away and picked up the receiver. I’ll say this for her: she was as steady and as cool as a block of ice.

‘Hello? Yes, Mrs. Sarek speaking. Oh, hello. Miss Pearl. Oh is he? I’d better meet him then. Yes, I will.’

We looked at each other while the whining voice droned on.

‘Who? Mitchell? Why, no.

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