Murder in Blue by Clifford Witting

Author:Clifford Witting
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Galileo Publishing
Published: 2021-10-20T10:58:05+00:00

Sunday, November 17th.

XI. UNCLE HARRY

Have you ever been kicked in the diaphragm by a horse? Probably not; and neither have I. But I experienced what I imagine to be parallel sensations when I saw the Inspector’s tall figure standing in the doorway. I was an idiot, of course, not to have guessed it before. I expect most of my readers realized it some chapters back. My face must have been a study in stupefaction, but I managed, after swallowing hard, to answer his, “Good afternoon, Mr. Rutherford.” As Molly pulled the trolley to her, he sat down, while I relapsed limply into my chair.

“You’ll have to forgive our little deception,” the Inspector said to me with a charming smile, “but it was rather thrust upon us.”

“Not at all,” I said, “but you’ve quite taken my breath away. You have managed to startle me several times, Inspector, during our short acquaintanceship, but this time you have excelled yourself! I thought Molly’s uncle was a doctor.”

“That is what they call me!” he grinned boyishly.

Molly poured out the tea and the Inspector offered me a scone, with the remark that they were some of Molly’s.

“How did you guess that?” she asked with playful emphasis.

“I heard the to-do that attended their preparation,” he laughed. “One would have thought that the Archbishop of Canterbury, at least, was coming to tea!”

“Irritating man,” said Molly, blushing delightfully, as she passed his cup.

The talk passed pleasantly from one thing to another, with a great deal of banter between Molly and her uncle. They were obviously the best of friends. Then, when the Inspector had finished his third luke-warm cup of tea and the maid had taken away the trolley, Molly rose and left us.

“I’m afraid,” said the Inspector when we were alone, “that I haven’t treated you too well over this business, and I hope you’ll accept my apologies.”

“Why, of course,” I hastened to say.

“My only defence is that I wanted to get this Johnson matter cleared up without the personal element coming too much into it. You will probably appreciate my position. I persuaded Molly to abet me. But the whole thing was becoming ridiculous and that is why Molly has asked you here to-day.”

“For which I am thankful,” I said. “I didn’t want the elusive uncle to imagine that I was carrying on a clandestine affair with his niece, and have been seeking a meeting for some time.”

“I know that,” he said, “and I appreciate it.”

“Now that I have met you as Molly’s uncle, Inspector, may I take the opportunity to ask you if you have any objection to Molly and me becoming engaged?”

“None whatever, my dear fellow,” he smiled, “when this troublesome murder is cleared up. If you hadn’t had the misfortune to find Johnson’s body, things would be quite different; but you’ll see that if it were publicly announced that the leading witness in the Johnson case was to marry the niece of the police official engaged upon the enquiry, there would be a certain amount of acrimonious comment.

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