Free The Japanese Girl by Winston Graham

with.’
    â€˜I’ve told you,’ Loveridge said, ‘this is unnecessary . The darned thing wasn’t insured, but if it’s gone, it’s gone . I don’t want to lose all my friends as a consequence.’
    â€˜You won’t lose ’ em if you let them clear themselves,’ French said. ‘ Nora Mayhew was right. They’ll be much happier to turn out their pockets and have it all above board.’
    â€˜Speak for yourself,’ said Peter.
    We all looked at him in surprise.
    â€˜What d’you mean?’
    â€˜I think Bob’s right about this,’ Peter said. ‘He invited us here as his friends. Something has vanished. Disappeared down a hole, maybe. That’s bad luck for everybody. But if we have to turn out our pockets just to prove that we haven’t stolen the thing, then for God’s sake …’
    â€˜Exactly –’ Bob said.
    â€˜Not exactly at all,’ French said. ‘Nora Mayhew was right. It’s plain common sense –’
    â€˜For Heaven’s sake stop sheltering behind Nora Mayhew,’ Peter snapped. ‘If it’s your opinion, say so!’
    French was still as cool as he’d been at poker. ‘All right, it’s my opinion, then. If I go now, without any check, and the ear-ring’s never found, then I could never come here again. Bob may be a trustful sort of chap, but he can’t help his thoughts.’
    Peter Stevenson looked at me, but, much as I disliked French, I really had to agree with him over this. If you got a clearance now, well, then you were in the clear. Of course, they were both right in a sense. How can you choose between trust and proof?
    Peter put down the magazine. ‘ It so happens that I don’t want to turn out my pockets. Right? The reason’s unimportant. I just don’t. You’ve known me for about nine months, Bob. You, Lucille, for about twelve. Well, I give you my word that I’ve never touched your ear-ring tonight. Will that be enough? Satisfactory? Or is it not enough?’
    â€˜Of course –’
    â€˜Of course,’ Bob said slowly. ‘I don’t want to –’
    â€˜Well thanks,’ said French. ‘But I suppose you realize that it leaves us in a position of thinking anything we choose.’
    He turned to the card table, which by now had been cleared of everything else and methodically emptied all his pockets. Having done that, he pulled his jacket inside out the way George Mayhew had done and then went towards Bob Loveridge in his shirt sleeves with his hands in the air.
    Bob said: ‘No, no,’ so French then tamed to me, and to satisfy him I patted his trousers and under his arms. Then, because I certainly didn’t want to be saddled with any of the blame, I did the same. God knows, there wasn’t much in my pockets but an empty wallet, a handkerchief and a bunch of keys. When it was done and we had our coats on again French looked at Peter. I thought Peter was being an obstinate fool too and said, much to my later regret: ‘ Come on, it’s nothing; get it over. Bob doesn’t want it, but we ought to insist on it as a matter of common good manners. Then the whole thing can be dropped. Like the ear-ring. I think the bloody thing’s still stuck in the springs of one of the arm-chairs.’
    Peter looked at me, and the way he looked gave me the first qualm. Until then I had only been anxious to clear him of any suspicion of bad temper, nothing more.
    He abruptly jerked round and looked at Lucille, then he turned to Bob Loveridge.
    â€˜ Well , if you will have it you will have it! The reason I didn’t want to empty my pockets is that I have an ear-ring I brought to show you that’s just like the one that’s disappeared.’
    We looked back at him, feeling pretty stupid ourselves, while he put his hand in his pocket and fumbled about and then took out a Swan Vestas matchbox. He put