Free 1954 - Mission to Venice by James Hadley Chase Page B

the people Carl has been to see have seen John. He couldn’t have done any work here.”
    “Do you know where he is staying in Paris?”
    “The Chatham Hotel. We asked him to write, but he hasn’t. We shall be going to Paris as soon as Carl has completed his business here. We hope to see something of him then. I will tell him I met you. I know he will be disappointed he missed seeing you.”
    “I’m sorry, too,” Don said. He wondered if he should tell Maria what he knew about Tregarth, but decided not to. “Did he visit your factory before coming to Venice?”
    She shook her head.
    “He usually does, and when he does, he stays with us, but this trip, he wrote to say he wasn’t coming so far, and he hoped he would see us in Venice.”
    “Did he seem worried when you first met him here or did the worry develop later?”
    “It developed later. He was at the station to meet us and he seemed in good spirits then. We thought he would be staying at the Gritti where Carl always stays, but he said he was staying with friends. He didn’t say who they were. We all had dinner together, and we arranged to meet the next morning. Something must have happened during that night and the following day He didn’t meet us, but just as we were leaving for the party, he came to the hotel. He said he was leaving for Paris immediately and would we go with him to the station. It was then we both saw how agitated he was.”
    “And you haven’t heard from him since?”
    “No.”
    “How do you know he is staying at the Chatham Hotel? Did he tell you that was where he intended to stay?”
    “Yes. He said he would probably be in Paris for ten days, and would we join him at the Chatham when Carl had completed his business here.”
    “Well, I shouldn’t worry about him,” Don said, smiling. “He’ll probably tell you about it when next you meet.”
    “I hope so,” she said seriously. “We are both very fond of him and it worries us.”
    Don turned the subject. He began to point out the various places of interest as the gondola drifted through the rio, but his mind was busy as he talked.
    It would be easy enough to find out if Tregarth was at the Chatham Hotel. What if he were? Don didn’t relish a journey to Paris, but he had Hilda Tregarth’s letter to deliver and if Tregarth was in Paris, he would have to make the journey. But was he? If he had left Venice as Maria said he had, why all the excitement the previous night? Why had Don been followed? Why had Louisa Peccati been murdered? The only explanation Don could think of was that Tregarth had found he had to drop out of sight. He had told Maria and Carl he was going to Paris and had taken them with him to guard against attack. He had boarded the train, but had got off at the next station, returned to Venice and had hidden himself in that broken down house in Calle Mondello. In this way, he had hoped to shake off his watchers - probably the thickset man and the man in the white hat. But they hadn’t been fooled. They had found out Louisa Peccati knew where he was, tortured her until she told them, and then had gone to 39 Calle Mondello. Had they found him or had he escaped again? Was that the explanation?
    “Will you come back to the hotel and lunch with us?” Maria asked, breaking in on his thoughts.
    As much as Don would have liked to accept the invitation, he knew he couldn’t waste any more time. He had a lead and he had to follow it up. Besides, it was probable Giuseppe had news for him.
    “I’d like to very much, but unfortunately I have a lunch date.” He looked at his wristwatch. “I’ll have to get back now, if I’m not going to be late.”
    “Perhaps tomorrow, then?” she said. “I’ve so enjoyed my morning.”
    “I’ll give you a call at the hotel,” Don said, knowing it was unlikely he would have the time to keep a date with her. They walked together to the Gritti Palazzo.
    “Thank you, Don, for giving me such an interesting morning,” Maria said