Free Death at Hallows End by Leo Bruce Page A

police, I said, because it looked a valuable car and couldn’t stop there forever.”
    â€œWhat did he say to that?”
    â€œâ€˜Stonegate,’ he said, ‘you will be sorry to hear my poor uncle died during the night and I’m too upset to bother about a car left in the road.’ I said I was sorry to hear about his uncle, though as a matter of fact I’d never seen the old gentleman, who stopped at home for the most part. Then Holroyd said, ‘If you think you should, ring up the police straight away. Yes, that would be best. You go along to the house and phone.’ So that’s what I did and if I hadn’t of done, it might have been another day before the police knew there was something funny going on. Did you say anything?”
    â€œNo. No. Please continue.”
    â€œThe inspector at Cashford congratulated me on what he called my prompt action and sent Gallup the constable at Hallows End to see what it was all about. I don’t think much of Gallup, he’s too fond of pushing his nose in where it’s not his business, but I told him what I knew all the same. ‘You’ve done very well, Stonegate,’ he said, ‘and I must go and telephone to headquarters and report the whole matter.’ So that’s how I came to be recognised as the lastman to see this chap alive and the first to inform the police. That’s what the papers have been on at me for.”
    There was another unexpected interruption from his daughter.
    â€œOh, show him your picture in the
Swanwick Reporter
and have done with it,” she said. She was evidently tiring of the whole thing and the self-importance it had given her father.
    â€œLet’s see. Which one’s that? Ah, yes, I know the one you mean.”
    â€œThere’s only been the one,” said Doll to Carolus. “He’s been watching all the other papers but it never come out.”
    â€œTell me, Mr. Stonegate,” began Carolus, heading off a possible quarrel, “did you gather from the questions the police asked you that they suspected you of knowing more than you said?”
    â€œWhatever do you mean?” asked Stonegate.
    â€œThat’s what
I
said,” put in Doll with some animation. “The way they kept on you’d have thought they suspected Dad of doing away with the man himself!”
    â€œNow you keep out of this, my girl,” said Stonegate. “And talk of something you know about.” He turned to Carolus. “I don’t know what you’re getting at, but the police was never anything but complimentary with me. As they ought to be.”
    â€œI didn’t mean that. I am sure they were very polite. But did they ask you any questions about your own movements? Did they ask what you did on the Monday evening after you’d seen the man in the car?”
    â€œWell, just to complete their records they had to, didn’t they? Of course I took no offence and told them straight out. I’d come home from work feeling ill and I went to bed straight off, didn’t I, Doll?”
    â€œHow am I to know what you did? You know very well I was staying with Frede over at Swanwick that night.”
    â€œI went straight to bed,” said Stonegate loudly, “and stayed there. There was nothing to get up for and I had a nasty chill.”
    â€œYou was better next day when I got home,” said Doll sulkily. “Well enough to eat the best part of a steak and kidney pudding, anyway. Then telling them all about your being the last to see the man alive. You hear what this gentleman says? You may not have been. He may have been dead as mutton when you saw him. And if he wasn’t he may be alive now, for all you know. Where would you be then with your ‘last to see him alive’? I hope he does turn out to be.”
    â€œSo do I,” said Carolus heartily. “There are just a few more things I’d like to ask you, Mr. Stonegate.