Sherlock Holmes In Montague Street Volume 2 by David Marcum Read Free Book Online

Everybody was in bed but Miss Garth and myself, and she had been down to the dining-room for something. Mr. Holford was asleep, so as I wanted to re-fill the water-bottle, I took it up and went. As I was passing the door of this room that we are in now, I heard a noise, and looked in at the door, which was open. There was a candle on the table which had been left there earlier in the evening. Miss Garth was opening the top right hand drawer of that bureau” - Mrs. Turton stabbed her finger spitefully toward the piece of furniture, as though she owed it a personal grudge - “and I saw her take out a blue foolscap envelope, and as the flap was open, I could see the enclosed paper was white. She shut the drawer, locked it, and came out of the room with the envelope in her hand.”
    â€œAnd what did you do?”
    â€œI hurried on, and she came away without seeing me, and went in the opposite direction - toward the small staircase.”
    â€œPerhaps,” Mr. Crellan ventured at a blurt, “perhaps she was walking in her sleep?”
    â€œThat she wasn’t!” the nurse replied, “for she came back to Mr. Holford’s room almost as soon as I returned there, and asked some questions about the medicine - which was nothing new, for I must say she was very fond of interfering in things that were part of my business.”
    â€œThat is quite certain, I suppose,” Holmes remarked, “that she could not have been asleep?”
    â€œQuite certain. She talked for about a quarter of an hour, and wanted to kiss Mr. Holford, which might have wakened him, before she went to bed. In fact, I may say we had a disagreement.”
    Holmes did not take his steady gaze from the nurse’s face for some seconds after she had finished speaking. Then he only said, “Thank you, Mrs. Turton. I need scarcely assure you, after what Mr. Crellan has said, that your confidence shall not be betrayed. I think that is all, unless you have more to tell us.”
    Mrs. Turton bowed and rose. “There is nothing more,” she said, and left the room.
    As soon as she had gone, “Is Mrs. Turton at all interested in the will,” Holmes asked.
    â€œNo, there is nothing for her. She is a new-comer, you see. Perhaps,” Mr. Crellan went on, struck by an idea, “she may be jealous, or something. She seems a spiteful woman - and really, I can’t believe her story for a moment.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œWell, you see, it’s absurd. Why should Miss Garth go to all this secret trouble to do herself an injury - to make a beggar of herself? And besides, she’s not in the habit of telling barefaced lies. She distinctly assured us, you remember, that she had never been to the bureau for any purpose whatever.”
    â€œBut the nurse has an honest character, hasn’t she?”
    â€œYes, her character is excellent. Indeed, from all accounts, she is a very excellent woman, except for a desire to govern everybody, and a habit of spite if she is thwarted. But, of course, that sort of thing sometimes leads people rather far.”
    â€œSo it does,” Holmes replied. “But consider now. Is it not possible that Miss Garth, completely infatuated with Mr. Mellis, thinks she is doing a noble thing for him by destroying the will and giving up her whole claim to his uncle’s property? Devoted women do just such things, you know.”
    Mr. Crellan stared, bent his head to his hand, and considered. “So they do, so they do,” he said. “Insane foolery. Really, it’s the sort of thing I can imagine her doing - she’s honor and generosity itself. But then those lies,” he resumed, sitting up and slapping his leg; “I can’t believe she’d tell such tremendous lies as that for anybody. And with such a calm face, too - I’m sure she couldn’t.”
    â€œWell, that’s as it may be. You can scarcely set a limit to the lengths a woman will