a young lady, sir.”
Campbell’s eyes twinkled. “If I were you I’d be in the foyer now.
What’s stopping you?” I got up. “It’s probably a mistake,” I said,
thinking that it almost certainly wasn’t. “Excuse me.” There were
several people in the foyer including more than one young lady, but no
one approached me. I crossed to the desk and said, “My name’s
Trevelyan. I understand someone wants me.” The clerk pointed with his
pen, indicating that I should come into the office behind the desk.
The young lady was waiting all right, and I did know her, in a way; she
was the singer who had been entertaining us in the lounge.
“I’m Trevelyan. You wanted to speak to me?” She was nervous, I could
see that. She was rather slight and looked, at close quarters, a
trifle undernourished, with hollows under her dark eyes and a skin more
weathered than tanned. There was an appealing quality about her – I
think the best word would be winsome. I was intrigued
“I’m sorry to trouble you – I saw your name in the register but I
wondered if you were any relation of Mark Trevelyan?
From Tahiti?” “He was my brother,” I said. “I’m Michael.
Obviously you know Mark.”I didn’t know if she knew of his death and I
felt it would be unkind to throw it at her without warning.
She nodded, gripping her hands together. “Yes, I knew him, very
well.
Have you just come from England?” “Yes.” “Do you know his – wife?”
“Yes.”
“Did she get the suitcase I sent?” I stared at her now. “Well, I’m
damned! I thought you were a man. So you are P. Nelson.” She smiled
and some of the tension left her. “Yes – Paula Nelson. Then the case
did arrive all right?” “It arrived, thank you,” I said. I didn’t say
that it had been stolen immediately afterwards because I didn’t know
just where this girl stood in the complexity of Mark’s affairs. But I
could try to find out.
“Miss Nelson, what about coming into the lounge and having a drink with
me and my friends? We’re all of us interested in Mark and in what he
was doing out here.” She shook her head. “Oh, I couldn’t do that, Mr
Trevelyan.
I’m one of the hired help around here – we’re not supposed to drink
with the customers. The manager says this isn’t a clip joint.”
Her nervousness now seemed to include a fear of the manager’s imminent
wrath.
I said gently, “Perhaps we could go somewhere else, if you’ve the
time.
I would like to talk to you.” She looked at her watch. “I could spare
half an hour. Then I’ve got another stint in the lounge. If you’ll
wait while I get my wrap?” “It’ll be a pleasure.” I thought of
sending a message back to the others but decided against it. I didn’t
have to account to them for all my actions. We went to a small bar a
little way down the street, I bought a couple of drinks and we settled
down in an alcove.
The bar was deserted except for a solitary drinker. I said, “You’re an
American, aren’t you?” “Yes. And you’re from – Cornwall.
You talk the same way Mark did. I used to tease him about that
sometimes.” Which of course put their relationship on a firmer
footing.
“Where did you meet him?” “In Tahiti. I was working a little joint in
Papeete. Mark used to come in with his sidekick, and we got pretty
friendly.” “Who was his sidekick?” “A Swedish guy, Sven someone. But
this was, oh, maybe two years ago when we first met.”
About the time he left Campbell, I calculated. I said, “I’m interested
in how Mark came to die. Can you tell me anything about it – if it
doesn’t distress you too much.” “Oh, that’s all right,” she said, but
it was a tremulous voice.
“I can’t tell you a lot. He died of appendicitis out in the Paumotus
didn’t you know that?” “Yes but how did you know?” “I didn’t believe
it at first, but they let me see the death certificate.” “Who are
“they”?
Who told you in the first place?” “A schooner came in with the news.
And I went down to the Government bureau to see the proof.
You see, I thought he might have – just gone away.” “Did the doctor
come to Papeete himself, the one who operated on Mark?” She shook her
head.
“Not much point, was there? I mean, it’s over two hundred miles and
he’s the only doctor out there.
He wouldn’t leave just to bring the news back.” This clashed with
Kane’s story; according to him the doctor had dealt with the
certificate and the authorities. Or had he? I thought back to what
Kane had said – that he and his partner, Hadley, had left it all to the
doctor. Perhaps it only meant sending the papers back on the next
convenient transport.
I said, “Did you know the men on the schooner?” She was silent for a
bit and then said, “Why are you asking me all these questions, Mr
Trevelyan?” “I could say out of natural interest in the death of my
only brother, but I won’t,” I said deliberately. “I think there’s
something very odd about the whole affair.” As I said it I suddenly
wondered if she was a plant – one of the spies of Ramirez of whom
Campbell so often warned me. If so I’d already dealt a hand I should
rather have hidden, and I felt cold at the thought. But it was very
hard to imagine this girl as a crook’s agent.
“You think he was murdered, don’t you?” She asked flatly.
I tightened my lips. Time for a quick decision, and I thought that I
may as well continue. It was already too late to do otherwise.
“You think so too, Miss Nelson?” There was a long pause before she
nodded.
“Yes,” she whispered, and started to cry. I felt better, for some
reason she was ruining her makeup, and surely no spy would do that, not
just before making a public appearance?
I let her run on for a little while then took her hand in mine.
“You were living with Mark, weren’t you?” “Yes, I was. Oh God, I
loved him,” she said. She was so intense, her grip tightening, that I
felt I must believe her.
IL “Were you happy with him?”I asked. “Was he good to you, Miss
Nelson?” Amazingly, a smile appeared. “Oh, I was. Please – don’t
call
me Miss Nelson. My name is Paula.” “And I’m Mike.”
We were silent for a few moments, then I said, “What really happened,
Paula?” She said, “I suppose it all started when Sven was killed-‘
“Norgaard? Killed!”
“Yes. He was found out on the reef, outside Papeete, with his head
bashed in. At first everyone thought it was the sea – it comes in with
tremendous force against the reef. They thought he’d been washed off
his feet and had his head smashed on the rocks. Then-I don’t know
exactly how-they decided he’d been murdered. It was something to do
with what the police surgeon found.”
I nodded grimly. “Then what happened?” “The police were asking
questions and they came to Mark.
He said he knew nothing about it, but it didn’t seem to worry him.” I
took a deep breath. “Paula, do you think that Mark killed Sven?” She
hesitated, then shook her head violently. “No, it couldn’t have been
Mark. I know he could get very angry even violent – but he couldn’t
have killed Sven. They were partners.” I had experienced some of
Mark’s violence, in my younger days.
“Paula, did he ever hit you?” She looked down at the table, nodding.
“Sometimes – but I’m hell to live with. I’m untidy and sloppy about
housework.
I’m-‘ She laughed, but the laugh broke off on a sob and tears rolled
down her cheeks. I was appalled.
“What happened then?” “Mark ran away. He ran from the police. I
don’t mean literally, not the day they spoke to him, but that night he
disappeared from Tahiti. And then we heard that he was dead I’ve
already told you exactly how that was.” “Who brought the news of his
death – in that schooner?” “It was a man called Hadley he brought the
news. He said that he and his partner had found Mark dying out in the
islands.” She had the look of nervousness back, and I thought that it
may have been caused by her mention of Hadley.
But I had more important things to think about. This was the break
this was the evidence that showed Kane to be a downright liar.
There could have been an honest mistake about the death certificate,
but not about this. Kane had told me that he and Hadley had left