WE ARE TO LEAD HIM. But the Soho house is under police supervision night and
day. There are several men watching it. When we enter that house, Mr. Brown
will not draw back–he will risk all, on the chance of obtaining the spark to
fire his mine. And he fancies the risk not great–since he will enter in the
guise of a friend!”
Tuppence flushed, then opened her mouth impulsively.
“But there’s something you don’t know–that we haven’t told you.” Her eyes
dwelt on Jane in perplexity.
“What is that?” asked the other sharply. “No hesitations, Miss Tuppence.
We need to be sure of our going.”
But Tuppence, for once, seemed tongue-tied.
“It’s so difficult–you see, if I’m wrong–oh, it would be dreadful.” She
made a grimace at the unconscious Jane. “Never forgive me,” she observed
cryptically.
“You want me to help you out, eh?”
“Yes, please. YOU know who Mr. Brown is, don’t you?”
“Yes,” said Sir James gravely. “At last I do.”
“At last?” queried Tuppence doubtfully. “Oh, but I thought—-” She
paused.
“You thought correctly, Miss Tuppence. I have been morally certain of his
identity for some time–ever since the night of Mrs. Vandemeyer’s mysterious
death.”
“Ah!” breathed Tuppence.
“For there we are up against the logic of facts. There are only two
solutions. Either the chloral was administered by her own hand, which theory I
reject utterly, or else—-”
“Yes?”
“Or else it was administered in the brandy you gave her. Only three people
touched that brandy–you, Miss Tuppence, I myself, and one other–Mr. Julius
Hersheimmer!”
Jane Finn stirred and sat up, regarding the speaker with wide astonished
eyes.
“At first, the thing seemed utterly impossible. Mr. Hersheimmer, as the
son of a prominent millionaire, was a well-known figure in America. It seemed
utterly impossible that he and Mr. Brown could be one and the same. But you
cannot escape from the logic of facts. Since the thing was so–it must be
accepted. Remember Mrs. Vandemeyer’s sudden and inexplicable agitation. Another
proof, if proof was needed.
“I took an early opportunity of giving you a hint. From some words of Mr.
Hersheimmer’s at Manchester, I gathered that you had understood and acted on
that hint. Then I set to work to prove the impossible possible. Mr. Beresford
rang me up and told me, what I had already suspected, that the photograph of
Miss Jane Finn had never really been out of Mr. Hersheimmer’s possession—-”
But the girl interrupted. Springing to her feet, she cried out angrily:
“What do you mean? What are you trying to suggest? That Mr. Brown is
JULIUS? Julius–my own cousin!”
“No, Miss Finn,” said Sir James unexpectedly. “Not your cousin. The man
who calls himself Julius Hersheimmer is no relation to you whatsoever.”
CHAPTER XXVI
MR. BROWN
SIR James’s words came like a bomb-shell. Both girls looked equally
puzzled. The lawyer went across to his desk, and returned with a small newspaper
cutting, which he handed to Jane. Tuppence read it over her shoulder. Mr.
Carter would have recognized it. It referred to the mysterious man found dead
in New York.
“As I was saying to Miss Tuppence,” resumed the lawyer, “I set to work to
prove the impossible possible. The great stumbling-block was the undeniable
fact that Julius Hersheimmer was not an assumed name. When I came across this
paragraph my problem was solved. Julius Hersheimmer set out to discover what had
become of his cousin. He went out West, where he obtained news of her and her
photograph to aid him in his search. On the eve of his departure from New York
he was set upon and murdered. His body was dressed in shabby clothes, and the
face disfigured to prevent identification. Mr. Brown took his place. He sailed
immediately for England. None of the real Hersheimmer’s friends or intimates
saw him before he sailed–though indeed it would hardly have mattered if they
had, the impersonation was so perfect. Since then he had been hand and glove
with those sworn to hunt him down. Every secret of theirs has been known to
him. Only once did he come near disaster. Mrs. Vandemeyer knew his secret. It
was no part of his plan that that huge bribe should ever be offered to her. But