III
It was on the following day that
Inspector1 Neele had another interview
with Miss Mary Dove.
“I wonder, Miss Dove,” he said, “if you’d give me a cheque for five hun-
dred pounds
payable2 to Mrs. Percival Fortescue.”
He had the pleasure of seeing Mary Dove lose
countenance3 for once.
“The silly fool told you, I suppose,” she said.
“Yes.
Blackmail4, Miss Dove, is rather a serious charge.”
“It wasn’t exactly blackmail, Inspector. I think you’d find it hard to make
out a case of blackmail against me. I was just doing Mrs. Percival a special
service to oblige her.”
“Well, if you’ll give me that cheque, Miss Dove, we’ll leave it like that.”
Mary Dove got her cheque book and took out her fountain pen.
“It’s very annoying,” she said with a sigh. “I’m particularly hard up at
the moment.”
“You’ll be looking for another job soon, I suppose?”
“Yes. This one hasn’t turned out quite according to plan. It’s all been
very unfortunate from my point of view.”
Inspector Neele agreed.
“Yes, it put you in rather a difficult position, didn’t it? I mean, it was
quite likely that at any moment we might have to look into your ante-
cedents.”
Mary Dove, cool once more, allowed her
eyebrows5 to rise.
“Really, Inspector, my past is quite blameless, I assure you.”
“Yes, it is,” Inspector Neele agreed, cheerfully. “We’ve nothing against
you at all, Miss Dove. It’s a curious coincidence, though, that in the last
three places which you have filled so admirably, there have happened to
be robberies about three months after you left. The thieves have seemed
Curious coincidence, isn’t it?”
“Coincidences do happen, Inspector.”
“Oh, yes,” said Neele. “They happen. But they mustn’t happen too often,
Miss Dove. I dare say,” he added, “that we may meet again in the future.”
“I hope”—said Mary Dove—“I don’t mean to be rude, Inspector Neele—
but I hope we don’t.”
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