“When was that?”
“Only three years ago. I learned then what had happened. Thomas Tingley had died in 1913, and his wife a year later. His son Arthur had married in 1912, and Arthur’s wife had died in an accident. And in 1915 Arthur had legally adopted the four-year-old boy from the charity home.”
“How did you know it was that boy?”
“I went to see Arthur. He knew the boy was his half-brother. His father, on his deathbed, had told him all about it and charged him with the child’s welfare — secretly, since at that time Thomas’s wife was still alive. Two years later, after Arthur’s wife had died, leaving him childless, he had decided on the adoption.”
“You said you had a search made for records. Did Arthur have them?”
“Yes, but he wouldn’t give them up. I tried to persuade him. I offered — an extravagant sum. He was stubborn, he didn’t like me, and he was disappointed in the boy, who had turned out a blithering fool.”
Wolfe grunted. “So you made efforts to get the records by other methods.”
“No. I didn’t.” A corner of Judd’s mouth twisted up. “You can’t work me into a melodrama. I don’t fit. Not even a murder. I knew Arthur’s character and had no fear of any molestation during his life-time, and he conceded me a point. He put the papers in a locked box in his safe and willed the box and its contents to me. Not that he told me where they were. I found that out later.”
“When?”
“Two days ago.”
Wolfe’s brows went up. “Two days?”
“Yes. Monday morning Philip called at my office. I had never seen him since he was a month old, but he established his identity, and he had copies with him of those records. He demanded a million dollars.” Judd’s voice rose. “A million!”
“What was the screw, a threat to publish?”
“Oh, no. He was smoother than that. He said he came to me only because his adopted father would allow him nothing but a pittance — he said ‘pittance’ — and had disinherited him in his will. Arthur had been fool enough to let him read the will, rubbing it in, I suppose, and the bequest of the locked box to me had made him smell a rat. He had stolen the box from the safe and got it open, and there it was. His threat was not to publish, but to sue me and my sister for damages, for abandoning him as an infant, which of course amounted to the same thing, but that put a face on it. And was something we could not allow to happen under any circumstances, and he knew it.”
Wolfe said, “So why didn’t you pay him?”
“Because it was outrageous. You don’t just hand out a million dollars.”
“I don’t, but you could.”
“I didn’t. And I wanted a guaranty that that would end it. For one thing I had to be sure I was getting all the original records, and Arthur was the only one who could satisfy me on that, and he would see me Monday. I put Philip off for a day. The next morning, yesterday, Arthur phoned me that the box was gone from the safe, but even then he wouldn’t come to my office or meet me somewhere, so I had to go to him.”
I looked up from the notebook with a grin. “Yeah, and I met you coming out. When I put that chalk—”
He rudely went on without even glancing at me. “I went to his office and told him of Philip’s demand and threat. He was enraged. He thought Philip could be brow-beaten into surrendering the box, and I didn’t. What I proposed — but I couldn’t do anything with him. He would have it his way. It was left that he would talk with Philip that afternoon, and the three of us would have it out the next morning, Wednesday — that would have been today — in his office. I had to accept—”
“That won’t do,” Wolfe said bluntly. “Don’t try any dodging now.”
“I’m not. I am telling you—”
“A lie, Mr. Judd. It’s no good. You three were to meet at Tingley’s office Tuesday evening, not Wednesday morning. And you went there—”
I missed the rest. The doorbell rang, and I went to attend to it, because Fritz wasn’t being permitted to exert himself. A peep through the glass showed me a phiz only too well known, so I slipped the chain on before I opened the door to the extent of the six inches which the chain permitted.
“We don’t need any,” I said offensively.
“Go to hell,” I was told gruffly. “I want to see Guthrie Judd. He’s here.”
“How do you know?”
“So informed at his home. Take off that damn’ chain—”
“He might have got run over on the way. Be seated while I find out.”
I went to the office and told Wolfe, “Inspector Cramer wants to see Judd. Was told at his home that he had come here.”
Judd, quick on the trigger, spoke up: “I want your assurance.”
“You won’t get it,” Wolfe snapped. “Bring Mr. Cramer in.”
I went back out and slipped the chain and swung the door open, and Cramer made for the office with me following.
After using grunts for greetings he stood and spoke down to Judd: “This is a confidential matter. Very confidential. If you want to come—”
Judd glanced at Wolfe from the corner of his eye. Wolfe cleared his throat.
Judd said, “Sit down. Go ahead.”
“But I warn you, Mr. Judd, it is extremely—”
“He has answered you,” Wolfe said. “Please make it as brief as possible.”
“I see.” Cramer looked from one to the other. “Like that, huh? Suits me.” He sat down and placed the leather bag on the floor in front of him, and hunched over and released the catches and opened it. He straightened up to look at Judd. “A special-delivery parcel-post package addressed to me by name was delivered at police headquarters about an hour ago.” He bent and got an object from the bag. “This was in it. May I ask, have you ever seen it before?”
Judd said, “No.”
Cramer’s eyes moved. “Have you, Wolfe? You, Goodwin?”
Wolfe shook his head. I said, “Not guilty.”
Cramer shrugged. “As you see, it’s a metal box with a lock. On the top the letters ‘GJ’ have been roughly engraved, probably with the point of a knife. The first thing about it is this: A box of this description, including the ‘GJ’ on its top, was left to you by Arthur Tingley in his will. The police commissioner asked you about it this afternoon, and you stated you knew nothing of such a box and had no idea what it might contain. Is that correct, Mr. Judd?”
“It is,” Judd acknowledged. “Hombert told me the will said the box would be found in the safe in Tingley’s office, and it wasn’t there.”
“That’s right. The second thing is the lock has been forced. It was like that when the package was opened. The third thing is the contents.” Cramer regarded Judd. “Do you want me to keep right on?”
“Go ahead.”
“Very well.” Cramer lifted the lid.
“Item one, a pair of baby shoes.” He held them up for inspection.
“Item two, a printed statement of condition of your banking firm. As of June 30, 1939. A circle has been made, with pen and ink, around your name, and a similar circle around the sum of the total resources, $230,000,000 and something.”
He returned the folder to the box and produced the next exhibit. “Item three, a large manila envelope. It was sealed, but the wax has been broken and the flap slit open. On the outside, in Arthur Tingley’s handwriting, is this inscription: ‘Confidential. In case of my decease, to be delivered intact to Mr. Guthrie Judd. Arthur Tingley.’ ”