“Not knowing about his alibi,” murmured Ellery, “what information did you possess which made you think Jardin killed your father?”
Walter ignored him. “Today, when I thought Miss Austin was in danger, I felt I had to talk. But now? Nuts to all of you.” And he grinned.
“That’s final?” demanded the Inspector.
Walter said lightly: “You’ll have to speak to my lawyer.”
Ellery grimaced. “You’re making me do a lot of unnecessary work, Walter. Glücke, time’s a-wastin’. It’s two o’clock.”
Glücke scowled at him. The District Attorney drew him off to a corner and they conferred earnestly. Ellery joined them, waving his package as if he were arguing.
“All right,” grumbled Glücke at last. “I suppose there’s plenty of time to attend to Spaeth. We’ll look this Ruhig bird over and see where he fits in.”
“Ruhig,” said Val intensely. “You’ve told them!” Ellery looked guilty. “You know what you are? You’re a filthy traitor!”
Glücke nodded to two men, and they took places on each side of Walter. “It’s between you and Ruhig, Spaeth. I warn you right now, I’ve got two warrants in my pocket. One for you and one for Ruhig. My own hunch is you, but King seems to think we ought to give Ruhig the once-over first.”
“Come on,” said Ellery impatiently. “You’re keeping fifty million dollars waiting.”
Inspector Glücke engineered their entry into Sans Souci with artistic efficiency. Mr. Anatole Ruhig, who had been under secret police observation, had not yet made his unsuspecting appearance; but it was necessary to keep Miss Winni Moon, who was on the premises, in darkness. A hole had been hacked in the willow fence in a remote corner of the grounds; they crept through, constantly admonished to make no noise, and were led to the empty Jardin house from the far side, out of sight of the Spaeth house.
They caught Pink, purple-eyed and haggard from lack of sleep, completely by surprise. He jumped up with a foolish, trapped look, ready to fight; but when everybody ignored him and Glücke seized the earphones, he scratched his head and lit a cigaret and wandered about asking questions which no one bothered to answer. He did not see Rhys Jardin at first. When he did, the cigaret fell out of his mouth and Rhys stepped on it and punched his shoulder. After that Pink stayed close to Jardin with a pathetic tenacity.
Glücke’s men vanished, apparently pre-instructed. There was nothing to do but wait.
Val and Walter sat down on the floor and talked to each other in undertones, ignoring the others. Ellery paced up and down, smoking tasteless cigarets. Rhys Jardin leaned against a wall, and Pink helped him lean. No one said anything.
Glücke kept looking at his watch. Two-fifty. Fifty-five. Three o’clock. The earphones were dead. He glanced at Ellery with an interrogatory scowl. Three-five...
“Here he comes!”
They scrambled toward him then, listening intently.
The closing of a door.
“They’re in Spaeth’s study,” muttered Ellery, peering through the glass wall.
Mr. Anatole Ruhig’s voice grumbled through the receiver. “I’m taking a terrible chance, Winni.”
“You don’t fool me, Anatole Wuhig!” said Winni coldly. “If there’s a will, show it to me.”
“You’re a fool.”
“How do I know what you told me was twue? You said you got into the gwounds over the fence when you couldn’t find that man Fwank — I don’t even believe that. You going over a wall!”
“What’s come over you?” asked the lawyer irritably. “I thought we had this all straightened out. My two assistants were with me that first time, at five-fifteen; I knew Spaeth didn’t like to be kept waiting, so they boosted me over the wall and followed. I saw Spaeth, and he signed the new will and it was properly witnessed. Then we left.”
“Yes,” said Winni in an excited voice. “And if that’s twue, maybe you and your gangsters killed him!”
“Don’t get notions now,” said Ruhig with a dangerous softness. “I wasn’t in there more than five minutes. He had the will all made out. I was outside Sans Souci before five-thirty — had to go back over the wall, blast it; the gate was locked. When I left, Spaeth was very much alive.”
“Then why did you come back? You came back after six.”
“Spaeth told me to. There was other business he wanted to go over, and he said he expected Walter right away and wanted to talk to him alone...”
Glücke glanced up at Walter with a twisted smile. Val gripped Walter’s arm convulsively, and Walter went pale.
“Well, I think it’s a pack of lies,” sniffed Winni.
“Oh, for God’s sake. I swiped the will right out of Spaeth’s drawer when that fool Walewski and I found the body. I did it under his nose and he never knew the difference!”
“Well, show it to me, if you’re so smart. Don’t talk — just show it to me.”
“One moment,” said Ruhig’s voice, and there was a snarling quality in it that brought a queer exclamation from the invisible Winni. “What made you think I was lying to you?”
“Keep away from me. My own mind, that’s what.”
“Your mind?” said the lawyer. “Isn’t that a little boastful?” There was a silence, as if he were backing away, looking around. “I’m a gullible cluck. Come on, tell me! This wasn’t your idea, you dumb Swede!”
“If you must know,” said Winni in a frightened yet defiant little rush, “Walter Spaeth warned me!”
“It’s a plant!” yelled Ruhig.
And then everything happened at once. The receivers scratched and squealed, and there were confused sounds of toppling furniture, men’s hoarse exclamations, scuffling.
“Let’s go!” shouted Glücke, tearing the receivers from his ears. But Ellery was already sprinting around the pool in a dash for the Spaeth terrace, the long package clamped under his arm.
The Inspector scrambled after him and the others, after a stunned moment, streamed along behind.
They found Counselor Ruhig, very pallid and pasty-faced, standing lax in the grip of two detectives; and Winni lying in a faint over Solly Spaeth’s most beautifully brocaded chair.
Another detective was waving a piece of folded foolscap exultantly. “Got him with his pants down. It’s the will!”
“Tried to tear it up,” said one of the men holding Ruhig, “but we stopped that.” He shook the little man ungently.
Glücke grabbed the paper. As he was reading it, District Attorney Van Every hurried in. “Everything under control? Ah, Ruhig. Does my heart good to see you looking so gay. Let’s see that, Inspector.”
He read the paper very carefully. “Chalk up one more for Mr. King. This is getting monotonous. I’m afraid, Spaeth, this will comes a little too late to do you any good.”
“Is it—” began Val, but she could not go on.
“It’s a will properly dated, signed, and witnessed, revoking all previous wills and leaving the entire estate to Walter Spaeth.”
Winni popped out of her faint. “It’s a lie!” she screamed. “Solly left it to me!”
“I’m afraid you’re out of luck, Miss Moon.”
“But I owe thousands to the dwess shops!” she wailed, jumping up and down. She glared spitefully at Val. “Now she’ll get it — that sawed-off, pink little wunt!” And she collapsed in the chair again in another faint.
Van Every shrugged, and Glücke said with a smack of his lips: “This gives us about all we need, Van. Motive’s all clear now. And Ruhig’s testimony that Spaeth told him he was expecting his son jibes perfectly—”
“I’ll make a deal,” jabbered Ruhig. “Forget this business and I’ll testify I saw Spaeth—”