THE BLUE DAFFODIL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22193, 21 August 1935, Page 21

THE BLUE DAFFODIL

By FRIED M- WHITE Author of " The Secret of tt« River." u UBtHe INlgnt CJtpress. Dwesnwu.

(COPYRIGHT)

3UICKLY-MO VINCi LOVE AND MYSTERY NARRATIVE

CHAPTER Xn.—(Continued)

Medway stopped just long enough to 'iake p. whisky and soda beforj departing on his final errand that nifthfr. But it ras a much longer job than the first, it being long after the midnight hour tiefore J led way ran ihe man Tanberg to earth jn his luxurious flat rhe Rumanian eyed him with oper luspicion, and his Cand moved mechanically toward a drawer in the table b;fore which le was sitting. If Medway had come with ii warrant for the other's arrest the visit would have ended in tragedy, and the policeman made a mental note accordingly. " I wanted to see you conc2ruing that gold c up of yours, the one yo l handed to Mi. Garnstone an hour or so before he died, and which you thought must be in his safe." *' Very little doubt about lihsit," Tantferg replied. "J handed it to him in the lounge of the Regal Palate on the night in question when he told me he was en his way home." "Does that mean you sole, it to hiM?'' Medway asked. " Well, more or less. We had a bit of an argument about the pr ce so we left it for further discussion. As Mr. Ganwtone was a man to bo 1 rusted, I let him have the cup which he took, Baying he wait going straight home. As you Imow, only one pdhson saw him alive afterward. " Bather lucky for you thjit no money Passed,'}/ Medway smiled in his most pleasant manner; "though, come to think of it, ihe might have i;iven you a cheque." " I tell you no money passed," Tankerg snarled. Medway duly apologised. But one thing he had discovered —s? far the Lettcns had made no attempt to get in touch lyith Tanberg over the matter of that sheaf of banknotes. Probably the™ never would since the gang engaged on the abortive robbery was in gaol by this time so that it might bo inferred that they had been paid in advance for » raid that had nnver come off. The Leftons would be charged with breaking and entering, and tie stealing ®'f a cqr so that the money found on c6uld he legitimately c, aimed by B ™e trusted relative, seeing that no charge could arise out of the possession of so much pajier mon>y. MoretlV3r i thev might bring suborned witnesses to prove that the Leftons had Permission to use that car ind make 'Tee of the garage. All this flashed tarongh Med way's mind. „ w^ e Pi it's like this," lie went on. We are opening Mr. Garnstone's safe •o-n>orroj* r at three o'clock, and I want •'®u p" there to identify \ our prop'B inside." in ~ you are," Tar burg cried. Lount tri€i in." It was Tanberg who was the last to ■rrire at :;he appointed tine next day. *»• appeared to be some nil at taken «oack when he caught sigh':; of Lord i en day, as Medway did not fail to note, fhen lie proceeded to open the ««{> arid look inside. There was only one article there —a 'ignincent gold cup richly decorated ana with a monogram in brilliants. Tannnc"d vv 'th a smile oil his face. t My cup," he 10 itt anywhere." I hen there must be s, pair of tnoiu, 1 Glenday «aid in colt tones. "Before I handle that cup let me tell vejybody h cre that I bot gi:it it from ■ dealer in Amsterdam u year ago. "»inT purchase a treasure like that

I invariably have my private mark stamped on'it. Mr. Medway, if you will look at the foot of the cup insido you will see there my initials under a Maltese cross together with the date of purchase. If I am wrong, then I have no business here and will take my ea " 6 rhe cup is mine," Tanberg shouted. " But Lord Glenday is perfectly correct," Medway pointed out, "for here are the marks he indicated. Jn the face of that what more is there to be said?" " Nevertheless I still claim my property," Tanberg growled. " In which caso the police will retain it," Medway said with a finality that spoke of authority. " There may be some litigation over this treasure." All this time Vera had been looking on in fascinated astonishment. She sidled up to Ronald and whispered in his ear. " Darling, they are both wrong," she said breathlessly The cup is mine. I recognised it instantly. It is part of the treasure stolen from our summer palace near Batoum. That monogram was that of my ancestress, Olga Zaroff, who lived 150 years ago. What shall we do about it?" " Nothing for the present," Ronald whispered." CHAPTER XIH. Medway did not fail to note the difference between the two men before him in their reactions to the matter of the gold cup The millionaire icily cold and sure ot his ground, Tanberg in a suppressor' fury at the dramatic turn of events. Despite the man's undoubted good looks and social gloss, despite his perfectly-cut morning suit, he was a sorn figure by the sjde of Lord Glenday. Try as he would to carry it out with a swagger, the brooding suspicion darkened his eyes as if he were some wild animal suspecting a trap. "As you like," he said thickly. "It is all the same to me. There is some infernal trickery here, and I warn you, Lord Glenday. I shall not take it lying down." "As yon will, sir,'' he said. "Meanwhile matters must be left in the hands of the police And, with that, let mc wish you all a terv good afternoon." With a bow tor Vera, Glenday stalked out, followed a moment later by the discomfited Tanberg Brentford turned to Vera. "You had better fell Mr. Medway everything," he suggested. Thereupon Vera told her tale. "That cup is really mine," she said. "1 have not had it in my hands since it was taken from the safe, but I can tell you every detail of it."

"Better make sure before we go any further," Med way suggested. "Take the cup in vour hand, Miss Goff." "Tt is hardly necessary," Vera declared as she turned the treasure over in her hand "Yes, this is mine. Note those flowers in enamel round the rim. Those represent the daffodils that used to gro*v in Southern Russia. They are interwoven into our coat of arms, but why I don't know. It is almost a compliment to call them blue, as they are a sort of pale mauve. Mr. Brentford can tell you all about that." "I can, ' Ronald interposed. "1 brought some of the bulbs home for Mr. Garnstone, and from them he evolved the real Blue Daffodil of which you know." ,: 'Oh, yes, 1 know all about that," Medway smiled. "It seems to me that

the Blue Daffodil is going to play a star part in the tragedy we have to Bolve. And that man Tanberg could tell us a whole lot if he could be induced to speak." "You think he was involved in the murder?" Ronnie asked. "Well, I won't go as far as that. But of one thing there can't be a shadow of doubt. After that cup was stolen from Lord Glaaday it passed into the hands of Tanberg, though innocently or not it is impossible to say. All the same, there is something wrong about that chap." "Wrong!"' Vera cried. "He is a villain of the worst possible type. He owed everything to my father, who raised him from the gutter." "What a good thing he does not recognise you,' Medway said. "That would have spoilt everything." "I feel quite easy on that score," Vera said "There has been no recognition." "But where does all this lead?" Brentford asked. "I wish I could tell you," Medway lamented "But one thing is very certain. Tanberg knew chat the gold cup was in Mr Garnstone's possession at the time he was murdered. My theory is that the cup was handed over to Garnstone not before but after the money changed hands. Then Tanberg had an idea He'd got the money, and thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the cup again. Hence his appearance at Scotland Yard. Then Tanberg came here to bluff it out, being certain that the cup was in the safe. And he might have got away with it if the safe could have been opened there and then When I talked the matter over with him he seemed to put all his cards on the table, but there must hare been an ace or two up his sleeve. However, one fact 1 can prove beyond a doubt. Tanberg did not tell me himself, but i have actually in my possession £2OO in notes, which passed from Tanberg to a shady confederate. Mr. Garnstone drew them with others from the bank on the morning of his death.' "Can't you arrest him on that?" Ronnie asked.

"I could, of course, but 1 don't want to. The fellow's audacity is so colossal that sooner or later he will make some slip, and then my turn will come. There are men of his type so clever that they regard all the rest of the world as fools, and I am sure that Tanberg thinks he is fooling me." Medway went away presently with a view to learning something of his prisoners down East. He wanted to interview the elder Lefton in the dread surroundings of the prison cell. . But that was not to be, for the simple reason tha* th<* Leftons had been before the Bench that morning, and released on bail which was immediately forthcoming, so that the wily pal? of Jews were free to do as thev liked for the next seven days. Medway fairly boiled over when be heard of thin Now the Leftons would lose ii(i tim.> in getting in touch with Tanberg, if they had not already done so. In which case, some cunning tale would be hatehed to account for the possession ot the bank notes. There was onl\ one thing for it—both the Leftons and Tanberg must be carefulv watched. It might even be possible to get on to their meetingplace and hear something of their conversation Meanwhile something had to be don"Put me on to 0072 City," he said. "See if Lord Glenday is still in his office. If so, I want a word with him." It. being barely four o'clock, Lord Glenday was still in his office and alone for a few moments. "What I want to know," Medway said, "is the name of the man or firm from whom you purchased the gold cup." "Oh. then you are sure that it is mine ?"

"By purchase—ves I am quite satisfied as to that " "Well, I bought it in Amsterdam. Hold on a moment, and I will refer to my private diary, where 1 have a number of addresses where 1 have made purchases. . . . Here you are. Paul Nester, 105. Pester Avenue, Amsterdam. 1 paid £IOOO for the cup, which is worth ten times that amount. One of the very best bargains T ever made. Anything more?" r There being nothing further to be said, Med way rang off. A few moments later he was on to the police headquarters at Amsterdam. Did the authorities there know anything concerning an art dealer, one Paul Nester, who carried on business at 105 Pester Avenue, in that city? Amsterdam did not, but would make inquiries and let Mr. Medway know. At the end of an hour the reply came. Paul Nester was no longer in business, his shop had changed hands, the present owner knowing nothing of his predecessor. Nester had vanished owing much money, and had never been seen since. There was no criminal charge against him, so that the police had not been called upon to interfere Tt was not very helpful All the same, it was very much as Medway had expected. He had meanwhile given instructions to have both the Leftons and Tanberg carefully watched, and shortly after seven o'clock the first report came in. "Speaking from a call office, sir," a voice said. "Mr. Tanberg has just left his flat. Johnson is following him. He is shabbily dressed, and wearing a beard and glasses. But I spotted hiin from his walk. Sort of swagger, get-out-of-my way. You will hear from Johnson presently." But the clock was striking 10 o'clock before the voice of Johnson drifted in over the telephone. " That you, sir?" the voice said. "Johnson speaking. 1 have been relieved -by Making. At present Tanberg is inside a pub at Wapping. Shatlv sort of place off Nightingale Lane. Been raided twice, and the landlord warned. Went inside. 1 did, and ordered a drink. Tanberg in the bar evidently waiting for somebody Anything more T can do, sir ?"

" Yes," Mod way said, " describe the pub. Any ploee where one could hide? What is the pub called?" The shady house of call was the Two Cows situated next to a yard where some sort of carpentry went on. There were two or three sheds there in which to lie " pordn " if necessary. The landlord's name was Geary; he was under suspicion of beinc coneerned in a iob lately brought off in Kent.

Med way rapidly made up his mind. Ho would pay a visit to this publichouse and spy out the land for himself Moreover, lie would go with a warrant iii his pocket for the arrest of the mati Goarv on a charge of burglary. Some sort of disguise would be needed, and this Med way proceeded to don. When lie had done he presented a perfect presentment of a drunken loafer out of work. A police car carried him as far as Nightingale f<ane, where he alighted and went the rest of the wav on foot.

His luck was evidently in, for the first person lie recognised there was Janberg> And all the easier because of his disguise. The Rumanian sat by himself, seeming to have little use for the rest of the company. He scowled from time to time as he glanced at the clock over the bar, and" the flash of anger grew in his eves as the elder Lofton crept into the room. " Been long enough about it," he growled. " J have boon here for ages. Why didn't you come before?" " My dear, it wasn't safe," Lefton said ingratiatingly. " It wasn't quite safe. 1 had the feeling that ] was being followed. So T come the long way round." " Well, let's got on with it. J can't stay here all night.'' (To be continued daily)