“The Anderley Affair”

Taranaki Daily News, 6 June 1930, Page 14

“The Anderley Affair”

By

JOHN LAURENCE

“Tried Oster’s pockets?” asked Sir Henry. “He’s very well worth searching,”. “Don’t try to be funny,” growled Arnheim.

“The situation is too serious to be funny,” retorted the other. ‘“Besides I never am funny when I’m tied to a chair.”

“What do you think they’ll find on me?” said Oster. “The maps you stole?” “No, the maps you stole, Oster. The maps you took; from me when Entleman and Arnheim were down in the garage. I was gagged to prevent me talking, not to prevent me calling for help.”,-7/ r : ■■... Arnheim looked • with sudden suspicion at Oster, and the latter laughed. He had foreseen that very statement on the part of Sir Henry Anderley. Under cover of the darkness as he had entered the hall with Arnheim and the bound man, he had dropped the maps into the big ornamental vase near te door as Arnheim had turned to close it. Neither the latter, nor Sir Henry had seen his action, so swift had it been. "y • ;

On the drive from Victoria Oster had-planned exactly what he would do, for it was obvious that his only chance of safety from his companions was to keep them from getting suspirious. And he realised, too, that with a quickwitted man like Arnheim if would not do to leave him for a moment, for in that moment, Arnheim would argue, if he believed Sir Henry, the papers could be hidden.

Arnheim, now, was prepared to swear that he had never taken his eyes from his companionsince they had entered the door of the walled garden. “You’re a fool, Arnheim, if you’re going to begin straight away by believing that story,” he said easily. “Don’t you see what he’s trying to do—divide us? As long as we are together he knows he won’t gefc much out of us. Divided—” He stopped and shrugged his shoulders.

“Nevertheless, if you search him you will be able to set your minds at rest,” said Sir Henry with a smile. “Oster will betray you just as easily as he lied to you about leaving Newdigate. I haven’t got a car to tour about the country so all that. He didn’t want you to follow him, that’s why he disabled your car. Instead of following me, I followed him. I sat behind him iu his car all the way to Victoria.”

The other two looked at Oster uneasily. They did not want to suggest searching him, but the seeds of suspicion had been sown in their minds, and they felt uneasy. They hadn’t the slightest doubt that Oster would throw them over if there was any danger, but it was a different thing being suspicious and demanding that they should have the right to turn out his pockets. Oster had a revolver, and he knew how to use it. .

While they sat there hesitating, however, Oster solved the difficulty in their minds himself. He stood up and held his arms above his head.

“Search me, Entleman,” he said, curt-

ly. . There was a sneer on his face as the other accepted the invitation at once. “Suspicious, pair of devils, aren’t you?” he said viciously. “Nice pair you will be to rely on.” ‘“Sorry, Oster,” replied Iris companion, with, no trace of sorrow on his face. “I’m not taking any risks.”

“Nor am I,” said Oster. '“Satisfied?” he added as Entleman' finished. The latter*, turned away and shook ■his fist in'his rage in Sir Henry’s face.

“If you know any more funny tales,' keep them to yourself,” ha growled. ‘.‘What have you done with them ?”. “If Oster hasn’t. got them/-,” began Sir Henry, when Entleman, in a blind rage struck him in the face and cut short the remainder of his words. “Stow that!’’ he cried furiously. “Cut it right.out!" Sir Henry looked at him calmly. Inwardly he was seething, and even Entleman would not have cared to have seen that rage burst forth if he had been free from his bonds. Entleman might have had the grip of a gorilla, but he would have..been helpless against one of the best amateur boxers in England.

..“I can give you the facts,” he said quietly, “but I can’t giNe you the sense to make use of them. Oster’s got ten times your brains, Entleman, and if he hasn’t got the maps on him now it is for the simple reason that he has got rid of them sipce he entered tha house.

“Perhaps Mr. Sherlock Holmes can tell us where?” said Oster with a sneer. “He knows this house as well as we do, and the hiding places in it better perhaps.” . Again Entleman raised his hand, but Arnheim made no sign. Ho was thinking hard, wondering if Anderley’s story were true. If it were he could think of no time when Oster could have got rid of the maps, save when he was sitting in the back of the car. And to have left them in tho car was absurd, for even Oster would not have the nerve to go down to the garage when a full description of the car would be in the hands of every garage in London by tho morning. “You’re playing for time, for some reason or other, Anderley,” he said slowly. “You can’t think when Oster was out of your sight, eh?” said Sir Henry. 1 “That has been puzzling me, I’ll admit. They were certainly on him when he helped to carry me into the house, and they are certainly not on him now. All right, Entleman, you listen first and hit mo when I’ve finished.”

Entleman’s great fist had closed again as though about to strike him. “Let’s work it out,” continued Anderley easily. He might have formed one of a quiet party of three by the way ho was talking, and he certainly was the calmest of the three. He looked at Oster while he was speaking, and saw in the other’s eyes a growing fear. “What’s the of wasting tiiue on this fool ?” he said suddenly. “He evidently won’t talk. May as well gag him and get down to our own business. It won’t be safe hero much longer.” | it was a false move, and Arnheim drove home the nail in his coffin.

“Let him go, on,” ,he said. “Five minutes won't make any difference one -way or the other now.” “The onlv time Oster released his

hold on me,” continued Anderley confidently, “was when he put me down in the‘hall. You did not strike a light because you were afraid someone might see what places there are there. The umbrella stand, that big vase winch stands there. Yes, the big vase.” Ho repeated his words with a ring of triumph in them. If he could divide the three against themselves he would probably gain the time for which he was fighting. He had wondered ever since they had left Randock Mews what had happened to prevent his message being acted upon. Every minute he could gain would mean, a greater chance of the house on Putney Hill being raided. “Look at Oster’s face if you don’t believe me, Entleman,” ho cried sharply. “And then look in the big vase.” There were beads of perspiration on Oster’s face and ho tried to speak calmly. “It’s a trick of some kind,” he said hoarsely. “A trick to make us quarrel. I’ll calf his bluff.”

He began to move towards the door, and then as Arnheim jumped up he backed towards it and threw up his hand. In it was his revolver.

“Stay where you are, Arnheim,” he ordered. “And you, Entlemap. Keep your hands away from your pockets, or by heaven I’ll drill you both!” Slowly he edged his way back to the door, groping along the wall and never taking his’eyes from his companion. “Yes, I’vo ben a damned sight too clever for you,” he continued. “Let me recall what you said at Ncwdigate, my dear Entleman. You were going to run for .it, if I recollect rightly. And Arnheim with you, eh? Go while the going was good, I think was your exact phrase. Well, you can stay hero till I’ve gone, you pair of white-livered swine. Followed me to Randock Mows, eh? Much good you have, done yourselves. The next —”

Entleman jumped suddenly to one side and then took a flying leap as Oster’s revolver sent a bullet crashing into the wall, but a fraction - of an inch behind the other’s head. The next instant Arnheim had fired and Oster’s revolver went spinning to the floor as his wrist dropped helplessly and a thin red streak dropped over tho back of his hand.

With a bellow of insensate rage Entleman’s arms closed round him'.

“Got you, you treacherous hound!” he shouted. “You’ll pay for this!" With a twist Oster crooked his foot round the other’s ankle and the two went crashing to the floor as the door was suddenly flung open. “Up with them. Drop that, Arnheim,” ■came an order in authoritative tones.

Arnheiin’s jaw dropped in sheer terror and surprise. Standing in the doorway was John Chalmers, and behind him were half a dozen men, among them Rithcrdale, of the Monitor, and an inspector in uniform. The only man who gave trouble was Entleman. It took the united efforts of three of Chalmers’ men to break him away from Oster and to put a pair of handcuffs on him.

“I’ll kill you for this!”, he roared and then swung round and glared at one of the men holding him. ' . “What’s the charge?” he cried furiously. “At present that’s up to Inspector Haynes,” replied Chalmers pleasantly, nodding to a man in uniform who was just entering the room. “You are charged with being accessories before and after the fact of the murder of Ronald Oakes,” said the inspector.