`No. Nobody — at least, so I thought — knew of it, and I saw no reason for unusual precautions. It was merely in a drawer of my desk.'
`What about the members of your household? Did they know of it?'
Sir William jerked his head down in a sort of bow. 'I'm glad you asked that, Hadley. Don't think 'I shall take um brage at the suggestion; but I couldn't make it myself. At least — not immediately. Naturally I don't suspect them; ha!'
'Naturally,' said the inspector, placidly. `Well?'
'At the present, my household consists of my daughter Sheila, my brother Lester, and his wife. My nephew by marriage, Philip, has a flat of his own, but he generally eats Sunday dinner with us. That is all — with the exception of one guest, Mr Julius Arbor, the American collector.'
Sir William examined his finger nails. There was a pause.
`As to who knew about it,' he resumed, waving a careless hand; `my family knew that I had brought back a valuable manuscript with me, of course. But none of them is in the least interested in such matters, and the mere words, "another manuscript," was sufficient explanation.!
'And Mr Arbor?'
Sir William said, evenly: `I had intended to show it to him. He has a fine collection of Poe first editions. But I had not mentioned it.!
'Go on,' said Hadley, stolidly.