‘Did she strike you as the secretary type?’
‘No.’
‘Do you think she had anything to do with Dedrick’s kidnapping?’
‘I doubt it. She seemed genuinely startled when I told her. And, besides, why did she come back here after Dedrick had been taken away if she knew?’
‘That’s right, Malloy,’ Brandon said, and gave me a foxy smile. ‘You’re on the right lines. She seemed upset, uh?’
‘That’s right.’
He sat farther down in the chair, stared up at the ceiling and rolled thoughts around in his mind. After a while, he said, ‘Now, look, Malloy, I want you to get this straight. When the Press are told about this snatch there’s going to be a lot of publicity and excitement. Dedrick’s wife is an important woman. She’s more than that: she’s a household name. And another thing, she’s got a lot of powerful friends. You and I could step off with the wrong foot if we’re not very careful. I’m going to be careful, and you’re going to do what you’re told.’
I looked at him and he looked at me.
‘It’s my bet this Jerome girl is Dedrick’sa mistress,’ Brandon went on. ‘It sticks out a mile. He comes down here to rent this house. Mrs. Dedrick stays in New York. We don’t know much about this guy, Dedrick. We haven’t had much time since this broke, but we’ve already done a little digging. The wedding was secret. These two met eight weeks ago in Paris, and got married. Old man Marshland, Mrs. Dedrick’s father, wasn’t told until the two of them arrived at his house in New York as man and wife. I don’t know why the marriage was secret unless Dedrick isn’t anything to shout about, and she thought it would be better to present him to Marshland as her husband and not as her husband-to-be. I don’t know, and it’s not my business. But it looks as if Dedrick was playing along with another woman, and this woman is Mary Jerome. It is pretty obviously they intended to spend the night together here, only Dedrick got kidnapped before he could stop her turning up. The facts fit together. You can see why she didn’t want to be questioned by the police, so she pulled a gun on you and cleared off before we turned up, and I don’t mind telling you, I’m glad she did clear off.’
He waited to see if I had anything to say, but I hadn’t. I thought it was likely he was right. The facts, as he had said, fitted together.