“Why not?”
“I am very much concerned that whatever I do say won’t seem to be an accusation; yet I feel it is something that should be discussed.”
“Do you, by any chance, want me to do the discussing?” Bertha asked with a sudden flash of inspiration.
“That’s right, Mrs. Cool.”
Bertha said, “I’m good at that.”
“It’s a field in which my weakness is deplorable,” Milbers admitted.
Bertha, regarding him speculatively, said, “Yes, I can imagine — if the housekeeper is of a certain type.”
“Exactly,” Milbers agreed, separating his fingertips and bringing them together again at regular intervals. “She’s precisely that type.”
“Now, there was a letter about one five thousand dollars in cash. How about the other five grand?”
“That was because my cousin wished to attend an auction of some rare books. His sickness prevented him from doing so. His bank, however, confirms the five thousand withdrawal. As I compute it, Mrs. Cool, my cousin had — must have had — ten thousand dollars in his wallet at the time of his death.”