“How the hell do you get that way?” Bertha said. “Bursting into my office and—”
“Take it easy, Bertha. Don’t scream. Your office is open to the public. I dropped in. I’d been out at Belder’s house just checking up on a few details. I talked with Mrs. Goldring, who’s naturally much concerned over the whole affair, and is trying to convince me there’s some reason for her daughter’s absence. A reason that isn’t connected with the death of Sally Brentner. Trying to think back over recent events in order to see if there wasn’t some clue to her daughter’s disappearance, Mrs. Goldring remembered that there had been two letters in the mail marked Personal and confidential. She suggested that we might go through the mail, find them, and see if they offered a clue. We did it. We found only one of the envelopes.”
“I didn’t feel like taking the liberty of opening Mrs. Belder’s mail, but I saw no reason why we couldn’t hold the envelope up to a strong light and see what was inside. I arranged a cardboard funnel, put it over a hundred-and-fifty-watt light, held the envelope over the funnel and saw that the envelope contained only the advertisement of a furrier. A little closer inspection convinced me that the envelope had been opened. I remembered there had been two poison-pen letters; that you tried to hold one out on me; that you didn’t have the envelope it came in. Mrs. Goldring was much put out because she couldn’t find the letter that had come this afternoon marked Personal and confidential. Putting two and two together, I thought I might make a guess as to where the envelope might be, and where Everett Belder might be. I come up here and find you grouped around a teakettle, brewing tea with no tea-cups, no teapot, and no tea leaves.”
“Now, Bertha, as one detective to another, what would you think if you were in my position?”
“Oh, hell,” Bertha said wearily to Belder. “Let him in on it.”
“That’s better,” Sellers grinned. “After all, Belder, I’m protecting you as far as your mother-in-law is concerned. I haven’t told her anything about that second letter. Incidentally, you’ll probably be interested to know that your mother-in-law thinks you’d been having an affair with Sally, either got tired of her, or Sally was standing in your way, keeping you from taking on another mistress. She thinks you got rid of her and she’s beginning to have a horrible suspicion that you may have made away with your wife.”
“Made away with my wife!” Belder shouted. “Made away with Mabel! Good God! I’d give my right hand if I could locate her right now. Bertha can tell you that I’m putting across a deal that—”
“Shut up,” Bertha interrupted. “He’s just trying to get your goat to make you start talking. That’s an old police trick, playing you against your mother-in-law, and your mother-in-law against you.”
“Why stop him from talking, Bertha? Is he concealing something?”
“A fat chance anybody stands of concealing things with you opening purses, breaking into offices, and egging his mother-in-law into hysterics. Hell, no! All I’m trying to do is to keep his mouth shut so you can’t run back to the mother-in-law and tell her what Belder said about her.”