"It must be true, then," muttered Durban, half to himself, "although I was never sure. But Alpenny said that he would accuse your mother of the murder unless she married him. She did so, and then died. Alpenny kept the necklace, and, being fond of jewels, he could not make up his mind to part with it even for money, of which he was equally fond. He kept it by him in this place."
"In the safe?"
"No, missy. The safe--as Mr. Alpenny, an associate of thieves, knew very well--was the first place where thieves would look. See here, missy"--Durban advanced to the wall, and pulled aside the faded red rep which hung there as a kind of arras--"here is a pocket behind this, made in the rep. The necklace was kept here, for no one would think of feeling the hangings. It was safer here than in the safe."
Beatrice examined the pocket, and admired the ingenuity of the hiding-place, which--so to speak--was so public that even the most expert thief would never think of looking here for a valuable necklace of gems. An ordinary man would have kept the jewels in the safe; but Mr. Alpenny, who must have got the hint from Poe's story of "The Purloined Letter," chose the least likely place to be searched.
"And you found the necklace here, Durban?"
"Yes, missy. I will tell you how I did. Mr. Alpenny was a member, and the chief one, of the Black Patch Gang."
"Durban! Then you wrote that paper which was on Mr. Paslow's desk?"
"I did, missy," he admitted quietly. "Mr. Alpenny, wanting all the money to himself, had several times played the Gang false. Twice he was warned, and was told that at the third warning he would be killed."
"I remember how Mr. Alpenny shivered when Vivian spoke," said Beatrice, recalling the scene; "and he spoke of the third warning."
"I was told to give him the warning," said Durban calmly; "and I wanted to make Mr. Paslow use it, in the hope that Mr. Alpenny would be frightened into consenting to your marriage with Mr. Paslow."