“What did you do with them subsequently?”
“I returned them to my safety-deposit box on Monday at noon.”
“Anyone know of that transaction?”
“Not a soul.”
“So you are the only person able to attest that you ever had any intention of paying that money to Mrs. Bellamy?”
“Well, whom do you want better?” inquired Pat Ives agreeably.
Mr. Lambert bestowed on him an enigmatic smile that was far from agreeable. “Did this sum represent a substantial portion of your capital?”
“It certainly would be no exaggeration to say that it made a large dent in it.”
“You say that it had taken you a long time to decide to pay it?”
“A moderately long time—two months.”