Crewe, on regaining his car, found Marsland leaning against it, contemplating the scene before him with indifferent eyes. He nodded briefly to the detective, and then averted his eyes. Crewe explained his intention regarding the car, and Marsland said he might as well go down with him. He got up into the front seat with the same listlessness that had characterized his previous actions, but did not speak again till they reached the farm.
At the house Crewe and Marsland met Detective Gillett, who had gone there to store his bicycle preparatory to watching the operations of the fishermen searching for the body.
“I have had a pretty busy time since you came along to us last night,” he said, referring to the visit of Crewe and Marsland to Ashlingsea police station to report the fall of Brett over the cliff. “We got the money—£12,000 altogether. There was £8,000 in the motor-boat and £4,000 here in the bottom of the old clock case, as you said.”
“What about the girl?” asked Crewe. “Was she there?”
Detective Gillett looked in the direction of Marsland before replying.
The young man, with the same air of detachment that had marked his previous actions, had wandered some distance down the gravel-walk, and was carelessly tossing pebbles from the path at some object which was not apparent to the two men in the porch.
“I found her searching along the cliffs with a lantern,” said Gillett, in a low voice. “She was looking for Brett; she told me that she had heard a scream and she thought he must have fallen over accidentally. I didn’t enlighten her. Poor thing, she is half-demented. She has got it into her head that she is responsible for some document or paper which Brett had given into her safe-keeping, and which she handed back to him last night at his request before he went to the farm to look for the money.”
“Doesn’t she know what is in the paper?” asked Crewe quickly.
“Her mind is in such a state that it is useless to question her. She keeps repeating that it was to be opened in the event of his death. It was only after great difficulty I ascertained from her that she had given the paper back to Brett last night. I am anxious that Brett’s body should be recovered in order to ascertain what its contents are.”
“I should think the girl would have a fair idea of the contents.”