“How many letters?”
“Six.”
“What do they threaten you with?”
“They — they don’t exactly threaten. They’re quotations from things. One of them says, ‘He that cannot pay, let him pray.’ Another one says, ‘He that dies pays all debts.’ Another one says, ‘So comes a reckoning when the banquet’s o’er.’ The others are longer, but that’s what they’re like.”
“What made you think they were leading up to blackmail?”
“Wouldn’t you? ‘He that cannot pay, let him pray.’ ”
“And you wanted Heller to identify the sender. How many times had you seen him?”
“Twice.”
“Of course you had given him all the information you could. We’ll get the letters in the morning, but you can tell us now what you told Heller. As far as possible, everything that was said by both of you.”
I permitted myself to grin, not discreetly, and glanced at Wolfe to see if he was properly appreciative of Cramer’s adopting his approach, but he was just sitting there looking patient.