“I cannot swear who it is, for there is a question in my mind.”
“How so?”
“The murdered man and the murderer were alike as two peas, and I wouldn’t say whether the Count lies up there or the actor, until the Count’s wife speaks.”
“And what think others about this?”
“Well, the actor who encountered the Countess, says the dead man is Marlowe, and he ought to know something about it; but Tug says it is the Count, and as he has a keen eye for guests when living, some respect is due his opinion on a dead one.”
“And what says the coroner?”
“Well, I’ve heard him say nothing, but he talked first with the actor, and having got the impression from him that it was Marlowe who was killed, I heard that he impaneled his jury to hold an inquest over Marlowe.”
“Ah,” said Tamworth, with a sigh of relief, thinking that the scheme had not wholly miscarried.
“Yes,” said the woman, “and with all my interest in the poor lady, who must face the coroner and tell what she knows of the murder, I am compelled to remain here.”
“Is she here?” calmly asked the lawyer.