the first man,” Shayne told him harshly, “to find that an investigation like this generally drags out a lot of dirty linen. But this is a private investigation. I may do a lot of digging, but I’m only interested in results.”
Mr. Lomax nodded unhappily. “There’ll be an inquest into Katrin’s death, I presume.”
“Sure. But it’ll be rather perfunctory as long as we don’t turn up anything to upset the suicide theory.”
“I don’t know what you think. It’s hard to understand young people nowadays.”
Shayne repeated, “I’m only interested in results. I’ll take a look at that safe now, if you don’t mind.”
“By all means,” he replied. He opened the door on the left and Shayne followed him into a spacious bedroom.
A wainscoting of unvarnished knotty pine some five feet high ran all around the room with white-painted walls above it. One huge painting hung directly across from the door, depicting a buck and a doe and a fawn against a background of snow and spruce. The furnishings were massive antiques, and a delightful piney smell filled the room.
Lomax turned to a miniature painting on the wall to the right as they went in. Removing it, he showed Shayne the small barrel safe and began turning the dial to open it.
An electric light came on when the door opened. Shayne looked into the cylinder and saw several small jewel boxes and a long metal box such as valuable papers are kept in.
He waited while Lomax opened each of the boxes for his inspection, then said, “I guess that’s all,” and started toward the door.
Mr. Lomax detained him by saying, “If I should decide to waive all claim against your company, is there any way you could arrange to have the money paid to my wife so she’d think it came from the company?”
Shayne frowned down at his bony, bloodless face. “You mean if you paid us the money—for us to pay over to her?”
“That’s what I mean—yes. I’m sure she would not agree to dropping the matter without payment.”
“That would take some thinking over,” Shayne answered. “And”—his voice hardened—“there’s still the Katrin Moe angle. You can’t buy that investigation off.”
Mr. Lomax’s body stiffened with dignity. “I hardly meant—to buy you off.” He moved toward a door with a thin veneer of knotty pine on the inside, saying, “We’ll go out this way.”
Shayne went ahead of him and jerked the door open. He walked into a moment of utter silence in the living-room; a strained silence that comes when a group has been discussing persons who appear unexpectedly.
Eddie Lomax was leaning over his mother as though he had been arguing with her. Clarice was leaning against the mantel with an expression of cold disdain on her young face.
Shayne turned to Mr. Lomax and said, “I’ll have a talk with your chauffeur before I go.”
“Yes. I’ll ring for him.”
“I’d prefer to talk to him in his own quarters,” said Shayne.
“I think he’s down in his workshop,” Eddie told them.
“Then you show Mr. Shayne the way down, Eddie,” his father said.
Shayne nodded to the ladies and thanked them for their co-operation. He said to Lomax, “I’ll get in touch with you later,” and followed Eddie out.
CHAPTER FIVE
SHAYNE picked up his coat and hat from the hallway and went with Eddie toward the rear of the house. Away from his parents, the boy’s sneering defiance departed. Twice he looked at Shayne with his mouth open as though he was about to say something, but went on silently.
They passed a large dining-room and Eddie turned through a butler’s pantry off the kitchen into a passageway leading to a side entrance. He stopped beside a solid wooden door on the right and indicated it with a shrug.
“That’s a stairway going down to the basement where Neal has his shop. But we can’t use it. We have to go out the side door and around.”
Something in his tone made Shayne look at him sharply.
“Why can’t we use the
Mr. Lomax nodded unhappily. “There’ll be an inquest into Katrin’s death, I presume.”
“Sure. But it’ll be rather perfunctory as long as we don’t turn up anything to upset the suicide theory.”
“I don’t know what you think. It’s hard to understand young people nowadays.”
Shayne repeated, “I’m only interested in results. I’ll take a look at that safe now, if you don’t mind.”
“By all means,” he replied. He opened the door on the left and Shayne followed him into a spacious bedroom.
A wainscoting of unvarnished knotty pine some five feet high ran all around the room with white-painted walls above it. One huge painting hung directly across from the door, depicting a buck and a doe and a fawn against a background of snow and spruce. The furnishings were massive antiques, and a delightful piney smell filled the room.
Lomax turned to a miniature painting on the wall to the right as they went in. Removing it, he showed Shayne the small barrel safe and began turning the dial to open it.
An electric light came on when the door opened. Shayne looked into the cylinder and saw several small jewel boxes and a long metal box such as valuable papers are kept in.
He waited while Lomax opened each of the boxes for his inspection, then said, “I guess that’s all,” and started toward the door.
Mr. Lomax detained him by saying, “If I should decide to waive all claim against your company, is there any way you could arrange to have the money paid to my wife so she’d think it came from the company?”
Shayne frowned down at his bony, bloodless face. “You mean if you paid us the money—for us to pay over to her?”
“That’s what I mean—yes. I’m sure she would not agree to dropping the matter without payment.”
“That would take some thinking over,” Shayne answered. “And”—his voice hardened—“there’s still the Katrin Moe angle. You can’t buy that investigation off.”
Mr. Lomax’s body stiffened with dignity. “I hardly meant—to buy you off.” He moved toward a door with a thin veneer of knotty pine on the inside, saying, “We’ll go out this way.”
Shayne went ahead of him and jerked the door open. He walked into a moment of utter silence in the living-room; a strained silence that comes when a group has been discussing persons who appear unexpectedly.
Eddie Lomax was leaning over his mother as though he had been arguing with her. Clarice was leaning against the mantel with an expression of cold disdain on her young face.
Shayne turned to Mr. Lomax and said, “I’ll have a talk with your chauffeur before I go.”
“Yes. I’ll ring for him.”
“I’d prefer to talk to him in his own quarters,” said Shayne.
“I think he’s down in his workshop,” Eddie told them.
“Then you show Mr. Shayne the way down, Eddie,” his father said.
Shayne nodded to the ladies and thanked them for their co-operation. He said to Lomax, “I’ll get in touch with you later,” and followed Eddie out.
CHAPTER FIVE
SHAYNE picked up his coat and hat from the hallway and went with Eddie toward the rear of the house. Away from his parents, the boy’s sneering defiance departed. Twice he looked at Shayne with his mouth open as though he was about to say something, but went on silently.
They passed a large dining-room and Eddie turned through a butler’s pantry off the kitchen into a passageway leading to a side entrance. He stopped beside a solid wooden door on the right and indicated it with a shrug.
“That’s a stairway going down to the basement where Neal has his shop. But we can’t use it. We have to go out the side door and around.”
Something in his tone made Shayne look at him sharply.
“Why can’t we use the
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