Evening star., 1939-05-07
THIS WEEK MAGAZINE

think Ian kllleI Ellen Inc rest Vi
me snarled back, he couldn't have
killed her, he isn't that sort. In all the
years I've known him, he's never been
anything but decent and honest and
unselish. Would that kind of man
kill Ellen?
But he hated her, they hated each
other: you knew that the instant you
saw them together last night, the
bluebottle buzzed at me. Persons that
hate can kill. He was outside the
house twice last night. Suppose he
killed her then and put the body into
the turtle deck of the coupe, took it to
the park when we went to hunt her?
In the fifteen minutes you took to
cover the northern path, he could
have been carrying the body to the
spot where we found it later.
told myself that would have been
impossible, that he couldn't have
dovetailed all the things he'd have
had to do in the little time he had.
The bluebottle said, it would have
been possible. And did he look grief
stricken this morning or-just afraid!
showed out of my seat and past a
fat man at the end of the row. When
l got outside, l said in my throat.
Damn you. Dan didn't do it. |
wouldn't have believed it if I'd seen
it and you're a swell louise to even let
it enter your mind. I'm never going
to think about it, never"
And, of course. that did about as
much good as saying was going to
Jump up in the air and not come down.
1t must have been in my eyes, my
face. behind everything did and said.
Dan jumped up from the kitchen
table where Id dished out canned
beans and some bread and butter and
coffee. His mouth was working; the
lines around his lips were etched deep
He slammed his fist on the table and
glared at me. He shouted, why don't
you say it?'
A voice that didn't sound like mine
said. Say what?'
You think killed her, don't you?"
didn't say anything. couldn't.
Dan said, My friend, my loyal pal"
The words came out in spite of me,
huskily. you hated her, Dan saw
how you hated her."
He sat down again and the fire was
suddenly gone out of him, leaving him
Just bitter He said, "Yes, we hated
each other. Marriages sometimes work
out like that. Ray But didn't kill
her and l didn't think I'd ever have to
tell you didn't; prove to you that l
couldn't have killed her"
You don't. Dan"
''Yes, l do. D'you think I'd let
you - or any man - 60 on thinking
that about me? Look now - where
was | from the time Ellen left the
house until the storm hit?"
You were here, of course"
''All right Now l went out of the
house once to put away some garden
tools and another time to put the car
in the garage. wasn't gone more than
three or four minutes either time.
Could l have gone to the park, killed
Ellen and come back in that time?"
Listen. Dan, you don't have to"
Shut up for a moment, Ray. We
made certain that Ellen was killed
where we found her and that it hap
pened before the storm"
II didn't know that"
Dan said, Little things told us
that, things a copper learns to read.
Her purse and the body were wet from
the rain That meant she was killed
either before or during the storm.
But the ground under the purse and
the body was dry and so were her
clothing and the purse where they
weren't exposed. So it happened right
where we found her. There were other
things "a shrub broken of where
she'd been showed along and the break