The Daffodil Mystery | Page 5

nice girl----"
Thornton Lyne shot a suspicious glance at him.
"You have no particular reason for wishing to shield Miss Rider, have
you?" he asked coldly.

"No, sir, not at all. I beg of you not to think that," appealed the agitated
Mr. Milburgh, "only it seems so--extraordinary."
"All things are extraordinary that are out of the common," snapped
Lyne. "It would be extraordinary if you were accused of stealing,
Milburgh. It would be very extraordinary indeed, for example, if we
discovered that you were living a five-thousand pounds life on a
nine-hundred pounds salary, eh?"
Only for a second did Milburgh lose his self-possession. The hand that
went to his mouth shook, and Tarling, whose eyes had never left the
man's face, saw the tremendous effort which he was making to recover
his equanimity.
"Yes, sir, that would be extraordinary," said Milburgh steadily.
Lyne had lashed himself again into the old fury, and if his vitriolic
tongue was directed at Milburgh, his thoughts were centred upon that
proud and scornful face which had looked down upon him in his office.
"It would be extraordinary if you were sent to penal servitude as the
result of my discovery that you had been robbing the firm for years," he
growled, "and I suppose everybody else in the firm would say the same
as you--how extraordinary!"
"I daresay they would, sir," said Mr. Milburgh, his old smile back, the
twinkle again returning to his eyes, and his hands rubbing together in
ceaseless ablutions. "It would sound extraordinary, and it would be
extraordinary, and nobody here would be more surprised than the
unfortunate victim--ha! ha!"
"Perhaps not," said Lyne coldly. "Only I want to say a few words in
your presence, and I would like you to give them every attention. You
have been complaining to me for a month past," he said speaking with
deliberation, "about small sums of money being missing from the
cashier's office."
It was a bold thing to say, and in many ways a rash thing. He was

dependent for the success of his hastily-formed plan, not only upon
Milburgh's guilt, but upon Milburgh's willingness to confess his guilt.
If the manager agreed to stand sponsor to this lie, he admitted his own
peculations, and Tarling, to whom the turn of the conversation had at
first been unintelligible, began dimly to see the drift it was taking.
"I have complained that sums of money have been missing for the past
month?" repeated Milburgh dully.
The smile had gone from his lips and eyes. His face was haggard--he
was a man at bay.
"That is what I said," said Lyne watching him. "Isn't that the fact?"
There was a long pause, and presently Milburgh nodded.
"That is the fact, sir," he said in a low voice.
"And you have told me that you suspected Miss Rider of defalcations?"
Again the pause and again the man nodded.
"Do you hear?" asked Lyne triumphantly.
"I hear," said Tarling quietly. "Now what do you wish me to do? Isn't
this a matter for the police? I mean the regular police."
Lyne frowned.
"The case has to be prepared first," he said. "I will give you full
particulars as to the girl's address and her habits, and it will be your
business to collect such information as will enable us to put the case in
the hands of Scotland Yard."
"I see," said Tarling and smiled again. Then he shook his head. "I'm
afraid I can't come into this case, Mr. Lyne."
"Can't come in?" said Lyne in astonishment. "Why not?"

"Because it's not my kind of job," said Tarling. "The first time I met
you I had a feeling that you were leading me to one of the biggest cases
I had ever undertaken. It shows you how one's instincts can lead one
astray," he smiled again, and picked up his hat.
"What do you mean? You're going to throw up a valuable client?"
"I don't know how valuable you're likely to be," said Tarling, "but at
the present moment the signs are not particularly encouraging. I tell
you I do not wish to be associated with this case, Mr. Lyne, and I think
there the matter can end."
"You don't think it's worth while, eh?" sneered Lyne. "Yet when I tell
you that I am prepared to give you a fee of five hundred guineas----"
"If you gave me a fee of five thousand guineas, or fifty thousand
guineas, I should still decline to be associated with this matter," said
Tarling, and his words had the metallic quality which precludes
argument.
"At any rate, I am entitled to know why you will not take up this case.
Do you know the girl?" asked Lyne loudly.
"I have never met the lady and probably never