The Anatomy of Deception - Lawrence Goldstone [136]
I took a breath, tried to calm myself, and related, in as scientific a tone as I could muster, what I had heard from Monique. I then reminded the Professor of what Halsted had told us earlier and how the two stories must be inconsistent. “Dr. Osler,” I said in conclusion, “Dr. Halsted lied. He did perform an abortion on Rebecca Lachtmann. The abortion went bad because Turk withheld drugs, not because Dr. Halsted had taken them. After Halsted perforated her bowel, Turk suffocated her on the table, and then made arrangements to dispose of the body. Dr. Halsted almost certainly then poisoned Turk to cover the crime.”
“Your evidence would be persuasive,” the Professor said, “if not for the fact that the fulcrum for this entire theory is the word of a prostitute.”
“The woman’s profession would surely work against her veracity,” I rejoined, “save for the fact that she has no motive whatever to be untruthful, whereas Dr. Halsted has every motive.”
“Who can tell what motives these people have?” the Professor retorted. “Frankly, Ephraim, it is difficult for me to think of this as in any way constituting ‘proof.’ You have made a grievous mistake in accusing Dr. Halsted once. It is only because you are young and passionate that he was willing to overlook the insult. I would, if I were you, be extremely hesitant in making the same mistake again.”
“Dr. Osler,” I began, “does it seem credible to you that Farnshaw would become involved in something so disgusting? There was no reason for him to do so. He certainly was not in need of funds.”
“True. But even if Farnshaw is innocent, that in no way means that Halsted is guilty.”
“But if Farnshaw is innocent, how can we let him sit in jail?”
The Professor shook his head. “We have no way of knowing whether Farnshaw is innocent or guilty. All we know is that a seemingly likeable young man from a very good family has gotten himself involved with some highly disreputable associates. Before we burst into a police station, telling Sergeant Borst his business—behavior, if on the other shoe, we would find quite offensive—I think we must have more to go on than the word of a prostitute….”
I was about to interrupt, to tell him about the other journal, when the Professor put up his hand. “But I’ll tell you what, Ephraim. I’ll sleep on it. It is far too late to accomplish anything tonight in any case. Come here first thing in the morning. We can resolve this then. That is fair, surely.”
The Professor sat across from me, thoughtful and reasoned. What he proposed was indeed fair and, as it was unlikely that anything could be achieved before morning, also made complete sense. We should, after all the bungles and false conclusions, move carefully. Yes, it was all very reasonable, except for one small fact.
At that moment, I knew—knew beyond any doubt—that the Professor was lying. He had been lying from the beginning. There had been no Elise Légér, or if there had been, she bore no physical resemblance to Rebecca Lachtmann. He needed the fabrication to cover his recognition of Rebecca Lachtmann, and he could only have known of Rebecca’s fate from one source.
I rose stiffly and agreed to follow the course he had suggested. Evidently, however, I did not lie as well as he did. He fixed his eyes upon me in a manner that I had never seen before—not even as he watched Burleigh murder a patient in the operating theater.
“Don’t do it, Ephraim. Halsted is too important. Thousands of lives—literally thousands—are at stake. It doesn’t matter what he’s done. It matters only what he will do. He will alleviate suffering on a scale comparable to few men in history. If you cut short his life, it will be a crime against the human race.”
“You talk of thousands of lives, Dr. Osler. What of the one? What of Farnshaw, who will hang although innocent?”
“Farnshaw will not hang,” he said. “We will get him out of prison, I assure you. It will be only a few days … but in the meantime, we must not sacrifice Halsted.”
“Then you know Farnshaw is innocent?”
“I know he is innocent