The Hippopotamus Pool - Elizabeth Peters [102]
‘It is true,’ Evelyn exclaimed. ‘We found it in Miss Marmaduke’s room, in a boot. Oh, dear. Take a glass of water, Radcliffe, please.’
Emerson waved it away. ‘You – you two – you searched . . . Good Gad!’
‘It was necessary, Emerson,’ I assured him. ‘Do you suppose I would have committed such a flagrant breach of good manners unless I had felt I must?’
The flush of fury faded from Emerson’s cheeks. His lips twitched. ‘A hit, Peabody, a palpable hit,’ he said. ‘And very neatly done, too.’
‘Then you concede, Emerson?’
‘I owe you one for that,’ Emerson muttered. ‘I will be damned if I will concede anything, Peabody, until I know precisely what I am conceding.’
‘You are only making one of your little jokes, Professor,’ said Nefret. ‘You know as well as I do what the ring means. Miss Marmaduke is a spy and a member of the gang who murdered Mr Shelmadine! He may have been a lunatic, but he was not harmless. He was killed in order to prevent him from giving you information his rivals did not want you to have.’
Ramses cleared his throat. ‘There is another explanation which –’
‘Ramses,’ I began ominously.
‘. . . which I am sure must have occurred to Mother and which she refrained from mentioning only because she was teasing you a little, Father, and was waiting for you to propose it yourself.’
‘Propose it,’ said Emerson, glancing at me.
‘Yes, sir. I am sure you suspected from Miss Marmaduke’s remarks one evening at dinner that she might be a follower of Madame Blavatsky and the Theosophists. Her reactions to the subjects I proceeded to introduce confirmed that impression. The mystical Hebrew book called The Kabbalah and the beliefs of certain Hindu sects are part of the philosophical foundations of Theosophy.’
‘We have already established that she is a believer, Ramses,’ I said impatiently.
‘Ah,’ said Ramses, ‘but – as you are of course aware – another essential tenet of that dogma is the belief in reincarnation. “This life” is only one of many, and an individual’s behaviour in this incarnation affects future lives. It is surely more than a coincidence that the man who visited you in Cairo claimed to be the reincarnation of an ancient Egyptian priest. We cannot be certain that the ring Mother found was the same one Mr Shelmadine showed her. There may be two or more of them, insignia worn by members of a secret Theosophical society. If that is the case, Marmaduke and Shelmadine would have been acquainted, but not necessarily for criminal purposes. As yet,’ Ramses finished, ‘there is not enough evidence to substantiate this hypothesis, but it is as reasonable as any other, as I am sure you would all agree.’
Emerson returned his gaze to me. We looked into one another’s eyes. Our lips parted. We spoke as one.
‘I was about to propose that hypothesis myself.’
‘It was on the tip of my tongue.’
‘It wasn’t on mine,’ Nefret admitted. ‘But it is plausible, and it is substantiated by Signor Riccetti’s statement that there are those who would aid us if they could. If the Theosophists are as harmless and high-minded as Ramses says they are –’
‘High-minded individuals are much more dangerous than criminals,’ Emerson growled. ‘They can always find hypocritical excuses for committing acts of violence.’
He had the last word. The servants began serving dinner; some of them understood English and it seemed advisable to drop the subject.
Except for confirming my story, Evelyn had said very little. I was anxious to hear her theories, for I had come to have considerable respect for her ability at ratiocination. However, it had been a long hard day for her and Walter, and I decided they had better go directly to bed after we finished our coffee. As Evelyn followed her limping spouse towards their room I presented her with a bottle of liniment.
‘It is obvious from the way he moves that Walter has not been on horseback for months, Evelyn. He will be stiff as a mummy tomorrow morning if you don’t use this. Rub it in well, especially on the – er – lower limbs.’
She thanked me and bade