The Mystery of the Magic Circle - M. V. Carey [40]
Madeline Bainbridge looked quickly at the first page. “An exact copy of the manuscript that is upstairs in my room,” she said. “How tiresome of you, Marvin, to copy my manuscript and sell it. Didn’t you know you couldn’t possibly get away with it? Sooner or later I’d have found out.”
There was a step on the front porch, and the doorbell buzzed.
“That will be Jefferson Long,” said Madeline Bainbridge. “Would you let him in, Clara?”
Clara Adams darted out of the living-room. She returned in a few moments with Jefferson Long walking behind her. Long’s face was stoney as he looked at the group in the room. He bowed to Madeline Bainbridge.
“I didn’t know you were having a party this evening,” he said.
“The first one in years,” said Madeline Bainbridge. “Do sit down while our young friend here — his name is Jupiter Jones, and I think you’ve met — tells us why Marvin Gray copied my manuscript and sold it to Mr. Tremayne. He then arranged to have it stolen. At least, I imagine that’s what happened.”
“That’s precisely what happened,” said Jupiter. “Here’s the story. A certain amount of it is speculation, but I think we’ll be able to verify it.
“Some time ago, Marvin Gray happened to run into Charles Goodfellow, alias Harold Thomas, in an Indonesian restaurant called the Java Isles. At this meeting, Gray learned that Goodfellow was employed by a book publishing firm. Gray has a nimble brain, and it occurred to him that he could copy the memoirs which Miss Bainbridge was writing, sell the manuscript to Goodfellow’s employers, then either bribe or blackmail Goodfellow into stealing the manuscript to prevent its publication.
He wanted to prevent publication because Miss Bainbridge was almost ready to find a publisher herself, and it would never do to have two publishers preparing to bring out the memoirs of the same actress.
“Gray thought he could pocket the advance that is usually paid to an author upon delivery of a manuscript. Once the counterfeit manuscript was destroyed, he could stall Beefy Tremayne for a while, and then perhaps sell the true manuscript to Beefy all over again. He was counting on the fact that Beefy would feel terribly guilty about losing the first manuscript.
“Goodfellow agreed to go along with Gray. He didn’t want Gray to expose him to his employers as a person who once tried to steal a necklace from Madeline Bainbridge. First Goodfellow set Amigos Press on fire, hoping to destroy the manuscript. When he learned that he had failed, he went to Beefy’s apartment and stole the manuscript. I am sure he used keys which he had duplicated from the set in Beefy’s desk. I think we’ll find that duplicating keys is a habit with Goodfellow, and that he had keys to the pharmaceutical firm where he used to work. That’s where he got the magnesium that he used to construct the incendiary device that started the fire. Magnesium is used in Pharmaceuticals. It was foolish of him to plant magnesium in William Tremayne’s jacket pocket when he took the manuscript. He went too far when he did that.”
Madeline Bainbridge looked up. “What about the theft of my films?” she said to Jupiter. “The counterfeit manuscript was nothing compared to that theft. They’ll get a quarter of a million dollars for that one!”
“The thieves collected the ransom for the films late this afternoon, Miss Bainbridge,” said Jupiter. “It was on the news at six o’clock. Video Enterprises left a package containing two hundred and fifty thousand dollars in small bills in a parking lot near the Hollywood Bowl. They were advised by telephone a short time later to recover the films from a van parked in Bronson Canyon.”
Madeline Bainbridge looked surprised. “That’s wonderful, but … but Marvin was home this afternoon!
“Marvin Gray wasn’t involved in the theft of the films,” said Jupe. “Charles Goodfellow was — and Jefferson Long was the mastermind.”
“What?