The Mystery of the Scar-faced Beggar - M. V. Carey [65]
Jupe chuckled. “She’s a strong-minded lady. She doesn’t like being duped.”
“Who does?” said Mr. Sebastian. “However, since she does have this tendency to choke up with rage, and since she’s very busy arguing with the insurance agent for the Maria-III and negotiating for the purchase of the Maria-IV, I thought you boys might fill me in on the case. After being an investigator for so many years, I have an itch to know more than the newspapers tell.”
“Would you like to read my notes on the case?” said Bob. He picked up a Manila envelope that had been under his chair and took a file folder out of it.
“Mr. Hitchcock used to review our cases with us,” said Pete.
Mr. Sebastian bowed. “I’m honoured,” he said, and began to read Bob’s notes on the mysterious beggar and the patriots of Mesa d’Oro.
For a while there was no sound in the room except the hum of traffic on the Coast Highway. Mr. Sebastian was completely absorbed in the notes. When he finished reading, he looked away, out at the trees and at the ocean beyond.
“There are times,” he said, “when we must be grateful for the small vices of men.
If Shelby Tuckerman hadn’t been a petty, greedy man, he wouldn’t have kept my wallet and you wouldn’t have stumbled on the gun-running plot. How many people would have died if that shipment had gone through? We’ll never know.”
Jupe nodded. “People like Ernie will probably go right on bombing and sniping in Mesa d’Oro, but at least we did stop one shipment of guns.”
“I assume that Mr. Bonestell isn’t under suspicion anymore,” said Mr. Sebastian.
“He wasn’t mentioned in the newspaper stories.”
“He never really was a suspect,” said Jupe, “and Ernie and his two friends have cleared him of any suspicion. They’re really angry at Shelby, so they’re talking. They feel that Shelby is a cheat, that he was just playing at being a spy and courier. There were lots of groups like Ernie’s contributing to the cause of the Republicans of Mesa d’Oro. Shelby would collect the money from the leaders, bring it home to Mr.
Bonestell’s, in frozen-food packages, and hide it in the freezer. Then, once a month or so, he flew to Mexico City to turn it over to Rodriguez’ people there. Ernie and his pals think Shelby was siphoning some of the funds into his own bank account—and that certainly seems more than likely.”
“Shelby was Alejandro, wasn’t he?” said Mr. Sebastian.
“Alejandro is his middle name,” said Jupe. “His mother was from Mesa d’Oro.
She was a terrorist who had to flee the country, and she married an American named Tuckerman. Shelby is named after his father, and after Alejandro, his mother’s father.
“Although Shelby is an American, his mother raised him to believe that he is an aristocrat of Mesa d’Oro, and that the cause there is all-important. Shelby’s mother was very active. She spoke at fund-raising events and made a lot of money for Mesa d’Oro. After she died a few years ago, Shelby tried to take over and do the same thing.
He didn’t have the magic, however. He couldn’t persuade people to give till it hurt, so he became a courier instead.”
“How did you know he had kept back some of the robbery loot?” asked Mr.
Sebastian.
“I didn’t, but it seemed a reasonable guess. I had to say something to delay Ernie and Shelby so Mr. Bonestell would have time to get the police. Also, I was afraid of what Shelby might do if Ernie departed on the Maria and left Shelby behind. We and the Denicolas could accuse him, couldn’t we? But if Shelby got his hands on Mr.
Bonestell and then silenced all of us …”
Jupe stopped. He looked grim.
“Yes,” said Mr. Sebastian. “Your position was delicate. You’re probably lucky that Ernie took Shelby when he got aboard the Maria-III.”
“I know we’re lucky,” said Bob. “You see, it was Shelby who brought me to the motel. He discovered me at Strauss’s place when he arrived with the first half of the gun money. Boy, was he mad! I heard him arguing with Ernie about what to do with me. Ernie didn’t care because he was leaving the country. But Shelby was on the spot.
He tried to convince Ernie to take