Read Online Calamity Town by Ellery Queen - Free Book Online

husband. Ellery had switched on the mica-shaded desk lamp, and it threw long shadows on the walls. Pat clung to his arm, throwing glances over her shoulder. ‘Pretty fresh condition,’ said Ellery in a mutter, plucking the book from the shelf. ‘Cloth hasn’t even begun to fade, and the edges of the pages are clean.’
    â€˜What is it?’ whispered Pat.
    â€˜Edgcomb’s Toxicology .’
    â€˜Toxicology!’ Pat stared at it in horror.
    Ellery sharply scrutinized the binding. Then he let the book fall open in his hands. It broke obediently to a dog-eared page—the only dog-eared page he could find. The book’s spine showed a deep crack which ran parallel with the place in the book where it had broken open to reveal the dog-eared page. The three envelopes, then, had been lying between these two pages, thought Ellery. He began to read—to himself.
    â€˜What,’ said Pat feverishly, ‘What would Jim Haight be doing with a book on toxicology?’
    Ellery looked at her. ‘These two facing pages deal with various arsenious compounds—formulae, morbific effects, detection in organs and tissues, antidotes, fatal dosages, treatment of diseases arising from arsenious poisoning—’
    â€˜ Poisoning !’
    Ellery laid the book down within the brightest focus of the lamp. His finger pointed to the words in bold type: Arsenious Oxid (As 2 0 3 ). His finger moved down to a paragraph which described arsenious oxid as ‘white, tasteless, poisonous,’ and gave the fatal dosage. This paragraph had been underlined in light red crayon.
    In a quite clear voice that emerged from between dry, unwilling lips, Pat said: ‘ Jim is planning to murder Nora .’

Part Two

9
    Burnt Offering
    â€˜Jim is planning to murder Nora.’
    Ellery set the book upon the shelf. With his back to Pat, he said: ‘Nonsense.’
    â€˜You saw the letters yourself! You read them!’
    Mr Queen sighed. They went downstairs in the dark, his arm about her waist. Outside, there was the old moon, and a stencil of cold stars. Pat shivered against him, and his clasp tightened. They drifted across the silver lawn and came to rest beneath the tallest elm. ‘Look at the sky,’ said Ellery, ‘and tell me that again.’
    â€˜Don’t feed me philosophy! Or poetry. This is the good old USA in the Year of Our Madness nineteen-forty. Jim is insane. He must be!’ She began to cry.
    â€˜The human mind—’ began Mr Queen; and he stopped. He had been about to say that the human mind was a curious and wonderful instrument. But it occurred to him in time that this was a two-way phrase, a Delphic hedge. The fact was…it looked bad. Very bad.
    â€˜Nora’s in danger,’ sobbed Pat. ‘Ellery, what am I going to do?’
    â€˜Time may spade up some bones of truth, Patty.’
    â€˜But I can’t take this alone! Nora—you saw how Nora took it. Ellery, she was scared green. And then…just as if nothing had happened. She’s decided already, don’t you see? She’s decided not to believe it . If you waved those letters under her nose, Nora wouldn’t admit anything now! Her mind opened for just a second; now it’s shut down tight, and she’d lie to God.’
    â€˜Yes,’ said Ellery, and his arms comforted her.
    â€˜He was so much in love with her! You saw it all happen. You saw the look on his face that night when they came downstairs to say they were going to be married. Jim was happy . When they got back from their honeymoon he seemed even happier.’ Pat whispered: ‘Maybe he has gone mad. Maybe that’s been the whole thing all along. A dangerous maniac!’ Ellery said nothing. ‘How can I tell Mother? Or my father? It would kill them, and it wouldn’t do any good. And yet—I’ve got to!’
    A car throbbed up the Hill in the darkness.
    â€˜You’re letting your