Read Online The Twelve Crimes of Christmas by Martin H. Greenberg et al (Ed) - Free Book Online Page A

Before I tell you what Mr. Goodwin’s information is, I need a
few facts from you. For instance, I understand that any of you—including Miss
Dickey and Mr. Kiernan, who will probably join us later—could have found an
opportunity to put the poison in the bottle. Do any of you challenge that?”
    Cherry,
Mrs. Jerome, and Leo all spoke at once. Hatch merely looked sour.
    Wolfe
showed them a palm. “If you please. I point no finger of accusation at any of
you. I merely say that none of you, including Miss Dickey and Mr. Kiernan, can
prove that you had no opportunity. Can you?”
    “Nuts.”
Leo Jerome was disgusted. “It was that guy playing Santa Claus. Of course it
was. I was with Bottweill and my mother all the time, first in the workshop and
then in his office. I can prove that. ”
    “But
Bottweill is dead,” Wolfe reminded him, “and your mother is your mother. Did
you go up to the office a little before them, or did your mother go up a little
before you and Bottweill did? Is there acceptable proof that you didn’t? The
others have the same problem. Miss Quon?”
    There
was no danger of Cherry’s spoiling it. Wolfe had told me what he had told her on
the phone: that he had made a plan which he thought she would find
satisfactory, and if she came at a quarter past six she would see it work. She
had kept her eyes fixed on him ever since he entered. Now she chirped, “If you
mean I can’t prove I wasn’t in the office alone yesterday, no, I can’t.”
    “Mr.
Hatch?”
    “I
didn’t come here to prove anything. I told you what I came for. What
information has Goodwin got?”
    “We’ll
get to that. A few more facts first. Mrs. Jerome, when did you learn that
Bottweill had decided to marry Miss Quon?”
    Leo
shouted, “No!” but his mother was too busy staring at Wolfe to hear him. “What?”
she croaked. Then she found her voice. “Kurt marry her? That little strumpet?”
    Cherry
didn’t move a muscle, her eyes still on Wolfe.
    “This
is wonderful!” Leo said. “This is marvelous!”
    “Not
so damn wonderful,” Emil Hatch declared. “I get the idea, Wolfe. Goodwin hasn’t
got any information, and neither have you. Why you wanted to get us together
and start us clawing at each other, I don’t see that, I don’t know why you’re
interested, but maybe I’ll find out if I give you a hand. This crowd has
produced as fine a collection of venom as you could find. Maybe we all put
poison in the bottle and that’s why it was such a big dose. If it’s true that
Kurt had decided to marry Cherry, and Al Kiernan knew it, that would have done
it. Al would have killed a hundred Kurts if it would get him Cherry. If Mrs.
Jerome knew it, I would think she would have gone for Cherry instead of Kurt,
but maybe she figured there would soon be another one and she might as well
settle it for good. As for Leo, I think he rather liked Kurt, but what can you
expect? Kurt was milking mamma of the pile Leo hoped to get some day, and I
suspect that the pile is not all it’s supposed to be. Actually—”
    He
stopped, and I left my chair. Leo was on his way up, obviously with the
intention of plugging the creative artist. I moved to head him off, and at the
same instant I gave him a shove and his mother jerked at his coattail. That not
only halted him but nearly upset him, and with my other hand I steered him back
onto his chair and then stood beside him.
    Hatch
inquired, “Shall I go on?”
    “By
all means,” Wolfe said.
    “Actually,
though, Cherry would seem to be the most likely. She has the best brain of the
lot and by far the strongest will. But I understand that while she says Kurt
was going to marry her, Margot claims that he was going to marry her. Of course that complicates it, and anyway Margot would be my
second choice. Margot has more than her share of the kind of pride that is only
skin deep and therefore can’t stand a scratch. If Kurt did decide to marry
Cherry and told Margot so, he was even a