Chapter 20 Chapter Nineteen Jane Finn

"My train arrived half an hour ago," said Julius, as he came out of the station, "and I think you will arrive by this train before I leave London. I will wire to Sir James and ask him to book rooms for us." , supper around eight o'clock." "What made you think he'd drop the case?" asked Tommy curiously. "He said it himself," replied Julius. "This old bird is as tight-lipped as a lobster, and like all other lawyers, he will not make any promises when he is not sure." "I want to know," said Tommy, thinking. Julius turned to him. "What do you want to know?"

"Is that his real reason?" "Of course, you can bet your life on it, it's true." Not convinced, Tommy shook his head. Sir James arrived punctually at eight o'clock, and Julius introduced Tommy to him.Sir James shook his hand warmly. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Beresford. I heard about you from Miss Tuppence." He smiled unconsciously. "Really, it seems that I know you very well." "Thank you, sir," Tommy said with a smile.He eyed the great lawyer eagerly.Like Tuppence he found the lawyer's personality enormously attractive.It reminded him of Mr. Carter.The two are completely different in appearance but share the same attraction.One has a tired looking attitude, another has a professional reservedness, and they both display a sharp mind.

At the same time he felt Sir James looking him over carefully.When the lawyer lowered his eyes, the young man felt that he was like an open book and was being read thoroughly.He had to wonder, what was the final conclusion?He doesn't know. Sir James had heard all the information, but said very little, and this impression was at once confirmed. No sooner had the chatter of the first meeting ended than Julius began to ask urgent questions.How did Sir James manage to find the girl?Why didn't they know about the case?etc. Sir James touched his chin and smiled. "That's it, that's it, ah, it's a good thing she's found, isn't it? Why! Come, isn't that a good thing?"

"A good thing indeed. But how did you find out about her? Tuppence and I thought you had dropped the case for good." "Ah:" the lawyer glanced at him like lightning and touched his chin, "you thought that was the case, didn't you? Do you really think so?oh my god. " "But I think we were wrong, and I admit it," Julius continued. "Ah, I know, I shouldn't have said that, and it's all very lucky that we've found this young woman." "But where is she?" Julius asked.His thoughts had turned to another course of action, "I thought you'd bring her?"

"That's hardly possible," said Sir James gravely. "why?" "Because this young woman was knocked down in a traffic accident with minor head injuries. She was taken to the hospital, and when she regained consciousness she said her name was Jane Fence. When—ah!—I heard After this incident, I arranged for her to be transferred to a doctor, who is my friend, and I will send you a telegram immediately. She passed out again and has not spoken yet." "She's not badly hurt, is she?" "Ah, there's a bruise in one place, and a scratch or two, really. It's absurd, from a medical point of view, that a minor injury should have had such an effect. Her condition may have been the result of a psychic impulse when she recovered her memory later. .”

"Has her memory come back?" Julius asked excitedly. Sir James tapped his hand on the table impatiently. "Undoubtedly, Mr. Hersheimmer, since she can already say her name, I think you understand." "Did you happen to be there?" Tommy said. "Sounds like a fairy tale." Sir James was alert enough not to be led by the nose. "No coincidence is a book." He said expressionlessly. Tommy was now more certain of what he had only doubted before. It was no accident that Sir James was in Manchester. Unlike Julius thought, he was far from giving up the case, and went out of his way to find the missing girl.The only thing that confuses Tommy is why is he doing it in secret?His conclusion: it's a quirk of people who practice law.

"After dinner," announced Julius, "I'll see Jane right away." "I'm afraid that's impossible," said Sir James, "perhaps they won't allow her to see visitors in the evening. I suggest ten o'clock tomorrow morning. " Julius' face flushed.There was always something about Sir James that provoked him to fight.This is a clash of two dominant personalities. "All the same, I want to go there tonight and see if I can change their stupid rules and regulations." "It's absolutely useless, Mr. Hersheimmer." The words came out like bullets from a pistol, startling Tommy, and he looked up.Julius, a little nervous, was more agitated.The hand with which he raised the glass to his lips trembled slightly, but his eyes were fixed defiantly on Sir James's.The hostility between the two men was about to explode.In the end Julius quickly bowed his head, he was defeated.

"Right now I think you're the boss." "Thank you," said Sir James. "How about we talk again at four o'clock?" He turned easily to Tommy. "I must admit, Mr. Bailey Foster, that seeing you here tonight is a good thing." I am surprised. Last time I heard of you, your friends were very anxious about you, and you hadn't heard from me for several days, and Miss Tuppence thought you might be in trouble." "I'm in trouble, sir!" smiled Tommy. "I've never been in a place like that in my life." Sir James put him questions, and he briefly related his adventures.When Chang Mi finished speaking, the lawyer looked at him with interest again.

"You managed to escape from that dreadful place," he said solemnly. "I congratulate you. You are resourceful and have done everything you have done well." Tommy blushed at the compliment, he was as red as a prawn. "I can't leave, for the girl, sir." Sir James smiled slightly. "You're lucky that she happens to - well - like you." Tommy was about to explain, but Sir James went on: "There is no doubt that she is a member of the gang." "I'm afraid not, sir, I think perhaps they kept her there by force. But her way of doing things didn't fit the situation.You see, she returns to them when she could fly away. "

Sir James nodded thoughtfully. "What did she say? Did she want to be taken back to Margaret?" "Yes, sir. I think she meant Mrs. Vandermeyer." "Her signature was always Rita Vandermeyer. All her friends called her Rita when they talked about her. I still think the girl used to call her by her full name, and when she called, Mrs. Vandermeyer or Dead, or about to die, strange: there's one or two things I don't understand—the sudden change in their attitude toward you, and, by the way, that house was searched by the police?" "Yes, sir, but they all ran away."

"Naturally," said Sir James coldly. "No clue left." "I wonder—" The lawyer tapped his hand on the table thoughtfully.The sound of his voice made Tommy look up. Could this man see with his eyes while the others were blind?"I wish you had been there, sir, inspecting the whole house," he said impulsively. "I wish I had been there," said Sir James calmly.He was silent for a moment, then looked up. "What have you been doing since then?" Chang Mi stares at him for a moment, and then it dawns on him that of course the lawyers don't know what they've been doing. "I forgot that you didn't know about Tuppence," he said slowly. Anxiety that had been temporarily forgotten by the excitement of knowing he had finally found Jane Finn crept back into him now. The lawyer immediately put down the knife and fork in his hand. "What's the matter with Miss Tuppence?" His voice was harsh. "She's missing," said Julius. "when?" "A week ago." "How did you disappear?" Sir James' questions were fired like bullets.While he asked questions, Tommy and Julius recounted all that had happened. Sir James at once saw the source of the matter. "A telegram signed in your name. They know you both well, but they have little doubts about your situation in that house. Their kidnapping of Miss Tuppence is a counter-attack to your escape. They can use it if necessary. about Tuppence, to shut you up." Tommy nodded. "That's exactly what I was thinking." Sir James watched him warily. "You've thought about that, haven't you? Well--very well, it's odd that they didn't know anything about you when they caught you, are you sure you didn't reveal your identity in any way?" Tommy shook his head. "That's the way it is." Julius nodded. "So I figured someone tipped them off no earlier than Sunday afternoon." "Yes, but who?" "That Mr. Brown who knows everything!" There was a flat, mocking tone in the American's voice, which made Sir James look up quickly. "You don't trust Mr. Brown, Mr. Hersheimmer?" "No, sir, I don't believe it," said the young American emphatically. "I don't believe it. I conclude that he is a puppet—just the name of a devil used to frighten children. The real ringleader of the affair is the Russian Kramenin. I think he could start a war in three countries if he wanted to: that guy named Whittington might be the head of the British side. " "I disagree with you," said Sir James curtly. "Mr. Brown exists." He turned to Tommy. "Have you ever noticed how that telegram was sent?" "No, sir, no, I'm afraid I didn't notice." "Ah, did you bring it?" "It's upstairs, sir, in my box." "I'll see later. Don't worry, you've lost a week"—Tommy bowed his head—"more than a day doesn't matter. Let's settle Miss Jane Fence's problem first. Then, We can do everything we can to try and get Miss Tuppence out of trouble. I don't think she's in immediate danger. That is, as long as they don't know we've found Jane Finn and that she's recovered her memory. We Keep it secret at all costs, do you understand?" The two agreed, and after arranging to meet the next day, the brilliant lawyer left. At ten o'clock, the two young men came to the appointed place.Sir James met them on the doorstep.He was the only one who didn't seem agitated.He introduced the two to the doctor. "Mr. Hersheimmer—Mr. Beresford—Dr. Roylance. How is the patient? " "Things are good. Obviously, there is no concept of time passing. Ask her this morning how many people were rescued from the Luretania passenger ship. Are these people documented? Of course it is only expected. She seems to be thinking. What are you wearing?" "I think we relieve her of her worries, can we go in?" "certainly." Following the doctor upstairs, Tommy's heartbeat increased significantly.Finally meeting Jane Finn!This mysterious and elusive Jane Finn who has been sought for a long time!What an incredible success it seemed.It is here that her memory will miraculously be restored, a girl who holds Britain's future in her hands.A low moan escaped Tommy's mouth.It would have been nice if Tuppence had been at his side to share in the triumphant results of their partnership: then he put his thoughts of Tuppence aside decisively.His confidence in Sir James grew gradually.One who found out exactly where Tuppence was, and Jane Finn at the same time!Suddenly a wave of fear gripped his heart.It seemed too easy...if they found her dead...knocked out by Brown's hand. After a while he laughed at these slapstick fantasies again.The doctor opened the door of the house, and they entered.A girl with gauze on her head was lying on the white bed.The whole situation doesn't seem very real, it does exactly what one would expect, with a kind of on-stage beauty to the effect. The girl looked from one person to another with wide, bewildered eyes.Sir James said first: "Miss Finn, this is your cousin, Mr. Julius Hersheimmer." A faint blush came over the girl's cheeks as Julius stepped forward to take her hand. "How do you do, Cousin Jane?" he said softly. Tommy could hear the tremor in his voice. "Are you really Uncle Hiram's son?" she asked perplexedly. Her voice has the warmth of a western accent, almost trembling. It seemed to Tommy that the voice was familiar, but he forgot it. "certainly." "We often read about Uncle Hiram in the papers," continued the girl, in a gentle tone, "but I never thought I'd see you one day. Mother said that Uncle Hiram only wanted to be with her." We're going to quarrel." "That's what the old man is," Julius admitted, "but I think the new generation is different. For the long-term discord in the family, after the war, the first thing I think of is to come to you." A shadow passed over the girl's face. "They told me things - terrible things - I lost my memory, there were times I never knew - lost times in my life." "Don't you realize it yourself?" The girl's eyes opened wide. "Ah, no. For me, it was just that I didn't know it after being rushed into the lifeboat. Now I know it all again." She shuddered as she closed her eyes. Julius looked at Sir James, who nodded. "Don't worry. Now listen, Jane, there's something we want to know. There's a man on board with some very important papers, and some great people in the country think he gave them to you, don't you?" The girl hesitated, her eyes turned to the other two, and Julius understood. "Mr. Beresford was commissioned by the British Government to retrieve that document. The Duke of James Peel Edgerton is a member of the British Parliament. Found you. So you can tell us all about it, Danvers handed you the papers?" "Yes," she said, "because the documents have a better chance of being preserved with me, and women and children are to be rescued first." "As we thought," said Sir James. "He said they were very important - they could have implications for all the Allies. But, that was a long time ago, the war is over, what use are the documents now?" "I think history repeats itself, Jane. There was an initial uproar over these documents, which then slowly died down. Now the whole thing has started all over again - for a different reason, so can you hand them over to us?" "I can not." "why?" "I didn't get them." "You—didn't—get them?" Julius said literally. "No—I hid them." "Did you hide them?" "Yes. I'm very disturbed and people seem to be spying on me and it scares me very much." She put her hands on her head, "I woke up in the hospital and that's pretty much the last thing I remember..." "Go on," said Sir James, in his calm loud tone, "what do you remember?" She turned to him obediently. "It's in Holyhead, I came from that direction, I can't remember why..." "It's okay, let's go on." "I took advantage of the chaos on the pier and slipped away. No one saw me. I found a car and asked the driver to drive me out of town. When we were on the road, I watched. No other cars followed us and I saw the road. There is a path next to it, I told the man to wait a moment." She paused, and then continued: "The path leads to the hanging rock, and between the hanging rock and the sea there are large yellow gorse flowers—they are like golden flames. I looked around, and there was no one. It was right next to me. On the level, there was a little hole in the rock—it was only for my hand, but it was deep. I took the oilskin bag from my neck, and put it as far as I could in the hole, and picked some gorse— - God, the flowers are so thorny, I plugged the hole with flowers, no one would think there is a hole here. I carefully memorized the location so that I can find it again. There is a strange circle just on the path Stone - it sat there begging like a dog. Then I got back on the road and the car was waiting and I came back in the car just in time for the train. I was a little ashamed of my wild thinking, but gradually I saw a man sitting next to me winking at the woman next to me, and I was scared, and at the same time I was happy that the file was hidden.I went out to the aisle for some fresh air and tried to sneak into another car, but the woman stopped me and said I dropped something, and when I bent down, I was hit by something, here. she said, pointing to the back of her head. "When I woke up in the hospital, I couldn't remember anything. " She paused the narration for a moment. "Thank you, Miss Ferns." It was Sir James who spoke. "I hope we have not tired you." "Oh, nothing. My head hurt a little, but I feel better now." Julius stepped forward and took her hand again. "Good-bye, Cousin Jane. I'm going to get those papers in a hurry, but I'll be back soon, and before we go back to America, I'll take you to London and enjoy your young and good life. I'll keep my word—" Get back to health quickly."