Original subtitles

you

Mr. Riley, can't possibly let you have any more money. I've sold everything I have. Not quite,

my dear Mrs. Gray. What about the famous gray diamond? That should fetch at least 10,000

pounds. But I can't possibly sell that. If my husband found out, he'd never forgive me.

It's been in his family for 300 years. Then I think it's time it came into my family.

Anyway, he'll never forgive you. She found out about those very interesting letters. You

can't have it both ways, Mrs. Ray. I'll give you until tomorrow, but no. Goodbye.

Hey, listen to this! Society woman rescued from river. Prompt action by a man in a boat rescued

from drowning near Bolter's Lock, a woman whose identity was later revealed as Lady Sylvia

Gray. The man who gave his name as John Park saw Lady Gray struggling in the water, and

his considerable personal risk brought her ashore. Lady Gray is the wife of Sir Donald Gray,

one of our youngest and most brilliant members of the diplomatic service.

still be a gray. that convey anything? Not to you Eileen, but it conveys a lot to me.

She came to see me when I was at the yard. I've got a file on the case.

Here we are.

She came to see me in September 1949. Now let's see.

I agree by that interruption. Inspector Morley, believe me, I'd leave heaven and earth to get

those letters back. I'm sure you would, you know, you're making this very difficult for

me. If you refuse to cooperate and do as I ask you, how do think I get a catch our friend

Riley? I'm not interested in catching him. All I want is the return of those letters. Aren't

you even prepared to make a child? No, I can't. You see, my husband has been listed in the

birthday honours. A scandal like this would ruin him. Supposing I tell you that Riley is

someone I've been trying to convict for a number of years? various reasons I haven't been able

to do so. One of those reasons is because people like you persistently refuse to give evidence

against it. But how can I? If I give evidence, my husband will find out about the letters.

The whole thing will be made public. That's what every blackmailer relies on. How did he

get the letters in the first place? My husband had engaged him as butler. He probably heard

about... about... Your indiscretion? Yes. He must have found the letters in one of the

drawers of my bureau. Well, what do you want me to do? He has an office now in Hapton Garden.

He set himself up as a diamond merchant. I think that he keeps those letters in his safe.

Couldn't you... Wouldn't it be possible to break in and get them back?

Mrs. Gray, I'm afraid you've got an erroneous impression of the way we carry out our work

at Scotland Yard. We're here to uphold the law. We can't very well do that by breaking it.

Then you can't help me. Not on the lines you suggest. I know it's hard, but there's only

one thing you can do. Tell your husband everything. Tell him you've been very foolish. Then we

can go to work and put Riley where he belongs. No, I can't do that. Why don't you think it

over and then come back and see me? Look, Mrs. Gray, you'll never get out of Reilly's clutches

by paying him. He'll bleed you of every penny you've got, and in the end he'll probably show

your husband the letters anyway. I'm right, you know. But... But what? I love my husband.

I couldn't risk losing him. Well, just think it over. That's all I'm asking you to do for

the moment. Very well.

And thank you. You've been very kind. Now, please, don't forget what I've been saying.

I knew she'd never come back. I had one of those awful moments of frustration that every

police officer experiences at some time in his career. I'd been hunting Riley from the day

he shot and killed my best friend when we were constables on the same beat. Through a legal

trick, he managed to escape justice, and for 20 years, he matched his cunning brain against

every device I used in my attempts to trap him. I thought at that moment... If only I were

free to fight Riley on equal terms. Well, you're free now. you What makes you think I want to

sell, Mr. Mullins? Don't you? Maybe I do, maybe I don't. It all depends, doesn't it? On what?

If I may imply a classical expression commonly used in our trade, it depends upon how much.

Well, I can't say that. My friend just wants to know if you're in the market. Then you could

go back and tell him that I could be, if given the incentive. It might be in the neighborhood

of 5,000. Chicken feed, Mr. Mullins, chicken feed. My letters are worth a cool £20,000.

If handled intelligently. That may be. But they've got to be handled and blackmail is risky. Would

you mind lowering your voice, I understand my neighbours are respectable. I'm surprised to

hear you say that. It would surprise my neighbour.

Well, come on, you old cutthroat. What about it? My price is 20,000 pounds. Take it or

leave it. It's downright robbery. Good day, Now look here. My friend's a businessman,

same as you are, He's paying a fair price and he's taking all the risk. Mr. Mullins, I have

in my possession 68 letters, none of which has begun to outlive its usefulness. I'm quite

prepared to admit that blackmail is risky. But then murder has its disadvantages too.

That is why I gave up murder. The point is that crime is not what it used to be, Mr.

Bolling. At the moment it's going through a phase of depression. Now would you like to

run away? I'm particularly anxious to fumigate the air. And I see no point in doing that if

you are still here. I think you're being insulting. Ten thousand apologies, my dear friend. I wouldn't

insult you for all the tea in China. Now get out! before I cut your flaming throat. Tomorrow.

But surely now that your husband knows. My wife has told me all about the debtors, Mr.

Warley. So she isn't trying to hide anything from me. Unfortunately, this man Riley still

has the power to use them. What do mean? I happen to be in the diplomatic service and

quite recently I had a knighthood confer on me. I can't possibly face a scandal. It would

ruin me. But do think Riley will try any more, Blackmail? This arrived this morning.

I'd be glad if you'd be kind enough to call up my office at twelve o'clock on Friday. Yours

very sincerely, Terence Riley. Are you going? I've no alternative. He's after the famous

Grey Diamond this time. And he means to get it. All I can hope for is that I shall get

some more of my wife's letters in return. I see. You're in a difficult position, but

if you take my advice... There's a rather doubtful looking character named Mullins outside. He

said he had an appointment with you. There's nothing doubtful about Mullins, Eileen. Ask

him to come in. I'm expecting him. And I'd like you to stay. Okay. Come in, Mr. Mullins.

Ah, Mullin. Nice to see you again. I don't like this. What do you want with me? Sit down, won't

you?

I don't get it. You will. I understand you're working for a gentleman named Alec Trent.

How do you know? News gets around, Mullin. Well, what of it? You and Alec pulled a

little job the other night. How do you? How do I know? Well, never mind about that for

the moment. The point is that I do know. And I could tip off the police. Oh, you wouldn't

do a thing like that to me, now would you, Mr. Marley? I would. If you refuse to tell me something,

I'm very anxious to know. What's that? Yesterday morning I saw you talking to Terrence Riley

in his office. Well, I want to see him about something. Yeah, what? Oh, just a little

business deal. Legitimate, of course. Your little deal wouldn't be connected with blackmail,

would it? Good heavens. What gave you that idea? Because you and your old friend Trent

have dabbled in it in the past, right? Worse. Speaking for myself, I've finished with it.

I think blackmail's Eileen, get me Scott and Diar on the phone, will you? Certainly. Ask

for Superintendent Higgs. Tell him I've got Mullins in the office and I'd like him to drop

by. It'll be a pleasure. It's quite a while since you did your last stretch, hasn't it,

Mullins? What do want to know? I think the boys will be glad to see you back. What do you want

to know? All right, Eileen.

Now... What's this business you've got on hand with Riley? Well, it's got nothing to do with

me. I'm only just a go-between. Go on. Trent wants to take over Riley's pitch. Riley's

correspondence that he wants to sell. Trent's in the market. So that he can be to Black

Mellie's Vix, is that it? Trent's buying the goodwill of the business, so to speak. That's

rather a novel idea, don't think? Mm, very. Tell me, has Riley ever seen Trent? Not

that I know of. Have the deals set? I fixed it this morning. And the letters? Have they

been handed over? Not yet. When? I can't tell you that. Try to see Lieutenant Higgs

again, will you, Eileen? Right away. Wait. All right, Marlin. When are the letters going to

be handed over? Well... Well, it's like this, Mr. Marlin.

Yes, Terrence Riley speaking.

Hello. This is Trent speaking. That you, Riley? Oh, yes, Mr. Trent. This is Mr. Riley speaking.

I beg your pardon. Yes, I should be delighted. Very delighted. Yes indeed. Mr Mullins was

most cooperative. Yes, I could manage that. One moment while I take down the address.

This is the address. Number one, Hatfield Gardens, Fappham Park. Yes, I've got that.

An empty house. Oh, the basement. Oh yes, the most suitable place for a meeting. Most

suitable. Bring the letters? Why, of course. Oh, and Mr. Trent, you won't forget to bring

the money, will you? No, I needn't have asked that. Goodbye.

My little ruse was simple, but I thought it worth trying. I turned up at a quarter to

three and prepared to wait.

The simplest rules is sometimes the most effective. Sometimes.

So, Reilly, we meet again. couldn't make it, so I came in his place. I hope you're pleased

to see me. Now, I'll have those letters. You didn't expect me to fall for a transparent

trick like that, did you? I'll admit I didn't expect to see you, Morley. But I'm not foolish

enough to conduct that business in a place like this, and with a man I haven't even met.

You didn't bring him? Of course I didn't. Find him if you can. That's just what I mean

to do. I'll pay you back for this, Morley. I promise you. I'll pay you back. I doubt

it. Now for the keys. If you dare to set foot in my office, I have the law on you. Coming

from you, that's funny. And even if you find the letters, you can only damage those who

wrote them. You can't touch me without hurting them. Every letter I hold in my possession

has somebody's guilty secret. I know that. But all the same, there'll be some happier

people in the world when they're destroyed. And a few more when you are... Why you... uh

Well, I'll be on my way. I'll borrow your car if you don't mind.

and the oh

Drop those keys! Put your hands above your head, please, Mr. Molly. Now come away from

that safe.

That's the idea. You know, I'm beginning to think, Mr. Morley, that one of us is just a

little smarter than the other. I'll give you three guesses as to which one of us it is.

You better put that gun down, Do think I should? If you take my advice, you will. But I don't

think much of your advice. If I drop this gun, it won't be nearly as effective as if I kept

it pointed at you. You're rather slow-witted at times, Morley. You surprise me. I'd be interested

to know how you got away. Quite simple, my dear fellow. Even children have their uses. I hope

you brought my car back safely. It's in the Star Garage at Brent Street, undergoing treatment

for a puncture. A puncture, eh? The sort of puncture you're going to get will defy any

treatment. I think this is my round, eh, Mr. Morley? Now turn around and get into that room.

We'll continue our discussion in there.

I brought this rope back with me. I felt it might be useful. Now don't struggle, you fool.

I'm expecting a visit from a friend of Mr. Trent's. Sit down there. Mr. Mullins. So

the operations on you will have to be suspended for the time being. You know Mr. Mullins,

I understand. He's bringing me 20,000 pounds and in return I'm giving him a packet of letters.

You know. Those letters that others will be happier about. When I haven't got them, you

shall hear everything that happens. And then, then I'm going to kill you. And meanwhile,

this will keep you silent for the time being. That must be our friend now.

you

you

Yes? You Riley? Well, I'm Mr. Riley. Cut out the trimming's burden. Let's get down to business.

Mullins couldn't come. Nice little dump you got here. I'm so glad you like it. Oh, very

nice for a quiet little major. It was practically designed for one. Hey, you're quite a character,

ain't you? Won't you sit here, my dear? And so you say Mullins couldn't come. Then I suppose

Mr. Trent... Mr. Don't make me laugh. am Mr. Trent. You? Mr.? Yeah. I use Mr. so to fool

the cops. Ain't it a, honey? It is indeed. But what a brilliant idea. I'm of them, I'm just

full of them. You know what? You and me are a team up. With your good looks and my brains,

there'd be no holding us. No holding us. Let's cut the cackle and get down to business. I've

got a date with the bank in half an hour. But the banks are closed, my dear. This one won't

be. Not when I've worked on it. But I understood from Mr. Mullins that your speciality was,

forgive me, blackmail. No, no, no. It's just a sideline. Well, have you brought the money?

Oh, yeah. I've got it right here. Good. Here you are, Side palm notes and good English

sterling. You want to call yourself or you want to trust me? Oh, I trust you implicitly. I'll

get you the letter. Yeah, make it snappy, will you? Don't worry. It won't take me a minute.

This where you keep the bodies? Oh, no. All the bodies are in there. Well, here you are,

my dear. Take great care of them. You bet I will, And good hunting, my dear. Good blackmailing.

So long. I'll be seeing you. Always a pleasure to do business with you, Mr. Trent. You know,

you've given me a splendid idea. When I start my new line of business, I'm going to call

myself Miss Riley. That'll depend on what your new line of business is.

What are you doing here? Did Nathalia wish to in? Yes, but... But what? Trent's just gone.

You must have passed her as you came in. Her? What do you mean, her? Well, isn't Trent a

woman? If he hears his wife's going to be surprised. So she's...

You know what the back of all this? Who was that woman? That woman was my assistant. Fooled

you, didn't she, Riley? No, not quite. What are you going to do with Molly? In a few minutes,

I'm going to dump him in the river. And you're going to help me. Oh, no, I'm not. I don't

want to get in the wrong side of the law. No ruddy fear.

Counterfeit every one of them counterfeit you mean you didn't abandon sister pilot good notes

Oh, no, not quite but others that I gave to her were duplicates of the original each one

of them forged all my own impeccable work I had intended them for you For me, oh So you

intended them for me did you and very nice too? I'll have the real letters if you don't mind.

Go on, get them. Go on. Come on now. No checks, slip them over, come on. Come on, you old twister.

Show a leg or I'll plug you. You can't do this to me. Can't I? I can and I will. That's better.

Come on. All of them. And I'll have your gun too if you've got one. But, uh, what about

my money? What do you want with money? you only get kids in trouble... Look out, Murray! Give

my respects to Mr. Mullins. He should come to in about an hour. I'm sorry I can't arrest

you this time. It would involve too many people. But I'll get you, Get you if I have to poly

you to hell.

Obviously I had to wait for Riley to make the next move. Little did I think as I was returning

from the city a few days later that the preliminaries for a fresh encounter with him were taking

place in a more fashionable part of London. morning, Good morning, Miss. Is my answer

at home? No, Miss. I don't expect him till the afternoon. My answer at two? Yes, Miss. Oh,

I told him I'd call. He must have forgotten. Marie, will you tell him I'll telephone him

tonight? Yes, Miss.

Mr. Blanford, you say your niece called to see you on Saturday morning. That was the last

you heard of her? Yes, Mr. Morley. I was out at the time. Why didn't you come to see me

before? Today's Wednesday. Ah, but I didn't imagine that anything was wrong until I got

this.

You must show this to the police or your niece is liable to die quite suddenly. We are offering

her safe return in exchange for the Green Eye Emerald which your brother stole from Ling

Fu in China 20 years ago. May I keep this? By all means. I see you're to hand it over tonight

at midnight. The man in a raincoat and cap will be at the corner of Macclesfield Street and

Shaftesbury Avenue. You are to give him the Emerald and Susan will be released. What do

you advise me to do Mr.

Nothing. If anything were to happen to Susan, I'd never forgive myself. Please, just do as

I ask you. Now, tell me about the emerald. Did your brother steal it? No, he bought it quite

legitimately. What's it worth? In today's market, I'd say about ten thousand pounds. It's reputed

to be the left eye of an idol. I'm very old now. From which one has to assume that it was

stolen, before it went into circulation? Possibly. I presume it belongs to you now. As a matter

of fact, it doesn't, Mr. Morley. It was left to my niece by her father. Until she's 21,

I'm her legal guardian and trustee, and the Emerald at the moment is in my position. What

made you come to me instead of going to the police? Your reputation, Mr. Morley. You were

the first person I thought of. Thank you. Well, I needn't detain you any more for the moment,

but don't keep the appointment tonight. But Mr. Morley, don't you think... Nothing will

happen to your niece, I assure you. Oh, I don't say they won't harm her eventually if you persist

in ignoring them, but for the time being, she's of more value to them alive than dead. Go home.

Try not to worry.

I need time here.

They seem familiar. Just a minute, I think I've got her record.

Here we are. Mary Stuart, alias Joyce Winters, alias Connie Fenton. What do you think of that?

I think you've got a very good memory. Mr. Terrence Riley's business associate arrested for shoplifting,

discharged from Holloway jail last year. Now she seems to be watching our friend Blanford.

It looks like it. I wonder if Terrence Riley's mixed up in this. I wonder.

Well, my dear, what's the news? Terrible. The old man's gone to Morley. What? The missus.

She insisted on it. That is bad. Morley finds out you're the Blanford's maid, and the game's

up. Not quite, still I don't like it. Oh, keep your head, Mary. Remember what Kipley said.

If you could keep your head, my father's losing the house. Oh, stop rambling. Whenever you

start on that talk, I know you've got the wind up. Well, anyway, forewarned is forearmed.

Morley's starts snooping now. You've got to look out for Scroggs. Where's the girl? Safe

enough for the moment. Well, let me tell you something rather unfortunate happened last

night. Not something else? Yes, I'm afraid it means that poor little Susan will never see

her uncle again. What do you mean? Spike opened his mouth much too loud. It's the gin, you

know. When he gets into the second bottle, anything might happen. You don't mean that... Yes, he

let the cat out of the bag. Oh, that blithering idiot. Oh, I said a few harsh words to him,

but there. What can one do? Spike's had a poor upbringing. Drinks in the family, know. On

his mother's side. Poor Spike. He never knew his father. I suppose he ran away when Spike

was born. One look, that was enough. I don't suppose he even had one look. But let us be

charitable. Ah, Murray. It would be a wonderful thing if everyone had a little charity in their

breast. What are you going to do with the girl? Drown things the kindest way, don't you think?

Mmm, yes. Nice, clean depth. Now, what do you want me to do? Carry on the usual way.

So long.

was a hunch that took me to Riley's office in Hattongarden.

And it was Marie who took me to Selwyn Court where Blanford lived.

If Maury is the Blanford maid, it must be an inside job. Well, that, my dear Watson, is

elementary. So what are you going to do? Warn Blanford? Not yet. He'll only give the show

away. If he knew that Maury was mixed up in this, he'd only scream the place down, and

that'd be the end of Susan. You think Riley's got her? I doubt it. Well, now our first job

is to find out who has. It obviously isn't Mary. You don't think it's Riley. So there must be

a third party. I suppose Riley would recognize you. If he saw me. Do want me to keep a watch

on him? If you don't mind, leave. My dear Mr. Morley, I would do anything in the cause of

justice. That, Miss Trotter, is a noble sentiment. I, Mr. Morley, am a noble woman. Ah, Mr. Morley,

I'm still dead, here. Do come in. Is anything the matter? Everything. Do sit down, won't

you? Can I get you a drink? No, thanks. Tell me what's gone wrong. I'm afraid I have a terrible

admission to me. eh went against your advice. You don't mean you... Yes, oh yes, I know.

I've been very stupid. As a matter of fact, I have my wife to blame. It's poor excuse,

I know, but when I returned from seeing you yesterday, she insisted that I keep the appointment.

You gave up the emeralds? Yes. And Susan? She hasn't been released. I think I will have

that drink, Mr. Blanford, after all. Oh, whatever much you've been thinking of, Mr. To be quite

frank, not much. I can't tell you how sorry I am. can believe that. You put that girl's

life in danger, you realize that, don't you? Only too well. Now what about that drink?

Oh, yes, of course. Whiskey? Gin? Whiskey, please.

Are you alone today, Mr. Blanton? Yes, my wife from the country is visiting her sister. You

keep her maid, I suppose? Yes, we do, but this is her day off. You know, why do you ask? What's

her name? Marie Stewart. Does your wife smoke? No. I was just wondering. Those servants are

quite a problem these days, aren't they? I suppose Marie skimps her work like the rest of them.

No, the matter of fact, she's a very good servant. Astonishing. Oh, perhaps I'm old-fashioned.

When I used live at home with my parents, they had a marvellous couple away. used to get up

an hour early on their day off and leave the house spotless before they went out. I can't

complain about Mary's work. She always cleans the place up before she goes out. Did she empty

the ashtrays this morning? Mr. Moray, what's this leading up to? Did she? Yes, I suppose

she did. I didn't take any particular notice. So the thing that Mary does is matter, of course.

I see. Good.

Tell me one thing, will you? What is it? Do you suspect Marie has anything to do with this

business? I suspect everybody, Mr. Blanford. It's my job to suspect people. Good day.

Blandford was scared about something. I wasn't sure whether it was on his own account or on

Susan's, whose life he had jeopardized by his foolish actions.

At any rate, when a maid cleans up in the morning, the first thing she does is to empty the ashtrays.

Well, I suppose so, the room. In one of the ashtrays, I found this. Lipsticks. Mrs. Blanford

doesn't smoke. Mr. Blanford doesn't use lipstick, therefore, my lead didn't go out. She was smoking

that cigarette in the room before I came in. Now, I wonder why Blanford lied to me. Perhaps

they've got some other kind of hold over them. A part from food, I mean. Maybe there's a skeleton

in the family cupboard or something. Well, it's worth checking up on. Here I go again. I hope

you know I only had three hours sleep last night. Did anyone go to Riley's office? Only two old

ladies. You better try again tonight. I'll relieve you as soon as it gets dark. As regards

Blanford, I got a list here of all the tradesmen he deals with from the porter. You'd better

go round to each one and find out if he owes any money. Just like that? In your own diplomatic

way, of course. May I ask what contribution you are going to make towards solving our little

problem? This afternoon? oh None at all. I'm going to take the afternoon off.

I hadn't seen Spike Mulligan for two years. As a matter of fact, few people had seen Spike

for two years. He'd been serving a prison sentence for the same sort of thing he was doing now.

Curiosity, nothing more made me...

I have to.

Hello, Frank. Hiya, Georgie boy. What do you think of this, Not bad. And this one? Yeah.

Gain't you nothing yet. And this. A better shit lot for you. I'm not a bad hole though,

I said it myself. ha. Seen Riley? Nope. He hasn't shown up with a sparkler. No, hasn't he? What's

the idea? That's what I'd like to know. Better get on and ask him what's holding up. I'll

do that like a shot. Can't rush your own mother these days, can you? Tell him I want to see

him. Oh, and Spike. Yep. Keep out of the pubs. Where's George at, boy? You know me. Yeah,

that's why I said it.

What do you want here? What do think I want, you old cutthroat? You thought you'd got away

with it, didn't you? Well, we got on, do you? Come on, hand over that there green eye. Get

out of here, you drunken slut. What's that? Get out of here! I'm not going without that

green eye. Oh, you won't, won't you? Now listen to me. I've stood enough of you on your drunken

ways. Do you understand that? Oh, so that's the way you want it, is it? oh

DUNK!

Yeah!

Oh no!

you

Yes, Riley speaking. This is Jordan. Spike been round? Spike? No, I haven't seen him.

He was coming to see me. Oh well, you know what our Spike is. Can't keep away from the pubs.

Now don't you worry your head about the sparkler. I'll bring it round all in good time. Tonight.

Very well. I'll be with you about eight o'clock. you

What news? Yours first. Blanford's broke. Here are the details, but the long and short of

it is that he owes everybody from his landlord to his grocer. Last week he had two rips served

on him, and day before yesterday his car was impounded to death. Now you tell. Well, things

are warming up. I haven't got time to explain now, but I've found the lion's den and I'm

going into it. Listen, I'm going to present myself to a gentleman named George. I don't

know his other name, but he lives at number 16 East Street. 16 East? That's right, he doesn't

know me. Did Riley come to get you? Very much so, he's going along at eight o'clock. What

are you going to do, wear a cap and put some fungus on your face? I'm going to do just that.

Now listen, Eileen, I don't want you to leave this office until you hear from me. Why? Oh,

you can go out and get yourself a bite to eat. Good. Thanks. With all being well, I should

call you about nine o'clock. I can call myself Archie, remember that. Right, now when I call,

I want you to do two things. First... I want you to ring Blanford and tell him I found these

in... Have you? No, but I'll explain about that in a minute. Secondly...

And spike in the fore feathers and drawing was he high. And that damn fool, I told him to

keep out of the pub. Well, as I was saying, a spike and me pull little job together. Well,

that was way back then. We ran into a bit of trouble. Well? It's quite weird, but a cop

recognized us. And he didn't recognize you? That's why I quit shaving. That same cop was

in the pool for Pete's sake. Yeah, the cop was looking the other way, but the spike's on.

Good arty. Don't look now, but when that guy turned around, he was just... I couldn't get

on with it. Well, spy came in his story. What did he you? About the emerald and the girl.

He did it, Yeah. And the cop said he'd get him and that was it. And he didn't mention

the girl's name? Joseph Lancard. Right? Well, what do you want? Whatever you say, sweetheart.

I don't mind working for it. You mean you want to take Spike's place? Sure. Did Spike tell

you what was going to happen to the girl? He gave me the address. It was Spike's job. You

see, they're taking his place. How much? 500 pounds. 500? I can't use it. Where is it? Not

far away. got the spark over there? Who's this? Brenda Spike? Brenda Spike, What's he doing

here? Spike met with the extra in tonight. Oh, he did, did he? Yeah. Spike was in there with

the cops. After you and with him.

So you wanted me? That's right. Anyhow, Archie got the big spice plate. Nicer than

the nip. Charmed. By the way, this is what she wanted, I think. Good.

I think.

On your way, Marie. And don't make any mistakes. What's the case, Mr. We won't go into that.

All right. You boys get a lovely drink and get acquainted. Eyes on the point. I'll go back

later.

What's your name? Don't try and fool me. You didn't see Spite and Abt today? No. But I

thought what did happen to him. You heard me. Well, he tried tonight. You knifed him first.

In Southampton? Riley, you're a man after my own heart. You take things as they come, same

as I did. What did you like at George's bar? I wanted a dive in on something good. You'll,

uh... What's my interest, won't you, Riley? After all, one good turn deserves another.

You wasn't aware that you'd done me a good turn. No, but I haven't done you a bad turn either.

Not yet. Is that what I mean? I'll do my best for you. That's the kind of talk I like. Down

the hatch.

There's only one thing bothering me. What's that? Ex-Detective Inspector Morley. You know

it?

You sure? Let me handle this, Morley won't realize I've said anything. You leave everything

to me, bub. Leave it to your Uncle Arthur.

Bye.

Mr. Morley's office.

No, Mr. Morley's not here at the moment. Tell him Archie calls. He'll know who Archie is.

Tell him to meet me at number 16, East Street, as soon as possible. Very important. Thanks

a lot. Hello, may I speak to Mr. Blanford, please? Mr. Morley's office. I tell you, I don't like

it. I think it was crazy. What's crazy? Morley's on his way here now. Oh, here? Archie thinks

he's on to us. So he telephoned his office and gave him this advice. What's idea? Ah, shut

up. I used to search for Morley when he was at the yard. He'll come around here expecting

some nice little tidbit neatly packaged in cellophane. Morley knows too much, doesn't he, Riley? What

does he know? Riley could tell you. Couldn't you, Riley? Well, I... Well, go on. Speak up,

Riley. I can't tell you. He's so modest, that guy. Save it, here. All right, relax. Something's

gone wrong. Who's this? It's okay. He's a new man. Well, what happened? Morley's on

his way. His girl rang to say he'd found out where we're hiding Susan. We'll have them move

out. Go on, Riley. You better bring her in. What, review here? It doesn't matter now. She

knows.

What are you doing with that gun? I'm pointing it at you, Blanford. I'd have pointed it at

you before, but I was waiting to find out where Susan was. Who the devil? Moray! Don't move

and don't try to warn Riley. For your information, Murray should have been arrested about five

minutes ago. That means that Inspector Cranshaw will have taken care of the Emerald. But how

did you... How did I get onto you? By a simple process of deduction. First you lied about

Murray's day off. That made me wonder, so I looked around for a motive. You were broke.

The emerald was in your possession, but it wasn't yours to sell. So you arranged for Riley to

kidnap your niece. Hand it over to the emerald as ransom. Riley was to hand it back to you.

Then you could sell. I wonder what Riley's cut was to her being. Marie was your useful accomplice.

You! I used a little trick to get you here, knowing you'd give yourself away.

Where's Riley? He's gone out. uh

Riley was soon involved in another desperate venture. He must have become careless after

his two fortunate escapes. Otherwise, even he would not have committed the greatest crime

of all when Scotland Yard was already on the trail of his two associates. All right, Phillips.

Give me another ring as soon as anything develops.

Jones. What's up? Put this out to Carl C. 1619 23 and 26. Switch over to East Side area. Regal

and Trenton reported in vicinity. That's all. Well, nothing for us to do now but wait.

Oh for heaven's sake, Bally, why don't you sit down? Because I hate sitting down. There's

time like this I ought to be up and doing. There are times when a little patience goes a long

way, and this is one of them. You've got some explaining to do, you know. Supposing you tell

me the whole story. All right. That is soothing to the nerves. No, thanks. I had some before.

About two weeks ago, John Harrison came to see me in my office. Mr. Morley, I'm a scientist

by profession. Attached to... I'm attached to no one, Mr. Morley. I'm my own free agent.

Science has been my vocation now for 30 years. I'm fortunately placed in as much as I have

certain independent means. So my life's work is unhampered by the necessity to acquire

the ordinary wants of life. Congratulations. For many years... I have been developing a

chemical substance. We will call it XYQ for the sake of a name. It will be of great value

to our country in time of war. Its potentialities as a secret weapon are almost frightening.

You say you work on your own. Does that mean that the government is unaware of your experiment?

Quite unaware, Mr. Morley. That's pretty risky, isn't it? I mean, if anyone got wind of what

you were doing, then... You're liable to find yourself in Dutch. That's precisely what I've

come to see Mr. Morley about. I am, as you put it, finding myself in Dutch at this precise

moment. go on. Until quite recently, I employed a laboratory assistant. His name was Paul

Roger. He was hardworking and had great respect for the work he was engaged upon.

One day he told me... He was approached by a foreign agent who offered him a large sum

of money for XYQ formula. Of course, he refused. Three days ago, he disappeared. Have you

any idea at all where he might be? I'm afraid not, but in view of what he told me, I think

he must have fallen into the hands of foreign agents. And of course, he knows the XYQ formula.

Unfortunately, no. However, last night... The mine of our tree was broken into and a

box containing some of the basic components of XYQ was stolen. Where did you leave the

box? In a small wall safe. Did Roger know the combination? Not to my knowledge. I see. Why

didn't you report Roger's disappearance to the police? Surely this is hardly a matter for

police investigation. But if the implications are as vital as your story suggests, then it

seems to me it's a case for MI5. Am I fine? That's the department that deals with counter-espionage.

For the moment, I would prefer to leave the matter in your hands, Mr. Morley. All right,

I'll look into it, but I haven't got much to go on. The man has disappeared and a chemical

substance of interest to a foreign power has been stolen. Those are the main facts. Chemistry

isn't my strongest point, but would I be right in saying that this substance could be analysed?

It is possible. All right, Mr. Harrison. Oh, there is just one thing. Do you have a photograph

of Roger? I believe I have a small snapshot at home. Let me have it, will you please? Indeed,

yes. Good heavens, I was forgetting. This came this morning.

You were advised to emulate the three wise monkeys. Say nothing, hear nothing, see nothing. I'd

be inclined to treat that with a bit of respect. Whoever's behind this obviously means business.

let me hang on to this and don't try and get in touch with But surely you... Do as I say.

Go home and carry on with your work as though nothing had happened and if I have any news

I'll contact you. You know best, Mr. Morley.

Well? Well, what? What do you make of the old boffin? Oh, he's an eccentric, of course. I

think he's inclined to exaggerate the importance of X, Y, Z, or whatever it is. It'll probably

turn out to be a mixture of salt and pepper. But there's an odd disconnection between this

man, Roger, and the disappearance of the chemical. Yeah. Eileen, check on the model, the type

that... portable, reigning to no imperial, I should think. I'll you what, I'll find out.

Don't get into mischief. Now Mr. Morley, you know me. That's why I mentioned it.

Yes, it is unusual. Nothing standard. And I might have got it in here.

Ah. Got it? Yes, I think so. Yes. This is a Derwent portable, mark two. 1939, I'd say.

Rentford's used to sell quite a number of them. Oh, thank you very much. It's a pleasure.

Thank you. Goodbye.

30 and no sign of Eileen.

But there was a note from the switchboard. Eileen had phoned to let me know that she might be

late.

Once Eileen got on the trail of something, she usually stayed. So I wasn't unduly worried.

But I would have been if I'd known where the trail of that typewriter was leading her to

at the moment.

Can I help you, my dear? Oh, what? Are you...? My name is Riley. Terrence Riley. Oh, I...

I'm trying to get hold of the typewriter. Yes, please come in. And do please sit down. Thank

you. You know, I... I'm quite intrigued. Why should for a typewriter? Well, actually, you

see, I... I was looking for a Durwind portable. It's... it's for a friend of mine. And I was...

I was wondering if you would be prepared to... A Durwind, eh? Yes. Renfords told me that they

supplied you with one about a year ago. They gave me the Mach number. Mach number two, 1939.

Mach two, thirty-nine. Yes. Would you be prepared to sell it? It must be a Dove. Oh yes. Yes,

I'm afraid so. I'm sorry I haven't such a machine. Renfords must be mistaken. You're quite sure.

I'm quite

Well, that's that. I'm so sorry to have bothered you. Oh, not at all, my dear, not at all. I'm

only too sorry that I wasn't able to accommodate you. Well, good morning. Good afternoon.

Well, do you recognize that description? Tall, sinister looking, and a sort of frightening

charm. Yes, and eyes that seem to go right through you and come out the other side. I only know

one man who answers to that description. Who? Terrence Riley. Correct. He knew you were working

for me. I doubt if you'd have got out of that office alive. And he's got that typewriter.

Yes, he has. He must have smelt a rat. You better watch the dark streets when you go home

tonight. I'll do that.

Yes, Terrence Riley speaking.

Oh, yes, regard. I'm on my way. You can safely leave that little matter in my competent hands.

Bye.

Morning, this is Harrison. I just found that snapshot of Roger. Shall I send it to your

office? No, I'll come round. What's on the grade? 14A, Garden Terrace, Earls Court. It's

about five minutes walk from the station. You turn right, it's the first stop. oh

Hello? Hello?

All is speaking. Put me through to the duty, Inspector, please.

11 o'clock. I'd never known Eileen to be late. She got in at the rule at 9 o'clock, certainly

never after 9.30. A lot of things were beginning to click into place, and once again I could

see the hand of my old enemy. First the typewriter. Eileen's hunt for it had taken it to Riley's

office. Then the murder of Harrison. Now the disappearance of Eileen. As far as poor Harrison

was concerned, I had very little to go on, but there was something that had so far escaped

the attention of Scotland Yard. I hoped to keep it to myself until I had investigated

it further, and in my own way. I'd found it on Harrison's neck, a deep indentation on the

skin that could have been made by a heavy ring on a man's finger. It was a puzzle, all right,

and somewhere, fitting into the general pattern, there was this man, Roger. What part was he

playing in the drama? Who was he and whose side was he on? I decided to invade the enemy's

territory. Listen, I told you to try and get the snapshot back, not to croak Harrison. He

was better out of the way in any case. All right. It's your funeral. What have you done with

the girl? She's at number 13. Well, keep her alive. We don't want her massacred. I was keeping

her there until you got the stuff away. I thought you'd be a good hostage in case things went

wrong. If you ask me, things have gone wrong. I didn't bargain for murder. Can I help you,

sir? I am coming from Monsieur Vernier in Paris. He's explaining everything. Ah, yes, my old

friend Vernier. Tells me you require a large diamond set in the good old-fashioned English

style. I'm afraid I've only two or three specials that I can offer you, You're such a ring-eye-and-one-thing.

Oh, I'm afraid you can't have that. It was given to me by my grandmother. I belong to my great-great-grandfather.

I may please to see. Oh, but certainly any friend of Damien. Oh, thank you. I haven't

got all day. Quite, quite. You will excuse me, sir. One minute. Please.

Now look, I've got a small cross-channel boat ready to slip at Southampton. I'll meet Trenton

myself and take him along to number 13. Don't go near the place in case you're followed.

I don't know why you couldn't get rid of the stuff before. The boat's only just been organised.

Do think this fellow Morley's going to give us any trouble? I hope not. Personally, I'll

be happier when he's under six feet above.

Oh, my ring.

Oh, yes, Morley. Can you get a plainclothes man down to watch Riley's office as soon as

possible? I found Harrison's assistant. He's with Riley now. He's aged about 30, tall, dark,

wearing a double-breasted blue suit and heavy horn-rimmed glasses. He's a hefty sort of chap

with a lot of hair. If he comes out, get your man to follow him. I'll be back there myself

in, oh, about half an hour.

Oh, stop worrying about the infernal ring. It was only load of junk anyway. It isn't the

ring that I'm worried about. That foreigner. Why? Why did he go so suddenly? There was something

vaguely familiar about him. I'll swear I met him before somewhere. You probably met him

in prison. No, no, no. Can't be. It isn't possible. Oh, I got it. Do you know who it is? Shall

I tell you? It's none other than...

exactly as I thought. Comparing the pattern made by the ring on my wrist with the one I

copied from Harrison's neck, I found them to be almost identical. It looked as though I

was at last ready to slip a noose round Riley's neck.

The French gentleman who wanted an old-fashioned English ring. Clever, Molly, but not quite

clever enough. You're getting careless in your old age, Fancy leaving a ring like that with

me, of all people. Don't crow too soon, my friend. I notice Miss Trotter isn't here this morning.

You're very observant. Why are you so anxious to get that ring back? Because it happens to

be my property. For your information, that ring is exhibit A. I shall produce it in court when

you're facing a charge of murder. Now, I advise you to tell me where you're hiding Miss Trotter.

On the contrary, I still think I hold the fifth hand. You give me back my ring, I'll release

Miss Trotter. Nothing doing. Then I'm afraid Miss Trotter will trot no more. I warn you,

Riley. If any harm comes to that girl, I'll hang you personally. That would be most illegal,

Mr. Morley. I tell you what I'll do. I'll give you a few hours to think it over. Say until

nine o'clock. After that, well, I'm afraid. Poor Miss Trotter.

Nice girl, too. Think it over, won't you, Molly?

I was uncertain as to whether Riley had tumbled the significance attached to the ring as I

had. At any rate, he'd certainly betrayed his anxiety when I referred to it as Exhibit A

at his trial for murder. I realized that his threat to Eileen wasn't an idle one. But there

was one ray of hope. Roger. Perhaps it would be possible to strike at Riley through Roger.

Roger seems to have made a clean getaway. This man Regal, what you now... Well, Rigor's a

bit of a mystery. He and this fellow, Trenton, were tipped to MI5. They asked us to look out

for them, and one of my chaps located them just before you came in. My time is getting

rather short. What do want to do? There's only one thing we can do. Pull Riley in before he

carries out his threat to Eileen. And bang goes the XYQ formula. No, if we pick up Riley now,

those birds are going to scatter like the wind. We'll never find out whether stuff's hidden.

I'm afraid I can't help that. Eileen's life is more important. Inspector Cranshaw's office?

Yes, hold on a minute. They've located a man in company with Trenton. Regal? They say he

looks like Roger. But if he's the man that MI5 are after... Cranshaw, listen, how dumb can

we get? Regal, it's Roger Smeltbackwood that's one of the same man. That's right. Roger's

our man. Don't let him out of your sight, but for heaven's sake, don't let him know you're

on his tail. Inform car C-19 of his destination, and I'll contact the car later. Good work,

Morley. Now we can pick up our friend Riley. Roger, lead our chaps to where the stuff's

hidden, and Bob's your uncle. I hope we'll find Eileen at the same time.

Shame. Great shame. Nice girl like you, caught off in her prime, so to speak. Thanks for

the compliment. Perhaps you'll never reach it now, but you must blame your friend Mr.

Morley for that. He's let you down, my dear. I wouldn't rely on that if I were you. You

wouldn't, you? But then you say you're not me. Thank Evan. You'll have every opportunity

of doing that any moment now. What do mean? As soon as my friend Mr. Roger arrives, you

are going to depart. It's time Mr. Morley learned his lesson. You'll never get away with this,

Riley. He'll crack you down if you run to the ends of the earth.

That will be Mr. Now.

You fool, I told you not to come here. Don't worry, nobody followed me. How do you know?

There isn't anybody in the world that can tail me without my knowing it. Where's Trintern?

The streets are lousy with corners. We had to split up. What are you planning to do with

her? Miss Trotter's future, as far as it goes, is organized, my dear Roger. What's that for?

Nine gallons of the best nitric acid that money can buy. I read an item about it in the news

of the world a short while ago. Apparently, it leaves no traces. Well, that's your affair.

Where's the stuff? Come along.

Fenton give you the money? Five thousand pounds. Cheap. Considering all the trouble I took

to get it. And threw in a murderer at the same price. I could have done without that. Oh,

it's all part of the day's work, my dear fellow. Who's that? Fenton. All right, Roger. This

is it. You too, Riley.

The garden is full of acid! We'll meet again, Mr. Morrie. What about Riley? He'll be picked

up, Morrie. He won't get far. I've got a quaternary police around the place. You all right? Yes,

thanks. Ah, you didn't even walk. I could walk through fire and water to get out of here.

Later, as is the custom in Her Majesty's prisons, the notice certifying the execution of Terence

Riley was posted on the prison gate.

Like most criminals, Terence Riley imagined he was beyond the reach of the law. But like

all of them, he was wrong.