Read Below Suspicion for Free Online

Griffiths. Then the grey eyes swung round towards Butler, and away again hastily. He was for a moment so off-balance that he did not hear question and answer until his junior, George Wilmot, plucked hastily at his sleeve.
    "You tell us, Mrs. Griffiths, that this banging door woke you up in the middle of the night. What time was it?"
    "Sir, I don't know! We didn't turn on the light and look at the clock."
    "We?"
    "My husband and me."
    "Can you state an approximate time, Mrs. Griffiths?"
    "Well, it might 'a' been about midnight. More or less."
    "What made you think that this noise you heard was that of the back door banging?"
    "Becos," retorted the witness, "I went to the window and looked out. It was blowing a gale, but there was a dancy kind of moon. I could see the door, sir. It banged again, and then stopped like as if the latch had caught. It's true! You ask Mr. Griffiths!"
    The judge's voice, though soft, had the chop of a butcher's cleaver.
    "You will confine yourself," he told her, "to answering counsel's questions and refraining from comment until it is asked for."
    Mrs. Griffiths, terrified of this awesome little mummy-face with the red robe, attempted a curtsy in the witness-box.
    "Yes, me lord. Sorry, me lord."
    "At the same time," the judge continued gently. "I want to be quite clear about this. Did you mention this banging door to the police?"
    "No sir, me lord."
    "Why not?"
    "Me lord," blurted the witness, "becos I didn't think it was important. Is it important?"
    The very naivete of that question compelled belief. Patrick Butler's soul exulted. For a moment the judge looked steadily at Mrs. Griffiths,
    shoulders hunched as though he were about to crawl along the top of the bench. Then he made a slight gesture.
    "You may proceed, Mr. Lowdnes."
    "Thank you, my lord. Putting aside for the moment this new testimony," said counsel, with a meaning glance at the jury, "you tell us it was the prisoner who unlocked the door and admitted you at eight o'clock? —Very well! Was it the prisoner who told you the tale about the key 'lying inside on the floor?' "
    "No, sir!"
    "It was not?" Mr. Lowdnes's voice poured with amused skepticism.
    "She didn't say nothing. Just went back to her room."
    "What did you do?"
    "I went downstairs to the kitchen, and lit the fire, and made meself a cup of tea."
    "And then?"
    "Emma—Mrs. Perkins got there. And she 'ad a cup of tea. And then I got the madam's tea ready, on the silver service, and took it up to her room."
    "Describe what happened then."
    Framed in the oaken witness-box, with its tall supports holding up a wooden roof, Mrs. GrifEths's sturdy figure appeared to shrink.
    "Well, sir, I drew back the curtains. And I was going to put the tray on the table, when I saw Mrs. T. I come over so queer that it's a mercy I didn't drop the tray. She was dead."
    After a moment of silence, so that the brief words conjured up their image, Mr. Lowdnes nodded.
    "Will you take the bundle of photographs, Mrs. Griffiths, and just look at the first picture in the book?"
    One of the yellow-bound booklets, in which official photographs are enclosed, was handed up to the witness. Several members of the jury had also opened theirs.
    "Is that how the deceased was lying when you first saw her?"
    "That's it, sir. All twisted up in the bedclothes, like as if she was in pain. The dark spot is the rouge on 'er cheek."
    "What did you do next?"
    "I ran into the back-stairs passage, and called over the banisters to Emma."
    "That is Mrs. Perkins, the cook?"
    "Yes, sir. I said, 'Emma!' And she said, 'What?' And I said, 'For God's sake come up here; something awful's happened.' "
    "Mrs. Perkins did come up from the basement?"
    "Yes, sir. We stood on each side of the bed. I was still 'olding the tray. We thought she'd 'ad a stroke."
    "You mean, that Mrs. Taylor had suffered a stroke?"
    "That's it. And Emma said, 'I'll ring the bell for Miss Ellis; she ought to know.' "
    "Now look at photograph number two. You will see