Prisoner's Base

"Yes, sir. That didn't come from the safe. It came from a visitor as described, now up in the south room. I invented nothing, puerile or not. She's a roomer for a week if you want her. Shall I bring her down so you can decide?"

He was glaring at me. "Bah," he said, reaching for his book.

"Okay, I'll go get her." I started for the door, expecting him to stop me with a roar, but he didn't. He thought he knew I was playing him. I compromised by going to the kitchen to ask Fritz to come in a minute, and let him precede me back to the office. Wolfe didn't glance at us.

"A little point of information," I told Fritz. "Mr. Wolfe thinks I'm exaggerating. Our lady visitor you took a drink to up in the south room-is she old, haggard, deformed, ugly, and crippled?"

"Now, Archie," Fritz reproved me. "She is quite the opposite. Precisely the opposite!"

"Right. You left her locked in?"

"Certainly. I brought you the key. You said she would probably have her dinner-"

"Yeah, we'll let you know. Okay, thanks."

Fritz darted a look at Wolfe, got none in return, wheeled, and left. Wolfe waited for the sound of the kitchen door closing, then put his book down and spoke. "It's true," he said in a tone that would have been fitting if he had just learned that I had been putting thrips on his plants. "You have actually installed a woman in a room of my house?"

"Not installed exactly," I objected. "That's too strong a word. And it implies that I have personal-"

"Where did you get her?"

"I didn't get her. As I told you, she came. I wasn't inventing. I was reporting."

"Report it in full. Verbatim."

That order was easy, compared to some I have had to fill. I gave him words and actions complete, from opening the front door to let her in through to locking the south room door to keep her in. He leaned back with his eyes closed, as he usually does when I'm reporting at length. When I finished he had no questions, not one. He merely opened his eyes and snapped at me, "Go up and give her back her money." He glanced at the wall clock. "It'll be dinnertime in twenty minutes. Get her out of the house in ten. Help her pack."