My hand was in my side-pocket, and in my hand was the
revolver.
"He began at once in his character of Robert--some rigmarole
about working his passage over from Australia; a little private
performance for my edification. Then in his natural voice,
gloating over his well-planned retaliation on Miss Norris, he
burst out, 'It's my turn now. You wait.' It was this which
Elsie heard. She had no business to be there and she might have
ruined everything, but as it turned out it was the luckiest thing
which could have happened. For it was the one piece of evidence
which I wanted; evidence, other than my own, that Mark and Robert
were in the room together.
"I said nothing. I was not going to take the risk of being heard
to speak in that room. I just smiled at the poor little fool,
and took out my revolver, and shot him. Then I went back into
the library and waited--just as I said in my evidence.
"Can you imagine, Mr. Gillingham, the shock which your sudden
appearance gave me? Can you imagine the feelings of a 'murderer'
who has (as he thinks) planned for every possibility, and is then
confronted suddenly with an utterly new problem? What difference
would your coming make? I didn't know.
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