The Silence Of The Library

“Okay, then,” Kanesha said. “When you were at the Farrington House last night, did you rifle through anybody’s room?”

THIRTY-ONE

I stared back at Kanesha. Was this some kind of joke she was trying to pull?

Melba laughed. “I know Charlie is on the snoopy side, but I’d be surprised if he was going through anybody’s room unless he had a powerful good reason.”

I started to protest, but I recalled my actions last night in a particular guest’s room.

“I did take a look at the books Gordon Betts had out on the table in his suite.” I paused because I hated to admit the next bit. “I picked up one of the books and handled it.”

“Which one?” Kanesha asked, frowning.

“A copy of The Mystery at Spellwood Mansion. Turns out it was one of the rare ones that I told you about.” I shrugged. “No way to tell, though, when Betts acquired it. Or how.”

Kanesha pulled out her notebook and jotted a few words in it. She glanced back at me. “Anything else?”

“No, that was the only book I touched. I did go in his bathroom, though.” I related to them how I had attended to Betts in his drunken state. “I did not, however, go through any of his personal things in the bathroom or the bedroom. I swear to it.”

Kanesha nodded. “Were you in any other rooms last night? Besides Mr. Eagleton’s and Mr. Betts’s?”

“No, I wasn’t,” I said. “What are you getting at? Has someone actually accused me of breaking into their room and going through their things?”

“Well, I never.” Melba was clearly annoyed. “Sounds to me like some jerk is just trying to make trouble for Charlie.”

“Not you specifically,” Kanesha said, addressing me and appearing to ignore Melba’s interjections. “But two of the guests complained to me that their things had been gone through. They were pretty adamant about it, and they both gave me believable explanations of why they were sure it happened.”

“Who were they?” I asked. “Like Melba said, it sounds like someone’s trying to make trouble for me.”

“Not you specifically,” Kanesha repeated. “Your name came up as a possibility, and I’ll have to admit I did wonder about it. I know you have a tendency to get pretty involved in these things, and sometimes it’s easy to let your curiosity get the better of your judgment.”

“I guess I can be a little on the snoopy side, like Melba said.” I smiled at my childhood friend. “But I do have my limits. Now, who was claiming their rooms were searched?”

“Gordon Betts and Della Duffy,” Kanesha answered. “Frankly, I didn’t really think you had done it. I reckoned you might have looked through the books they had lying around in their rooms, but I can’t see any harm in that. Or any violation of privacy since they were out for anybody to see. I also didn’t think you would have entered their rooms without their knowledge or consent.”

“Didn’t happen,” I said. “I helped Gordon Betts to his room, but I don’t even know what room Ms. Duffy is staying in. Or even if she has a room at the Farrington House.”

“She does,” Kanesha said. “Down the hall from Gordon Betts. Now here’s the thing. Whoever got into those rooms knew how to get around those keycard locks they have. Or else a member of the hotel staff helped.”

“What if it was a member of the hotel staff looking for something to steal?” Melba frowned. “But you did say nothing was taken, right?”

“Right.” Kanesha nodded. “Neither Ms. Duffy nor Mr. Betts had anything stolen. That was what was so odd. What was the snoop looking for?”

I pointed out one obvious flaw I spotted. “First you have to assume that both the complainants were telling the truth about nothing being taken from them. If something linking either of them to the murder of Carrie Taylor got taken, would they admit that to you?”

“I already thought of that.” Kanesha sounded testy. “I questioned both of them thoroughly, and my reading is that they were telling the truth. I can’t prove it, but that is what my instincts led me to conclude.”

I had known Kanesha long enough now to respect her instincts. If neither Gordon Betts nor Della Duffy was lying about an intruder in their rooms, what was the point of the snooping if nothing was taken?

“If you ask me,” Melba said, “the whole thing sounds pointless to me.”

“Button, button, who’s got the button,” I said.

Kanesha and Melba stared at me as if I had lost my wits.

“Nobody said anything about buttons.” Melba looked confused. Perhaps she had never heard that phrase before nor recognized the game to which it referred.

I quickly explained. “That came to mind because I had this notion there was a point to the search. The intruder was seeking something he knows exists, he simply isn’t sure who has it.”

“We’re back to the beginning then.” Kanesha sounded depressed. “What was he looking for? And how is it connected—if it is connected at all—to the murder?”

I had the beginnings of a headache. All this circular speculation was frustrating. Had we accomplished anything? I put the question to Kanesha.