The Strange Story of Linda Lee by Dennis Wheatley Page A

would loosen her purse-strings for her stepfather’s ‘secretary’.
    Then a sudden inspiration came to Linda. Elsie had made a special point of telling her that she must take nothing from the house. At the time she had been vaguely puzzled, because it had not seemed to her that there was anything of much value that she would be likely to take. But now the thought flashed upon her. There were Rowley’s mother’s jewels.
    Being honest by nature, for a few minutes she balked at the idea. Had she been able to get in touch with Eric, she would not have dreamed of taking them. But it might be months before she could trace him. She might even fail altogether, and this was a case of ‘now or never’. Rowley, she was convinced, would have approved her making good in this way his own forgetfulness and neglect. Reason told her too that it was foolish to be deterred by scruples. Those jewels could prove a life-raft in a stormy sea. She could live in comfort for several years on the money they would fetch. She would be crazy to go out into the world alone and almost penniless when a fortune lay close to hand for the taking.
    Stepping quickly over to the door, she transferred the key to the inside and locked it, then knelt down beside the safe. Ever since she had become Rowley’s mistress, he had let her wear any of the jewels she liked and, so that she could get them out whenever she wanted without bothering him, he had given her the combination. Swiftly she twirled the knob to and fro, then swung the heavy door open.
    The lower shelves held Rowley’s papers, with their secret nuclear calculations; the upper the pile of small, leather cases, the valuable contents of each of which she knew well. Sweeping them out, she stuffed them into a large manilla envelope and on top of them her passport, then closed the door of the safe and, twirling the knob, relocked it.
    The jewels Rowley’s mother had left were, she knew, worth about twenty-five thousand pounds, but only a part of them was here. To keep the insurance premium down to a reasonable figure, the most valuable items were lodged in Harrods’ safe deposit. But, as she dealtwith Rowley’s insurances, she was aware that the haul she had made was worth about seven thousand pounds. If she could dispose of them, that would enable her to weather the storm for a long time to come.
    Unlocking the door of the room, she peered cautiously out. Neither of the servants was to be seen. With trembling fingers she put the key back in the outside of the door, then ran lightly up to her bedroom. There she transferred the jewel cases to her largest handbag.
    By this time it was just after nine o’clock, so there were nearly two hours to go before Elsie and Arthur could be expected; ample time for her to make herself respectable. When she looked in the bathroom mirror she was shocked by her haggard appearance, but her eyes were now shining with excitement. Another bath refreshed her; then she did her face and hair and put on a grey coat and skirt, which was the nearest thing she had to mourning.
    Having locked in a drawer the bag in which she had put the jewels, she went downstairs to the kitchen. Normally she had her breakfast brought up to her at half past eight, and it was now a few minutes past ten; so, in spite of her disturbed state of mind, she was hungry. The Luchenis were making no attempt to get on with the housework, but talking together in low Voices. As she walked in they both stood up and gravely expressed their sympathy for her. She told them that Mr. and Mrs. Spilkin would be arriving shortly and would most probably stay to lunch. Bella said that there were in the fridge both cold vichyoisse and a lemon sponge she had made, and that for a main course she would slip out and get a leg of lamb. Linda nodded agreement, then, having asked Bella to make her an omelette and more coffee, she went to the dining-room.
    As she sat there waiting for her belated breakfast and while she ate it,