CHAPTER XXI

von Wilkie Collins

The first words spoken after we settled into our seats came from my lady.

“Sergeant Cuff,” she began, “I might have had some excuse for the way I spoke to you half an hour ago. But I don’t want to use that as an excuse. I sincerely regret it if I wronged you.”

The grace in her voice and the way she expressed her apology had the desired effect on the Sergeant. He asked if he could explain himself, framing his justification as a sign of respect for my mistress. He insisted that he couldn’t possibly be responsible for the tragedy that had shocked us all. His success in resolving the case depended on not alarming Rosanna Spearman, he explained. He turned to me, asking if I could confirm that he had indeed managed to keep that goal in mind. I could, and I did, affirming his point. I thought that would be the end of it.

But Sergeant Cuff wasn’t done. Clearly, he had a purpose in mind, as you’ll see, and he pushed for a discussion that would lead to the most painful of revelations between my lady and himself.

“I’ve heard a reason given for the young woman’s suicide,” he said, “which might be the right one. It’s a reason that has nothing to do with the case I’m investigating. However, I must add that I believe the truth lies elsewhere. I suspect that some unbearable anxiety related to the missing Diamond drove the poor girl to her death. I can’t claim to know what that anxiety was, but I think, with your ladyship’s permission, I can point to someone who might help clarify whether I’m right or wrong.”

“Is this person still in the house?” my mistress asked after a brief pause.

“The person has left the house, my lady.”

That answer pointed directly to Miss Rachel. A heavy silence fell over us, one that felt like it would never lift. The wind howled, and the rain lashed against the window as I sat there, waiting for one of them to speak again.

“Please, be straightforward,” my lady said. “Are you referring to my daughter?”

“I am,” Sergeant Cuff replied plainly.

My mistress had her checkbook on the table when we entered, likely to pay the Sergeant for his services. Now, she slid it back into the drawer. It pained me to see how her hand trembled—the same hand that had given so much to her loyal servant; the hand that I hope will take mine when my time comes to leave this world.

“I had hoped,” my lady said slowly and quietly, “to reward your services and to part ways without mentioning Miss Verinder’s name openly, as we have now. My nephew may have said something about this before you came into my room?”

“Mr. Blake delivered his message, my lady. And I provided Mr. Blake with a reason—”

“There’s no need to share your reason. After what you’ve just said, you know as well as I do that you’ve gone too far to turn back. I owe it to myself and to my child to insist that you stay and speak freely.”

The Sergeant checked his watch.

“If there had been time, my lady,” he said, “I would have preferred to write my report rather than speak it. But if this inquiry is to continue, we can’t waste time on writing. I’m ready to discuss the matter right away. It’s a painful topic for me to address and for you to hear.”

My mistress interrupted him again.

“I might make this less painful for you and for my good servant and friend here,” she said, “if I take the lead and speak frankly. You suspect Miss Verinder of deceiving us all by hiding the Diamond for her own reasons? Is that correct?”

“Absolutely correct, my lady.”

“Very well. Before you begin, I need to tell you, as Miss Verinder’s mother, that she is completely incapable of doing what you think she has done. Your understanding of her character is based on just a few days. Mine goes back to the very beginning of her life. You can state your suspicions about her as strongly as you wish—it’s impossible for you to offend me. I’m sure that, despite your experience, the circumstances have led you astray in this case. Just so you know, I have no private information. I’m as shut out from my daughter’s confidence as you are. My only reason for speaking so firmly is the one I’ve already shared: I know my child.”

She turned to me and offered her hand. I kissed it in silence. “You may continue,” she said, facing the Sergeant again with unwavering resolve.

Sergeant Cuff bowed slightly. My mistress had only managed to evoke one response from him: for a brief moment, his sharp features softened, as if he felt a twinge of sympathy for her. But it was clear that she hadn’t swayed him in the slightest. He settled back into his chair and began his harsh critique of Miss Rachel’s character.

“I must ask you, my lady,” he said, “to consider this situation from both our perspectives. Imagine yourself in my position, with my experience. May I briefly outline what that experience entails?”

My mistress nodded, signaling her willingness to listen. The Sergeant continued.

“For the past twenty years,” he said, “I’ve been involved in cases of family scandals, serving as a confidential advisor. The one thing I’ve learned that relates to our current situation can be summed up in two words: young ladies of status sometimes have private debts they can’t admit to their closest relatives or friends. Often, it’s the milliner or the jeweler behind it. Sometimes, the money is needed for reasons I won’t shock you by mentioning. Keep that in mind, my lady. Now, let’s examine how the events in this house have forced me to rely on my experience, whether I wanted to or not.”

He paused for a moment, then continued with a chilling clarity that left no room for misunderstanding, and a brutal fairness that didn’t favor anyone.

“My first information regarding the loss of the Moonstone came from Superintendent Seegrave. He made it clear to me that he was utterly incapable of managing the case. The one thing he said that caught my attention was that Miss Verinder had refused to be questioned by him and had treated him with a level of rudeness and contempt that was baffling. I found this curious, but I attributed it mainly to some misstep on the Superintendent’s part that might have offended her. After that, I set it aside and focused on the case myself. As you know, it concluded with the discovery of a smear on the door, and Mr. Franklin Blake’s testimony convinced me that this smear and the loss of the Diamond were connected. At that point, I suspected that the Moonstone had been stolen and that one of the servants might be the thief.

So, what happens next? Miss Verinder suddenly emerges from her room and speaks to me. I notice three suspicious signs in her behavior. She is still visibly shaken, even though more than twenty-four hours have passed since the Diamond went missing. She treats me just as she had treated Superintendent Seegrave. And she is deeply offended with Mr. Franklin Blake.

Now, here’s the situation: we have a young lady who has lost a precious jewel and, as my own observations tell me, she has an impulsive nature. Given these circumstances, what does she do? She shows an inexplicable resentment towards Mr. Blake, the Superintendent, and me—the very three people who have been trying to help her recover her lost jewel.

It is only after reaching this point in my inquiry that I begin to reflect on my own experiences. Those experiences help to explain Miss Verinder’s otherwise puzzling behavior. They connect her to other young ladies I’ve encountered. They suggest to me that she has debts she cannot acknowledge and that those debts must be settled. This leads me to wonder if the loss of the Diamond might mean that it has been secretly pledged to cover those debts. That is the conclusion my experience draws from the facts at hand. What does your ladyship’s experience tell you against it?”

“What I’ve already said,” my mistress replied. “The circumstances have misled you.”

I remained silent. _Robinson Crusoe_—God knows how—had somehow lodged itself in my muddled thoughts. If Sergeant Cuff had found himself, at that moment, stranded on a deserted island, without a companion or a ship to rescue him, he would have been exactly where I wished him to be! (Just so you know, I consider myself a decent Christian, as long as my faith isn’t pushed too far. And the rest of you—which is quite comforting—are, in this regard, much like me.)

Sergeant Cuff continued.

“Right or wrong, my lady,” he began, “after reaching my conclusion, the next step was to test it. I suggested that we examine all the wardrobes in the house. It was a way to find the piece of clothing that likely caused the smear, and it would also put my conclusion to the test. How did it turn out? You agreed, Mr. Blake agreed, and Mr. Ablewhite agreed. But Miss Verinder stopped everything by flatly refusing. That outcome confirmed for me that my view was correct. If you and Mr. Betteredge continue to disagree with me, you must be blind to what happened today. I told the young lady that leaving the house under those circumstances would hinder my ability to recover her jewel. You saw her drive off despite that warning. You witnessed her publicly insult Mr. Blake, who had done more than anyone else to help me. What do these actions mean? If Miss Verinder isn’t involved in hiding the Diamond, what do they mean?”

At that moment, he turned his gaze toward me. It was terrifying to hear him pile up evidence against Miss Rachel, knowing that I longed to defend her but couldn’t dispute the truth of his words. Thankfully, I’m naturally resistant to reason. This allowed me to hold onto my lady’s perspective, which was also my own. It stirred my spirit and compelled me to put on a brave face in front of Sergeant Cuff. Friends, take my example to heart; it will save you from many frustrating troubles. Cultivate a disregard for reason, and watch how you dull the claws of those sensible people who try to scratch you for your own good!

Noticing my silence, and my mistress’s silence, Sergeant Cuff continued. It infuriated me that he seemed completely unfazed by our lack of response.

“There’s the case against Miss Verinder alone,” he said. “Now, let’s consider the case against Miss Verinder and the late Rosanna Spearman together. Let’s go back to your daughter’s refusal to allow her wardrobe to be examined. After that incident, I had two questions to ponder. First, how to conduct my inquiry. Second, whether Miss Verinder had an accomplice among the female servants in the house. After careful consideration, I decided to approach the inquiry in what we would call at our office a highly irregular manner. I had a family scandal to manage, and it was my responsibility to keep it within the family. The less noise and the fewer outsiders involved, the better. The usual process of detaining suspects and going before a magistrate was out of the question, especially since I believed your ladyship’s daughter was at the heart of it all. In this case, I felt that someone like Mr. Betteredge—who knew the servants and cared about the family’s honor—would be a safer assistant than anyone else I could find. I would have considered Mr. Blake as well, but there was one obstacle: he understood my intentions early on, and with his interest in Miss Verinder, any collaboration between us was impossible. I share these details to show you that I’ve kept the family secret within the family circle. I’m the only outsider who knows it, and my professional existence depends on my discretion.”

At that moment, I felt that my professional existence depended on speaking up. Being presented before my mistress as a sort of deputy policeman was more than my patience could handle.

“I must inform your ladyship,” I said, “that I have never, to my knowledge, assisted in this dreadful detective work in any way, from start to finish; and I challenge Sergeant Cuff to contradict me if he dares!”

Having said that, I felt a wave of relief. Her ladyship honored me with a friendly pat on the shoulder. I shot a look of righteous indignation at the Sergeant, eager to see his reaction to such a statement. He looked back at me like a lamb and seemed to like me even more.

My lady then told him he could continue. “I understand,” she said, “that you have honestly done your best, in what you believe to be my interest. I’m ready to hear what you have to say next.”

“What I’m about to say next concerns Rosanna Spearman,” Sergeant Cuff began. “You might remember I recognized her when she brought the washing book into this room. Until that moment, I had my doubts about whether Miss Verinder had confided her secret to anyone. But seeing Rosanna changed my mind. I immediately suspected she was involved in the concealment of the Diamond. The poor girl has met a tragic end, and I don’t want you to think, now that she’s gone, that I was too harsh on her. If this had been a simple case of theft, I would have given Rosanna the benefit of the doubt, just as I would have for any of the other staff in the house.

Our experience with women from the Reformatory shows that, when treated kindly and fairly, most of them genuinely repent and deserve the effort put into their rehabilitation. But this wasn’t a typical case of theft. To me, it was a carefully orchestrated fraud, with the owner of the Diamond at the center of it. Given this perspective, my first thought regarding Rosanna was this: Would Miss Verinder be satisfied with leading us to believe that the Moonstone was merely lost? Or would she go further and make us think it was stolen? If it was the latter, then Rosanna Spearman—carrying the label of a thief—was conveniently positioned to mislead both your ladyship and me.”

Could he possibly frame his case against Miss Rachel and Rosanna in an even more sinister light? It seemed he could, as you will soon see.

“I had another reason for suspecting the late Rosanna,” he continued, “which I believe is even stronger. Who would be the perfect person to assist Miss Verinder in secretly raising money on the Diamond? Rosanna Spearman. No young lady in Miss Verinder’s position could handle such a risky endeavor alone. She would need a go-between, and who better than Rosanna? Your ladyship’s late housemaid was at the top of her game when she was a thief. I know for a fact she had connections with one of the few moneylenders in London who would advance a significant sum on a jewel like the Moonstone without asking uncomfortable questions or imposing awkward conditions. Keep that in mind, my lady; now let me show you how my suspicions are backed up by Rosanna’s actions and the clear implications of those actions.”

He then reviewed all of Rosanna’s activities. You’re already familiar with those events, just as I am, and you’ll understand how convincingly this part of his report implicated the poor deceased girl in the disappearance of the Moonstone. Even my mistress was taken aback by what he said. She didn’t respond when he finished. It didn’t seem to matter to the Sergeant whether he received an answer or not. He pressed on, as steady as ever.

“Having laid out the entire case as I see it,” he said, “I now need to tell your ladyship what I propose to do next. I see two ways to successfully conclude this inquiry. One of those ways I consider certain. The other, I admit, is a bold gamble, and nothing more. Your ladyship can decide. Shall we start with the certainty?”

My mistress gestured for him to choose his own path.

“Thank you,” the Sergeant replied. “We’ll begin with the certainty, as you kindly leave it to me. Whether Miss Verinder stays at Frizinghall or returns here, I plan to keep a close watch on all her activities—who she meets, the walks and rides she takes, and the letters she writes and receives.”

“What’s next?” my mistress asked.

“Next,” the Sergeant answered, “I will request your permission to bring in a woman to replace Rosanna Spearman, someone experienced in private inquiries, whose discretion I can vouch for.”

“What’s next?” my mistress repeated.

“Next,” the Sergeant continued, “I propose we send one of my fellow officers to arrange a meeting with that money-lender in London I mentioned earlier. He used to know Rosanna Spearman, and I can assure you, your ladyship, that Rosanna has shared his name and address with Miss Verinder. I won’t deny that this plan will require both time and money. But I’m confident it will yield results. We’ll draw a line around the Moonstone and tighten it until we find it in Miss Verinder’s possession, assuming she chooses to keep it. If her debts become overwhelming and she decides to send it away, we’ll have our man ready to intercept the Moonstone when it arrives in London.”

Hearing her daughter discussed in such a way ignited my mistress’s anger for the first time.

“Consider your proposal rejected in every way,” she said firmly. “Now, move on to your other method for concluding this inquiry.”

“My other method,” the Sergeant replied, remaining calm, “is to attempt that bold experiment I mentioned. I believe I have a good understanding of Miss Verinder’s temperament. She is certainly capable of committing a daring act of fraud. However, she is also hot-headed and not used to deceit, which makes her unable to play the hypocrite in small matters and control her emotions under pressure. Her feelings have often gotten the better of her, especially when it was clearly in her interest to hide them. It’s this aspect of her character that I intend to exploit. I want to deliver a sudden shock that will deeply affect her. In plain terms, I want to inform Miss Verinder about Rosanna’s death without any warning, hoping that her better instincts will push her to confess. Will you accept that alternative?”

My mistress stunned me into silence. She responded immediately:

“Yes, I will.”

“The pony-chaise is ready,” the Sergeant said. “I wish you a good morning.”

My lady raised her hand, stopping him at the door.

“My daughter’s better instincts will be tested as you suggest,” she stated. “But I insist, as her mother, on conducting the test myself. You will stay here, if you please, while I go to Frizinghall.”

For once, the great Cuff was left speechless, as if he were an ordinary man.

My mistress rang the bell and ordered her waterproof gear. The rain was still pouring, and the closed carriage had already left with Miss Rachel for Frizinghall. I tried to convince her not to brave the harsh weather. It was no use! I offered to accompany her and hold the umbrella, but she wouldn’t hear of it. The pony-chaise arrived, with the groom in charge. “You can count on two things,” she told Sergeant Cuff in the hall. “I will conduct the experiment on Miss Verinder as boldly as you would. And I will inform you of the outcome, either in person or by letter, before the last train departs for London tonight.”

With that, she climbed into the chaise, took the reins herself, and drove off toward Frizinghall.