"No reason at all—like I told you. . . . He knew the Canary; but that ain't no secret."
Markham dropped the subject.
"What do you know about Miss Odell's relations with a Doctor Ambroise Lindquist?"
Mannix was now obviously perplexed.
"Never heard of him—no, never. She didn't know him when I was taking her around."
"Whom else besides Cleaver did she know well?"
Mannix shook his head ponderously.
"Now, that I couldn't say—positively I couldn't say. Seen her with this man and that, same as everybody saw her; but who they were I don't know—absolutely."
"Ever hear of Tony Skeel?" Markham quickly leaned over and met the other's gaze inquiringly.
Once more Mannix hesitated, and his eyes glittered calculatingly.
"Well, now that you ask me, I believe I did hear of the fellow. But I couldn't swear to it, y' understand. . . . What makes you think I heard of this Skeel fellow?"
Markham ignored the question.
"Can you think of no one who might have borne Miss Odell a grudge, or had cause to fear her?"
Mannix was volubly emphatic on the subject of his complete ignorance of any such person; and after a few more questions, which elicited only denials, Markham let him go.
"Not bad at all, Markham old thing—eh, what?" Vance seemed pleased with the conference. "Wonder why he's so coy? Not a nice person, this Mannix. And he's so fearful lest he be informative. Again, I wonder why. He was so careful—oh, so careful."
