Thus Kitty viewed Cutty's activities with a thrill of amazed wonder. Had
the young man hoisted Cutty to his shoulders her feeling would have been
one of exultant admiration. Let age crown its garnered wisdom; youth has
no objections to that; but feats of physical strength--that is poaching
upon youth's preserves. Kitty was not conscious of the instinctive
resentment. At that moment Cutty was to her the most extraordinary old
man in the world.
"Forward!" he whispered. "I want to know why I am doing this movie
stunt." The journey began with Kitty in the lead. She prayed that no one
would see them as they passed the two landing windows. Below and above
were vivid squares of golden light. She regretted the drizzle; no
clothes-laden lines intervened to obscure their progress. Someone in
the rear of the houses in Seventy-ninth Street might observe the
silhouettes. The whole affair must be carried off secretly or their
efforts would come to nothing.
Once inside the kitchen Cutty shifted his burden into his arms, the way
one carries a child, and followed Kitty into the unused bedroom. He did
not wait for the story, but asked for the telephone.
"I'm going to call for a surgeon at the Lambs. He's just back from
France and knows a lot about broken heads. And we can trust him
absolutely. I told him to wait there until I called."
"Cutty, you're a dear. I don't wonder father loved you."
Presently he turned away from the telephone. "He'll be here in a jiffy.
Now, then, what the deuce is all this about?"
Briefly Kitty narrated the episodes.
"Samaritan stuff. I see. Any absorbent cotton? I can wash the wound
after a fashion. Warm water and Castile soap. We can have him in shape
for Harrison."
Alone, Cutty took note of several apparent facts. The victim's flannel
shirt was torn at the collar and there were marks of finger nails on
the throat and chest. Upon close inspection he observed a thin red line
round the neck--the mark of a thong. Had they tried to strangle him or
had he carried something of value? Silk underwear and a clean body; well
born; foreign. After a conscientious hesitance Cutty went through the
pockets. All he found were some crumbs of tobacco and a soggy match box.
They had cleaned him out evidently. There were no tailors' labels in any
of the pockets; but there were signs that these had once existed. The
man on the bed had probably ripped them out himself; did not care to be
identified.