Four Men and a Prayer Page #6

Interesting as fact,

but hardly significant.

You'll find it significant.

Our father's name was Colonel Loring Leigh.

You knew him, I believe.

Very well.

He was my commanding officer in India.

Quite, and you were

a witness at his trial.

Reluctantly, I admit.

All the same, he was convicted

on your perjured evidence.

- I'm not gonna stay here and be insulted.

- Speaking of mock heroics.

Sit down.

Is there anything familiar

about that gun?

- No.

- Well, the barman in India left one behind...

exactly like it when he skipped.

It wasn't clever of you, Loveland,

to let that cockney down.

He told me the whole story in jail while you,

no doubt, were hoping we'd both be shot.

I confess it would've

saved me this rather boring interview.

Don't smile like that.

It annoys me.

You're gonna tell us now

exactly what happened in India.

- And if I don't?

- Why, then, Loveland...

I promise you, on my word of honor,

that I'll shoot you right now.

Just a stray bullet

from the revolution.

I forged the order.

That's all.

- Go on.

- There isn't any more.

- I didn't kill you father.

- Then you do know that he was killed!

Well, we want the name

of the man who killed him.

I'm probably signing my own death warrant.

But since you insist, it was-

Geoffrey! Geoffrey, what happened?

- A shot came from that window.

- But why?

The thing to do now

is get out of here immediately.

Yes, poor fellow.

Very evidently a stray bullet from the revolution

finished him off. Come in.

Yes. Oh, you'll make

all the arrangements, eh?

Good. Well, I'm pulling

out of here at once.

L- I don't want to risk

my other guests.

I've just been talking over the wireless telephone

to the British consul.

He's making all the arrangements

about poor Loveland.

Peculiar chap,

in some ways, Loveland...

but always a delightful guest.

- Won't you sit down and have a drink?

- No, thanks.

We want to talk to you, Furnoy.

- First of all, you ought to know who we are.

- Oh, that's not necessary.

I do a lot of business through the British

embassy in Washington.

In that case, you must've

heard of our father, Colonel Loring Leigh.

Yes, I think I have.

Read something of him recently.

We came here to have

a showdown with Loveland.

He was the chief witness

against our father in India.

And tonight we got

the evidence we wanted.

He confessed that he had been

bribed to forge the order...

on which our father

was court-martialed and convicted.

Bribed? Who bribed him?

A munitions concern

called Atlas Arms.

Atlas Arms?

Never heard of them.

Won't you boys sit down and have-

And Loveland wasn't killed by a stray bullet.

He was murdered.

Well, great scott,

this all seems very mysterious.

It is. Loveland was just about to disclose

the name of the official of Atlas Arms...

who killed our father,

when the shot was fired.

- Obviously, someone did not want us to hear that name.

- Certainly looks that way.

Furnoy, we were wondering

if it could be anybody on this boat.

It seems to us that Loveland

constantly took orders from you.

By the Lord Harry,

I believe you chaps think I'm in this.

Why don't you take that gun out of your pocket?

You know, I've been accused of a lot of things

in my time, but never murder.

You chaps are so serious.

I'll tell you what I'll do.

You can look me up in Bradstreet's.

Well, wait.

You've been in America.

- Have you never heard of Standard Rubber?

- I'm afraid not.

Oh! Well, that's me.

Of course, I don't pay

much attention to it nowadays.

But while I was developing it, I was forced

to travel a great deal, looking for rubber.

It gave me a sort of a passion for knocking

about the world with adventure and excitement.

You know, knocking about the world

in odd places and collecting curious people.

I knew a chap called

Traud Shaw once-

Now take, for instance, Loveland and Torres.

I looked them up too.

Loveland, I found, was an army

officer who'd retired with a bit of money.

And Torres-

Well, Torres was obviously an old bandit.

Turned revolutionary and all that sort of thing.

As a matter of fact,

Torres suggested this cruise.

And I thought it would be fun.

Now with Loveland gone-

What I'm really interested in-

uh, pardon me- is this.

- Ooh.

- Softer hands...

- for housewives.

- That's good.

As well as bigger

and better teeth for dogs...

and babies.

So you see, if you're

trying to tie me up with your late friend...

well, you're barking up the wrong tree.

Now if you boys will pardon me...

I think I'll turn in,

and I think you should too.

- Uh, may I keep this one?

- Yes, if you like.

- And that too.

- Oh, thank you.

- Oh, look-

- Good night.

We didn't do that very well, did we?

You blasted idiot!

Which one of those mugs

is in love with Lynn Cherrington?

Both, I should say.

Oh, good.

Ask Miss Cherrington to step in, will you?

- Good evening.

- Good evening, Miss Cherrington. I hope you're feeling better.

- Thank you. I am.

- Sorry you got in all this mess.

- Well-

- Won't you sit down?

Thank you. After all, it was my first revolution,

and I don't care to see another, thanks.

Well, you know, men will fight.

- Yeah.

- War is a pretty old institution.

Pretty horrible one too, isn't it?

Yes, it's terrible about Loveland.

Oh, I managed to get your

father on the wireless telephone.

Finally located him

in Alexandria, in Egypt.

Really? I thought

he was in- in London.

No. I felt that he'd, naturally,

want to know what was going on here.

Particularly about Loveland.

My father? But why?

Well, as president of the Atlas Arms,

he'd naturally feel concerned.

President of Atlas Arms?

Yeah. Oh.

L- I thought you knew.

Why, uh-Why, no.

I didn't know. L-

Uh, I wonder if I may

have a cigarette.

Yes. Surely.

Thank you.

As a matter of fact,

that's how I first met Loveland.

He'd a letter of introduction

from your father...

whom he'd worked for

sometime before in India.

Oh, and by the by, I didn't make any mention

at all of your being aboard ship.

I was afraid it might

worry your father.

Yes. Oh, yes, it might.

- Good night and thank you.

- Good night, my dear.

You'll probably find

Miss Cherrington at the hotel.

I think she went ashore early

to get a good night's rest.

Well, good-bye, Mr. Furnoy.

Very happy to have been aboard.

- Well, happy to have had you.

- And I'm- I'm terribly sorry about last night.

- Oh, forget it.

- Good-bye, sir. Happy to have been aboard.

- Thank you very much.

- Well, I enjoyed having you too.

And by the way, here's one

of my latest little gadgets, all for you.

Oh, thank you so much.

- Thank you.

- Good-bye, boys.

Good-bye.

Beg your pardon, sir. Operator says

please stand by for a call from India.

- India?

- Yes, sir.

- Right!

- Gracias, senor.

Nosey! Ready, Nosey.

India's calling!

Really, I wish you'd knock

before you do this type of thing.

How did you know who was- Oh. India?

Hello? Ready here for the call.

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