By 4O’clock the killer had disposed off the old man’s dead body. Just then there came a knock on the door. He opened the door. Three policemen entered the room. They told him that some of the neighbours had reported a cry in that house. The killer confidently told them that it was his own cry during sleep. He said the old man was not at home. The policemen searched the house, but found nothing to rouse suspicion.
The killer felt so safe that he began to chat with
them. Suddenly he was startled by the noise of the dead man’s heart beating under the floor. He tried to keep cool, but the noise became louder. He thought the policemen were also hearing that noise. He got so nervous that he confessed the murder and handed himself over to the police.
This part of the story reveals the effect of fear on the emotions of a weak man after committing a crime. He is afraid of exposure. The fear keeps haunting him till he is obliged to get rid of it either by coming out with a straight confession or by killing himself. It depends on the nature of the man. The killer in this story takes the first alternative. He at first tries his best to hush up the fear. He goes on speaking loudly and quickly in order to silence the voice of fear in his heart, and give the impression that he has nothing to hide. But the fear is too strong, so he suddenly breaks down and comes out with an open confession.
