02788cam a22003493u 4500 77737 UtSlPG 20260610134812.0 m cr n 260607r20261930utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d 30021776 UtSlPG en iso639-1 PR Le Queux, William, 1864-1927 The rat trap Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg, 2026 1 online resource : multiple file formats text txt rdacontent computer c rdamedia online resource cr rdacarrier Release date is 2026-01-19 an anonymous Project Gutenberg volunteer "The rat trap" by William Le Queux is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set amid Continental hotel glamour that shades into menace, it follows well-off cosmopolitan Frank Aylmer as he becomes entangled with the captivating Eileen Quentin, her older, courteous “husband” Richard, and their unsettling companion Martyn. A bold jewel robbery and the arrival of an overbearing American millionaire widen the social circle and hint at a deeper web of jealousy, deception, and crime that is likely to extend from Ostend to London. At the start of the novel, Aylmer and his younger friend Claude Peyton meet Eileen, Richard Quentin, and Richard’s dour friend Martyn at Ostend’s Hôtel Continental, where Aylmer is swiftly captivated. Eileen and Aylmer dance, Martyn shows thinly veiled hostility, and Quentin remains placidly indulgent. A daring dinner-hour jewel raid robs a bejeweled widow and strips Eileen’s room, prompting Aylmer to suspect an inside accomplice. The brash millionaire Cyrus J. Whitefield appears, openly flirts with Eileen, and departs after promising a future London visit, while Martyn scowls and Quentin stays unruffled. Aylmer then witnesses Eileen in tears after a private clash with Martyn and decides to stay, as Peyton shrewdly deduces that Martyn loves her and she fears him. In a confidential walk, Eileen reveals the central twist: she and Quentin only pretend to be married—an arrangement born of his guardianship and her need for protection, with a promise he will free her if real love arrives. She asks Aylmer to be her friend, hints at a coming invitation to their Hampstead home, and he leaves England resolved to help her, their next meeting already secretly planned. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Originally published: New York: The Macaulay Company, 1930 Detective and mystery stories Robbery -- Fiction Hotels -- Fiction Gangs -- Fiction https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77737 118457 118457