Twenty-nine

Twenty-nine
Once more I was in Wilbraham Crescent, proceeding¹ in a westerly direction.
I stopped before the gate of No. 19. No one came screaming out of the house this time. It wasneat and peaceful.
I went up to the front door and rang the bell.
Miss Millicent Pebmarsh opened it.
“This is Colin Lamb,” I said. “May I come in and speak to you?”
“Certainly.”
She preceded me into the sitting room.
“You seem to spend a lot of time down here, Mr. Lamb. I understood that you were notconnected with the local police—”
“You understood rightly. I think, really, you have known exactly who I am from the first dayyou spoke² to me.”
“I’m not sure quite what you mean by that.”
“I’ve been extremely stupid, Miss Pebmarsh. I came to this place to look for you. I found youthe first day I was here—and I didn’t know I had found you!”
“Possibly murder distracted you.”
“As you say. I was also stupid enough to look at a piece of paper the wrong way up.”
“And what is the point of all this?”
“Just that the game is up, Miss Pebmarsh. I’ve found the headquarters where all the planning isdone. Such records and memoranda³ as are necessary are kept by you on the microdot system inBraille. The information Larkin got at Portlebury was passed to you. From here it went to itsdestination by means of Ramsay. He came across when necessary from his house to yours at nightby way of the garden. He dropped a Czech coin in your garden one day—”
“That was careless of him.”
“We’re all careless at some time or another. Your cover is very good. You’re blind, you work atan institute for disabled children, you keep children’s books in Braille in your house as is onlynatural—you are a woman of unusual intelligence and personality. I don’t know what is thedriving power that animates⁴ you—”
“Say if you like that I am dedicated⁵.”
“Yes. I thought it might be like that.”
“And why are you telling me all this? It seems unusual.”
I looked at my watch.
“You have two hours, Miss Pebmarsh. In two hours’ time members of the special branch willcome here and take charge—”
“I don’t understand you. Why do you come here ahead of your people, to give me what seemsto be a warning—”
“It is a warning. I have come here myself, and shall remain here until my people arrive, to seethat nothing leaves this house—with one exception. That exception is you yourself. You have twohours’ start if you choose to go.”
“But why? Why?”
I said slowly:
“Because I think there is an off-chance that you might shortly become my mother-in-law … Imay be quite wrong.”
There was a silence. Millicent Pebmarsh got up and went to the window. I didn’t take my eyesoff her. I had no illusions about Millicent Pebmarsh. I didn’t trust her an inch. She was blind buteven a blind woman can catch you if you are off guard. Her blindness wouldn’t handicap her if sheonce got her chance to jam an automatic against my spine⁶.
She said quietly:
“I shall not tell you if you’re right or wrong. What makes you think that—that it might be so?”
“Eyes.”
“But we are not alike in character.”
“No.”
She spoke almost defiantly⁷.
“I did the best I could for her.”
“That’s a matter of opinion. With you a cause came first.”
“As it should do.”
“I don’t agree.”
There was silence again. Then I asked, “Did you know who she was—that day?”
“Not until I heard the name … I had kept myself informed about her—always.”
“You were never as inhuman⁸ as you would have liked to be.”
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
I looked at my watch again.
“Time is going on,” I said.
She came back from the window and across to the desk.
“I have a photograph of her here—as a child….”
I was behind her as she pulled the drawer open. It wasn’t an automatic. It was a small verydeadly knife….
My hand closed over hers and took it away.
“I may be soft, but I’m not a fool,” I said.
She felt for a chair and sat down. She displayed no emotion whatever.
“I am not taking advantage of your offer. What would be the use? I shall stay here until—theycome. There are always opportunities—even in prison.”
“Of indoctrination, you mean?”
“If you like to put it that way.”
We sat there, hostile to each other, but with understanding.
“I’ve resigned from the Service,” I told her. “I’m going back to my old job—marine biology.
There’s a post going at a university in Australia.”
“I think you are wise. You haven’t got what it takes for this job. You are like Rosemary’sfather. He couldn’t understand Lenin’s dictum: ‘Away with softness.’”
I thought of Hercule Poirot’s words.
“I’m content,” I said, “to be human….”
We sat there in silence, each of us convinced that the other’s point of view was wrong.
Letter from Detective Inspector⁹ Hardcastle to M. Hercule PoirotDear M. Poirot,
We are now in possession of certain facts, and I feel you may be interested tohear about them.
A Mr. Quentin Duguesclin of Quebec left Canada for Europe approximatelyfour weeks ago. He has no near relatives and his plans for return were indefinite.
His passport was found by the proprietor¹⁰ of a small restaurant in Boulogne, whohanded it in to the police. It has not so far been claimed.
Mr. Duguesclin was a lifelong friend of the Montresor family of Quebec. Thehead of that family, Mr. Henry Montresor, died eighteen months ago, leaving hisvery considerable fortune to his only surviving relative, his great-niece Valerie,described as the wife of Josaiah Bland¹¹ of Portlebury, England. A very reputablefirm of London solicitors¹² acted for the Canadian executors. All communicationsbetween Mrs. Bland and her family in Canada ceased from the time of hermarriage of which her family did not approve. Mr. Duguesclin mentioned to oneof his friends that he intended to look up the Blands while he was in England,since he had always been very fond of Valerie.
The body hitherto identified as that of Henry Castleton has been positivelyidentified as Quentin Duguesclin.
Certain boards have been found stowed away in a corner of Bland’s buildingyard. Though hastily painted out, the words SNOWFLAKE LAUNDRY are plainlyperceptible after treatment by experts.
I will not trouble you with lesser¹³ details, but the public prosecutor¹⁴ considersthat a warrant can be granted for the arrest of Josaiah Bland. Miss Martindaleand Mrs. Bland are, as you conjectured¹⁵, sisters, but though I agree with yourviews on her participation¹⁶ in these crimes, satisfactory evidence will be hard toobtain. She is undoubtedly¹⁷ a very clever woman. I have hopes, though, of Mrs.
Bland. She is the type of woman who rats.
The death of the first Mrs. Bland through enemy action in France, and hissecond marriage to Hilda Martindale (who was in the N.A.A.F.I.) also in Francecan be, I think, clearly established, though many records were, of course,destroyed at that time.
It was a great pleasure meeting you that day, and I must thank you for the veryuseful suggestions you made on that occasion. I hope the alterations¹⁸ andredecorations of your London flat have been satisfactory.
Yours sincerely,
Richard Hardcastle
Further communication from R.H. to H.P.
Good news! The Bland woman cracked! Admitted the whole thing!!! Puts theblame entirely¹⁹ on her sister and her husband. She “never understood until toolate what they meant to do!” Thought they were only “going to dope him so thathe wouldn’t recognize she was the wrong woman!” A likely story! But I’d say it’strue enough that she wasn’t the prime mover.
The Portobello Market people have identified Miss Martindale as the“American” lady who bought two of the clocks.
Mrs. McNaughton now says she saw Duguesclin in Bland’s van being driveninto Bland’s garage. Did she really?
Our friend Colin has married that girl. If you ask me, he’s mad. All the best.
Yours,
Richard Hardcastle

1 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 memoranda   

n. 备忘录, 便条 名词memorandum的复数形式

参考例句：

• There were memoranda, minutes of meetings, officialflies, notes of verbal di scussions. 有备忘录，会议记录，官方档案，口头讨论的手记。
• Now it was difficult to get him to address memoranda. 而现在，要他批阅备忘录都很困难。

4 animates   

v.使有生气( animate的第三人称单数 )；驱动；使栩栩如生地动作；赋予…以生命

参考例句：

• The soul animates the body. 灵魂使肉体有生命。 来自辞典例句
• It is probable that life animates all the planets revolving round all the stars. 生命为一切围绕恒星旋转的行星注入活力。 来自辞典例句

5 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

6 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

7 defiantly   

adv.挑战地，大胆对抗地

参考例句：

• Braving snow and frost, the plum trees blossomed defiantly. 红梅傲雪凌霜开。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 inhuman   

adj.残忍的，不人道的，无人性的

参考例句：

• We must unite the workers in fighting against inhuman conditions.我们必须使工人们团结起来反对那些难以忍受的工作条件。
• It was inhuman to refuse him permission to see his wife.不容许他去看自己的妻子是太不近人情了。

9 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

10 proprietor   

n.所有人；业主；经营者

参考例句：

• The proprietor was an old acquaintance of his.业主是他的一位旧相识。
• The proprietor of the corner grocery was a strange thing in my life.拐角杂货店店主是我生活中的一个怪物。

11 bland   

adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的

参考例句：

• He eats bland food because of his stomach trouble.他因胃病而吃清淡的食物。
• This soup is too bland for me.这汤我喝起来偏淡。

12 solicitors   

初级律师( solicitor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Most solicitors in England and Wales are in private practice . 英格兰和威尔士的大多数律师都是私人执业者。
• The family has instructed solicitors to sue Thomson for compensation. 那家人已经指示律师起诉汤姆森，要求赔偿。

13 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

14 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

15 conjectured   

推测，猜测，猜想( conjecture的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The old peasant conjectured that it would be an unusually cold winter. 那老汉推测冬天将会异常地寒冷。
• The general conjectured that the enemy only had about five days' supply of food left. 将军推测敌人只剩下五天的粮食给养。

16 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

17 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

18 alterations   

n.改动( alteration的名词复数 )；更改；变化；改变

参考例句：

• Any alterations should be written in neatly to the left side. 改动部分应书写清晰，插在正文的左侧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code. 基因突变是指DNA 密码的改变。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。