“What—” began Tuppence, and then stopped.
She had just entered the private office of Mr. Blunt from the adjoiningone marked “Clerks,” and was surprised to behold2 her lord and masterwith his eye riveted3 to the private peephole into the outer office.
“Ssh,” said Tommy warningly. “Didn’t you hear the buzzer4? It’s a girl—rather a nice girl—in fact she looks to me a frightfully nice girl. Albert istelling her all that tosh about my being engaged with Scotland Yard.”
“Let me see,” demanded Tuppence.
Somewhat unwillingly5, Tommy moved aside. Tuppence in her turnglued her eye to the peephole.
“She’s not bad,” admitted Tuppence. “And her clothes are simply thelatest shout.”
“She’s perfectly6 lovely,” said Tommy. “She’s like those girls Mason writesabout—you know, frightfully sympathetic, and beautiful, and distinctly in-telligent without being too saucy7. I think, yes—I certainly think—I shall bethe great Hanaud this morning.”
“H’m,” said Tuppence. “If there is one detective out of all the otherswhom you are most unlike—I should say it was Hanaud. Can you do thelightning changes of personality? Can you be the great comedian8, the littlegutter boy, the serious and sympathetic friend—all in five minutes?”
“I know this,” said Tommy, rapping sharply on the desk, “I am the Cap-tain of the Ship—and don’t you forget it, Tuppence. I’m going to have herin.”
He pressed the buzzer on his desk. Albert appeared ushering9 in the cli-ent.
The girl stopped in the doorway10 as though undecided. Tommy came for-ward.
“Come in, mademoiselle,” he said kindly11, “and seat yourself here.”
Tuppence choked audibly and Tommy turned upon her with a swiftchange of manner. His tone was menacing.
“You spoke12, Miss Robinson? Ah, no, I thought not.”
He turned back to the girl.
“We will not be serious or formal,” he said. “You will just tell me aboutit, and then we will discuss the best way to help you.”
“You are very kind,” said the girl. “Excuse me, but are you a foreigner?”
A fresh choke from Tuppence. Tommy glared in her direction out of thecorner of his eye.
“Not exactly,” he said with difficulty. “But of late years I have worked agood deal abroad. My methods are the methods of the S?reté.”
“Oh!” The girl seemed impressed.
She was, as Tommy had indicated, a very charming girl. Young and slim,with a trace of golden hair peeping out from under her little brown felthat, and big serious eyes.
That she was nervous could be plainly seen. Her little hands were twist-ing themselves together, and she kept clasping and unclasping the catch ofher lacquered handbag.
“First of all, Mr. Blunt, I must tell you that my name is Lois Hargreaves. Ilive in a great rambling13 old-fashioned house called Thurnly Grange. It is inthe heart of the country. There is the village of Thurnly nearby, but it isvery small and insignificant14. There is plenty of hunting in winter, and weget tennis in summer, and I have never felt lonely there. Indeed I muchprefer country to town life.
“I tell you this so that you may realise that in a country village like ours,everything that happens is of supreme15 importance. About a week ago, Igot a box of chocolates sent through the post. There was nothing inside toindicate who they came from. Now I myself am not particularly fond ofchocolates, but the others in the house are, and the box was passed round.
As a result, everyone who had eaten any chocolates was taken ill. We sentfor the doctor, and after various inquiries16 as to what other things hadbeen eaten, he took the remains17 of the chocolates away with him, and hadthem analysed. Mr. Blunt, those chocolates contained arsenic18! Not enoughto kill anyone, but enough to make anyone quite ill.”
“Extraordinary,” commented Tommy.
“Dr. Burton was very excited over the matter. It seems that this was thethird occurrence of the kind in the neighbourhood. In each case a bighouse was selected, and the inmates19 were taken ill after eating the myster-ious chocolates. It looked as though some local person of weak intellectwas playing a particularly fiendish practical joke.”
“Quite so, Miss Hargreaves.”
“Dr. Burton put it down to Socialist21 agitation22 — rather absurdly, Ithought. But there are one or two malcontents in Thurnly village, and itseemed possible that they might have had something to do with it. Dr. Bur-ton was very keen that I should put the whole thing in the hands of the po-lice.”
“A very natural suggestion,” said Tommy. “But you have not done so, Igather, Miss Hargreaves?”
“No,” admitted the girl. “I hate the fuss and the publicity23 that would en-sue—and you see, I know our local Inspector24. I can never imagine himfinding out anything! I have often seen your advertisements, and I told Dr.
Burton that it would be much better to call in a private detective.”
“I see.”
“You say a great deal about discretion25 in your advertisement. I take thatto mean—that—that—well, that you would not make anything publicwithout my consent?”
Tommy looked at her curiously26, but it was Tuppence who spoke.
“I think,” she said quietly, “that it would be as well if Miss Hargreavestold us everything.”
She laid especial stress upon the last word, and Lois Hargreaves flushednervously.
“Yes,” said Tommy quickly, “Miss Robinson is right. You must tell useverything.”
“You will not—” she hesitated.
“Everything you say is understood to be strictly27 in confidence.”
“Thank you. I know that I ought to have been quite frank with you. Ihave a reason for not going to the police. Mr. Blunt, that box of chocolateswas sent by someone in our house!”
“How do you know that, mademoiselle?”
“It’s very simple. I’ve got a habit of drawing a little silly thing—three fishintertwined—whenever I have a pencil in my hand. A parcel of silk stock-ings arrived from a certain shop in London not long ago. We were at thebreakfast table. I’d just been marking something in the newspaper, andwithout thinking, I began to draw my silly little fish on the label of the par-cel before cutting the string and opening it. I thought no more about thematter, but when I was examining the piece of brown paper in which thechocolates had been sent, I caught sight of the corner of the original label—most of which had been torn off. My silly little drawing was on it.”
Tommy drew his chair forward.
“That is very serious. It creates, as you say, a very strong presumptionthat the sender of the chocolates is a member of your household. But youwill forgive me if I say that I still do not see why that fact should renderyou indisposed to call in the police?”
Lois Hargreaves looked him squarely in the face.
“I will tell you, Mr. Blunt. I may want the whole thing hushed up.”
Tommy retired28 gracefully29 from the position.
“In that case,” he murmured, “we know where we are. I see, Miss Har-greaves, that you are not disposed to tell me who it is you suspect?”
“I suspect no one—but there are possibilities.”
“Quite so. Now will you describe the household to me in detail?”
“The servants, with the exception of the parlourmaid, are all old oneswho have been with us many years. I must explain to you, Mr. Blunt, that Iwas brought up by my aunt, Lady Radclyffe, who was extremely wealthy.
Her husband made a big fortune, and was knighted. It was he who boughtThurnly Grange, but he died two years after going there, and it was thenthat Lady Radclyffe sent for me to come and make my home with her. Iwas her only living relation. The other inmate20 of the house was DennisRadclyffe, her husband’s nephew. I have always called him cousin, but ofcourse he is really nothing of the kind. Aunt Lucy always said openly thatshe intended to leave her money, with the exception of a small provisionfor me, to Dennis. It was Radclyffe money, she said, and it ought to go to aRadclyffe. However, when Dennis was twenty- two, she quarrelled viol-ently with him—over some debts that he had run up, I think. When shedied, a year later, I was astonished to find that she had made a will leavingall her money to me. It was, I know, a great blow to Dennis, and I felt verybadly about it. I would have given him the money if he would have takenit, but it seems that kind of thing can’t be done. However, as soon as I wastwenty-one, I made a will leaving it all to him. That’s the least I can do. Soif I’m run over by a motor, Dennis will come into his own.”
“Exactly,” said Tommy. “And when were you twenty-one, if I may askthe question?”
“Just three weeks ago.”
“Ah!” said Tommy. “Now will you give me fuller particulars of the mem-bers of your household at this minute?”
“Servants—or—others?”
“Both.”
“The servants, as I say, have been with us some time. There is old Mrs.
Holloway, the cook, and her niece Rose, the kitchenmaid. Then there aretwo elderly housemaids, and Hannah who was my aunt’s maid and whohas always been devoted30 to me. The parlourmaid is called Esther Quant,and seems a very nice quiet girl. As for ourselves, there is Miss Logan, whowas Aunt Lucy’s companion, and who runs the house for me, and CaptainRadclyffe—Dennis, you know, whom I told you about, and there is a girlcalled Mary Chilcott, an old school friend of mine who is staying with us.”
Tommy thought for a moment.
“That all seems fairly clear and straightforward31, Miss Hargreaves,” hesaid after a minute or two. “I take it that you have no special reason for at-taching suspicion more to one person than another? You are only afraid itmight prove to be—well—not a servant, shall we say?”
“That’s it exactly, Mr. Blunt. I have honestly no idea who used that pieceof brown paper. The handwriting was printed.”
“There seems only one thing to be done,” said Tommy. “I must be on thespot.”
The girl looked at him inquiringly.
Tommy went on after a moment’s thought.
“I suggest that you prepare the way for the arrival of—say, Mr. and MissVan Dusen—American friends of yours. Will you be able to do that quitenaturally?”
“Oh, yes. There will be no difficulty at all. When will you come down—tomorrow—or the day after?”
“Tomorrow, if you please. There is no time to waste.”
“That is settled then.”
The girl rose and held out her hand.
“One thing, Miss Hargreaves, not a word, mind, to anyone—anyone atall, that we are not what we seem.”
“What do you think of it, Tuppence?” he asked, when he returned fromshowing the visitor out.
“I don’t like it,” said Tuppence decidedly. “Especially I don’t like thechocolates having so little arsenic in them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t you see? All those chocolates being sent round the neighbour-hood were a blind. To establish the idea of a local maniac32. Then, when thegirl was really poisoned, it would be thought to be the same thing. You see,but for a stroke of luck, no one would ever have guessed that the chocol-ates were actually sent by someone in the house itself.”
“That was a stroke of luck. You’re right. You think it’s a deliberate plotagainst the girl herself?”
“I’m afraid so. I remember reading about old Lady Radclyffe’s will. Thatgirl has come into a terrific lot of money.”
“Yes, and she came of age and made a will three weeks ago. It looks bad—for Dennis Radclyffe. He gains by her death.”
Tuppence nodded.
“The worst of it is—that she thinks so too! That’s why she won’t have thepolice called in. Already she suspects him. And she must be more than halfin love with him to act as she has done.”
“In that case,” said Tommy thoughtfully, “why the devil doesn’t hemarry her? Much simpler and safer.”
Tuppence stared at him.
“You’ve said a mouthful,” she observed. “Oh, boy! I’m getting ready to beMiss Van Dusen, you observe.”
“Why rush to crime, when there is a lawful33 means near at hand?”
Tuppence reflected for a minute or two.
“I’ve got it,” she announced. “Clearly he must have married a barmaidwhilst at Oxford34. Origin of the quarrel with his aunt. That explainseverything.”
“Then why not send the poisoned sweets to the barmaid?” suggestedTommy. “Much more practical. I wish you wouldn’t jump to these wildconclusions, Tuppence.”
“They’re deductions,” said Tuppence, with a good deal of dignity. “Thisis your first corrida, my friend, but when you have been twenty minutesin the arena—”
Tommy flung the office cushion at her.
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1
lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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riveted
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| 铆接( rivet的过去式和过去分词 )； 把…固定住； 吸引； 引起某人的注意 | |
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buzzer
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| n.蜂鸣器；汽笛 | |
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unwillingly
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| adv.不情愿地 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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saucy
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| adj.无礼的；俊俏的；活泼的 | |
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comedian
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| n.喜剧演员；滑稽演员 | |
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ushering
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| v.引，领，陪同( usher的现在分词 ) | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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spoke
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| 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 | |
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rambling
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| adj.[建]凌乱的，杂乱的 | |
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insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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arsenic
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| n.砒霜，砷；adj.砷的 | |
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inmates
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| n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
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inmate
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| n.被收容者；(房屋等的)居住人；住院人 | |
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socialist
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| n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的 | |
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agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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publicity
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| n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告 | |
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inspector
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| n.检查员，监察员，视察员 | |
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discretion
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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straightforward
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| adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的 | |
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maniac
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| n.精神癫狂的人；疯子 | |
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lawful
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| adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的 | |
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Oxford
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| n.牛津（英国城市） | |
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