A Fine Italian Hand（8）

　　VIII
　　Thomas Royde came last. He sat, solemn and stiff, blinking a little like an owl¹.
　　He was home from Malaya - first time for eight years. Had been in the habit of staying at Gull's Point ever since he was a boy. Mrs. Audrey Strange was a distant cousin - and had been brought up by his family from the age of nine. On the preceding night he had gone to bed just before eleven. Yes, he had heard Mr. Nevile Strange leave the house, but had not seen him. Nevile had left at about twenty-past ten or perhaps a little later. He himself had heard nothing during the night. He was up and in the garden when the discovery of Lady Tressilian's body had been made. He was an early riser.
　　There was a pause.
　　"Miss Aldin has told us that there was a state of tension in the house. Did you notice this, too?""I don't think so. Don't notice things much.""That's a lie," thought Battle to himself. "You notice a good deal, I should say -more than most."No, he didn't think Nevile Strange had been short of money in any way. He certainly had not seemed to. But he knew very little about Mr. Strange's affairs.
　　"How well did you know the second Mrs. Strange?" "I met her here for the first time." Battle played his last card.
　　"You may know, Mr. Royde, that we've found Mr. Nevile Strange's fingerprints² on the weapon. And we've found blood on the sleeve of the coat he wore last night."He paused. Royde nodded.
　　"He was telling us," he muttered.
　　"I'm asking you frankly³: Do you think he did it?"Thomas Royde never liked to be hurried. He waited for a minute - which is a very long time - before he answered: "Don't see why you ask me. Not my business. It's yours. Should say, myself - very unlikely.""Can you think of anyone who seems to you more likely?"Thomas shook his head. "Only person I think likely can't possibly have done it. So that's that.""And who is that?"
　　But Royde shook his head more decidedly.
　　"Couldn't possibly say. Only my private opinion.""It's your duty to assist the police."
　　"Tell you any facts. This isn't facts. Just an idea. And it's impossible anyway.""We didn't get much out of him," said Leach⁴ when Royde had gone.
　　Battle agreed.
　　"No, we didn't. He's got something in his mind - something quite definite. I'd like to know what it is. This is a very peculiar⁵ sort of crime, Jim, my boy -"The telephone rang before Leach could answer. He took up the receiver and spoke⁶. After a minute or two of listening he said "Good," and slammed it down.
　　"Blood on the coat sleeve is human," he announced.
　　"Same blood group as Lady T's. Looks as though Nevile Strange is for it -"Battle had walked over to the window and was looking out with considerable interest.
　　"A beautiful young man out there," he remarked. "Quite beautiful and a definite wrong 'un, I should say. It's a pity Mr. Latimer - for I feel that that's Mr. Latimer -was over at Easterhead Bay last night. He's the type that would smash in his own grandmother's head if he thought he could get away with it and if he knew he'd make something out of it.""Well, there wasn't anything in it for him," said Leach. "Lady T's death doesn't benefit him in any way whatever." The telephone bell rang again. "Damn this phone, what's the matter now?"He went to it.
　　"Hullo. Oh, it's you, doctor. What? Come round, has she? What? What?"He turned his head. "Uncle, just come and listen to this."Battle came over and took the phone. He listened, his face as usual showing no expression. He said to Leach: "Get Nevile Strange, Jim."When Nevile came in, Battle was just replacing the phone on its hook.
　　Nevile, looking white and spent, stared curiously⁷ at the Scotland Yard superintendent⁸, trying to read the emotion behind the wooden mask.
　　"Mr. Strange," said Battle. "Do you know anyone who dislikes you very much?" Nevile stared and shook his head.
　　"Sure?" Battle was impressive. "I mean, sir, someone who does more than dislike you - someone who - frankly - hates your guts⁹?"Nevile sat bolt upright.
　　"No. No, certainly not. Nothing of the kind.""Think, Mr. Strange. Is there no one you've injured in any way -" Nevile flushed.
　　"There's only one person I can be said to have injured, and she's not the kind who bears rancour. That's my first wife, when I left her for another woman. But I can assure you that she doesn't hate me. She's - she's been an angel."The Superintendent leaned forward across the table.
　　"Let me tell you, Mr. Strange, you're a very lucky man. I don't say I liked the case against you -I didn't. But it was a case! It would have stood up all right, and unless the jury happened to have liked your personality, it would have hanged you.""You speak," said Nevile, "as though all that were past.""It is past," said Battle. "You've been saved, Mr. Strange, by pure chance."Nevile still looked inquiringly at him.
　　"After you left her last night," said Battle, "Lady Tressilian rang the bell for her maid."He watched whilst Nevile took it in. "After. Then Barrett saw her -""Yes. Alive and well. Barrett also saw you leave the house before she went in to her mistress."Nevile said: "But the niblick - my fingerprints -""She wasn't hit with that niblick. Dr. Lazenby didn't like it all the time. I saw that. She was killed with something else. That niblick was put there deliberately¹⁰ to throw suspicion on you. It may be by someone who overheard the quarrel and so selected you as a suitable victim, or it may be because -"He paused, arid¹¹ then repeated his question: "Who is there in this house that hates you, Mr. Strange?"

1 owl   

n.猫头鹰，枭

参考例句：

• Her new glasses make her look like an owl.她的新眼镜让她看上去像只猫头鹰。
• I'm a night owl and seldom go to bed until after midnight.我睡得很晚，经常半夜后才睡觉。

2 fingerprints   

n.指纹( fingerprint的名词复数 )v.指纹( fingerprint的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Everyone's fingerprints are unique. 每个人的指纹都是独一无二的。
• They wore gloves so as not to leave any fingerprints behind (them). 他们戴着手套，以免留下指纹。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

4 leach   

v.分离，过滤掉；n.过滤；过滤器

参考例句：

• Liquid water can leach soluble materials from the interface.液态水能够从界面溶解出可溶性物质。
• They believe that the humic materials are leached from decaying plant materials.他们认为腐植物料是从腐烂的植物体浸沥而来。

5 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

6 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。

7 curiously   

adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地

参考例句：

• He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
• He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。

8 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

9 guts   

v.狼吞虎咽，贪婪地吃，飞碟游戏（比赛双方每组5人，相距15码，互相掷接飞碟）；毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的第三人称单数 )；取出…的内脏n.勇气( gut的名词复数 )；内脏；消化道的下段；肠

参考例句：

• I'll only cook fish if the guts have been removed. 鱼若已收拾干净，我只需烧一下即可。
• Barbara hasn't got the guts to leave her mother. 巴巴拉没有勇气离开她妈妈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

11 arid   

adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的

参考例句：

• These trees will shield off arid winds and protect the fields.这些树能挡住旱风,保护农田。
• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。