V
Alfred was divided between nervousness, enjoyment¹, and a morbid² fear of being blamed for
everything that had occurred! He had only been a fortnight in Mr. Morley’s employment, and
during that fortnight he had consistently and unvaryingly done everything wrong. Persistent³ blame
had sapped his self-confidence.
“He was a bit rattier than usual, perhaps,” said Alfred in answer to a question, “nothing else as I
can remember. I’d never have thought he was going to do himself in.”
Poirot interposed.
“You must tell us,” he said, “everything that you can remember about this morning. You are a
very important witness, and your recollections may be of immense service to us.”
Alfred’s face was suffused⁵ by vivid crimson⁶ and his chest swelled⁷. He had already given Japp a
brief account of the morning’s happenings. He proposed now to spread himself. A comforting
sense of importance oozed⁸ into him.
“I can tell you orl right,” he said. “Just you ask me.”
“To begin with, did anything out of the way happen this morning?”
Alfred reflected a minute and then said rather sadly: “Can’t say as it did. It was orl just as
usual.”
“Did any strangers come to the house?”
“No, sir.”
“Not even among the patients?”
“I didn’t know as you meant the patients. Nobody come what hadn’t got an appointment, if
that’s what you mean. They were all down in the book.”
Japp nodded. Poirot asked:
“Could anybody have walked in from outside?”
“No, they couldn’t. They’d have to have a key, see?”
“But it was quite easy to leave the house?”
“Oh, yes, just turn the handle and go out and pull the door to after you. As I was saying most of

分享到：