III
Dr McCulloch looked round him, a little uncertain of what he was going todo or say next. The evening had been a somewhat unusual experience forhim.
Lisa Neumann came to him and set a glass by his side.
‘A hot toddy,’ she said.
‘I always knew you were a woman in a thousand, Lisa.’ He sipped¹ ap-preciatively.
‘I must say I’d like to know what all this has been about–but I gather it’sthe sort of thing that’s so hush²-hush that nobody’s going to tell me any-thing.’
‘The Professor–he’s all right, isn’t he?’
‘The Professor?’ He looked at her anxious face, kindly³. ‘He’s fine. If youask me, it’s done him a world of good.’
‘I thought perhaps the shock–’
‘I’m quite all right,’ said Shoreham. ‘Shock treatment is what I needed. Ifeel–how shall I put it–alive again.’ He looked surprised.
McCulloch said to Lisa, ‘Notice how much stronger his voice is? It’sapathy really that’s the enemy in these cases–what he wants is to workagain–the stimulation⁴ of some brain work. Music is all very well–it’s kepthim soothed⁵ and able to enjoy life in a mild way. But he’s really a man ofgreat intellectual power–and he misses the mental activity that was the es-sence of life to him. Get him started on it again if you can.’
He nodded encouragingly at her as she looked doubtfully at him.
‘I think, Dr McCulloch,’ said Colonel Munro, ‘that we owe you a few ex-planations of what happened this evening, even though, as you surmise,the powers- that- be will demand a hush- hush policy. Lord Altamount’sdeath–’ He hesitated.
‘The bullet didn’t actually kill him,’ said the doctor, ‘death was due toshock. That hypodermic would have done the trick–strychnine. The youngman–’
‘I only just got it away from him in time,’ said Horsham.
‘Been the fly in the ointment

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