p
ossibility. But I must confess that I did not expect poison.
antic.i.p.ated a repet.i.tion of the hatchet motif. I merely
thought that it would be inadvit.e for her to walk alone in unfrequented lanes after dark."
"But why did you antic.i.p.ate.a, ttack on her ? I think M. Poirot, you ought to tell me Poirot nodded his head slowl "Yes I will tell you Mr I,,, .histle will not tell you, because"he is a lawfer knd 1.. .")t0!,?s do. no, like, to s, pea,k o!
suppositions, of inferences madii..i,,lln the character woman, or from a few irresponsi: ,i" .,?vords. But he will not be averse to my telling you--no, ii":;r?ll b.e re!ieved.. He ds not wish to appear foolish or know what may--only may--bii,:;,,"i;::facts.
Poirot paused as George entelil"tl,:.i,th a ta gla.ss.o,f, beer.
"Some refreshment, Inspect%,,# o, no, I msst.
"Won"t you join me ?"
"I do not drink the beer. lz[ll will myself .hav. e a gla.s.s of sirop de sisthe English k"i,: do not care for it, I have noticed."
Inspector Morton looked grali;,..kt":llly, at his beer.
Poirot, sipping delicately fr.:iiil,adhis gla.s.s of dark purple fluid, said: "It begins, all this, at a fur,".t":.- Or rather, to be exact, after the funeral."
Graphically, with many gest :i he set forth the story as Mr. Entwhistle had told t to t:i:i" but with such embellishments as his exuberant naturet ?ggested. One a. lmost felt irot had himsei" een an eve-witness of the that Hercule scene.
an e :[ent clear-cut brain. He Inspector Morton had ::e:.". his seized at once on what were, iit.
purposes, the salient points.
"This Mr. Abernethie may
"It is a possibility."
"And the body has beend ;mated and there is no evidence?"
"Exactly."
Inspector Morton ruminated.
"Interesting. There"s nothiii lili it for .- Nothing, that
is, to make Richard Abernethiivi,ieath worth investigating.
It would be waste of time."
"Yes."
"But there are the eole--t.,:;!l":"eople who were there--the
people who heard Cora Lansqu%l.f,aY .wh. at she .d, id, a.nd one
of whom a have thought th.llme mght say t again ana
with more detail."
"." lave. There are, Inspector,
"s undoubtedly woulrl,v you see why I was at the And ni,f case---because it is, always, I interest --"
."iill"
attack on Abernethie had been
::% e indicated.
He had, perhaps,
He only person who might
a name.
something was Miss
known or ; murderer might continue is silence&t woman know something--
g" Does the ethe/clerer is wise he will let well
Ibtd Of course, if the m are seldom wise. Fortun a:",?0r 0t"t raurderers, Inspectoflel uncertain, they desire to
iiat:a . They brood,"theyie pleased with their own
c"es: "quite sure. They "they protrude their necks,
l."",u -t,li ;,,nd so, in the end,
:.ctl
!:"iii I: Iorton smiled faintlY"
t ti"
on: Gilchrist, already it is a "i. .a to silence ME occasions about which you Or l! " "
now there are t,ntmg on the wedding label
There is the han"per was burnt."
t:.s, II/!
the wrapping f.a, then, whether it came by
?";r,kf,:;:, been certf"
". kt "I it didn"t."
the latter, you say ?"
Imn.
reason for thinkif nkshe"s not sure. If the the postman post office, it"s ten to one L;, .0ne through a villag :ed it, but nowadays the ;.iellt,i"i?ress would have ket He nes and of course ""aliv " .Y .
thei"":g o .
,,gl the,,,, .ered by van from and dehvers a lot of thn s !i?P does quite a rou"a parcel at: the cottage--but "[; ,"r,,.;Vas letters only andPA, hes.
hamng a bxt, of gnrl " ": As ,a matter of if anything else. Ive tested he can t t,,hink aboO! a y way. If ? did deliver
tad he isn t reliable arcel shouldn t have b,,een 01:t t 50 me odd that the/ hisname--Guthrie " q""" this Mr.--wh[
"uthrie."
[orton smiled "0g up on him. After all, it ii,!