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Five Little Pigs :: Christie Agatha
Страница: 98 из 147The bottle had been full yesterday afternoon.
I said: ‘And you’ve absolutelyno idea who pinched it?’
He said none whatever and asked me whatI thought. Could it have been one of the servants? I said I supposed it might have been, but it seemed unlikely to me. He always kept the door locked, didn’t he? Always, he said, and then began a rigmarole about having found the window a few inches open at the bottom. Someone might have got in that way.
‘A chance burglar?’ I asked sceptically. ‘It seems to me, Meredith, that there are some very nasty possibilities.’
He said what did I really think? And I said, if he was sure he wasn’t making a mistake, that probably Caroline had taken it to poison Elsa with-or that alternatively Elsa had taken it to get Caroline out of the way and straighten the path of true love.
Meredith twittered a bit. He said it was absurd and melodramatic and couldn’t be true. I said: ‘Well, the stuff’s gone. What’syour explanation?’ He hadn’t any, of course. Actually thought just as I did, but didn’t want to face the fact.
He said again: ‘What are we to do?’
I said, damned fool that I was: ‘We must think it over carefully. Either you’d better announce your loss, straight out when everybody’s there, or else you’d better get Caroline alone and tax her with it. If you’re convincedshe’s nothing to do with it, adopt the same tactics for Elsa.’ He said: ‘A girl like that! She couldn’t have taken it.’ I said I wouldn’t put it past her.
We were walking up to the house as we talked. After that last remark of mine neither of us spoke for some few seconds. We were rounding the Battery garden again and I heard Caroline’s voice.
I thought perhaps a three-handed row was going on, but actually it was Angela that they were discussing. Caroline was protesting. She said: ‘It’s very hard on the girl.’ And Amyas made some impatient rejoinder. Then the door to the garden opened just as we came abreast of it. Amyas looked a little taken aback at seeing us. Caroline was just coming out. She said: ‘Hallo, Meredith. We’ve been discussing the question of Angela’s going to school. I’m not at all sure it’s the right thing for her.’ Amyas said: ‘Don’t fuss about the girl. She’ll be all right. Good riddance.’
Just then Elsa came running down the path from the house. She had some sort of scarlet jumper in her hand. Amyas growled:
‘Come along. Get back into the pose. I don’t want to waste time.’
He went back to where his easel was standing.
I said: ‘And you’ve absolutelyno idea who pinched it?’
He said none whatever and asked me whatI thought. Could it have been one of the servants? I said I supposed it might have been, but it seemed unlikely to me. He always kept the door locked, didn’t he? Always, he said, and then began a rigmarole about having found the window a few inches open at the bottom. Someone might have got in that way.
‘A chance burglar?’ I asked sceptically. ‘It seems to me, Meredith, that there are some very nasty possibilities.’
He said what did I really think? And I said, if he was sure he wasn’t making a mistake, that probably Caroline had taken it to poison Elsa with-or that alternatively Elsa had taken it to get Caroline out of the way and straighten the path of true love.
Meredith twittered a bit. He said it was absurd and melodramatic and couldn’t be true. I said: ‘Well, the stuff’s gone. What’syour explanation?’ He hadn’t any, of course. Actually thought just as I did, but didn’t want to face the fact.
He said again: ‘What are we to do?’
I said, damned fool that I was: ‘We must think it over carefully. Either you’d better announce your loss, straight out when everybody’s there, or else you’d better get Caroline alone and tax her with it. If you’re convincedshe’s nothing to do with it, adopt the same tactics for Elsa.’ He said: ‘A girl like that! She couldn’t have taken it.’ I said I wouldn’t put it past her.
We were walking up to the house as we talked. After that last remark of mine neither of us spoke for some few seconds. We were rounding the Battery garden again and I heard Caroline’s voice.
I thought perhaps a three-handed row was going on, but actually it was Angela that they were discussing. Caroline was protesting. She said: ‘It’s very hard on the girl.’ And Amyas made some impatient rejoinder. Then the door to the garden opened just as we came abreast of it. Amyas looked a little taken aback at seeing us. Caroline was just coming out. She said: ‘Hallo, Meredith. We’ve been discussing the question of Angela’s going to school. I’m not at all sure it’s the right thing for her.’ Amyas said: ‘Don’t fuss about the girl. She’ll be all right. Good riddance.’
Just then Elsa came running down the path from the house. She had some sort of scarlet jumper in her hand. Amyas growled:
‘Come along. Get back into the pose. I don’t want to waste time.’
He went back to where his easel was standing.