A Murder Is Announced_ A Miss Marple Mystery - Agatha Christie [62]
Her gaze held more hostility than gratitude. There was something almost like fear in her manner.
“I know what I’m doing, Phillipa. I’ve become fond of you—and there’s the boy … You won’t get very much if I should die now—but in a few weeks’ time it might be different.”
Her eyes met Phillipa’s steadily.
“But you’re not going to die!” Phillipa protested.
“Not if I can avoid it by taking due precautions.”
“Precautions?”
“Yes. Think it over … And don’t worry any more.”
She left the room abruptly. Phillipa heard her speaking to Julia in the hall.
Julia entered the drawing room a few moments later.
There was a slightly steely glitter in her eyes.
“Played your cards rather well, haven’t you, Phillipa? I see you’re one of those quiet ones … a dark horse.”
“So you heard—?”
“Yes, I heard. I rather think I was meant to hear.”
“What do you mean?”
“Our Letty’s no fool … Well, anyway, you’re all right, Phillipa. Sitting pretty, aren’t you?”
“Oh, Julia—I didn’t mean—I never meant—”
“Didn’t you? Of course you did. You’re fairly up against things, aren’t you? Hard up for money. But just remember this—if anyone bumps off Aunt Letty now, you’ll be suspect No. 1.”
“But I shan’t be. It would be idiotic if I killed her now when—if I waited—”
“So you do know about old Mrs. Whatsername dying up in Scotland? I wondered … Phillipa, I’m beginning to believe you’re a very dark horse indeed.”
“I don’t want to do you and Patrick out of anything.”
“Don’t you, my dear? I’m sorry—but I don’t believe you.”
Sixteen
INSPECTOR CRADDOCK RETURNS
Inspector Craddock had had a bad night on his night journey home. His dreams had been less dreams than nightmares. Again and again he was racing through the grey corridors of an old-world castle in a desperate attempt to get somewhere, or to prevent something, in time. Finally he dreamt that he awoke. An enormous relief surged over him. Then the door of his compartment slid slowly open, and Letitia Blacklock looked in at him with blood running down her face, and said reproachfully: “Why didn’t you save me? You could have if you’d tried.”
This time he really awoke.
Altogether, the Inspector was thankful finally to reach Milchester. He went straight away to make his report to Rydesdale who listened carefully.
“It doesn’t take us much further,” he said. “But it confirms what Miss Blacklock told you. Pip and Emma—h’m, I wonder.”
“Patrick and Julia Simmons are the right age, sir. If we could establish that Miss Blacklock hadn’t seen them since they were children—”
With a very faint chuckle, Rydesdale said: “Our ally, Miss Marple, has established that for us. Actually Miss Blacklock had never seen either of them at all until two months ago.”
“Then, surely, sir—”
“It’s not so easy as all that, Craddock. We’ve been checking up. On what we’ve got, Patrick and Julia seem definitely to be out of it. His Naval record is genuine—quite a good record bar a tendency to ‘insubordination.’ We’ve checked with Cannes, and an indignant Mrs. Simmons says of course her son and daughter are at Chipping Cleghorn with her cousin Letitia Blacklock. So that’s that!”
“And Mrs. Simmons is Mrs. Simmons?”
“She’s been Mrs. Simmons for a very long time, that’s all I can say,” said Rydesdale dryly.
“That seems clear enough. Only—those two fitted. Right age. Not known to Miss Blacklock, personally. If we wanted Pip and Emma—well, there they were.”
The Chief Constable nodded thoughtfully, then he pushed across a paper to Craddock.
“Here’s a little something we’ve dug up on Mrs. Easterbrook.”
The Inspector read with lifted eyebrows.
“Very interesting,” he remarked. “Hoodwinked that old ass pretty well, hasn’t she? It doesn’t tie in with this business though, as far as I can see.”
“Apparently not.”
“And here’s an item that concerns Mrs. Haymes.”
Again Craddock’s eyebrows rose.
“I think I’ll have another talk with the lady,” he said.
“You think this information might be relevant?”
“I think it might be. It would be a long shot, of course….”
The two men were silent for a moment or two.
“How has Fletcher