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‘Yes, I gathered that. And now, perhaps you feel an equally natural curiosity as to what all this has been about?’

Tuppence became even more embarrassed, and her remarks became slightly incoherent.

‘Oh–oh of course–I mean–I do understand that all this is quite secret–I mean all very hush-hush–and that we can’t ask questions–because you couldn’t tell us things. I do understand that perfectly.’

‘On the contrary, it is I who want to ask you a question. If you will answer it by giving me the information I shall be enormously pleased.’

Tuppence stared at him with wide-open eyes.

‘I can’t imagine–’ She broke off.

‘You have a list–or so your husband tells me. He didn’t tell me what that list was. Quite rightly. That list is your secret property. But I, too, know what it is to suffer curiosity.’

Again his eyes twinkled. Tuppence was suddenly aware that she liked Mr Robinson very much.

She was silent for a moment or two, then she coughed and fumbled in her evening bag.

‘It’s terribly silly,’ she said. ‘In fact it’s rather more than silly. It’s mad.’

Mr Robinson responded unexpectedly: ‘“Mad, mad, all the whole world is mad.” So Hans Sachs said, sitting under his elder tree in Die Meistersinger–my favourite opera. How right he was!’

He took the sheet of foolscap she handed to him.

‘Read it aloud if you like,’ said Tuppence. ‘I don’t really mind.’

Mr Robinson glanced at it, then handed it to Crispin. ‘Angus, you have a clearer voice than I have.’

Mr Crispin took the sheet and read in an agreeable tenor with good enunciation:

‘Black Arrow

Alexander Parkinson

Mary Jordan did not die naturally

Oxford and Cambridge porcelain Victorian seats

Grin-Hen-Lo

KK

Mathilde’s stomach

Cain and Abel

Truelove’

He stopped, looked at his host, who turned his head towards Tuppence.

‘My dear,’ said Mr Robinson. ‘Let me congratulate you–you must have a most unusual mind. To arrive from this list of clues at your final discoveries is really most remarkable.’

‘Tommy was hard at it too,’ said Tuppence.

‘Nagged into it by you,’ said Tommy.

‘Very good research he did,’ said Colonel Pikeaway appreciatively.

‘The census date gave me a very good pointer.’

‘You are a gifted pair,’ said Mr Robinson. He looked at Tuppence again and smiled. ‘I am still assuming that though you have displayed no indiscreet curiosity, you really want to know what all this has been about?’

‘Oh,’ exclaimed Tuppence. ‘Are you really going to tell us something? How wonderful!’

‘Some of it begins, as you surmised, with the Parkinsons,’ said Mr Robinson. ‘That is to say, in the distant past. My own great-grandmother was a Parkinson. Some things I learnt from her–

‘The girl known as Mary Jordan was in our service. She had connections in the Navy–her mother was Austrian and so she herself spoke German fluently.

‘As you may know, and as your husband certainly knows already, there are certain documents which will shortly be released for publication.

‘The present trend of political thinking is that hush-hush, necessary as it is at certain times, should not be preserved indefinitely. There are things in the records that should be made known as a definite part of our country’s past history.

‘Three or four volumes are due to be published within the next couple of years authenticated by documentary evidence.

‘What went on in the neighbourhood of Swallow’s Nest (that was the name of your present house at that time) will certainly be included.

‘There were leakages–as always there are leakages in times of war, or preceding a probable outbreak of war.

‘There were politicians who had prestige and who were thought of very highly. There were one or two leading journalists who had enormous influence and used it unwisely. There were men even before the First World War who were intriguing against their own country. After that war there were young men who graduated from universities and who were fervent believers and often active members of the Communist Party without anyone knowing of that fact. And even more dangerous, Fascism was coming into favour with a full