The Floating Admiral - Agatha Christie [61]
9. Why did Elma dress up that night to meet the Vicar? Here again you were dealing with impressions, the impressions of a rather fanciful servant-girl. But one must not despise the testimony of the expert; and a lady’s maid, in the little world of her own limited interests, is an observant critic. Any deviation from the normal, however slight, is worth watching as a possible hint that crime did not come altogether like a bolt from the blue; that somebody was up to something beforehand. But in this case who was up to what? If Elma thought she was going to meet Holland that night, odd that it should have been her uncle, not she, who was in a hurry to get back to Rundel Croft. And if a meeting was projected, it was evidently a secret one; no need, then, to draw attention to it by tricking herself out for the occasion. On the other hand, Mr. Mount seemed hardly the man to appreciate a lady’s costume; hardly the man whom the most enterprising of adventuresses would have set out to vamp. Old English sports, No. 82, Vamping the Vicar. Was it conceivable that Elma was up to some game which involved leaving Rundel Croft later that night; that she meant to change her clothes for the purpose, and was at pains to put on elaborate evening dress so as to make the later change a more effective disguise? Mem.—Ask Jennie if any other wardrobe items showed signs of disturbance or hasty folding this morning.
10. Why did she hide the dress afterwards? At least, that was going a little too fast. But she had certainly made a point of packing the dress, and of packing it herself. The conclusion, though not irresistible, was certainly probable, that there was something about that dress which she did not want even a confidential eye to discover. But that meant, unless she was going to tell a quite different story under to-morrow’s cross-examination, that Elma had something to conceal, and was giving a false account of her movements. If, after leaving the boat-house, she went straight to bed, it was impossible that any tell-tale evidence—a split or a stain—should have made its appearance since her good night to the Admiral. The trouble was that since Elma had moved to the Lord Marshall, Jennie was no longer in a position to report. Mem.—If there is a chambermaid at the inn who doesn’t talk, ask her to find out whether that dress ever came back from London.
11. Was it Penistone who went down to Whynmouth that night? The evidence came from two sources; both were uncertain, one quite possibly mendacious. Rudge had satisfied himself that the lighting outside the Lord Marshall was particularly inadequate. The direct statement made to the Boots, who could hardly be lying, showed that the man who called at the door was either the Admiral or an impostor who was impersonating him. If Holland’s account were true, it confirmed the notion that some deliberate attempt had been made at disguise; Holland did not overhear the visitor’s conversation, and yet thought there was a look of the Admiral about him. But then, was Holland telling the truth? Assume that it was the Admiral; why did he suddenly want to take that late (and bad) train up to London? In the alternative, why did he want to create the impression that he had intended doing so? Either supposition implied that there was some mysterious dealing on the Admiral’s own part, which no other evidence, except perhaps his impatience to get away from the Vicarage, suggested. Assume that it was not the Admiral; then what was the point of this elaborate frame-up? To implicate Holland in the crime? But there was no foretelling that Holland would not remain fast asleep at the Lord Marshall; nothing but his own evidence served to connect him with the mysterious caller. To deceive the public about the spot at which the murder was committed? Yes, there was something in that; it might help out an alibi. But would not the bogus Admiral