The Seven Dials Mystery - Agatha Christie [13]
‘I met Gerry Wade once,’ said Bundle. ‘He was a friend of Bill’s. You’d have liked him, Father. I never saw anyone more cheerfully inefficient than he was.’
‘I don’t like anyone who comes and dies in my house on purpose to annoy me,’ said Lord Caterham obstinately.
‘But I certainly can’t imagine anyone murdering him,’ continued Bundle. ‘The idea’s absurd.’
‘Of course it is,’ said Lord Caterham. ‘Or would be to anyone but an ass like Inspector Raglan.’
‘I daresay looking for finger-prints made him feel important,’ said Bundle soothingly. ‘Anyway, they brought it in “Death by misadventure”, didn’t they?’
Lord Caterham acquiesced.
‘They had to show some consideration for the sister’s feelings?’
‘Was there a sister. I didn’t know.’
‘Half-sister, I believe. She was much younger. Old Wade ran away with her mother–he was always doing that sort of thing. No woman appealed to him unless she belonged to another man.’
‘I’m glad there’s one bad habit you haven’t got,’ said Bundle.
‘I’ve always led a very respectable God-fearing life,’ said Lord Caterham. ‘It seems extraordinary, considering how little harm I do to anybody, that I can’t be let alone. If only–’
He stopped as Bundle made a sudden excursion through the window.
‘MacDonald,’ called Bundle in a clear, autocratic voice.
The emperor approached. Something that might possibly have been taken for a smile of welcome tried to express itself on his countenance, but the natural gloom of gardeners dispelled it.
‘Your ladyship?’ said MacDonald.
‘How are you?’ said Bundle.
‘I’m no verra grand,’ said MacDonald.
‘I wanted to speak to you about the bowling green. It’s shockingly overgrown. Put someone on to it, will you?’
MacDonald shook his head dubiously.
‘It would mean taking William from the lower border, m’lady.’
‘Damn the lower border,’ said Bundle. ‘Let him start at once. And MacDonald–’
‘Yes, m’lady?’
‘Let’s have some of those grapes in from the far house. I know it’s the wrong time to cut them because it always is, but I want them all the same. See?’
Bundle re-entered the library.
‘Sorry, Father,’ she said. ‘I wanted to catch MacDonald. Were you speaking?’
‘As a matter of fact I was,’ said Lord Caterham. ‘But it doesn’t matter. What were you saying to MacDonald?’
‘Trying to cure him of thinking he’s God Almighty. But that’s an impossible task. I expect the Cootes have been bad for him. MacDonald wouldn’t care one hoot, or even two hoots, for the largest steam-roller that ever was. What’s Lady Coote like?’
Lord Caterham considered the question.
‘Very like my idea of Mrs Siddons,’ he said at last. ‘I should think she went in a lot for amateur theatricals. I gather she was very upset about the clock business.’
‘What clock business?’
‘Tredwell has just been telling me. It seems the house-party had some joke on. They bought a lot of alarum clocks and hid them about this young Wade’s room. And then, of course, the poor chap was dead. Which made the whole thing rather beastly.
Bundle nodded.
‘Tredwell told me something else rather odd about the clocks,’ continued Lord Caterham, who was now quite enjoying himself. ‘It seems that somebody collected them all and put them in a row on the mantelpiece after the poor fellow was dead.’
‘Well, why not?’ said Bundle.
‘I don’t see why not myself,’ said Lord Caterham. ‘But apparently there was some fuss about it. No one would own up to having done it, you see. All the servants were questioned and swore they hadn’t touched the beastly things. In fact, it was rather a mystery. And then the coroner asked questions at the inquest, and you know how difficult it is to explain things to people of that class.’
‘Perfectly foul,’ agreed Bundle.
‘Of course,’ said Lord