The Wilmington morning star., 1947-08-14

derstand what I mean. don't
your"
II am not sure that I do know
what you mean, Lady Angkatell."
She gave him her lovely daz-
cling smile again and she put one
long white hand on his sleeve.
Dear M. Poirot, you know per:
fectly. The police will have to
hunt about for the owner of those
fingerprints and they won't find
him and in the end they'll have
to let the whole thing drop. But
I'm afraid, you know, that you
won't let it DROP"
mo. I shall not let it Drop"
said Eercule Poirot.
"That is just what l thought.
+. >. And that is why I came. It's
the truth you want, isn't it?''
Certainly l wait the truth"
Il see I haven't explained my
self very well. I'm trying to find
out just why you won't lie: things
drop. It isa't because Ct your
prestige-or because you want to
hang a murderer (such an I'M
pleasant kind Of death, I've al
ways thought-so medieval.) It's
Ejust, I think, that you want to
know. You do see what l mean,
don't you? If you we're to know
the truth-if you were to be told
the truth, 1 Think think perhaps
that might satisfy you? Would it
satisfy you, M. Poirot?"
"You are offering to tell me the
truth, Lady Angkatell?"
She nodded:
"You yourself know the truth.
them"
Her eyes opened very wide.
"Oh, yes, I've known for a long
time. I'd like to tell you. And then
we could agree that-well, that it
was all over and done with"
she smiled at him.
SIS it a bargain. M. Poirot?"
It was quite an effort for Her
cule Poirot to say:
mo, Madame, it is not a bar
gain"
He wanted - he wanted, very
badly, to let the whole thing drop
/. simply because Lucy Angka-
tell asked him to DO so.
Lady Angkateu sat very still foc
a moment. Then sne raised her
eyebrows.
II wonder" she said. Il
wonder if you really know what
you are doing?"
Nudge, lying dry eyed and
awake in the darkness, turned
~restlessly on her pillows.
She heard a door unlatch, a
footstep in the corridor outside
passing her door.
1t was Edwards door and Ed
wards step.
She switched on the lamp by
her bed and looked at the clock
that stood by the lamp on the ia
BILE.
1t was ten minutes to three.
Edward passing her door and
going down the stairs at this hour
in the morning. It was odd.
They had all gone to bed early,
at half past ten. She herself had
not slept had lain their with
burning eyelids and with 4 dry
aching misery racklng her fever
ishly.
She had heard the clock strike
downstairs-had heard owls boot
outside her bedroom window. Had
felt that depression that reaches
it's nadir at 2 am. Had thought
to herself, II can't bear it - ]
cant bear it. Tomorrow com
ing-another day 80. Day after
day to be got through"
Banished by her own act from
Ainswick-fron, all the loneliness
and dearness of Ainswick. which
might have been her very own
possession.
But better Punishment, better
loneliness, better a d-ab and unin'
teresting life, than life with Ed
ward and Henrietta's ghost. Until
that day in the wood she had not
known her own capacity for bitter
jealousy.
And after ell, Edward had
never told her that he loved her.
Affection, kindness, he had never
pretended to more than that. She
had accepted the limitation, and
not until she had realized what
it would mean to live at close
quarters with an Edward whose
mind and heart had Henrietta as
a permanent guest, did she know
that for her Edwards affection
was not enough.
Edward walking past her door,
down the front stairs.
It was odd-very odd - where
was he going?
Uneasiness grew upon her. It
was all part and parcel OF the un-
easiness that The Hollow gave her
nowadays. What was Edward do
ing downstairs In the small hours
Of the morning? Had he gone out?
Inactivity at last became too
much for her. She got up, slipped
on her dressing gown and taking
a hashlight, she opened her door
and came out into the passage.
1t was quite dark, no lights had
been switched on. Nudge turned to
the left ard came to the head OF
the staircase. Below all was dark,
too. She ran down the stairs and
after a moments hesitation
switched on the light in the hall.
Everything was silent. The front
door was closed and locked. She