Fault in the Structure

my bones will keep

adders on the heath

death of a delft blue

pageant of murder

the croaking raven

skeleton island

three quick and five dead

dance to your daddy

gory dew

lament for leto

a hearse on may-day

the murder of busy lizzie

a javelin for jonah

winking at the brim

convent on styx

late, late in the evening

noonday and night

First published in Great Britain by Michael Joseph Ltd 52 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3EF

© 1977 by Gladys Mitchell

All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical; photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Copyright owner

ISBN 0 7181 1601 1

Printed in Great Britain by Redwood Burn Limited Trowbridge and Esher

Fiercely intolerant of what is false,

Fiercely zealous for what is true.

TO

JULIAN McDONAUGH,

From whose poetic drama, A Pageant of English Dominicans, the above quotation, the title of this book and all its chapter headings are borrowed with gratitude, admiration and love.

PART ONE

Flaws in the Facade

CHAPTER 1

^ »

Hardened in error by pride of intellect

Osbert Swineborn proposed to Dora Ellen at the New Year’s Eve dance which his mother, who knew Dora Ellen to be the only child and heiress of a wealthy expatriate American, had given for that purpose.

‘Well,’ said the young lady, ‘well, all right, O.K. then, but a Condition goes with it and, until that condition has been fulfilled, I want no part in your future life and happiness.’

Osbert had no inkling of what was coming. However, grateful for his mother’s efforts on his behalf and mindful, as ever (for he was a dutiful son) of her wishes, he promised that he would do anything — positively anything — which would result in his winning Dora Ellen’s hand in marriage.

It was not that he loved the young woman. The ability to love was not one of his endowments. It was simply that he agreed with his mother, who had often, although without rancour, expressed the opinion that he was unlikely ever to make what she called ‘a decent living’ for himself and that therefore his aim should be to marry a wife whose dowry would result in his leading that life of ease and leisure for which both his mother and he were convinced he was best fitted.

‘So what do you want me to do?’ he asked his fiancee. ‘Just say the word and, if I can, I’ll do it.’

‘That’s binding on you, then. Look, honey, it’s this way. I am not going through the rest of my life calling myself Dora Ellen Swineborn. I’m kind of allergic to hogs.’

‘Oh, dear!’ said Osbert. ‘Is that really the case?’