he felt had been a fairly significant contribution to the case on the Sunday afternoon, and then spending the whole of the Monday abed, where he had lain dead to the wideawake world, and where, even when Mrs. Lewis had gently rocked his shoulder at 6.30 p.m. and quietly breathed the prospect of egg and chips into his ear, he had turned his head over into the pillow and blissfully resumed his slumbers. But now he felt fully refreshed.
By the look of him, however, his chief had not perhaps shared a similarly successful period of recuperation, for he sounded tetchy as he picked up the brief note Lewis had left him.
'You say Stratton was quite definitely out at Didcot when Kemp was being killed?'
'No doubt about it, sir. I went over there yesterday—'
'You were in bed yesterday.'
'Sunday, I mean. They remembered him.'
'Who's 'they'?'
'One of 'em took a photo of him on the footplate of 'The Cornishman'. He'd already got it developed and was going to post it to America. Stratton gave him a fiver. He's going to get a copy and send it here.'
'And it was Stratton?'
'It was Stratton.'
'Oh!'
'Where does all this leave us, sir? I just don't know where we are.'
'And you think I do?' mumbled the ill-shaven Morse. 'Here! Read this — came this morning.'
Lewis took the envelope handed him, postmarked Stratford-upon-Avon, and withdrew the two hand-written sheets.
Swan Hotel,
Stratford,
Saturday, 3rd Nov
Dear Inspector,
My conscience has troubled me since I left Oxford. When you asked about the phone call I tried to remember everything and I don't know what else I could have told you. I want to repeat that the line was faint but it was definately Dr. Kemp on the phone and that what I wrote was as near as anyone could get to what he said. But I lied about the afternoon and I was worried when you wanted to keep the betting slips because you probably know that one of the horses won and I would have won quite alot of money if I'd stayed in the betting shop. I wanted people to think I'd gone to Summertown and I could prove it if necessary. So I went to Ladbrokes and picked two rank outsiders and put some money on them and left. The only reason I did this was because I didn't want anyone to know where I really went which was to a flat in Park Town where I am ashamed to say I watched some sex videos with three other people. I think one of them would be willing to back up my story and if its nesessary I will give you a name if you can promise it can all be done with no charges broght. I am worried as well about the way you asked me where I went after we'd arrived in Oxford because I didn't tell you the truth then either, I went to Holywell cemetery and went to the grave of a friend of mine. he wrote to me befor he died and I didn't write back and I just wanted to make up for it in some way if I could. His name was James Bowden.
I am sorry to have caused trouble.
John Ashenden
P.S. I forgot to say that I left a small memento at his grave.
P.P.S. I shall be glad if you can pick up my winnings and give the money to Oxfam.
'Well?'
'I suppose you want me to tell you how many spelling mistakes he's made.'
'That would be something.'
'Looks all right to me. There's an apostrophe missing, though.'
Morse's face brightened. 'Well done! Excellent! There is the one spelling mistake, but you're definitely improving. That's a clue, by the way. No? Never mind!'
'At least we're getting some of the loose ends tied up.'
'You mean we cross Ashenden off the suspect-list?'
'Don't know, sir. But we can cross Stratton off, I reckon. He was in Didcot most of the afternoon. That's for sure.'
'So he couldn't have killed Kemp?'
'I don't see how.'
'Nor do I,' said Morse.
'Back to square one!'
'You know where we went wrong, don't you? It was that phone call that sent me up the cul-de-sac. You see, we can't get away from the fact that if Kemp was in London, he could easily have caught an earlier train. That still puzzles me! He rang at twelve-thirty-five and there was a train at twelve-forty-five. Ten minutes to walk across from the phone to the platform!'
