impression. When she was talking, I got a picture of a man — and it wasn't a man like Ellsworthy. The impression she gave me was of a very ordinary man — outwardly, that is — the kind of man nobody would suspect. Ellsworthy is the kind of man you would suspect. No, I got more the impression of a man like — Doctor Thomas.
'Thomas, now. What about Thomas? I wiped him clean off the list after I'd had a chat with him. Nice, unassuming fellow. But the whole point of this murderer — unless I've got the whole thing wrong — is that he would be a nice, unassuming fellow. The last person you'd think ever would be a murderer! Which, of course, is exactly what one feels about Thomas.
'Now then, let's go through it again. Why did Doctor Thomas kill Amy Gibbs? Really, it seems most unlikely that he did. But she did go to see him that day, and he did give her that bottle of cough mixture. Suppose that was really oxalic acid. That would be very simple and clever. Who was called in, I wonder, when she was found poisoned — Humbleby or Thomas? If it was Thomas, he might just come along with an old bottle of hat paint in his pocket, put it down unobtrusively on the table, and take off both bottles to be analyzed, as bold as brass. Something like that. It could be done if you were cool enough.
'Tommy Pierce? Again I can't see a likely motive. That's the difficulty with our Doctor Thomas — motive. There's not even a crazy motive. Same with Carter. Why should Doctor Thomas want to dispose of Carter? One can only assume that Amy, Tommy and the publican all knew something about Doctor Thomas that it was unhealthy to know. Ah, supposing, now, that that something was the death of Mrs. Horton. Doctor Thomas attended her. And she died of a rather unexpected relapse. He could have managed that easily enough. And Amy Gibbs, remember, was in the house at the time. She might have seen or heard something. That would account for her. Tommy Pierce, we have it on good authority, was a particularly inquisitive small boy. He may have got wise to something. Can't fit Carter in. Unless Amy Gibbs told him something. He may have repeated it in his cups and Thomas may have decided to silence him too. All this, of course, is pure conjecture. But what else can one do?
'Now Humbleby. Ah, at last we come to a perfectly plausible murder. Adequate motive and ideal means. If Doctor Thomas couldn't give his partner blood poisoning, no one could. He could reinfect the wound every time he dressed it. I wish the earlier killings were a little more plausible.
'Miss Fullerton? She's more difficult, but there is one definite fact. Doctor Thomas was not in Wychwood for at least a good part of the day. He gave out that he was attending a confinement. That may be. But the fact remains that he was away from Wychwood in a car. Is there anything else? Yes, just one thing. The look he gave me when I went away from the house the other day. Superior , condescending, the smile of a man who'd just led me up the garden path and knew it.'
Luke sighed, shook his head and went on with his reasoning. 'Abbot? He's the right kind of man too. Normal, well-to-do, respected, last sort of man, and so on. He's conceited, too, and confident. Murderers usually are. They've got overweening conceit. Always think they'll get away with it. Amy Gibbs paid him a visit once. Why? What did she want to see him for? To get legal advice? Why? Or was it a personal matter. There's that mention of 'a letter from a lady' that Tommy saw. Was that letter from Amy Gibbs? Or was it a letter written by Mrs. Horton — a letter, perhaps, that Amy Gibbs had got hold of? What other lady could there be writing to Mr. Abbot on a matter so private that he loses control when the office boy inadvertently sees it? What else can we think of re Amy Gibbs? The hat paint? Yes, right kind of old-fashioned touch — men like Abbot are usually well behind the times where women are concerned. The Old World style of philanderer. Tommy Pierce? Obvious, on account of the letter — really it must have been a very damning letter. Carter? Well, there was trouble about Carter's daughter. Abbot wasn't going to have a scandal — a low-down ruffianly half-wit like Carter dare to threaten him. He who had got away with two clever killings! Away with Mr. Carter! Dark night and a well-directed push. Really, this killing business is almost too easy.
'Have I got the Abbot mentality? I think so. Nasty look in an old lady's eye. She's thinking things about him. Then, row with Humbleby. Old Humbleby daring to set himself against Abbot, the clever solicitor and murderer. 'The old fool — he little knows what's in store for him! He's for it! Daring to browbeat me!'
'And then — what? Turning to catch Lavinia Fullerton's eyes. And his own eyes falter, show a consciousness of guilt. He who was boasting of being unsuspected had definitely aroused suspicion. Miss Fullerton knows his secret. She knows what he has done. Yes, but she can't have proof. But suppose she goes about looking for it. Suppose she talks. Suppose — He's quite a shrewd judge of character. He guesses what she will finally do. If she goes, with this tale of hers, to Scotland Yard, they may believe her; they may start making inquiries. Something pretty desperate has got to be done. Has Abbot got a car or did he hire one in London ? Anyway, he was away from here on Derby Day.'
Again Luke paused. He was so entering into the spirit of the thing that he found it hard to make a transition from one suspect to another. He had to wait a minute before he could force himself into the mood where he could visualize Major Horton as a successful murderer.
'Horton murdered his wife. Let's start with that. He had ample provocation and he gained considerably by her death. In order to carry it off successfully, he had to make a good show of devotion. He'd had to keep that up. Sometimes, shall we say, he overdoes it a bit?
'Very good, one murder successfully accomplished. Who's the next? Amy Gibbs. Yes, perfectly credible. Amy was in the house. She may have seen something — the Major administering a soothing cup of beef tea or gruel. She mayn't have realized the point of what she saw till some time later. The hat-paint trick is the sort of thing that would occur to the Major quite naturally — a very masculine man with little knowledge of women's fripperies. Amy Gibbs all serene and accounted for.
'The drunken Carter? Same suggestion as before — Amy told him something. Another straightforward murder.
'Now Tommy Pierce. We've got to fall back on his inquisitive nature. I suppose the letter in Abbot's office couldn't have been a complaint from Mrs. Horton that her husband was trying to poison her? That's only a wild suggestion, but it might be so. Anyway, the Major becomes alive to the fact that Tommy is a menace, so Tommy joins Amy and Carter. All quite simple and straightforward and according to Cocker. Easy to kill? My God, yes!
'But now we come to something rather difficult. Humbleby! Motive? Very obscure. Humbleby was attending Mrs. Horton originally. Did he get puzzled by the illness, and did Horton influence his wife to change to the younger, more unsuspicious doctor? But if so, what made Humbleby a danger so long after? Difficult, that. The manner of his death too. A poisoned finger. Doesn't connect up with the Major.
'Miss Fullerton? That's perfectly possible. He has a car. I saw it. And he was away from Wychwood that day, supposedly gone to the Derby . It might be, yes. Is Horton a cold-blooded killer? Is he? Is he? I wish I knew!'
Luke stared ahead of him. His brow was puckered with thought. 'It's one of them. I don't think it's Ellsworthy, but it might be. He's the most obvious one. Thomas is wildly unlikely — if it weren't for the manner of Humbleby's death. That blood poisoning definitely points to a medical murderer. It could be Abbot; there's not so much evidence against him as against the others, but I can see him in the part, somehow. Yes, he fits as the others don't. And it could be Horton. Bullied by his wife for years, feeling his insignificance — yes, it could be. But Miss Waynflete doesn't think it is, and she's no fool — and she knows the place and the people in it.
'Which does she suspect. Abbot or Thomas? It must be one of these two. If I tackled her outright — 'which of them is it?' — I'd get it out of her then, perhaps. But even then she might be wrong. There's no way of proving her right — like Miss Fullerton proved herself. More evidence — that's what I want. If there were to be one more case — just one more — then I'd know.'
He stopped himself with a start. 'What I'm asking for is another murder,' he said under his breath.
Chapter 16
In the bar of the Seven Stars, Luke drank his pint and felt somewhat embarrassed. The stare of half a dozen bucolic pairs of eyes followed his least movement, and conversation had come to a standstill upon his entrance.
Luke essayed a few comments of general interest, such as the crops, the state of the weather, and football coupons, but to none did he get any response. He was reduced to gallantry. The fine-looking girl behind the counter, with her black hair and red cheeks, he rightly judged to be Miss Lucy Carter. His advances were received in a
