Inspector Alleyn 3-Book Collection 1: A Man Lay Dead, Enter a Murderer, The Nursing Home Murder. Ngaio Marsh

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СКАЧАТЬ jokingly, because I have seen the man is dead.’

      ‘But I understand you did not examine the body—’

      ‘Excuse me, please,’ began the Russian with a great deal of emphasis.

      Alleyn glanced quickly round the table. A swift wave of consternation and panic seemed to have galvanized the faces of all the guests. Mrs Wilde was white to the lips and Rosamund Grant was staring fixedly at her. Wilde leant swiftly towards his wife. She spoke suddenly, her voice breathlessly unlike the fashionable squeak that they were all accustomed to.

      ‘Wait a minute, I had better explain.’

      ‘Never mind now, old girl,’ said Wilde. Even then the conjugal endearment struck Nigel as being singularly inept.

      ‘It’s all right,’ said Marjorie Wilde. ‘I know what Doctor Tokareff is going to say. I lost my head. I pushed them all aside and knelt down by him. I pulled him over and looked at his face and I tried to call him back; when I saw he wasn’t there any more, I tried to call him back, tried to force him to come back. I dragged his shoulders away from the blood, and I felt the knife gritting on the floor underneath him, gritting about inside him. He was very heavy, I only moved him a little way. They all said I wasn’t to touch him—I wish I hadn’t, but I did. I touched him.’ She stopped as abruptly and breathlessly as she had begun.

      ‘It was much better for you to tell me this at once, Mrs Wilde,’ said Alleyn, very matter of fact. ‘One quite appreciates the emotional stress and shock of this terrible discovery. I should like,’ he continued generally, ‘to fix the actual grouping of this scene in my mind. Mrs Wilde was kneeling beside the body. She had moved it over on to its back. Doctor Tokareff, you were standing beside her?’

      ‘Certainly. I stood there saying, “Do not touch”. Still she continued to shake at him. I have seen immediately that she is hysterical and I tried to raise her upwards, but she resisted me. In hysteria sometimes zere is sush a strength. Then Miss Grant said quite quietly, “It’s no use to call Charles now, he is gone for good”, and at once Mrs Wilde stopped. Then I have raised her away and Sir Hubert Handesley said, “For God’s sake please make sure he is dead”. I have known immediately that he is dead, but nevertheless I examine, and Miss North say, “Telephone Doctor Young”, so she does.’

      ‘Is everyone agreed that this is substantially correct?’ asked Alleyn—formally.

      There was a general murmur of assent.

      ‘Since I prove that from seven-thirty to seven fifty-five I sing very loud in my room,’ announced the Russian, ‘is not this an Ali Baba? I should like now to go to London, where I have appointment for a meeting.’

      ‘I am afraid that is impossible,’ said Alleyn smoothly.

      ‘But—’ began the Russian.

      ‘I will explain afterwards, Doctor Tokareff. At the moment we will see out the consummation of the Murder Game. Sir Hubert, what were your movements from the time you went upstairs until the alarm?’

      Handesley looked at his own interlocked fingers lying before him on the table. He did not raise his eyes. His voice was even and unbroken.

      ‘I went to my dressing-room at the far end of the corridor. I undressed and spoke to Vassily, who was putting out my things. Then he went out and I had my bath. I had finished bathing and had dressed—all except my dinner jacket—when there was a knock at my door. Angela came in. She wanted to know if I had any aspirin. Miss Grant had a headache and would like to take some. I found the aspirin and gave it to Angela. She went out and almost immediately afterwards the alarm sounded. I joined the party on the landing, and it was then that Arthur—Mr Wilde—tapped me on the shoulder and said, “You are the corpse.” I think that is all.’

      ‘Any questions?’

      The vague negative murmur floated round the table.

      ‘Miss Grant,’ said the inspector, ‘you also went upstairs with the first party. Where was your room?’

      ‘At the far end of the cross-corridor at the back of the house, next to Angela’s—to Miss North’s. We went along together. Angela came into my room after we had bathed. It was then I asked her for aspirin.’

      ‘Where is the bathroom you used?’

      ‘Opposite my bedroom. We both used it—I first.’

      ‘And you merely crossed the passage to this bathroom and back to your own room?’

      ‘Yes.’

      ‘Did you go anywhere else while you were upstairs?’

      ‘No. I came down after the alarm.’

      ‘You, Miss North? What were your movements?’

      ‘I came up with Rosamund. While she bathed I read in my own room. On my return from the bathroom I went in to her, and after that to my uncle’s room for the aspirin. I had just got back to Rosamund’s door when the lights went out.’

      ‘Where is Mr Rankin’s room?’

      ‘Next to mine and immediately opposite the entrance of the top passage into the corridor. May I complete the sketch there?’ Alleyn pushed the sheet of paper along to her, and she traced in the remaining rooms.

      ‘Thank you very much,’ said Alleyn. ‘That completes the position of the characters. It also brings to a close the opening phase of the reconstruction of the game. Before we go I should like to speak to Florence your maid, Miss North. I am sure you will all see that it is most important to establish the positions of Mr and Mrs Wilde and Mr Bathgate.’

      Angela got up and crossed to a bell-push by the mantelpiece. The others moved back their chairs, and Wilde began a low-voiced conversation with Handesley.

      The bell was answered, not by Vassily, but by a small, agitated maid. She looked as if she belonged to the back stairs and had got into the drawing-room by mistake.

      ‘Will you ask Florence to come in for a moment, Mary?’ said Angela.

      ‘Yes, miss.’

      ‘Oh, just a second, Mary,’ said Alleyn, with a glance at Angela. ‘Were you in the hall last night when Mr Wilde went upstairs and Mr Rankin was left alone?’

      ‘Oh—yes, yes, sir, I was. Mr Roberts don’t usually send me to the front of the ‘ouse, sir, but last night—’

      ‘Did Mr Wilde speak to you?’

      ‘He arst me the time, and I says, “Ten to”, and he says, “Hell, I’m late”, and skedaddles upstairs.’

      ‘What was Mr Rankin doing?’

      ‘Smoking a cigarette, sir, quite happy like. I says, “Shall I take away the cocktail tray?” and he says, “Don’t do that,” he says, “I’ll have a quick one”, he says, “and spoil the schoolboy complexion”. So I goes away, sir, and then only a few seconds later, sir, the lights went out and—oh, isn’t it awful?’

      ‘Terrible. Thank you, Mary.’

      After a hesitating СКАЧАТЬ