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woman's weapon. How agitated she had been on that fatal Tuesday evening!
Had Mrs. Inglethorp discovered something between her and Bauerstein, and
threatened to tell her husband? Was it to stop that denunciation that the
crime had been committed?
Then I remembered that enigmatical conversation between Poirot and Evelyn
Howard. Was this what they had meant? Was this the monstrous possibility
that Evelyn had tried not to believe?
Yes, it all fitted in.
No wonder Miss Howard had suggested "hushing it up." Now I understood
that unfinished sentence of hers: "Emily herself----" And in my heart I
agreed with her. Would not Mrs. Inglethorp have preferred to go unavenged
rather than have such terrible dishonour fall upon the name of Cavendish.
"There's another thing," said John suddenly, and the unexpected sound of
his voice made me start guiltily. "Something which makes me doubt if what
you say can be true."
"What's that?" I asked, thankful that he had gone away from the subject of
how the poison could have been introduced into the coco.
"
Why, the fact that Bauerstein demanded a post-mortem. He needn't have
done so. Little Wilkins would have been quite content to let it go at heart
disease."
"Yes," I said doubtfully. "But we don't know. Perhaps he thought it safer in
the long run. Some one might have talked afterwards. Then the Home Office
might have ordered exhumation. The whole thing would have come out,
then, and he would have been in an awkward position, for no one would
have believed that a man of his reputation could have been deceived into
calling it heart disease."
"
Yes, that's possible," admitted John. "Still," he added, "I'm blest if I can see
what his motive could have been."
I trembled.
"Look here," I said, "I may be altogether wrong. And, remember, all this is in
confidence."
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