Latter End

Miss Silver smiled disarmingly.

“She has a very good friend, my dear,” she said.

CHAPTER 28

Julia went out of the room and up the stairs again. She had just reached the landing, when the door of Lois’ bedroom opened and Ellie came ru

“Oh, Julia-isn’t it marvellous! Jimmy says I can have Ro

She let go and threw her arms round Julia’s neck.

“Darling, isn’t it marvellous!”

Time had swung back. This was the old Ellie with the quick blood in her cheeks, light in her eyes, every bit of her quivering with life. Julia had a moment of giddiness. You can swing too fast and too far to keep your balance. Ellie must have lost hers. She stepped back and said in a ringing voice,

“It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good, isn’t it?”

Someone was coming up the stairs behind Julia. She could just hear the sound of quiet footsteps. She said “Ellie-” in a warning voice, but it wasn’t any good. Ellie stamped her foot and cried,

“I don’t care! Lois wouldn’t have had him here-ever!”

Then she saw Miss Silver coming up behind Julia. She stood for a moment, her colour bright, her eyes wide, but before Miss Silver reached the landing she turned, ran into the room she shared with Julia, and shut the door.

Miss Silver coughed reprovingly.

“That was not very wise.”

Julia said, “No.” And then, “She wasn’t thinking about being wise, you know. She was just being natural. She hasn’t got anything to hide. She has just heard that she can have her husband here, and it has put everything else out of her head. She has been very unhappy about him. It just hasn’t occurred to her that she mustn’t let anyone see that she is happy because he can come here now.”

Miss Silver said thoughtfully,

“Wisdom is to be commended as well as harmlessness. There is scriptural warrant for that, you know, Miss Julia.” She crossed the landing to her own room and entered it.

Julia followed Ellie. She found her rubbing cream into her face. She began to talk at once.

“I’ll go over and see him this afternoon. I’m trying the cream Mi

Julia went and stood by the near window, looking out. She said,

“I expect so.” And then, quickly, “Ellie, what possessed you to say that about Lois? Miss Silver heard you.”

“I don’t care if she did. It’s true.”

Julia’s dark brows had met. She said,

“Ellie, you’ve got to be careful-we all have. Those policemen don’t think Lois committed suicide-they think she was murdered.”

“Don’t!”

“I must. We’ve got to be careful of everything we say or do. What you said just now could very easily be twisted.”

Ellie’s colour had gone out like a candle in the wind.

“You mean they could think I did it?”

Julia turned round. She had no colour to lose.

“I mean you’ve got to be careful not to give them anything to think about. If you put it into their heads that Lois was in your way, and that you’re glad she isn’t there any longer- well, it isn’t going to be so good, is it?”

Ellie went on rubbing cream into her face mechanically. She said,

“That’s nonsense.” Her shoulder jerked.

Julia walked over to her, and took her by the arm.

“Use your head, Ellie! Think! You and Mi

Ellie pulled away.

“It wasn’t the police-it was Miss Silver.”

“It’s all the same thing.” Julia’s voice had a discouraged sound. Now she had made Ellie think her unkind. She didn’t want to frighten her, she only wanted her to be careful. It was like having to pick your way among eggshells. She wondered if she had said enough. She didn’t see her way to saying any more. She thought she had better go downstairs again and see whether the police had finished with Ma

Ellie was wiping the cream off her face. She didn’t turn round or look up.

Julia went out of the room with the feeling that she might just as well have held her tongue.

CHAPTER 29

Miss Silver, having fetched a fresh ball of grey wool from her bedroom, proceeded downstairs with it. She had left her knitting-bag on a table in the hall, and it was while she was slipping the wool into it and hanging the bag on her arm that the door of the study opened and Mrs. Maniple came out. The dignity of her bearing was unimpaired. She crossed the hall and made her way down the long passage which led off it to the kitchen wing.

As soon as she was out of sight Miss Silver entered the study. The Chief Inspector, who was on his feet, was saying, “Well, you’d better go and get her, and Miss Silver too. I don’t want-” He broke off at the sound of the closing door. “Well, there!” he said, “How did you know you were wanted? I was just sending Frank for you.”

Miss Silver smiled agreeably.

“For me-and also, I think, for someone else. May I enquire who else was to be summoned?”

He said briefly, “Miss Mercer. I was going to ask her about those fingerprints, and as she looks as if it wouldn’t be any trouble to her to faint, I thought I’d have you handy.”

A shade of distance tinged Miss Silver’s ma

Miss Maud Silver reached the chair which she had occupied before, altered its angle slightly, and sat down. As she disposed the knitting-bag on her lap and drew out Derek’s half-finished stocking, she observed,

“I am always pleased to do anything I can to assist you, Chief Inspector.” She made a slight but impressive pause and continued. “I would, however, ask you to defer Miss Mercer for the moment. I have just overheard a conversation between Gladys Marsh and the young girl Polly Pell. When I have repeated it to you, you will, I think, agree that it would be as well to question Gladys without delay.”

Lamb gave a snort of disapproval.

“What’s she been saying?”

“I will tell you. I was in the pantry, with the door ajar into the kitchen. I heard Gladys boasting that she was going to be a witness, and that if it came to a trial she would have her photograph in all the papers. She regretted that as she was already married she would not be able to avail herself of the many offers of marriage which she anticipated. She had, however, the effrontery to indicate that the difficulty might be surmounted.”