VI paused for a moment in the corridor. It was quite quiet. There was noone about. The beds had been all turned down ready for the night. Norton,who had a room on this side, I had left downstairs. Elizabeth Cole wasplaying bridge. Curtiss, I knew, would be downstairs having his supper. Ihad the place to myself.
I flatter myself that I have not worked with Poirot for so many years invain. I knew just what precautions to take.
Allerton was not going to meet Judith in London tomorrow.
Allerton was not going anywhere tomorrow … The whole thing wasreally so ridiculously simple.
I went to my own room and picked up my bottle of aspirins. Then I wentinto Allerton’s room and into the bathroom. The tablets of Slumberyl werein the cupboard. Eight, I considered, ought to do the trick. One or two wasthe stated dose. Eight, therefore, ought to be ample. Allerton himself hadsaid the toxic dose was not high. I read the label. ‘It is dangerous to exceedthe prescribed dose.’
I smiled to myself.
I wrapped a silk handkerchief round my hand and unscrewed the bottlecarefully. There must be no fingerprints on it.
I emptied out the tablets. Yes, they were almost exactly the same size asthe aspirins. I put eight aspirins in the bottle, then filled up with theSlumberyls, leaving out eight of them. The bottle now looked exactly as ithad before. Allerton would notice no difference.
I went back to my room. I had a bottle of whisky there – most of us hadat Styles. I got out two glasses and a syphon. I’d never known Allerton re-fuse a drink yet. When he came up I’d ask him in for a nightcap.
I tried the tablets in a little of the spirit. They dissolved easily enough. Itasted the mixture gingerly. A shade bitter perhaps but hardly noticeable.
I had my plan. I should be just pouring myself out a drink when Allertoncame up. I would hand that to him and pour myself out another. All quiteeasy and natural.
He could have no idea of my feelings – unless of course Judith had toldhim. I considered this for a moment, but decided that I was quite safehere. Judith never told anyone anything.
He would probably believe me to be quite unsuspicious of their plan.
I had nothing to do but to wait. It would be a long time, probably anhour or two, before Allerton came up to bed. He was always a late bird.
I sat there quietly waiting.
A sudden knock on the door made me start. It was only Curtiss, how-ever. Poirot was asking for me.
I came to myself with a shock. Poirot! I had never once thought of himall evening. He must have wondered what had become of me. It worriedme a little. First of all because I was ashamed of never having been nearhim, and secondly I did not want him to suspect that anything out of theway had happened.
I followed Curtiss across the passage.
‘Eh bien!’ exclaimed Poirot. ‘So you desert me, hein?’
I forced a yawn and an apologetic smile. ‘Awfully sorry, old boy,’ I said.
‘But to tell the truth I’ve got such a blinding headache I can hardly see outof my eyes. It’s the thunder in the air, I suppose. I really have been feelingquite muzzy with it – in fact, so much so I entirely forgot I hadn’t been into say good night to you.’
As I had hoped, Poirot was immediately solicitous. He offered remedies.
He fussed. He accused me of having sat about in the open air in a draught.
(On the hottest day of the summer!) I refused aspirin on the grounds that Ihad already taken some, but I was not able to avoid being given a cup ofsweet and wholly disgusting chocolate!
‘It nourishes the nerves, you comprehend,’ Poirot explained.
I drank it to avoid argument and then, with Poirot’s anxious and affec-tionate exclamations still ringing in my ears, I bade him good night.
I returned to my own room, and shut the door ostentatiously. Later, Iopened it a crack with the utmost caution. I could not fail now to hear Al-lerton when he came. But it would be some time yet.
I sat there waiting. I thought of my dead wife. Once, under my breath, Imurmured: ‘You understand, darling, I’m going to save her.’
She had left Judith in my care, I was not going to fail her.
In the quiet and the stillness I suddenly felt that Cinders was very nearto me.
I felt almost as though she were in the room. And still I sat on grimly,waiting.
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