立博体育下载Without meaning it

Dora Bunner conveyed the impression that she’d ac-tually seen her friend wounded. It might have been brought in Suicide orAccidental Death. And the case would have been closed. That it was keptopen is due to Miss Marple here.”

“Oh, no, no.” Miss Marple shook her head energetically. “Any little ef-forts on my part were quite incidental. It was you who weren’t satisfied,Mr. Craddock. It was you who wouldn’t let the case be closed.”

“I wasn’t happy about it,” said Craddock. “I knew it was all wrong some-where. But I didn’t see where it was wrong, till you showed me. And afterthat Miss Blacklock had a real piece of bad luck. I discovered that thatsecond door had been tampered with. Until that moment, whatever weagreed might have happened—we’d nothing to go upon but a pretty the-ory. But that oiled door was evidence. And I hit upon it by pure chance—bycatching hold of a handle by mistake.”

“I think you were led to it, Inspector,” said Miss Marple. “But then I’mold-fashioned.”

“So the hunt was up again,” said Craddock. “But this time with a differ-ence. We were looking now for someone with a motive to kill LetitiaBlacklock.”

“And there was someone with a motive, and Miss Blacklock knew it,”

said Miss Marple. “I think she recognized Phillipa almost at once. BecauseSonia Goedler seems to have been one of the very few people who hadbeen admitted to Charlotte’s privacy. And when one is old (you wouldn’tknow this yet, Mr. Craddock) one has a much better memory for a faceyou’ve seen when you were young than you have for anyone you’ve onlymet a year or two ago. Phillipa must have been just about the same age asher mother was when Charlotte remembered her, and she was very likeher mother. The odd thing is that I think Charlotte was very pleased to re-cognize Phillipa. She became very fond of Phillipa and I think, uncon-sciously, it helped to stifle any qualms of conscience she may have had.