IX
George Lee was solemn and correct.
A terrible business,” he said, shaking his head. “A terrible, terrible business. I can only
believe that it must—er—have been the work of a lunatic
Colonel Johnson said politely
That is your theory
Yes. Yes, indeed. A homicidal maniac. Escaped, perhaps, from some mental home in the
vicinity.
Superintendent Sugden put in
And how do you suggest this—er—lunatic gained admittance to the house, Mr. Lee? And
how did he leave it
George shook his head.
That,” he said firmly, “is for the police to discover.
Sugden said
We made the round of the house at once. All windows were closed and barred. The side
door was locked, so was the front door. Nobody could have left by the kitchen premises without
being seen by the kitchen staff.
George Lee cried
But that’s absurd! You’ll be saying next that my father was never murdered at all
He was murdered all right,” said Superintendent Sugden. “There’s no doubt about that.
The chief constable cleared his throat and took up the questioning.
Just where were you, Mr. Lee, at the time of the crime
I was in the dining room. It was just after dinner. No, I was, I think, in this room. I had just
finished telephoning.
You had been telephoning
Yes. I had put a call through to the Conservative agent in Westeringham—my constituency.
Some urgent matters.
And it was after that that you heard the scream
George Lee gave a slight shiver.
Yes, very unpleasant. It—er—froze my marrow. It died away in a kind of choke or gurgle.
He took out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead where the perspiration had broken out.
Terrible business,” he muttered.
And then you hurried upstairs
Yes.
Did you see your brothers, Mr. Alfred and Mr. Harry Lee
No, they must have gone up just ahead of me, I think.
When did you last see your father, Mr. Lee
This afternoon. We were all up there.
You did not see him after that
No.
The chief constable paused, then he said
Were you aware that your father kept a quantity of valuable uncut diamonds in the safe in
his bedroom
George Lee nodded.
A most unwise procedure,” he said pompously. “I often told him so. He might have been
murdered for them—I mean—that is to say
Colonel Johnson cut in: “Are you aware that these stones have disappeared
George’s jaw dropped. His protuberant eyes stared.
Then he was murdered for them
The chief constable said slowly
He was aware of their loss and reported it to the police some hours before his death.
George said
But, then—I don’t understand—I— . . .
Hercule Poirot said gently
We, too, do not understand. . . .
