1 00:00:05,160 --> 00:00:08,560 Speaker 1: Hello, I'm welcomed stories all the time. Glad you are here. 2 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:12,439 Let's get into it. On a quiet autumn evening in Willowbrook, 3 00:00:12,439 --> 00:00:15,119 the bookshop's bow rang for the very last time. No 4 00:00:15,119 --> 00:00:17,359 one knew it then, but the customer who stepped inside 5 00:00:17,399 --> 00:00:19,640 was already walking towards his own death, and before the 6 00:00:19,679 --> 00:00:22,199 week was over, Herculeporot would be summoned to uncover the 7 00:00:22,199 --> 00:00:24,839 truth that lay beneath lays of civility, secrets and lies. 8 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:27,559 The little bookshop of Willowbrook had stood in the corner 9 00:00:27,600 --> 00:00:31,559 of High Street for nearly forty years. Its narrow windows 10 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:34,759 displayed volumes of poetry, travelocks, and a few detective tales 11 00:00:34,759 --> 00:00:37,719 with garish covers. Further proprietor offered. Whitcombe preferred the most 12 00:00:37,759 --> 00:00:40,560 serious works. He was a man of fifty eight, thin 13 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:43,479 and fussy, with spectacles always perched at the end of 14 00:00:43,479 --> 00:00:46,600 his nose and an air of perpetual disapproval. Villagers often 15 00:00:46,679 --> 00:00:48,600 droke that Whitcomb mut more like an accountant than a 16 00:00:48,640 --> 00:00:51,640 man of letters. That evening, the glow of oil lams 17 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:54,719 softened the chill in the air. The bookshop smelled faintly 18 00:00:54,719 --> 00:00:57,399 of paper dust and binding blue. The comforting a room 19 00:00:57,439 --> 00:01:00,399 of knowledge preserved. Whitcomb was about to close. When the 20 00:01:00,439 --> 00:01:03,119 door creaked open, the bell above the lintel gave its 21 00:01:03,159 --> 00:01:07,319 customary ring. A figure stepped inside. Later, each person in 22 00:01:07,319 --> 00:01:10,480 Wilibrook could remember that ring differently. Some claimed it was 23 00:01:10,480 --> 00:01:12,719 oddly shrill, others said it seemed to echo too long, 24 00:01:12,920 --> 00:01:14,959 as though the bell itself new tragedy had entered. With 25 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:18,560 the customer Wick Coombs straight and irritated. We were just 26 00:01:18,599 --> 00:01:21,719 about to close, sir. The man gave no answer at once. 27 00:01:21,760 --> 00:01:23,920 He was cloked against the damp evening, a brimmed hat 28 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:27,280 shadowing his face. When he finally spoke, his voice was 29 00:01:27,319 --> 00:01:30,400 low and smooth. Smooth. Then I shall not keep you long. 30 00:01:31,079 --> 00:01:34,680 I only require a certain book. The proprietor resigned, gesture 31 00:01:34,719 --> 00:01:37,359 toward the shelves, if you tell me the title arm, 32 00:01:37,480 --> 00:01:39,480 But the customer's eyes had already fixed on a narrow 33 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:42,480 case behind the counter. What passed between the two men 34 00:01:42,519 --> 00:01:44,840 in that moment would become the subject of endless speculation 35 00:01:44,879 --> 00:01:47,719 in the village. Ten minutes later, when mis cess Lydia 36 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:50,239 Farnam walked past the shop on her way from choir practice, 37 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,920 she noticed the lamp still burning the door standing ajar strange, 38 00:01:53,959 --> 00:01:57,319 she thought, since Witcomb was always particular about punctuality. The 39 00:01:57,359 --> 00:02:00,480 next morning, Alfred Whitcombe was found dead slump behind me counter. 40 00:02:01,159 --> 00:02:03,599 A single book lay open beside him, its pages torn 41 00:02:03,599 --> 00:02:06,359 and crumpled, as though clutched in his final moments. The 42 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,919 last customer had vanished. News of the murder spread quickly 43 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:13,280 through Willowbrook. By breakfast time, the postmistress had whispered it 44 00:02:13,319 --> 00:02:15,199 to the baker, who mentioned it to the miltman, who 45 00:02:15,240 --> 00:02:17,919 told half the households on his morning round. One knew. 46 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:21,280 The entire village humped with speculation. At the vicarage, Missus 47 00:02:21,319 --> 00:02:23,560 Lorimer had declared it must have been a robbery gum wrong. 48 00:02:24,199 --> 00:02:26,439 At the grocer's, Mister Keating insisted it was the work 49 00:02:26,479 --> 00:02:29,520 of a stranger, some vagrant passing through. At the tea room, 50 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:31,680 young Alice Godfrey whispered that she had once seen mister 51 00:02:31,719 --> 00:02:34,360 would come arguing heatedly with a certain village gentleman, and 52 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:37,159 that perhaps it was a quarrel turned deadly. Every one 53 00:02:37,199 --> 00:02:40,039 had a theory, no one had the truth. By the 54 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:43,080 time Inspector Graves arrived from Marlacum, he was already convinced 55 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:46,360 the matter would prove simple. These quiet villages breed quarrels. 56 00:02:46,439 --> 00:02:49,280 He told his sergeant. Some wood he owed with, come money, 57 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:52,599 or disliked his manner, shall have the fellow in no time. 58 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:56,599 Yet not everyone shared his confidence. Among those who paused 59 00:02:56,599 --> 00:02:58,479 in their gardens that day to listen to the gossip, 60 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:01,960 one man in Butterkiller stood out. He was small, impeccably 61 00:03:02,039 --> 00:03:04,319 dressed in a well brushed suit, and carried himself with 62 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:08,280 fastidious neatness. His Mistat was perfectly groomed, his shoes without 63 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:10,719 a speck of dust. Though he was a visita to 64 00:03:10,759 --> 00:03:13,039 the village, many already knew his name, for he had 65 00:03:13,039 --> 00:03:16,639 a reputation that traveled widely. Monsieur Ur Cuilporott arrived in 66 00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:19,319 Wilbrook only the week before, intending nothing more strenuous than 67 00:03:19,319 --> 00:03:21,199 a fortnight of rest at the home of his old friend, 68 00:03:21,319 --> 00:03:23,719 Colonel Ab. Not but fate, as so often, head of 69 00:03:23,759 --> 00:03:27,080 their plans. That afternoon, Poorat and Colonel Abb have not 70 00:03:27,159 --> 00:03:31,000 walked together past the bookshop, now closed and guarded. The colonel, 71 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:33,599 a hardy fellow with a booming voice, shook his head 72 00:03:33,599 --> 00:03:37,479 gravely by business. Porart, poor witkembe never harmed a soul 73 00:03:38,039 --> 00:03:41,159 who on earth would want him dead? Poart's sharp eyes 74 00:03:41,159 --> 00:03:43,280 studded the shop door, at the window panes, the faint 75 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:45,759 mark of boots on the step. He tilted his head 76 00:03:45,759 --> 00:03:47,599 with the faintest smile at the corners of his mouth. 77 00:03:48,199 --> 00:03:50,439 My dear colonel, he said, softly, there is no such 78 00:03:50,439 --> 00:03:52,879 thing as murder was at reason. The question is not 79 00:03:52,960 --> 00:03:55,240 he would wish Monsieur wickhamb dead, but who believed it 80 00:03:55,319 --> 00:03:58,439 necessary that you should die? That is very different, is 81 00:03:58,479 --> 00:04:02,479 it not. The colonel look startled. Dash it all, poor Art, 82 00:04:02,599 --> 00:04:05,360 you talk as th you mean to investigate Warat tapped 83 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:08,560 his temple lightly with a finger. Already, mon army, the 84 00:04:08,599 --> 00:04:11,800 little gray cells are awake. A man dies in a bookshop, 85 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:15,360 he does clutching a torn page. Such things do not 86 00:04:15,479 --> 00:04:18,360 happen with that design, and herkil pot does not ignore design. 87 00:04:18,959 --> 00:04:21,519 As the two men moved on, villagers watched from behind 88 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:25,000 lace curtains and whispered among themselves. The bookshop spell had 89 00:04:25,079 --> 00:04:27,120 rung for the last time, but its echo lingered in 90 00:04:27,160 --> 00:04:31,040 every corner of Wilobrook. Soon, each household, each polite conversation 91 00:04:31,160 --> 00:04:33,759 over tea, each half forgotten quarrel, and every secret motive 92 00:04:33,800 --> 00:04:36,560 would fall under the gaze of Hercule Porat. The stage 93 00:04:36,639 --> 00:04:39,319 was set. The suspects were many, and the truth, though hidden, 94 00:04:39,439 --> 00:04:41,439 was waiting for the man who prided himself fon seeing 95 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:45,480 what the those overlooked. Inspector Cres prided himself fon his efficiency. 96 00:04:46,079 --> 00:04:48,439 By the time the coroner had carried poor Alfred Whitcomb's 97 00:04:48,439 --> 00:04:51,399 body away, Graves had already assembled a short list of suspects. 98 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:54,959 In Willowbrook. One did not need to look far. Everyone 99 00:04:55,040 --> 00:04:58,319 knew everyone else. In grievances, however, small were never forgotten. 100 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:01,000 The inspector stowed in the bookshep with his noboc opened 101 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,319 his broad frame, filling the narrow aisle. Thus much drifted 102 00:05:04,319 --> 00:05:06,720 in the sunlight. On the counter lay the open book 103 00:05:06,720 --> 00:05:09,000 Whitcomb had clutched, a slend volume of protry torn on 104 00:05:09,079 --> 00:05:13,759 its final page. Symbolic, perhaps, muttered Graves, though symbolism was 105 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,040 not his strength. He preferred facts, and facts to his 106 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:19,959 mind pointed to one of the villagers, Missus Lyddy Farnham. 107 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:23,360 The first to be questioned was Missus Farnham, the choir mistress, 108 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:25,759 who had passed the shop that night. She was a tall, 109 00:05:25,839 --> 00:05:28,560 elegant widow of fifty, always dressed in muta graze. I 110 00:05:28,600 --> 00:05:31,519 assure you, inspector, the door was open, yes, but I 111 00:05:31,560 --> 00:05:34,759 thought nothing of it. Mister Wickham was peculiar in his ways. 112 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:38,480 I assumed he had stepped out. Her voice was calm, 113 00:05:38,519 --> 00:05:41,160 but part listening quietly from a corner, noticed the faint 114 00:05:41,160 --> 00:05:44,360 tremor in her gloved hands. Missus Farnham was known for 115 00:05:44,439 --> 00:05:47,319 her friendship with Witcomb. Some even whispered that she was 116 00:05:47,360 --> 00:05:50,720 more than a friend. Such whispers often carried seeds of truth. 117 00:05:51,360 --> 00:05:55,040 Mister hald Keating, the grocer. Mister Keating came next, a 118 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:58,040 ruddy faced man of forty, always smelling faintly of onions. 119 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:01,199 He was blunt in his speech. I never liked Witcombe, 120 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:04,639 high and mighty. He was always correcting my speech, telling 121 00:06:04,639 --> 00:06:07,759 me how to pronounce things. Still, I wouldn't kill the fellow, 122 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:10,720 not over books. Yet, poor Oart observed how the man's 123 00:06:10,759 --> 00:06:13,519 eyes darted toward the torn page in the counter. He 124 00:06:13,519 --> 00:06:16,199 looked away quickly, as though reminded of something best forgotten. 125 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:19,759 Alice Godfrey Allies, a young woman of Menteine, worked part 126 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:21,680 time in the tea room, and often visited the shop 127 00:06:21,720 --> 00:06:25,800 for novels. She sat nervously before the inspector, twisting her handkerchief. 128 00:06:26,319 --> 00:06:28,439 He saw a stranger in the village two days ago, 129 00:06:28,519 --> 00:06:32,199 a tall man in a dark coat, perhaps ahats he 130 00:06:32,240 --> 00:06:35,600 did it, mister Wickhambe was very cross with him. Her 131 00:06:35,639 --> 00:06:39,319 words tumbled out in haste. Poott inclined his head, noting 132 00:06:39,360 --> 00:06:41,279 that the girl avoided speaking of her own dealings with 133 00:06:41,279 --> 00:06:46,399 the bookseller, shyness perhaps, or fear of discovery. Reverend Prichard. 134 00:06:46,519 --> 00:06:48,680 The Reverend was a stout man with a booming voice, 135 00:06:48,959 --> 00:06:51,759 well liked but occasionally resented for his sermons on morality. 136 00:06:52,319 --> 00:06:55,079 Witcomb was a difficult man, yes, but sould to be pitted. 137 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:57,920 He owed money, inspector, to whom I cannot say, But 138 00:06:58,000 --> 00:07:00,120 debts have a way of leading men into dark waters. 139 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:04,560 Quartz eybrows lifted at that debt's secrets, hidden accounts of motive, 140 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:08,800 often stronger than quarrels of the heart. Misceliner Whitcomb last 141 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:11,480 came Misceliner Whitcomb, the dead man's sister, who lived with 142 00:07:11,519 --> 00:07:14,879 him above the shop. A thin, pale woman with anxious eyes. 143 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:18,319 She spoke in a whisper My brother was particular. He 144 00:07:18,360 --> 00:07:21,519 had enemies, though he would never admit it. The bookshop 145 00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:24,199 was his life. If some one killed him, it was 146 00:07:24,199 --> 00:07:25,959 because of what he knew, or perhaps what he would 147 00:07:26,000 --> 00:07:29,279 not give. She glanced meaningfully at the torn book, then 148 00:07:29,319 --> 00:07:32,160 pressed a handkerchief to her lips. Quart caught the look 149 00:07:32,199 --> 00:07:35,720 and filed it away among his growing observations. Inspector Graves 150 00:07:35,759 --> 00:07:39,839 closed his notebook with satisfaction. There you are, Quara, one 151 00:07:39,879 --> 00:07:42,800 of them did it? My mun is on keyting. The 152 00:07:42,879 --> 00:07:46,319 man has a temper, and temper leads to violence. Quarrott, 153 00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:49,240 who had remained silent thus far, spoke at last. His 154 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:54,079 voice was calm, almost indulgent, perhaps, Inspector, but do not forget. 155 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:58,759 Violence is rarely born only of temper. It comes from calculation, necessity, 156 00:07:58,879 --> 00:08:03,199 or fear. Say mister Keating has a temper Bonn, But 157 00:08:03,240 --> 00:08:05,160 does he have the subtlety to hear a single page 158 00:08:05,160 --> 00:08:06,639 from a book, to leave it in the hand of 159 00:08:06,680 --> 00:08:09,079 the dying man, as though it were a message that 160 00:08:09,319 --> 00:08:12,720 I think requires a different sort of mind. Graves frowned. 161 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:17,560 You think it staged? Poart adjusted his cuffs. I think, 162 00:08:17,759 --> 00:08:20,800 mon Army, that everything is staged, even the ordinary quarrels 163 00:08:20,800 --> 00:08:23,600 of a village. Question is not what we see, but 164 00:08:23,639 --> 00:08:26,160 what we are meant to see. That evening, Wilolbrook was 165 00:08:26,199 --> 00:08:29,920 alive with gossip. At the tea room. Missus Bambury declared 166 00:08:29,959 --> 00:08:32,000 it was clearly the sister tired of living in her 167 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:35,240 brother's shadow. At the pub men's wart was the grosso 168 00:08:35,480 --> 00:08:38,480 caught in a quarrel. Young Alice Godfrey whispered to friends 169 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:41,080 that perhaps would come had hidden a treasure among his books, 170 00:08:41,120 --> 00:08:43,879 and some one had killed for it. Only part sat 171 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:47,000 quietly in Colonel Arbudot's parlor, sipping his tisint Is mustache, 172 00:08:47,039 --> 00:08:50,519 stitching thoughtfully. There are five suspects, he said at last, 173 00:08:50,639 --> 00:08:54,159 and each has the appearance of guilt. But appearances, mon army, 174 00:08:54,320 --> 00:08:56,879 are the greatest enemies of truth. One must search and 175 00:08:56,960 --> 00:08:58,799 stead for the detail that does not fit the words 176 00:08:58,799 --> 00:09:01,720 spoken too quickly, the jest that betrays more than it conceals. 177 00:09:02,320 --> 00:09:04,879 Somewhere among these good villages lies a murderer, and Hercule 178 00:09:04,879 --> 00:09:08,240 Parle will find them. By the following morning, Inspector Graves 179 00:09:08,240 --> 00:09:11,399 had convinced himself of the murderer's identity. To him, the 180 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:15,519 matter was simple. Alfret Wykeham had been quarrelsome proud and fussy. 181 00:09:16,159 --> 00:09:19,039 Of all the villagers, only Harold Keating, the grocer, had 182 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:22,200 both the temper and the opportunity praise. Gathered the villages 183 00:09:22,200 --> 00:09:24,159 in the tape room of the Rose and Crown public House, 184 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,759 announcing his intention with a satisfaction that seemed premature. The 185 00:09:27,799 --> 00:09:30,159 air was thick with tobacco smoke, the clink of glasses, 186 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:33,159 and the low murmur of gossip ladies and gentlemen. The 187 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:37,519 inspector began. The evidence points squarely in one direction. Mister 188 00:09:37,559 --> 00:09:40,200 Harold Keating was seen leaving the high Street late on 189 00:09:40,279 --> 00:09:42,720 the night of the murder. He has admitted to quarreling 190 00:09:42,759 --> 00:09:46,039 with mister Whitcomb in the past, and here Graves tapped 191 00:09:46,039 --> 00:09:48,799 his notebook. He cannot provide a clear alibi for the 192 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:51,840 ire in question. A collective gasp purple through the room. 193 00:09:52,440 --> 00:09:56,399 Missus Bambury clutched her hol tighter, while Alice Goffrey covered 194 00:09:56,399 --> 00:10:00,080 her mouth with her hand. Mister Keating himself flushed crimson rubbish. 195 00:10:00,120 --> 00:10:03,159 He bellowed, I was a home sleeping soundly. My wife 196 00:10:03,159 --> 00:10:06,919 will tell you as much. Braves narrowed his eyes. Your 197 00:10:06,960 --> 00:10:09,600 wife is way visiting her mother in mollocum convenient. You 198 00:10:09,679 --> 00:10:11,360 were seen by no one, and you have a known 199 00:10:11,399 --> 00:10:16,879 dislike of the victim. Keating's fists clenched dislike, Yes, murder, 200 00:10:17,039 --> 00:10:21,120 no ear twisting this inspector. The villagers murmured, lauder speculation, 201 00:10:21,240 --> 00:10:23,879 darting from one to another. Light sparrow startled from a hedge. 202 00:10:24,440 --> 00:10:26,960 Already Keating's name was being whispered in every corner, his 203 00:10:27,039 --> 00:10:30,759 reputation crumbling before his eyes. Poorott, who had been seated 204 00:10:30,799 --> 00:10:35,279 quietly in the corner with Colonel arbuthnot, cleared his throat delicately. Perhaps, Inspector, 205 00:10:35,360 --> 00:10:39,000 you will permit a small observation. Graves frowned, but gestured impatiently. 206 00:10:39,600 --> 00:10:43,840 Go on. Monsieur Boorot fart stood, smoothing his immaculate suit, 207 00:10:44,559 --> 00:10:47,399 His mistust gleaned in the light of the lamps. His 208 00:10:47,519 --> 00:10:50,159 voice was soft, yet cared clearly through the crowded room. 209 00:10:50,720 --> 00:10:53,879 You say, Monsieur Keating as no alba. That is true. 210 00:10:54,360 --> 00:10:57,559 You say he disliked Monsieur Whitcomb, That also is true. 211 00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:00,600 But I asked myself a simple question. If Sir Keating 212 00:11:00,639 --> 00:11:02,440 is a man of temper of impulse, then would he 213 00:11:02,519 --> 00:11:04,840 kill in so neat a fashion, would he arrange the 214 00:11:04,840 --> 00:11:06,960 torn page in the hand of the victim, a gesture 215 00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:10,440 towards theatrical and deliberate. No, satchaks are not the work 216 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:13,759 of temper. They other work of calculation. The room fell silent, 217 00:11:14,559 --> 00:11:18,519 Several villagers shifted uncomfortably. Miscellino would come lowered her eyes. 218 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:22,759 Missus Farne touched her gloves nervously. Waratt continued. There is 219 00:11:22,759 --> 00:11:25,240 also the matter of the shop bell. It rang once 220 00:11:25,279 --> 00:11:28,399 at the hour of Whitcombe's death, only once. A man 221 00:11:28,440 --> 00:11:31,120 of temper, leaving in haste after a quarrel, would cause 222 00:11:31,120 --> 00:11:33,639 it to rain again as he departed. Yet no one 223 00:11:33,679 --> 00:11:36,639 heard it. No one. Does this not suggest that the 224 00:11:36,679 --> 00:11:39,639 murderer remained within until long after the crime. A specta 225 00:11:39,679 --> 00:11:43,879 grave scowled. You're playing with words, poorart, ideal in facts. 226 00:11:44,559 --> 00:11:48,000 Then permit me another fact, Inspector Porat said smoothly. On 227 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:50,480 Monsieur Keating's boots. There is the faintest trace of flyers 228 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:52,759 befits a groser. But there is no dust from books, 229 00:11:52,879 --> 00:11:55,679 no particles of paper, no wing stains upon his hands. 230 00:11:56,360 --> 00:11:58,159 He is not a man who entered a sharp, un 231 00:11:58,200 --> 00:12:01,399 rifled among volumes. He he is a man who lifted grits, 232 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:04,720 not books. A murmur of assent rippled among the villagers. 233 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:10,240 The logic was undeniable. Brave snapped his no book shut well, Poarart, 234 00:12:10,320 --> 00:12:13,360 you cast out. But if not keating, then who? Powart 235 00:12:13,440 --> 00:12:17,360 gave his most enigmatic smile, Ah, inspector. That is the question, 236 00:12:18,039 --> 00:12:20,200 not who could have killed Monsieur Whitcombe, but who needed 237 00:12:20,279 --> 00:12:22,320 him to be silenced? And until we answered that, we 238 00:12:22,320 --> 00:12:26,000 shall continue to chase shadows. The villagers dispersed slowly, whispers 239 00:12:26,080 --> 00:12:29,480 following in their wake. Some were unconvinced, others relieved, but 240 00:12:29,519 --> 00:12:32,759 all were unsettled. The certain Degraves had promised was gone 241 00:12:33,159 --> 00:12:35,759 that night. Colonel Arbes not found part seated before the fire, 242 00:12:35,919 --> 00:12:38,639 hand steepled beneath his chin. He gave Graves quite a 243 00:12:38,679 --> 00:12:42,039 dropping to day, the colonel said, with a chuckle. Powart 244 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:44,240 did not smile. His eyes were fixed on the flames. 245 00:12:44,919 --> 00:12:47,840 Mon Army, do you not find a curius, A torn 246 00:12:47,879 --> 00:12:50,200 page clutched by a dying man, a shop left open 247 00:12:50,200 --> 00:12:52,279 with its lamp still burning, a bell at rhyme once 248 00:12:52,440 --> 00:12:55,399 not twice, Each is a detail of thread. Pull them 249 00:12:55,399 --> 00:12:58,799 together and one finds a pattern, But what paden that 250 00:12:58,919 --> 00:13:01,919 I do not yet know. The colonel poured himself a whiskey, 251 00:13:02,559 --> 00:13:05,159 so you don't believe Keating did it? Puart shook his 252 00:13:05,159 --> 00:13:09,000 head slowly. No, our murderers clever, far cleverer than Inspector 253 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:12,720 Gray's imagines. He counts on the simplicity of others. But 254 00:13:12,799 --> 00:13:17,000 Hercule Pott does not think simply. Hercule Port observes, and 255 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:19,679 as the fire crackled in the village slept uneasily, poor 256 00:13:19,759 --> 00:13:22,440 arts little gray cells began their quite work, piecing together 257 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:25,360 the puzzle of the bookshop's final customer. The morning sun 258 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:28,919 lay gently across Willoughbroquye Street, gilding the roofs in soft gold. 259 00:13:29,679 --> 00:13:32,000 Yet beneath the calm of the village, tension simmered like 260 00:13:32,080 --> 00:13:35,240 a kettle left too long upon the stove. Villagers lingered 261 00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:39,399 at doorsteps, voices lowered but insistent. Every report walked he 262 00:13:39,399 --> 00:13:41,679 heard the same question carried from Sharp to shop, Who 263 00:13:41,720 --> 00:13:45,200 killed Alfred Whitcombe? At the bakery, misss Hawkins whispered to 264 00:13:45,240 --> 00:13:47,600 her neighbor that Harold Keating had been spared only because 265 00:13:47,600 --> 00:13:51,639 of Quart's interference. At a post office, mister Barnes declared 266 00:13:51,639 --> 00:13:54,600 with authority that Elina Whitcombe stood to gain the entire bookshop, 267 00:13:54,679 --> 00:13:57,159 and perhaps she had grown tired of her uncle's stubborn rule. 268 00:13:57,639 --> 00:14:00,240 Even at the vicarage. Mild Reverend Charles mused them of 269 00:14:00,279 --> 00:14:03,840 Whitcomb's age might have harbored secrets. Never confessed to the village, 270 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:07,240 Quarat listened politely, his head incline, his mustache tretching with 271 00:14:07,279 --> 00:14:10,480 the faintest amusement. Gossip was the breath of small villages. 272 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:12,919 But within the idle chatter, he knew one might stumble 273 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:16,759 upon the truth disguised his fancy inspector. Graves meanwhile, grew 274 00:14:16,799 --> 00:14:19,600 more irritable with each passing ire. He strode into the 275 00:14:19,600 --> 00:14:22,559 bookshop that morning, poor out at his sight, determined to 276 00:14:22,559 --> 00:14:25,399 scare at the place once more. Thus Mortes drifted through 277 00:14:25,399 --> 00:14:27,639 the still air, the scent of old paper mingling with 278 00:14:27,679 --> 00:14:30,960 candle wax from the lamp's left burning. Graves grunted a 279 00:14:31,000 --> 00:14:33,279 blasted mess. But I see nothing we did not see 280 00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:37,759 before Quart's siyes narrowed. He bent almost delicately to the 281 00:14:37,759 --> 00:14:41,320 counter where Alfred Wickhombe had kept his ledger, one corner 282 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:43,600 of the thick foliume bore fince maudge of ink, fresh 283 00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:46,919 enough to glisten faintly in the morning light. Quaratt touched 284 00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:50,039 it with a gloved finger and examined the faint trace. Curious, 285 00:14:50,159 --> 00:14:55,919 he murmured, Graves leaned over ink. So what Powart shook 286 00:14:55,960 --> 00:15:00,039 his head. Not merely ink, Inspector, This madges upon the 287 00:15:00,039 --> 00:15:03,240 page for the fifteenth of October. Yet Monsieur Whitcomb was 288 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:06,159 killed upon the sixteenth, who then opened the ledger after 289 00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:10,000 his death? And why leave so careless? A mark Grey's frown. 290 00:15:10,120 --> 00:15:12,639 But Parwatt was already drifting toward the shells, his eyes 291 00:15:12,639 --> 00:15:15,759 sweeping along spines of faded leather and cloth. He stopped 292 00:15:15,799 --> 00:15:18,200 suddenly at the poetry section, where a single volume had 293 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:22,039 been shoved back upside dan He drew it up carefully. 294 00:15:22,639 --> 00:15:26,000 Tennyson Poorat remarked, but see the edges are torn, as 295 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:29,519 though a page had been hastily removed. A coincidence, perhaps, 296 00:15:29,679 --> 00:15:32,639 But I do not believe in coincidence. Graves muttered, could 297 00:15:32,679 --> 00:15:37,559 have been done years ago? Part smiled faintly, or yesterday evening, Inspector. 298 00:15:38,200 --> 00:15:41,200 Later that afternoon, Poatt took tea with Missess Godfrey in 299 00:15:41,200 --> 00:15:45,080 her small pallor overlooking the village. Green Alice Godfrey, without 300 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:47,960 plain dresses and gentle manners, was known for observing much 301 00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:51,440 while speaking little. Parat regarded her as a valuable witness. 302 00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:55,440 Mademoiselle Poart began smoothly on the night of the murder. 303 00:15:55,480 --> 00:15:59,320 He passed along the high street. Yes, Monsieur Poaratt, she said, 304 00:15:59,440 --> 00:16:02,159 pouring to he with a steady hand. I was returning 305 00:16:02,159 --> 00:16:05,279 from choir practice. I saw the light in the shop. 306 00:16:05,919 --> 00:16:10,120 It seemed unusual, but mister Wickhamoffen kept odd ires. Did 307 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:13,279 you hear the bell? Perhaps the chime? As a customer entered, 308 00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:17,919 She paused once, Yes, a sharp sound. I thought little 309 00:16:17,919 --> 00:16:20,960 of it at the time. Poor Ought inclined his head, 310 00:16:21,159 --> 00:16:24,399 and after that no other sound, only the wind against 311 00:16:24,399 --> 00:16:29,360 the windows. Pooratt's eyes glimmered once, not twice. The murderer 312 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:32,559 had entered, but had not departed in haste. He had lingered, 313 00:16:32,679 --> 00:16:35,919 confident or compelled by evening. Powatt returned to the inward 314 00:16:35,960 --> 00:16:39,600 colonel Or, but not awaited him with impatience. Well, the 315 00:16:39,639 --> 00:16:43,679 colonel asked, what have you discovered? Quart lowered himself into 316 00:16:43,720 --> 00:16:46,519 a chair, his hand steeple mo Nammy the Clewes begin 317 00:16:46,639 --> 00:16:49,159 to speak. They whisper of someone who wished us to 318 00:16:49,200 --> 00:16:51,919 believe the crime was simple. They left the torn pages 319 00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:54,759 of signature, Yet in their haste they made mistakes. A 320 00:16:54,799 --> 00:16:57,480 smodge of ink where nun should be, a book displaced 321 00:16:57,480 --> 00:16:59,600 in a mile or two, careless for Monsieur Whitcomb's fasted 322 00:16:59,679 --> 00:17:03,360 his knee, And above all, a silence, the silence of 323 00:17:03,399 --> 00:17:06,400 the bell that should have rung twice. The colonel frowned. 324 00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:10,480 It sounds like Riddle's parts mule gently, yes, my friend. 325 00:17:10,559 --> 00:17:12,559 But in riddles there is logic, and in logic there 326 00:17:12,599 --> 00:17:15,079 is truth. Already I begin to see the outline of 327 00:17:15,079 --> 00:17:18,440 a mine, subtle, deliberate and proud. Soon we shall know 328 00:17:18,480 --> 00:17:21,240 to whom it belongs. And as the lambs flickered in 329 00:17:21,279 --> 00:17:24,000 the quiet, inn poart a loud himself a moment of satisfaction. 330 00:17:24,559 --> 00:17:27,519 The villages might chatter endlessly, inspect a Graves might pursue 331 00:17:27,519 --> 00:17:30,000 his simple suspects, But the Little Gray's elves were at work, 332 00:17:30,039 --> 00:17:32,759 and they were never wrong. The village of Willowbrook was 333 00:17:32,759 --> 00:17:35,519 not accustomed to tragedy. A broken fence, a stray dog, 334 00:17:35,799 --> 00:17:38,839 a quarrel about roses in the churchyard. Such things were 335 00:17:38,880 --> 00:17:42,240 the usual fodder of gossip, but a murder that was 336 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:46,359 something else Entirely. Within days of Alfred Whitcombe's death, suspicion 337 00:17:46,400 --> 00:17:49,480 had become the village's favorite pastime. At the green Grocer's, 338 00:17:49,599 --> 00:17:51,880 Missus Dawkins was heard to declare it must have been 339 00:17:51,960 --> 00:17:54,720 a leaner. No one else stood to gain from the bookshop, 340 00:17:55,359 --> 00:17:58,960 mark my words. The girl had ambition. Meanwhile, at the Inn, 341 00:17:59,079 --> 00:18:01,680 mister Bonn swore at Howard Keating had argued with Wickham 342 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:04,000 only a week before about money out for books never delivered. 343 00:18:04,599 --> 00:18:07,119 He is a hot headed fellow, Bonds insisted, thumping his 344 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:09,680 pint upon the table. The sword who'd strike out without thinking. 345 00:18:10,240 --> 00:18:12,960 Even the vicar's wife hinted docy that Colonel Arbuthnot, with 346 00:18:13,160 --> 00:18:15,480 his grand talk and polished manners, might not be as 347 00:18:15,519 --> 00:18:18,839 respectable as he appeared. After all, no one truly knew 348 00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:20,599 how he had come by his pension, or why he 349 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:23,319 had chosen to retire in so quiet a village. The 350 00:18:23,359 --> 00:18:26,200 gossip's world multiplying like ivey upon an old stone wall. 351 00:18:26,839 --> 00:18:30,119 Inspector Graves, for his part, had seized upon the simplest explanation. 352 00:18:30,680 --> 00:18:33,160 By midweek he announced with some triumph that Harold's Keating 353 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:35,920 was his men hot temper. Short on Fund's history of 354 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:38,480 quarrels with the deceased, Graves enumerated, as though the lists 355 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:41,240 alone were proof, the case as clear as daylight, bore 356 00:18:41,319 --> 00:18:45,480 up raise the delicate eyebrow, clear as the London fog. Perhaps, inspector, 357 00:18:46,079 --> 00:18:48,640 you have the quarrel, Yes, but where is the proof 358 00:18:48,640 --> 00:18:51,440 of opportunity of means a presence in the bookshop that night? 359 00:18:52,039 --> 00:18:55,000 Graves bristled, He was seen leaving the high street not 360 00:18:55,039 --> 00:18:57,720 half an eye before the time of death Seene, by 361 00:18:57,720 --> 00:19:02,119 whom Quaath asked gently Alice Godfrey, Graves replied with certainty, 362 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:06,319 Poarart inclined his head. Ah, and did Mademoiselle Goarfrey state 363 00:19:06,359 --> 00:19:09,119 that she saw him enter the bookshop? Did she observe 364 00:19:09,240 --> 00:19:13,799 quarrel or violence? Graves hesitated, No, she saw him upon 365 00:19:13,839 --> 00:19:18,480 the street. Quarts mustashed whitch just so a man upon 366 00:19:18,519 --> 00:19:20,680 the street is not a man with blood upon his hands. 367 00:19:21,319 --> 00:19:24,559 The one does not prove the other. Nevertheless, Harald Keating 368 00:19:24,559 --> 00:19:27,839 found himself the object of hostile stairs at the bakery. 369 00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:30,480 He was served last, his change given with a cold hand. 370 00:19:31,000 --> 00:19:34,200 Children whispered and pointed as he passed At the palp, 371 00:19:34,359 --> 00:19:37,519 conversations fell silent. The moment he entered, he bore it 372 00:19:37,559 --> 00:19:40,359 with bitterness, snapping at those who avoided him, muttering that 373 00:19:40,359 --> 00:19:43,680 he would leave Willobrack altogether. Powaratt watched him one afternoon 374 00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:45,799 from the inns window, noting the angry set of his 375 00:19:45,839 --> 00:19:49,720 shoulders the quickness of his stride. Colonel Arbuthnot, seated across 376 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:53,440 from him, gave a grunt. Looks guilty enough, Eh, A 377 00:19:53,519 --> 00:19:55,839 man doesn't bristle like that unless he is hiding something. 378 00:19:56,359 --> 00:19:59,799 Quart smiled faintly. No, mon army, a man accused, un 379 00:19:59,839 --> 00:20:02,680 jo They may bristle just the same anger and gilt. 380 00:20:02,680 --> 00:20:05,039 They wear a similar coat. One must look at the 381 00:20:05,079 --> 00:20:08,160 stitching to tell them. Apart. That evening, Poorat requested a 382 00:20:08,200 --> 00:20:10,960 quiet word with Elena Whitcombe. She received him in the 383 00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:14,279 crampsitting room above the bookshop, her eyes ring with shadows 384 00:20:14,279 --> 00:20:17,960 of fatigue. Monsieur Parott, she said, the inspector believes Harold 385 00:20:18,039 --> 00:20:22,960 killed my uncle. Do you agree? Poarart regarded her with kindness. Mademoiselle, 386 00:20:23,039 --> 00:20:26,319 I believe that Inspector Graves is too eager. Harold Keating 387 00:20:26,359 --> 00:20:30,039 may have quarreled, yes, but your uncle, it was precise, mediculous. 388 00:20:30,680 --> 00:20:33,400 The clues we have a smudge of ink, a torn page, 389 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:35,720 a silence where sound should be. Do not speak of 390 00:20:35,759 --> 00:20:39,519 hot temper. They speak of calculation of design. Lina's lips potted. 391 00:20:40,079 --> 00:20:44,319 Then you think some one else, Poorott inclined his head, indeed, 392 00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:46,279 someone who wished us to look only at the obvious, 393 00:20:46,279 --> 00:20:49,400 wile the truth hides in shadow. Following morning brought fresh 394 00:20:49,400 --> 00:20:52,119 fuel to the fire. Words spread the Keating had would 395 00:20:52,160 --> 00:20:53,960 drawn a large sum of money from his account only 396 00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:56,759 two days before the murder to the villages. It was 397 00:20:56,799 --> 00:21:00,480 proof enough payment, perhaps for silence, for a motive for theft. Inspector, 398 00:21:00,480 --> 00:21:03,680 Graves look smug as he really denuced Parart. Now, then 399 00:21:03,880 --> 00:21:07,519 let's see you argue against that Powart merely adjusted his cuffs. 400 00:21:08,119 --> 00:21:11,799 It proves only that Monsieur Keating required money, a crime, perhaps, 401 00:21:11,799 --> 00:21:15,799 but not this crime. Do not confuse coincidence with evidence, Inspector. 402 00:21:16,359 --> 00:21:19,079 It is a most dangerous habit. By the week's end, 403 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:21,720 Willowbrook had all but convicted Harold Keating in its drawing 404 00:21:21,759 --> 00:21:24,599 rooms and taverns. Ep part walking the high street with 405 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:28,039 his measured steps remained serenely unshaken. He knew that in 406 00:21:28,079 --> 00:21:31,440 every true mystery, the first suspect was almost neverthelast. The 407 00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:33,640 little gray cells had begun to hum, and already they 408 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:36,559 whispered that the real murderer walked among them, confident and troubled, 409 00:21:36,559 --> 00:21:38,759 and perhaps even pleased by how easily the village had 410 00:21:38,799 --> 00:21:41,839 been misled. On Sunday morning, the bells of Saint Mary's 411 00:21:41,839 --> 00:21:45,440 told softly over Willowbrook, calling the faithful service. Yet the 412 00:21:45,519 --> 00:21:48,440 village prayers were distracted, whispered not toward Heaven, but toward 413 00:21:48,480 --> 00:21:51,440 the earthly scandal that had overtaken them. This is turned 414 00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:54,039 towards Harold' keating with thinny veiled hostility as he stood 415 00:21:54,039 --> 00:21:57,839 stiff backed in the last pew, refusing to bow his head. Poiart, 416 00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:00,319 seated quietly near the front, allowed his keen eyes to wonder. 417 00:22:00,880 --> 00:22:03,359 He noted how Misses Duckckins lean close to whisper behind 418 00:22:03,359 --> 00:22:05,599 her himnal how Colonel aw but Nott's gaze flickered toward 419 00:22:05,599 --> 00:22:08,240 Alena would come with something like calculation, And how Alice 420 00:22:08,279 --> 00:22:11,680 Godfrey fidgeted, her gloves clutched tightly in her lap. These 421 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:15,000 small movements so ordinary to most would like signals to paw, 422 00:22:15,240 --> 00:22:18,839 each revealing more than words. After the service, Powart lingered 423 00:22:18,880 --> 00:22:22,359 near the churchyard gate. He waited until Elena passed, offering 424 00:22:22,400 --> 00:22:26,200 her a polite bow. May I trouble you, mademoiselle. There 425 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:28,680 is a small matter, a detail that has fixed itself 426 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:30,759 in my mind, he said, On the night of your 427 00:22:30,839 --> 00:22:34,119 uncle's death. The lost customer left shortly before closing. Yes, 428 00:22:34,240 --> 00:22:37,960 Elina replied softly. I was in the back room sorting accounts. 429 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:40,559 I heard the bell jingle as they entered, and again 430 00:22:40,599 --> 00:22:43,880 when they left. Part's mustache twitched just so, and ye 431 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:46,400 did not see who it was. No, By the time 432 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:49,480 he I came out, the shop was empty. My uncle 433 00:22:49,480 --> 00:22:52,599 had locked the till. Everything seemed in order. Quaratt inclined 434 00:22:52,599 --> 00:22:56,400 his head. Yet the belt all the bell is precise. Yes, 435 00:22:57,000 --> 00:22:59,960 one cannot mistake it sound. Lena gave a faint smid. 436 00:23:00,839 --> 00:23:04,640 This queaks dreadfully. I have meant to oil it. Tresbayen 437 00:23:04,720 --> 00:23:08,000 Poat murmured. Then it tells us something important. For if 438 00:23:08,039 --> 00:23:10,480 the customer departed, why did the register remain short of 439 00:23:10,519 --> 00:23:13,079 one shilling? Where was the ledger left up into a 440 00:23:13,079 --> 00:23:16,759 blank page, as if someone had closed in haste. That afternoon, 441 00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:20,440 Powart requested to examine the bookshop himself. Lena agreed, and 442 00:23:20,559 --> 00:23:23,759 locking the door with trembling hands. The little shop smelled 443 00:23:23,759 --> 00:23:26,839 of ink, dust and leather bindings. It shells neatly ordered, 444 00:23:26,839 --> 00:23:29,640 despite the air of gloom. Quart's gaze travel not to 445 00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:32,640 the books, but to the objects around them, the counter 446 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:34,720 polish smooth with use of use, the small brass ball 447 00:23:34,759 --> 00:23:37,240 above the door, the glass case where rare additions were kept. 448 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:39,960 He bent low, inspecting the bell with an intensity that 449 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:44,200 made a Lino blink. What is it? She asked. Quart 450 00:23:44,279 --> 00:23:49,000 tat the bracket gently. Observe, Mademoiselle, scratch ear quite new, 451 00:23:49,599 --> 00:23:53,319 and the screws one is looser than the other. Someone 452 00:23:53,359 --> 00:23:59,079 adjusted the bell. Treasorisement adjusted it. Thelena frowned, we so 453 00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:01,039 that it might not ring. When the door was opened. 454 00:24:01,640 --> 00:24:05,440 Her eyes widened. But then that means Poorat's straightened eyes gleaming. 455 00:24:06,079 --> 00:24:08,559 It means, Mademoiselle, that the murderer could have entered after 456 00:24:08,599 --> 00:24:11,480 your uncle believed the shop closed. He could approach and 457 00:24:11,559 --> 00:24:15,079 see unheard as silent as a shadow. Later, over tea 458 00:24:15,119 --> 00:24:17,680 at the inn, Powart reallyed his findings to inspect the Graves, 459 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:21,400 who look skeptical. The loose grew proves nothing. Anyone might 460 00:24:21,440 --> 00:24:25,400 have knocked it. Pooratt's smile was patient art, but combined 461 00:24:25,400 --> 00:24:27,440 it with the missing shilling, the open ledger, and the 462 00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:30,160 fact that no one saw the final customer depart, you 463 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:32,160 have not a quarrel in the street, inspector, but a 464 00:24:32,200 --> 00:24:37,359 carefully arranged deception. Graves scowled, You think someone stays. Powart 465 00:24:37,440 --> 00:24:40,559 inclined his head just so, the appearance of an ordinary 466 00:24:40,599 --> 00:24:43,799 customer leaving the shop was contrived in truth. The fatal 467 00:24:43,880 --> 00:24:47,000 visitor remained within the bell, silent when it should have spoken, 468 00:24:47,079 --> 00:24:50,160 tells us as much. That evening Poorat sat alone in 469 00:24:50,200 --> 00:24:53,000 his room, fingers steeple. He reviewed the faces of the 470 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:56,559 suspects as though they were pieces upon a chessboard. Elina Wiccombe, 471 00:24:56,559 --> 00:25:00,000 anxious but genuine, are all keating, angry, yet perhaps more 472 00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,440 more wrong than Guildy. Colonel Arbeth, not polished but secretive. 473 00:25:03,559 --> 00:25:06,519 Alice garv For nervous, her testimony convenient yet uncertain. And 474 00:25:06,559 --> 00:25:09,720 Missus Dawkins, ever eager with gossip, whose sharp eyes missed little. 475 00:25:10,200 --> 00:25:13,519 He whispered softly to himself. In French, one detail it 476 00:25:13,519 --> 00:25:16,240 always leads to another. From the belt of the shilling, 477 00:25:16,240 --> 00:25:17,799 from the shilling to the hand that took it, and 478 00:25:17,839 --> 00:25:19,759 that hand it belongs to one who knew the shop 479 00:25:19,759 --> 00:25:23,039 well enough to tampa without fear of notice. Pooratt allowed 480 00:25:23,079 --> 00:25:26,519 himself a thin smile. Already the pattern was forming, delicate 481 00:25:26,559 --> 00:25:29,599 but undeneable. The murderer had been clever, but not clever 482 00:25:29,799 --> 00:25:32,839 enough to escape the little Gray's ells. The following morning 483 00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:35,480 brooke gray and wet, the rain lashing across Willowbrook's cobbled 484 00:25:35,519 --> 00:25:38,599 streets in a steady drizzle. The village appeared smaller beneath 485 00:25:38,599 --> 00:25:40,920 the weather, as though huddling into itself. But inside the 486 00:25:40,920 --> 00:25:43,640 snug confines of the Inines drawing room, Hercule Paw prepared 487 00:25:43,640 --> 00:25:47,240 to continue his inquiries with meticulous calm. Inspector Graves had 488 00:25:47,319 --> 00:25:49,559 arranged for several of the key witnesses to be interviewed 489 00:25:49,559 --> 00:25:53,000 in succession. The inspector believed in blunt questioning, but Poorat's 490 00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:56,319 manner was softer, coaxing, never pressing too hard, yet allowing 491 00:25:56,359 --> 00:25:59,039 silence to work its subtle power. It was often in 492 00:25:59,079 --> 00:26:02,359 the Paul's part new that the truth betrayed itself. First 493 00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:06,200 came Alice Godfrey. She entered nervously, clutching a damp handkerchief, 494 00:26:06,240 --> 00:26:09,559 her eyes flickering from Poarat to the inspector. Miss Godfrey, 495 00:26:09,599 --> 00:26:11,519 poor up again, kindly, You were one of the last 496 00:26:11,559 --> 00:26:14,759 to see Monsieur wickhomb alive. Yes, you purchased a copy 497 00:26:14,799 --> 00:26:18,279 of Milton on the evening of his death. Yes, Alice stammered. 498 00:26:18,599 --> 00:26:21,960 He seemed well as he always did, quiet, polite, I 499 00:26:22,000 --> 00:26:25,920 paid and left at once. Parat leaned forward slightly, and 500 00:26:26,000 --> 00:26:28,759 new paid in coin, not in note. Alice blinked, yes, 501 00:26:28,880 --> 00:26:33,920 and coin was his exact change. A hesitation, I I 502 00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:37,039 believe so, perhaps not. He gave me a shilling back. 503 00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:42,559 Farart's mustache twitched. Aht or Schillin curious in sc passed 504 00:26:42,559 --> 00:26:45,519 that the accounts were short, precisely by that amount. Did 505 00:26:45,519 --> 00:26:51,440 you mention this earlier? Alice swallowed No, I thought it unimportant. Unimportant. 506 00:26:52,079 --> 00:26:55,720 Inspector Grays barked, good, heavens, woman, you might have cleared 507 00:26:55,759 --> 00:26:59,559 up half our puzzle. Alice flinched at his tone. Waratt, however, 508 00:26:59,680 --> 00:27:03,160 raised a calming hand. His voice remained gentle, Do not 509 00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:06,720 distress yourself mademoiselle. It is often the small matter as 510 00:27:06,720 --> 00:27:09,960 one forgets. Yet sometimes it is also the small matters 511 00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:13,160 that matter most. When she was dismissed, Poort watched her 512 00:27:13,160 --> 00:27:15,880 go with a thoughtful expression. He had noted not only 513 00:27:15,920 --> 00:27:18,160 her words, but the way she twisted her handkerchief until 514 00:27:18,160 --> 00:27:22,079 the fabric nearly tore. Fear, yes, but fear of what next? 515 00:27:22,799 --> 00:27:25,160 Colonel arb Not strode in upright, as they are still 516 00:27:25,160 --> 00:27:29,759 on parade, his mustache bristling with indignation. Colonel Poat said, smoothly, 517 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:32,799 you have been most helpful already. Yet I must ask 518 00:27:32,839 --> 00:27:35,759 again about your business with Monsieur Whitcombe. Some of the 519 00:27:35,799 --> 00:27:39,359 villager suggest your conversations were not always amicable. The colonel 520 00:27:39,359 --> 00:27:43,640 gave a dismissive snort. Anthon's we disagreed. That is all. 521 00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:46,200 He was a stubborn fellow, clinging to his books in 522 00:27:46,240 --> 00:27:49,359 his pride. I wish to purchase the premises, make better 523 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:53,559 use of the land, he refused, his loss. Poart's eyes narrowed. 524 00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:56,200 And yet a man who blocks one's plans may become 525 00:27:56,200 --> 00:27:59,359 a formidable obstacle. And s he pass a mode of 526 00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:02,759 one might say, are but not bristled. I don't like 527 00:28:02,799 --> 00:28:07,000 your insinuations, sir. My dealings were entirely above board. I 528 00:28:07,039 --> 00:28:11,400 can prove my whereabouts that evening, can you, Quarat asked softly. 529 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:15,000 For a fleeting moment, the colonel's gaze shifted, betraying discomfort. 530 00:28:15,599 --> 00:28:18,720 Then he squared his shoulders. I dined with my housekeeper. 531 00:28:19,359 --> 00:28:23,039 She will confirm it. Quarrat inclined his head politely, But 532 00:28:23,119 --> 00:28:26,160 of course he made no further challenge, though the small 533 00:28:26,200 --> 00:28:28,400 hesitation had been nerded and carefully filed away in the 534 00:28:28,440 --> 00:28:32,839 detective's mind. Later, Elina whitkemb herself appeared. Her face was 535 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:36,480 pale from sleeplessness, her hands clasped tightly before her. Mademoiselle 536 00:28:36,559 --> 00:28:38,759 quart said, ed it is painful, I know, but we 537 00:28:38,799 --> 00:28:43,119 must speak of your uncle's affairs. Did he keep enemies? Enemies? 538 00:28:43,160 --> 00:28:47,319 Elenor whispered. Uncle was proud, yes, but not cruel. Some 539 00:28:47,400 --> 00:28:50,799 found him difficult. He dismissed Harold Keaton last year over 540 00:28:50,799 --> 00:28:53,519 an unpaid debt, and there were quarrels with Colonel arbuthnot 541 00:28:54,079 --> 00:28:58,000 but enemies. I would not call them that, Quarat studdied her. 542 00:28:58,599 --> 00:29:02,480 And you, mademoiselle, did you agree with his decisions? Is refusals. 543 00:29:02,960 --> 00:29:06,519 Her eyes widened. Of course he was my guardian. I 544 00:29:06,519 --> 00:29:12,119 owed him everything, everything, Quart repeated softly. Or perhaps Madame 545 00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:16,559 is out. You longed for something more, independence, perhaps breedom, 546 00:29:17,119 --> 00:29:20,440 Houltte pressed together. You think I could harm him? Poua 547 00:29:20,640 --> 00:29:23,759 bowed slightly. I think only that one must examine all 548 00:29:23,799 --> 00:29:28,599 possibilities forgive me. Lena turned away, her composure trembling. There 549 00:29:28,680 --> 00:29:32,559 was something beneath her grief, something restrained yet dangerous. Pouart 550 00:29:32,599 --> 00:29:35,599 could sense it, like a feint vibration through the floorboards. 551 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:39,039 Finally came missus Dawkins. She entered briskly, her hat feathers 552 00:29:39,079 --> 00:29:41,240 quivering with the effort of holding in her eagerness. Well, 553 00:29:41,480 --> 00:29:43,799 mister Pott, she said, I dare say you will wish 554 00:29:43,799 --> 00:29:46,200 to hear what I know. Every one talks to me. 555 00:29:46,319 --> 00:29:49,680 You see, they cannot help it. Pouarat inclined his head gravely. 556 00:29:50,319 --> 00:29:53,240 And what do they say, Madam, that Harold Keating was 557 00:29:53,240 --> 00:29:55,359 seen near the shop that night? Though he swears otherwise. 558 00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:57,759 The Colonel au but Nut's finances are not so sound, as 559 00:29:57,759 --> 00:29:59,880 he pretends that Elina may have more claim to her 560 00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:02,880 own Coleswolden, she admits, and as far as Godfrey. Well, 561 00:30:02,960 --> 00:30:05,119 though a whispers, she owes debts herself small, though they 562 00:30:05,160 --> 00:30:09,319 may be quaras smiled faintly. Ah gossip, madam. It is 563 00:30:09,359 --> 00:30:11,559 a spice. It flavors the dish, but one must not 564 00:30:11,599 --> 00:30:14,720 mistake it for the dish itself. Dawkins purse her lips. 565 00:30:15,359 --> 00:30:18,920 I only tell you what others say. Indeed, Powart said softly, 566 00:30:19,559 --> 00:30:21,759 and in telling me, you reveal also what you wish 567 00:30:21,799 --> 00:30:24,559 me to hear. Perhays flickered with the annoyance, but Part 568 00:30:24,559 --> 00:30:27,759 had already turned away. The interview concluded in his mind 569 00:30:28,440 --> 00:30:32,039 that evening Part reviewed his notes. Each suspect had revealed 570 00:30:32,039 --> 00:30:35,440 more than intended. Alice had lied by omission, concealing the 571 00:30:35,480 --> 00:30:38,039 matter of the shilling ar, but Nott had faltered in 572 00:30:38,079 --> 00:30:41,440 his alibi. Thelinus grief carried an uncurrent of divines. Mus 573 00:30:41,480 --> 00:30:44,640 says Stalkins spread information freely, perhaps too freely, with peppers 574 00:30:44,680 --> 00:30:47,119 behind it. Part folded his notebook with care. Lies had 575 00:30:47,119 --> 00:30:49,680 sourfaced at last, each rising to the top like cream. 576 00:30:49,799 --> 00:30:51,960 Yet it was not the lies themselves that might at most. 577 00:30:52,079 --> 00:30:54,880 It was the contradictions within them, small fractures where truth 578 00:30:54,880 --> 00:30:57,319 would soon break through. The rain continued against the windows 579 00:30:57,319 --> 00:30:59,319 of the Inn, but within Poros's mind a patten gleaned, 580 00:30:59,319 --> 00:31:01,680 ever brighter than Murdersville was thin, and already the little 581 00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:03,920 gray cells were tugging at its edges. The storm did 582 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:06,400 not obey for two days. The skies over Wilibreg remains 583 00:31:06,440 --> 00:31:08,640 wororn and heavy, releasing the burden in a steady drizzle 584 00:31:08,680 --> 00:31:10,599 that seeped into every corner of the village. The weather 585 00:31:10,640 --> 00:31:12,960 seemed to mirror the mood of its inhabitants, for gossip 586 00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:15,519 and suspicion pressed upon each house like the damp bear itself. 587 00:31:15,559 --> 00:31:17,640 That the a inn Parot remained as immaculate as ever. 588 00:31:17,759 --> 00:31:19,920 Not a crease disturbed his suit, not a drop that 589 00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:22,839 marked his polished shoes. He moved with quiet composure, but 590 00:31:22,880 --> 00:31:25,319 his as gleaned with sharp purpose. The truth he knew 591 00:31:25,599 --> 00:31:28,160 often revealed itself, not in grand gestures, but in the 592 00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:30,599 cracks of human nature, and cracks were beginning to show. 593 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:33,240 That afternoon, he requested the presence of Harold Keating. The 594 00:31:33,279 --> 00:31:35,799 young man endered reluctantly, his jaw set, his hands shoved 595 00:31:35,839 --> 00:31:37,920 deep into his pockets. His ear was that of defiance, 596 00:31:38,319 --> 00:31:41,759 yet his eyes betrayed fatigue, mister Keating, Quarat said, motioning, 597 00:31:41,839 --> 00:31:44,200 hinmt sit. We have spoken already, but at fear some 598 00:31:44,279 --> 00:31:46,799 matters remain un clear. You were dismissal by miss her Whitcombe. 599 00:31:46,799 --> 00:31:48,599 It must have been, how shall we say? When into 600 00:31:48,640 --> 00:31:51,400 your pride? Harold laughed bitterly pride. He threw me up 601 00:31:51,440 --> 00:31:53,240 without a penny hever in me? Do you know what 602 00:31:53,319 --> 00:31:54,839 it is to be turned away like a dog, to 603 00:31:54,880 --> 00:31:56,640 have every door in the village close because of one 604 00:31:56,640 --> 00:31:59,200 man's word? Quat tilted his head, and yet you insisted 605 00:31:59,240 --> 00:32:01,359 you bore him no mind, alice, malice. I hated him, 606 00:32:01,359 --> 00:32:04,720 Harald burst out, Yes, I hated him. Are you satisfied? 607 00:32:05,480 --> 00:32:08,960 The words hewn in the air, raw and dangerous? Inspector Graves, 608 00:32:08,960 --> 00:32:11,960 seated nearby, leaned forward eagerly. You admit it? Then you 609 00:32:12,039 --> 00:32:15,119 had every reason to kill him. Harold's face flushed. No. 610 00:32:15,440 --> 00:32:17,400 I may have hated him, but I didn't kill him. 611 00:32:17,839 --> 00:32:20,319 You must believe that I was nowhere near the shop 612 00:32:20,319 --> 00:32:24,440 that night Quarret's gay shopened. Yet you were seen, monsieur 613 00:32:25,119 --> 00:32:28,599 missus Dawkins. She claims she witnessed you loughtering near the lane. 614 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:32,160 She lies Harold's fist struck the arm of the chair. 615 00:32:32,759 --> 00:32:35,680 That woman for ives on poison. She twests everything to 616 00:32:35,720 --> 00:32:38,960 suit her tongue. Quarrett allowed silence to grow between them. 617 00:32:39,400 --> 00:32:41,559 The young man shifted uneasily at the storm within him, 618 00:32:41,599 --> 00:32:45,119 not yet spent. Finally, Harald spoke again, lor now as 619 00:32:45,200 --> 00:32:47,960 vois and steady. I went near the shop, yes, but 620 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:50,359 not to harm him. I only wanted to beg him 621 00:32:50,359 --> 00:32:53,079 to forgive me, to take me back. I stood outside for 622 00:32:53,119 --> 00:32:55,279 half an hour, working at the courage. But when I 623 00:32:55,279 --> 00:32:58,559 finally stepped inside, he was already gone. The shop was empty. 624 00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:03,039 Do you understand he was alive when I arrived, alive? 625 00:33:03,799 --> 00:33:08,640 Inspect A gravescoffed a likely tale. Pro Poorart raised a finger. None, 626 00:33:08,799 --> 00:33:11,519 mon Army, do not dismiss so quickly. Truth of the 627 00:33:11,559 --> 00:33:14,799 emotions speaks louder than the denial, Monsieur. Keating does not 628 00:33:14,880 --> 00:33:18,119 lie about his hatred, nor about his desperation. These things 629 00:33:18,119 --> 00:33:21,319 I can feel. Harald leaned forward, his eyes suddenly wet. 630 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:24,559 I had no one else. My debts are crushing me 631 00:33:25,160 --> 00:33:29,519 Witcomb for fusal was the end of everything, but murder, No, Monsieur, 632 00:33:29,559 --> 00:33:32,279 I am guilty of weakness, of bitterness, but not of blood. 633 00:33:32,799 --> 00:33:35,960 Poart studded him with quiet intensity. Here was not the 634 00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:37,720 voice of a cold killer, but of a young man 635 00:33:37,759 --> 00:33:42,240 crushed by circumstance. He had confessed hatred, freely, revealed his desperation, 636 00:33:42,400 --> 00:33:45,680 admitted his presence. Lies had turned to confession, but not 637 00:33:45,759 --> 00:33:49,119 of the ultimate crime. When Harold was dismissed, Grace muttered, 638 00:33:49,160 --> 00:33:52,319 he is still my man. Motive, opportunity, the lot of it. 639 00:33:52,880 --> 00:33:55,519 Poort shook his head gently. He look always for the 640 00:33:55,599 --> 00:33:58,759 large motives, my friend, But in the small contradictions lies 641 00:33:58,799 --> 00:34:01,839 the truth. Missus dear Keating's confession as cleared one mist 642 00:34:01,920 --> 00:34:04,839 even as it raises another. That evening, Parr sat by 643 00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:07,759 the fire Indian's parlor, turning over the new revelations in 644 00:34:07,799 --> 00:34:11,760 his mind. Harald had confessed hatred, yet his anger seemed genuine. 645 00:34:12,280 --> 00:34:14,360 His presence near the shop could not be ignored, but 646 00:34:14,400 --> 00:34:17,119 his words carried the ring of a man desperate, not murderous. 647 00:34:17,119 --> 00:34:19,239 Across the ruin, Lina would come. Sat with the letter 648 00:34:19,280 --> 00:34:22,440 in her lap, unread. Her eyes were fixed upon the flames, 649 00:34:22,440 --> 00:34:25,159 her face pale with thought. Paratt watched her a moment, 650 00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:27,440 noting the rigidity of her posture, the faint trembling of 651 00:34:27,480 --> 00:34:31,119 her hand. She too carried a burden and spoken soon 652 00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:33,679 part murmured, sofite himself. The heart was speak where the 653 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:36,320 tongue has lied. It is only a matter of waiting 654 00:34:36,320 --> 00:34:39,039 for the precise moment and applying the pressure most delicate. 655 00:34:39,639 --> 00:34:42,239 The fire crackle, the storm raged, and beneath the quiet 656 00:34:42,239 --> 00:34:45,559 civility of Willowbrook, the truth pressed harder and harder, waiting 657 00:34:45,559 --> 00:34:48,239 for a release. The rain had at last ceased, The 658 00:34:48,239 --> 00:34:50,719 skies above Willoughbre cleared a pale morning light, though the 659 00:34:50,760 --> 00:34:52,880 village itself seemed reluctant to shake off the gloom that 660 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:56,239 had settled upon it. Windows were shuttered, doors closed, and 661 00:34:56,280 --> 00:34:59,079 the few villages abroad moved quickly, whispering as they passed 662 00:34:59,760 --> 00:35:01,920 the The order of author Whitcomb had become more than 663 00:35:01,960 --> 00:35:04,760 an event. It had become a shadow hanging over every hearth. 664 00:35:05,239 --> 00:35:08,440 Hercule Poora, however, was serene. He sat at the small 665 00:35:08,440 --> 00:35:11,199 writing desk in his room at the Inn. Every pen, 666 00:35:11,480 --> 00:35:14,800 blaughter and sheet of paper aligned with military precision. Order 667 00:35:14,880 --> 00:35:16,800 suited him, and it was order he saw now, the 668 00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:19,280 order hidden within the apparent chaos of lies and suspicion. 669 00:35:19,719 --> 00:35:22,000 He dipped his pen and made a needless of names. 670 00:35:22,639 --> 00:35:25,679 Billina Whitcombe, Harald Keating, Beatris Dawkins's stock to laugh at 671 00:35:25,760 --> 00:35:29,719 Margaret Clay. Five names, five souls, each tied to Author 672 00:35:29,760 --> 00:35:32,920 Whitcomb by the threads of grievance, of ambition, of secrecy. 673 00:35:33,440 --> 00:35:35,519 Five who could have killed, yet only one had done so. 674 00:35:36,199 --> 00:35:38,880 Woarat tapped the pen thoughtfully. The time had come to 675 00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:42,280 bring them together. The tea murderer had hidden beneath fragments 676 00:35:42,280 --> 00:35:44,559 of truth and vales of half lies, But in the 677 00:35:44,559 --> 00:35:48,159 crucible of confrontation mass slipped. It was the eternal law 678 00:35:48,159 --> 00:35:52,519 of human nature that afternoon messages were delivered discreetly. Each 679 00:35:52,559 --> 00:35:55,239 suspect received to pull out summons to the Whitcomb bookshop itself, 680 00:35:55,280 --> 00:35:57,360 the place where the crime had begun. Poor Out decided 681 00:35:57,480 --> 00:36:00,079 would also be the place where it ended. The book 682 00:36:00,079 --> 00:36:02,719 shop when they gathered there at dusk, felt almost spectral. 683 00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:05,239 The air was heavy with dust, and the faint scent 684 00:36:05,280 --> 00:36:08,639 of old paper. Handles flickered on the counter where once 685 00:36:08,679 --> 00:36:11,760 Author Whitcomb had presided, his ledger and spectacles, neatly arranged 686 00:36:11,800 --> 00:36:14,920 as if awaiting his return. Billino Whitcomb sat rigid in 687 00:36:14,920 --> 00:36:17,639 a high back chair, her black dress severe, her eyes watchful. 688 00:36:18,199 --> 00:36:21,280 Harold's keating leaned against a shelf, breastless and pale, his 689 00:36:21,360 --> 00:36:24,920 defiance tempered by a knees. Beatrice Dawkins hovered near the counter, 690 00:36:25,039 --> 00:36:27,599 her shot gaze flicking to each face, hungrie for revelation. 691 00:36:28,199 --> 00:36:31,559 Doctor Latham stood with arms folded, grave and silent, while 692 00:36:31,599 --> 00:36:34,119 Margaret Clay clutched her hand back tightly, her knuckles white 693 00:36:34,119 --> 00:36:38,320 with tension. Inspector Graves stood apart, impatient yet grudgingly curious. 694 00:36:38,840 --> 00:36:41,639 He had protested Parrot's scheme, yet consented when he saw 695 00:36:41,679 --> 00:36:44,639 the Belgians, some weavering calm, Poor Art, maculate in his 696 00:36:44,719 --> 00:36:47,760 dark suit, took his place at the counter. He bowed slightly, 697 00:36:48,480 --> 00:36:51,719 Miss Dames Messiers, I thank you for coming. You wonder 698 00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:54,559 perhaps why insists you meet here where there still holds 699 00:36:54,559 --> 00:36:57,320 the memory of death. But it is necessary. The truth 700 00:36:57,400 --> 00:36:59,760 you see resides not in the words alone, but in 701 00:36:59,760 --> 00:37:03,079 the in the emotion stirred by place and presence. And 702 00:37:03,119 --> 00:37:04,760 to night I shall reveal to you who among us 703 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:07,679 took the life of Arthur Whitcomb. A murmur uple through 704 00:37:07,679 --> 00:37:12,280 the group. Harold straight and sharply. Beats drew in her breath. 705 00:37:12,760 --> 00:37:16,320 Elina's hand trembled against her lap. Quarart raised a finger. 706 00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:18,920 But before the truth is spoken, I shall ask only 707 00:37:18,920 --> 00:37:21,760 a few small questions. They are simple, yet perhaps not 708 00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:25,559 so simple. Turned first to be at your Dawkins, Madame. 709 00:37:25,719 --> 00:37:27,559 You claimed you saw Harold keating near the shop the 710 00:37:27,639 --> 00:37:30,679 knight of the murder. You were most certain. And yet 711 00:37:30,719 --> 00:37:32,960 how is it I wonder that you knew the precise ire? 712 00:37:33,599 --> 00:37:38,079 Beatrice faltered. The clock struck nine as I passed the square. Ah, 713 00:37:38,159 --> 00:37:40,360 but no clock strikes in a square at such an are, 714 00:37:41,039 --> 00:37:43,400 Quart said softly. There is only the bell of Saint Mark's, 715 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:46,239 and it struck half past eight, not nine. A small slip, Madame, 716 00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:49,599 but a revealing one. Theatrice clored deeply, her lips pressed tight. 717 00:37:50,280 --> 00:37:54,559 Quart turned to Margaret Clay. And you, mademoiselle, you said 718 00:37:54,599 --> 00:37:56,599 you left your lodging at ten o'clock precisely to call 719 00:37:56,679 --> 00:37:59,480 upon Missess Dawkins. But Missess Dawkins herself swore you did 720 00:37:59,519 --> 00:38:04,039 not arrive in till half past eleven. A screpancy. Most curious, perhaps, 721 00:38:04,039 --> 00:38:08,559 he wondered. Margaret's face blanched. She clutched her hand back tighter. 722 00:38:09,239 --> 00:38:12,719 Quaratt's eyes gleamed. He moved gently, now circling the group 723 00:38:12,719 --> 00:38:16,159 with measured steps. Consider, if you please, the poison used, 724 00:38:16,679 --> 00:38:19,920 did you, Hollis were, yes, but in small doses common 725 00:38:19,960 --> 00:38:23,320 to a country doctor. And yet, Doctor Lathamp, you assure 726 00:38:23,360 --> 00:38:25,639 me no such tincture could have gone missing from your stores. 727 00:38:26,280 --> 00:38:28,119 Perhaps it is true, but it is also true that 728 00:38:28,159 --> 00:38:32,079 Cleverhan could obtain it elsewhere a clever, desperate hand. Doctor 729 00:38:32,159 --> 00:38:35,639 Lathan's frown deepened, but he said nothing. Quaratz stopped, suddenly, 730 00:38:35,639 --> 00:38:39,480 turning to Lena would come. His voice softened. Madam, you 731 00:38:39,519 --> 00:38:42,639 sat with your husband that evening until eight o'clock, you said, 732 00:38:42,639 --> 00:38:44,599 He retired to his shop, and you remained at home. 733 00:38:45,119 --> 00:38:47,320 Yet the maid did not see you until l after nine. 734 00:38:47,679 --> 00:38:50,679 Where were you in that hour of silence? Question struck 735 00:38:50,760 --> 00:38:53,960 like a stone into still water. Billina's face tightened, her 736 00:38:53,960 --> 00:38:56,719 fingers gripping the arm of the chair until the knuckles whitened. 737 00:38:57,360 --> 00:38:59,639 She opened her mouth, then closed it again, her throat 738 00:38:59,639 --> 00:39:04,559 workings soundlessly. Quarat spread his hands. Ye, see, messamis the 739 00:39:04,599 --> 00:39:07,480 alibis they are not so firm as they appeared. Lies 740 00:39:07,519 --> 00:39:10,000 and contradictions weave about us like cobwebs. But there is 741 00:39:10,039 --> 00:39:12,039 only one among you who could weave them with such care, 742 00:39:12,199 --> 00:39:14,280 and that is a person who feared most. Not the 743 00:39:14,320 --> 00:39:16,639 loss of money, not the disgrace of failure, but the 744 00:39:16,679 --> 00:39:19,679 exposure of a secret long hidden. That secret, it is 745 00:39:19,719 --> 00:39:22,920 the key to murder. He paused. The silence was electric. 746 00:39:23,440 --> 00:39:26,960 Each face betrayed tension, fear or fury. The sharp had sprung, 747 00:39:27,079 --> 00:39:30,079 and soon the truth would stand naked. The bookshops seemed 748 00:39:30,079 --> 00:39:32,960 to hold its breath. A single candle guttered on the counter, 749 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:37,320 casting tall, wavering shadows across the line shelves they assembled. 750 00:39:37,360 --> 00:39:40,199 Suspects sat tense, every eye fixed upon the small, dapper 751 00:39:40,239 --> 00:39:44,000 figure of her Kilbarot. He inclined his head graciously. We 752 00:39:44,039 --> 00:39:46,960 have reached mess amis the moment of truth. You are 753 00:39:47,000 --> 00:39:49,800 weary of suspicion, the fear you wished to know who 754 00:39:49,800 --> 00:39:52,440 it is that killed Arthur Wickcomb, who poisoned him so subtly, 755 00:39:52,519 --> 00:39:55,719 so cruelly, As he sat among his beloved books tonight 756 00:39:55,760 --> 00:39:58,599 you shall know, folded his hands over his lapels and 757 00:39:58,599 --> 00:40:01,800 spoke in their towne measured and precise. First, let us 758 00:40:01,800 --> 00:40:06,639 consider motive Howld Keating a young man, ambitious, eager, perhaps embittered. 759 00:40:06,719 --> 00:40:09,079 He had quarreled with Monsieur Wicckham over a promised loan. 760 00:40:09,719 --> 00:40:13,599 Yet what does ambition desire to rise? To seize opportunity? 761 00:40:14,239 --> 00:40:16,880 But does it murder in so clumsy a manner? Now? 762 00:40:17,679 --> 00:40:21,760 A young man's rage is hot not cold. Poison, my friends, 763 00:40:21,920 --> 00:40:25,679 is the weapon of patience, of calculation, of secrecy. Harold flushed, 764 00:40:25,719 --> 00:40:31,199 but said nothing, wa turned Theatrice Stawkins, she who sees everything, 765 00:40:31,239 --> 00:40:33,880 who delights in whisper and rumor. She might envy, resent, 766 00:40:33,920 --> 00:40:37,400 even hate that she is too careless. Even in her 767 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:40,079 attempt to accuse Monsieur Keating, she betrayed herself with the 768 00:40:40,119 --> 00:40:43,840 air of the clock. Lies, yes, but not murder. Beatrice 769 00:40:43,880 --> 00:40:46,960 stiffened Herlett's putting and protest, then pressed out in humiliation. 770 00:40:47,559 --> 00:40:52,199 What moved delicately onward? Doctor Latham, the physician with access 771 00:40:52,199 --> 00:40:54,920 to digit holies, the very poison used a first glance? 772 00:40:54,920 --> 00:40:58,719 Who more likely? Yet what do we find? No missing supply, 773 00:40:59,039 --> 00:41:02,840 no opportunity in God? His character too, is one of integrity, 774 00:41:02,880 --> 00:41:06,159 though perhaps stern it is not he who killed. The 775 00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:09,320 doctor exhaled slowly relief mingling with suspicion at what would 776 00:41:09,360 --> 00:41:14,079 come next. Quarrot's gaze rested on Margaret clay Ah mademoiselle, 777 00:41:14,119 --> 00:41:17,000 the companion with the desperate need. He wandered the streets 778 00:41:17,079 --> 00:41:21,159 late at night, your story filled with holes. You feared discovery, 779 00:41:21,239 --> 00:41:23,639 do you not? But it was not murder you feared. 780 00:41:23,679 --> 00:41:26,280 It was shame. He sought escape from your debts, from 781 00:41:26,280 --> 00:41:29,760 your secrets. You hid the truth, yes, but you did 782 00:41:29,800 --> 00:41:33,159 not kill. Margaret lowered her eye's tears glistening, And then 783 00:41:33,199 --> 00:41:36,119 Powatt turned at last, his eyes bright, his mustache pursling 784 00:41:36,119 --> 00:41:39,559 with certainty, to Alina Whitcombe, Madame, the faithful wife, the 785 00:41:39,599 --> 00:41:43,119 grieving widow. All believed your sore sincere, and yet it 786 00:41:43,159 --> 00:41:44,960 was you who had most to lose him most. Again 787 00:41:45,559 --> 00:41:48,440 the shop, It was failing your husband. He would not 788 00:41:48,559 --> 00:41:51,840 sell you, Madam. Wished freedom from the burden, from the 789 00:41:51,840 --> 00:41:55,159 tyranny of his obstinacy. You wished control, But most of 790 00:41:55,199 --> 00:41:57,719 all you wished to preserve your reputation. For Authour had 791 00:41:57,800 --> 00:42:00,960 learned of your secret. The deck concealed, the inheritance wasted, 792 00:42:01,039 --> 00:42:04,119 the quiet dealings with the solicitor in Mollicum. He threatened 793 00:42:04,119 --> 00:42:07,079 to expose you, and so you silence him. Elina drew 794 00:42:07,079 --> 00:42:10,000 herself up, her face pale as marble. That is absurd. 795 00:42:10,559 --> 00:42:14,719 I loved my husband. Poirot raised a finger. No, madam, 796 00:42:15,360 --> 00:42:19,000 you tolerated him, but love that was gone long ago. 797 00:42:19,639 --> 00:42:21,760 The proof eyes in a missing eyre, the iowa. When 798 00:42:21,800 --> 00:42:23,519 you sleep from your house to the shop, carrying with 799 00:42:23,599 --> 00:42:27,000 you the poisoned tea, you alone had the opportunity without witness. 800 00:42:27,559 --> 00:42:29,679 You alone, you his habits well enough to disguise the 801 00:42:29,719 --> 00:42:32,599 deed as a natural seizure. And when you returned home, 802 00:42:32,760 --> 00:42:35,079 he sat composed, awaiting the moment when news would come 803 00:42:35,079 --> 00:42:37,400 that the old man had died. Among his books. But 804 00:42:37,440 --> 00:42:42,000 there was one flaw. His voice sharpened the ledger. Arthur 805 00:42:42,039 --> 00:42:45,239 always wrote the day's accounts in his ledger before closing. 806 00:42:45,320 --> 00:42:47,159 On the night of his death, the final entry was 807 00:42:47,159 --> 00:42:49,719 made not in his hand, but in yours. A small 808 00:42:49,760 --> 00:42:53,119 difference invisible to most but not to her killparat the 809 00:42:53,159 --> 00:42:54,960 flourish of the w the shape of the tea. It 810 00:42:55,000 --> 00:42:57,960 betrayed you. The silence broke with a gasp from Margaret, 811 00:42:58,039 --> 00:43:02,559 to stifles cry from Beatrice. Harald muttered a curse. Leiner swayed, 812 00:43:02,599 --> 00:43:08,000 her composure cracking. At last, Powart's force grew softer, almost sorrowful. Madame, 813 00:43:08,199 --> 00:43:11,039 you were clever, but cleverness cannot outwit the truth. He 814 00:43:11,159 --> 00:43:13,159 kills your husband with poison, and in so doing you 815 00:43:13,199 --> 00:43:17,280 condemn yourself. Elina's hands trembled. For a moment, it seemed 816 00:43:17,320 --> 00:43:19,719 she would deny again, but the strength bled from her face. 817 00:43:20,519 --> 00:43:22,639 She sank back into the chair, her lips parting in 818 00:43:22,679 --> 00:43:25,719 a whisper. He would have ruined me, He left me 819 00:43:25,760 --> 00:43:29,360 no choice. Inspector Grave stepped forward, his jaw set grimly. 820 00:43:29,920 --> 00:43:33,400 Missus Wickham, I must place you under arrest. Billina closed 821 00:43:33,440 --> 00:43:35,400 her eyes, as if the words were mercy rather than 822 00:43:35,440 --> 00:43:38,280 a punishment. Later, when the others had gone and the 823 00:43:38,320 --> 00:43:41,000 shops stood empty save for poorot and inspected graves, the 824 00:43:41,039 --> 00:43:45,079 little detective stratened his calfs of quiet satisfaction. You see, monsieur, 825 00:43:45,280 --> 00:43:48,159 it is always so. The world believes in chance, in 826 00:43:48,199 --> 00:43:51,920 coincidence and chaos, but in truth. The pattern is there 827 00:43:52,000 --> 00:43:54,960 waiting for the eye that sees the husband poisoned, the 828 00:43:55,039 --> 00:43:58,559 lager signed, the iron accounted for all small things. Yet 829 00:43:58,599 --> 00:44:02,480 together this sing in harmony. It is order inspector all 830 00:44:02,639 --> 00:44:06,360 was Ardor Graves looked at him with reluctant admiration. I'll 831 00:44:06,400 --> 00:44:09,559 never understand how you do it, poor wwats my old 832 00:44:09,679 --> 00:44:12,199 a twinkle of pride in his eye. It is simple, 833 00:44:12,360 --> 00:44:15,119 my friend. One must use the little gray cells and 834 00:44:15,119 --> 00:44:18,360 perhaps listen closely to human heart. He took up his hat, 835 00:44:18,400 --> 00:44:20,679 and Kane glanced once more about the bookshop, and with 836 00:44:20,800 --> 00:44:23,239 the Curtis's bow, departed into the cool night of Willowbrook, 837 00:44:23,320 --> 00:44:25,440 leaving behind only the faint echo of his steps and 838 00:44:25,480 --> 00:44:28,159 the certainty that justice, at least in the small corner 839 00:44:28,239 --> 00:44:31,559 of England had been served. And that is the end. 840 00:44:32,159 --> 00:44:33,880 Thank you for listening, and I will see you in 841 00:44:33,880 --> 00:44:34,440 the next one.