13. Poirot explains by Agatha Christie
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the mysterious Affair at Styles chapter 13 Poirot explains

"POIROT, you old villain,'' I_said, "I've half a mind to strangle you ! what do_you_mean by deceiving me as_you_have done ? ''

we were sitting in_the library . several hectic days lay behind us . in_the room below, John and Mary were together once more, while Alfred Inglethorp and miss Howard were in custody . now at last, I had Poirot to myself, and could relieve my still burning curiosity .

Poirot did_not answer me for a moment, but at last he_said:

" I_did_not deceive you, mon ami . at most, I permitted you to deceive yourself .''

" yes, but why ? ''

" well, it_is difficult to explain . you_see, my friend, you_have a nature so honest, and a countenance so transparent, that -- enfin, to conceal your feelings is impossible ! if I had told you my ideas, the very first time you saw Mr Alfred Inglethorp that astute gentleman would_have -- in your so expressive idiom -- ' smelt a rat' ! and then, bon jour to our chances of catching him ! ''

" i_think that I_have more diplomacy than you give_me credit for .''

" my friend,'' besought Poirot, "I implore you, do_not enrage yourself ! your help has_been of_the most invaluable . it_is but the extremely beautiful nature that you_have, which made me pause .''

" well,'' I grumbled, a little mollified ."I still think you might_have given me a hint .''

" but I_did, my friend . several hints . you_would_not take them . think now, did I ever say to_you that I believed John Cavendish guilty ? did I not, on_the contrary, tell you that he_would almost certainly be acquitted ? ''

" yes, but -- -- ''

" and did I not immediately afterwards speak of_the difficulty of bringing the murderer to justice ? was_it not plain to_you that i_was speaking of two entirely different persons ? ''

" no,'' I_said, " it_was not plain to_me ! ''

" then again,'' continued Poirot, " at_the beginning, did I not repeat to_you several_times that I didn't want Mr Inglethorp arrested now ? that should_have conveyed something to_you .''

" do_you_mean to_say you suspected him as long_ago as_that ? ''

" yes . to_begin with, whoever else might benefit by Mrs Inglethorp's death, her husband would benefit the most . there_was no getting away from_that . when I went up_to Styles with_you that first day, I had no idea as_to how the crime had_been committed, but from what I_knew of Mr Inglethorp I fancied that_it would_be very hard to_find anything to connect him with it . when I arrived at_the chateau, I realized at once that_it_was Mrs Inglethorp who had burnt the will; and there, by_the_way, you_cannot complain, my friend, for I tried my best to force on you the significance of_that bedroom fire in midsummer .''

" yes, yes,'' I_said impatiently ." go on .''

" well, my friend, as I_say, my views as_to Mr Inglethorp's guilt were very_much shaken . there_was, in_fact, so_much evidence against him that i_was inclined to_believe that he had_not done it .''

" when did you change your mind ? ''

" when I_found that_the more efforts I_made to clear him, the more efforts he_made to_get himself arrested . then, when I discovered that Inglethorp had nothing to_do with Mrs Raikes and_that in_fact it_was John Cavendish who was interested in_that quarter, i_was quite_sure .''

" but why ? ''

" simply this . if_it had_been Inglethorp who was carrying on an intrigue with Mrs Raikes, his silence was perfectly comprehensible . but, when I discovered that_it_was known all over the village that_it_was John who was attracted by_the farmer's pretty wife, his silence bore quite a different interpretation . it_was nonsense to pretend that he_was afraid of_the scandal, as no possible scandal could attach to him . this attitude of_his gave_me furiously to_think, and i_was slowly forced to_the conclusion that Alfred Inglethorp wanted to_be arrested .Eh bien ! from_that moment, i_was equally determined that he should_not_be arrested .''

" wait a minute .I don't see why he_wished to_be arrested ? ''

" because, mon ami, it_is_the law of your country that a man once acquitted can never be tried again for_the same offence .Aha ! but it_was clever -- his idea ! assuredly, he_is a man of method . see here, he_knew that in_his position he_was bound to_be suspected, so he conceived the exceedingly clever idea of preparing alot of manufactured evidence against himself . he_wished to_be arrested . he_would then produce his irreproachable alibi -- and, hey presto, he_was safe for life ! ''

" but I still don't see how he managed to_prove his alibi, and yet go to_the chemist's shop ? ''

Poirot stared at me in surprise .

" is_it possible ? my poor friend ! you have_not_yet realized that_it_was miss Howard who went to_the chemist's shop ? ''

" miss Howard ? ''

" but, certainly . who else ? it_was most easy for her . she_is of a good height, her voice is deep and manly; moreover, remember, she and Inglethorp are cousins, and there_is a distinct resemblance between_them, especially in their gait and bearing . it_was simplicity itself . they_are a clever pair ! ''

" I_am still a little fogged as_to how exactly the bromide business was_done,'' I remarked .

"Bon ! i_will reconstruct for_you as far as possible . I_am inclined to_think that miss Howard was_the master mind in_that affair . you remember her once mentioning that her father was a doctor ? possibly she dispensed his medicines for him, or she may_have taken the idea from one_of_the many books lying about when Mademoiselle Cynthia was studying for her exam . anyway, she was familiar with_the fact that_the addition of a bromide to a mixture containing strychnine would cause the precipitation of_the latter . probably the idea came to her quite suddenly .Mrs Inglethorp had a box of bromide powders, which she occasionally took at night . what could_be easier than quietly to dissolve one or more of_those powders in Mrs Inglethorp's large sized bottle of medicine when it came from coot's ? the risk is practically nil . the tragedy will not take place until nearly a fortnight later . if anyone has seen either of_them touching the medicine, they_will_have forgotten it by_that_time . miss Howard will_have engineered her quarrel, and departed from_the house . the lapse of_time, and her absence, will defeat all suspicion . yes, it_was a clever idea ! if_they had left it alone, it_is possible the crime might never have_been brought home to_them . but they were_not satisfied . they tried to_be too clever -- and_that was their undoing .''

Poirot puffed at his tiny cigarette, his eyes fixed on_the ceiling .

" they arranged a plan to throw suspicion on John Cavendish, by buying strychnine at_the village chemist's, and signing the register in_his hand-writing .

" on Monday Mrs Inglethorp will take_the last dose of her medicine . on Monday, therefore, at six o'clock, Alfred Inglethorp arranges to_be seen by a number of people at a spot far removed from_the village . miss Howard has previously made up acock and bull story about him and Mrs Raikes to account for_his holding his tongue afterwards . at six o'clock, miss Howard, disguised as Alfred Inglethorp, enters the chemist's shop, with her story about a dog, obtains the strychnine, and writes the name of Alfred Inglethorp in John's handwriting, which she had previously studied carefully .

" but, as_it_will never do if John, too, can prove an alibi, she writes him an anonymous note -- still copying his hand-writing -- which takes him to a remote spot where it_is exceedingly unlikely that anyone will see him .

" so_far, all goes well . miss Howard goes back to Middlingham . Alfred Inglethorp returns to Styles . there_is nothing that_can compromise him in any_way, since it_is miss Howard who has_the strychnine, which, after all, is only wanted as a blind to throw suspicion on John Cavendish .

" but now a hitch occurs .Mrs Inglethorp does_not take her medicine that night . the broken bell, Cynthia's absence -- arranged by Inglethorp through his wife -- all these are wasted . and then -- he makes his slip .

" Mrs Inglethorp is out, and he sits down to write to_his accomplice, who, he fears, may_be in a panic at_the nonsuccess of_their plan . it_is probable that Mrs Inglethorp returned earlier than he expected . caught in_the act, and somewhat flurried he hastily shuts and locks his desk . he fears that if he remains in_the room he_may_have to open it again, and_that Mrs Inglethorp might catch sight of_the letter before he_could snatch it up . so he goes out and walks in_the woods, little dreaming that Mrs Inglethorp will open his desk, and discover the incriminating document .

" but this, as we_know, is what happened .Mrs Inglethorp reads it, and becomes aware of_the perfidy of her husband and Evelyn Howard, though, unfortunately, the sentence about_the bromides conveys no warning to her mind . she knows that she_is in danger -- but is ignorant of where the danger lies . she decides to_say nothing to her husband, but sits down and writes to her solicitor, asking him to_come on_the morrow, and she also determines to destroy immediately the will which she has just made . she keeps the fatal letter .''

" it_was to discover that letter, then, that her husband forced the lock of_the despatch- case ? ''

" yes, and from_the enormous risk he ran we_can_see how fully he realized its importance . that letter excepted, there_was absolutely nothing to connect him with_the crime .''

" there's only one_thing I_can't make out, why didn't he destroy it at once when he got hold of it ? ''

" because he_did_not dare take_the biggest risk of all -- that of keeping it on_his own person .''

"I don't understand .''

" look at it from_his point of view . I_have discovered that there were only five short minutes in_which he could_have taken it -- the five minutes immediately before our own arrival on_the scene, for before_that_time Annie was brushing the stairs, and would_have seen anyone who passed going to_the right wing . figure to yourself the scene ! he enters the room, unlocking the door by_means of one_of_the other doorkeys -- they were all much alike . he hurries to_the despatch- case -- it_is locked, and_the keys are nowhere to_be seen . that_is a terrible blow to him, for_it means that his presence in_the room cannot_be concealed as he had hoped . but he sees clearly that everything must_be risked for_the sake of_that damning piece of evidence . quickly, he forces the lock with a penknife, and turns over the papers until he finds what he_is looking for .

" but now a fresh dilemma arises: he dare not keep that piece of paper on him . he_may_be seen leaving the room -- he_may_be searched . if_the paper is found on him, it_is certain doom . probably, at_this minute, too, he hears the sounds below of Mr Wells and John leaving the boudoir . he_must act quickly . where can he hide this terrible slip of paper ? the contents of_the waste- paper- basket are kept and in any case, are_sure to_be examined . there_are no means of destroying it; and he dare not keep it . he looks round, and he sees -- what do_you_think, mon ami ? ''

I shook my head .

" in a moment, he has torn the letter into long thin strips, and rolling them up into spills he thrusts them hurriedly in amongst the other spills in_the vase on_the mantle- piece .''

I uttered an exclamation .

" no one would think of looking there,'' Poirot continued ." and he_will_be_able, at his leisure, to_come back and destroy this solitary piece of evidence against him .''

" then, all the time, it_was in_the spill vase in Mrs Inglethorp's bedroom, under our very noses ? '' I cried .

Poirot nodded .

" yes, my friend . that_is where I discovered my ' last link,' and I owe that very fortunate discovery to_you .''

" to_me ? ''

" yes . do_you remember telling me that my hand shook as i_was straightening the ornaments on_the mantel- piece ? ''

" yes, but I don't see -- -- ''

" no, but I_saw . do_you_know, my friend, I remembered that earlier in_the morning, when we had_been there together, I had straightened all the objects on_the mantel- piece . and, if_they were already straightened, there would_be no need to straighten them again, unless, in_the meantime, some one else had touched them .''

" dear me,'' I murmured, " so that_is_the explanation of your extraordinary behaviour . you rushed down to Styles, and found it still there ? ''

" yes, and it_was a race for time .''

" but I still can't understand why Inglethorp was such a fool as_to leave it there when he had plenty of opportunity to destroy it .''

"Ah, but he had no opportunity . I_saw to_that .''

" you ? ''

" yes . do_you remember reproving me for taking the household into my confidence on_the_subject ? ''

" yes .''

" well, my friend, I_saw there_was just one chance . i_was not sure then if Inglethorp was_the criminal or not, but if he_was I reasoned that he_would_not have the paper on him, but would_have hidden it somewhere, and by enlisting the sympathy of_the household I_could effectually prevent his destroying it . he_was already under suspicion, and by making the matter public I secured the services of about ten amateur detectives, who_would_be watching him unceasingly, and being himself aware of_their watchfulness he_would_not dare seek further to destroy the document . he_was therefore forced to depart from_the house, leaving it in_the spill vase .''

" but surely miss Howard had ample opportunities of aiding him .''

" yes, but miss Howard did_not know of_the paper's existence . in accordance with their prearranged plan, she never spoke to Alfred Inglethorp . they were supposed to_be deadly enemies, and until John Cavendish was safely convicted they neither of_them dared risk ameeting . of_course I had a watch kept on Mr Inglethorp, hoping that sooner or later he_would lead me to_the hiding- place . but he_was too clever to_take any chances . the paper was safe where it_was; since no one had thought of looking there in_the first week, it_was not likely they_would do_so afterwards . but for your lucky remark, we_might never have_been_able to bring him to justice .''

"I understand that now; but when did you first

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