Agatha Christie - Spider's Web

"Quiet now, quiet," Clarissa murmured soothingly. "It's all right. Come on, sit down." She led Pippa to the armchair and sat her in it."I didn't mean to. I didn't mean to kill him," Pippa went on crying.

Clarissa knelt beside her. "Of course you didn't mean to," she agreed. "Now listen, Pippa..." When Pippa continued to cry even more hysterically, Clarissa shouted at her. "Pippa, listen to me. Everything's going to be all right. You've got to forget about this. Forget all about it, do you hear?"

"Yes," Pippa sobbed, "but – but I – "

"Pippa," Clarissa continued more forcefully, "you must trust me and believe what I'm telling you. Everything is going to be all right. But you've got to be brave and do exactly what I tell you." Still sobbing hysterically, Pippa tried to turn away from her."Pippa!" Clarissa shouted. "Will you do as I tell you?" She pulled the child around to face her. "Will you?"

"Yes, yes, I will," Pippa cried, putting her head on Clarissa's bosom."That's right." Clarissa adopted a consoling tone as she helped Pippa out of the chair. "Now, I want you to go upstairs and get into bed."

"You come with me, please," the child pleaded."Yes, yes," Clarissa assured her, "I'll come up very soon, as soon as I can, and I'll give you a nice little white tablet. Then you'll go to sleep, and in the morning everything will seem quite different." She looked down at the body and added, "There may be nothing to worry about."

"But he is dead – isn't he?" Pippa asked."No, no, he may not be dead," Clarissa replied evasively. "I'll see. Now go on, Pippa. Do as I tell you." Pippa, still sobbing, left the room and ran upstairs. Clarissa watched her go and then turned back to the body on the floor. "Supposing I were to find a dead body in the drawing-room, what should I do?" she murmured to herself. After standing for a moment in thought, she exclaimed more forcefully, "Oh, my God, what am I going to do?"

FIFTEEN MINUTES later, Clarissa was still in the drawing-room and murmuring to herself. But she had been busy in the meantime. All the lights were now on in the room, the panel in the wall was closed, and the curtains had been drawn across the open French windows. Oliver Costello's body was still behind the sofa, but Clarissa had been moving the furniture about, and had set up a folding bridge table in the centre of the room, with cards and markers for bridge, and four upright chairs around the table.

Standing at the table, Clarissa scribbled figures on one of the markers. "Three spades, four hearts, four no trumps, pass," she muttered, pointing at each hand as she made its call. "Five diamonds, pass, six spades – double – and I think they go down." She paused for a moment, looking down at the table, and then continued, "Let me see, doubled vulnerable, two tricks, five hundred – or shall I let them make it? No." She was interrupted by the sudden arrival of Sir Rowland, Hugo and young Jeremy, who entered through the French windows. Hugo paused a moment before coming into the room, to close one of the windows.

Putting her pad and pencil on the bridge table, Clarissa rushed to meet them. "Thank God you've come," she told Sir Rowland, sounding extremely distraught."What is all this, my dear?" Sir Rowland asked her with concern in his voice.

Clarissa turned to address them all. "Darlings," she cried, "you've got to help me." Jeremy noticed the table with the playing cards spread out on it. "Looks like a bridge party," he observed gaily."You're being very melodramatic, Clarissa," Hugo contributed. "What are you up to, young woman?"Clarissa clutched Sir Rowland. "It's serious," she insisted. "Terribly serious. You will help me, won't you?"

"Of course we'll help you, Clarissa," Sir Rowland assured her, "but what's it all about?"

"Yes, come on, what is it this time?" Hugo asked somewhat wearily.

Jeremy, too, sounded unimpressed. "You're up to something, Clarissa," he insisted. "What is it? Found a body or something?"

"That's just it," Clarissa told him. "I have – found a body."

"What do you mean – found a body?" Hugo asked. He sounded puzzled, but not all that interested."It's just as Jeremy said," Clarissa answered him. "I came in here, and I found a body." Hugo gave a cursory glance around the room. "I don't know what you're talking about," he complained. "What body? Where?"

"I'm not playing games. I'm serious," Clarissa shouted angrily. "It's there. Go and look. Behind the sofa." She pushed Sir Rowland towards the sofa, and moved away.

Hugo went quickly to the sofa. Jeremy followed him and leaned over the back of it. "My God, she's right," Jeremy murmured.

Sir Rowland joined them. He and Hugo bent down to examine the body. "Why, it's Oliver Costello," Sir Rowland exclaimed."God Almighty!" Jeremy exclaimed. He went quickly to the French windows and closed the curtains again."Yes," said Clarissa. "It's Oliver Costello."

"What was he doing here?" Sir Rowland asked her."He came this evening to talk about Pippa," Clarissa replied. "It was just after you'd gone to the club." Sir Rowland looked puzzled. "What did he want with Pippa?"

"He and Miranda were threatening to take her away," Clarissa told him. "But all that doesn't matter now. I'll tell you about it later. We have to hurry. We've got very little time." Sir Rowland held up a hand in warning. "Just a moment," he instructed, coming closer to Clarissa. "We must have the facts clear. What happened when he arrived?"Clarissa shook her head impatiently. "I told him that he and Miranda were not going to get Pippa, and he went away."

"But he came back?"

"Obviously," said Clarissa."How?" Sir Rowland asked her. "When?"

"I don't know," Clarissa answered. "I just came into the room, as I said, and I found him – like that." She gestured towards the sofa."I see," said Sir Rowland, moving back to the body on the floor and leaning over it. "I see. Well, he's dead, all right. He's been hit over the head with something heavy and sharp." He looked around at the others. "I'm afraid this isn't going to be a very pleasant business," he continued, "but there's only one thing to be done." He went across to the telephone as he spoke. "We must ring up the police and – "

"No," Clarissa exclaimed sharply.

Sir Rowland was already lifting the receiver. "You ought to have done it at once, Clarissa," he advised her. "Still, I don't suppose they'll blame you much for that."

"No, Roly, stop," Clarissa insisted. She ran across the room, took the receiver from him, and replaced it on its rest."My dear child – " Sir Rowland expostulated, but Clarissa would not let him continue."I could have rung up the police myself if I'd wanted to," she admitted. "I knew perfectly well that it was the proper thing to do. I even started dialling. Then, instead, I rang you up at the club and asked you to come back here immediately, all three of you." She turned to Jeremy and Hugo. "You haven't even asked me why yet."

"You can leave it all to us," Sir Rowland assured her. "We will – "Clarissa interrupted him vehemently. "You haven't begun to understand," she insisted. "I want you to help me. You said you would if I was ever in trouble." She turned to include the other two men. "Darlings, you've got to help me." Jeremy moved to position himself so that he hid the body from her sight. "What do you want us to do, Clarissa?" he asked gently."Get rid of the body," was her abrupt reply."My dear, don't talk nonsense," Sir Rowland ordered her. "This is murder."

"That's the whole point," Clarissa told him. "The body mustn't be found in this house." Hugo gave a snort of impatience. "You don't know what you're talking about, my dear girl," he exclaimed. "You've been reading too many murder mysteries. In real life you can't go monkeying about, moving dead bodies."