Ngaio Marsh - Final Curtain

“If she should become conscious…” Alleyn began, looking at the terrible face with its half-open eyes and mouth.

“If she regains consciousness, which she won’t, I’ll inform you.” Dr. Withers opened the case, glanced up at Alleyn and said fiercely: “If you don’t clear out I’ll take the matter up with the Chief Constable.”

Alleyn said briskly: “That won’t do at all, you know. We’re both on duty here and here we both stay. Your patient’s been given thallium acetate. I suggest that you carry on with the treatment, Dr. Withers.”

There was a violent ejaculation from Caroline Able. Millamant said: “That’s the ringworm stuff! What nonsense!”

“How the hell…” Dr. Withers began, and then: “Very well. Very well. Sorry. I’m worried. Now, Mrs. Ancred, I’ll want your help here. Lay the patient—”

Forty minutes later, without regaining consciousness, Sonia Orrincourt died.

ii

“The room,” Alleyn said, “will be left exactly as it is. The police surgeon is on his way and will take charge. In the meantime, you’ll all please join the others in the drawing-room. Mrs. Ancred, will you and Miss Able go ahead with Inspector Fox?”

“At least, Alleyn,” said Dr. Withers, struggling into his jacket, “you’ll allow us to wash up.”

“Certainly, I’ll come with you.”

Millamant and Caroline Able, after exchanging glances, raised a subdued outcry. “You must see…” Dr. Withers protested.

“If you’ll come out, I’ll explain.”

He led the way and they followed in silence. Fox came out last and nodded severely to Bream, who was in the passage. Bream moved forward and stationed himself before the door.

Alleyn said: “It’s perfectly clear, I’m sure, to all of you that this is a police matter. She was poisoned, and we’ve no reason to suppose she poisoned herself. I may be obliged to make a search of the house (here is the warrant), and I must have a search of the persons in it. Until this has been done none of you may be alone. There is a wardress coming by car from London, and you may, of course, wait for her if you wish.”

He looked at the three faces, all of them marked by the same signs of exhaustion, all turned resentfully towards him. There was a long silence.

“Well,” Millamant said at last, with an echo of her old short laugh, “you can search me. The thing I want to do most is sit down. I’m tired.”

“I must say,” Caroline Able began, “I don’t quite—”

“Here!” Dr. Withers cut in. “Will this suit you? I’m these ladies’ medical man. Search me and then let them search each other in my presence. Any good?”

“That will do admirably. This room here is vacant, I see. Fox, will you take Dr. Withers in?” Without further ado, Dr. Withers turned on his heel and made for the open door. Fox followed him in and shut it.

Alleyn turned to the two women. “We shan’t keep you long,” he said, “but if, in the meantime, you would like to join the others, I can take you to them.”

“Where are they?” Millamant demanded.

“In the drawing-room.”

“Personally,” she said, “I’m beyond minding who searches me and who looks on.” Bream gave a self-conscious cough. “If you and Miss Able like to take me into the children’s play-room, which I believe is vacant, I shall be glad to get it over.”

“Well, really,” said Miss Able, “well, of course, that is an extremely sane point of view, Mrs. Ancred. Well, if you don’t object.”

“Good,” Alleyn said. “Shall we go?”

There was a screen, with Italian primitives pasted over it, in the play-room. The two women, at Alleyn’s suggestion, retired behind it. First Millamant’s extremely sensible garments were thrown out one by one, examined by Alleyn, collected again by Miss Able, and then, after an interval, the process was reversed. Nothing was discovered, and Alleyn, walking between them, escorted the two ladies to the bathroom, and finally through the green baize door and across the hall to the drawing-room.

Here they found Desdemona, Pauline, Panty, Thomas and Cedric, assembled under the eye of Detective-Sergeant Thompson. Pauline and Desdemona were in tears. Pauline’s tears were real and ugly. They had left little traces, like those of a snail, down her carefully restrained make-up. Her eyes were red and swollen and she looked frightened. Desdemona, however, was misty, tragic and still beautiful. Thomas sat with his eyebrows raised to their limit and his hair ruffled, gazing in alarm at nothing in particular. Cedric, white and startled, seemed to be checked, by Alleyn’s arrival, in a restless prowl round the room. A paperknife fell from his hands and clattered on the glass top of the curio cabinet.

Panty said: “Hallo! Is Sonia dead? Why?”

“Ssh, darling! Darling, ssh!” Pauline moaned, and attempted vainly to clasp her daughter in her arms. Panty advanced into the centre of the room and faced Alleyn squarely. “Cedric,” she said loudly, “says Sonia’s been murdered. Has she? Has she, Miss Able?”

“Goodness,” said Caroline Able in an uneven voice, “I call that rather a stupid thing to say, Patricia, don’t you?”

Thomas suddenly walked up to her and put his arm about her shoulders.

“Has she, Mr. Alleyn?” Panty insisted.

“You cut off and don’t worry about it,” Alleyn said. “Are you at all hungry?”

“You bet.”

“Well, ask Barker from me to give you something rather special, and then put your coat on and see if you can meet the others coming home. Is that all right, Mrs. Kentish?”

Pauline waved her hands and he turned to Caroline Able.

“An excellent idea,” she said more firmly. Thomas’s hand still rested on her shoulder.

Alleyn led Panty to the door. “I won’t go,” she announced, “unless you tell me if Sonia’s dead.”

“All right, old girl, she is.” A multiple ejaculation sounded behind him.

“Like Carabbas?”

“No!” said her Aunt Millamant strongly, and added: “Pauline, must your child behave like this?”

“They’ve both gone away,” Alleyn said. “Now cut along and don’t worry about it.”

“I’m not worrying,” Panty said, “particularly. I dare say they’re in Heaven, and Mummy says I can have a kitten. But a person likes to know.” She went out.

Alleyn turned and found himself face to face with Thomas.

Behind Thomas he saw Caroline Able stooping over Millamant, who sat fetching her breath in dry sobs, while Cedric bit his nails and looked on. “I’m sorry,” Millamant stammered: “it’s just reaction, I suppose. Thank you, Miss Able.”

“You’ve been perfectly splendid, Mrs. Ancred.”

“Oh, Milly, Milly!” wailed Pauline. “Even you! Even your iron reserve. Oh, Milly!”

“Oh, God !” Cedric muttered savagely. “I’m so sick of all this.”

“You,” Desdemona said, and laughed with professional bitterness. “In less tragic circumstances, Cedric, that would be funny.”

“Please, all of you stop .”

Thomas’s voice rang out with authority, and the dolorous buzz of reproach and impatience was instantly hushed.

“I dare say you’re all upset,” he said. “So are other people. Caroline is, and I am. Who wouldn’t be? But you can’t go on flinging temperaments right and left. It’s very trying for other people and it gets us nowhere. So I’m afraid I’m going to ask you all to shut up, because I’ve got something to say to Alleyn, and if I’m right, and he says I’m right, you can all have hysterics and get on with the big scene. But I’ve got to know.”

He paused, still facing Alleyn squarely, and in his voice and his manner Alleyn heard an echo of Panty. “A person likes to know,” Panty had said.