Stephen rightly understood the question to be rhetorical, and made no reply; and after squeezing his hand in a very feeling way, Joseph said: ‘She was never worthy of you! Nothing one can say can bring you comfort now, my poor boy, but you will find, as so many, many of us have found before you, that Time proves itself a great healer.’

‘Thanks very much,’ said Stephen, ‘but you are wasting your sympathy. In your own parlance, Valerie and I are agreed that we were never suited to one another.’

If he entertained any hope of thus quelling Joseph’s embarrassing partisanship he was speedily disillusioned, for Joseph at once smote him lightly on the shoulder, saying: ‘Ah, that’s the way to take it, old man! Chin up!’

Mathilda, who was a witness of this scene, feared that Stephen would either be sick or fell his uncle to the ground, so she hastily intervened, saying that she thought both parties ought to be congratulated on their escape.

Joseph was quite equal to dealing with Mathilda. He smiled at her, and said gently: ‘Ah, Tilda, there speaks one who has not known what it is to suffer!’

‘Oh, do for God’s sake put a sock in it!’ said Stephen, in a sudden explosion of wrath.

Joseph was not in the least offended. ‘I know, old chap, I know!’ he said. ‘One cannot bear to have one’s wounds touched. Well! We must forget that there ever was a Valerie, and turn our faces to the morrow.’

‘As far as I am concerned,’ said Stephen, ‘the morrow will probably see my arrest on a charge of murder.’

Mathilda found herself quite unable to speak, so horrible was it to hear her unexpressed fear put crudely into words. Joseph, however, said: ‘Hush, my boy! You are overwrought, and no wonder! We are not even going to consider such a frightful possibility.’

‘I have not had your advantages. I have not spent a lifetime learning to bury my head in the sand,’ said Stephen brutally.

Mathilda found her voice. ‘What makes you think that, Stephen? How can the police know who murdered Nat until they discover how anyone contrived to get into that room?’

‘You’d better ask them,’ he replied. ‘I shall be hanged by my own cigarette-case and Uncle Nat’s will. Jolly, isn’t it?’

‘I will not believe it!’ Joseph said. ‘The police aren’t such fools! It isn’t possible that they could arrest you on such slender evidence!’

‘Do you call a hundred and sixty thousand pounds or so slender evidence?’ demanded Stephen. ‘I should call it a pretty strong motive myself.’

‘You knew nothing of that! Over and over again I’ve told them so!’

‘Yes, my dear uncle, and if you had not previously told Valerie that I was the heir I daresay the Inspector might listen to you. As it is, I have just sustained a cross-examination which leaves me with the conviction that not one word I said was believed.’

‘But you are still at large,’ Mathilda pointed out.