‘I’ll be the judge of that, thank you, sir. Why did you leave your room? Where did you go to?’

‘Good God, where do you suppose I went to?’ asked Roydon. ‘You policemen must be pretty hard-up for clues if you’re reduced to suspecting a man just because he is a man and not an angel!’

‘Oh!’ said the Inspector, rather blankly. ‘Seems to me you might have told me that before, sir.’

‘I probably should have if I’d remembered it,’ said Roydon. ‘And if that’s all you want to know –’

‘A minute ago, sir, you said you would have told me if you’d thought it had any bearing on the case.’

‘Well, so I should have, only it hadn’t, which is probably why I forgot it,’ replied Roydon. ‘Is there anything else?’

‘That’ll be all for the present,’ said the Inspector.

Roydon walked out of the room. The young detective remarked that it looked fishy to him. ‘Telling lies like that, for no reason!’

‘People do,’ said the Inspector. ‘Afraid of getting mixed up in things. I don’t see my way yet, and that’s a fact.’ His eye alighted on the gold cigarette-case. He picked it up. ‘Where’s Esher taking the finger-prints?’

‘In the library. The old gentleman showed him in there. Miss Dean kicked up a fuss about it. The old man had his work cut out, jollying her along. Esher ought to be about through by this time.’

‘We’ll go and have a look,’ said the Inspector, moving towards the door.

He arrived in the library in time to see Mathilda submitting her well-manicured hand to the expert.

‘Of course, I quite see that this will seriously cramp my style if ever I decide to take to a life of crime,’ she said.

‘If you think that that’s why I absolutely loathe the idea of having mine done –’ began Valerie hotly, and broke off at sight of the Inspector.

Mathilda glanced over her shoulder. ‘Ah, Torquemada in person!’

Joseph went up to the Inspector, saying: ‘Come in, Inspector! We’re just finishing, as you can see.’

‘Very sorry to have to ask you to submit to this, sir, but –’

‘Nonsense! Of course we understand that it must be!’

‘Well, I think it’s absolutely degrading!’ interrupted Valerie. ‘As though one was a common criminal, or something! I never thought I should be so insulted!’

Even Joseph’s patience showed signs of cracking. He said with a touch of asperity: ‘My dear child, don’t be a silly little goose! Do you want any of us, Inspector? Can you tell me anything, or mustn’t I ask?’

‘Nothing to tell you so far, sir. I would like to know which of you gentlemen owns this, if you please.’

They all looked at the cigarette-case. The monogram was plainly to be read. The Inspector’s gaze was fixed on Stephen. Stephen was looking at the case; his harsh face gave nothing away. Joseph, after one glance, cast a swift, startled look at Mathilda, half-questioning, half-appalled.