“In which case, being blind drunk, he would have staggered back, probably knocked something over, touched a tree with a bloody finger. We should try to retrace his route. And surely if this man guarded his privacy as they say he did, wouldn’t the manservant have had to let your father in? Served them drinks?”

“Unfortunately, not necessarily. He says the servants’ entrance was rarely locked and anyway he believed my father still had a key. He had come into the house unannounced before.”

“Are those big gates always kept locked?” I asked. “Is there a gatekeeper?”

“No gatekeeper, these days,” Darcy said, “but I understand the new gates are always locked and anyone who comes to visit has to communicate with the castle by telephone before they are let in. At this moment there is a constable on guard just inside.”

“I saw him when I arrived in my taxi,” I said. “So how did your father even get onto the grounds?”

“Ah, that’s simple,” Darcy said. “There is a small side gate in the wall behind the lodge. And a path that leads up to the house.”

“And that is not kept locked?”

“You’d have to know about it to find it,” Darcy said. “It’s more or less hidden under the ivy. When we were young it was always open. But then so was the main gateway. No gates across it at all.”

“So anyone could get in if they found out about the secret little gate?”

“I suppose so. If anyone was determined enough he could climb over the wall. There are places where trees grow close enough to make it possible.”

We reached the bottom of the driveway and turned out into the lane. How different it looked on a sunny day—the fields an unbelievably bright green, almost glowing. The whitewashed cottages sparkled and even the sheep looked like bright little dots against the green of the fields. It was the sort of day when one simply had to feel more cheerful.

“I wonder why Roach felt the need to put up such impressive gates and to lock them,” I said. “One would think he had something to hide, or he believed items in the castle were worth stealing.”

“Or he was one of these strange people who are paranoid about being pursued. Maybe that was why he chose to flee to an out-of-the-way place like this. Maybe we can find out whether he has been seeing a doctor while he has been in Ireland.”

“Your father should know whether he showed any signs of insanity or persecution. After all, they worked together for quite a while before that horrid incident at the stables.” I glanced across at Darcy. “Speaking of which, we should go to the stables and try to find the truth about what happened with that horse doping. Someone there may know.”