‘D’you think this will make any difference to the coming-out game? Is she going to be ill? I’ve thought so lots of times lately. She’s so bloody-minded.’

‘Don’t say “she” and don’t say “bloody-minded.” The one’s common and you’re too young for the other.’

Miss Birnbaum grinned delightedly.

‘Well,’ she said, ‘it’s what I think anyway. And she’s not even virtuous. Do you know the Withers person?’

‘Yes.’

‘He’s her boy-friend. Don’t pretend to be shocked. I wrote and told mother about it. I hoped it’d shake her a bit. My father wrote and asked me if he was called Maurice and was like a red pig—that’s a frightful insult, you know—because if he was I wasn’t to stay. I like my father. But mother said if he was a friend of Mrs Halcut-Hackett he must be all right. I thought that frightfully funny. It’s about the only thing that is at all funny in the whole business. I don’t think it can be very amusing to be frightened of your boy-friend and your husband, do you?’

Alleyn rubbed his head and stared at Miss Birnbaum.

‘Look here,’ he said, ‘you’re giving us a good deal of information, you know. There’s Mr Fox with his notebook. What about that?’

The dark face was lit with an inward smouldering fire. Two sharp lines appeared at the corners of the thick lips.

‘Do you mean she may get into trouble? I hope she does. I hate her. She’s a wicked woman. She’d murder anyone if she wanted them out of the way. She’s felt like murdering me pretty often. She says things to me that twist me up inside, they hurt so. “My dear child, how can you expect me to do anything with you if you stare like a fish and never utter?” “My God, what have I done to be saddled with a burden like this?” “My dear child, I suppose you can’t help looking what you are, but at least you might make some effort to sound a little less like Soho.” And then she imitates my voice. Yesterday she told me there was a good deal to be said for the German point of view, and asked me if I had any relations among the refugees because she heard quite a number of English people were taking them as maids. I hope she is a murderess. I hope you catch her. I hope they hang her by her beastly old neck until she’s dead.’

The thick soft voice stopped. Miss Birnbaum was trembling very slightly. A thin line of damp appeared above her upper lip.

Alleyn grimaced, rubbed his nose and said:

‘Do you feel any better for that?’

‘Yes.’