‘No, I won’t be quiet. For once in my bullied married life I won’t be quiet, you fat old frump.’

‘Mr Jerry, perhaps you would like to lie down?’ said Lady Glensheil in glacial tones.

‘No, I’m fine and dandy. The prison door has opened a crack. Do you know why we’re all here, hey?’ He pointed with his dripping soup spoon, first at his wife, then at Angela Stockton and Lord Alfred. ‘See those three? Each one of them paid the late and unlamented Freddy Pomfret ten thousand pounds. Blackmail, I think. So, dear wife, if the murderer and blackmailer is amongst us, I beg of him to supply me with whatever he has on my dear wife and I will pay him a fortune.’

Harry glared at Rose, who dropped her eyes to her plate.

‘You’re drunk,’ said Lord Alfred coldly. ‘If you can’t hold your wine, go to bed and stop making ridiculous accusations. The police have already questioned us. It is sheer coincidence that we all decided to help Freddy out. He demanded the same amount from each of us.’

‘Oh, Lady Rose!’ squeaked Maisie Chatterton. ‘Don’t tell me there’s going to be another death. Death does seem to follow you around.’

‘I’ll talk to you later,’ Mrs Jerry snarled. Mr Jerry merely grinned.

‘Listen to me, all of you,’ said Lady Glensheil. ‘We are all going to church in the morning, and I mean all. Now, let’s talk about something else. The situation in the Balkans is fraught. . .’

Her voice rose and fell inexorably through eight courses before she finally rose as a signal to the ladies to follow her to the drawing-room. But she turned in the doorway. ‘I think this evening we will break with tradition and the gentlemen will come as well.’

To everyone’s relief, Mr Jerry said he was going to bed. In the drawing-room, tables were set up for cards while Frederica Sutherland entertained them by singing Scottish songs and accompanying herself on the piano.

Harry drew Rose aside. ‘Why did you tell Jerry about the blackmail?’

So Rose told him about being caught hiding behind the curtain.

‘You shouldn’t have said anything,’ said Harry crossly. ‘Now they really will be on their guard.’

‘Oh, pooh!’ said Rose defiantly. ‘They must already have thought it odd that all three of them have been invited. Did you find anything in Lord Alfred’s rooms?’

‘Nothing incriminating.’

‘Did you bury the body very deep?’

‘No, we didn’t bury it. We took it off away to the Thames with his car and sank the both of them.’

‘So Daisy was right. He must have been following us. Where was the car?’

‘Outside the gates.’

‘But someone will find the body in the river.’

‘Don’t worry. The water was pitch-black and we wedged him behind the steering wheel of his car.’