310

— not all this motoring and jazz and that

blasted, eternal radio. I won't have one

here and the girls know it. A man's

got a right to a little peace in his own

home.3'

Gently Poirot led the conversation round

to Anthony Hawker.

"Hawker? Hawker? Don't know him.

Yes, I do, though. Nasty looking fellow

with his eyes too close together. Never

trust a man who can't look you in the face.53

"He is a friend, is he not, of your

daughter Sheila's ?"

"Sheila ? Wasn't aware of it. Girls never

tell me anything." The bushy eyebrows

came down over the nose — the piercing,

blue eyes looked out of the red face

straight into Hercule Poirot's. "Look here,

Mr. Poirot, what's all this about? Mind

telling me what you've come to see me

about r9

Poirot said slowly:

"That would be difficult—perhaps I

hardly know myself. I would say only this:

your daughter Sheila—perhaps all your

daughters — have made some undesirable

friends.35

"Got into a bad set, have they? I was

LOH21 311

a bit afraid of that. One hears a word

dropped here and there.5' He looked

pathetically at Poirot. "But what am I to

do, Mr. Poirot ? What am I to do ?"

Poirot shook his head perplexedly.

General Grant went on:

"What's wrong with the bunch they're

running with ?"

Poirot replied by another question.

"Have you noticed. General Grant, that

any of your daughters have been moody, excited --then depressed --nervy --uncertain in their tempers ?"

"Damme, sir, you're talking like a patent

medicine. No, I haven't noticed anything

of the kind."

"That is fortunate," said Poirot gravely.

"What the devil is the meaning of all

this, sir ?"

"Drugs!"

"WHAT!"

The word came in a roar.

Poirot said:

"An attempt is being made to induce

your daughter Sheila to become a drug

addict. The cocaine habit is very quickly

formed. A week or two will suffice. Once

the habit is formed, an addict will pay

312

anything, do anything, to get a further

supply of the drug. You can realise what

a rich haul the person who peddles that

drug can make.3'

He listened in silence to the spluttering,

v^rathful blasphemies that poured from the

old man's lips. Then, as the fires died down, v^ith a final choice description of exactly v^hat he, the General, would do to the blinkety blinkety son of a blank when he got hold of him, Hercule Poirot said:

"We have first, as your so admirable jyirs. Beeton says, to catch the hare. Once v^e have caught our drug pedlar, I will

ti^rn him over to you with the greatest

pleasure. General.33

He got up, tripped over a heavily-carved,

s^nall table, regained his balance with a

clutch at the General, murmured:

"A thousand pardons, and may I beg of you. General--you understand, beg of you --to say nothing whatever about all this to your daughters.33

"What? I'll have the truth out of them, that's what I'll have!33