Scattergood pulled a face. ‘I’d sooner anyone than them,’ he protested. ‘When I first approached the pair with my evidence, they refused to believe that it had any significance. That’s why I came to you instead. I knew that your judgement would be less affected by the desire for personal gain. Yeomans and Hale want the glory of capturing this man without taking the trouble of hunting and unmasking him.’

‘You’ve done that in exemplary fashion, Mr Clearwater.’

‘I want Sir Roger’s death avenged.’

‘So do we all,’ said Kirkwood, ‘but I can’t have you dictating how I should deploy my men. If I choose Yeomans and Hale, you must respect my decision.’

‘Yes, sir,’ said Scattergood, ruefully.

‘They are experienced officers and – if violence is involved – you couldn’t have two better men at your side.’

‘Then I withdraw my objection, sir.’

‘Good – when will the operation begin?’

‘I’ll have to wait until Mr Mifflin returns to his hotel,’ said Scattergood. ‘Once he’s safely inside, I’ll send word and we can surround the building. Led by me,’ he emphasised, ‘we’ll enter the hotel to make the arrest.’

Kirkwood rose to his feet. ‘I’ll be the first to congratulate you.’

Peter and Paul arrived at the shooting gallery at more or less the same time. Charlotte was delighted to see them back and listened to what they had to say. She was astonished to hear that Peter had called on Edmund Mellanby at his hotel.

‘You surely don’t consider him as a suspect, do you?’ she said.

‘As the son of a murder victim,’ replied Peter, ‘he’s behaving in a strange way. I wondered why.’

‘What sort of reception did you get?’

‘It was frosty. Anyway, after I’d left him, I decided to have a look at Mr Ferriday for myself.’

‘I’ll warrant that he slammed the door in your face,’ said Paul.

Peter laughed. ‘By the time I left, he wished that he had.’

He gave them an account of the conversation he’d had with the politician and said that Ferriday’s name should certainly remain amongst their suspects. It was Paul’s turn to talk about his visits to Dr Quine and Captain Golightly, respectively.

‘I met the doctor as a total stranger,’ he explained, ‘but left as a friend. He was as interested in our work as I was in his. Quine will be a useful man in any future murder investigations, Peter. He’s a genuine find.’

‘What did you do after you’d seen Captain Golightly?’ asked Charlotte.