‘Very tricky,’ said Alleyn. He still had the arrow in his hand and now held it up. ‘Do you often loose these things off into your spinney?’ he asked.

Commander Syce muttered something about a change from target shooting.

‘I’ve often thought I’d like to have a shot at archery,’

Alleyn lied amiably. ‘One of the more blameless sports. Tell me, what weight of bow do you use?’

‘A sixty-pound pull.’

‘Really! What’s the longest – is clout the word? – that can be shot with a sixty pounder?’

‘Two hundred and forty yards.’

‘Is that twelve score? “A’ would have clapped i’ the clout at twelve score?” ‘

‘That’s right,’ Commander Syce agreed, and shot what might have been an appreciative glance at Alleyn.

‘Quite a length. However, I mustn’t keep you gossiping about archery. What I really want to ask you is this. I understand that you’ve known Colonel Cartarette a great many years?’

‘Off and on. Neighbours. Damn’ nice fellah.’

‘Exactly. And I believe that when Cartarette was in the Far East, you ran up against him. At Hong Kong, was it?’ Alleyn improvized hopefully.

‘Singapore.’

‘Oh, yes. The reason why I’m asking you is this. From the character of the crime and the apparently complete absence of motive, here, we are wondering if it can possibly be a back kick from his work out in the East.’

‘Wouldn’t know.’

‘Look here, can you tell us anything at all about his life in the East? I mean, anything that might start us off. When actually did you see him out there?’

‘Last time would be four years ago. I was still on the active list. My ship was based on Singapore and he looked me up when we were in port. I was axed six months later.’

‘Did you see much of them out there?’

‘Them?’

‘The Cartarettes.’

Commander Syce glared at Alleyn. ‘He wasn’t married,’ he said, ‘then.’

‘So you didn’t meet the second Mrs Cartarette until you came back here, I suppose?’

Commander Syce thrust his hands into his pockets and walked over to the window. ‘I had met her, yes,’ he mumbled. ‘Out there.’

‘Before they married?’

‘Yes.’

‘Did you bring them together?’ Alleyn asked lightly, and he saw the muscles in the back of Syce’s neck stiffen under the reddened skin.

‘I introduced them, as it happens,’ Syce said loudly without turning his head.

‘That’s always rather amusing. Or I find it so, being,’ Alleyn said, looking fixedly at Fox, ‘an incorrigible matchmaker.’

‘Good God, nothing like that!’ Syce shouted. ‘Last thing I intended. Good God, no!’