“Unfortunately, I know he couldn’t,” said Alleyn. “He came on to the stage with me and we were together until he went to fetch Miss Dacres.”

“Anyway, sir. Think of the risk a man would run, tearing round the block in his evening duds. It’d look pretty crook if anyone saw him, now, wouldn’t it?”

“I don’t think he would tear round the block, Wade.”

“What’s that?”

“Why not follow the Palmer route, in reverse, and come out in the yard?”

“By cripey, yes. Yes, that’s so. But he’d have to know about the path behind the sheds, wouldn’t he? Which young Palmer seems to have done, seeing the way he took to it afterwards. Is there anything in this business of young Palmer, do you reckon?”

“Not a damn’ thing, I should say.”

“Aw geeze!” said Wade disgustedly. “What a case! It’s all cockeyed. Did you ever hear anything like this business of Miss Dacres! Owning up she fixed that weight to protect a man that, as far as we can see, couldn’t have done it.”

“At least she’s saved us the trouble of accounting for everybody’s movements after the murder.”

“She’s in a nasty hole. Messing about on the scene of the crime,” muttered Wade. “She’s going to find herself in a very, very uncomfortable little pozzy, is Miss Caroline Dacres Meyer, widow of deceased.”

“I hope not,” said Alleyn. “I may even try to corrupt the New Zealand force on her behalf. You never know.”

Wade looked doubtfully at him, decided he was attempting to amuse, and broke out into a guffaw.

“Aw dikkon, Mr. Alleyn!” said Wade.

“What did you say?”

“Haven’t you heard that one, sir? I suppose it’s N.Z. digger slang. ‘Dikkon.’ It’s the same as if you’d say ‘Come off it.’ Used to hear it on the Penninsula. ‘Aw dikkon, dig.’”

“On Gallipoli? You were in that show, were you, Wade?”

“Too right. Saw it through from the landing to the evacuation.”

“What ages ago it seems. And is.”

Passing Sergeant Packer, who was on duty at the stage-door, they strolled back to the office, talking returned to soldier’s shop.

“What do you think, Mr. Alleyn? If there’s another war will the young chaps come at it, same as we did, thinking it’s great? And get the same jolt? What do you reckon?”

“I’m afraid to speculate,” said Alleyn.

“Same here. And yet you know I often think: well, it was bloody but it wasn’t too bad. As long as you didn’t think too much it wasn’t too bad. There was a kind of feeling among the chaps that was all right. Know what I mean?”