Appointment with Death by Christie Agatha

Author:Christie, Agatha [Agatha, Christie,]
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Published: 2010-06-23T04:00:00+00:00

Appointment with Death

5

LADY WESTHOLME ENTERED the room with the assurance of a transatlantic liner coming into dock. Miss Annabel Pierce, an indeterminate craft, followed in the liner's wake and sat down in an inferior make of chair slightly in the background.

“Certainly, M. Poirot,” boomed Lady Westholme, “I shall be delighted to assist you by any means in my power. I have always considered that in matters of this kind one has a public duty to perform - ”

When Lady Westholme's public duty had held the stage for some minutes, Poirot was adroit enough to get in a question.

“I have a perfect recollection of the afternoon in question,” replied Lady Westholme. “Miss Pierce and I will do all we can to assist you.”

“Oh, yes,” sighed Miss Pierce, almost ecstatically. “So tragic, was it not? Dead - just like that - in the twinkle of an eye!”

“If you will tell me exactly what occurred on the afternoon in question?”

“Certainly,” said Lady Westholme. “After we had finished lunch I decided to take a brief siesta. The morning excursion had been somewhat fatiguing. Not that I was really tired - I seldom am. I do not really know what fatigue is. One has so often, on public occasions, no matter what one really feels - ”

[unreadable] an adroit murmur from Poirot.

“I saw, I was in favor of a siesta. Miss Pierce agreed with me.”

“Oh, yes,” sighed Miss Pierce. “And I was terribly tired all the morning. Such a dangerous climb - and although interesting, most exhausting. I'm afraid I'm not quite as strong as Lady Westholme.”

“Fatigue,” said Lady Westholme, “can be conquered like everything else. I make a point of never giving in to my bodily needs.”

Miss Pierce looked at her admiringly.

Poirot said: “After lunch, then, you two ladies went to your tents?”

“Yes.”

“Mrs. Boynton was then sitting at the mouth of her cave?”

“Her daughter-in-law assisted her there before she herself went off.”

“You could both see her?”

“Oh yes,” said Miss Pierce. “She was opposite, you know - only of course a little way along and up above.”

Lady Westholme elucidated the statement. “The caves opened onto a ledge. Below that ledge were some tents. Then there was a small stream and across that stream was the big marquee and some other tents. Miss Pierce and I had tents near the marquee. She was on the right side of the marquee and I was on the left. The openings of our tents faced the ledge, but of course it was some distance away.”

“Nearly two hundred yards, I understand.”

“Possibly.”

“I have here a plan,” said Poirot, “concocted with the help of the dragoman, Mahmoud.”

Lady Westholme remarked that in that case it was probably wrong! “That man is grossly inaccurate. I have checked his statements from my Baedeker. Several times his information was definitely misleading.”

“According to my plan,” said Poirot, “the cave next to Mrs. Boynton's was occupied by her son, Lennox, and his wife. Raymond, Carol and Ginevra Boynton had tents just below but more to the right - in fact almost opposite the marquee.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.