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OVERTURE

In the afternoons it was the custom of Miss Jane Marple to unfold her second newspaper Tspapers were delivered at her house everyher earlytea, that is, if it was delivered in time The boy who delivered the papers was notably erratic in his ement of time Frequently, too, there was either a new boy or a boy as acting temporarily as a stand-in for the first one And each one would have ideas of his own as to the geographical route that he should take in delivering Perhaps it variedtheir paper early so that they could snap up thefor their bus, train or other ress to the day’s ere annoyed if the papers were late, though the ed and elderly ladies who resided peacefully in St Mary Mead often preferred to read a newspaper propped up on their breakfast table

Today, Miss Marple had absorbed the front page and a few other items in the daily paper that she had nicknahtly satirical allusion to the fact that her paper, the Daily Newsgiver, owing to a change of proprietor, to her own and to other of her friends’ great annoyance, now provided articles on , women’s dress, fe letters froed pretty well to shove any real news off any part of it but the front page, or to some obscure corner where it was i old-fashioned, preferred her newspapers to be newspapers and give you news

In the afternoon, having finished her luncheon, treated herself to twenty ht armchair which catered for the demands of her rheumatic back, she had opened The Times, which lent itself still to a more leisurely perusal Not that The Ti about The Tioing through fro else was so that you passed easily to any special articles on subjects in which you were interested, there were now extraordinary interruptions to this ties were suddenly devoted to travel in Capri with illustrations Sport appeared with far more prominence than it had ever had in the old days Court news and obituaries were a little es and deaths which had at one ti to their prorated to a different part of The Tih of late, Miss Marple noted, they had coe

Miss Marple gave her attention first to theon that because it was equivalent to what she had already read this nified manner She cast her eye down the table of contents Articles, comments, science, sport; then she pursued her usual plan, turned the paper over and had a quick run down the births, es and deaths, after which she proposed to turn to the page given to correspondence, where she nearly always found so to enjoy; froe today’s news from the Sale Rooms could also be found A short article on Science was often placed there but she did not propose to read that It seldom made sense for her

Having turned the paper over as usual to the births, ht to herself, as so often before,

“It’s sad really, but nowadays one is only interested in the deaths!”

People had babies, but the people who had babies were not likely to be even known by na with babies labelled as grandchildren, there nition She ht to herself,

“Really, Mary Prendergast has had a third granddaughter!,” though even that perhaps ht have been a bit remote

She skies, also with not a very close survey, because hters or sons had o already She caave that her h, in fact, so as to be sure she would not oweisser—(dear me, what a German name, but he see? Noas that one of the Cleggs she knew? No, it didn’t see Somewhere in Yorkshire McDonald, McKenzie, Nicholson Nicholson? No Again not a Nicholson she knew Ogg, Orht Yes, probably so Linda Ormerod No, she hadn’t known her Quantril? Dear hty-five Well, really! She had thought Elizabeth Quantril had died so! So delicate she’d always been, too Nobody had expected her tostirred That name was familiar Rafiel Belford Park, Maidstone Belford Park, Maidstone No, she couldn’t recall that address No flowers Jason Rafiel Oh well, an unusual name She supposed she’d just heard it soht be—no, it wasn’t Ryland? Emily Ryland No No, she’d never known an Emily Ryland Deeply loved by her husband and children Well, very nice or very sad Whichever way you liked to look at it

Miss Marple laid down her paper, glancing idly through the crosshile she puzzled to remember why the name Rafiel was familiar to her

“It will co experience the way old people’s memories worked

“It’ll come to me, I have no doubt”

She glanced out of the ards the garden, withdrew her gaze and tried to put the garden out of her reat pleasure and also a great deal of hard work to Miss Marple forto the fussiness of doctors, working in the garden was forbidden to her She’d once tried to fight this ban, but had come to the conclusion that she had, after all, better do as she was told She had arranged her chair at such an angle as not to be easy to look out in the garden unless she definitely and clearly wished to see so and took out a s to a conclusion The back was done and the front Now she would have to get on with the sleeves Sleeves were always boring Two sleeves, both alike Yes, very boring Pretty coloured pink wool, however Pink wool Noait a minute, where did that fit in? Yes—yes—it fitted in with that name she’d just read in the paper Pink wool A b

lue sea A Caribbean sea A sandy beach Sunshine Herself knitting and—why, of course, Mr Rafiel That trip she had made to the Caribbean The island of St Honoré A treat from her nephew Raymond And she re:

“Don’t get ood for you”

Well, she hadn’t wished to get mixed up in any murders, but it just happened That was all Silass eye who had insisted on telling her so stories Poor Major—noas his naotten that now Mr Rafiel and his secretary, Mrs—Mrs Walters, yes, Esther Walters, and his masseur-attendant, Jackson It all came back Well, well Poor Mr Rafiel So Mr Rafiel was dead He had known he was going to die before very long He had practically told her so It seeht He was a strong man, an obstinate man—a very rich man

Miss Marple reularly, but herHerwhat she could reet, really She could conjure his appearance up mentally quite well Yes, a very definite personality, a difficult ly rude soh She re rude because he was so rich Yes, he had been very rich He had had his secretary with him and a valet attendant, a qualified et about very ithout help

Rather a doubtful character that nurse-attendant had been, Miss Marple thought Mr Rafiel had been very rude to hiain, of course was because Mr Rafiel was so rich

“Nobody else would pay him half what I do,” Mr Rafiel had said, “and he knows it He’s good at his job, though”

Miss Marple wondered whether Jackson?—Johnson? had stayed on with Mr Rafiel Stayed on for what must have been—another year? A year and three or four ht probably not Mr Rafiel was one who liked a change He got tired of people, tired of their ways, tired of their faces, tired of their voices

Miss Marple understood that She had felt the same someti wo voice

“Ah,” said Miss Marple, “what a change for the better since—” oh dear, she’d forgotten her name now—Miss—Miss Bishop?—no, not Miss Bishop Oh dear, how difficult it was

Her mind went back to Mr Rafiel and to—no, it wasn’t Johnson, it had been Jackson, Arthur Jackson

“Oh, dear,” said Miss Marple again, “I always get all the na of Not Miss Bishop Why do I think of her as Miss Bishop?” The answer caht A bishop

“I shall be calling her Miss Castle next tih, really, she’s not the sort of person ould ever rook anybody No, indeed And noas the name of that nice secretary that Mr Rafiel had Oh yes, Esther Walters That was right I wonder what has happened to Esther Walters? She’d inherited money? She would probably inherit money now”