Page 126 (1/1)

"Poirot, you old villain," I said, "I've half ain the library Several hectic days lay behind us In the rooether once lethorp and Miss Hoere in custody Now at last, I had Poirot tocuriosity

Poirot did not answer me for a moment, but at last he said: "I did not deceive you, mon ami At most, I permitted you to deceive yourself"

"Yes, but why?"

"Well, it is difficult to explain You see, my friend, you have a nature so honest, and a countenance so transparent, that--enfin, to conceal your feelings is impossible! If I had told you lethorp that astute gentleman would have--in your so expressive idiom--'s hiive ht Poirot, "I ie yourself! Your help has been of the most invaluable It is but the extremely beautiful nature that you have, which ruiven me a hint"

"But I did, my friend Several hints You would not take them Think now, did I ever say to you that I believed John Cavendish guilty? Did I not, on the contrary, tell you that he would almost certainly be acquitted?"

"Yes, but----"

"And did I not i the murderer to justice? Was it not plain to you that I was speaking of two entirely different persons?"

"No," I said, "it was not plain to , did I not repeat to you several tilethorp arrested now? That should have conveyed so to you"

"Do you o as that?"

"Yes To begin with, whoever else lethorp's death, her husband would benefit theaway from that When I went up to Styles with you that first day, I had no idea as to how the crilethorp I fancied that it would be very hard to find anything to connect him with it When I arrived at the chateau, I realized at once that it was Mrs Inglethorp who had burnt the will; and there, by the way, you cannot conificance of that bedroom fire in midsummer"