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‘Excuse me, does—er—does Miss Greenshaw live here?’

‘May I have your na upon him

‘Fletcher,’ said the young man ‘Nat Fletcher I’m Miss Greenshaw’s nephew, as a matter of fact’

‘Indeed, sir, well—I’m sorry—I’m sure—’

‘Has anything happened?’ asked Nat Fletcher

‘There’s been an—accident—your aunt was shot with an arrow—penetrated the jugular vein—’

Mrs Cresswell spoke hysterically and without her usual refinement:

‘Your h’aunt’s been murdered, that’s what’s ’appened Your h’aunt’s been murdered’

III

Inspector Welch drew his chair a little nearer to the table and let his gaze wander from one to the other of the four people in the roo of the same day He had called at the Wests’ house to take Lou Oxley once more over her statement

‘You are sure of the exact words? Shot—he shot et help?’

Lou nodded

‘And the time?’

‘I looked at my watch a minute or two later—it was then twelve twenty-five’

‘Your watch keeps good time?’

‘I looked at the clock as well’

The inspector turned to Raymond West

‘It appears, sir, that about a week ago you and a Mr Horace Bindler itnesses to Miss Greenshaill?’

Briefly, Raymond recounted the events of the afternoon visit that he and Horace Bindler had paid to Greenshaw’s Folly

‘This testimony of yours may be important,’ said Welch ‘Miss Greenshaw distinctly told you, did she, that her as being made in favour of Mrs Cresswell, the housekeeper, that she was not paying Mrs Cresswell any wages in view of the expectations Mrs Cresswell had of profiting by her death?’

‘That is what she told me—yes’

‘Would you say that Mrs Cressas definitely aware of these facts?’

‘I should say undoubtedly Miss Greenshawable to witness a will and Mrs Cresswell clearly understood what she meant by it Moreover, Miss Greenshaw herself told ement with Mrs Cresswell’

‘So Mrs Cresswell had reason to believe she was an interested party Motive’s clear enough in her case, and I dare say she’d be our chief suspect now if it wasn’t for the fact that she was securely locked in her room like Mrs Oxley here, and also that Miss Greenshaw definitely said a man shot her—’

‘She definitely was locked in her room?’

‘Oh yes Sergeant Cayley let her out It’s a big old-fashioned lock with a big old-fashioned key The key was in the lock and there’s not a chance that it could have been turned from inside or any hanky-panky of that kind No, you can take it definitely that Mrs Cressas locked inside that rooet out And there were no bows and arrows in the room and Miss Greenshaw couldn’t in any case have been shot frole forbids it—no, Mrs Cresswell’s out of it’

He paused and went on:

‘Would you say that Miss Greenshaw, in your opinion, was a practical joker?’

Miss Marple looked up sharply from her corner

‘So the asn’t in Mrs Cresswell’s favour after all?’ she said

Inspector Welch looked over at her in a rather surprised fashion