“And you were up on the headland till about a quarter to eleven?”

“Yes. It would take about a quarter of an hour to drive to the aerodrome.”

“If Cissie Cole had been on the headland when you got there, would you have seen her?”

“We might have. We didn’t.”

“Let me put it this way – could she have been there without you seeing her?”

“Oh, easily. Haven’t you seen the place? It’s all up and down, with blackberry thickets and gorse – plenty of cover.”

“And the light was good enough for you to have recognised her?”

She drew at her cigarette and blew out the smoke.

“That depends on what you mean by recognise. We should have seen if there had been anyone there. We saw Pell – oh, a long way off – but I didn’t recognise him until he passed us.”

March said, “I see-” And then, “Were you and Mr. Jerningham together?”

Alicia laughed.

“You’re quite determined to compromise me – aren’t you?”

“You were together all the time?”

She laughed again.

“Now what did Dale say when you asked him that? Are you trying to catch me? I believe you are, so I’m going to be on the safe side. We weren’t actually holding hands, and I’m not going to swear I never took my eyes off him – you can’t expect me to give myself away to that extent, can you? – but – well, I suppose you can guess that we didn’t go up there to sit under separate gorse bushes about a quarter of a mile apart. And when you have guessed, I hope you won’t think it necessary to tell.”

She threw the stub of her cigarette after the match, and with just as good an aim. Then she smiled enchantingly.

“Dale really is frightfully upset,” she said. “There’s nothing in it, but his wife’s that sort of person, and he’s got visions of headlines in the papers, and scenes about it with her, and the village simply buzzing. I told you he was feudal, and I do believe it’s the village talk he really minds about most.” She pushed back her chair and got up. “Is that all? Who do you want to see next – Lisle? She really did talk to Cissie last night, you know.”

Inspector Marsh said, “Yes. Perhaps you would ask her to come in.”

Chapter 21

LISLE and Rafe were still in the hall when Alicia came out of the study. They had not moved, and neither of them had said a single word either to one another or to Dale, who had gone past them with a black frown.

Alicia Steyne approached them smiling.

“Rather a good-looking policeman – old school tie and all that sort of thing. He’s frightfully disappointed because Dale and I didn’t actually see Pell push Cissie over the cliff. It must have been quite a near thing, you know.” She linked her arm with Rafe’s. “Where’s Dale? I want to compare notes and see if we have contradicted each other anywhere. By the way, Lisle, he wants you – the policeman, not Dale.”

As Lisle came into the study she couldn’t help thinking of what she had seen there only yesterday. It felt much longer ago than that – but it was only yesterday that she had looked from the gunroom door and seen Dale and Alicia… She put the thought away with a shuddering effort.

Inspector March thought how pale she was. She gave him her hand as if he had been an invited guest, and then sat down and looked at him with the grave attention of a child that has a lesson to say.

“Mrs. Jerningham, I believe you saw Cissie Cole last night.”

“Yes.”

She thought, “He has a nice voice – he looks kind.” She relaxed a little.

“Her aunt, the elder Miss Cole, had already been to see you?”

“Yes.”

“Will you tell me what passed between you?”

“She was worried about Cissie and – and – Pell. She was worried about his having got a job at the aerodrome. She wanted me to ask my husband to do something about it. I told her I didn’t think he would interfere – he wouldn’t keep Pell here, but he wouldn’t interfere with his getting any other work.”

“Yes – go on Mrs. Jerningham.”

Lisle looked down at her own hands lying in her lap.

“She was very much upset. She said Pell wouldn’t leave Cissie alone. When I said Dale wouldn’t interfere, she asked me if I would see Cissie, and I said I would. I didn’t think I could do any good but I didn’t like to say no.”

“And Cissie came to see you last night. Can you remember what that time was?”

“Yes, I think so. We came out of the dining-room about twenty to nine. We were going to have coffee on the terrace. William brought it out there, but he came back to say that Cissie had come before I had time to drink mine.”

“That would make it about a quarter to nine?”

Lisle said, “Something like that.”

“And when did she go away?”

Lisle thought before she answered him.

“She didn’t stay very long – about a quarter of an hour, I should think. I went up to my room to get a coat I was giving her, and we talked for a little, but I don’t think she was there for more than a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes – it might have been twenty minutes.”

“That would mean she left you at about five minutes past nine.”

“Yes.”

“Did you go back to the terrace and drink your coffee?”

A little tremor ran over her.

“Yes. It was cold.”

“And your husband and Lady Steyne – were they still there?”

“No they had gone. She was driving him to the aerodrome.”

“Well, they seem just to have missed Cissie Cole. Now, Mrs. Jerningham, will you tell me about your conversation with Cissie – everything you can remember. Never mind whether it seems important or not.”

Lisle raised her eyes to his face – beautiful, serious eyes of a grey so dark as to seem almost black. The lashes which shaded them were dark also. Under that very fair hair and against the whiteness of her skin they gave her a strange grieving look. She began telling him about the coat.

“It was quite a new one. I chose it in a bad light and it was too bright for me, but Cissie liked bright things and I thought it would please her-”

“Just a minute, Mrs. Jerningham. This coat – had it a red and green check on a cream ground?”

Lisle said, “Yes.” Her eyes widened with horror as he said,

“She was wearing it when she fell.”

He saw that faint shudder go over her again, but she went on looking at him. He said gently,

“It’s very distressing, but will you tell me just how she took it – the gift of the coat. What I want to get at is her state of mind – and with the probable exception of Pell you must be the last person she talked to.”

She put up her hand to her cheek and held it there.

“Yes, I know – I’ll do my best.” There was a moment’s pause. Then she went on, “I gave her the coat, and she said it was lovely. She really did seem very much pleased. She put it on and looked at herself in the glass. Then she took it off and folded it up.”

“She didn’t go away in it?”

“No – it was still very hot.”

“But if Pell had picked her up on his motor-bike, she would probably have put it on”

Lisle’s hands dropped from her cheek. It left a faint crimson mark upon the skin. She said in a wondering tone,

“Did he pick her up?”

“We don’t know,” March said. “He and his motor-bicycle were seen at Tane Head.”

He thought this was news to her. And he thought that Dale Jerningham appeared to confide more freely in his cousin than in his wife. He said,

“Yes, Pell was seen there. He rode his motor-bicycle away. But we haven’t found anyone who saw him with Cissie. Will you tell me how she talked of him?”

Lisle drew a soft breath.

“She didn’t say much – neither of us did. She said she was unhappy, and I asked her if she would like to go away for a bit. I’d heard of a place which I thought might suit her.”

“What did she say to that?”

The mark had faded from Lisle’s cheek. She was all white again.