“You had never been there before?” The sneer was still in Colonel Anstruther’s voice.

“No, I had never been there before.”

Mr. Brook took up the question.

“You had never met Lady Colesborough in these grounds?”

Algy smiled.

“I had met Lady Colesborough exactly three times before last night-twice at a night-club, the Ducks and Drakes, where she was with a party and I was with Miss Hardwicke, and once at the flat of some cousins of mine, the Westgates, where we dined at the same table and I afterwards talked to her for about ten minutes in the midst of a crowd of people. She told me that she adored London and hated the country. I can’t remember anything else about the conversation.”

“You haven’t answered my question, Mr. Somers.”

“I thought I had. I had certainly never met Lady Colesborough either here or anywhere else, if by that you mean a clandestine meeting.”

“And you have never been to Cole Lester before?”

“I have said so quite a number of times.”

“But if you had been here before-if you were familiar with these grounds-you will agree that you could have reached the strip of grass beyond the yew hedge before the shot was fired?”

Algy smiled.

“I am not inclined to agree to a purely hypothetical case.”

“Will you agree that a man who took the left fork would naturally outstrip anyone who, taking the right-hand turn, would have to find their way across the lawn to the entrance of the yew walk?”

“No, I don’t agree at all. I should think that the distance would be about equal.”

“But if the man who took the left-hand fork had a torch and used it, and if he ran, I think you will have to admit that he could have reached the place where the shot was fired in plenty of time to meet Sir Francis, snatch his pistol, and fire that shot.”

“Well, I don’t know that I’m admitting that either,” said Algy. “Lady Colesborough says the man she went to meet was at the window in the yew hedge when she got there. She doesn’t say anything about his coming up at a run and snatching the pistol. From what she told me, she and Mr. Zero were talking through the window and she was handing over a packet of letters, when she heard someone running and Sir Francis arrived on the scene. Isn’t that what she says in her statement?”

Mr. Brook nodded.

“Sir Francis came from the right. He must have turned right at the path and skirted the rose garden in that direction. Anyone who followed the path which you and Miss Hardwicke took would have skirted the rose garden on the left and come out on to the grass on that side. Mr. Zero would almost certainly have come that way, because it was the shortest and most direct route between the meeting-place and the road, where he would naturally have left a car. You did not observe any other car?”

Algy shook his head.

“There was no other car within range of my headlights. There may have been half a dozen farther up the road. I wasn’t out looking for cars.”

“Mr. Somers, did you hear a car at any time either before the shot was fired or afterwards-especially afterwards? If Mr. Zero did not remain at Cole Lester he must have got away-probably by car. Did you hear any car?”

Algy said, “Yes, I did,” and thought how convenient a lie it must sound-‘If Mr. Zero left Cole Lester, he must have left by car. Did you hear a car?-Yes, I did…’ It happened to be the truth, but there were times when you couldn’t expect the truth to impose upon a child of five. He gave a short laugh and added, “You won’t believe it, but it’s perfectly true-I did hear a car, thought I didn’t take any notice at the time. It was just before we met Sturrock and the servants. Miss Hardwicke may have heard it too.”

Inspector Boyce turned in his chair. He addressed the Chief Constable.

“I put the question to her myself, sir, and she said she hadn’t noticed anything. And the servants, they didn’t notice anything either.”

“They had plenty to think about,” said Algy. “I didn’t remember it myself until you asked me, but I’m quite prepared to swear to it now. I did hear a car, and it was going back the way we came.”

“Suggesting that Mr. Zero had run his car on a bit and left it turned all ready to go back to town again?” said Mr. Brook.

Algy admitted a faint tone of sarcasm to his voice.

“I won’t go so far as that-but then I haven’t your imagination.”

Mr. Brook smiled faintly.

“Imagination may be very useful,” he said. “Now I want to ask whether you noticed what time it was when Miss Hardwicke left you to find her way up the drive last night.”

Algy had a sudden conviction that the answer to this question was going to matter a great deal. If he hadn’t known the answer, it wouldn’t have mattered. But he did know it, and it came home to him that if he gave it he might be landing himself in trouble, and if he hesitated it was bound to make a very bad impression. He said without any perceptible pause,

“I looked at the clock when Miss Hardwicke got out of the car, and it was just on twelve.”

Colonel Anstruther said explosively, “What do you mean just on twelve, sir? Can’t you be accurate?”

Algy looked in his direction. The old boy was hostile, definitely hostile. He made his voice as deferential as he could and apologized.

“I’m sorry, sir. It was between one and two minutes to twelve.”

“Yes,” said Mr. Brook-“that is Miss Hardwicke’s recollection also. How long did you wait before you followed her?”

“I gave her a couple of minutes.”

“So you left the car at twelve o’clock. How long do you suppose it would take you to reach the strip of grass beyond the yew hedge?”

“I haven’t timed it,” said Algy. “I suppose you have.”

Mr. Brook nodded.

“It took me four and a half minutes this morning. I might take anything from five to seven or eight minutes in the dark. It might take no more than four for a man who had a torch-and knew his way-and was in a hurry to get there.”

Algy laughed.

“In other words, you mean Mr. Zero might have done it in four minutes. But then why should Mr. Zero have been in a hurry?”

“We should be interested to know that,” said Mr. Brook. “Perhaps you will answer your own question.”

Algy smiled.

“I’m afraid only Mr. Zero could do that.”

There was a momentary silence-rather a concentrated sort of silence. It said, with no need of words, “Well, here you are-the game’s up. Why not make a clean breast of it?”

It would have given Algy the most extraordinary pleasure to take the Inspector by the scruff of his neck and bang his face on the table, chuck little Brook through the window, and let fly with the inkpot at old Anstruther. Instead he maintained an admirable self-control and waited for somebody else to speak.

The silence was broken by Mr. Brook.

“Lady Colesborough says she heard the clock strike twelve just before she left her room. I have ascertained that this clock is five minutes fast. It was therefore six or seven minutes past twelve before she left the house. That would allow Mr. Zero six or seven minutes to arrive at the rendezvous before she got there.”

“But you don’t know when Mr. Zero started, or where he was coming from-do you?” said Algy.

“Don’t we?” said Mr. Brook. “I wonder. But we know when you started, Mr. Somers. You could easily have reached the rendezvous before Lady Colesborough got there.”

Algy contemplated him with amusement.

“I’m afraid that doesn’t help you very much.”

“No? Well, we shall see. Meanwhile here is a provisional timetable. 11.58, Miss Hardwicke enters the drive. 12 o’clock, Mr. Somers enters the drive; Lady Colesborough prepares to leave her room. 12 to 12.05, Lady Colesborough leaves the house by the parlour door; Sir Francis follows her. 12.05, Mr. Zero arrives at the rendezvous. 12.07, Lady Colesborough arrives at the rendezvous. 12.08 to 12.09, Sir Francis gets there after skirting the rose garden. 12.10, Sir Francis is shot. 12.11, Miss Hardwicke arrives and finds Lady Colesborough holding the pistol. The butler Sturrock says it was just after a quarter past twelve when the alarm-bell rang and aroused the servants’ wing.”