Murder of a Snob by Roy Vickers Page B

my uncle’s which, in my opinion, implied that she was not a suitable woman for me to marry. You never met him? He used to make a point of being rougher than he really was—and that was a lot! Miss Lofting thought I was exaggerating the importance of the remark. After a couple of hours, she said she would go at once to my uncle and get him to define his attitude. I told her I hoped she would not do so, as it could only make matters worse. I asked her instead to come with me to a swimming pool—the Three Witches, a roadhouse ten minutes’ drive from here. She said she did not want to. My last words as she left me were: ‘Please don’t go to the library’.”
    Benscombe came quietly into the room and sat down. Ralph continued:
    â€œI saw her go into the house by the front door, not the window, which was nearer. I hoped she had decided to take my advice and do nothing. I hung about a bit. I admit I was rather worked up about it. When I felt I could stand the suspense no longer, I went to the library window and opened it.”
    He paused, looked Crisp in the face, and added:
    â€œThen I was very relieved to see that Miss Lofting had not gone to the library after all.”
    That was Crisp’s second surprise—that Ralph and Claudia had not put their heads together and agreed on their tale, though they had had ample time and opportunity to do so.
    â€œHow could you tell? She might have gone to the library and left before you arrived?”
    â€œMy uncle was asleep.” Ralph’s tone had become sulky.
    â€œHe wouldn’t have had time to go to sleep if she had been talking to him a few minutes before I came in.”
    â€œGo on. Don’t leave it to me to pull the facts out of you.”
    â€œYou want such tiny details!” Ralph sank back in the easy chair and covered his eyes with his hands. “I was uncertain what I wished to do. It’s a bit of an effort to remember every single thing … I saw a metal thing on the floor, near his feet, as if he had knocked it off the writing table. I picked it up. It was an address die-stamp, I think.”
    His voice tailed off into silence.
    â€œWas it this one on the table here?” asked Crisp.
    Ralph did not remove his hands from his eyes.
    â€œYes. I saw it just now. That’s the one.” He added querulously: “Why shouldn’t it be?”
    The effect of the sedative drug seemed to be wearing off, leaving him irritable and suspicious.
    â€œWhat did you do with it?”
    â€œI’ll tell you in a minute—it’s no good hurrying me! I put it on the table with a bit of a clatter. But it didn’t wake him up. Then I hoped he wouldn’t wake up, as I’d forgotten what I meant to say to him. I went out by the window just as that beastly clock was chiming a quarter past five. I tripped on the lawn and fell down. Then I remembered that I had decided to have a swim. So I went and had the swim.”
    â€œThat’s better!” approved Crisp. “I gather you were in a somewhat agitated state from about two-thirty onwards, weren’t you?”
    â€œI certainly was!”
    â€œWhy?”
    Ralph dropped his hands and stared at Crisp.
    â€œWhy?” repeated Crisp. “You’ve told me that your uncle made some disparaging remark about Miss Lofting. It must have been a very mild remark, or Miss Lofting would have walked out of the house. But she intended to stay on for the weekend. Surely the remark can’t have been worth all that hullabaloo! She didn’t seem to think herself insulted when she was talking to me just now.”
    â€œIn my own mind I may have exaggerated the insult element,” admitted Ralph. “But I didn’t exaggerate the practical element. If his Will left me penniless in the event of my marrying Miss Lofting—”
    â€œ If! But I understand from Miss Lofting that he read the Will to the three of you: then locked it up