Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen

Poirot said thoughtfully: "When we sat here that morning and talked about those sunburned bodies lying there like meat on a chopping board, I also said then that there was not much difference between these bodies. , if you look carefully—of course there is a difference—but if you just glance at it? Every young woman with a better figure is very similar to each other, two brown legs, two brown arms, In the middle is a tiny swimsuit—just a human body lying in the sun. If a woman is walking, talking, laughing, turning her head, raising her hands—then, yes, then, see You can tell her personality—she has her uniqueness. But when she is sunbathing—the personality is gone.

"We talked about evil that day too—the Reverend Lane said that evil under the sun does evil. Mr. Lane is a very sensitive man—evil affects him a lot—he can sense it—but Although he was a good recorder, he couldn't really understand where the evil lay. Evil incarnate, he said, was Elena Marshall, and almost everyone agreed with him. "In my mind, though, I think there's evil, but it's not centered on Eleanor Marshall alone. There's something to do with her, yes—but it's a whole other thing. All the way through, I always thought she was actually a victim because she was beautiful, because she was attractive, because men would turn their heads to look at her, and people assumed she was the kind of woman who would ruin other people's lives and corrupt other people's souls. But I see her in a completely different way. It's not that she attracts men everywhere—it's that men attract her everywhere. She's the kind of woman that men fall in love with easily and get bored with easily. And all I've been told , and everything I found further confirms my view. The first mention of her is that the man who caused a divorce because of her involvement refused to marry her. After this incident, Mr. Marshall, a man of extraordinary chivalry, came to propose to her. For a shy and reserved man like Marshall, public humiliation is the most unbearable torture-hence he Will have love and pity for his first wife, because she was charged and tried for a murder she would never have committed. He married her and found that he was completely right about her, and after she died, Another beautiful woman, perhaps of the same type (for Linda also had red hair, presumably inherited from her mother), was also publicly humiliated. Marshall came forward to save her again, but this time he But he found that it was not as he expected, Elena was stupid, not worthy of his sympathy and protection, and she had no brains. But even so, he had always had a pretty clear understanding of her. In his After he stopped loving her, although he didn't want to see her, he felt sorry for her. In his mind, she was like a child who couldn't find a new page in his life.

"I saw Elena Marshall's passion for men and knew she was the perfect prey for a certain type of man. And from Patrick Redfern, with his appearance, relaxed and confident His expression, his demeanor that is difficult for women to ignore, let me immediately recognize him as that type of man. The kind of man who will use women to make a living. Looking down from my seat by the sea, I'm pretty sure Elena was Patrick's prey, not the other way around, and it's Patrick Redfonne, not Arlena Marshall, who I think is evil. "Elena just got a lot of money recently. It was bequeathed to her by an old man who loved her so much that he hadn't had time to get tired of her. She is the kind of woman whose money will eventually be cheated by men. Bray Miss Sturt speaks of a young man who was 'ruined' by Elena, but found him in a letter in her room, although expressing his desire to dress her full of jewels--it doesn't cost money , but in fact to show that he had received a check from her which he hoped would save him from being sued for shortfalls, which is a good example of a young rascal defrauding her. I believe Patrick C. Redfon must have found it easy to coax her into giving him large sums of money to 'invest' now and then. He probably lied to her with stories of great opportunities--that he could make them Both made a lot of money. A woman who has no one to protect and lives alone is the easiest prey for this type of man-usually he can easily get it without any trouble. However, in case there is a husband , or a brother, and a papa, it might be troublesome. Once Mr. Marshall finds out where his wife's money is, Patrick Redfern is likely to be in trouble. But he Not worried at all, for he had already planned to kill her if necessary - he was so bold because he had already committed a murder that went undetected - it was a man who went by the name of Corrigan. The young woman who married, listened to his words, and invested a huge amount of life insurance.

"Helping him in his plans was a young woman, here represented as his wife, who, in fact, had a very intimate relationship. The young woman was as distinct from his quarry as possible. — she was calm, not at all enthusiastic, but very loyal to him, and a very good actress. Since she arrived here, Christine Redfern has started to play her role, playing a 'Poor little wife' - frail, helpless, more mental than physical. Consider her emphasis, her inability to bask in the sun, her fair skin, her fear of heights - outside Milan Cathedral Stories about being stuck in mid-air etc. emphasize her fragility everywhere - almost everyone mentions her as a 'little woman'. She is actually the same height as Elena Marshall, but her hands and feet are thinner. Much smaller. She said that she used to be a teacher, so as to make people think that she was a person who could only drill in books, but had no motor skills. In fact, she did teach in schools, but her job It was a physical education teacher, and she was a very active young woman who climbed like a cat and ran like an athlete.

"The crime itself was well planned and timed with extreme precision. As I have said before, it was a 'slippery' crime. The timing was a work of genius. The base scene - one played at Sunny Cliffs and they happened to know I was next door - was a typical conversation between a jealous wife and her husband. Then she and I played it again The same character once. At that time, I remember vaguely feeling that which set seemed to be read in which book, and it seemed very unreal. Of course, it was because it was not real, and then the day the crime happened The weather was fine that day - a necessary condition. Redfang's first step was to slip out early - through the balcony door which he unlocked from the inside (if anyone finds the door open, would have thought someone had gone for an early swim). In his large bath towel he concealed a green Chinese hat, made exactly like the one Elena was accustomed to wearing. He slipped to the other side of the island, Descending the ladder and hiding the hat in a pre-agreed spot, probably behind a few rocks, is the first part.

"On the first night, he had already made a date with Elena. They usually arranged the meeting very carefully, because Elena was still a little afraid of her husband. She agreed to go to Little Demon Bay very early, It was deserted there in the morning, and Redfon had promised to meet her there, and would find a chance to slip away when no one was looking, in case she heard someone coming down a ladder, or a boat coming in. If she came from the sea, she would quickly hide in the goblin cave. He had told her the secret of that place and asked her to stay there until everyone had gone away. This is the second part.

"At the same time, Christine went to Linda's room at the time she calculated that Linda should be going to go to the morning swim, and set Linda's watch forward by twenty minutes. Of course, it would be foolish of Linda to do this. Da may find out that she is wrong, but even if she finds out, it doesn't matter. Christine's real alibi is the size of her hand, which proves that she is absolutely impossible to be the murderer. But there is one more alibi Always good. When she was in Linda's room, she found the book on witchcraft and magic again. It was opened on a certain page. She looked at it, and when Linda came back to the room, it was scattered again. As soon as she bought a pack of candles, she knew what was going on in Linda's mind, which also triggered a new idea for her. Originally, the pair of criminal partners planned to put considerable suspicion on Gan Yishi Marshall. That's why he stole one of his pipes and put some of the pieces at the foot of the ladder in Little Demon Bay. After Linda came back, Christine easily made an appointment with her to go to Gull Bay, and then she returned to her In the room, he took out a bottle of colored oil from a locked box, carefully applied it on his body, and then threw the empty bottle out of the window, almost hitting Emily Brest, who was swimming in the morning. The third part was successfully completed.

"Christine then puts herself on a white swimsuit over a beach trousers suit, the wide sleeves and hems of which hide her freshly painted brown arms and legs. 10:15 Time-sharing, Elena left the beach to go to her appointment, and a minute or two later, Patrick Redfang came down, making a look of surprise, annoyance, etc., and Christine's job was much easier, She hid her watch, but at eleven twenty-five she asked Linda what time it was. Linda looked at her watch and replied that it was a quarter to twelve. Then she went for a swim, and Ke Christine started to pack her painting utensils. After Linda turned her back, Christine picked up the watch that the girl must take off before going into the water, and set it back to the correct time. Then she Climbed quickly along the path to the bank, ran a short distance, got to the top of the ladder over there, took off her clothes, hid behind the boulder with her painting things and so on, and quickly descended the ladder. Showed her true skill as an athlete.

"Elena was down on the beach wondering why Patrick hadn't come in so long. She saw or heard someone coming down the ladder, and she peeked cautiously and saw that the person who had come was the last person to come. - her lover's wife! So she quickly hid in the goblin hole. "Christine took the hat out of its hiding place, a red wig sewed under the back fringe, and lay on the sand covering her face and neck with the hat and wig. The timing was perfect , a minute or two later, the boat carrying Patrick and Emily Brest came around the headland. Remember that it was Patrick who bent down to examine the 'body', and it was Patrick who froze He was - startled - and broke because the woman he loved was dead! His witnesses were also carefully chosen. Miss Brest was afraid of heights, so it wouldn't have occurred to her to climb a ladder and go overland to call the police , she will definitely leave the bay by boat again, and of course Patrick will stay and watch over the body—"in case the murderer is still around." Miss Brest rowed to find the police, Christine and others As soon as the boat was gone, she sprang to her feet, shredded the paper hat into her bathing suit with a pair of scissors that Patrick had brought, climbed the ladder at a gallop, and put on her baggy beach suit. , ran back to the hotel, just had time to take a quick shower, rinse off her paint, and change into her tennis outfit. She also did one thing, throw the pieces of the green paper hat and wigs were sent to the fireplace in Linda's room to be burned, and a calendar was added to make it appear that the cardboard was part of the calendar. It was not a hat that was burned, but a calendar. Because she suspected that Linda might It was an experiment in magic—there was only the melting candle and the needle.

"Then she went to the tennis courts, and although she was the last to arrive, she didn't look rushed at all. "Meanwhile, Patrick went to the goblin's cave, and Elena saw nothing and heard very little—there was a boat coming—a voice—she had been hiding in the cave. But now Patrick K was calling to her, 'It's all right, honey.' She came out of the hole, and his hands were around her neck—and that was the end of poor, stupid beauty Eleanor Marshall. . . " His voice stopped, and for a moment, silence enveloped him.Then Rosamund Dailey shuddered and said, "Hey, you let us understand everything, but which side of the story is this? You haven't told us yet. How did you find out the truth?"

Hercule Poirot said: "I told you once that I was very simple-minded, and from the very beginning I always thought it was the most likely suspect who killed Elena Marshall, and the most likely suspect It was Patrick Redfern. He was the type—the kind of man who would take advantage of a woman like her—the kind of man who would be a murderer—the kind of man who would take a woman's savings, And cut her throat. Who did Elena meet that morning? Her face, her smile, her attitude, what she said to me, etc., can prove it was - Patrick Redfonne. So, naturally, it was Patrick Redfonne who killed her. "But, as I said before, I was immediately confronted with the impossible. Patrick Redfon couldn't have killed her, because he was with us on the beach before the body was found, and then with us. Miss Brest was on board together. So I had to find another answer - there are several other possibilities, she was probably killed by her husband - assisted by Miss Daley - the two of them Lied at one point, doubtful. She could have been killed because she stumbled upon a smuggler. She could have been killed by a religious fanatic. It could have been her stepdaughter. This last point once made me think it was the real answer. Linda's attitude when she was interrogated by the police for the first time was enough proof. And then I talked to her once, which made me confirm one thing , Linda pleaded guilty." "You mean, she imagined that she really killed Elena?" Rosamund asked in an unbelievable tone. Hercule Poirot nodded. "Yes, remember—she was only a child. She read that book on witchcraft, and half believed what it said, and she hated Elena. She deliberately made a wax figure, cast a spell, pierced the heart with a needle, and melted it again—and on that day, Elena died. Anyone older and smarter than Linda would be right She believed in witchcraft, and of course she believed it was all true—she thought she had killed her stepmother by witchcraft." Rosamund exclaimed: "Oh, poor child, poor child. I thought—I suppose it was—something quite different from that—I thought she knew something that might—" Rosamone paused, and Poirot said, "I know what you're thinking. In fact, your attitude frightened Linda even more. She believed that her actions had really brought Wenlena's death, and you Already knew about it. Christine Redfern worked on it and made her know that there were sleeping pills that would enable her to get over her sin quickly and painlessly. You know, once Mr. Marshall proves After he did have an alibi, they had to find a new suspect, neither Christine nor her husband knew about the drug smuggling, so they decided to let Linda be the scapegoat." Rosamund said: "What a devil she is!" Poirot nodded, "Yes, you are quite right. She is a cold-blooded and cruel woman. As far as I am concerned, I have encountered great difficulties. Is Linda just childishly trying to try witchcraft? Really vented her hate further—really committed a crime? I tried to get her to confess to me, but it didn't work. I didn't know for sure at the time. The chief of police was very interested in accepting drug smuggling or something. I could just let him go like that. I went through all the facts again and again. You know, I kind of had a whole bunch of jigsaw puzzle pieces, some isolated events—some simple facts. All of these Must be able to put together a complete picture. There is a pair of scissors found on the beach - a bottle thrown from a window - someone has taken a bath. But no one will admit it - these events themselves seem to be no big deal , but no one is willing to admit it, there must be other reasons, so these things must have their importance. And these have nothing to do with Mr. Marshall, or Linda, or drug smugglers involved in murder Nothing to do with it. But these little things must mean something, so I went back to my original idea—that Patrick Redfon was the murderer. Is there any evidence to support this claim? There is. There's a huge amount of money missing from Elena's account, who got it? Of course it was Patrick Redfonne. She's one of those people who can easily take money out and make a fool of herself. A woman—but definitely not the kind of woman who will be blackmailed. She is too easy to be seen through at a glance, and she can't keep any secrets at all. I don't believe the story about someone being blackmailed is true. But But somebody heard it—oh, but who heard it? Patrick Redfern's wife. That's her story—without any other exogenous evidence at all, why make it up? What about the story? I immediately thought of the answer, to explain where Elena's money went! "Patrick and Christine Redfern, the two conspired together. Christine neither killed Elena's physical strength, nor did she have enough psychological support. It was Patrick who did the murder—but Seems impossible! Because there were witnesses every minute of his life before the body was found. The body—the word body came to my mind—the human body lying on the sand—they all looked the same. Patrick Redfarn and Emily Brest went over the bay and saw a man lying there. A body—what if it wasn't Elena, but someone else? The face was covered by the top The Chinese hat was covered. "But in fact there was only one body—Elena's. Well, it couldn't be—a living body—someone pretending to be dead? Could it be Elena herself, after listening to Pat Are you kidding me? I shook my head—no, that was too risky. A living body—whose? Who would help Redfon? Yes—his wife. But she It's a very fair, delicate woman—ah, yes, the brown of a human body can be painted with paint, and the paint comes in a bottle—a bottle—one piece of my jigsaw puzzle is a bottle, yes Afterwards, of course, a shower—be sure to wash off the color before she goes out to play tennis. And what about the scissors? Well, for cutting up the other identical hat—then The top hat had to be destroyed, and in the haste the pair of scissors fell--the one thing the killers forgot. "But where was Eleanor all this time? It was clear again. I knew from the same brand of perfume worn by the two ladies that it was either Rosamund Darley or Eleanor Marshall. I've been to the fairy cave, since it's definitely not Rosamund Dailey, then Elena is hiding inside and waiting for the people outside to disperse. "Patrick was alone on the beach after Emily Brest had rowed away, and the time was right for him to carry out his criminal plan. Arlena Marshall at a quarter to twelve Killed, but the coroner's examination only noted the earliest possible time when the crime could have occurred. And they told the coroner, not the coroner, to the police that Elena had died at a quarter past twelve. "There are two other issues that must be resolved. Linda Marshall's testimony provided Christine Redfern with an alibi. True, but that alibi was established by Linda Marshall's watch. Proof that Christine had two successive occasions to set the clock. I found it easy. She had been alone in Linda's room that morning—another circumstantial proof. Someone Hearing Linda say she was 'afraid I'd be late', but by the time she got downstairs, the clock in the hall was only twenty-five past ten. The second chance was more convenient—she could turn around as soon as Linda The watch can be set back after the back is put into the water. Then there is the problem of the ladder. Christine keeps saying that she dare not stand on a high place, which is another carefully prepared lie. "My jigsaw puzzle is almost complete - every piece is beautifully in place. Unfortunately, I don't have the exact proof. It's all in my head. That's when I thought of a Good idea, the reason this crime went so well is because they were so sure, I'm sure Patrick Redfon will repeat his crimes in the future. But in the past, it's likely not his first time Murder. The method he uses, strangling the other party, is very in line with his nature-he is a murderer who kills for pleasure as well as profit. If he has been a murderer, I believe he must also use It was the same tactic. I asked Inspector Cogender for an old record of women being strangled in recent years, and I was very pleased with the result. Nelly Parsons was strangled in the weeds, not necessarily Patrick Redfern's masterpiece--perhaps he had only a hint of local choice, but the Alice Corrigan case got me what I was looking for. That is to say, in the same way , playing tricks on time--the murder did not take place, as usual, before the supposed time, but after. The body was said to have been found at a quarter past four, and the husband of the deceased until four o'clock Twenty-five minutes have an alibi. "What the hell is going on? Witnesses say that Edward Corrigan got to the Pine Rock Tea House, and finding his wife hadn't arrived, he walked up and down to wait for her. In fact, he ran at full speed to Caesarlin--you Of course, I remember that it was not far away, so I killed her and came back to the tea house. The woman who reported the incident was a very respectable lady, a physical education teacher in a famous girls' school, and she obviously had nothing to do with Edward Kerrigan. She had to travel a considerable distance to call the police. The police medical examiner did not examine the body until a quarter to six, and so, as in this case, accepted the reporter's claim of the time of death without further investigation. "And I did one last experiment. I had to know for sure if Mrs. Redfern was lying or not, so I arranged for a picnic in the Great Demoor. Anyone with a fear of heights couldn't cross the river. Miss Brest was such a person that she nearly had an accident, but Christine Redfern ran across the bridge without giving a damn, which was a small thing, but a very good one. If she lied even about such an unnecessary thing—then the rest of it might be a lie. At the same time, Inspector Cogender also sent the photo to the Surrey County Police for identification. I'm sure I can The successful method showed its last trump card, coaxing Patrick Redfonne into thinking he was safe, then turning his head and attacking him as hard as he could, knocking him out of control. The fact that someone pointed out his identity finally made him completely dizzy." Hercule Poirot touched his throat. "What I did," he said seriously, "was very, very dangerous—but I don't regret it. I succeeded! I didn't suffer in vain." There was a silence for a while, and then Mrs. Gardner sighed deeply. "Why, Mr. Poirot," she said, "this is really remarkable—it's as touching as hearing a lecture on criminology to hear you tell me how you got there—in truth, This is a lecture on criminology. To think that my bundle of wool and the conversation about sunbathing on the beach have something to do with this case! I am so excited beyond words, I I'm sure Mr. Gardner feels the same way, don't you, O'Dill?" "Yes, dear," said Mr. Gardner. Hercule Poirot said: "Mr. Gardner has also been of great help to me. I hope to get a very well-informed and reasonable person to talk about Mrs. Marshall. I asked Mr. Gardner's What's your opinion?" "Really?" said Mrs. Gardner. "What do you think of her, O'Dill?" Mr. Gardner coughed and said, "Well, darling, you know, I don't think much of her at all." "That's what men always say to their wives," said Mrs. Gardner. "If you ask me, Mr. Poirot can be quite generous with her, saying she's a born victim or something, but she's not very Well-bred woman, and Mr. Marshall isn't here, I can tell you, I've always thought she was kind of stupid, and I've told Mr. Gardner before, haven't I, O'Dill?" "Yes, dear," said Mr. Gardner. Linda Marshall sat with Hercule Poirot at Gull Bay.She said: "Of course I'm glad I didn't die, but you know, Mr. Poirot, it's the same as killing her, isn't it? I meant to kill her." Hercule Poirot said emphatically: "It's not the same thing at all. The thought of killing and the actual act of killing are two entirely different things, if, say, it's not the one you do in your bedroom." Instead, tie your stepmother there, and you hold a knife in your hand, not a needle, and you will never stab her in the heart. There will be a voice in your heart that will tell you Said 'No', me too. I got angry with someone and I said, 'I really want to kick him.' But I didn't kick him, I kicked the table. I said, 'This table, that's Somebody, I kicked him hard.' Well, I'd feel better if I didn't kick my toes too much, and the table usually wouldn't break. But if the guy himself I wouldn't kick him if he was there. Get a wax man and prick him with a needle. It's silly, yes, childish, yes--but it's good too. You put all the hate in your heart Out on that little wax figure. It wasn't your stepmother that was destroyed with needles and fire—it was your hatred for her. Did you feel better afterwards, before you heard of the death— —more relaxed—and happier?” Linda nodded. She said, "How do you know? That's exactly how I feel." Poirot said: "Then stop feeling this way, and make up your mind not to hate your next stepmother." Linda was taken aback and said, "Do you think I will have another stepmother again? Oh, I see, you mean Rosamon, I don't care about her." She hesitated, "She is very sensible." It was not a word Poirot would have chosen to describe Rosamund Daly, but he knew it was a compliment for Linda. Gan Yishi Marshall said: "Rosamon, did you ever think that I killed Elena?" Rosamund looked ashamed and said, "I think I'm a damn fool." "Not bad at all." "Hey, but Gan, you're like a clam closed tightly, I never know how you really feel about Elena. I don't know if you can accept her as a person, or if it's just for you She's fine, or you—well, just trust her blindly. I think if that's the case, and you suddenly find out that she's sorry for you, you're probably going crazy. I've heard a few things about you, you've always been Quiet, but sometimes you can be scary too." "So you think I put two hands around her throat and strangled her alive?" "Well—yes—that's exactly what I thought. And your alibi didn't seem very strong, so I suddenly decided to intervene and made up a stupid story about seeing you in the room. I typed in it, and I heard later that you said you saw me poking my head in too—well, that made me think you must have done it. Besides that, there was Linda's erratic behavior." Kenneth Marshall sighed and said, "Don't you know that the reason I said I saw you in the mirror was to support your story, and I—I thought you needed someone to help you. " Rosameng stared at him, "You don't mean to say that you think I killed your wife?" Gan Yishi Marshall moved his body a little uneasily, and said vaguely: "Oh, Rosamon, don't you remember that you almost killed that boy for a dog a long time ago? Grabbing my neck and refusing to let go." "But that was many years ago." "Yes, I know that--" Rosamund suddenly asked: "What motive do you think I will have, to kill Elena?" He avoided her gaze and said something vaguely.Rosamund cried, "Gan, you delusional megalomaniac! Do you think I killed her for you? Or—or do you think I killed her because I wanted yours for myself?" reason?" "Not at all," said Kenneth Marshall disapprovingly, "but you know what you said the other day—about Linda and all—and—and you seem to care about me thing." Rosamund said: "I have always cared about you." "I do. You know, Rosamund—I don't usually say much to people—I'm not good with words—but I want to make this clear to you. I don't love Elena—just At first I cared a little bit about her - then living with her day and night was a mental unbearable thing. In fact, it was like living in hell. But I feel sorry for her, she is really a Big fool - crazy about men - she can't help herself - and men are always wronging her and treating her badly. I just don't think I can be the one to give her the last push. Since I Having married her, I must take good care of her as best as I can. I think she knows that too, and is really grateful to me, and she's a—she's a very poor creature." Rosamund said softly: "It's okay, Gan, I understand now." Gan Yishi Marshall didn't look at her, but carefully loaded the pipe, he said vaguely: "You——you are very understanding, Rosamund." There was a slight sarcastic smile on Rosamund's mouth, and she said, "Are you going to propose to me now? Gan, or are you determined to wait another six months?" The pipe from Kenneth Marshall's mouth dropped and shattered on the rocks below.He said, "Damn it, this is the second pipe I've dropped here, and I don't have any. How the hell do you know I think six months is the right time to wait?" "I suppose it's because it should have waited that long. But come on, I hope it's settled now. Because in the meantime, maybe you'll hear about that woman's plight again, and You have to display your heroic spirit and step forward to save her." He laughed loudly: "This time it will be you who are in a miserable situation, Rosamund. You have to give up your clothing business, and we will live together in the countryside." "Don't you know that my business makes quite a lot of money? Don't you know that it's my business—I started it, I worked hard, and I'm so proud of it! How dare you come to follow I said 'Give it up, honey.'" "I have the audacity to say that." "And you think I'll love you so much?" "If you don't," said Kenneth Marshall, "then I don't want you." Rosamund said softly: "Ah, my dear, I have always wanted to live in the country with you for the rest of my life, and now - my dream is about to come true..."