Chapter 30 Chapter 29 Interrogation in the Little Green House

It was eleven o'clock the next morning. Seven people gathered in the little green house. Hercule Poirot stood by the fireplace.Charles and Theresa Arundell sat on the couch.Charles put one hand on the arm of the sofa and the other on Theresa's shoulder.Dr. Tanios sat in grandfather's chair, his eyes were red and black veil was tied around his arm. Sitting in a straight-backed chair by the round table was the lord of the house, Miss Lawson.Her eyes were also red and her hair was looser than before.Dr. Donaldson sat opposite Poirot, his face expressionless. I looked at each person's face in turn, and my interest suddenly increased.

In the days of working with Poirot, I managed many such scenes as his assistant: a small group of people, everyone on the surface is wearing a sanctimonious mask on their faces.I have seen Poirot tear off the mask from a man's face and make it what he really is--a murderous face! Yes, it is undoubtedly the case here, too, this time.One of these men is a murderer!But who is it?Even now, I'm not sure. Poirot cleared his throat—a small habitual exaggeration of his—and began to speak: "Ladies and gentlemen: We gather today to investigate the events surrounding the death of Emily Arundell on May 1.Here are four possibilities—she could have died of natural causes—she could have died by accident—she could have committed suicide—and finally, she could have died at the hands of someone known or perhaps unknown.

The case was not examined at the time of her death as it was believed she died of natural causes and Dr Granger provided a medical certificate of natural death. In this case, if people have doubts after the deceased is buried, it is generally necessary to exhume and open the coffin for a new autopsy.In this case, I have good reasons why I do not advocate it.One of the main reasons is that my client doesn't like to do it. " Donaldson interrupted him first to say: "Your client?" Poirot turned to him and said: "My client is Miss Emily Arundell. I am working for her. It is her greatest wish that the scandal be kept private."

I have omitted Poirot's speech for the next ten minutes in order to avoid unnecessary repetition.Poirot related the letter he had received and read it aloud.He explained how he had come to Market Basing and how he had discovered the means of tripping the old lady up. Then he paused, cleared his throat again and said: "I will now take you all where I have traveled in search of truth. I will show you the facts of this case for what they are." "In the first place it is necessary to give an exact picture of Miss Arundell's state of mind. I think that would be easy. She has fallen, and it is thought that a dog-ball happened to trip her over, but she knows it best herself. Lying on her sickbed, she reviewed the circumstances of her fall with an active and alert mind, and she herself came to the positive conclusion that someone had meant to hurt her—perhaps to kill her."

"Based on this theory, she went further to think about who that person was. There were seven people in this house—four new guests, one her maid, and two servants. The seven Of the individuals, there was only one who was completely free from suspicion—for from that person she gained nothing from it. She was not too suspicious of the two servants, who had been with her for many years, and she knew them She is loyal to her. Of the remaining four people, three are relatives in her family, and one is a relationship established by relatives. Her death will benefit all four people, three directly and one indirectly. .”

"She's in a difficult position because she's a woman with a strong sense of family dignity. As the saying goes, she's someone who insists that family ugliness should not be exposed. On the other hand, she's not one to submit to attempts to murder her." "So she made up her mind to write to me. She also took further precautions. I believe that her further measures were motivated by two motives. First, a grudge against all members of her family! She suspected them without exception. All of them, she was determined to liquidate them at all costs! The second motive, which was more plausible, was her wish to protect herself, and to find a way to achieve it. As you know, she wrote to Attorney Purvis, Instructing him to draw up a will for the benefit of only one person in the house, who she is convinced has nothing to do with the affair."

"I will now go further and say that, from the terms of her letter to me and from her subsequent actions, I am quite certain that Miss Arundell has moved from a general suspicion of the four to a suspicion of only one of the four. .The gist of her letter to me was always to insist that the matter be kept strictly confidential, because it involved the honor of the whole family." "From a Victorian point of view, I take it to mean that she's pointing out someone with her own surname - definitely a man. If she suspects Mrs Tanios did it, she'll be more anxious to defend herself for the safety of her life, without worrying too much about the honor of the family, for she is married off. She felt the same way about Theresa Arundell, and not so strongly about Charles."

"Charles is the heir of the Arundels. He bears the family name forever! Her reasons for doubting him are very clear. First, she has long since disenchanted with Charles. He has brought the family into disrepute in the past. That is to say, She knew he was not only a potential but a real criminal! He once forged her name on a check. Forgery, cheating, and further—murder!" "And just two days before her accident, she had a thought-provoking conversation with him. He asked her for money, and she wouldn't give it to him, and he took the opportunity to say—oh, he said it briskly— —She will be assassinated shortly. She answered him that she would take care of herself! People told me, and her nephew said, don't be too confident. And two days later, the abominable accident happened. "

"There can be no doubt that Miss Arundell, lying in bed and reflecting on the events, has come to the positive conclusion that it was Charles Arundell who attempted to kill her." "The sequence of events is very clear: the conversation with Charles; the accident; her letter to me in a state of great dismay; the letter to the solicitor; Here comes a new will; she signs it." "When Charles and Theresa came over at the weekend, Miss Arundell immediately took the necessary steps to defend herself. She told Charles she had written a new will. She not only told him but actually showed him! It seemed to me a coup! She made it clear to a would-be murderer that murdering her would do him no good any more!"

"She might have thought that Charles would break the news to his sister Theresa. But Charles didn't. Why? I guess he had his reasons - he felt he was guilty! He believed it was because of his bad This new will was born out of his deeds. Why did he feel guilty? Was it because he had actually contemplated murder? Or was it because he stole a small sum of cash himself? His reluctance to tell may be a realization of his own seriousness. The crime, or perhaps the little incident. He shut up about it, and hoped that his aunt would be merciful and change her mind." "As far as Miss Arundell's state of mind is concerned, I think I have conceived the matter quite correctly. Next, I will judge for myself whether her suspicions are really justified."

"As she did, my suspicions were limited to a small circle—seven people, to be exact: Charles and Theresa Arundell, the Tanios, two servants, Law Miss Sen. There is an eighth person here, which must also be taken into account--this is Donaldson, who dined here the evening I did not know he was there until recently." "The persons I am considering fall into two classes. Six of the seven would benefit somewhat from Miss Arundell's death. If any of the six were guilty of murder, it would be for the simple reason that The second category includes only one person—Miss Lawson. Miss Lawson didn't benefit from Miss Arundell's fall to her death, but she did gain greatly later on as a result of that accident!" "I mean, if Miss Lawson directed this so-called accident..." "I never did such a thing!" interrupted Miss Lawson. "Shameless! Stand there and say such a thing!" "Be patient, madam, and please don't interrupt me," said Poirot. Miss Lawson threw back her head angrily. "I stand by my protest! Shameless, that's it! Shameless!" Poirot ignored her and went on: "I mean that if Miss Lawson had directed the accident, it had been done for quite a different purpose--that is, she had done it so that it was natural for Miss Arundell to be suspicious of her own family and to fight with her." It is possible that they are estranged! I searched for any facts to confirm this or the contrary, and I found one solid fact. If Miss Lawson wished Miss Arundell to be suspicious of her family, she might The dog thing, the fact that Bob was out that night, should have been emphasized over and over again. Instead, Miss Lawson did her best to keep it from Miss Arundell's hearing. So, I'll argue for Miss Lawson: She must be innocent!" Miss Lawson snapped: "I hope so!" "I next considered the question of Miss Arundell's death. If a murderer fails to kill one, he will generally make another. It seems to me meaningful that the two men who died just after the first attempted murder During the week, Miss Arundell died. I started to investigate." "Dr Granger seemed to think there was nothing unusual about his patient's death. This was a minor setback to my theory. But when I investigated the events of the night before she became ill, I found one of great significance. Miss Isabel Tripp mentioned that there was a halo around Arundell's head. Her sister confirmed her account. Of course, it may be their own imagination--with a kind of Romantic spirit--but I don't think this little incident happened by accident. Miss Lawson also told me something interesting when I asked her about it. She mentioned a glittering streamer coming from Miss Arundell's mouth. out, and formed a glowing cloud of smoke around her head." "Obviously, although the accounts of the two observers are slightly different, the specific facts are the same. Why is this so? Let us strip away the color of spiritualism. This is because: On the night of the accident, Arundel The lady spits out phosphor when she breathes!" Donaldson shifted in his chair. Poirot nodded to him. "Yes, you are beginning to see clearly. There are not many phosphorous substances in the world. The most common one is the one I found. I will read you a passage from an article on phosphorus poisoning of." "Before he felt sick, the man exhaled phosphorescence on his breath. This is what Miss Lawson and Miss Tripp saw at night - the phosphorescence exhaled by Miss Arundel - the 'sparkling fog '." I read on: "In a patient whose jaundice has spread throughout the body, the systemic symptoms may be affected not only by the effects of phosphorus poisoning, but also by complications associated with the stagnation of bile secretion in the blood; Whether it is phosphorus poisoning, or the effects of liver disease—for example, as in the case of jaundiced liver." "Do you see how cleverly this accident was done? Miss Arundell has been suffering from liver disease for many years, and the symptoms of phosphorus poisoning appear to be nothing more than a recurrence of liver disease. There is nothing new, nothing surprising." "Oh! Great plan! Phosphorus in foreign matches—doesn't it have insecticides too? It's not difficult to get phosphorus, and it kills in small doses. Medicines generally range from 1/100 to 1/30." "Well, how clear the whole thing is--how clear! But the doctor was also deluded--but I'll point out that he smelled a smell--garlic breath, which is a form of phosphorus poisoning. Obvious signs. He didn't suspect it—but why should he? There were no circumstances that made him suspicious, there was a single thread that made him suspicious, but he never heard—even if he did, He would also chalk it up to superstitious spiritualism - gibberish." "On the evidence of Miss Lawson and Miss Tripp, I'm sure it was murder. The question remains: Who was the murderer? I ruled out the servants—who, in their state of mind, obviously would have been difficult to commit to such a thing. .I rule out the murder of Miss Lawson, because, if she had anything to do with the murder, she wouldn't naively talk of shiny things about apparitions. I rule out the murder of Charles Arundel, because he When he saw the will, he knew that his aunt's early death would gain him nothing." "Now it's just his sister Theresa, Dr. and Mrs. Tanios, and Dr. Donaldson, who I later found out was having dinner at the Little Green House the night of the dog ball incident." "At this point, there is no more evidence to help me. I have to rely on criminal psychology and the analysis of the killer's personality! Both crimes are almost the same method. Both times the method is very simple. The criminal is cunning and efficient. Do this It requires some knowledge, but not much. Phosphorus poisoning is easy to hear about, and as I said, phosphorus is easy to get, especially abroad." "My first thoughts are two men. Both of them are doctors and very intelligent. Both of them will think of phosphorus, and think that phosphorus is appropriate in this particular case, but the dog's ball incident does not seem to be what the man thinks. out. I see the dog ball incident as if it were a woman's idea." "Of the two women, theresa Arundell comes to mind first, she has potential. She is bold, fierce, not overly cautious. She lives a selfish, greedy life. She always gets Everything she wants, she desperately wants money and it has driven her to the point of insanity - she wants money for herself and the man she loves. From her demeanor, she knows her aunt was murdered .” "There was an interesting little incident between her and her brother. My idea is that they both suspected each other of guilt. Charles did his best to get her to say that she knew of the existence of a new will. Why? Clearly, because if she had known of the new will, she would not have been suspected of being the murderer. On the other hand, it was clear that she did not believe Charles' claim that Miss Arundell had shown him the new will. Will! She thinks it's just a clumsy ploy by him to divert suspicion from him." "There is another point of significance. Charles tabooed the word 'arsenic'. I later found out that he had been grilling the old gardener at length about the efficacy of herbicides. It was clear what he had in mind." Charles Arundell moved slightly. "I thought about killing someone," he said, "but—well, I'm feeling overwhelmed." Poirot nodded to him and said: "Exactly. You are not yet in the state of mind to kill. Your crime is always a crime of cowardice. You steal, you fake--that's the easiest way--but, to kill, you don't Dare! To kill requires an obsessive daring to drive." He also made a lecture posture and said: "Theresa Arundell had enough guts in her heart to do it, but we have other facts to consider. She hasn't had much setbacks, she's had a pretty good life, she's lived it all for herself - that type of person Not the murderous type--except in a fit of rage, though. And--I'm sure--It was Teresa who got the herbicide out of the little tin can." Teresa immediately answered: "Honestly. I thought about killing people. I took the herbicide out of a little tin can in this little green house. But I couldn't do it -- I couldn't take someone's life... Maybe I was bad and selfish Self-interest, but there are things I can't do! I can't kill a living person who is still breathing!" Poirot nodded and said: "Yes, that's true. Miss, you're not as bad as you make yourself out to be. You're only young—a little self-indulgent." He continued: "That left Mrs. Tanios. As soon as I saw her, I realized she was a little frightened. She saw that I was aware of it, and she capitalized on that very quickly. She put herself Portrayed as a woman who was convinced she was terrified of her husband. It didn't take long before she changed tactics. Clever thing to do - but her change didn't fool me. A woman could be terrified of her husband or Afraid of her husband.—But she can't be both. Mrs. Tanios decided to play the latter role—she played it very cleverly—and she even followed me to the hotel lobby, pretending she was going to tell What about me. When her husband came, she knew he would come, and she pretended she couldn't talk in his presence." "I realized right then and there that she wasn't afraid of her husband, she hated him. I put things together right away, convinced that this was the character I was looking for. This wasn't an indulgent woman - it was a frustrated woman. Woman. An average looking woman. Her life is monotonous, she can't attract the men she wants to attract, and finally has to accept a man she doesn't like to avoid being a spinster for life. I can detect her growing dissatisfaction with life , her life in Smyrna was tantamount to exile, depriving her of all that she liked in life. Soon she bore children, and gave them all her affections." "His husband was devoted to her, but she secretly hated him more and more. He had speculated with her money and lost money--which made her hate him still more." "Only one thing would brighten her monotonous life, and that was the expectation that her aunt Emily would die. Then she would have money, and liberty, and money to educate her children, and that was her hope." — remember, education means a lot to her — she's a professor's daughter!" "Perhaps the crime had been planned, or thought of, long before she came to England. She had worked as her father's assistant in the laboratory, and thus had some knowledge of chemistry. She knew the nature of Miss Arundell's condition." , she is fully aware that phosphorus is the ideal substance for her purpose of killing." "When she got to the little green house, she found that there was an easier way. A dog's ball—a string or rope pulled across the top of the stairs. A woman's simple, naive idea." "She tried—and failed. I think: she thinks Miss Arundell won't know the truth. Miss Arundell's suspicions are all directed at Charles. This hapless, ambitious woman with ideas. quietly determined to carry out the original plan. She discovered an excellent vehicle for poisoning, the ready-made pill that Miss Arundell used to take after meals. She opened the shell of the pill, put the phosphorus in it, and then Close it, it's like a children's game." "This pill was mixed with other pills. Miss Arundell was going to swallow this one sooner or later. No one could suspect poison in it. And even if it was discovered by chance, she was not in Market Bay at the time." Xin this place." "She also took a precautionary measure. She got a fake prescription in her husband's name and used it to buy a double dose of chloral hydrate, Hypna, from the pharmacy. I know exactly why she did it— She's going to save it in case something goes wrong." "As I said, from the first time I saw her, I was convinced that she was the one I was looking for, but I had no evidence to prove it. I had to be careful. If Mrs. Tanios thought of me Perhaps suspecting her, I think she will continue to commit crimes and harm others. Further, I believe she has thought about harming others again. One of her hopes in life is to get rid of her husband and set herself free." "The first murder turned out to be a big disappointment to her. It was a shock that all that money, all that intoxicating beauty, went to Miss Lawson, but she went on to the next step with great astuteness. She set to work on Miss Lawson." , touched her conscience, and I suspect that Miss Lawson's conscience has been troubled." Suddenly there was a burst of crying.Miss Lawson took out her handkerchief, covered her mouth and wept. "It's horrible," she whimpered, "I'm wicked, I'm so wicked! You know, I'm very curious about the will—I mean why Miss Arundell has to make a new one. One day." , When Miss Arundell was resting, I managed to open the drawer of the desk, and I found that she wrote in her will that she left everything to me! Of course, I never dreamed that there was so much money. It was only a few thousand Pounds - that's what I thought at the time. Am I not entitled to the money? Knowing that her own relatives never really took care of her! But later, when she got sicker, she asked for the will. I see Came out--I'm sure--she's going to destroy the will...that's how wicked I am. I told her she'd sent it back to Mr. Purvis. Poor old lady, she's so forgetful. She couldn't remember what she did. She took my word for it! She said I had to write a letter to get the will back, and I said I'd do it." "Oh, dear — dear — she was getting sicker and sicker. At last she couldn't think of anything. She died! The money made me shudder when the will was read in public. It was thirty Seventy-five thousand pounds. I never would have thought of anything like it, and I wouldn't have done it if I had known." "I felt as though I had embezzled the money—I didn't know what to do. Bella came to see me one day and I told her she deserved half the money. I think I've been happy again since then." "Do you see?" said Poirot, "that Madame Tanios is succeeding in her purpose. That is why she is against challenging the will. She has plans of her own, and all she hopes in the end is to arouse Law. Miss Mori's displeasure with the others. Of course, she pretended that her wishes were exactly the same as her husband's, but it was quite clear what she really thought." "She had two goals at the time, one: she and her children were separated from Dr. Tanios as soon as possible, and two: to get her share of the money. That way, she would get everything she wanted - with her children Live a rich and intoxicating life in London." "As time went by, she could no longer hide her distaste for her husband. In fact, she didn't want to hide it anymore. Because her behavior made him very incomprehensible. In fact, it was completely logical. She was playing the role of a victim. The role of the frightened woman. If I had any doubts—and she knew I must have doubts—she wanted me to believe that her husband was the murderer. Another murder that she had planned in her mind could happen at any moment, and I was convinced of that. No doubt. I know that she still has a deadly dose of sleeping spirit in her hand. I am afraid that she will create another fake case of her husband committing suicide in fear of crime." "But I have no conclusive evidence that she committed the crime! Just when I was almost desperate, I finally found evidence! Miss Lawson told me that on the night of Monday after Easter, she saw Theresa Arundell Kneeling on the stairs. I soon discovered that Miss Lawson could not have seen Miss Theresa very clearly at all--did not recognize her face very clearly. But she was sure that she was right. After pressing , she said Theresa wore a brooch with two capital English letters on it - TA. At my request, Miss Teresa showed me this brooch. At the same time, she only admitted that she had had been on the stairs at the time in question. At first I thought that someone might have borrowed her a brooch, but when I looked at it in the mirror I saw the truth at once. Lawson, who had just woken up, She vaguely saw a person wearing a brooch with the two letters TA gleaming on it. She immediately concluded that it was Theresa." "However, if the letter she sees in the mirror is TA—then the original letter should be AT, because the mirror image will naturally reverse the original word order." "Mrs. Tanios's mother is called Arabella Arundell, and Bella is just the abbreviation of Arabella. In the two letters AT, A stands for Arabella, T stands for Tatanios, and AT refers to Tani Mrs. Os. Mrs. Tanios has a brooch that is almost exactly like Teresa's, no surprise there. Last Christmas, very few people wore such brooches, but this spring they are very popular. I've observed that Mrs. Tanios takes the hat and dress patterns of her cousin Theresa as far as finances allow." "It seems to me, at any rate, that my case has been proved." "Now—what's the next step? With the permission of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, exhume the body? It can undoubtedly be done. Then I may be able to prove that Miss Arundell was poisoned by phosphorus, although it will also raise a little doubt. Buried for more than two months, I know that some phosphorus poisoning cases cannot be found in books, and the superficial examination of the dead is not conclusive. So, can I find evidence that Mrs. Tanios bought or She kept the phosphorus herself? But since she may have bought it abroad, the likelihood of finding evidence is doubtful." "At this point I was convinced that unless I struck first, her husband would be the next victim. I took steps to keep them separated from each other on the pretext of keeping her safe. Of course she couldn't quite object. What was really on my mind at the time was It's his safety. And then—then . . . " Poirot stopped talking--a long pause.His face grew pale. "That's just a temporary measure. I must try to stop the murderer from killing. I must protect the lives of innocent people." "So I wrote a letter of my opinion about the facts of the case and gave it to Mrs. Tanios." There was a long sinking. "Oh God, that's why she killed herself," Dr. Tanios wept. Poirot said softly: "Isn't this the best solution? She thinks so. Think of the child." Dr. Tanios put his face in his hands. Poirot took a few steps forward and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's got to be done this way. Believe me, it has to be done, or people will die. You're the first—maybe Lawson next, and it will go on." He paused. Dr. Tanios said in a broken voice: "One night, she asked me to take a sleeping pill...I saw her face was not right-I threw the medicine away. From then on, I began to feel that her heart was..." "Go ahead. You're right in part. Think badly. She understands the meaning of her actions..." Dr. Tanios said thoughtfully: "She's been so good to me—always so good." What an incredible conclusion to a self-revealing female murderer!

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