Chapter 10 third quarter

We walked down the street and I stopped in front of the rental agency. "I think my next rent is almost due. I really hope to settle the accounts and move out with Joanna as soon as possible, and give up the rest of the lease." "Don't go," Owen said. "why?" He didn't answer, and after a long silence, he said, "After all——I dare say that your opinion is correct. Lin Stark is indeed not healthy at the moment. Maybe—maybe it will hurt you or—or your sister." "Nothing hurts Joanna," I said. "She's strong and I'm weak, and it kind of makes me uncomfortable."

"I'm just as uncomfortable," Owen said. I gently pushed open the door of the house rental company. "But I won't go just yet," I said. "Curiosity overcame my fear. I want to know the end." I pushed the door and walked in. A lady who was typing stood up and came to me, curly hair and a smirk, but I think she is smarter than the girl with glasses in the office outside. After a minute or two, I suddenly remembered who she was—Miss Kim, Symington's former clerk. I opened my mouth to say what was on my mind: "You used to work for 'Garberys & Symington', didn't you?"

"Yes, yes, that's right, but I think it's better to leave. Although the salary of this job is not high, it is a good job. After all, some things in the world are more valuable than money, are you right?" "Exactly." I said. "Those dreadful anonymous letters!" whispered Miss King. "I've just had one of them, about me and Mr. Symmington--oh, it's so frightening, and the words are dreadful, dreadful! I understand." It's my duty to send the letter to the police, but it's really not a 'pleasure' thing for me, is it?"

"Yes, yes, very unpleasant." "The police thanked me and said I was doing the right thing. But then I thought, if someone is saying this kind of gossip behind their backs—someone must be saying this kind of gossip, otherwise where did the person who wrote the anonymous letter get it?—even if There was never anything wrong between me and Mr Symington, and I had to hide from the limelight." I couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed. "Yes, yes, of course nothing." "But the human heart is so sinister, yes, extremely sinister!" I nervously wanted to avoid this, but unexpectedly met her eyes, and at this moment, I found something unpleasant to me.

Miss King District was clearly very complacent. Today, I have already met a person who is very interested in anonymous letters.I resent Miss King's pleasure in Inspector Grave's professional zeal. A thought suddenly flashed in my mind: Could those anonymous letters be written by Miss Jin District? When I got home, I found the Reverend Mrs. Cassop sitting and chatting with Joanna. She seemed not in good spirits and looked very old. "I am shocked by the incident, Mr. Burton," she said. "Poor thing! Poor thing!" "Yes," I said, "it's a terrible thing to think of when a man is forced to kill himself."

"Oh, you mean Mrs Symmington?" "Aren't you?" Mrs. Cassop shook her head. "Of course I feel a little sorry for her, but it's bound to happen sooner or later, isn't it?" "Really?" Joanna asked coldly. The Reverend Mrs. Cassop turned to look at her, and said: "Oh, I do, my dear. If a person thinks suicide is a way out of trouble, it doesn't make much difference what kind of trouble she's in. Whatever bad things happen to her that she has to deal with, she'll go The way of suicide. This incident made us understand that she is this kind of woman. No one thought of it before. I always thought she was a selfish and slightly stupid woman who was very obsessed with life. I didn’t expect her to be so unbearable——I It’s only now that I realize how little I know about other people.”

"I still don't know who you said was 'poor thing'?" I said. She looked at me and said, "Of course it's the woman who wrote the anonymous letter." "I wouldn't waste my sympathy on her," I said coldly. The Reverend Mrs. Cassop leaned forward, put her hand on my knee, and said: "But don't you understand—don't you feel it? Use your brains, and think about how very, very unhappy, must be very lonely, sitting alone writing a letter like this. Inside her It's like being poisoned again and again, and finally I have to do something wrong, and use this method to vent, so I feel that I should blame myself deeply. There are people in this town who are so unhappy, and I am not at all I know! I should know! We can't interfere with other people's behavior--I never will, but that miserable inner pain, like a poisoned arm, if the whole arm can be cut off, The venom will flow away without harming anyone. Alas, poor soul, poor soul."

She got up to leave. I didn't agree with her, and I had no sympathy for the person who wrote the anonymous letter, but I asked curiously: "Mrs. Cassop, do you know who this woman is?" She looked at me with those bleary eyes and said, "If I say it, I might guess wrong, right?" She walked quickly to the door, turned around and asked me, "Tell me, Mr. Burton, why have you never been married?" It would have been presumptuous for anyone else to ask that question, but coming from Mrs. Cassop the Rev. Cassop's mouth gave the impression that she had just thought of it and really wanted to know the answer.

"Let's say," I replied, "it's because I've never met the right woman." "That's an explanation," said Mrs. Cathorpe, "but it's not a very good explanation, because there are a lot of men who marry the wrong woman." This time, she really left. Joanna said: "You know, I really think she's kind of crazy, but I like her anyway. The town is scared of her." "I'm a little scared of her, too." "Because you never know what's going to happen next?" "Well, and her guess is often right."

Joanna said slowly, "Do you really think the person who wrote the anonymous letter is unhappy?" "I don't know what that damn witch thinks or feels! I don't care about it at all, I can only feel sorry for the victims." In retrospect, it's a little strange that when we thought of the owner of the "poison pen," we should have overlooked the most obvious one.Griffey has described her as perhaps being overjoyed, I think she may be terrified of the trouble she has caused and regretting a little, and the Reverend Mrs Cathorpe thinks she is suffering. But the most obvious and unavoidable reaction that none of us thinks of—or maybe I should say, “I” doesn’t think of—is that reaction of “fear.”

With Mrs Symington's death, the anonymous letter has entered another phase.I don't know what the legal status of the writer is - Symington should know, I suppose - but it's clear that since the anonymous letter has killed a man, the writer is more guilty.If the writer of the letter had now been found out, it would have been impossible to laugh it off.The police were very active and Scotland Yard sent an expert.At present, the author of the anonymous letter must try his best to hide his name. Since "fear" is the main reaction, other things can be traced one by one.Unfortunately, I ignored those possibilities at the time.But those things really should be obvious.