Chapter 11 Chapter Eleven Murder

When Caterina awoke the next morning, the sun was shining through the window of the box.She got into the dining car on time, but missed a new acquaintance.When she returned to her box, she saw a male flight attendant.He had a brush-like beard and a sad face, as if he had just been groomed. "Lucky lady!" he said. "Bright sunshine. Passengers are always disappointed if the train arrives on a dark morning." "Yes, it would disappoint me in that way." "Ma'am, our train is a bit late." The steward continued. "I'll call you when we get to Nizha."

Caterina nodded, and sat by the window again, admiring the charming natural scenery.The palm trees, the deep blue sea, and the golden acacia trees strongly attracted her.Compared with the foggy winter in England, it is a world of difference. When the train arrived in Cannes, Caterina took a walk on the platform.She watched with great curiosity what the lady in the fur coat was doing.The curtains of the lady's box have not been drawn, and this is the only box in the whole train that still has curtains.When Caterina returned to the carriage, she was particularly surprised to find that the windows of the lady's compartment facing the corridor were also curtained.The lady she wants to wear a fur coat must be a snooze.

At this time, the flight attendant informed Caterina that she would arrive at Niza in a few minutes.Caterina tipped him, and he thanked him, but did not leave.Caterina thought it was because the tip was too little, and he might not be satisfied.However, she found that he seemed to have something important to say.His face was pale, and his whole body was shaking. The flight attendant looked at her carefully for a while, then suddenly said, "Excuse me, ma'am, will someone meet you at the station after you arrive at Nizha?" "Maybe someone answered," said Caterina. "Why?"

The man shook his head, stammered something that Caterina didn't catch, and then left to get Caterina's suitcase from the window on the platform. Caterina stayed on the platform for a while, when a man walked up and asked her hesitantly: "You're Ms. Gray, aren't you?" Caterina nodded.The young man smiled heartily and said: "My name is Cupid, Ms. Templin's husband. She may or may not have mentioned me in her letters, but it doesn't matter. Do you have any luggage? I lost it when I got here. You can't Imagine how bureaucratic and dogmatic these French people are, and it got me in so much trouble."

Caterina handed him the luggage tag and was about to leave when she suddenly heard a very polite voice: "Wait a moment, ma'am!" Caterina looked back and saw a man in a yellow police uniform who said: "I still need to go through the formalities. I would be very honored if Ma'am would come with me. This is the policy in the police station..." The man is politely apologetic. "Of course, it looks like a hassle, but you have to follow the rules." Mr. Cuppy Evans wanted to say please excuse me from these formalities, but his poor French made him unable to do so.

"That's just what Frenchies do," he muttered.He belonged to that patriotic Englishman who considers himself a lord to all foreigners, and hates his own countrymen. "These guys are always going to cause some trouble! Otherwise, people who travel here won't have so many unpleasant things. Always come up with new tricks to toss you!" Caterina is led away.To her surprise she was taken to another railway line.to the side of a carriage.This car was taken from the train that just arrived.She was invited into the carriage, and opened a box, in which there was a police officer dressed like a leopard.Next to him stood a female recorder with a strong aroma.The inspector rose politely, bowed to Caterina, and said:

"I beg your pardon, ma'am, but some formalities have not been completed. You speak French, ma'am, don't you?" "Understood, sir," replied Caterina in French. "Great, please take a seat, ma'am, my name is Coe, Chief of Police." Caterina said she knew.Mr. Director's dignity had made a well-deserved impression on her. "You may wish to see my passport, here it is." "Thank you, ma'am." The director said and took the passport, coughing dryly. "I want some information from you." "Condition?" The director nodded in affirmation. "It is about your traveling companion with whom you dined yesterday."

"I don't think I can tell you anything about this lady. We've only talked. Besides, she's a total stranger to me. We've never met before." "But," said the prefect gravely, "you accompanied her back to her box after dinner, and you talked for a long time." "Yes," replied Caterina, "you are right." The chief seemed to be waiting for her to say something.He looked at Caterina with encouraging eyes. "What, ma'am?" "What, sir?" Katerina asked back. "Can you tell me what you talked about?"

"Very willing," Caterina said, "but I see no reason to." She seemed to sense the officer's audacity. "Don't you see some reason?" asked the Commissioner. "I can assure you that it is a reasonable reason." "Then can you tell me?" The director touched his chin and thought for a while. "Ma'am," he said at last, "the reason is simple. The lady died in her box this morning!" "Dead!" Caterina screamed. "Why? Is it a heart attack?" "No," replied the Commissioner in a calm, mournful tone, "no, she was assassinated."

"Assassination?" Katerina shouted again. "You can see, ma'am, that we have every reason to ask you for details about the circumstances." "But her maid is..." "The maid has disappeared." "God!" Caterina became serious now. "The flight attendant saw that you spoke to her in her compartment, and of course he reported this to the Inspector. That is why we have kept you, ma'am, and would like to hear something new from you. .” "Unfortunately," said Caterina, "I don't know her real name yet." "Her name is Kaitlyn. That's what we know from her passport and the address on her suitcase. If we..."

There is a knock on the door.Co touched his forehead.Open the door easily. "What's the matter? I hope it won't disturb my work!" The eggshell-headed man Caterina had met in the dining car flashed past the door with a broad smile. "My name is Hercule Poirot," he said. "Is that so?" stammered the Commissioner, "are you really Hercule Poirot?" "Of course it is true," said Hercule Poirot. "Monsieur Coe, I remember we met at the Paris Insurance Company. You may have forgotten me." "No, not at all, sir." The Chief welcomed him with great joy. "Come in, you probably already know this..." "Yes, I see," replied Poirot. "I'm just wondering if there's anything I can do about the case." "That would be my honour," replied the Commissioner immediately, "Mr. Poirot, allow me to..." He glanced at the passport and put it in Gray's hand. "Introduce Ms. Gray, excuse me, Ms. Gray." Poirot smiled at Caterina. "Isn't that a rare thing," he said. "My words will soon come true." "It's a pity that this lady can only help a little." The director said. "I have already told Mr. Director," said Caterina. "I said this lady was completely foreign to me." "But you talked to her, didn't you?" he asked mildly. "You have a certain impression from the conversation—or?" "Yes." Caterina said thoughtfully. "So what's the impression?" "Exactly, miss!" The director came forward, "Please tell us, what kind of impression do you get?" Caterina recalled her conversation with the lady again.She would have felt inconvenient to reveal the whole truth, but the dreaded word "murder" prevented her from withholding any particulars.Because everything she said had a lot to do with the word "murder."She therefore recounted the details of her conversation with the dead man. "Very interesting," said the Commissioner. "Isn't it, M. Poirot? Very interesting! As to whether it has anything to do with the crime..." He did not finish. "Is suicide completely ruled out?" Caterina asked. "Of course," said the Commissioner, "totally ruled out. She was strangled with a black rope." "It's terrible, it's so vicious!" Katerina said tremblingly. The director spread his hands regretfully and said: "Of course, this is a very unpleasant case. I believe that the murders on our trains are more brutal than those in your country." "too terrifying." "Yes, yes." The director wanted to comfort her. "But you must have courage, madam. As soon as I saw you, I thought to myself: This madam has courage. That's why I dared to ask you some questions. Of course, some questions are very unpleasant, even painful, But sadly, they are still necessary." Caterina looked at him timidly. "Miss, please excuse me, accompany me to another box." "Do you still want me to go?" Katerina asked timidly. "Someone wants to confirm it," said the Commissioner, "because the lady's servant has disappeared." He coughed meaningfully. "Of all the people who traveled with her, you alone spent the most time with her." "Okay!" said Caterina calmly, "if that's what it takes." She stood up, and Poirot gave her a serene nod. "The lady is very reasonable," said Poirot. "May I accompany the lady, M. Cole!" "It will be my pleasure, M. Poirot." Cole opened the door of the dead man's box, drew half the outward curtain, and let in a little light.The deceased lay on the bed very peacefully, as if asleep.She was covered with a sheet, and her face was facing the wall, but the reddish blond hair was clearly visible.Cowen gently reached for the dead man's shoulders and turned the body over so that her face could be seen.Caterina couldn't help taking a step back, her hands were tightly squeezed together.The face of the deceased was rendered illegible by the horrific blow. "The blow was after death," said Coe. "Fantastic!" said Poirot, turning to Caterina. "Take a bold look, miss, and look carefully, and see if you can assure yourself that this woman is the one who spoke to you on the train yesterday." Caterina's nerves are still normal.Realizing the seriousness of the case, she mustered up the courage to look at the body.Then bent down and took the dead man's hand. "I can assure you," she finally said. "Although the face is somewhat illegible, I am sure from figure and hair that she is the woman with whom I have spoken. I have also noticed this feature in my traveling companion." She pointed out a mole on her wrist. "Good!" said Poirot assuredly. "You are an excellent witness, mademoiselle. There is no doubt that it was her. Even so, this case is very rare." Co shrugged. "Obviously, the murderer committed the crime in a state of great agitation and anger," he said. "If the murderer had killed her with a murder weapon, the face would be easily recognizable," said Poirot to himself, "but this murderer sneaked in from behind and strangled her. And the dead here Didn't notice it before. Maybe when it happened she gave a cry, a short cry, that's very possible. Then the killer hit her hard again, why? Why was it necessary? The killer probably wanted to keep her from being identified or was it out of such extreme hatred that she could not control her feelings that she was beaten like this, even though she was dead?" Caterina trembled, and Poirot turned to her kindly and said: "You'd better keep your distance. All this is unexpected and frightening to you, and it's all too familiar to me. Please wait a moment." Poirot went to the adjoining box where Caterina had sat with the dead man's maid.No one had slept in the berth at all, and three or four cushions were scattered there.There is also an execution bag and a hat box.Suddenly he said to Caterina: "Did you stay here yesterday? Did you notice any change? Something was missing?" Caterina looked carefully at her surroundings. "Yes," she replied, "something is missing--a red handbag. It has a R.K. tag on it. It may be a small handbag, or it may be a jewelry box. The maid kept it in her hand." "Very interesting," said Poirot. "I—Of course I don't understand these things. But I can definitely say that there is a lack of maids and jewelry boxes here." "You think the maid is a thief? No, miss. There's a reason for that," said Coe. "What reason?" "The maid was left in Paris." "I think you can listen to the account of the steward yourself, M. Poirot," said Coe in a bad mood. "You are a perceptive man." "You may also be interested to hear, Mademoiselle," said Poirot. "Do you object, Monsieur Commissioner?" "No objection." But from his eyes, it can be seen that this is not from the heart. "If you think it necessary. Have you finished your business here?" "Wait a little longer!" He bent down and took the pillow to the window, looked at it carefully for a while, and picked up something to look at. "What did you find?" Coe asked curiously. "Four golden hairs." He looked down at the dead man. "Yes, there is no doubt that it is the hair of the dead man." "What's this? What's worth paying attention to?" "Under the current circumstances, no one can determine what is worthy of attention and what is not." They went back to the box where they were questioning Caterina, when the director had called the flight attendant. "Your name is Pierre Michel?" asked Coe. "Yes, Mr. Director." "I want you to tell this gentleman how the train was in Paris and what happened there." "Yes, Monsieur Commissioner. I came in to make the bed as soon as the train left Gare de Lyon, and I thought the lady might be in the dining-room. But she ordered a lunch box herself. She told me that only one bed would be enough." , she has left her maid in Paris. While I was making the bed, she took the lunch box and went to the box next door. She also told me not to wake her up too early at dawn, because she should sleep a little longer." "Have you not been in the box next door?" "No, sir." "Then you didn't happen to see a small red leather bag among her luggage?" "I don't know, sir, I didn't see it." "Do you think there might be a man hiding next door?" The flight attendant thought for a while. "The door is ajar," he said. "If there is a door behind it, I can't see it. But when the dead lady goes into the box, she will surely find out." "Exactly," said Poirot. "Can you give us any further information?" "That, I believe, is all I know. I cannot remember the rest." "And this morning?" asked Poirot. "I didn't wake her up because she had repeatedly asked not to wake her up too soon. It was only when the train arrived in Cannes that I went in and knocked on her door. Since I didn't hear the answer, I went in. Ms. It seems that there are still bunks that haven't woken up yet. I tried to shake her shoulders to wake her up, but in the future..." "You will see what happened afterwards," added Poirot. "I need no further information." "I hope, Mr. Chief, that my negligence will not cause adverse consequences." The flight attendant said sincerely. "How horrible that this happened on the 'Blue Express'?!" "Don't worry," said the Commissioner, "we're trying to avoid a major commotion. Besides, I don't think you've been negligent. You've done your duty." "So, Mr. Director, you will report the same opinion to our superiors in the railway department?" "Of course." The chief said impatiently. "You can go." The flight attendant left. "The doctor's opinion," said the Commissioner, "is that the lady died before the train reached Lyon. Who was the murderer? According to the lady, it was clear that the dead man wanted to meet a man while the train was running." , and tried to talk to him. It is peculiar that the lady left her servant in Paris. It is not ruled out that a man got into the car in Paris and hid in the next box. In this way, it is possible for two There was a quarrel, and the man suddenly missed and killed the woman out of anger. This is one possibility. The second possibility is that a professional railway thief sneaked onto the train and beat her to death , stole the handbag, of course, there were many valuable diamond jewelry and other items in the handbag. It is very likely that this person got off the train in Lyon. Those suspicious male passengers who got off." "Or he arrived at Nizza with the others," put in Poirot. "That's possible." The bureau agreed, "but it's very dangerous for him." Poirot thought for a moment and asked: "You think it was the work of a professional railroad thief?" The chief shrugged. "It's hard to say. Also, we should detain the maid. It's likely that the little red handbag wasn't with her. If that's the case, the man who wanted to talk to the lady was the murderer, probably a love homicide, out of jealousy. Myself I don’t think it’s possible to rule out stealing and assassination, out of jealousy. I don’t think it’s possible to rule out stealing and assassination. Recently, the gang of railway thieves has become more and more unscrupulous.” Poirot glanced suddenly at Caterina. "So miss, didn't you see or hear anything suspicious this night?" "No." Caterina replied. "I don't think we have any reason to disturb the lady any longer," said Poirot to the director. The chief nodded in agreement. "Would you like to leave your address?" Caterina left the address of Lady Templin's villa.Poirot bent slightly. "May I be allowed to visit you at your place?" he asked inquiringly. "Maybe you have so many guests that your schedule is already full?" "No," said Caterina. "I have plenty of time and am very happy to receive you." "Excellent!" Poirot nodded friendly. "This detective novel belongs to the two of us. We will investigate this case together."