Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Her Story

"When did you find out," Professor Winstead asked Marble, "Those two women are private detectives hired by Mr. Rafael to protect you?" He leaned forward in the chair, looking thoughtfully at the gray-haired old lady.She sat upright on the chair opposite him.They were in a mansion in London, and there were four other people present. One was the Inspector-General of the Public Inspectorate; one was Sir Lloyd, Assistant Inspector of Scotland Yard; one was Sir McNay, Warden of Manstown Prison; and the fourth was the Home Office Secretary. "It wasn't until the last night," said Marple, "that I was sure. Miss Kirk had been to St. Mary Mead, but I always thought she wasn't such a gardener as she said she was." , was there to help a friend with garden work. So I wondered what she was really up to. She was trying to get my face, apparently that was the only thing she was there for. When I was in When I recognized her in the tour bus, I had to decide whether she was with the traveling group, acting as a guardian, or what I might call a hired enemy of the other side.

It was only on that last night, when Miss Kirk stopped me, whispered a clear warning, not to drink the cup of coffee that Claude brought me, that I was fully sure of her identity.She was smart in warning.Later, when I said good-bye to them, one of them clasped mine with both hands, very kindly and affectionately.Put something into my hand.I checked it later and realized it was a whistle.I put it under my pillow when I go to bed. I took the cup of hot milk that the hostess of the manor had poured for me, and said goodbye to her carefully, with a friendly face, and went back to the room where I lived. "

"Did you not drink that glass of milk?" "Of course I didn't drink any more." Marble said, "Do you think I can drink?" "Oh, sorry," said Winstead, "I'm surprised you didn't lock the door." "That's totally wrong," Marble said. "I want Claude to come in. Want to hear what she has to say, or see what she's going to do. I'm almost sure she's going to go." Come in. When the time comes, she must be assured that I have drunk the glass of milk and fallen unconscious to sleep, and that she should presume that I will not wake again."

"Did you help hide Miss Kirk in the closet?" "It wasn't me. I was shocked when she walked out of the closet!" Mabel thought, "I guess as I was walking down that corridor and in the bathroom, she slipped in there." "At that time, you already knew that they were already in this manor?" "I think they must have been somewhere around when they gave me that whistle. I don't think the manor is inaccessible. There are no shutters or alarm bells or anything like that. Among them One may turn back on an excuse to get a forgotten purse and scarf. Another may have managed to unbolt a window. I think they turned back to the manor as soon as they left. Wait until everyone in the manor has gone to sleep before jumping into the house."

"You have taken a great risk, Miss Marple." "I hope I have done my best," said Mabel. "A man cannot go through the course of life without experiencing dire danger." "Oh! The package you asked me to inquire about was sent to that charity organization, and I have completely done it. Inside the package is a brand new, brightly colored men's round-neck pullover sweater with red and black checkered patterns on it. Strange order Interesting. What do you think about that?" "Oh, this is beyond obvious. The statements of Palaz and Jonah have proved that there is such a person. It seems certain that this colorful dress is intended to be seen by others, so It is very important that the clothes are not hidden or hidden in private clothes. Clothes must be destroyed as much as possible. There is only one way of dealing with such things, which is safe and reliable, and that is to send them to the Easy to send to charity. Think of the joy of collecting these winter clothes for out-of-work mothers, or whatever the charity is called, to find a nearly new pullover! What I want to find out is the name and address of the person the package was sent to."

"You went to the post office to ask them?" The Minister of the Interior looked at her in a little shock. "What did you tell them?" "Of course, I did it very tactfully. I deliberately pretended to be a little flustered, explaining how I wrote the wrong name and address, and can they tell me if this package was taken there by a kind hostess of mine for posting? That kind female bureaucrat tried her best to find out that it was not the name and address of the person I wanted to send it to. She told me, she said the name and address of the person she wrote down. She did not doubt my approach, thinking that I The old woman is a little dazed, old, and very concerned about where my parcels of rags go."

"Oh!" said Winstead, "I think you are not only an avenger, but also a good actor. Miss Marple, when did you first realize what happened ten years ago?" "At the beginning," Mabel said, "I found that the matter was blurred. At that time, I was still blaming Mr. Rafael for not explaining the matter clearly. But now I understand that it is very smart for him not to do so .Really, he did the right thing. Now I finally understand why he is such a great financier and makes money so well.He arranged the plan so perfectly, and gave me just enough information every time, as if he was secretly instructing me.My two Patronuses first, taking careful note of who I am.Then I was entertained on a sightseeing tour, in the same car as these guys. "

"If I may ask, which one of the people on the trip did you suspect first?" "Just doubt." "No evil feeling?" "Well, you remember. There wasn't, I don't think, any definite vibe of evil. Nobody told me who my contacts were there, but she made herself acquainted with me." "Miss Temple?" "Yes. It's like a searchlight," said Mabel, "lighting everything up in the dark. Because at the time—I was still in the dark. There was something that had to be logical, I mean, because Mr. Raphael's hint. There must be a victim, somewhere, a murderer somewhere. Yes, because that's the only link that exists between Mr. Raphael and myself. In the West Indies Well, there was a murder. He and I were both involved, he knew me, he was involved in that. So it couldn't have been any other form of crime. It couldn't have been a sporadic crime either. This incident seems to indicate that there were two victims. Someone must have been killed and there was clearly an unjust victim—a victim charged with a crime when he or she did not. I have been Thinking about these things, I didn't understand what was going on until I talked to Miss Temple. She was very enthusiastic and very restrained. She was the first link between me and Mr. Raphael. A connected ring. She told me of a girl she knew who was at one point engaged to Mr. Rafael's son. Then here came the first light that I needed to know. She also told me that the girl The child did not marry him later. I asked her why. She said: because she died. Then I asked her, how did she die? Who killed her. She said very powerfully and restrained—I seem to be I could still hear her clear voice, like the deep sound of a big bell—she said it was 'love'. Later she said: Love is the most terrible word in the world. But at that time, I didn't quite understand, What she said. In fact, my initial thought was that the girl committed suicide as a result of an unfortunate love affair. It happens quite often and often turns tragic. That's most of what I knew at the time The trip that Miss Temple took was, in fact, a pleasant trip. She told me that she was going to 'go on a pilgrimage.' She was going somewhere, or to someone. .At that time, I didn't know who this person would be. Then I finally knew."

"Is it Archeda?" "That's right. I didn't know there was such a person at the time, but since then I feel that the main character—the main character in the play—was not on the tour. Not in the tour bus tour group. I have been suspicious for a while, and I have also suspected some people. Finally, I have doubts about Miss Jona and Mr. Peraz." "Why do you have to doubt them both?" "Because they're young," said Mabel. "Young people are often associated with suicide, rape, unexplained jealousy, and tragic love. It's not uncommon for a man to kill his girlfriend. Yes, I I thought so in my heart, but after thinking about it, I felt that they didn't seem to have any relationship. I didn't feel the shadow of evil, disappointment, and misery. Later, I used this thought as a guide, and in that last time , I was at the old manor house, when we drank the white wine. I said that they were probably the most likely suspects in the death of Miss Temple. If I saw them again, I would Deeply sorry for them. To take advantage of them as useful characters distracted me from my true thoughts."

"The second thing is Miss Temple's death?" "No." Mabel said: "The second thing is that I arrived at this old manor, and I was kindly arranged by them under their hospitality and kindness. So I knew that I had to live there, because there , I might be able to get more information. I'm sorry I went too far. You're going to be impatient." "Further," said Winstead, "perhaps you do not know that what you are talking about particularly interests me because it has so much to do with what I already know or have seen. Put your Thoughts, let’s continue talking!”

"Yeah, let's go on," McNair said. "It's just a feeling I have," Marble said, "and it's not a very logical inference. I'm basing it on an emotional, or psychological, sensitivity. Well, I can only call it atmosphere." "Yes," said Winstead. "There was an atmosphere in that old manor house, and there was an atmosphere of it all, in the garden, in the woods, in the public place, or in a villa." "The three sisters. That's what I thought and felt when I went into that old manor house. I was received so kindly by Mrs. Greene. There was something about those three sisters, It seemed ominously pouring into my heart. It reminded me of the three sisters in a literary novel, the three witches in the Macbeth bush. It seemed to me that there was a kind of sadness and deep-rooted there. An unpleasant atmosphere, and an atmosphere of fear, and a different atmosphere of struggle. I can only explain it as a normal atmosphere." "What you said at the end interested me," said Winstead. "I think it's because of Mrs. Greene. When the tour bus arrived she was the one who came to meet me and offered me the invitation. She was a perfectly normal and pleasant woman. She was a widow, Not very happy, I said she was not very happy, it had nothing to do with being sad or deeply unhappy. She took me back with me to meet the other two sisters. In the next morning, the maid who brought me breakfast , told me about a tragedy that happened in the past. She said that there was a girl who was killed by her boyfriend and several other girls who lived in the neighborhood were raped and sexually assaulted and sacrificed I had to do a second assessment. I didn't think about the people in the tour bus anymore, that had nothing to do with my private visit. I was wondering, somewhere, there was still a murderer. I Had to ask myself, is it possible that there is a murderer hiding in that manor that I accepted the invitation to. Those three strange three sisters. Those three who look like happy and unhappy, embraced by pain What kind of people are they? Claudie was the first thing that caught my attention. She was a tall, beautiful, strong woman with personality. Just as Miss Temple had a personality.I feel that at least the three sisters need to settle the ledger.Like the three goddesses of fate in Greek mythology.Who could be the murderer?What kind of murderer?How did she kill?Then I felt, like a miasma, slowly rising up an atmosphere in which, I thought, there was nothing but evil.Of those three sisters, one may be evil.They did indeed live in an atmosphere where evil had happened, and the shadow of evil left behind still threatened them.Claude was the eldest of the three sisters and the one I suspected first.Her emotions are strong.Anyone who sees her can't help thinking that she is Claytona in Greek mythology.I have been very generously entertained lately to see a Greek play, which is being performed at a well-known boys' school not far from where I live. I was particularly impressed with the performance of the boy who played Claytona in Agmelon.A good enough performance.It seemed to me that Claude was a woman who could calmly plan to kill her husband while he was in the bath. " Winstead suppressed a laugh.Marble spoke so seriously, she gave him a wink. "Yeah, it sounds kind of funny, but I'm sure she's that kind of person, that's the role she plays. Unfortunately, she wasn't married, so she had no husband to kill, and then I thought of Mrs. Greene.She seems to be a kind, strong and happy woman.God, some people kill people, but they can pretend to be as nonchalant as they used to be.There are many murderers, all happy and happy men.This will surprise people.They're the kind of respectable murderers—they'll kill for utilitarian motives—without any emotion, just to get what they want.I don't think it's very likely, and I'd be very surprised if it happened, but I can't ignore Mrs. Greene, who had a husband and was a widow for a few years, and I think she possible.Then I thought of that young girl, Anthea, who has a restless personality—it seems to me to be rash and impetuous. In short, I think she has a kind of fear in a certain relationship.She is terrified of certain things.Uh, that might fit the bill.If she had committed a crime of some sort, but was constantly afraid that it would resurface and retouch the wound; or that something else had something to do with Miss Temple's business;She looks at you curiously, then looks sharply over someone's shoulder, as if seeing someone standing behind her that frightens her.So she's also a suspicious character, a psychologically flawed murderer.Of course, these are just conjectures, but there is a possibility.I have stayed in the tour bus and lived in this manor. I have never felt the atmosphere of this manor.Anthea and I went into the garden the next day.At one end of the weedy path was the mound of a former greenhouse that had collapsed, the ruins of neglected repairs and lack of gardeners after the war.Dilapidated, bricks, dirt, and turf are piled up in a mess, and weeds are overgrown, concealing and covering up the ugly buildings in this garden.Overgrown with a flowering, fast-growing shrub, it's a slightly scary plant.But its white flowers look very beautiful and lovely.I was standing there with Anthea, who seemed very unhappy about the collapsing greenhouse.She mentioned the various plants she had grown in the garden in the past, as if the garden was the most important thing she remembered, and she had lived there since she was a child.She longed for enough money to clear the mound, level the place, rebuild a greenhouse, and plant European grapes and peaches as before.What she felt was a kind of nostalgia for the past.More than that, the thing that made me feel the atmosphere of terror again, there was something about this mound that frightened her.At that time, I didn't know what would happen.Then, the second thing happened, and that was the death of Miss Temple.As Jonah and Piraz said, there is only one possibility for this.It was not an accident, but a deliberate murder. " "I think it was from then on," said Mabel, "that I finally came to a conclusion. For at the same time I heard the whole story of Mr. Raphael's son. The offending boy, a A former criminal who has done many bad things, but there is no evidence that he may be the murderer. All the evidence is against him. Anyone can guess that he killed this girl. But Archedas seemed to be wearing the last crown in this matter. He knew the two young men. They came to him and said they wanted to marry, and he took it upon himself to decide to marry them. He thought , it may not have been a smart marriage, but it proved to be a legitimate one, and they both loved each other. The girl loved the boy, true love as he called it—true as her name Love. And he thought that the boy, although he made a bad statement about sex, really loved the girl, was sincere to her in many ways, and tried his best to correct some evil tendencies in him. But Archeda Not optimistic. I think he didn't believe it would be a perfectly happy marriage. His idea was, as he called it, a necessary marriage—a necessary one, because if you love too much, you're There's a price to be paid, even if it's a disappointing and rather unpleasant price. But one thing I'm absolutely sure of: the mutilated head and face couldn't have been done by a boy who really loved this girl ...this is not a sexual assault incident. In this love affair, the root of love is weak. I am ready to agree with Archeda. But I also understand that I have the real clue, which is what Miss Temple told me Yes. She said Vinidae's cause of death was 'love'—the most dreadful word." "That's pretty clear," said Marple, "I think I've known it for a while. It's just this little thing that doesn't fit, but it does now. It fits what Miss Temple said, Vivienne." The reason for Nidai's death. She said the word at first, 'love', and then said: 'love' may be the most terrible word. At that time, it was clearly and completely explained-Claude to this girl, Repressive love. The girl's hero-worshipping love, her dependence on her, and then when she's a little older, she has a normal instinct. She needs love, she needs free love, she needs marriage , have a baby. Need this boy she loves. She knows he's unreliable and people say he's a villain, but that won't shake any girl's love for a boy. No, young girls often like villains, They fall in love with the bad guys and are totally sure they can change them. They are considerate, their love is constant, their reliable husbands are reaped, and in my youth a girl would be 'their sister', never completely to their satisfaction. Vinidae fell in love with Mitchell, and Mitchell was about to start a new life. He wanted to marry this girl, and he really didn't want to love another girl.So they plan to get married.I think Vinidae wrote to Miss Temple and told her she was going to marry Mitchell.This was arranged in secret, because I think Vinidae really realized that what she did would not be allowed by Claude; and she really wanted to escape the person she used to love deeply, because that Love is not normal love.Of course, Claude tried her best to stop them.So, like the other young men, they eloped.They didn't need to fly to Grena Green, they were of legal age to marry.So she complained to Archeda, and her old friend, Reverend Archeda, arranged for them the wedding day, time, place, and maybe even some wedding clothes that she secretly brought with her.There is no doubt that they met somewhere.They must go to the meeting place separately.I was thinking, Mitchell was there, but she didn't.He waited for her, then wondered, why she hadn't come, and, I thought, perhaps sent him a message, or even sent him a letter.Claudia may have used fake penmanship to say that she had changed her mind.It was all over, and she went away for a while to make things easier.I can't tell. But I don't think he ever thought, or dreamed, of the real reason why she didn't come, why she didn't even write to him.He didn't think at the time that she was deliberate or ruthless or almost insane, maybe destructive. Claudia didn't want to lose her beloved girl, didn't want Venida to go away, didn't want Venida to go to the young man she hated and hated.She used her own method to keep Venida.But what I don't believe is—she's going to strangle this girl and mutilate her head and face.I don't think she could possibly have the heart to do that.She rearranged the bricks of the collapsed greenhouse and piled them with dirt and turf.The girl may have taken too many sleeping pills.A cup of poison—even if it wasn't poison.She buried the girl in that garden, piled up bricks, dirt, and turf—" "Won't it arouse the suspicion of the other two younger sisters?" "Mrs. Greney didn't live there at the time. She lived abroad with her husband. But Anthea was there. I'm thinking Anthea didn't know what was going on. I can't tell." , she suspected death at first, but she knew that Claude was busy building a mound, planting flowering shrubs on it, making it a beautiful place. Maybe later she It was kind of clear. Then Claudie accepted the evil, did the evil thing, bowed to the evil, and had no doubts about what she was going to do next. She appreciated the plan that had been made. She appreciated the A shy, sexy little country girl is quite influential, and the little girl begs for alms from her from time to time. It's easy for her. Arrange the day and take the girl on a picnic, or Go on a trip to a distant place. She had preselected the location.strangled her, mutilated her head and face, buried her under turned earth, leaves and branches.Who would have doubted that she had done any such thing?There she put Vinidae's purse, a small string of Vinidae's usual necklaces, and possibly dressed her in Vinidae's dress.She hoped that this crime would not be discovered in a short time.At this point, she spread the rumor that Nona had been seen in Mitchell's car with Mitchell.Probably she too had spread the rumor that Vinidae had broken the contract because he had been unfaithful to the girl.She could have said anything, and I think she was delighted with everything she said, a poor lost soul. " "Why do you say: Poor wretch, Miss Marple?" "Because I don't think anyone could have suffered any pain as deeply as Claude's had all the time--for ten years now--living in grief all the time. She had to live. She kept Venida, To keep her in the garden of the old manor, to keep her there forever. She didn't realize what it meant at first—she longed so badly for the girl to be alive again. I don't think she ever regretted it .Even had that consolation. She just suffered, and continued to suffer, year after year. Now I understand what Miss Temple said—perhaps better than she herself. 'Love' is a A very terrible thing. Evil living is the most possible thing. Claude must live day by day, year after year. Anthea is afraid. What she did to Claude , knowing better, she thought, Claude realized she knew. She was afraid of what Claude might do. Claude told her to take the package to the post office. She said to me Anthea, said she was mentally ill, and could have done anything if she was troubled or jealous. I was thinking, yes, that would happen to Anthea in the near future, due to criminal Psychology, a planned suicide—" "And do you still feel sorry for that woman?" McNair was asking. "Malignant evil is like cancer—a malignant tumor. Brings painful suffering." "Of course," Marble said. "I thought, can you tell me what happened that night?" Winstead asked, "After your patron saint took you away?" "You mean Claudie? She took my glass of milk. She was still holding it when Miss Kirk led me out of the room. I reckon she—she drank it, didn't she?" "Yes, did you know that something like that could happen?" "I didn't think about it. No, not at the time. I think, if I had thought about it, I might have known." "No one can stop her. She drank so fast, and no one knew that there was poison in that glass of milk." "So she drank it." "That surprised you?" "No, it seemed so natural to her that people wouldn't be so surprised. This time it was she who wanted to escape—to escape from everything she lived on. Just like Venida wanted to escape, where Live the same life. Strange, isn't it? Tit for tat?" "The way you said it is more sad than that dead girl." "No," said Marble, "this kind of sadness is different. I'm sorry for Vinidae because she's lost everything, what she's going to do so soon—a life of man's love, love and devotion." To the man she wanted, the one she really wanted to love. She lost it all, never to take it back. And Claude had to suffer through grief, misery, fear and evil that was growing and contagious. Claude Tee had to live with all these people. Sad, frustrated love—love she couldn't get anymore. She had to keep this girl in that garden with her, with two sisters who were doubting and afraid of her, Let's live together." "You mean Venedee?" "Yes. The girl who was buried in the garden, in the tomb that Claudia had prepared. I was thinking, Claudia knew, that she was there. Maybe sometimes, when she went there to pick a sprig of flowers Sometimes, even wishing to see her, or thinking of seeing her sometimes. She must have felt very close to Vinidae. It couldn't be worse for her, could it?"