Chapter 3 Chapter 3 At the Villa Geneviève

Poirot jumped out at once, his eyes shining with excitement. "What did you say? Murdered? When? How?" The officer straightened up and said, "I can't answer, sir." Yes, I understand. Poirot thought for a moment. "The Chief of Police must be in there?" "Yes, sir" Poirot took out a calling card and scribbled something on it. "Voila①, could you please pass this business card to the director immediately?" The police officer took the card, turned around, and blew a whistle.Immediately a man came up, and the inspector handed him Poirot's card.After a few minutes, a short, strong man with a thick beard came rushing to the gate.

①French: Here (interjection). — Annotation. The police officer saluted him and stood aside. "My dear M. Poirot," cried the man running up, "it is a great pleasure to see you. You have come at just the right time." Poirot beamed. "Mr. Bex, what a pleasure!" He turned to me. "This is an English friend of mine, Captain Hastings. Mr. Lucien Bex." The Commissioner and I exchanged respectful salutes, and then M. Bex turned to Poirot: "Mon vicux, I have not seen you since the parting at Ostein in 1909. Can you give us any information that will help us?"

"Perhaps you already know. Did you know that I was sent by commission?" "I don't know. Who?" "Deceased. It seems that he knew that someone was trying to kill him. It is a pity that his invitation was a step late." "Sacre tonnerre!" exclaimed the Frenchman suddenly. "It turns out that he already expected his own death. This completely overturns our theory. Come in." He opened the gate, and we walked towards Qiu Mansion.Mr. Bex went on to say, ①French: My old man. ——Annotation. ②The port in the northwest of Belgium, in the province of West Flanders. ——Annotation.

③French: My God. ——Annotation. "This situation should be reported immediately to Mr. Ayut, the prosecutor. He has just finished checking the scene and is about to start questioning." "When did the murder take place?" asked Poirot. "The body was discovered this morning about nine o'clock. The testimony of Mrs. Reynolds and the doctor indicate that the victim must have died at two o'clock in the morning. Come in." We have reached the steps leading to the front door of the villa.There was another police officer sitting on the porch, who got up when he saw the chief.

"Where is Mr. Ayut?" the director asked. "In the drawing room, sir." Mr. Bakers opened a door to the left of the porch, and we entered the living room. Mr. Ayut and his secretary are sitting at a large round table.They both picked up their heads when we came in.The director made an introduction and explained why we came to the villa. Mr. Ayut, the prosecutor, was a tall, thin man with piercing black eyes, and he habitually stroked his neatly trimmed gray beard when he spoke.Standing near the fireplace was a slightly elderly man with slightly stooped shoulders. After an introduction, he found out that he was Dr. Durand.

"That's very strange," said Mr. Ayut after the chief had finished speaking. "Do you have this letter with you, sir?" Poirot handed the letter to the prosecutor.He began to read the letter. "Well! He said there was a secret. It's a pity he didn't explain it more clearly. Thank you very much, M. Poirot. I hope you will help us in our investigation. Must you go back to London?" "Mr. Prosecutor, I intend to stay here. I came too late to prevent the death of my client, but I feel it is my duty to bring the murderer to justice." The prosecutor bowed in respect.

"These thoughts are enough to prove that Monsieur is a man of faith. Besides, there is no doubt that Madame Reynolds will ask you to continue to serve. We are always looking forward to the arrival of M. Giraud from the Paris Police Department. I believe that you two are in the process of investigation. Will cooperate and help each other. At the same time, I hope you will be present during my interrogation. If you need help, we will do our best, and I don’t need to say more about this.” "Thank you, sir. I am completely in the dark at the moment and know nothing, as you know."

Mr. Ayut nodded to the director, who then went on to say: "This morning François, the old maid, came down the stairs to work, and found the front door ajar. She was horrified to feel that it must have been stolen. She went into the dining room and found a lot of silver cutlery. I didn't take it seriously, thinking that the master must have gotten up early in the morning to go for a walk." "Excuse me for interrupting, sir. Does he walk often?" "No, it's not, but François has always had this idea of ​​the English--they're madmen, ready to do the most incredible things.

Leoni, the young maid, is terrified out of her wits.When she went to serve the hostess as usual, she found that the hostess was tied up and her mouth was gagged.At about the same time, news came that M. Renault's body had been found, stabbed in the back and completely dead. " "Where did you find it?" "That is the most extraordinary point of the case, M. Poirot. The body was lying face down, in an uncovered grave." "what?" "That's what happened. The hole was dug some time ago, just outside the boundaries of the villa, only a few yards away."

"How long have you been dead?" Dr. Durand replied: "I examined the body at ten o'clock this morning. The death occurred at least seven hours ago, and it may have been ten hours ago." "Well! That means between midnight and three o'clock in the morning." "Exactly. Mrs. Renaud's testimony said it was after two o'clock, which shortened the time even more. The victim died instantly, and of course it was not suicide." Poirot nodded, and the Director went on: "The terrified servants quickly untied Madame Renaud. She was so weak that she was almost unconscious from the pain of being tied up. It seems that two masked guys broke into the bedroom and blocked her. tied her hands and feet, and coerced her husband to follow them. This is the second-hand information obtained from the servant. When Madame Reynolds heard the tragic news, she was panicked and fainted immediately. Durand When the doctor came, she was sedated immediately. So we didn't have time to question her. She must be calmer when she wakes up, and she can withstand the tension of questioning."

That's what the chief said. "Who are in this room, sir?" "The old maid, François, who is the housekeeper, has lived here for many years with the former owner of the Villa Geneviève. There are also two young girls, Denis Ural and Leonie Ural, who are sisters. They My family is in Melanville, my parents are respectable people. There is also a chauffeur that Renault brought from England, but he is away now, and he is on vacation. Then there is Mrs. Renault and her son, Mr. Jack Renault. .He's not home now." Poirot bowed his head.Mr. Ayut shouted: "Malshaw!" The police officer came over. "Bring in François, the maid." The inspector saluted and walked away, returning in a minute or two with a frightened François. "Your name is François Arischer?" "Yes, sir." "Have you been a servant at the Villa Geneviève for a long time?" "I have been with the Viscountess for eleven years. When she sold the villa this spring, I promised to stay and serve the English lord. Who would have thought..." The prosecutor interrupted her. "Of course, of course. But, François, who is going to lock the front door at night?" "I, sir. I always tend the door myself." "And what about last night?" "I bolted the door as usual." "Are you sure of that?" "I swear by the saints of heaven, sir." "at what time?" "As usual, ten-thirty, sir." "What about the rest of the house? Are they all in bed?" "Madame went back earlier. Denis and Leonie came upstairs with me. Monsieur is still in his study." "Then, if anyone opened the door afterwards, it must have been M. Reynolds himself?" François shrugged her broad shoulders. "Why would he do that? Robbers and assassins are always passing by! Thank you for thinking it out! My lord is not a fool.Doesn't he have to send that lady out of the house?" The prosecutor interrupted her sharply: "Which one is too big? Which one do you mean too big?" "Oh, the lady who came to see him." "A lady came to see him last night?" "Yes, sir—as it has been many other evenings." "Who is she? Do you know her?" A rather sly look appeared on the maid's face. "How do I know who it is?" she muttered. "I didn't let her in last night." "Hmph!" roared the prosecutor, smacking the table with his hand. "Are you trying to fool the police? I want you to tell me immediately the name of the woman who came to see Mr. Reynolds in the evening." "The police... the police," murmured François, "I never want to get involved with the police. But I know very well who she is. She is Mrs. Dobler." The chief exclaimed, and leaned forward, seemingly surprised. "Mrs. Dobler... lives at Margaret's Villa just down the road?" "Exactly, sir. Oh, she's a pretty lady." The maid threw her head back contemptuously. "Mrs. Dobler," murmured the Commissioner, "impossible." "Yoila," muttered François, "that's what happens when you tell the truth." "That's not the case," said the prosecutor, reassuringly. "It's nothing more than a surprise. So Mrs. Dobler and Mr. Renault, they are..." He paused delicately." Eh? Needless to say, is that the case?" "How do I know? But you see, the master is a milord anglais, tres riche. Madame Dobler is poor, but tres chic, and lives quietly with her daughter. She is a woman of history, of course." . She is not young, but ma foi⑤, when she is walking on the street, those men will inevitably turn their heads and look at her a few times.Besides, the whole town knows how well she can afford to spend these days.In the past, you were careful and careful, but now you don't have to worry about it. "Francois shook his head, putting on a sure-fire posture. Mr. Ayut strokes his beard thoughtfully. "And Madame Reynolds?" he asked finally. "What's her attitude towards this... friendship?" Francois shrugged his shoulders. "She's always been very kind—very polite. You can tell she never had the slightest suspicion. But then again, she's always in a bad mood. ②French: British lord. ——Annotation. ③French: very rich. ——Annotation. ④French: very beautiful. ——Annotation. ⑤ French: To be honest. ——Annotation. Yes, sir, is it not? These days, I see that the lady is getting paler and thinner.She is very different from when she first arrived a month ago.The master has also changed, and he has a lot of worries.It was not difficult to see that his nerves were extremely tense, and he was about to collapse.But doing such a thing, no one is surprised.What checkpoints, what prudence, nothing.That's styleanglais, sure!" I was jumping in my seat, but the prosecutor ignored these side issues and continued to ask his questions. "You say Mr. Reynolds didn't send Mrs. Dobler out? Did she go, then?" "Yes, sir. I heard them come out of the study and go to the door. The master said good night and closed the door behind her. " "When was that?" "About ten twenty-five, sir." "Do you know when Mr. Renault went to bed?" "I heard him go upstairs ten minutes after we went to bed. The stairs creaked, and anyone could hear them going up and down." "Is that all? Didn't you hear any strange noises at night?" "Nothing, sir." "Which servant came downstairs first in the morning?" "It's me, sir. I saw the door open as soon as I saw it." "How about the other windows downstairs, are they all bolted?" "It's all well bolted. Nothing suspicious or unusual anywhere." ① French: British style.Annotation. "There, François, you may go." The old maid moved towards the door.At the door she turned and said: "Sir, there is one thing I have to tell you. That Mrs. Dobler is not a good person! Ah, well, women know other women best. Remember, she is not a good person." François shook his head solemnly. , left the living room. "Leoni Ural,".cried the prosecutor. Leoni came out crying, almost hysterical.Mr. Ayut handled her very skillfully.Her testimony was mainly about how she found her mistress gagged and bound.Her description is unavoidably embellished. Like François, she heard nothing during the night. Her sister Dennis spoke next.She also said that the master has become more powerful recently. "He became more and more frowning every day, and he ate less and less, always looking depressed." But Dennis had her own opinion. "The Mafia must be after him! Two guys in masks... Who could it be? It's a horrible world." "Of course, it's possible." The prosecutor said in her tone. "Well, my girl, were you the one who opened the door for Mrs. Dobler last night?" "Sir, it wasn't last night, it was the night before yesterday." "But Francois just told us that Madame Doblere was here last night." "No, sir. There was a lady who came to see Mr. Renault last night, not Mrs. Dobler." Prosecutors were surprised but insisted it was Mrs Dobler.The girl didn't budge either.She knew Mrs. Dobler, she could not be wrong.This lady was also darker, but shorter and much younger.Nothing could change her statement. "Have you seen this lady before?" "Never, sir," added the girl, hesitantly, "but I think she's English." "British?" "Yes, sir. When she asked Mr. Reynolds, she used perfect French, but the accent--however slight it was always audible. Besides, they spoke English when they came out of the study." .” "Did you hear what they said? I mean, can you understand?" "Me, I speak English quite well." Dennis said proudly, "The young lady got too fast, I didn't understand, but I did understand the last sentence the master said when he opened the door for her ’” She paused, then learned to say carefully and laboriously, “‘Well...well...but for God’s sake let’s go now!’” "Well, well, but for God's sake, let's go now," repeated the prosecutor. He sent Denis away, and after a moment's serious consideration called François in again.He asked her a question: had she mistook the date of Mrs. Dobler's visit.However, François surprisingly insisted on the original statement: it was Mrs. Dobler who had come the previous night, and she was definitely right.Dennis just wanted to show off, that's all: so she made up a nice story about a young lady of unknown origin, and showed off that she knew English! Maybe that English master never said it at all.Even if it had been told, it would not prove anything, because Mrs. Dobler spoke English very well.She usually speaks English when she talks to Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds. "You know, the master's son--Master Jack is often here, and he speaks French very badly." Instead of insisting, the prosecutor asked about the car, and learned that just the previous day, Mr. Renault had said that he probably didn't know how to use a car, and that Master might as well take a day off. Poirot's brows gradually drew into a frown of bewilderment. "What are you thinking?" I asked quietly. He shook his head impatiently and asked a question: "Excuse me, Mr. Bex, but Mr. Renault must know how to drive a car himself." The director glanced at François, and the old maid immediately replied: "No, master can't drive." Poirot's brow furrowed even tighter. "I want you to tell me what bothers you so much," I said impatiently. "Don't you see? M. Reynolds said in his letter that a car was sent to Calais to fetch me." "Perhaps he meant taxis," I suggested. "Of course, it is. But why hire a car when you have your own? Why did I choose to send the driver away yesterday... It was quite sudden, it was only notified a minute ago.Was it for some reason that M. Reynolds was going to send him away before we got here. "