The Silent Pool

Chapter Thirty-five

Ninian followed Janet into the nursery and shut the door.

‘Janet, I want you to go away.’

‘Adriana wants me to stay until after the inquest.’

‘Why?’

‘I don’t know. I said I would.’

‘I don’t want you to be here. You had to come back to see the police, but there’s no earthly need for you to stay. I’ll drive you into Ledbury, and you can get up to town by daylight.’

She shook her head.

‘I said I’d stay.’

‘And I say I don’t want you to. For all we know, we’ve got a homicidal maniac on the premises, and I want you off them before anything else happens.’

She said, ‘That’s nonsense!’

‘Is it? That’s just you keeping up your character for being sensible, and you ought to know that it won’t go down with me! Are you going to tell me you didn’t get the wind up when the Superintendent was talking about niblicks? If you didn’t, why did you go hiding your face on my shoulder and quivering like an aspen?’

‘I didn’t!’

‘My child, you did. Quite the best imitation of an aspen in my long and varied experience. If I hadn’t put my arm round you, you would probably have swooned.’

‘I don’t swoon!’

‘You don’t know what you can do until you’ve done it.’ He put his arms round her and said in a melting voice, ‘Darling, please go away. I do love you so.’

She gave a little shaky laugh.

‘You don’t really.’

‘Really – absolutely – finally. My jo Janet!’

‘Ninian, I can’t.’

‘Why can’t you?’

‘I said I’d stay.’

It was in her mind that if she gave way to him now she would be giving way all along the line, and before she knew what was happening they would be married and she would be living in the flat with the flowery curtains. The mere fact that this made her feel as if she had just had two glasses of champagne was proof positive that it must be resisted. Marriage, was the sort of thing to go into soberly and advisedly, with a due regard for the possible recurrence of another Anne Forester. It was by no means to be embarked upon with a swimming head, a beating heart, and a strong disposition to cry upon Ninian’s shoulder. She said,

‘You think you love me now because we’ve been away from each other and we’re all worked up.’

He shook his head.

‘I don’t think I love you – I know it. I always have, and I always shall. And I want you to go up to London tonight.’

They went on talking. She wouldn’t move from her point. Adriana had asked her to stay until after the inquest, and she thought it was the right thing to do. Also Star was almost certain to ring up and want more things brought up to town for her or for Stella.

These considerations and the frame of mind they induced served to insulate them from the atmosphere of dullness and gloom which prevailed in the family circle. Adriana had withdrawn into an almost complete silence in which she contemplated the break-up of her present way of life. Geoffrey Ford talked fitfully about the weather, about the political situation, about anything that came into his head except the subject which filled their thoughts. Nobody mentioned golfclubs, or the police, or the fact that they would all have to attend another inquest within the next day or two, and that this time the verdict would not be accidental death but wilful murder.

There was some general conversation during the evening meal, but when the party had moved to the drawing-room Adriana took up a book, Geoffrey retired behind a newspaper, and with the chairs so disposed as to leave a sofa between the windows for Ninian and Janet the talk in the circle about the fire was confined to Miss Silver and Edna Ford.

Conversations in which Edna participated could usually be taken as heard. There was a kind of plaintive pattern about them, since whatever the other person had to say, Edna did not so much respond as just go on talking about the rise in prices, the difficulty of getting household help and the deterioration in its quality, together with such kindred subjects as her own health, the lack of consideration it received, and the general decline of everything in every direction. The extreme inconvenience of old houses was her present theme.

‘Of course one can’t really expect comfort in any house which is more than a hundred years old. This house is a great deal older than that – and so low-lying. Of course they had to build down by the river in those days because of the water supply. Most insanitary.’

Adriana lifted her eyes from her book. She was at a sufficient distance to make it possible that the criticism had not reached her, but on the other hand it was not impossible that it had. Her look did not, however, convey any impression of offence. It rested thoughtfully upon Edna for a moment and then went back to a page which had not been turned for quite a long time. She turned it now.

Edna sat there quite undisturbed in the old black dress which she considered appropriate to the fact that there had been a death in the family. Like the coat and skirt which she had worn for the funeral the day before, it sagged over the shoulders and made it plain that she had been losing weight. Above the high neck, unrelieved by so much as a row of pearls, her skin was lifeless and sallow. There was no colour about her anywhere – not in the pale eyes, the straw-coloured lashes, or the faded hair. Even the tints of her embroidery silks were faint. She took a stitch and said,

‘The plumbing is dreadfully old-fashioned. It takes far too much fuel to heat the water, and I do not – I do not consider that Mrs Simmons understands the range. It simply eats coal, and she has no idea of economy. Now, in one of those nice modern little houses one would get about twice as much hot water for a much lower expenditure.’

Miss Silver smiled encouragingly. She held quite pronounced views upon the general inconvenience of old houses, but she would not have considered it courteous to say so in the – possible – hearing of her hostess. She had, however, no desire to prevent Edna Ford from saying anything she chose. Having smiled, she observed that many of the houses now being built were of a quite convenient type, though they had not, of course, the romantic associations of the older buildings.

Edna responded in a complaining voice.

‘All these old houses were built when people had armies of servants. Now a small modern villa would be so easily run, and it is so much more comfortable to live in a road with proper pavements and street-lighting. I have never really got accustomed to going out by myself in the dark. It always makes me nervous. Why, last winter after I had been having tea at the Vicarage I was coming up the drive. Of course I had my torch – I wouldn’t go anywhere without one – and Geoffrey said perhaps that was what attracted it. But it was really most startling – a great owl swooped right down over my head. It gave me quite a bad shock, coming down suddenly like that without any sound and looking all white.’

Miss Silver pulled on her ball of wool.

‘A most unpleasant experience.’

‘I haven’t been out by myself since. It made me so nervous. Now before I married, when we lived in Ledchester, I used not to mind going out at all. There were four of us, so there was always someone to come and go with, and the streets were very well lighted. And of course there are more men in a town. In the country there are so few.’ She leaned towards Miss Silver and dropped her voice. ‘That is the worst of it – those that there are get so run after. It doesn’t matter whether they are married or not, they are pursued! And the young women don’t seem to have any shame about it. That woman they were talking about upstairs, Esmé Trent – always ringing Geoffrey up and wanting to play golf with him!’

‘Indeed?’

Edna nodded.

‘It isn’t easy to find excuses when you are asked point-blank. Of course she never asked me. Not that I should have played if she had – I am not really strong enough. I gave it up years ago.’

‘Mrs Trent is fond of the game?’

‘She is fond of anything that will help her to get hold of a man. She has quite persecuted Geoffrey. And you know what men are – they grumble about that sort of thing, but it flatters them.’

Miss Silver wondered if any of this was reaching the ears of Geoffrey Ford. He and Adriana were on one side of the wide hearth, and she and Mrs Geoffrey on the other. The Times screened him from view, and he appeared to be reading it page by page. Every now and then he turned it inside out with a loud rustling noise. He might be listening, or he might not. She thought it was unlikely that his wife’s conversation would arouse any interest, unless Mrs Trent’s name had caught his attention. In any case it would be quite difficult for him to hear what had been said. It was obvious that Edna Ford desired to minimize the effect which she might have produced upon Miss Silver with her outburst about Esmé Trent. Geoffrey was to be presented not as the hunter but the hunted, Mrs Trent as the brazen woman in pursuit of a reluctant prey. And if there were to be any enquiries about golfclubs, it was to be made quite clear that Esmé Trent was a devotee of the game.

Glancing momentarily in Adriana’s direction, she thought the fine eyes held a sardonic gleam. They met hers for the briefest possible space, but she no longer felt sure that Mrs Geoffrey’s conversation had not been overheard.

When they went up to bed this suspicion was confirmed. Adriana followed her into her room, enquired perfunctorily whether she had everything she wanted, and closing the door behind her, moved to a comfortable chintz-covered chair by the fire and sat down upon one of the padded arms. She nodded in the direction of the electric blaze.

‘I told Meeson to light it. It’s chilly tonight, and it’s horrid coming up to a cold room, and even though Edna says so, old houses in the country are cold.’ Her eyebrows lifted in a quizzical manner and she continued. ‘Well, you know now practically everything there is to know about her – don’t you? They live here because they haven’t enough money to live anywhere else, and she hates every minute of it. Geoffrey, on the other hand, finds it extremely agreeable. As she was observing, personable men are at a premium in this sort of neighbourhood. Geoffrey is a personable man, and he likes being at a premium. I don’t think his affairs are very serious. But of course there is this drawback to the country, that everyone is bound to know about them, and they certainly don’t lose anything in the mouths of the gossips. Meeson tells me there’s been talk about the parson’s cousin. Nice for the Vicarage!’ She laughed without amusement. ‘She’s the one who teaches the children, and it’s rather too bad of Geoffrey, but I daresay she met him half way. Those delicate clinging creatures often do. They want a man to prop them, and there just aren’t enough to go round – at least not in a place like Ford.’

Miss Silver had sat down on the other side of the hearth. She said,

‘I think I saw her when I walked into the village. She did not look at all strong.’

Adriana frowned.

‘No. Of course there’s nothing in it, and Edna is absurdly jealous. She got Geoffrey herself against not very serious competition and under the very capable management of her mother. When he tried to wriggle out of it the father stepped in. I believe Geoffrey thought I should cut him out of my will if he figured in a breach of promise case, so he threw in his hand. Edna’s idea of heaven is to go back to Ledchester or one of the London suburbs and live in a six-roomed house with every modern convenience. One of the suburbs would really be best from her point of view, because there are always plenty of men in a suburb. They work in London, but they come home to play, so Geoffrey wouldn’t be the only pebble on the beach. All the same she is every kind of a fool, because wherever they go there will be other women, and wherever there are other women Geoffrey will run after them. She’ll never change him.’

Miss Silver said, ‘Why don’t you let her go?’

Adriana shrugged.

‘She wouldn’t go without Geoffrey, and I shouldn’t care to live here without a man in the house. Edna can do as she likes when I’m gone. Did I tell you I had left their share to her for her life?’

Miss Silver said, ‘Yes.’

Adriana gave a short laugh.

‘I don’t want Geoffrey to leave her. He would if the money were his, or even half of it. She would crack up if he did, and as long as she holds the purse-strings he won’t. Besides, he’s a fool about women, and I don’t care for the idea of, say, Esmé Trent, spending my money.’

Miss Silver had put down her knitting-bag. She sat with her hands folded in her lap and looked earnestly at Adriana.

‘Miss Ford, you are making a mistake.’

‘Am I?’ The dark eyes met hers with a touch of scorn.

‘I think so. And as you have engaged my professional services, I feel that I owe you an honest opinion. It is a mistake to employ financial arguments to induce or constrain the actions of others. Deplorable repercussions may be set up. Since I entered this household I have been struck by the absence of any kindly feeling between its members. I exclude Mr Rutherford and Miss Johnstone who do not properly belong to it, and who are very obviously in love with one another.’

Adriana looked at her with something like anger. She sustained the look, and continued with quiet authority.

‘You yourself were able to believe that someone in the house was attempting your life. It seemed to me that you were not really able to exclude anyone from this suspicion.’

Adriana said, ‘Not Star – not Ninian.’

‘I did not think that you were sure even about them. That was the first thing that struck me, that there was no reaction such as would be felt where there was genuine confidence and affection.’

Adriana’s lips were dry. She moved them to say, ‘Are there many people of whom you can feel quite sure?’

Miss Silver was conscious of a humble thankfulness as she said, ‘Yes.’

The dry lips spoke again.

‘You are fortunate. Go on.’

‘I found a painful sense of strain between Mr and Mrs Geoffrey, and between Miss Meriel and everyone else in the house. She neither liked anyone, nor was she liked. Last night she met with a tragic death, and it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that she was killed because she knew too much about the death of Mabel Preston. We know that four people overheard Meeson say that a scrap of her dress had been found by the pool. We know that this scrap indicates that she was in the neighbourhood of the pool at about the time that Mabel Preston was drowned Any of those four people may have passed on what they had overheard. If this information reached the murderer, there must have been an instant and dangerous reaction. The person who might have been seen at the pool on that Saturday night stood in immediate danger. Only immediate action could prevent disclosure. I believe that action was taken.’

Adriana said, ‘Yes.’ Just the one word coming from the depths of her voice.

There was a silence in the room. When it had lasted for some time Miss Silver said in a thoughtful tone,

‘In addition to the four people who heard what Meeson said about Miss Meriel’s presence at the pool, there are three more names which should perhaps be mentioned.’

‘What names?’

‘My own, for one. I would like to take the opportunity of assuring you that I did not speak of the matter to anyone. Can you say the same about yourself?’

Adriana’s hand lifted from her knee and fell again.

‘I did not speak of it.’ Then, after a pause, ‘you said three names.’

Miss Silver watched her closely.

‘I was thinking of Meeson.’

She saw Adriana start and flush. She spoke with anger and emphasis.

‘Oh, no! Not Meeson!’

‘She had the knowledge.’

‘I said, “Not Meeson”.’

‘You have said that Mrs Geoffrey would like to leave Ford. Is she the only one? Does Meeson like living in the country?’

‘What do you think!’ Adriana gave a short laugh. ‘She loathes it. She’s a Londoner. It’s not a suburb she hankers after, but the real thing. She’s always at me to pack up this place and go and take a flat just round the corner from where we used to be.’

‘She knows that you have provided for her in your will?’

‘She knows most things about me. And you won’t get me to believe that it’s Gertie Meeson who has been playing tricks on me for the sake of what I’ve left her! You will never get me to believe that!’

‘So there is one person about whom you do feel sure.’

Adriana got up.

‘Oh, yes, I’m sure about Gertie,’ she said.