“Why is that, Mr. Doyle?”
“BecauseLinnet” he winced as he uttered his wife’s namer”was passing them through her hands just before dinner and talking about them. She knew something about pearls. I feel certain she’d have known if they were a fake.”
“They were a very good imitation, though. Tell me, was Mrs. Doyle in the habit of letting those pearls out of her hands? Did she ever lend them to a friend, for instance?”
Simon flushed with slight embarrassment.
“You see, M. Poirot, it’s difficult for me to say . . . I–I–well, you see, I hadn’t known Linnet very long.”
“Ah, no, it was a quickromanceyours.”
Simon went on: “And so–really–I shouldn’t know a thing like that. But Linnet was awfully generous with her things. I should think she might have done.”
“She never, for instance “Poirot’s voice was very smooth,” she never, for instance, lent them to Mademoiselle de Bellefort?”
“What d’you mean?” Simon flushed brick red–tried to sit up, and wincing, fell back. “What are you getting at? That Jackie stole the pearls? She didn’t. I’ll swear she didn’t. Jackie’s as straight as a die. The mere idea of her being a thief is · ridiculous–absolutely ridiculous.”
Poirot looked at him with gently twinkling eyes.
“Oh, la la la!” he said unexpectedly. “That suggestion of mine it has indeed stirred up the nest of hornets.”
Simon repeated doggedly, unmoved by Poirot’s lighter note.
“Jackie’s straight!”
Poirot remembered a girl’s voice by the Nile in Assuan saying:
“I love Simon–and he loves me . . .”
He had wondered which of the three statements he had heard that night was the true one. It seemed to him that it had turned out to be Jacqueline who had come closest to the truth.
The door opened and Race came in.
“Nothing,” he said brusquely. “Well, we didn’t expect it. I see the stewards coming along with their report as to the searching of the passengers.”
A steward and stewardess appeared in the doorway. The former spoke first.
“Nothing,· sir.”
“Any of the gentlemen make any fuss?”
“Only the Italian gentleman, sir. He carried on a good deal. Said it was a dishonour–something of that kind. He’d got a gun on him, too.”
“What kind of a gun?”
“Mauser automatic .25, sir.” “Italians are pretty hot tempered,” said Simon. “Richetti got ina no enl of a stew at Wadi Halfa just because of a mistake over a telegram. He was. darned rude to Linnet over it.” Race turned to the stewardess. She was a big handome-looking woman.
“Nothing on any of the ladies, sir. They made a good deal of fussexcelt for Mrs. Allerton who was as nice as nice could be. Not a sign of the pearl. By th way the young lady, Miss Rosalie Otterbourne, had a little pistol in her h:andbag.” “What kind?” “It was a very small one, sir, with a pearl handle. A kind of toy.’*’ Race stared.
“Devil take this case,” he muttered. “I thought we’d got hr cleared of suspicion and now–does every girl on this blinking boat carry around learl-handled toy pistols?” He shot a question at the stewardess.
“Did she show any feeling over your finding it?” The woman shook her head.
“I don’t think she noticed. I had my back turned whilst I was g00ing through the handbags.” “Still–she must have known you’d come across it. Oh, well, it beats me.
What about the maid?” “We’ve looked all over the boat, sir. We can’t find her anywhere.” “What’s this?” asked Simon.
“Mrs. Doyle’s maid-Louise Bourget. She’s disappeared.” “Disappeared?” Race said thoughtfully: “She might have stolen the pearls. She is the one person whl0 had araple opportunity to get a replica made.” “And then, when she found a search was being instituted, she hrew herself overboard?” suggested Simon.
“Nonsense,” said Race irritably. “A woman can’t throw herself overboard in broad daylight from a boat like this without somebody realising thae fact. She’s bound to be somewhere on board.” He addressed the stewardess once more.
“When was she last seen?” “About half an hour before the bell went for lunch, Sir.” “We’ll have a look at her cabin, anyway,” said Race. “That may tll us something.” He led the way to the deck below. Poirot followed him. They unlocked the door of the cabin and passed inside.