Presently Rosalie said, "Your mother need never know about you."
"I'm not sure," Tim said thoughtfully. "I think I shall tell her. Mother's got plenty of stuffing, you know. She can stand up to things. Yes, I think I shall shatter her maternal illusions about me. She'll be so relieved to know that my relations with Joanna were purely of a business nature that she'll forgive me everything else."
They had come to Mrs Allerton's cabin and Tim knocked firmly on the door. It opened and Mrs Allerton stood on the threshold.
"Rosalie and I -" began Tim. He paused.
"Oh, my dears," said Mrs Allerton. She folded Rosalie in her arms. "My dear, dear child... I always hoped - but Tim was so tiresome - and pretended he didn't like you. But of course I saw through that!"
Rosalie said in a broken voice: "You've been so sweet to me - always. I used to wish - to wish -"
She broke off and sobbed happily on Mrs Allerton's shoulder.
Chapter 27
As the door closed behind Tim and Rosalie, Poirot looked somewhat apologetically at Colonel Race. The Colonel was looking rather grim.
"You will consent to my little arrangement, yes?" Poirot pleaded. "It is irregular - I know it is irregular, yes - but I have a high regard for human happiness."
"You've none for mine," said Race.
"That jeune fille, I have a tenderness toward her, and she loves that young man. It will be an excellent match; she has the stiffening he needs; the mother likes her; everything is thoroughly suitable."
"In fact the marriage has been arranged by heaven and Hercule Poirot. All I have to do is to compound a felony."
"But, mon ami, I told you, it was all conjecture on my part."
Race grinned suddenly.
"It's all right by me," he said. "I'm not a damned policeman, thank God! I daresay the young fool will go straight enough now. The girl's straight all right. No, what I'm complaining of is your treatment of me! I'm a patient man, but there are limits to my patience! Do you know who committed the three murders on this boat or don't you?"
"I do."
"Then why all this beating about the bush?"
"You think that I am just amusing myself with side issues? And it annoys you? But it is not that. Once I went professionally to an archaeological expedition - and I learnt something there. In the course of an excavation, when something comes up out of the ground, everything is cleared away very carefully all around it. You take away the loose earth, and you scrape here and there with a knife until finally your object is there, all alone, ready to be drawn and photographed with no extraneous matter confusing it. That is what I have been seeking to do - clear away the extraneous matter so that we can see the truth - the naked shining truth."
"Good," said Race. "Let's have this naked shining truth. It wasn't Pennington. It wasn't young Allerton. I presume it wasn't Fleetwood. Let's hear who it was for a change."
"My friend, I am just about to tell you."
There was a knock on the door. Race uttered a muffled curse.
It was Dr Bessner and Cornelia. The latter was looking upset.
"Oh, Colonel Race," she exclaimed, "Miss Bowers has just told me about Cousin Marie. It's been the most dreadful shock. She said she couldn't bear the responsibility all by herself any longer, and that I'd better know, as I was one of the family. I just couldn't believe it at first, but Dr Bessner here has been just wonderful."
"No, no," protested the doctor modestly.
"He's been so kind, explaining it all, and how people really can't help it. He's had kleptomaniacs in his clinic. And he's explained to me how it's very often due to a deep-seated neurosis."
Cornelia repeated the words with awe.
"It's planted very deeply in the subconscious; sometimes it's just some little thing that happened when you were a child. And he's cured people by getting them to think back and remember what that little thing was."
Cornelia paused, drew a deep breath, and started off again.
"But it's worrying me dreadfully in case it all gets out. It would be too, too terrible in New York. Why, all the tabloids would have it. Cousin Marie and Mother and everybody - they'd never hold up their heads again."
Race sighed. "That's all right," he said. "This is Hush Hush House."
"I beg your pardon, Colonel Race?"
"What I was endeavouring to say was that anything short of murder is being hushed up."
"Oh!" Cornelia clasped her hands. "I'm so relieved. I've just been worrying and worrying."
"You have the heart too tender," said Dr Bessner, and patted her benevolently on the shoulder. He said to the others, "She has a very sensitive and beautiful nature."
"Oh, I haven't really. You're too kind."
Poirot murmured, "Have you seen any more of Mr Ferguson?"
Cornelia blushed.
"No - but Cousin Marie's been talking about him."
"It seems the young man is highly born," said Dr Bessner. "I must confess he does not look it. His clothes are terrible. Not for a moment does he appear a well-bred man."
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