One, Two, Buckle My Shoe Read Online Free PDF Page A

elderly lady - lives in Lowndes Square. Eleven o'clock M. Hercule Poirot, he comes regularly - oh, of course this is him - sorry, M. Poirot, but I really am so upset! At 11:30, Mr. Alistair Blunt - that's the banker, you know - a short appointment, because Mr. Morley had prepared the filling last time. Then Miss Sainsbury Seale - she rang up specially - had toothache and so Mr. Morley fitted her in. A terrible talker she is, never stops - the fuss kind, too. Then at twelve o'clock Mr. Amberiotis - he was a new patient - made an appointment from the Savoy Hotel. Mr. Morley gets quite a lot o foreigners and Americans. Then 12:30 Miss Kirby She comes up from Worthing.”
    Poirot asked:
    “There was here when I arrived a tall military gentleman. Who would he be?”
    “One of Mr. Reilly's patients, I expect. I'll just get his list for you, shall I?”
    “Thank you, Miss Nevill.”
    She was absent only a few minutes. She returned with a book similar to that of Mr. Morley's.
    She read out:
    “Ten o'clock Betty Heath (That's a little girl of nine); eleven o'clock, Colonel Abercrombie.”
    “Abercrombie!” murmured Poirot. “C'йtait зa.”
    “Eleven-thirty, Mr. Howard Raikes. Twelve o'clock, Mr. Barnes, and that was all the patients this morning. Mr. Reilly isn't so booked up as Mr. Morley, of course.”
    “Can you tell us anything about any of these patients of Mr. Reilly's?”
    “Colonel Abercrombie has been a patient for long time, and all of Mrs. Heath's children come to Mr. Reilly. I can't tell you anything about Mr. Raikes or Mr. Barnes, though I fancy I have heard their names. I take all the telephone calls, you see -”
    Japp said:
    “We can ask Mr. Reilly ourselves. I should like to see him as soon as possible.”
    Miss Nevill went out. Japp said to Poirot:
    “All old patients of Mr. Morley's except Amberiotis. I'm going to have an interesting talk with Mr. Amberiotis presently. He's the last person, as it stands, to see Morley alive, and we've got to make quite sure that when he last saw him, Morley was alive.”
    Poirot said slowly, shaking his head:
    “You have still to prove motive.”
    “I know. That's what is going to be the teaser. But we may have something about Amberiotis at the Yard.” He added sharply: “You're very thoughtful, Poirot!”
    “I was wondering about something.”
    “What was it?”
    Poirot said with faint smile:
    “Why Chief Inspector Japp?”
    “Eh?”
    “I said, 'Why Chief Inspector Japp?' An officer of your eminence - is he usually called in to a case of suicide?”
    “As a matter of fact, I happened to be near by at the time. At Lavenhamstin Wigmore Street. Rather an ingenious system of frauds they've had there. They telephoned me there to come on here.”
    “But why did they telephone you?”
    “Oh, that - that's simple enough. Alistair Blunt. As soon as the Divisional Inspector heard he'd been here this morning, he got on to the Yard. Mr. Blunt is the kind of person we take care of in this country.”
    “You mean that there are people who would like him - out of the way?”
    “You bet there are. The Reds, to begin with - and our Blackshirted friends, too. It's Blunt and his group who are standing solid behind the present Government. Good sound conservative finance. That's why, if there were the least chance that there was any funny stuff intended against him this morning, they wanted a thorough investigation.”
    Poirot nodded.
    “That is what I more or less guessed. And that is the feeling I have -” he waved his hands expressively - “that there was, perhaps - a hitch of some kind. The proper victim was - should have been - Alistair Blunt. Or is this only a beginning - the beginning of a campaign of some kind? I smell - I smell -” he sniffed the air - “big money in this business!”
    Japp said:
    “You're assuming a lot, you know.”
    “I am suggesting that ce pauvre Morley was only a pawn in the game. Perhaps he knew something - perhaps he told Blunt