Miss Marple coughed.
"You'll have to find out from Miss Blacklog who wanted to kill her."
Good for old Dora Bunner, thought Craddock.
Instinct against intelligence every time.
"So you think it was a deliberate attempt on Miss Blacklog's life," asked Rydesdale.
"It certainly has that appearance," said Miss Marple.
"Though there are one or two difficulties. But what I was really wondering about was whether there mightn't be a short cut.
I've no doubt that whoever arranged this with Rudi Scherz took pains to tell him to keep his mouth shut about it, and perhaps he did keep his mouth shut, but if he talked to anybody it would probably be to that girl, Myrna Harris.
And he may - he just may - have dropped some hint as to the kind of person who'd suggested the whole thing." "I'll see her now," said Craddock, rising.
Miss Marple nodded.
"Yes, do, Inspector Craddock.
I'll feel happier when you have.
Because once she's told you anything she knows she'll be much safer."
"Safer?...
Yes, I see."
He left the room.
The Chief Constable said doubtfully, but tactfully:
"Well, Miss Marple, you've certainly given us something to think about."
"I'm sorry about it, I am really," said Myrna Harris.
"It's ever so nice of you not to be ratty about it.
But you see Mum's the sort of person who fusses like anything.
And it did look as though I'd - what's the phrase - been an accessory before the fact"(the words ran glibly off her tongue).
"I mean, I was afraid you'd never take my word for it that I only thought it was just a bit of fun."
Inspector Craddock repeated the reassuring phrases with which he had broken down Myrna's resistance.
"I will.
I'll tell you all about it.
But you will keep me out of it if you can because of Mum?
It all started with Rudi breaking a date with me.
We were going to the pictures that evening and then he said he wouldn't be able to come and I was a bit stand-offish with him about it - because after all, it had been his idea and I don't fancy being stood up by a foreigner.
And he said it wasn't his fault, and I said that was a likely story, and then he said he'd got a bit of a lark on that night - and that he wasn't going to be out of pocket by it and how would I fancy a wrist-watch?
So I said, what do you mean by a lark?
And he said not to tell anyone, but there was to be a party somewhere and he was to stage a sham hold-up.
Then he showed me the advertisement he'd put in and I had to laugh.
He was a bit scornful about it all.
Said it was kid's stuff really - but that was just like the English.
They never really grew up - and of course, I said what did he mean by talking like that about us - and we had a bit of an argument, but we made it up.
Only you can understand, can't you, sir, that when I read all about it, and it hadn't been a joke at all and Rudi had shot someone and then shot himself - why, I didn't know what to do.
I thought if I said I knew about it beforehand, it would look as though I were in on the whole thing.
But it really did seem like a joke when he told me about it.
I'd have sworn he meant it that way.
I didn't even know he'd got a revolver.
He never said anything about taking a revolver with him."
Craddock comforted her and then asked the most important question. "Who did he say it was who had arranged this party?"
But there he drew a blank.
"He never said who it was that was getting him to do it.
I suppose nobody was, really.
It was all his own doing."
"He didn't mention a name?
Did he say he - or she?"
"He didn't say anything except that it was going to be a scream.