An outsider had only to wait until Mitzi had departed by bus and Letitia Blacklog and Dora Bunner were both out of the house.
Such an opportunity must have been simplicity itself.
That meant that he couldn't rule out anybody who had been in the drawing-room that night.
"Murgatroyd."
"Yes, Hinch?"
"I've been doing a bit of thinking?"
"Have you, Hinch?"
"Yes, the great brain has been working.
You know, Murgatroyd, the whole set-up the other evening was decidedly fishy."
"Fishy?"
"Yes.
Tuck your hair up, Murgatroyd, and take this trowel.
Pretend it's a revolver."
"Oh," said Miss Murgatroyd, nervously.
"All right.
It won't bite you.
Now come along to the kitchen door.
You're going to be the burglar.
You stand here.
Now you're going into the kitchen to hold up a lot of nit-wits.
Take the torch.
Switch it on."
"But it's broad daylight!"
"Use your imagination, Murgatroyd.
Switch it on."
Miss Murgatroyd did so, rather clumsily, shifting the trowel under one arm while she did so.
"Now then," said Miss Hinchliffe, "off you go.
Remember the time you played Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Women's Institute?
Act.
Give it all you've got.
'Stick 'em up!' Those are your lines - and don't ruin them by saying
'Please.'" Obediently, Miss Murgatroyd raised her torch, nourished the trowel and advanced on the kitchen door. Transferring the torch to her right hand she swiftly turned the handle and stepped forward, resuming the torch in her left hand.
"Stick 'em up!" she fluted, adding vexedly:
"Dear me, this is very difficult, Hinch."
"Why?"
"The door.
It's a swing door, it keeps coming back and I've got both hands full."
"Exactly," boomed Miss Hinchliffe. "And the drawing-room door at Little Paddocks always swings to.
It isn't a swing door like this, but it won't stay open.
That's why Letty Blacklog bought that absolutely delectable heavy glass doorstop from Elliot's in the High Street.
I don't mind saying I've never forgiven her for getting in ahead of me there.
I was beating the old brute down from eight guineas to six pound ten, and then Blacklog comes along and buys the damned thing.
I'd never seen as attractive a doorstop, you don't often get those glass bubbles in that big size."
"Perhaps the burglar put the doorstop against the door to keep it open," suggested Miss Murgatroyd.
"Use your common sense, Murgatroyd.
What does he do?
Throw the door open, say 'excuse me a moment,' stoop and put the stop into position and then resume business by saying
'Hands up?'
Try holding the door with your shoulder."
"It's still very awkward," complained Miss Murgatroyd.