“It seems to me,” he said, “I’ve heard you’re supposed to’ve killed a few people that you didn’t have any particular personal feelings about. Something about being your own judge, jury, and hangman. Not that it wasn’t all quite legal and accidental, of course,” he added, “or it came to look that way in the end, but that’s what they say. Well, from what I’ve heard about Ufferlitz, he’s got some things in his record that might save you the trouble of hating him by yourself.”
The Saint sank lower in his chair and for the first time ventured to look slightly bored.
“Here we go again,” he drawled. “Are you trying to hang something on me or not? Make up your mind.”
“Well...” Condor drew his chin back so that the toothpick drooped from his upper teeth. “I guess I do sound sort of antagonistic sometimes. Gets to be second nature. You’ll have to excuse me. But I’ve heard plenty of complimentary things about you too. Maybe you could help me a lot, at that.
“You’ve given me one good idea already. I wouldn’t like to be a nuisance, but if you wanted to give me any more I’d be honored.”
He was as disarming as a drowsing crocodile. You felt ashamed of yourself for having misunderstood him and put him into a position where he had to defend himself. Your heart warmed with the consciousness of having put him back where he belonged, nevertheless. You felt pretty loosened up altogether. Unless you were Simon Templar.
“I’m afraid it’s a little bit out of my line,” said the Saint. “As a matter of fact, I go a little bit nuts over these split-second timetables. They’re too confusing. And I don’t believe in them, anyway. They’re too much like the super-solemn kind of detective story. Nobody outside of a book is ever watching the time from minute to minute. And even if they were, their watches wouldn’t be synchronised. And as soon as there’s any chance of any error, you might as well give up. On top of which there are too many ways of faking, if you’ve read any mysteries.”
“That’s how I feel,” Condor agreed sadly. “Personally, I’ll settle for anyone who could have been there between twelve-thirty and about two-fifteen, when the patrol found him.”
“What about the other people you’ve talked to?”
“You mean have they got alibis too?”