‘There is no one whom he might have wished to visit?’
‘The butler suggested that,’ and Austin mentioned Dr Graham. ‘But,’ he ended up, ‘we could find nothing to bear out that theory.’
‘Can you tell me if Sir William had anything on his mind recently?’
Austin hesitated and moved uneasily.
‘No,’ he said, ‘not to my knowledge.’ But his voice changed, and the Inspector felt he was not speaking the truth.
‘When did you see him last, Mr Ponson?’
‘On Sunday. I dined here and spent the evening.’
‘And you noticed nothing unusual in his manner then?’
‘Nothing.’
‘You will be wondering what is the point of all these questions. I am sorry to tell you, Mr Ponson, that my superiors have got an exceedingly unpleasant suspicion into their minds. I hardly like to mention it to you.’