“I'm sure if I'd ever dreamed there was going to be such a fuss made over my clearing up poor Gregory's things I wouldn't have touched one of them!” said Miss Matthews agitatedly. “Anyone would think I did it on purpose! No one told me I ought not to, and my motto is, If a job has to be done sometime, do it at once! Besides, there wasn't anything that could possibly have had poison in it, as I told the Superintendent. "If you think there's poison in a bottle of iodine and a packet of corn-plaster," I said, "you can take them and see for yourself". “
“And did he take them?” inquired Mr Rumbold.
Miss Matthews sniffed. “Yes. Such nonsense! I could understand him wanting to take the salts and the liverpills, but I've yet to hear of anyone's drinking iodine. Anyway, I gave him everything I took out of poor Gregory's medicine-chest, and I only hope he's satisfied.”
“But my dear Miss Matthews, what did you do with your brother's personal effects?” asked Rumbold.
“I didn't do anything with them!” she replied hotly. “I left all his clothes, and his ivory brushes, and his watch and chain, and things tidily put away in his wardrobe! The only things I threw away were things like his sponges, which were no good to anybody. And if the police want to see them I'm extremely sorry, but they went into the boiler with all the rest of the rubbish!”
“I see,” said Rumbold. “A sort of clean sweep.”
“Well, what was the use of keeping a lot of things no one could ever use?” demanded Miss Matthews. “Next I suppose I shall be blamed for having the room swept!” .
“My dear, I don't think anyone blames you,” said Mrs Matthews. “You couldn't know. After all, we none of us dreamed there was any truth in Gertrude's suspicions. And if perhaps you quite unwittingly burned something which contained the poison, do you know I am almost glad? Nothing can bring Gregory back to us, and isn't it better that we should remain in ignorance?”
“We seem to be likely to,” muttered Guy.
Stella was frowning. “No!” she said. “If he was poisoned we've got to know who did it. Good God, how could we go on when we know that one of us is a murderer?”