“Oh, yes, I'm sure he must have!” said Mrs. Haswell, folding up her tapestry-work, and removing the thimble from her finger. “Why? You don't want it, do you, Charles?”
“No, but it looks as if the Chief Inspector will. Gavin had the bright idea that it would have been just the rifle for Mavis to handle, and I should think they're bound to follow that up. And if it's sculling about the village—”
“No, it isn't. I remember now!” said Mrs. Haswell. “Jim Newbiggin returned it one day when I was in London, and Molly put it in the cloakroom. I meant to put it with the rest of your stuff, in the attic, and then I forgot, and I don't know what became of it.”
“Lord-love-a-duck!” said Charles inelegantly, and immediately left the room.
He returned in a very few minutes, carrying in one gloved hand a light rifle. “Shoved at the back of the coat-cupboard,” he said briefly. “Now, where would be a safe place to put it? I haven't touched it, and no one must, because of finger-prints. Look, Mummy, I'll put it on the top of the cabinet for the time being.”
“Must you use my gloves?” asked his father.
“Sorry, Dad! There weren't any others, and it isn't greasy.”
He then deposited the rifle well out of any housemaid's reach, stripped off the glove, and dropped it on a chair. Mr. Haswell observed this with disfavour, but as the gong sounded at that moment he said nothing, merely picking his glove up on his way out of the room, and restoring it to the cloakroom himself.
Since only one of her three servants was on duty on Sunday evenings, supper at The Cedars was cold, and no one waited at table. There was thus no other bar to exhaustive discussion of the murder than Mr. Haswell's silent disapproval. And as it was Mrs. Haswell who set the ball rolling again, by saying that she really didn't think Mavis was the kind of girl to borrow things without asking if she might, Abby felt herself at liberty to pursue her own theory. Exhaustively searching the inside of a large lobster-claw with a silver pick, she said: “Of course she wouldn't! Gavin only said it to be clever. Like saying that if he couldn't have Mavis, or himself, for the murder he'd have Mr. Ainstable.”
“What?” said Mr. Haswell, looking up.