He stared at her. “Why, what did he eat? I always thought there was dam’ little the old man couldn’t digest!”
“When Clara said poisoned,” explained Aubrey, in the kindly tone of one instructing a child, “she meant murdered.”
“Good God!” Ingram gasped, sitting down plump in Raymond’s vacated chair.
Vivian left the room as Charmian began to tell Ingram about Dr Rame’s visit, and went upstairs to put Eugene in possession of the new facts. She was overtaken on the stairs by Clay, on his way to his mother’s room. He said to her with a sort of suppressed eagerness: “I shouldn’t think there could be a doubt it was Jimmy, should you? I mean, it’s obvious!”
“I don’t know. I suppose we most of us had pretty good reasons for wanting Penhallow dead.”
He uttered an unconvincing laugh. “I say, I wish you’d speak for yourself I’m sure I never had such an idea in my head!"
“Hadn’t you?” she said, looking at him rather oddly.
“Of course not! Good lord, what a question!”
“It’s one you’re likely to be asked,” she said.
He was so disconcerted by this answer that he found nothing to say. She walked past Faith’s door towards the corridor at the back of the house, and after watching her uncertainly until she had disappeared from his sight, Clay knocked for admittance into Faith’s room.