"Similarly, it is possible that during the quarrel with Halliday, Sir Arthur continued to tear up letters and throw them into the basket."
"Yes, that's so," reflected the Sergeant. "What's more he might easily have done so, wanting to get rid of Mr. Halliday."
"To my mind," struck in the Superintendent, "we've got a case against Halliday."
"I should hate to arrest him on this evidence," said Harding. "Admitted that there are strong grounds for suspicion, let us take a look at Stephen Guest. On his own showing he left the terrace somewhere between twelve-twenty-five when Halliday appeared, and twelve thirty when Mrs. Chudleigh departed. He says that he was in the house for ten minutes, and possibly alone .When he returned to the terrace attention was called to a blood-stain on his shirt-cuff, for which he accounted by saying that he had cut his hand opening a tin of tobacco."
"I must say, sir, when I heard him give his evidence I suspicioned him strongly," said the Sergeant. "But, come to think of it, that was the effect they all of 'em had on me. It's a nasty-looking case against Mr. Guest, though — seeing as he's in love with her ladyship."
"It is a nasty-looking case," agreed Harding. "And, as I think you said at the time, he's a tough customer. Given two important facts: one, that he loves Lady Billington-Smith; and two, that she wouldn't consent to divorce, things begin to point to him. We have to consider the man himself too. I don't know what impression he made on you, Sergeant — or on you, Superintendent — but he seemed to me a man who knows what he wants, and gets it. He's a strong man, possibly a ruthless one, and certainly which make it difficult for us — a very deliberate one. If he committed the murder I am convinced that it was not done in the heat of the moment, but was carefully planned — and we're going to have the devil of a job — lacking further evidence — to bring it home to him."
"Personally," said the Superintendent, "I hold to that Halliday."
"You may be right. There are points against it being Guest. To murder a woman's husband (and, incidentally, your host) with the object of marrying her yourself argues an abnormal degree of cold-bloodedness. To stab him in the back isn't a thing you'd expect a man of Guest's type to do. Further, if he committed the murder he did it between twelve-twenty-seven and twelve-forty. Now I have been to see Mrs. Chudleigh, and although she is most annoyed at the suggestion that she would have looked at the study window I am fairly certain that there can have been no one in the room with the General when she passed. Had there been she must have noticed And, more significant still, the weapon used was the General's own paper-knife, which was always kept in the study, on the desk. That circumstance leads one to suppose that the murder was quite unpremeditated, the knife being snatched up through impulse. At the sane time we've got to remember that Guest, who was connection of Sir Arthur's, frequently stayed in the house, and may easily have known that the dagger was always to be found on the General's desk, and used it deliberately."
"Look here, Mr. Harding," said the Superintendent. affronted. "Seems to me you're arguing away every bit of evidence you find! How are we going to get on if that's what you do?"
"I see you've reached the same conclusion I have," said Harding with not the veriest flicker of a smile. "Following up these suspects is leading us precisely nowhere."