“It is extraordinary. I have strange habits.”
Inspector Aylesbury cleared his throat again and looked frowningly across at my friend.
“What part of the grounds were you in when the shot was fired?” he demanded.
“Halfway along the north side.”
“What were you doing?”
“I was running.”
“Running?”
“You see, Inspector, I regarded it as my duty to patrol the grounds of the house at nightfall, since, for all I knew to the contrary, some of the servants might be responsible for the attempts of which the Colonel complained. I had descended from the window of my room, had passed entirely around the house east to west, and had returned to my starting-point when Mr. Knox, who was looking out of the window, observed Colonel Menendez entering the Tudor garden.”
“Oh. Colonel Menendez was not visible to you?”
“Not from my position below, but being informed by my friend, who was hurriedly descending the ladder, that the Colonel had entered the garden, I set off running to intercept him.”