“The target on the third floor didn’t fall on the arrow and drive it through,” retorted Landis.
Bernard presented him with a glance of grudging approval and a moment later burst out laughing.
“How in the world could Miss Mount do it, when she was in front of him?”
“A fair alibi,” Landis admitted doubtfully. “Perhaps it’s a bit too good.” He shrugged. “I don’t know how she did it—if she did do it. But the person who did it was clever.”
“This case has got you,” smiled Bernard. “I suppose you figure that Miss Mount strangled Harrison with her large and muscular hands, while Susan held him. They stuck the arrow into him afterwards for evidence and Susan had hysterics just to fool us, eh?”
“You go to thunder!”
“For my part,” Bernard continued equably, “I want to know where Miss Mount went on Thursday and why; what made Anita lie to us; whether Harrison went to Long Island today to see Cuddy or somebody else; whether it was Cuddy that telephoned Mrs. Graham; why she screamed Wednesday night and what Miss Mount knows about it. There’s no direct evidence to connect anybody with this murder. We’ve got to go round about for it, young fellow.”
“The whole thing hangs on finding out who practiced up on the third floor since Tuesday, practiced firing that—”
“Shooting that Japanese bow,” Bernard corrected.
“All right, practiced shooting that Japanese bow by himself or herself. That’s the one definite clue.”