"That merely destroys the police case. It doesn't disprove Betty Kane's story. If the Sharpes are ever to be rid of this thing the girl's story has to be shown to be nonsense. Our only chance of doing that is to find out where she was during those weeks."
"Yes. I see."
"I suppose you have checked on private owners?"
"Planes? Oh, yes. The same thing goes there. We have no photograph of the man, so he might be any one of the hundreds of private owners who went abroad with female companions in the specified time."
"Yes. Pretty well sunk. Not much wonder Ben Carley was amused."
"You're tired, Mr. Blair. You've been having a worrying time."
"Yes. It isn't very often a country solicitor has something like this dumped on his shoulders," Robert said wryly.
Ramsden regarded him with what amounted on the Ramsden visage to a smile. "For a country solicitor," he said, "it seems to me you're not doing badly, Mr. Blair. Not badly at all."
"Thanks," Robert said, really smiling. Coming from Alec Ramsden that was practically an O.M.
"I shouldn't let it get you down. You've got an insurance against the very worst happening-or will, when I get that printed evidence."