Third Girl

Entirely her own imagination. She seems to have had nothing the matter with her." And having disposed of the late Mrs.

Charpentier without sympathy. Miss Jacobs took her departure.

Poirot turned his attention to Andrew Restarick. He asked delicately: "Am I correct in thinking, Mr. Restarick, that you were at one time well acquainted with Mrs. Charpentier?" Restarick did not answer for a moment or two. Then he sighed deeply and transferred his gaze to Poirot.

"Yes. At one time, many years ago, I knew her very well indeed… Not, I may say, under the name of Charpentier. She was Louise Birell when I knew her." "You were - er - in love with her!" "Yes, I was in love with her… Head over ears in love with her! I left my wife on her account. We went to South Africa.

After barely a year the whole thing blew up.

She returned to England. I never heard from her again. I never even knew what had become of her." "What about your daughter? Did she, also, know Louise Birell?" "Not to remember her, surely. A child of five years old!" "But did she know her?" Poirot persisted.

"Yes," said Restarick slowly. "She knew Louise. That is to say, Louise came to our house. She used to play with the child." "So it is possible that the girl might remember her, even after a lapse of years?" "I don't know. I simply don't know. I don't know what she looked like, how much Louise might have changed. I never saw her again, as I told you." Poirot said gently, "But you heard from her, didn't you, Mr. Restarick? I mean, you have heard from her since your return to England?" Again there came that pause, and the deep unhappy sigh: "Yes - I heard from her…" said Restarick. And then, with sudden curiosity, he asked: "How did you know that, M.

Poirot?" From his pocket, Poirot drew a neatly folded piece of paper. He unfolded it and handed it to Restarick.

The latter looked at it with a faintly puzzled frown.

Dear Andy, I see from the papers you're home again.

We must meet and compare notes as to what we've both been doing all these years - It broke off here - and started again.

Andy- Guess who this is from! Louise.

Don^t dare to say you've forgotten me I - Dear Andy, As you will see by this letterhead, Pm living in the same block of flats as your secretary. What a small world it is! We must meet. Could you come for a drink Monday or Tuesday next week?

Andy darling, I must see you again… Nobody has ever mattered to me but you - you haven91 really forgotten me, either, have you?

"How did you get this?" asked Restarick of Poirot, tapping it curiously.

"From a friend of mine via a furniture van," said Poirot, with a glance at Mrs.

Oliver.

Restarick looked at her without favour.

"I couldn't help it," said Mrs. Oliver, interpreting his look correctly. "I suppose it was her furniture being moved out, and the men let go of a desk, and a drawer fell out and scattered a lot of things, and the wind blew this along the courtyard, so I picked it up and tried to give it back to them, but they were cross and didn't want it, so I just put it in my coat pocket without thinking. And I never even looked at it until this afternoon when I was taking things out of pockets before sending the coat to the cleaners. So it really wasn't my fault." She paused, slightly out of breath.

"Did she get her letter to you written in the end?" Poirot asked.

"Yes - she did - one of the more formal versions! I didn't answer it. I thought it would be wiser not to do so." "You didn't want to see her again?" "She was the last person I wanted to see! She was a particularly difficult woman - always had been. And I'd heard things about her - for one that she had become a heavy drinker. And well - other things." "Did you keep her letter to you?" "No, I tore it up I" Dr. Stillingfleet asked an abrupt question.

"Did your daughter ever speak about her to you?" Restarick seemed unwilling to answer.

Dr. Stillingfleet urged him: "It might be significant if she did, you know." "You doctors! Yes, she did mention her once."

"What did she say exactly?" "She said quite suddenly: 'I saw Louise the other day. Father.' I was startled. I said 'Where did you see her?' And she said 'In the restaurant of our flats.' I was a bit embarrassed. I said: 'I never dreamed you'd remember her.' And she said: 'I've never forgotten. Mother wouldn't have let me forget, even if I wanted to." "Yes, that could certainly be significant," said Dr. Stillingfleet.

"And you. Mademoiselle," said Poirot, turning suddenly to Claudia. "Did Norma ever speak to you about Louise Carpenter?" "Yes - it was after the suicide. She said something about her being a wicked woman.