Eugenie was delighted to miss lessons and take a ride with Charlotte.
"Where are we going?" asked Eugenie.
"We're going to the Hall."
"To see Uncle Jason?"
"I don't know whether he's there."
"He was yesterday," said Eugenie.
"We'll see," I replied.
When we arrived at the Hall I went in with the two girls. Charlotte was clearly exhausted and I asked one of the servants to take us to a room which had been prepared for her.
"Am I going to lie down?" she asked.
"You feel like it, don't you?"
"Just for a little while."
"You can lie down, and Eugenie and I will sit with you. I want to tell you both something."
When she was lying down, I opened the connecting door between that and the next room which was also a bedroom.
I said: "Now I want you to listen to me carefully. You're going to stay here for a while."
"Stay here?" cried Eugenie. "What about school?"
"Well, you have both been very ill... mysteriously. We thought it would be better if you stayed here until break-up. Then I don't know what Charlotte's plans are but you'd be coming here in any case, Eugenie."
"What will Miss Hetherington say?"
"She knows. In fact it is her ides and mine and your uncle's. We want you to stay here because there may be something at school which is not good for you."
They were silent, looking at each other, and I could see that neither of them was displeased to have the term cut short.
"I know what it is," said Eugenie. "It's drains."
"Drains?"
"Yes, they make you ill sometimes. I was ill and so was Charlotte and they think we ought to get away. It's something in our room, I expect. Below the window."
I thought that was an easy way out as I did not want to tell them that we feared an attempt was being made on Eugenie's life.
"Well, you'll have a good time here together, and, Eugenie, you'll look after Charlotte won't you? You'll fend plenty to do."
They looked at each other and laughed.
"What about Romeo and Juliet?" asked Charlotte. "Alas poor Romeo," said Eugenie. "You were quite good, Charlotte. I could never get my lines right. Who'll take our places?"
"I think it is being eliminated," I said. "They'll just have to do with The Merchant of Venice." Charlotte looked regretful.
"You wouldn't be well enough," I said. "Think how you would have hated to see someone else do it."
Realizing that, Charlotte could accept the decision. If Romeo was not Charlotte Mackay, then no one else should be.
I said: "I shall go back now. Your uncle will be here in a day or so, I believe, Eugenie."
I left them and went back to school. When I told Daisy what had happened she was at first outraged by any question of the drains at her school being imperfect; but she soon recovered from that and realized that it was better than telling them the truth.
She said: "I feel very uneasy about that girl Elsa."
"Yes, but I think it is imperative that she does not know we suspect anything. She need not fend out for some little time that Eugenie and Charlotte have gone."
"And when she does?"
"I think she may begin to wonder. We must be very watchful of her."
"I should like to put her in custody right away."
"On what evidence? It is mostly supposition. We must have proof. Let us hope we get that soon. In the meantime let us keep watch on Elsa."
By the next day the girls were talking about the departure of Eugenie and Charlotte. I had explained that Charlotte needed recuperation and that Eugenie, who was her greatest friend, was with her. Elsa would quickly learn that, and I wondered what she would make of it. She might not be suspicious. On the other hand she would not be able to carry out her plan of murder ... if we were right in supposing that was what she was doing.
Jason returned from London in two days. He had little hope of Fiona and her husband being found. It had been pointed out to him that they could be anywhere in Europe, and that all the information we had was that he called himself Carl and his wife was Fiona.
I waylaid Elsa and tried to discover what she was thinking. She betrayed nothing and I could not help wondering whether I was mistaken about her. She had been at Schaffenbrucken and she was here. But certainly she would never have come to Colby if she had known I was here. She had told the story of meeting a man in the woods. Was it possible that that could be a coincidence? Oh no ... it was too neat. She was involved. I was sure of that.
I asked if she was looking forward to going home at Christmas.
"Oh yes, to my sister's place. It's a long way from here. Up north."
"Oh, where?"
"Newcastle."
"That is a long way."
"Yes, but she's my only sister. Families have to stick together, don't they? I'm lucky to have somewhere to go. You want to be with your family at Christmas time, don't you? Teresa tells me she is going with you."
"Oh yes ..."
"I hope Miss Charlotte's getting on all right."
"I believe so."
"Poor girl. She was bad. And Miss Eugenie's with her. I'm glad of that. Thick as thieves, those two."
She went on flicking her duster in the aimless way she had. It was difficult to suspect her.
It was the beginning of the Christmas week and we were breaking up on Wednesday. Rehearsals were over and the great day had come. It was just to be The Merchant of Venice which, Eileen said, was a blessing. Nobody seemed to think it was very strange that Charlotte had gone off to convalesce and that Eugenie had gone with her, and Eileen was delighted to be relieved of Romeo and Juliet.
Daisy sent for me and when I went to her study she was holding a letter in her hand. It was addressed to Miss Elsa Kracken and the postmark was Austria.
"I think," she said, "that this may be what we have been waiting for. I haven't opened it. I think we should be careful about that as it may well be necessary for her to have it and in that case she must not know that we have seen it. I therefore intend to steam it open very carefully and then if necessary we can reseal it."
We sat down side by side and read the letter:
"Dear Sister,
"What disaster! But you must not blame yourself. These things will happen, and I have told you many times that if we do our best and things go wrong we are not to be blamed. But it was most unfortunate and I am a little alarmed. I sensed danger as soon as I learned that woman was there. Perhaps you should have left after we completed the first part of the plan. If you had we should have finished the project by now. That is what we are going to do. Give your notice at once and tell them that you will not be returning after Christmas. Say it is for family reasons. Make it all very natural. You understand that.
"I know when to say Enough. We will be content with what we have. Our little bird is well endowed and we will accept half because to attempt the rest is clearly dangerous. I shall settle this project once and for all. Perhaps it shall be the last and we shall buy our little mansion somewhere ... anywhere. It will be a mansion as grand as Compton just like we used to dream about. But we shall be masters of it. It will not be for us as it was for our father. We shall not be the slaves of the rich. They shall be ours ...
"Most of ail, dear sister, I would not have you blame yourself. Circumstances were against us in this instance. I should have been more wary when I heard that woman was there. She has been our evil genius. I was deceived in her in the beginning, and if it makes you feel less guilty, sister, let me remind you that I, too, made my mistakes. I made grave errors. It is so easily done when one is off one's guard. Carelessly I gave her that name which meant so much to us in the past ... and not only the name but the place as well. I realized immediately what a grave error I had made, but as I said we are all careless at times. That worried me a great deal, I can tell you. But I tell you now to remind you of the mistakes we can make when we are taken off our guard for a moment.