show you. We'll play one hand."
He dealt the cards rapidly. "Pick up your
hands. Well, what about it?" He laughed at the
bewildered expression on Kitty's face. He laid
down his hand and the others followed suit. Kitty
held the entire club suit, M. Poirot the hearts,
Pam the diamonds and Colonel Clapperton the
spades.
"You see?" he said. "A man who can deal his
partner and his adversaries any hand he pleases
had better stand aloof from a friendly game! If the
luck goes too much his way, ill-natured things
might be said."
"Oh!" gasped Kitty. "How could you do that? ยท
It all looked perfectly ordinary."
"The quickness of the hand deceives the eye,"
said Poirot sententiously--and caught the sudden
change in the C6lonel's expression.
It was as though he realized that he had been off
his guard for a moment or two.
Poirot smiled. The conjuror had shown himself
through the mask of the pukka sahib.
The ship reached Alexandria at dawn the fol-
,. morning.
As Poirot came up from breakfast he found the
girls all ready to go on shore. They were talk-to
Colonel Clapperton.
"We ought to get off now," urged Kitty. "The
passport people will be going off the ship presently.
You'll come with us, won't you? You