The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories (Hercule Poirot 21)

"You, Mademoiselle, you have been the mar-velous

one. To pour away the champagne, to act

the dead body so prettily."

"Ugh," she shivered, "you

give me the creeps."

He said gently:

"It was you who telephoned me, was it not?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I was worried and--frightened

without knowing quite why I was frightened Bar-ton

told me he was having this party to com-memorate

Iris' death. I realized he had some

scheme on--but he wouldn't tell me what it was.

He looked so--so queer and so excited that I felt

something terrible might happen--only of course I

never dreamed that he meant to--to get rid of

me."

"And so, Mademoiselle?"

"I'd heard people talking about you. I thought

if I could only get you here perhaps it would stop

anything happening. I thought that being

foreigner--if I rang up and pretended to be in

danger and--and made it sound mysterious--"

"You thought the melodrama, it would attract

me? That is what puzzled me. The message itself

--definitely it was what you call 'bogus'--it did

not ring true. But the fear in the voice--that was.

real. Then I came--and you denied very cate-gorically

having sent me a message."