“May we ask why she came so often?” Constance asked, so gently that it didn’t even sound like an interruption.
Martin gave a slight shrug. “She wanted to go over old times, I suppose.”
“How long did she stay?” Solomon asked.
“A few hours, until she had to go to the theatre. We both enjoyed it.”
“How did she seem to you?” Constance asked.
“Not ill, if that’s what you mean.”
“Happy?”
He thought. “Happy to see me, which is flattering for a lonely old man. I miss my concerts… But now I think of it unselfishly, she was a little troubled.”
“Did she talk about her husband, her marriage?” Constance asked.
“Bless you, no. We talked mostly of music and musicians.”
“Of Carl Darrow, perhaps?”
“Yes, sometimes, though I had little to contribute on the subject. I never heard the man play, always in the wrong place at the wrong time. But I have several of his notices and reviews.”
“Then you never met Darrow?” Solomon asked.
Martin shook his head. “No.”
Constance leaned forward. “Did she ever confide her reason for the trouble you noticed in her? Did you guess what it was?”
“No.” Martin grimaced. “Looking back, I wonder if she knew she was dying and came to say goodbye.”
*
“Which is possible,”Solomon said as they walked back up the street and went in search of a hackney.
“It’s also possible that she was saying goodbye because she was leaving the country with Darrow,” Constance pointed out.
Solomon sighed. “And probably more likely. Nothing else points to her being aware of imminent death.”
“Except the fear Darrow mentioned, which he may have misinterpreted as fear of Montague.”
Solomon considered that. “Possible. Whatever her reasons, there was clearly a bond between her and Martin. And we know now she didnotgo there to meet Darrow or anyone else.”
“Providing Martin is telling us the truth.”
“Do you think he’s lying?” Solomon asked in surprise.
“No. Not really. But too many people are telling us partial truths—at the very least. We’re missing something, Solomon.”
“I think we are.”
“Which doesn’t mean Montague isn’t guilty. He still has the best motive and opportunity. We just don’t have the complete picture yet. Hopefully, you or Janey will find the missing pieces amongst passenger lists. I think I’ll go back to the office and study the notes—in between dealing with that mountain of correspondence we’ve allowed to pile up.”
“Good plan. I’ll see you back there in a few hours—earlier, with luck.”
But luck did not appear to be with him.
*
