Agatha arose late and to the smell of frying bacon. She was half-way down the stairs in her night-gown when she remembered that Charles was staying. She retreated up the stairs and quickly showered and dressed. When she went back down again, it was to find Charles eating breakfast and chatting to her cleaner, Doris Simpson.
Agatha and her cleaner were two of the few women of Carsely who called each other by their first names. ‘Hello, Agatha,’ said Doris. ‘Just about to get started. If you’re finished upstairs, I’ll begin with the bedrooms. Late night?’
Her eyes slid from Charles to Agatha.
‘A celibate late night,’ said Agatha firmly. ‘We’ve been up to London, trying to find out more about what sort of person Melissa was.’
‘I cleaned for her, you know,’ said Doris, her voice muffled as she bent down to take out more cleaning material from a kitchen cupboard.
Agatha and Charles stared at each other. ‘Sit down, Doris,’ said Agatha. ‘I didn’t know you cleaned for her. You didn’t say anything.’
Doris sat down reluctantly. ‘Didn’t like to, given the circumstances. Didn’t think you’d want to hear her name mentioned. And you’ve been looking so ill. I was right worried about you.’
‘We’re trying to establish what sort of person Melissa was,’ said Charles. ‘You see, that way we might figure out why she was murdered.’
‘I don’t know if I’m supposed to talk about this,’ said Doris. ‘It was all hush-hush. But, then, she’s dead.’
Agatha and Charles looked at her eagerly. ‘What do you mean, hush-hush?’
‘She told me,’ said Doris, looking over her apron shoulder and dropping her voice to a whisper, ‘not to touch anything on her desk. She said she was working on a secret project for the government. I should’ve told the police.’
Agatha sighed. ‘The one thing we have found out about Melissa was that she was a fantasist and a liar. But how long did you work for her?’
‘Just a day a week.’
‘Until she died?’
‘No, I quit before then.’
‘Why?’
Doris turned an uncomfortable red. ‘Do I have to tell you?’
‘I think you’d better.’
‘I went along one morning. She wasn’t around. She had given me a key, so I got started. I thought I would do the bedrooms first.’
She stared at Agatha.
Agatha sighed wearily. ‘You found her in bed with James.’
‘Yes.’
‘I gave her a piece of my mind and handed the key back and got out of there.’
James, James, how could you, and with such a woman? mourned Agatha.
Aloud, she said, ‘Forget about that part, Doris, and the hush-hush business. What else did you think about her?’
‘She was very fussy. She would check up on my work. I said if she wasn’t satisfied, I’d quit, and she laughed and said that one time she used to have a lot of servants, butler and footmen and all that, and she was used to supervising and checking. Funny, I didn’t believe her. I mean, no one outside a few and the Queen has servants like that these days. But I didn’t think much about her one way or the other.’
‘Even though you believed she was working for the government?’ asked Charles.
‘I didn’t think much about that. I mean, the Cotswolds are full of retired military people who like to hint they were in intelligence during the war. “I worked for the little grey men of Whitehall, for my sins.” And then you find they had some sort of minor desk job. I thought maybe she was doing some typing for a local MP, something like that. But the reason I didn’t tell the police was because she had made me promise not to tell anyone and there could have been some truth in it. I sometimes reckon I’m too cynical. You get that way cleaning houses. I’d better get on, Agatha.’
When Doris had gone off upstairs, Agatha said, ‘Typing. I wonder what she was typing? Who inherits? We didn’t ask Bill.’
‘Let’s ask Mrs Bloxby. Did Melissa have any children?’
‘Don’t know that
Agatha and her cleaner were two of the few women of Carsely who called each other by their first names. ‘Hello, Agatha,’ said Doris. ‘Just about to get started. If you’re finished upstairs, I’ll begin with the bedrooms. Late night?’
Her eyes slid from Charles to Agatha.
‘A celibate late night,’ said Agatha firmly. ‘We’ve been up to London, trying to find out more about what sort of person Melissa was.’
‘I cleaned for her, you know,’ said Doris, her voice muffled as she bent down to take out more cleaning material from a kitchen cupboard.
Agatha and Charles stared at each other. ‘Sit down, Doris,’ said Agatha. ‘I didn’t know you cleaned for her. You didn’t say anything.’
Doris sat down reluctantly. ‘Didn’t like to, given the circumstances. Didn’t think you’d want to hear her name mentioned. And you’ve been looking so ill. I was right worried about you.’
‘We’re trying to establish what sort of person Melissa was,’ said Charles. ‘You see, that way we might figure out why she was murdered.’
‘I don’t know if I’m supposed to talk about this,’ said Doris. ‘It was all hush-hush. But, then, she’s dead.’
Agatha and Charles looked at her eagerly. ‘What do you mean, hush-hush?’
‘She told me,’ said Doris, looking over her apron shoulder and dropping her voice to a whisper, ‘not to touch anything on her desk. She said she was working on a secret project for the government. I should’ve told the police.’
Agatha sighed. ‘The one thing we have found out about Melissa was that she was a fantasist and a liar. But how long did you work for her?’
‘Just a day a week.’
‘Until she died?’
‘No, I quit before then.’
‘Why?’
Doris turned an uncomfortable red. ‘Do I have to tell you?’
‘I think you’d better.’
‘I went along one morning. She wasn’t around. She had given me a key, so I got started. I thought I would do the bedrooms first.’
She stared at Agatha.
Agatha sighed wearily. ‘You found her in bed with James.’
‘Yes.’
‘I gave her a piece of my mind and handed the key back and got out of there.’
James, James, how could you, and with such a woman? mourned Agatha.
Aloud, she said, ‘Forget about that part, Doris, and the hush-hush business. What else did you think about her?’
‘She was very fussy. She would check up on my work. I said if she wasn’t satisfied, I’d quit, and she laughed and said that one time she used to have a lot of servants, butler and footmen and all that, and she was used to supervising and checking. Funny, I didn’t believe her. I mean, no one outside a few and the Queen has servants like that these days. But I didn’t think much about her one way or the other.’
‘Even though you believed she was working for the government?’ asked Charles.
‘I didn’t think much about that. I mean, the Cotswolds are full of retired military people who like to hint they were in intelligence during the war. “I worked for the little grey men of Whitehall, for my sins.” And then you find they had some sort of minor desk job. I thought maybe she was doing some typing for a local MP, something like that. But the reason I didn’t tell the police was because she had made me promise not to tell anyone and there could have been some truth in it. I sometimes reckon I’m too cynical. You get that way cleaning houses. I’d better get on, Agatha.’
When Doris had gone off upstairs, Agatha said, ‘Typing. I wonder what she was typing? Who inherits? We didn’t ask Bill.’
‘Let’s ask Mrs Bloxby. Did Melissa have any children?’
‘Don’t know that
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