First Published: 2019
RATING: VERY GOOD
SPOILERS!!!
This is a short story featuring beloved Angela Marchmont.
She is on a ship on holiday, and one of the passengers, Miss Leach, tells her the story of Dr Richard Byfield, another passenger. Apparently, Dr Byfield’s wife, Rosa, died of strychnine poisoning. Strychnine was used for curative purposes, and the doctor, her husband, gave her just a bit too much. There was an inquest and an investigation, which declared that it had been an accidental death.
Miss Leach explains that Dr Byfield met Bella Sylvester two weeks ago when they first board the ship (Angela came on board later). They fell in love and got married in Gibraltar just a few days ago, surprising everyone, especially Belle’s stepson, Allen Gage. Belle is a famous opera singer, and her last husband died a year ago, and he left everything to her because his son, Allen, squandered his money on gambling. Angela knows that if Belle were to die, her money would go to her husband. Yet, when Angela talks to Belle, the latter says that as soon as she got married, she talked to a solicitor on the ship and changed her will, making provisions for her stepson to inherit what he was entitled to.
Angela has tea with the Byfields, Allen Gage, Miss Leach and some others. Dr Byfield serves tea, and then Belle asks him to fetch her shawl. Then she says that she wants coffee and not tea, and her stepson reminds her that she asked for tea. Mr McClure serves her coffee, and she says that Richard can have her tea, and then Angela realises that her cup is chipped, and Mr McClure changes her tea for the one for Richard. When the doctor returns with the shawl, the ship suddenly takes a tumble and several cups, including Angela’s, tip over and the tea spilled.
The next day Angela runs into Allen, who tells her that he is worried about his stepmother. He says that the tea who Richard Byfield served Belle and ended up before Angela was poisoned. Allen disapproves of his stepmother marrying Dr Byfield, and yesterday he got suspicious and took a sample of Angela’s tea, and when the ship stopped, he went to a laboratory to have the tea tested, and a high dose of strychnine was found in the tea. Allen says that he has tried to talk to his stepmother, but he doesn’t believe him, so he wants Angela talks to her.
Angela talks to Belle, but she does not have much success as Belle thinks that Allen is lying because he is jealous and disapproves of the marriage. That evening Angela finds herself in the company of the Byfields, Allen, Miss Leach and the others. There is music and people are dancing, and Belle orders champagne and it is served. Dr Byfield is dancing with a passenger, and when he returns, they toast, and before he can sip the champagne, Angela grabs his flute of champagne and leaves. Belle follows her to the deck, and Angela asks her why she is trying to kill her husband. The champagne that Richard was to take is also poisoned with strychnine, and Belle tells her that Richard Byfield killed her sister. Belle is Rosa’s sister, and she was in America when Rosa got married and died. So when she heard that Richard would be on the ship, she set out to kill him. So that is why she married him, and at tea time yesterday she made sure that her tea, which she had spiked with strychnine, would kill him, but she hadn’t counted on Angela getting the cup. And now she had also sneaked some strychnine in the champagne, which Angela had seen.
Angela tells her that if she kills him, she will be as vile as him. Belle thanks her and admits that she shouldn’t do it, but what can she do with a husband she doesn’t want? Angela advises her to divorce him sooner rather than later. So at home in London Angela gets a letter from Miss Leach, telling her that Mr McClure has married Miss Meadows, and Belle Sylvester has divorced Dr Byfield.
I loved the story. I guessed the truth earlier, but it didn’t make it less enjoyable.
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