Dead Before Morning
Page 9
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They'd worked their way through the files that Mrs. Galvin had given them and soon had several impressive looking lists. After careful checking, it was firmly established that no-one from the hospital was missing, and all the staff and patients currently away on holiday at the Dorset coast had been accounted for, which meant that the victim had certainly come from outside. It was curious, because Rafferty had earlier despatched Constable Hanks to question Jack, the night gate-porter before letting him home, and the man had been adamant that not only had no unknown visitors been signed in the previous evening, but that everyone he had signed in had been signed out again. As Gilbert had told them, Jack hadn't seen or heard anything; as far as he was concerned, it had been a quiet night. It pointed to the dead girl being very much an unofficial visitor as he had suspected.
Rafferty looked at the clock. 'Right. It's time to go a calling.' He bundled the files together, and handed them to Llewellyn. They had an appointment for five o'clock. 'Perhaps Lady Evelyn will be kind enough to drop the great Narcissus in it?' he remarked hopefully. 'Wouldn't that be nice?' As expected, Llewellyn contradicted him
'Unlikely, Sir. Besides, there must be plenty of other witnesses to confirm Dr. Melville-Briggs’s alibi.'
'Well, I can hope,' Rafferty retorted, adding caustically, 'Get a move on. We don't want to be late twice in one day.'