The inspector went into a kind of day-dream for some minutes.
‘One thing’s clear,’ he said at length, rousing himself from his absorption. ‘Mr Ackroyd was alive and well at nine-thirty. That is the last moment at which he is known to have been alive.’
Parker gave vent to an apologetic cough which brought the inspector’s eyes on him at once.
‘Well?’ he said sharply.
‘If you’ll excuse me, sir, Miss Flora saw him after that.’
‘Miss Flora?’
‘Yes, sir. About a quarter to ten that would be. It was after that that she told me Mr Ackroyd wasn’t to be disturbed again tonight.’
‘Did he send her to you with that message?’
‘Not exactly, sir. I was bringing a tray with soda and whisky when Miss Flora, who was just coming out of this room, stopped me and said her uncle didn’t want to be disturbed.’
The inspector looked at the butler with rather closer attention than he had bestowed on him up to now.
‘You’d already been told that Mr Ackroyd didn’t want to be disturbed, hadn’t you?’
Parker began to stammer. His hands shook. ‘Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Quite so, sir.’
‘And yet you were proposing to do so?’
‘I’d forgotten, sir. At least I mean, I always bring the whisky and soda about that time, sir, and ask if there’s anything more, and I thought – well, I was doing as usual without thinking.’
It was at this moment that it began to dawn upon me that Parker was most suspiciously flustered. The man was shaking and twitching all over.
‘H’m,’ said the inspector. ‘I must see Miss Ackroyd at once. for the moment we’ll leave this room exactly as it is. I can return here after I’ve heard what Miss Ackroyd has to tell me. I shall just take the precaution of shutting and bolting the window.’
This precaution accomplished, he led the way into the hall and we followed him. he paused a moment, as he glanced up at the little staircase, then spoke over his shoulder to the constable.
‘Jones, you’d better stay here. don’t let anyone go into that room.’
Parker interposed deferentially. ‘If you’ll excuse me, sir. If you were to lock the door into the main hall, nobody could gain access to this part. That staircase leads only to Mr Ackroyd’s bedroom and bathroom. There is no communication with the other part of the house. There once was a door through, but Mr Ackroyd had it blocked up. he liked to feel that his suite was entirely private.’