She was a big, sandy-haired woman of about fifty with the air of calm competence about her which Tommy had always admired.

'I'm sorry if I have kept you waiting, Mr. Beresford,' she said. 'How do you do, Mrs. Beresford, I'm so glad you've come too.'

'Somebody swallowed something, I hear,' said Tommy.

'Oh, so Marlene told you that? Yes, it was old Mrs. Carraway. She's always swallowing things. Very difficult, you know, because one can't watch them all the time. Of course one knows children do it, but it seems a funny thing to be a hobby of an elderly woman, doesn't it? It's grown upon her, you know. She gets worse every year, It doesn't seem to do her any harm, that's the cheeriest thing about it.'

'Perhaps her father was a sword swallower,' suggested Tuppence.

'Now that's a very interesting idea, Mrs. Beresford. Perhaps it would explain things.' She went on, 'I've told Miss Fanshawe that you were coming, Mr. Beresford. I don't know really whether she quite took it in. She doesn't always, you know.'

'How has she been lately?'

'Well, she's failing rather rapidly now, I'm afraid,' said Miss Packard in a comfortable voice. 'One never really knows how much she takes in and how much she doesn't. I told her last night and she said she was sure I must be mistaken because it was term time. She seemed to think that you were still at school. Poor old things, they get very muddled up sometimes especially over time. However, this morning when I reminded her about your visit, she just said it was quite impossible because you were dead. Oh well,' Miss Packard went on cheerfully, 'I expect she'll recognize you when she sees you.'

'How is she in health? Much the same?'

'Well, perhaps as well as can be expected. Frankly, you know, I don't think she'll be with us very much longer. She doesn't suffer in any way but her heart condition's no better than it was. In fact, it's rather worse. So I think I'd like you to know that it's just as well to be prepared, so that if she did go suddenly it wouldn't be any shock to you.'