chapter one in the corner of a first class smoking carriage mr justice wargrave lately retired from the bench puffed at a cigar and ran an interested eye through the political news in the times he laid the paper down and glanced out of the window they were running now through somerset he glanced at his watch another two hours to go he went over in his mind all that had appeared in the papers about soldier island there had been its original purchase by an american millionaire who was crazy about yachting and an account of the luxurious modern house he had built on this little island off the devon coast the unfortunate fact that the new third wife of the american millionaire was a bad sailor had led to the subsequent putting up of the house and island for sale various glowing advertisements of it had appeared in the papers then came the first bald statement that it had been bought by a mr owen after that the rumors of the gossip writers had started soldier island had really been bought by miss gabriel turl the hollywood film star she wanted to spend some months there free from all publicity busy bee had hinted delicately that it was to be an abode for royalty mr merriweather had had it whispered to him that it had been bought for a honeymoon young lord l had surrendered to cupid at last jonas knew for a fact that it had been purchased by the admiralty with a view to carrying out some very hush hush experiments definitely soldier island was news from his pocket mr justice wargrave drew out a letter the handwriting was practically illegible but words here and there stood out with unexpected clarity dearest lawrence such years since i heard anything of you must come to soldier island the most enchanting place so much to talk over old days communion with nature bask in the sunshine 12.40 from paddington meet you at oakbridge and his correspondent signed herself with a flourish his ever constance comington mr justice wargrave cast back in his mind to remember when exactly he had last seen excuse me when exactly he had last seen lady constance comington it must be seven no eight years ago she had then been going to italy to bask in the sun and be at one with nature and the contadini later he had heard she had proceeded to syria where she proposed to bask in yet stronger son and live at one with nature and the bedouin constance comington he reflected to himself was exactly the sort of woman who would buy an island and surround herself with mystery nodding his head in gentle approval of his logic mr justice wargrave allowed his head to nod he slept two vera claythorne in a third class carriage with five other travelers in it leaned her head back and shut her eyes how hot it was traveling by train today it would be nice to get to the sea really a great piece of luck getting this job when you wanted a holiday post it nearly always meant looking after a swarm of children secretarial holiday posts were much more difficult to get even the agency hadn't held out much hope and then the letter had come i have received your name from the skilled women's agency together with their recommendation i understand they know you personally i shall be glad to pay you the salary you ask and shall expect you to take up your duties on august 8th the train is the 12 40 from paddington and you will be met at oakbridge station i enclose five one pound notes for expenses yours truly oona nancy owen and at the top was the stamped address soldier island stickelhaven devon soldier island why there had been nothing else in the papers lately all sorts of hints and interesting rumors though probably they were most un mostly untrue but the house had certainly been built by a millionaire and was said to be absolutely the last word in luxury vera claythorne tired by a recent strenuous term at school thought to herself being a games mistress in a third class school isn't much of a catch if only i could get a job at some decent school and then with a cold feeling around her heart she thought but i'm lucky to have even this after all people don't like a coroner's inquest even if the coroner did equip me of all blame he had even complimented her on her presence of mind and courage she remembered for an inquest it couldn't have gone better and mrs hamilton had been kindness itself to her only hugo but she wouldn't think of hugo suddenly in spite of the heat in the carriage she shivered and wished she wasn't going to the sea a picture rose clearly in her mind cyril's head bobbing up and down swimming to the rock up and down up and down and herself swimming in easy practice strokes after him cleaving her way through the water but knowing only too surely that she wouldn't be in time the sea its deep warm blue mornings spent lying out on the sand hugo hugo who had said he loved her she must not think of hugo she opened her eyes and frowned across that the man opposite her a tall man with a brown face light eyes set rather close together and an arrogant almost cruel mouth she thought to herself i bet he's been to some interesting parts of the world and seen some interesting things three philip lombard summing up the girl opposite in a mere flash of his quick moving eyes thought to himself quite attractive a bit school mistressy perhaps a cool customer he should imagine and one who could hold her own in love or war he'd rather like to take her on he frowned no cut out all that kind of stuff this was business he'd got to keep his mind on the job what exactly was up he wondered that little man had been damned mysterious take it or leave it captain lombard he had said thoughtfully a hundred guineas eh had said it in a casual way as though a hundred guineas was nothing to him a hundred guineas when he had was literally down to his last square meal he had fancied though that the little man had not been deceived that was the damnable part you couldn't deceive men like that about money they knew he said in the casual in the same casual tone and you can't give me any more information mr isaac morris had shaken his little bald head very positively no captain lombard the matter rests there it is understood by my client that your reputation is that of a good man in a tight place i am empowered to hand you 100 guineas in return for which you will travel to stickelhaven devon the nearest station is oak bridge you will be met there and motored to stickelhaven where a motor launch will convey you to soldier island there you will hold yourself at the disposal of my client lombard had said abruptly for how long not longer than a week at most fingering his small mustache captain lambard said you understand i can't take in i can't undertake anything illegal he had darted a very sharp glance at the other as he had spoken there had been a very faint smile on the lips of mr morris as he answered gravely if anything illegal is proposed you will of course be a perfect liberty to withdraw damn the smooth little brute he had smiled it was as though he knew very well that in lombard's past actions legality had not always been a cinequa non lombard's own lips parted in a grin by jove he'd sailed pretty near the wind once or twice but he'd always got away with it there wasn't much he drew the line at really no there wasn't much he'd draw the line at he fancied that he was going to enjoy himself at soldier island 4. in a non-smoking carriage miss emily brent sat very upright as was her custom she was 65 and she did not approve of lounging her father a colonel of the old school had been particular about deportment the present generation was shamelessly lacks in their carriage and in every other way enveloped in an aura of righteousness and unyielding principles miss brent sat in her crowded third class carriage and triumphed over its discomfort and its heat everyone made us such a fuss over things nowadays they wanted injections before they had teeth pulled they took drugs if they couldn't sleep they wanted easy chairs and cushions and the girls allowed their figures to slop about anyhow and lay about half naked on the beaches in summer miss brent's lips set closely she would like to make an example of certain people she remembered last year's summer holiday this year however it would be quite different soldier island mentally she re-read the letter which she had already read so many times dear miss brent i do hope you remember me we were together at belhaven guest house in august some years ago and we seem to have so much in common i am starting a guest house of my own on an island off the coast of devon i think there is really an opening for a place where there is good plain cooking and a nice old-fashioned type of person none of this nudity and gramophones half the night i shall be very glad if you could see your way to spending your summer holiday on soldier island quite free as i get my guest would early in august suit you perhaps the eighth sincerely yours uno what was the name the signature was rather difficult to read emily brent thought impatiently so many people write their signatures quite illegibly she let her mind run back over the people at belhaven she had been there two summers running there had been that nice middle-aged woman miss miss now what was her name her father had been a cannon and there had been a mrs olton orman no surely it was oliver yes oliver soldier island there had been things in the paper about soldier island something about a film star or was it an american millionaire of course often those places went very cheap islands didn't suit everybody they thought the idea was romantic but when they came to live there they realized the disadvantages and were only too glad to sell emily brent thought to herself i shall be getting a free holiday at any rate with her income so much reduced and so many dividends not being paid that was indeed something to take into consideration if only she could remember a little more about mrs or was it miss oliver five general macarthur looked out of the carriage window the train was just coming into exeter where he had to change damnable these slow branchline trains this place soldier island was really no distance at all as the crow flies he hadn't got it clear who this fellow owens was a friend of spoof legards apparently and of johnny dyers one or two of your old cronies are coming would like to have a talk over old times well he'd enjoy a chat about old times he'd had a fancy lately that fellows were rather fighting shy of him all owing to that damned rumor by god it was pretty hard nearly 30 years ago now armitage had talked he supposed damned young pup what did he know about it oh well no good brooding about these things one fancied thing sometimes fancied a fellow was looking at you queerly this soldier island now he'd be interested to see it a lot of gossip flying about looked as though there might be something in them rumor that the admiralty or the war office or the air force had got hold of it young elmer robson the american millionaire had actually built the place spent thousands on it so it was said every mortal luxury exeter and an hour to wait and he didn't want to wait he wanted to get on six dr armstrong was driving his morris across salisbury plain he was very tired success had its penalties there had been a time when he had sat in his consulting room in harley street correctly appareled surrounded with the most up-to-date appliances and the most luxurious furnishings and waited waited for the empty days for his venture to succeed or fail well it had succeeded he'd been lucky lucky and skillful of course he was a good man at his job but that wasn't enough for success you had to have luck as well and he'd had it an accurate diagnosis a couple of grateful women patients women with money in position and word had got about you ought to try armstrong quite a young man but so clever pam had been to all sorts of people for years and he put his finger on the trouble at once the ball had started rolling and now dr armstrong had definitely arrived his days were full he had little leisure and so on this august morning he was glad that he was leaving london and going to be for some days on an island off the devon coast not that it was exactly a holiday the letter he had received had been rather vague in its terms but there was nothing vague about the accompanying check a whacking fee these owens must be rolling in money some little difficulty it seemed a husband who was worried about his wife's health and wanted a report on it without her being alarmed she wouldn't hear of seeing a doctor her nerves nerves the doctor's eyebrows went up these women in their nerves well it was good for business after all half the women who consulted him had nothing the matter with them but boredom but they wouldn't thank you for telling them so and one could usually find something a slightly uncommon condition of the some long word nothing at all serious but it needs just putting right a simple treatment well medicine was mostly faith healing when it came to it and he had a good manner he could inspire hope and belief lucky that he'd managed to pull himself together in time after that business 10 no 15 years ago it had been a near thing that he'd been going to pieces the shack had pulled him together he'd cut out drink altogether paichov it had been a near thing though with a devastating ear splitting blast on the horn an enormous super sports dow main car rushed past him at 80 miles an hour dr armstrong nearly went into the hedge one of these young fools who tore around the country he hated them that had been a near shave too damn young fool seven tony marston roaring down in tamir thought to himself the amount of cars crawling about the roads is frightful always something blocking your way and they will drive in the middle of the road pretty hopeless driving in england anyway not like france where you could really could let out should he stop here for a drink or push on heaps of time only another hundred miles and a bit to go he'd have a gin and ginger beer fizzing a hot day this island place ought to be rather good fun if the weather lasted who were these owens he wondered rich and stinking probably badger was rather good at nosing people like that out of course he had to poor old chap with no money of his own hope they'd do one well in drinks never knew with these fellows who'd made their money and weren't born to it pity that story about gabrielle troll having been brought having bought soldier island wasn't true he'd like to have been in with that film star crowd oh well he supposed there'd be a few girls there coming out of the hotel he stretched himself yawned looked up at the blue sky and climbed into the domain several young women looked at him admiringly his six feet of well-proportioned body his crisp hair tan face and intense blue eyes he led in the clutch with a roar and left up the narrow street old men and aaron boys jumped for safety the latter looked after the car admiringly anthony marston proceeded on his triumphal progress eight mr bloor was in the slow train from plymouth there was only one person in his carriage an elderly seafaring gentleman with a blurry eye at the present moment he had dropped off to sleep mr bloor was writing carefully in his little notebook that's the lot he muttered to himself emily brent vera claythorne dr armstrong anthony marston old justice wargrave philip lombard general macarthur cmg dso manservant and wife mr and mrs rogers he closed the notebook and put it back in his pocket he glanced over at the corner and the slumbering man had one over the eight diagnosed mr bloor accurately he went over things carefully and conscientiously in his mind job ought to be easy enough he ruminated don't see how i can slip up on it hope i look alright he stood up and scrutinized himself anxiously in the glass the face reflected there was of a slightly military cast with a mustache there was very little expression in it the eyes were gray and set rather close together might be a major said mr bloor no i forgot there's that old military gent he'd spot me at once south africa said mr bloor that's my line none of these people have anything to do with south africa and i've just been reading that travel folder so i can talk about it all right fortunately there were all sorts and types of colonials as a man of means from south africa mr bloor felt that he could enter into any society unchallenged soldier island he remembered soldier island as a boy smelly sort of rock covered with galls stood about a mile from the coast funny idea to go and build a house on it awful and bad weather but millionaires were full of whims the old man in the corner woke up and said you can't never tell it see never mr bloor said soothingly that's right you can't the old man hiccuped twice and said plaintively there's a squall coming mr bloor said no no mate it's a lovely day the old man said angrily there's a squall ahead i can smell it maybe you're right said mr bloor specifically the train stopped at a station and the old fellow rose unsteadily that's where i get out he fumbled with the window mr bloor helped him the old man stood in the doorway he raised a solemn hand and blinked his bleary eyes watch and pray he said watch and pray the day of judgment is at hand he collapsed through the doorway onto the platform from a recumbent position he looked up at mr bloor and said with immense dignity i'm talking to you young man the day of judgment is very close at hand subsiding onto his seat mr bloor thought to himself he's nearer the day of judgment than i am but there as it happens he was wrong you now