Death in Zanzibar by M. M. Kaye

jug of water, a glass, and some Alka-Seltzer. Dany was relieved to find that he both spoke and understood English, and having given him several precise orders she dismissed him and turned her attention to the tray.
    The coffee, though not supplied in the quantity originally suggested, was hot and very strong, and she poured out a cup of it and took it over to the sufferer. ‘Try some of this,’ she suggested. ‘It’ll probably make you feel a lot better.’
    Lash lifted his head and scowled at her, but he took the coffee and drank it. Dany removed his empty cup, refilled it and handed it back, and went into the bedroom. She had already possessed herself of his keys in the Customs shed at the airport, and now she unlocked his dressing-case and dealt efficiently with the contents.
    â€˜I’ve run you a bath,’ she announced, returning to the sitting-room. ‘You look as though you could do with one. And you need a shave. You’ll find your brushes and things in the dressing-room, and the room waiter will be along with something to eat in about twenty minutes. I’m not sure whether it’s an early luncheon or a late breakfast, but I don’t suppose it matters. Don’t be too long, or it will be cold.’
    She left him to it, and went away to sort out the room situation with the desk clerk and the receptionist, and returned sometime later looking thoughtful. A room-boy was waiting with a laden tray, and she told him to leave it on the table, and that he need not wait, and after he had gone she stood for several minutes staring thoughtfully at a forlorn white object that was lying upside down on the floor, displaying a neat satin label that guaranteed it to be washable and heat-proof.
    â€˜Poor Asbestos!’ said Dany, stooping and picking him up. She dusted him off and replaced him, right-side-up, on the sofa: ‘I suppose he’s lost interest in you too. Never mind. I’ll look after you. And him — if it kills me!’
    There was a faint sound behind her and she turned to find Lash standing in the doorway.
    He was looking exceedingly pale and there were dark circles under his eyes, but he had shaved, and his hair was wet and smooth. He had apparently found the effort to look out a change of clothes too much for him, for he was wearing pyjamas and the bottle-green dressing-gown, and he looked exhausted and ill and bad tempered.
    â€˜Do you make a habit of talking to yourself?’ he inquired morosely.
    Dany flushed, but ignored the question. She said, ‘Your food’s come. The soup looks rather good, and it’s hot. I didn’t think you’d like curry, so I ordered steak.’
    Lash shuddered, but he drank the soup, and feeling slightly revived by it, managed to eat a reasonable quantity of steak, and topped it off with two more cups of black coffee. After which he lit a cigarette, and said grudgingly: ‘Thanks. I feel slightly better. I guess I must have been pretty well plastered. The whole thing is a blur.’
    â€˜Including me,’ said Dany.
    â€˜Yes — no. I seem to remember thinking it was a good idea to bring you along instead of Ada, though God alone knows why.’
    Dany told him. At length and in detail.
    â€˜I don’t believe it,’ said Mr Holden hoarsely, breaking the long silence that had followed that recital. ‘I — simply — do — not — believe — it!’
    â€˜Well it’s true!’ said Dany hotly. ‘And if you think I’d take the trouble to invent such a — a nauseatingly improbable story, I can only say ____ ’
    â€˜I couldn’t be such a brainless, godammed, half-witted moron,’ continued Lash as though she had not spoken. ‘I couldn’t. No one could! Are you giving me a line? No — no, I suppose not. For the love of Mike, why did you pay any attention to me? Couldn’t you see I was higher than a kite and not responsible for