The Unexpected Guest by Agatha Christie Page B

sound behind him. Turning, he called, 'Laura, I'm sorry I -' and then stopped, disappointed, as he saw that the person coming towards him was not Laura Warwick, but Angell, the late Richard Warwick's valet and attendant.
    'Mrs Warwick asked me to say she will be down in a moment, sir,' said Angell as he approached Farrar. 'But I wondered if I might have a brief word with you?'
    'Yes, yes. What is it?'
    Angell came up to Julian Farrar, and walked on for a pace or two further away from the house, as if anxious that their talk should not be overheard. 'Well?' said Farrar, following him.
    'I am rather worried, sir,' Angell began, 'about my own position in the house, and I felt I would like to consult you on the matter.'
    His mind full of his own affairs, Julian Farrar was not really interested. 'Well, what's the trouble?' he asked.
    Angell thought for a moment before replying. Then, 'Mr Warwick's death, sir,' he said, 'it puts me out of a job.'
    'Yes. Yes, I suppose it does,' Farrar responded. 'But I imagine you will easily get another, won't you?'
    'I hope so, sir,' Angell replied.
    'You're a qualified man, aren't you?' Farrar asked him.
    'Oh, yes, sir. I'm qualified,' Angell replied, 'and there is always either hospital work or private work to be obtained. I know that.'
    'Then what's troubling you?'
    'Well, sir,' Angell told him, 'the circumstances in which this job came to an end are very distasteful to me.'
    'In plain English,' Farrar remarked, 'you don't like having been mixed up with murder. Is that it?'
    'You could put it that way, sir,' the valet confirmed.
    'Well,' said Farrar, I'm afraid there is nothing anyone can do about that. Presumably you'll get a satisfactory reference from Mrs Warwick.' He took out his cigarette-case and opened it.
    'I don't think there will be any difficulty about that, sir,' Angell responded. 'Mrs Warwick is a very nice lady - a very charming lady, if I may say so.' There was a faint insinuation in his tone.
    Julian Farrar, having decided to await Laura after all, was about to go back into the house. However, he turned, struck by something in the valet's manner. 'What do you mean?' he asked quietly.
    'I shouldn't like to inconvenience Mrs Warwick in any way,' Angell replied, unctuously.
    Before speaking, Farrar took a cigarette from his case, and then returned the case to his pocket. 'You mean,' he said, 'you're - stopping on a bit to oblige her?'
    'That is quite true, sir,' Angell affirmed. 'I am helping out in the house. But that is not exactly what I meant.' He paused, and then continued, 'It's a matter, really - of my conscience, sir.'
    'What in hell do you mean - your conscience?' Farrar asked sharply.
    Angell looked uncomfortable, but his voice was quite confident as he continued, 'I don't think you quite appreciate my difficulties, sir. In the matter of giving my evidence to the police, that is. It is my duty as a citizen to assist the police in any manner possible. At the same time, I wish to remain loyal to my employers.'
    Julian Farrar turned away to light his cigarette. 'You speak as though there was a conflict,' he said quietly.
    'If you think about it, sir,' Angell remarked, 'you will realize that there is bound to be a conflict - a conflict of loyalties if I may so put it.'
    Farrar looked directly at the valet. 'Just exactly what are you getting at, Angell?' he asked.
    'The police, sir, are not in a position to appreciate the background,' Angell replied. 'The background might - I just say might - be very important in a case like this. Also, of late I have been suffering rather severely from insomnia.'
    'Do your ailments have to come into this?' Farrar asked him sharply.
    'Unfortunately they do, sir,' was the valet's smooth reply. 'I retired early last night, but I was unable to get to sleep.'
    'I'm sorry about that,' Farrar commiserated dryly, 'but really -'
    'You see, sir,' Angell continued, ignoring the interruption, 'owing to the position of my bedroom in this house, I have