"I was just wondering," said Jimmy, "how we were going to begin." CHAPTER IX PLANS Jimmy's words lifted the discussion at once into a more practical sphere. "All things considered," he said, "we haven't got much to go on. In fact, just the words Seven Dials. As a matter of fact I don't even know exactly where Seven Dials is. But, anyway, we can't very well comb out the whole of that district, house by house." "We could," said Bundle. "Well, perhaps we could eventually--though I'm not so sure. I imagine it's a well-populated area. But it wouldn't be very subtle." The word reminded him of the girl Socks and he smiled. "Then, of course, there's the part of the country where Ronny was shot. We could nose around there. But the police are probably doing everything we could do, and doing it much better." "What I like about you," said Bundle sarcastically, "is your cheerful and optimistic disposition." "Never mind her, Jimmy," said Loraine softly. "Go on." "Don't be so impatient," said Jimmy to Bundle. "All the best sleuths approach a case this way, by eliminating unnecessary and unprofitable investigation. I'm coming now to the third alternative--Gerald's death. Now that we know it was murder--by the way, you do both believe that, don't you?" "Yes," said Loraine. "Yes," said Bundle. "Good. So do I. Well, it seems to me that there we do stand some faint chance. After all, if Gerry didn't take the chloral himself, someone must have got into his room and put it there--dissolved it in the glass of water, so that when he woke up he drank it off. And of course left the empty box or bottle or whatever it was. You agree with that?" "Ye-es," said Bundle slowly. "But--" "Wait. And that someone must have been in the house at the time. It couldn't very well have been someone from outside." "No," agreed Bundle, more readily this time. "Very well. Now, that narrows down things considerably. To begin with, I suppose a good many of the servants are family ones--they're your lot, I mean." "Yes," said Bundle. "Practically all the staff stayed when we let it. All the principal ones are there still--of course there have been changes among the under servants." "Exactly--that's what I am getting at. _You_,"--he addressed Bundle--"must go into all that. Find out when new servants were engaged--what about footmen, for instance?" "One of the footmen is new. John, his name is." "Well, make inquiries about John. And about any others who have only come recently." "I suppose," said Bundle slowly, "it must have been a servant. It couldn't have been one of the guests?" "I don't see how that's possible." "Who were there exactly?" "Well, there were three girls--Nancy and Helen and Socks--" "Socks Daventry? I know her." "May have been. Girl who was always saying things were subtle." "That's Socks all right. Subtle is one of her words."