"Aah!" "Let me go!" "Let me go!" "Come on, copper!" "Are you gonna let her have it?" "!" "Come on!" "Come on, copper!" "Come on out and get it!" "Let go!" "Aaaah!" "It's all over, Poirot." "You can open your eyes now." "Hastings, this is the last time." "You behave yourself!" "Stop that noise!" "Go on." "Off you go." "You might not like it, Poirot, but you can't ignore it." "It's part of our lives." "A window on the world." "Barbaric." "I care not for this type of criminal, nor for the detectives of the United States who shoot first and ask the questions later." "Aw, come on, Poirot." "It's not all machine guns and mobsters." "In fact, when it comes to criminal investigation, the FBI are second to none." "Well, except for Scotland Yard, of course." "Yes, well, I'll let you know soon enough if they live up to their reputation." "They're sending us one of their agents over on temporary assignment." "Mon Dieu." "Does that mean that the gangsters of America are preparing to stalk the streets of London?" "No fear." "No, it's a spy case of some kind." "He's following up a lead over here, and I've got to work with him." "I hope he does not take after his film counterpart," "M. Brick Davis." "For me, the party tonight of your friend M. Parker will be excitement enough." "This can't be the place, surely." "There must have been some kind of mistake." ""Campden Hill Gate."" "Well, for £80 a year, they must be subletting the boiler room." ""Five-room flat with all modern conveniences."" "Number 6 is on the first floor." "Come on, James." "Don't tell me." "Number 6 -- the cheap flat." "Don't waste your time, dear." "It's been let." "And rude." "The moment I uttered my name, they slammed the door in my face." "Stella." "Perhaps they just didn't like the look of her." "Good evening." "We understand " "Name?" "Robinson." "Mr. and Mrs. Robinson." "We were hop" "Ah." "Thank you." "It was like a melting frost." "All smiles, she ushered us in, and we were shown over the flat." "Which was terrific." "We're moving in right away." "Well, perhaps it's haunted, the scene of a grisly murder." "Oh, don't." "At that price, she can haunt away." "How about our detective friends?" "M. Poirot, you're the expert." "What do you think?" "Sir?" "Unfortunately, in the matter of ghosts, I am no expert." "Madam?" "But there are two things which are odd, you see." "The flat had been advertised for some time." "Well, strange when you consider how low the rent was." "Well, you'd seen the advertisement before and didn't bother with it." "We thought it was a hoax." "Eventually we only went out of curiosity." "We thought, as we were in the area " "Precisely." "That's just what everyone else thought." "But why was that other woman turned away just before we called, and yet we were welcomed with open arms?" "Aha." "Yes." "Oh, come on, Arthur." "How do you get out of that one?" "Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" "She must have gone to the wrong flat." "You see, Captain Hastings can explain every mystery." "Thank you, Miss Lemon." "Morning, Poirot." "Good morning." "Morning, Miss Lemon." "Mr. Poirot's been telling me about your skillful deductions at Teddy Parker's party last night." "You know, Poirot, I sometimes think you don't give me credit where it's due." "I know it all seemed rather simplistic to you, but I was merely being tactful." "Tactful?" "Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" "The Robinsons have overlooked something in their agreement." "They'll find out what it is soon enough." "I just hope it doesn't come as too much of a shock." "I see." "Well, Hastings, I'm glad that you show concern for the problem of the Robinsons." "It will make our inquiries all the more worthwhile." "Inquiries?" "What inquiries?" "Come, Hastings, before you become buried in the pages of the racing." "I can't see why you want to waste your time on such a trivial matter." "Hastings, you do surprise me." "I am well aware that this modest case has not the same dramatic appeal as the dealings of M. Cagney and his G-men." "Even so, it is a mystery and worthy of our attention." "Ah." "Thank you." "So this dame thinks she's heading for the hand-off." "What she ain't thinking is," "Federal Agent Burt is playing for the home team." "And with the FBI quarterbacking and you guys from Scotland Yard running interference, she ain't gonna make 5 yards, never mind a touchdown, right?" "Touchdown?" "Right." "Let's move our butts." "All right, lads." "We'll reassemble at midday." "Poirot, this is Federal Agent Burt." "May I introduce Hercule Poirot, the private detective, and his associate, Captain Hastings." "The American crime buster, huh?" "Japp, I hope you're not so short of manpower, you're hiring a shamus." "What are they good for?" "Chasing lost dogs." "This is a matter of international security we're dealing with here." "I have no intention of hiring anyone, Burt." "And if you must know," "Mr. Poirot here has an outstanding reputation." "Oh." "A gumshoe of distinction." "And I suppose Al Capone's running for president." "Yeah." "Yeah?" "Yeah, yeah, yeah." "So what?" "All right." "So keep trying." "Oh, you heard what?" "Listen, pal, don't give me this Brotherhood garbage, 'cause it's all smoke, you understand?" "This, uh, liaison transatlantique does not live up to its expectations?" "Basically, to use a technical term, it's a disaster." "He's taken over my office, my secretary, and my car." "Now he wants my best men to stake out the Italian Embassy." "Stake out?" "Clandestine surveillance 'round-the-clock." "If the London underworld find out that half my division are tied down, they'll have a field day." "Quite so." "But why this need for surveillance?" "Six months ago, a minor clerk stole the blueprints for a new submarine from the U.S. Admiralty." "There could be serious consequences if they fall into the wrong hands." "It could be a catastrophe." "The one thing Il Duce lacks is a strong navy." "Exactly." "And, apparently, with half a dozen of these submarines, he could control the Mediterranean." "The FBI's found out that a woman's got the blueprints, and she's come to London to sell them." "Aha." "Now I remember." "Was it not the Romero affair?" "La femme fatale who dared to double-cross the Mafia, huh?" "Was she not at some point in her career a canary?" "A canary?" "Yes." "That's right." "A dance-band singer." "What Mr. Burt calls a "chantoozie."" "Good grief." "Really, Hastings, you must try to keep up with the modern idioms, huh?" "And she is here now?" "Jim, step into my office for a minute, please." "I've had a word with O'Brien." "He's expecting you down in the records office." "Sorry about the delay, sir." "There's a few Robinsons on file." "The Robinsons we've got are a drunk and disorderly, an assault on a member of the clergy," "and a throwing stones with intent to do damage to the railway." "Nothing on a Stella or James Robinson." "You see?" "They're just a nice, innocent couple." "During the last six months, can you recall any crime as yet unsolved where the chief suspects might be a young couple?" "Nothing comes to mind immediately, sir." "There's that Bonnie and Clyde, of course." "But they're at large somewhere in the American Midwest." "And let us hope that is where they remain." "But they're friends of Parker's." "I've known Parker since we were at school." "He doesn't have friends who are criminals." "Ah." "Uh, M. Poirot?" "Ah, M. Paul." "Good morning." "Good morning." "This is my associate, Captain Hastings." "Good morning." "Shall we go in?" "Thank you." "Magnificent facade." "Yes, it is." "Yes, indeed." "One of the finest I have seen in London." "M. Paul, are all the apartments in this block of the same layout?" "Yes, Detective." "This is the sitting room." "It's been designed to the highest standard." "Here, for example, is the latest in inset electric fires." "Fully built in and with a one- or two-bar option." "It's very tasteful." "Don't you think?" "Yes, indeed." "Poirot, you're not gonna learn any more about the Robinsons by looking 'round an empty flat." "Hastings, it is always wise to make a thorough inspection before arriving at the final decision." "I don't follow you." "Hastings, I have the sudden desire to take an apartment in Campden Hill Gate." "This apartment." "The kitchen has been equipped with the most modern appliances." "Every shelf and cupboard has been discreetly fitted to provide an environment delightful to even the most particular of cooks." "M. Paul, tell me " "For what purpose is this little doorway?" "It's for the dustbins." "They're collected twice weekly from the back stairwell." "Ah." "It would appear that the architects have thought of every convenience." "Why don't you examine the place at your leisure?" "I'll wait for you downstairs." "You are most kind." "Not at all." "Take your time." "Think of the expense, Poirot." "Six guineas a week." "Ah, but that is a small cost, Hastings, to pursue the mystery of great intrigue." "Intrigue?" "It'll probably turn out to be something perfectly simple." "Eccentric landlady moved to benevolence by plight of homeless newlyweds." "But this does not explain, Hastings, why the cheap flat below this had been advertised for so long and nobody took it." "Well, perhaps they all found something wrong with it." "And the Robinsons did not?" "Did they strike you as being the gullible young couple, Hastings?" "No, they didn't." "So we may assume that they possessed a special quality that the others were lacking, no?" "They're just an ordinary couple." "Voilà." "There lies the intrigue." "Good day, sir." "Thank you." "Well, what do you think?" "M. Paul, I think that the apartment is exactly what I want, and I will take possession immediately." "You made a wise decision." "These flats won't be on the market for very long, and the rent is very reasonable by today's standard." "Taxi!" "Yes, but not as reasonable as that of the Robinsons'." "Oh, you know the Robinsons?" "Oh, yes, indeed." "In fact, they have just moved in." "Is that not so?" "The Robinsons?" "In number 6?" "They moved in six months ago." "Splendid party the other night." "Glad you enjoyed it, old boy." "Those Robinsons seemed very pleasant." "What does he do?" "Do you know?" "Mr. Robinson?" "Do?" "I'm not sure." "Hasn't been in town long." "Salt of the earth, though." "Where are they from?" "I don't know." "Out of town somewhere." "So, how do you know them, then?" "Well, that was a bit odd, as a matter of fact." "Yes?" "Yes." "Veronica and I were at the theater, and we'd ordered some drinks for the interval." "And when we got there, there were these people drinking them." "Really?" "Absolutely." "Well, it seems we'd ordered the same drinks." "Our little chitty said number 6, and theirs was number 9, only it was upside down." "Dashed awkward for a moment there." "I see." "Hastings, you're late." "I had a bit of a run-in with the doorman." "Thought he wasn't gonna let me into the building." "Really?" "Well, it seems there's been some foreign fellow hanging around asking questions about the Robinsons." "Wasn't you, was it?" "Certainly not." "It is probably the man who has been watching the flats." "Watching the flats?" "Maybe they're not as innocent as they seem." "Suppose they're tied up in some shady import-export business?" "Drugs." "White slavery." "Hastings, you have the most fertile imagination." "Well, nobody seems to know where the Robinsons have come from." "Parker doesn't know anything about them at all." "Perhaps they've just returned from abroad." "If this is true, Hastings, you will soon have the opportunity to find out." "But now, please, we must begin our work." "Oh, and, Hastings, please bring my valise." "Right." "Now, Hastings, I am about to enter the flat of the Robinsons after the method of the dustbins." "You're going to break into their flat?" "No, no, no, no, no." "Not break in, precisely, mon ami." "But I have to provide for later." "But, Poirot, it's Saturday afternoon." "They're bound to be at home." "That is exactly what I'm hoping, mon ami, because you are about to play the role of the friendly neighbor who just happens to be passing by." "I want you to keep the young couple occupied while I perform my task." "Wouldn't it be easier to wait until they go out?" "Hastings, these are things I have already considered." "While they are out, the doorway, it is always locked." "What am I gonna say?" "Hmm." "Captain Hastings." "Do come in." "Oh." "Hastings." "What brings you to this neck of the woods?" "If you ask me, the natural curiosity of the private investigator has prompted this visit." "No, not at all." "In fact, I had some business to attend to in the Brompton Road." "And when I remembered you were living nearby," "I suddenly thought, "The Robinsons." "Of course." "They're bound to know."" "Now, should I use badger hair, or will an ordinary brush do the trick?" "I'm sorry?" "Well, what I want is a sort of impression of graininess without it being too obvious." "I don't want it to look ridgy." "I mean, it sometimes does look ridgy, doesn't it?" "I'm dead set against that." "You see, you've got the choice -- horsehair, hog bristle, or badger hair." "And, apparently, a fine steel comb produces the same effect, only it's better on walls and floors." "More defined." "Captain Hastings, what would one be doing with badger hair and a steel comb?" "Oh, didn't I say?" "Dragging and combing." "You know what a fine effect it creates on woodwork." "Only I'm not exactly a dab hand when it comes to decorating, so I thought I'd call on you for an expert opinion." "The only time I ever did anything like this was when I creosoted the dugout in France -- not like you, with all the work you've done." "Hastings, we haven't done a thing." "We only moved in yesterday." "And, uh, I have to admit," "I wouldn't know a badger-hair brush from a bucket of beef stew." "Oh, you're too modest." "I'm sure you were both influenced by the spirit of the Renaissance during your time in Italy." "Italy?" "Whatever gave you that idea?" "Didn't Parker say you'd just returned from the Continent?" "No." "We came down from Cambridge when James was offered a position at London Mutual." "We've never been on the Continent." "Insurance." "Now, that is an interesting subject." "In fact, I've been thinking about taking out a new policy." "What on earth was that?" "It came from the kitchen." "I didn't hear anything." "I'd better take a look." "Allow me." "Detective's prerogative." "You never know." "It might be one of the ghosts." "Wind blew it open, I expect." "I should keep this bolted if I were you." "You never know who's about." "I don't know what the Robinsons would have said if they'd seen the foot of Hercule Poirot disappearing into the twilight of the back stairwell." "I am indebted to your quick thinking, mon ami." "And that house is where Florence Nightingale..." "I can't believe the Robinsons have anything to hide." "If anyone's behaving in a suspicious manner, it's that woman who let the flat to them." "But did it not strike you as odd, mon ami, that the estate agent's description of Mme. Robinson was so very different from the Mme. Robinson that we know?" "Not the most observant of fellows." "Perhaps they are different Mme. Robinsons, huh?" "Perhaps his Mme. Robinson had been waiting a long time to find a subtenant of the same name." "Why on earth would she do that?" "That's strange." "That gardener's a dead ringer for Japp's man Sergeant Daltry." "Hmm." "Your eyes, they do not deceive you, mon ami." "Come here." "If I am not mistaken, this van is the nerve center of Inspector Japp's stakeout at the Italian Embassy." "What are you two doing here?" "Well, it happens that we were passing by, and, uh, well, it is necessary" "to satisfy the curiosity of Hastings." "Poirot." "You better come inside before somebody sees you." "So, look, all the exits are covered, front and back, and we have a couple of unmarked cars just standing by in case she decides to take it on the lam." "Whichever way, as soon as Carla Romero shows up, we're ready to nab her." "A well-staged operation, Mr. Burt." "Glad I could be of some help." "Who is that man?" "Oh, he's in and out all the time." "Some tourist in trouble, I guess." "Suppose Carla Romero never comes, huh?" "Suppose she sends someone else?" "All right." "As a private dick, what would you do, huh?" "Just walk right in there and ask them to call us when the blueprints show up?" "I would concentrate my efforts on trying to find Carla Romero." "She is a young, attractive American." "And traveling alone, she would be a figure most conspicuous." "Alone she might." "But we know she's traveling with an accomplice." "M. Burt, I understand that she has had some dealings with the Mafia." "When will you guys understand there is no such thing as the Mafia" "or the Black Hand or the Cosa Nostra?" "Sure, there's some immigrant families of mainly Southern European extraction who push each other around." "But organized crime " " No, sir." "No." "No, thank you, but..." "Yes, I'm sure that she is." "Yes, but you see, that is of no interest." "No." "No interest at all." "None whatsoever." "But thank you." "Yes." "Goodbye." "Hastings, I've telephoned 14 nightclubs." "Eight of them have the chantoozies, but none of them American." "Three of them have the male crooners, one of them has a magician, one, a pianist." "And the Black Cat won't answer the telephone." "And what are you looking for?" "Suppose, Hastings, that Carla Romero is forced to return to her old trade to support her while she is waiting to sell those documents." "Well, it's possible, I suppose." "Why are you so interested in Carla Romero all of a sudden?" "Why not let the FBI solve their own cases?" "But there is a connection, perhaps, with the Robinsons." "The man that I saw entering the Italian Embassy is the same man who has been watching their apartment." "All right there!" "And do you not find it intriguing, Hastings, that the only club who did not answer the telephone was the Black Cat?" "How much you got?" "£12?" "Where's the rest of it?" "No." "Good afternoon." "I wonder, could you tell me, please, is the manager here?" "Back there." "Thank you." "Most kind." "Uh " " Uh..." "Just a minute." "Who is it?" "Hercule Poirot." "Come again?" "Poirot." "And you?" "I've got nothing to hide." "Bernie Cole." "Come in." "Thank you." "Everyone knows me, anyway." "Bernie Cole, King of the Clubs." "Didn't you used to come down to the old Caprice?" "No." "What are you after, then, anyway?" "Nothing illicit, I trust?" "No." "Certainly not." "Oh." "Pardon, monsieur, but is that not a telephone under there?" "No." "Well, yes." "Drives you mad, doesn't it?" "Bernie Cole?" "Some people." "Monsieur, Mlle. Elsa Hart is singing here, is she not?" "Who wants to know?" "There is a poster outside." "What I want to know is, is it Elsa Hart the American?" "No." "Ah." "I heard her in New York once, you understand." "Oh, yes?" "Well, she's Canadian." "Like those Dionne quintuplets." "It's gonna be all the rage soon " " Canada." "We'll have Canadian this, Canadian that." "Bernie Cole can always spot a trend." "Known for it." "I know you can hear me!" "I know you're there!" "But if the manager says she's Canadian..." "But of course she would tell him that, Hastings." "She has stolen the blueprints." "Her enemies are pursuing her." "She changes her name." "Why not also her nationality?" "Yes, I suppose so." "Then, in spite of all her precautions, she discovers that someone has tracked her down." "So she decides to leave her own apartment and to install someone of the same name." "The Robinsons?" "What, you mean the landlady's using them as a decoy?" "Yes, mon ami." "The charitable landlady, the devious agent of espionage, and perhaps also the singer Elsa Hart are surely one and the same." "I thought I was the one with the fertile imagination." "This is fantastic." "No, Hastings." "This is a plot of sinister dimensions." "The Robinsons are to be the victims of a ruthless assassin." "Good evening." "Penelope Maitland from "The Lady's Companion."" "I sent a note 'round earlier." "Ah, yes." "Very nice, too." "Please come in." "Why do you never answer your telephone?" "You get all these nuisance calls these days, don't you?" "A friendly word of warning, my dear " "She wasn't keen on the idea." "She may seem a bit frosty." "Put it down to artistic temperament." "I'm sure you're used to dealing with all sorts of people in your line of business." "Yes, indeed." "Uh, straight down the corridor." "Second on the left." "Good luck." "Come and see me afterwards for a drink." "Miss Elsa Hart?" "Yes?" "Penelope Maitland from "The Lady's Companion."" "Why don't you come in?" "Oh, I see your repertoire includes "Lullaby of Broadway."" "It's one of my own favorites." "Really?" "Glad you like it." "Now, Miss, uh, Maitland why would the readers of the, uh..." ""Lady's Companion."" "Right." "Why would anyone want to read about a nightclub singer?" "It's the glamour and the romance, Miss Hart." "The image of the modern woman." "Now, I understand you've only been in England a short time." "So she says she has been touring the capital cities of Europe with her husband for the past nine months?" "Yes." "Working in a variety of nightclubs." "Uh-huh." "But our intrepid journalist was not convinced, huh?" "Anyone who claims to have been stag hunting in the Bois de Boulogne, Mr. Poirot, has been seriously misinformed about life on the Continent." "Extraordinaire." "There was something more?" "There was a song sheet in her dressing room." "An American publication dating back to last January." "I have it on good authority it isn't obtainable outside the United States." "It could only have been obtained in America." "Miss Lemon..." "I believe that the newest recruit of "The Lady's Companion" has made a scoop." "It's gone midnight." "How long are we gonna wait?" "All night if necessary, mon ami." "I am afraid you may lose your beauty sleep." "I wouldn't get a wink, anyway, trying to fathom out who's who in this espionage business." "It is a devious affair." "How did Romero manage to steal the documents in the first place?" "Carla Romero is not a thief, mon ami, but a temptress." "Hastings, I will recount to you the little history." "It is a story that will remind you of your favorite cinema." "To begin, we have to go back six months to the East Side of New York," "where the notorious Carla Romero was working as a singer in a nightclub." "She had sought out and seduced a young clerk in the American Department of the Navy." "His name was Luigi Valdarno." "How did it go?" "Like taking candy from a baby." "I'll get ready." "Meet you out front in 10 minutes." "He was so besotted with this siren that persuading him to steal the secret papers from the U.S. Navy was an easy task." "Unknown to Valdarno, the accomplice of Carla Romero in this sinister plot was her husband." "That same night, Valdarno drove Carla Romero to a deserted wharf where he believed she had arranged a rendezvous with an agent of the Italian government." "The blueprints for the new American submarine would be exchanged for half a million dollars." "This is it, baby." "Take it nice and slow." "Luigi." "You made it all too easy." "Carla, no." "Goodbye, lover boy." "Let's get out of here." "Their instructions had been to deliver the blueprints to the contact in the Brotherhood." "But Romero and her husband had a better idea." "Instead of passing the documents to her masters in the Mafia," "Carla Romero and her husband fled across the Atlantic under the name of Robinson to sell the documents for their own gain." "Then they discovered they had an assassin on their trail." "Yes." "The deception of Carla Romero so infuriated the Mafia that their code of honor would demand revenge." "Hmm." "Prepare yourself, mon brave." "Our visitor has arrived." "Slowly, Hastings." "We must be as quiet as the chapel mouse." "I still think it would've been safer to evacuate the Robinsons." "To do so would have created the unnecessary attention." "If they are as innocent as I suspect, it would be better that they know nothing of this." "He's picking the lock on the front door." "Hastings, pass me your revolver." "Take up your position as planned." "Allez!" "Aah!" "Hastings, the gun." "Aah!" "Be careful, Hastings." "Let us go." "Nowhere to be seen." "Poirot, this is a disaster." "Well, do not worry, mon ami." "He will not return here tonight." "Our young friends are safe." "But now it is time to make our acquaintance with the elusive Carla Romero." "Hastings." "Poirot." "Chief Inspector." "M. Burt." "All right." "Let's go." "Come on, lads." "Evening, Mr. Poirot." "Good evening, M. Cole." "You're a quiet one." "Put in a good word for me with the chief inspector, eh?" "Have no fear, M. Cole." "You see, Agent Burt, sometimes a lost dog can be found in a place so conspicuous, it is the last to be considered." "You'd better be right, Poirot, or I'll be the one chasing lost dogs -- in Alaska." "I think we can rely on" "Mr. Poirot's little gray cells, Burt." "Bottle of champagne." "She's performing her last song now, Chief Inspector." "Let's hope so, Mr. Cole." "As soon as she leaves the stage," "I want you to clear the building." "You can depend on me, Chief." "That's Carla Maria Romero, all right." "Let's tackle her." "What do you think you're playing at?" "What?" "You can't go waving guns about." "Give that to me." "Are you kidding me?" "You just give that to me, or the whole operation's off." "Nobody's gonna believe this." "The idea." "Look after this, Constable." "Right." "Oh, no, please." "After you." "I'll just stay in the background with my knitting." "Yeah?" "Ah." "Mlle. Hart." "I had hoped to find you here." "Monsieur." "This a deputation of admirers or something?" "Ah, well, in a way, yes." "Mlle. Hart, indeed you have a fine voice." "Can we just do this?" "All right, all right." "And the life of the chanteuse is a glamorous one, eh?" "Are we gonna talk her to death or what?" "But your real talents, mademoiselle -- the cunning and deception-- are far more taxing, no?" "What do you think you're doing here?" "Is this a party or something?" "Yeah." "A farewell party, sweetie." "Mlle. Hart..." "Or do you prefer to be called Carla Romero?" "Or perhaps even Mme. Robinson?" "With an assassin on your trail, you substituted the other Robinsons into your flat." "You have been very clever." "But there is one thing I must know, madame." "Was it you who first realized the value of Valdarno's position at the Department of the Navy?" "Yeah." "I had all the big ideas." "They just palmed all the greenbacks." "And there could never be a position for a woman of your ingenuity in the Ma" "Pardon." "In the Brotherhood?" "Brotherhood?" "Look, the FBI is unequivocal in this matter." "There is no such thing as the goddamn Brotherhood!" "They wouldn't listen to me." "Oh, yeah." "So you thought you'd just take on the whole world, huh?" "Well, it's the end of the road for you, lady." "So why don't you hand over the blueprints now, and we can all go home?" "Washington will be glad to get this back." "All right." "Move it." "You too." "You thought you could kill Luigi and double-cross the Cosa Nostra." "Well, you was wrong, sister." "Now, we're gonna settle the score." "Oh, this is good." "Everybody's got a heater except the good guys." "You're just gonna stand there and let him shoot me?" "That's my gun." "Poirot!" "No, no, no, mon ami." "I have no time for these so-called mobsters of America." "I have seen enough of this charade." "One-a more move, is good night." "Good night and good riddance." "This is a respectable club." "Arrivederci, Carla." "So, Hastings, never will you trust your old friend, huh?" "Keep walking." "I took the precaution to remove the bullets while we were in the apartment of the Robinsons'." "How did you know he'd follow us here?" "Ah, well, when we left Campden Hill Gate, the assassin was lying in wait." "I mentioned our rendezvous with Carla Romero so that he would be sure to follow." "So, Agent Burt, we have killed both the birds with one shot, huh?" "Ah." "And without firing a single shot." "It's no way to run a country." "So, you say this, uh, association of criminals sent a hit man after Miss Romero, eh?" "Yes, but she had planned to deceive him by installing the young couple of the same name in her old apartment." "And what about your joke with the gun, Poirot?" "Ah, well, Inspector, you and Captain Hastings are so fond of the suspense." "How could I resist the temptation to bring this intriguing case to the most dramatic climax?" "Well, Mr. Poirot..." "I've really got to hand it to you." "You're most kind, monsieur." "And the U.S. government, I'm sure, would like to reward you for all your efforts." "The navy will always be in your debt." "Tea's ready." "In the kitchen, if you don't mind." "That's terribly kind of you." "A gang of burglars working the whole building?" "Quite extraordinary." "Do you expect to catch them?" "Unfortunately not, madam." "They were a professional outfit." "They would have had a man on watch." "By the time we arrived, they were gone." "I suppose we should be grateful nothing was stolen." "And we should thank Captain Hastings for his vigilance." "Because if he had not noticed that the door for the dustbins had been tampered with..." "I say." "Look at this." "Now, there's a real professional's tool if ever I saw one." "Mm." "And very careless to leave it behind, if you ask me." "Perhaps I should have it checked for fingerprints." "You will find nothing, Chief Inspector." "For the real professional..." "he wears the gloves."