Murder on the Orient Express Part 3, Chapter 6 Summary

A Second Interview with Colonel Arbuthnot

  • Arbuthnot is summoned to the dining car. When confronted with the pipe cleaner, he says it's probably his, and no, he doesn't know how it got there.
  • Poirot says it doesn't really matter and that the real reason he wanted to see him is to talk about Miss Debenham. Arbuthnot is taken aback.
  • He asks Arbuthnot about the conversation he overheard between the two of them on the train platform. The Colonel says that his lips are sealed.
  • Poirot says that Miss Debenham is a "highly suspicious character" (3.6.43) and tells him she was the governess at the Armstrong's house.
  • The Colonel is silent. When pressed, he says he thinks Poirot is wrong, but Poirot should ask Miss Debenham.