And Then There Were None Chapters 13 - 14 Summary

The remaining five guests are all sitting in the drawing-room with the words, "One of us....one of us... one of us..." swimming in their heads, as they see each other as possible murderers. They each imagine the worst of the others, wondering if the person sitting in the chair next to them might be the one who is mad enough to kill.

They have worked out a method to ensure their safety, as much as it is possible. They all stay in the drawing-room, if one of them leaves the room then the others must remain until that person returns, and if food is being prepared then all five of them prepare it together. This helps to prevent suspicion falling on any one of them, because if they are all together then they can be sure of each other's actions.

As it becomes darker in the drawing-room, the quintet realizes there is no electricity in the house for lights. This is because Mr. Rogers had been in charge of making sure the generator is turned on and with him gone, no one remembers to turn it on. Lombard instead finds candles for each of them to use to light their way around the house.

At about six in the evening Vera Claythorne decides to return to her room to rest. She has been suffering from a headache all day and needs a break from the stress of sitting in the drawing- room waiting for something to happen, as she approaches her room she smells the sea coming through her door. The smell is different from the odor of the sea they have been experiencing during their stay on the island, instead it smells more like the beach at St. Tredennick, which is where the boy Cyril Hamilton drowned. She hated the boy, because he stood between her and Hugo's dream of marrying. If the boy hadn't been born, then Hugo would have inherited the money his brother had, instead Cyril would inherit the money from his father, Hugo's brother. The day the boy swam out to the rock and despite her efforts drowned, could also be seen as a most fortuitous day for Vera and Hugo. His death meant Hugo would inherit his brother's fortune.

As she steps into her room Vera feels a cold hand wrap around her neck. She screams in terror, which sends the men running to her rescue. It is actually a piece of seaweed that is hanging from the ceiling of her room. Mr. Blore offers her some brandy, but she refuses to drink it fearing it is in some way contaminated. After she has been given some brandy, from a bottle that has been opened in front of her, everyone realizes Justice Wargrave is not in the room.

He is found sitting on a chair with a wig made of the missing yarn and a robe fashioned from the missing bathroom curtain on him. Dr. Armstrong examines him and determines he has been shot in the head, probably with the missing revolver.

After putting Mr. Justice Wargrave's body in his room, the others decide to have a small supper before going to bed. They all go to their rooms at the same time, they all enter their rooms at the same time, and they all lock their doors at the same time this is the only way they feel some sense of security in their rooms.

Vera recalls the day she gave Cyril permission to swim to the rock; she had intended all along for the boy to drown. She set it up so that she could distract the boy's mother and then when he needed to be rescued, she would pretend to try to rescue him. What she did not count on was Hugo's response to the death of his nephew. He left her the day after the death inquest exonerated her and he would not answer her only letter to him.

Mr. Blore has no intention of sleeping, instead he is listening for any unusual noises in the house. He is also reexamining the facts of each murder on the island. Mr. Blore also wonders, for the first time, about the fate of the wife and daughter of the innocent man he sent to prison. He hears footsteps outside his door and after some thought decides to leave his room to find out who is walking about the house. He hears the front door open, but instead of following whoever it is walking out the door, he instead checks to see which of the rooms are empty and he finds Dr. Armstrong is not in his room.

He and Philip Lombard decide to go in search of Dr. Armstrong. Philip Lombard reveals to Mr. Blore, his revolver has been returned, which initially makes Mr. Blore uneasy. But Philip reassures him he will not use the gun against Mr. Blore and Blore remembers he has disarmed people before. The men, despite their thorough search, do not find Dr. Armstrong. They do, however, discover another figurine has disappeared from the dining table and they report all of this to Vera Claythorne, who has been waiting for them, in her bedroom. They all are mystified by the disappearance of Dr. Armstrong.

The group is now down to three, and the fear grows with each death and disappearance. Mr. Blore, Mr. Lombard and Miss Claythorne do not know what to think and are suffering from the strain of the unknown. They know their time is limited, therefore they can only hope the boat from the mainland will return in time to save them; this hope though, is quickly diminishing with each passing hour.



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