swimming across the creek on the night of the brutal murder, and climbing into the house on a rope. Then, Thomas reveals that Audrey had ended their marriage, not Nevile, as she had grown afraid of him. She had left Nevile and was about to marry Adrian Royde, Thomas's brother, when Adrian was killed in a road accident. With the parties on a motor launch, Battle uses this information to force a confession from Nevile Strange. He was the mastermind behind all the events and circumstances that should have converged into "zero" – the hanging of his first wife for the murder of Lady Tressilian. Nevile may have been behind two other deaths (Mr Treves and Adrian Royde) but there is insufficient evidence to prosecute. With his confession, the rope, and the ruse with the bell pull explained, Battle charges him with the murder of Lady Tressilian. Audrey seeks out MacWhirter to thank him, and they decide to marry. They will travel to Chile where he begins his new job. Audrey expects that Thomas will come to realize that he really wants to marry Mary Aldin instead. Characters Camilla, Lady Tressilian: chatelaine of her seaside home at Saltcreek, Gull's Point; a widow in her early seventies. Mary Aldin: Lady Tressilian's companion, in her mid-thirties. Nevile Strange: a handsome athlete and tennis player, 33 years old, former ward of Lady Tressilian's late husband. Kay Strange: his beautiful, sometimes mercurial and hot-tempered, second wife, 23 years old. Audrey Strange: Strange's first wife, age 32. So cool and quiet, it is almost impossible to know what she is thinking. (The polar opposite of Kay.) She was orphaned young, raised with her cousins and aunt, the Roydes. Ted Latimer: a friend of Kay since they were in their mid-teens. Thomas Royde: Audrey's cousin, on vacation from his work in Malaysia. Like Audrey, he is introverted and a person of few words. Mr Treves: solicitor, an old friend of Lady Tressilian, about 80 years old. Angus MacWhirter: man who attempted suicide from the cliff near Lady Tressilian's home, and survives to become a part of the solution to the crime. Inspector James Leach: Battle's nephew, assigned to the Saltcreek area. Superintendent Battle: Vacationing with his nephew, he is assigned to the case with him; husband and father of five children, the youngest of whom gives him an insight useful to solving this case. Reception The