# XIII: The Cliff Road explained — The Dain Curse

> Chapter companion for The Dain Curse by Dashiell Hammett.

## What happens

The narrator receives a telegram from Eric Collinson urgently requesting his presence in Quesada. After arriving late, he finds a note from Collinson asking him to wait at the hotel. Ignoring the instruction, he sets out at dawn along a cliff path to the Collinson house. He discovers the house empty, finds evidence of a struggle—a .38 pistol, spent shells, muddy and bloodstained clothing, and morphine—in Gabrielle's room. Returning to town, he meets Deputy Sheriff Ben Rolly and leads him to the cliff where he had earlier found Eric Collinson's body. Rolly examines the scene but finds no clear evidence of how the death occurred.

## Themes in this chapter

### Crime and Detection

The narrator's investigation of the empty house, discovery of physical evidence (pistol, shell casings, bloody clothes, morphine), and examination of the death scene highlight the procedural aspects of crime detection.

### Deception and Illusion

The apparent absence of clear evidence and the mysterious circumstances surrounding Eric Collinson's death suggest hidden truths and deceptive appearances.

## Character check-ins

### The Narrator

Travels to Quesada after receiving a telegram from Eric Collinson; investigates the empty house and discovers evidence of violence; leads Deputy Rolly to the body.

### Eric Collinson

Sends a telegram and a note to the narrator; his body is found at the foot of a cliff, having been pulled from the water by the narrator.

### Gabrielle Leggett

Her bedroom shows signs of disturbance: muddy, bloodstained clothes and morphine; her bed appears unslept in.

### Ben Rolly

Deputy sheriff in Quesada; accompanies the narrator to the cliff and examines the scene but finds no conclusive evidence.

### Phil Leach

Mentioned as a wanted criminal; the narrator was negotiating with his ex-wife for a photograph before coming to Quesada.

## Key lines

> I cursed the detective business and slopped on along the path.

The narrator expresses frustration with his job as he trudges through the wet, uncomfortable terrain.

_Shows the narrator's weariness and dissatisfaction with the detective work._

> In one bedroom, a .38 automatic pistol lay in the center of the floor. There was an empty shell close to it, another under a chair across the room, and a faint odor of burnt gunpowder in the air.

The narrator finds a pistol and spent cartridges in Eric Collinson's bedroom, indicating a recent shooting.

_Key evidence suggesting violence occurred in the house._

> On her dressing-table was a small piece of thick white paper that had been folded. White powder clung to one crease. I touched it with the end of my tongue—morphine.

The narrator discovers morphine residue on a folded paper in Gabrielle's room, linking her to drug use.

_Connects Gabrielle to the theme of addiction and control._

> Rolly looked from the corpse to the edge of the path high above us, and complained: 'I don't hardly see how he could have landed just that-away.'

Deputy Rolly expresses doubt that the body's position matches a fall from the cliff path.

_Suggests the death may not have been a simple accident or suicide._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_dain_curse_se/chapters/xiii-the-cliff-road
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_dain_curse_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_dain_curse_se/chapters