Unnatural Death · Chapter
XVIII: The London Lawyer's Story explained
Mr.
What happens
Mr. Trigg recounts to Parker his strange encounter with a woman calling herself Miss Grant, who consulted him about inheritance law in June 1925. He later met her by chance in a Soho restaurant, where she revealed her great-aunt had died. Months later, he was summoned by telephone to a remote house on Hampstead Heath to draft a will for a dying woman, Mrs. Marion Mead. During the visit, he noticed a peculiar scar on her right hand, matching the scar he had observed on Miss Grant. The will was witnessed by his taxi driver, and the eerie circumstances—including the cold room, his overpowering drowsiness, and the missing servant—left him deeply unsettled.
Themes in this chapter
Inheritance and Motive
The entire chapter revolves around the legal and personal stakes of inheritance, as Miss Grant/Mrs. Mead seeks to control the distribution of her estate to prevent her husband from benefiting.
The Ambiguity of Evidence
The scar on the hand serves as a crucial but ambiguous clue, linking Miss Grant to Mrs. Mead, yet the full implications remain unclear.
Psychological Manipulation
The eerie atmosphere, the overpowering drowsiness of Mr. Trigg, and the missing servant suggest deliberate manipulation or poisoning.
Characters to notice
- Detective Inspector Parker
Parker listens intently to Mr. Trigg's story, noting the significance of the scar and the timing of events.
- Mr. Trigg
The London lawyer who narrates his unsettling experiences with a woman calling herself Miss Grant and later with a dying Mrs. Marion Mead.
- Mary Whittaker
Implied to be the woman using the alias 'Miss Grant' who consulted Trigg about inheritance and later appeared as the dying Mrs. Marion Mead.
- Mrs. Marion Mead
The dying woman who made a will leaving £10,000 to various legatees, including a daughter, and bore a scar identical to Miss Grant's.
- Miss Grant
The alias used by the woman who consulted Mr. Trigg about inheritance law; later revealed to have a scar on her hand matching Mrs. Mead's.
Key passages
“I then said I was ready to begin. She said, ‘You may think I am a little mad, because my head has been so hurt. But I am quite sane. But he shan’t have a penny of the money.’”
Mrs. Mead insisted she was sane despite her head injury and declared her husband would not inherit any of her money.
This reveals her determination to disinherit her husband, a key motive for the will.
“Across the back of the fingers of the right hand went a curious scar—as though a chisel or some such thing had slipped and cut them.”
Mr. Trigg noticed a distinctive scar on Mrs. Mead's right hand, identical to one he had seen on Miss Grant.
This scar is a critical piece of evidence linking the two women.
“I noticed with a vague sense of something unexpected, that the left hand bore no wedding-ring.”
Mrs. Mead was not wearing a wedding ring, which struck Mr. Trigg as odd given she referred to her husband.
This detail adds to the mystery of her identity and marital status.