Pan Books Ltd-William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd.

CHAPTER I Hercule Poirot came out of the Vieille Grand'mere restaurant into Soho. He turned up the collar of his overcoat through prudence, rather than necessity, since the night was not cold. 'But at my age, one takes no risks,' Poirot was wont to declare. His eyes held a reflective sleepy...

Chapter 1THE UNEXPECTED GUESTI have met people who enjoy a channel crossing; men who can sit cahnly in their deckchairs and, on arrival, wait until the boat is moored, then gather their belongings together without fuss and disembark. Personally, I can never manage this. From the moment I get on...

PROLOGUE Vietnam 1968 The Medevac helicopter drifted across the delta at a thousand feet, her escort a Huey Cobra gunship keeping station to the left. Ram threatened, the clouds over the jungle in the far distance heavy with it, and thunder rumbled on the distant horizon. Inside the Medevac,...