Free Death of an Angel by Frances Lockridge

did paper work.
    The preliminary report was confirmed by further toxicological examination. Bradley Fitch had died after ingesting between half an ounce and an ounce of oxalic acid, served him in a concoction which had consisted of tomato juice, bitters, and, probably, Worcestershire Sauce. It had contained, also, tabasco sauce and, apparently, additional red pepper. The preparation, Weigand thought, would disguise the flavor of almost anything. What it would do, even without oxalic acid, to an empty stomach, Weigand preferred not to think. Fitch’s stomach had been empty, which had hurried the action of the poison. Death from oxalic acid poisoning had been known to occur in as little as three minutes’ time, in the event of hemorrhage. Fitch had hemorrhaged.
    The glass from which Fitch had drunk bore no fingerprints but his own. The bottles from which the various ingredients had been taken bore his and Mrs. Hemmins’, the latter more numerous. But on the bottles, the prints were slightly smudged; it was possible the containers had been picked up by someone who chose to hold them in a cloth. Evidence of this was, however, and in the opinion of the laboratory man who had initialed the report Bill Weigand read, inadequate for court presentation. They were a long way from that, Bill thought. They were still a considerable distance from proving murder—particularly if no one else had handled the glass.
    The possibility there was obvious, and had not been overlooked. Several small metal trays had been found on the counter in the serving pantry. They revealed no fingerprints at all. This might indicate Mrs. Hemmins was thorough as a housekeeper; the other possibility was preferable. Mr. Fitch had been served his final drink, as he must have been served many others in his thirty-one years of life—properly, on a tray. Whoever had so proffered it had, also, been scrupulous in washing up.
    The second-floor doorbell could, as Mrs. Hemmins had said, be heard on the floor below. So could the footsteps of someone moving between the bedroom and the door. (But not in all rooms of the floor below, only near one of the flights of stairs.) When the rooms were checked, the outer door had been found to be unlocked. It was, however, a type which unlocks automatically when the knob is turned from within, so would have been unlocked after Fitch opened it. (If he did open it.) To lock it after him, a departing guest—or murderer—would have had only to press a button set into the inside knob. This had not been done. What this indicated, if anything, was not clear. Much was not clear.
    Fitch had died the possessor of a large, but unappraised, estate. His attorneys declined an estimate. Pressed, they said, “Well, several millions.” The money had been made by the late Cyrus Fitch and by the not so late Abner Fitch, father of Cyrus. Bradley Fitch had done little to add to it, which was understandable. Bradley Fitch had not married. He had once before been engaged, and that quite recently. (To one Margaret Latham, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Latham, Park Avenue and Easthampton.)
    Pending examination of Fitch’s will, the identity of his heir or heirs was not established. There were several relatives, but none (it appeared) nearer than cousins. One cousin was Mrs. James Nelson who lived, with her husband, in Rye, New York. Other relatives would be reported as discovered.
    Oxalic acid was readily obtainable at any pharmacy. It was used as a bleach by workers in leather, marble and brass. It was used to clean straw hats and remove ink stains. It was used for cleaning bricks. In appearance, it was crystalline and resembled Epsom Salts. It had a bitter taste. There was little point in seeking to determine the source of the crystals used, at least until there was more to go on.
    Fitch had got home the night before at some time undetermined, but after two a.m. The night elevator operator, who went off duty at that