It had occurred to me that my position, still tenuous, would fortify were I to withdraw my services in their entirety. Amy and Edna Donavan’s deaths were not attributable to me. Were their niece, Anne, however, discovered bearing my signature that perception would alter. I therefore ignored instructions to proceed to the riding stables post haste. In short, with reference to earlier conjecture, I was now convinced that my visiting Anne Donavan would be the knell of my usefulness, not my arrest, resulting in my experiencing some prearranged fatal mishap, courtesy of my blackmailer, whereupon the police would deduce that I, and I alone, had been responsible for all three deaths chez Donavan, leaving him to benefit unhindered and beyond apprehension. I confess that I could not elucidate upon this hypothesis, except to propound that it was abundantly clear that my welfare would be low on his agenda. Such was my reading.
I ignored the communication, hoping to prolong our association further, until I had taken ameliorative steps to safeguard my personal safety. Alas …