Miss Benson's Beetle

This summary section includes the chapters entitled “Terrible Business”; “London, December 1950”; “Merry Christmas, Margery Benson”; “January 6, the Three Kings Party”; “We Will Die Here”; “Easy”; and “A Change of Plan.”

Mundic finally arrives in New Caledonia after a month-long crossing. When he gets to the dock, the former POW is overwhelmed by all the sensory stimuli. Unfortunately, he soon gets into a fistfight and lands in jail. The police suspect that he is responsible for the break-in at the Catholic school. The British consul comes to question him but realizes that Mundic only just arrived, so he can’t be the thief. The consul also discovers that Mundic has limited funds, and his paperwork isn’t in order. Feeling pity for the war veteran, the consul agrees to help straighten the matter out and lets Mundic go free.

During the same period, the newspapers in London have a field day with the Collett murder. Nancy Collett was known to have taken several lovers, and the papers depict her in the most lurid possible light. The police have linked her to Margery Benson, a known footwear thief. However, the two women vanished after disembarking from their ship in Australia.