• Fake Pearls

Chapter 6:
Secrets and Lies

Hercule Poirot gathers all the passengers in the dining room. Nobody can leave the ship. Everyone is nervous, looking at each other with suspicion.

„Linnet Doyle is dead,“ Poirot says sternly. „Her killer is on this boat. Many of you have secrets. It is time to tell the truth.“

Poirot begin searching the cabins with his friend Colonel Race:

• In Miss Van Schuyler’s room: Poirot opens her jewelry box. Inside, he finds Linnet’s missing pearl necklace! But when Poirot touches the pearls, he shakes his head. „These are fake,“ Poirot says softly. „Someone replaced Linnet’s real pearls with cheap glass.“ Miss Van Schuyler stammers, „I… I found them on the floor outside! I just picked them up!“
• Near the river bank: A sailor calls Poirot to the deck. He pulled a heavy wet bundle out of the Nile with a long net.

Poirot unrolls the wet item. It is a velvet handkerchief stained with pink water. Wrapped inside the handkerchief is Jackie’s silver pistol!

Poirot examines the gun. Two bullets have been fired:

1. One bullet hit Simon’s leg in the saloon.
2. One bullet killed Linnet in her bed.

Poirot sits on the quiet deck and thinks carefully about the timing:

• Why was the handkerchief stained with pink water?
• Who stole the real pearls before Linnet died?
• How did the killer get into Linnet’s room without making a sound?

Suddenly, Louise Bourget, Linnet’s maid, walks up to Poirot. She looks pale and scared. She twists her apron in her hands.

„Mr. Poirot,“ Louise whispers nervously. „I saw something last night near Mrs. Doyle’s room. If I was awake in my bed… maybe I saw the murderer walk past my door. A person who pays well for my silence could make me very rich…“

Poirot steps closer to her. „Mademoiselle Louise, do not play with fire! Tell me everything now!“

„Not here,“ Louise stammers, looking around in fear. „I will come to your cabin later.“ She runs down the corridor into the dark ship.

Poirot’s eyes grow sharp. „She knows who killed Linnet,“ he whispers to Colonel Race. „And that makes her a target.“

____________________

Key Words to Learn

1. Suspicion (noun) – A feeling that someone has done something wrong or illegal.
2. Fake (adjective) – Not real; made to look like something valuable to trick people.
3. Bundle (noun) – A group of things tied or wrapped tightly together.
4. Stained (adjective) – Marked or colored by something that is hard to clean.
5. Target (noun) – A person or object that someone wants to attack or hurt.

__________________

Comprehension Questions

1. What does Poirot find inside Miss Van Schuyler’s jewelry box?
   
2. Where is Jackie’s silver pistol found?
   
3. How many bullets were fired from the pistol in total?
   
4. Why does Louise Bourget speak to Poirot on the deck?
   
5. Why is Poirot worried about Louise at the end of Chapter 6?

_____________________________

Answer key:

1. What does Poirot find inside Miss Van Schuyler’s jewelry box?
   (Answer: He finds Linnet’s pearl necklace, but the pearls are fake.)
2. Where is Jackie’s silver pistol found?
   (Answer: It is pulled out of the Nile wrapped in a wet velvet handkerchief.)
3. How many bullets were fired from the pistol in total?
   (Answer: Two bullets.)
4. Why does Louise Bourget speak to Poirot on the deck?
   (Answer: She hints that she saw the murderer walk past her door last night.)
5. Why is Poirot worried about Louise at the end of Chapter 6?
   (Answer: Because knowing who the killer is makes her a target.)

###################

True or false:

1. Poirot gathers [to bring together]all the passengers in the saloon to make his announcement.
2. Miss Van Schuyler claims she found the pearls on the floor outside.
3. The recovered silver pistol belongs to Jackie.
4. Poirot searches the cabins alone.
5. The handkerchief retrieved from the Nile was stained with pink water.
6. Three bullets in total had been fired from the silver pistol.
7. Poirot finds Linnet’s real pearl necklace inside Miss Van Schuyler’s jewelry box.
8. One bullet hit Simon’s leg in the saloon.
9. Louise Bourget is Linnet’s maid.
10. Louise immediately reveals the killer’s name to Poirot on the deck.
11. A sailor pulls a heavy wet bundle out of the Nile using a long net.
12. Poirot tells everyone that nobody can leave the ship.
13. Linnet Doyle was killed while sitting in the saloon.
14. Louise hints that she could be paid well for her silence.
15. Poirot warns Louise not to play with fire.
16. Poirot believes Louise’s knowledge makes her safe from the killer.

___________________________

Answers:
1-False, 2-True, 3-True, 4-False, 5-True, 6-False, 7-False,
8-True, 9-True, 10-False, 11-True, 12-True, 13-False,
14-True, 15-True, 16-False

###################

Short, simple answers, key words only:

Vocabulary:

• gather – to bring together.
• fake – not real; cheap copy.
• stained – marked with colored liquid.
• target – a person in danger.

<<<<<

1. Where does Poirot gather the passengers?
2. Who helps Poirot search the cabins?
3. What does Poirot find in Miss Van Schuyler’s box?
4. What are the fake pearls made of?
5. Where does the sailor find the gun?
6. What is wrapped around the pistol?
7. Who was shot in the leg?
8. Who is Louise Bourget?
9. Where will Louise meet Poirot later?
10. Why is Louise in danger?

—————————————-

Answer key

1. In the dining room.
2. Colonel Race.
3. Linnet’s fake pearls.
4. Cheap glass.
5. In the Nile River.
6. A wet handkerchief.
7. Simon.
8. Linnet’s maid.
9. In Poirot’s cabin.
10. She knows the killer.

‚###################

Fill in the Blanks

Word bank:
target | cabin | pink water | Colonel Race | f
ake pearls | dining room | cheap glass |
pistol | maid |
Nile

1. Poirot gathers all the passengers in the _____.
2. Poirot searches the ship’s cabins with _____.
3. Inside the jewelry box, Poirot finds Linnet’s _____.
4. The pearls inside the box are made of _____.
5. The sailor pulls a wet bundle out of the _____.
6. The wet handkerchief is stained with _____.
7. Wrapped inside the handkerchief is Jackie’s silver _____.
8. Louise Bourget is Linnet’s _____.
9. Louise promises to meet Poirot in his _____ later.
10. Poirot realizes that knowing the killer makes Louise a _____.

________________________

Answer key

1. dining room
2. Colonel Race
3. fake pearls
4. cheap glass
5. Nile
6. pink water
7. pistol
8. maid
9. cabin
10. target

###################

>>Chapter 7

##################

##################

Please use the box below
to write your feedback.
Only I can read it.
It is not public.

Please tell me:

• Are the texts and exercises OK?
• Are the topics OK?
• Is the level OK?
• Is it too easy or too difficult?
• Is it too short, too long?
• Do you want texts about other topics?

Thank you! I appreciate your feedback.

___________________________________

Remember how babies
learn a language:

Babies learn a language by listening.
They use their ears to hear sounds.
Their brain remembers these sounds.
Babies connect sounds with people and things.
They listen to their parents.
Then they copy the sounds they hear. They imitate words.
Slowly, babies learn to speak.

So,
LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN………………

SMFrockZ@gmx.at

###################