The Clue of the New Pin · Chapter
Chapter X explained
Tab returns Ursula's jewel case but the police have removed the jewels.
What happens
Tab returns Ursula's jewel case but the police have removed the jewels. Ursula seems relieved that no personal documents were found among Trasmere's papers. Carver discovers a bloodied heel print in the vault, proving someone entered after the murder. The coroner's jury returns a verdict of wilful murder against persons unknown, and Ursula collapses after fainting twice during her performance.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This is the dramatic climax because it reveals Rex as the murderer, delivering the emotional peak of his psych…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Identity and Secrecy
Ursula's relief that no personal documents were found suggests hidden connections to Trasmere.
- Crime and Justice
The locked-room murder and the coroner's verdict highlight the challenges of solving the crime.
Characters to notice
- Ursula Ardfern
Returns her jewel case but seems relieved when told no personal documents were found; later collapses after fainting during her performance.
- Tab Holland
Returns the jewel case to Ursula and reports to Carver; sensitive to Ursula's changing demeanor.
- Inspector Carver
Discovers a bloodied heel print in the vault and explains the impossibility of a duplicate key; summarizes the baffling case.
- Jesse Trasmere
Murdered in his vault; the key was found on a chain around his neck; shot in the back.
- Wellington Brown
Mentioned as a suspect; former secretary to Trasmere who threatened him.
Key passages
“There was a faint half-moon printed on the edge of the concrete. 'That is the edge of a heel, and a rubber heel,' said Carver, 'which proves beyond any doubt whatever, that somebody came into the vault after the old man was killed.'”
Carver identifies a partial heel print in blood, proving someone entered the vault after the murder.
Key forensic evidence that someone else was present after Trasmere's death.
“She bit her lip in thought. 'Why did he come back?' she said, half to herself. 'He might have lived comfortably on the allowance.'”
Ursula wonders why Brown returned despite receiving a comfortable allowance.
Ursula's curiosity about Brown's motives hints at her own hidden knowledge.
