The Pale Horse

Sicker than ever, Ginger is moved to a private hospital after developing a severe case of bronchopneumonia. Desperate for a distraction, Mark calls Poppy, and they meet to talk about the latest developments in Ginger’s condition. Trying to discover anything else Poppy might know, Mark questions her, and Poppy offers the name of Eileen Brandon who might know something.

Poppy tells Mark that Eileen was once associated with a company called C.R.C and that she quit her job because she was convinced it was associated with the Pale Horse. She says that the job was innocuous, simply going to random homes and asking survey questions “about toothpaste or gas stoves” and things of that sort (230). Mark realizes that this sort of person visited Ginger the day before she fell ill, and he determines to investigate this angle.

The phone rings, and Mrs. Oliver proceeds to tell Mark that she came across a woman who knew one of the victims. This woman spoke about the death of Lady Hesketh-Dubois and mentioned that her hair had been falling out. Mrs. Oliver continues by saying the same phenomenon occurred with another woman as well as with the girl Mark saw in the café that first night, whose hair had been ripped out so easily.