The dentist was found with a blackened hole below his right temple. A gun lay on the floor near his right hand.
What reason would an amiable dentist like Dr. Morely have for committing suicide? He didn't have emotional difficulties, money problems, or love troubles. What he did have was an appointment with Hercule Poirot, who is not persuaded by the suicide story and has therefore taken it upon himself to question the good doctor's patients, partners, and friends. All he's come up with is the numbing fear that Dr. Morely wasn't an unlikely victim at all . . . nor the first.
Later, one of Dr. Morely's patients is found dead from a lethal dose of local anesthetic. According to some, it's a clear case of murder and suicide. But why would a dentist commit a crime in the middle of a busy day of appointments?
A shoe buckle holds the key to the mystery. Now in the words of the rhyme can Poirot pick up the sticks and lay them straight?
