सी1, ए7: Cruising around the Mediterranean, Poirot and his fellow passengers approach Alexandria in Egypt. Colonel Clapperton, whose overbearing wife has earned him some sympathy, disembarks for a trip around the port. He invites his wife to join him, but her brusque rejection is clearly overheard by Poirot and others. On their return to the ship that evening, Mrs Clapperton has been robbed and stabbed to death. The captain is anxious to avoid a scandal and asks Poirot to investigate.