 Bored and depressed because he has not had an interesting case in some time, Poirot decides to retire. He takes Captain Hastings north for a weekend away from London and while on the way, a young lady carrying a set of 12 Napoleon miniatures finds them stolen from her suitcase. But Poirot is retired and refuses to help her, so Captain Hastings begins the investigation. The American businessman who traveled to England to buy the miniatures tells Hastings that another woman, much older than the young woman from whom the miniatures were stolen, already delivered the miniatures for which he paid $7000 U.S. Hastings continues to prod Poirot to help but to no avail -- Poirot is a "retired detective" and though he occasionally helps Hastings with hints, it is up to Hastings to find the miniatures and the old woman who sold them to the businessman.