“I want charges pressed against Claire Hamilton. Once she knocked me unconscious, she stole my money and my camera.”
Once Barns got more information about the camera, he checked the back of the young man’s neck. Upon sniffing it, he told the fellow he needed to scrub the back of his neck intensely, or he still might die.
Thirty minutes later, the young man returned with a very red, but clean neck.
“Did she leave anything in your hand?” Barns asked.
The young man sighed. “Yeah, a card. I gave it to your sergeant, I was so weak, that I feared I would drop it.”
“Excellent. You are the first out of sixteen men to survive. He then shared the pictures of the other fifteen men.”
“Wow, they all sort of look like me.”
“Yes, and since we were looking for a man as our killer, we would have never discovered the true killer, if not for you.”
“Honestly, if Claire hadn’t jabbed me in the back of the neck with a needle, I wouldn’t have believed her to be a danger to anyone. She seemed so sweet. Hell, I had invited her to come home with me.”
“Well, according to Dr. Connors, your camera strap saved your life. But you will need to buy a new strap.”
“Doesn’t matter now. I no longer have a camera.”
“Actually, you do. When we picked up Claire, she still had your camera and your money. We’ll be returning both to you. But Dr. Connors is quite certain you will die if you keep the camera strap that you currently have.”
The fellow grinned. “While I’m not happy about that, at least, I’ll have the money to buy a new strap.”
“That’s the spirit. We will also need you to testify, of course, since you are the only survivor. However, we’ve got your information, so right now, you can go and enjoy your day.”
A moment after he left, Vic stormed past the desk on the first floor, thundered up five flights, and burst into Barns’ office. “I want to see the proof that my sister killed these men.”
Barns sighed heavily but didn’t yell at her for her outrageous behavior.
“And why wasn’t Xavier and I involved?”
“Honestly, we had no clue who was killing people that resembled you.”
“Well, that in itself should prove Claire didn’t do it. If she wanted to kill me, she knew exactly where I was.”
“True, but with Tubs always keeping you safe, she had no chance of killing you. So, she appeased herself by killing those who looked similar to you.”
“And what is your proof!” Vic demanded.
“To be honest, if not for the cards left in the hand of the dead person, we wouldn’t have thought the murders had any connection to each other. None of them were killed in the same manner.”
“And what did the card say?”
He pulled a card and handed it to her. It read: Get Well Soon.
Vic stared at the card for several silent minutes. “I can’t believe she would do this!”
“I’m sorry, Vic.”
“She creates the perfect, unsolvable murders, all different, then puts a card in the dead man’s hand, which will prove they are done by the same killer?”
She met Barns’ sad eyes. “This means a part of Claire wants to die. She knows how much I love her. She knows I was supposed to look out for her.”
“Vic, Claire is insane. You cannot let her break you! You have too many people who love and need you to be strong,” Barns chided.
“I do. And I will hold to that. What I won’t do is watch her die. Her final punishment is that she wants me to watch her hang. To make me believe the death of the fifteen young men were my fault. But they aren’t. They are entirely hers.”
“I agree,” Barns replied. “And how do you plan to proceed?”
“I refuse to bear her torment for the rest of my life. So, on the day of her death, my very large family is going to come together in our home and celebrate our wonderful life. This party will begin in the morning and continue through the night. I know you have to attend to her hanging to ensure she doesn’t escape, but you are part of my family. I hope that you, Captain Meyers, and any of your men or women who wish to stop by will be able to find time to do so. I want to celebrate life. I need to move forward. I will remember my baby sister when she was but five-years old. That was the best year in her entire life!”
Barns’ pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s a good thing you have so much space between your homes, because I expect a great many of my staff will want to attend. In fact, I will probably have to ask one of the ladies to create a schedule for the day. Otherwise, we’d have to shut down Scotland Yard, and the members of Parliament would no doubt take away my bonus.”
“We can’t have that. So, I’m glad you hired all those competent young women to work for you.”
“As am I,” Barns stated. “Now go home, so I can get matters going from here.”
Vic stood and frowned. “How can you be absolutely certain Claire can’t escape? I don’t believe a normal jail cell will hold her.”
“I agree. So, she is in a concrete room with no window and the door is steel, with a thin slot through which food and water can be provided. The door is triple locked so even if she acquired a pick, slipped her hand out, and picked the complex locking system across the center of the door, there are still two locks that she cannot reach.”
“But someone outside her room could.”
“No, they can’t. I will not explain why, but I assure you, she cannot escape this jail cell.”
“And the day of her hanging? She will have to be let out then.”
“Yes, of course. Her feet and hands will be shackled. We will ensure she has no picks anywhere on her body. Then I will personally escort her to the stand.”
“Make certain her skin bleeds. The female mesmerist that we caught wore fake skin. Which meant both hands appeared to be cuffed and secured, but one of the hands was a fake. If not for me and Tubs, she would have escaped.”
“Yes, I recall the situation, and we will test both arms and legs while we remain in the cell with her. My men and I have learned a great deal from your efforts to keep our country safe.”
“Never forget that my sister is incredibly brilliant, far more than the mesmerist we caught back then. Despite all your good intentions, I fear she’ll still find a way to escape.”
“I cannot imagine how.”
“When you hang her, how will you know she’s truly dead?” Vic asked. “A hanging is a poor choice when wishing to kill a brilliant person, especially one so small.”
“Damn it all! You are right! Claire could very well survive her hanging! I need to speak to the judge at once!” He pushed out of his chair, gripped Vic’s arm, and hurried down the steps. Once outside, Vic insisted that she wished to go home in her carriage.
“Of course. Thank you, Vic, for your assistance today.” He then entered his own carriage and rushed off to speak to the judge.
Chapter 17
VIC WAS CONFLICTED beyond endurance. A part of her wished to stop Claire permanently, while another part of her wanted Claire to escape the noose. Honestly, she had no hope in healing Claire and returning her to a good sister. Claire liked the person she was. She expected Claire would escape and the killing of Vics would continue, only in another country.
While Vic had warned Barns of many of the tricks Claire might use to escape, she did not share them all. To be honest, she had given just enough to ensure that if matters went as she expected, they would still believe she had given her best effort to ensure Claire would die. So, if it failed, the fallback wouldn’t land on her.
What bothered her was that it would probably fall on Barns, unless the judge refused his request that they kill Claire in some other manner. If Claire “died” by the noose, then suddenly disappeared, it wouldn’t come back to Barns. He would have asked the Judge for a better method of death, only the judge would have refused him. Nor would it harm the judge, since once appointed, judges stayed in service no matt
er what they did.
She only hoped, once Claire escaped, she would go far away. If she stubbornly remained in England, Xavier would hunt her down and kill her, either because he was ordered to, or just to keep his family safe. The risk to Xavier was not worth putting him into either situation.
At this point, she just wanted Claire to go far away and start a better life.
But that would just move the problem to another country. Still, young men would die, just because they resembled Vic’s male persona. And now that she knew that, she would be equally culpable in any future deaths. Damn it all!
She could not kill her sister, but nor could she let her continue killing young men.
She was damned for whatever she did. So, she would just choose the more honorable road.
While she could never shoot her sister, she would provide the many ways she expected Claire to escape.
She called out to her driver and asked him to return to Scotland Yard.
When she entered Scotland Yard and walked up the five flights of steps, she noticed Barns was yelling at someone on the telephone. So, she patiently waited at the window.
Upon seeing her, he hung up on whoever he was yelling at and stormed to the door, letting her inside. “The judge has refused to allow a more reliable means of killing Claire.”
“Well, you asked. So, nothing can come back to you.”
“Oh, believe me. It will still come back to me if Claire somehow escapes.”
“Well, that’s why I returned. I thought of some other ways Claire might try escaping.”
Barns stared at her in shock. “Are these real ways, or are you trying to distract me while you help Claire escape?”
Vic sighed heavily. “To be honest, I am torn between doing what’s right and saving my sister, who hates me so much that she’s spent a year killing people who resembled me. She wasn’t like this before the bastard who turned out to be a mesmerist got hold of her. But she enjoys killing people now, so, I’m going to do my best to help you. There are at least twenty ways in which she can escape, and I have no idea which she will do. I’ve stormed my brain all the way going home, then turning around and coming back here. So, the best I can offer is to list the top five in the order I think is more than likely.
“I’d like to hear them,” Barns replied.
“I have a request first. Do not argue with the order. While I cannot assure you that this will be in the right order on the day of her supposed death. Knowing my sister, this is what I believe she will do. If she perceives someone is on to one of her plans, she will move to another means of escape at once. So, it will be very important that none of your men, including you, do anything to set her off. She has been to hangings before, so she knows what normally occurs. You and your men cannot appear to deviate from that behavior. It is important that you have men well-hidden from sight for the different scenarios. They cannot reveal themselves too early nor too late. And expect her to have a gun.”
“Not even possible.”
“Don’t argue with me. I am trying to help you.”
“Are you, or are you just wasting my time?” Barns demanded.
“This is very hard for me. She’s my baby sister, and despite what has happened to her, I still love her. But if I don’t stop this now, she’ll just move to another country and continue murdering young men who look like me.”
“I’m sorry, Vic. I shouldn’t have questioned your loyalty to this country.”
“As I tell you the details of the various plans, you will no doubt wish to argue with me. Please don’t. It’ll just waste time.”
Barns opened his notepad. “If I can’t argue, may I at least take notes.”
“Notes are an excellent idea.”
Vic steadied herself and began.
“Plan one. When leaving the jail, one of your guards, presently mesmerized by my sister, will slip her a key to her cuffs and a gun in a pocket of her many petticoats. A normal frisk will not find it. She will not use the key right away. She will continue wearing the cuffs until she climbs onto the hangman’s stand, looking very proud and regal. While everyone is riveted to her beautiful face, she will be mesmerizing the men in the audience. She will even allow the noose to be put around her neck with stoic silence. Then just before the floor beneath her opens, she will declare, “As God is my witness, I have committed no crime!”
“How could you possibly know what she is going to say?” Barns challenged.
“I can’t say for certain, but that is what I expect she’ll say. When we were young, she always played the damsel in distress, and she would always make that claim. So, I believe, to cause me pain, she will use those words.”
“I apologize, Vic. This has to be hard on you. Can Xavier not do this instead?”
“No. This is my burden to carry.”
Pausing to steady herself, she continued, “Then the floor will open, the rope will break, the mesmerized guard will throw what he thinks is water upon her, and my sister will inexplicably disappear with a solution that she created many years ago. Since your men will not be able to see her, she’ll be gone before the solution stops working.
“And how do we prevent that?” Barns asked.
“Captain Meyers should carry a large bag of flour with him. It is most natural for a man of his rank to bring home missed groceries on occasion.”
“Wouldn’t I simply be able to follow her footsteps in the sand?” Barns challenged.
“No. Between the slippers she wears and her light step, you’ll never see a footprint.”
Barns huffed in exasperation. And this is the most likely case?
Vic nodded.
“I can shoot holes all through this.”
“Nevertheless, I believe it is the most likely scenario. She loves to be dramatic.”
Barns paced the room a few times then returned to his chair.
“What else might she do?”
In plan two, she hires assassins who will climb on the top of one of the houses nearby. They will randomly shoot people watching the hanging. That will leave you no choice but to send men after them. It is probable that you will lose track of my sister entirely during this fiasco, and she will once again disappear.
“Bloody Hell!” Barns yelled. “I’m going to put men on every house top!”
“Don’t forget that some of your men will be mesmerized,” Vic warned.
“Why isn’t this listed as plan one? It seems far more likely.”
“It does seem so. However, my sister likes to sparkle, and in this scenario she disappears entirely. No one ever has a moment to admire her beauty. With the first rifle shot, everyone will turn to the men on the buildings, and then the onlookers will run away to save their lives. Also, she could possibly be shot in this attempt. While no one can see her, there will be bullets flying all around. Worst yet, she will have to pay the assassins half the money they agreed upon before they’ll do it, and while she will never pay them the last half since she’ll be long gone, she still hates wasting money. So, unless someone frightens her, I believe plan one will be the most likely plan.”
“I’m afraid to ask, but what is plan three,” Barns admitted.
“Plan three is a death plan. She will use this plan if she gets upset. In this scenario, she will arrive with several guns hidden within her skirts and possibly in her hair, and she will go invisible and shoot you first and then as many of your men as she can before she runs out of ammunition. It will be very hard to see where she is. Only the gun itself will be visible, and I assure you, she will not be standing directly behind it.”
Barns was up and pacing again.
“By now, I’m terrified to ask, but what is plan four?”
“The next plan is simpler and deadlier but lacks drama. Having acquired a gun and her invisible powder by a mesmerized officer. She will simply sit and wait for him to open the door so she can leave. In this case, she will either go to Scotland Yard and shoot you, then leave on her merry way, or she will try to kill me. Howe
ver, I am not easy to kill, given our house is a fortress and Tubs is the best protector I could ask for.” Vic tilted her head. “So, I doubt she’ll try it.”
Barns was utterly astounded at the danger Claire presented to Vic, himself, and his men.
“And plan five?”
“Plan five will be to poison a large amount of London by pouring containers of liquid poisons into the sewer system. Since we are enduring a prolonged winter, the poison would remain in a liquid state for several months. However, come warm weather and it will be lethal.”
“Does she have the ability to actually do this?”
“Yes. However, for Claire to enjoy her handiwork, she will have to return to England from wherever she is hiding, and while it ranks high on drama, causing people on the street to die almost instantly, it might kill her as well if anyone rips off her mask. Also, she does not like wearing a gas mask, because no one can see her pretty face. So, I don’t expect her to go for this option, unless all the above situations have failed. While it is most deadly, it does not provide her the entertainment that she seeks.”
Barns stared at Vic, anger burning in his eyes. “Did you teach her how to do all this?”
“No, Claire is an extraordinary chemist. She is far brighter than I am. And the fact that no one realizes she is far smarter than me is one of her main trigger points. She blames me for stealing the fame she deserves.”
Chapter 18
CONVINCED VIC WAS HONESTLY trying to help, Barns agreed to follow her list, despite his disbelief that any of his men would give Claire a gun or keys to the handcuffs. When it came to mesmerists, Vic was far better informed than he, since Barns had adamantly refused to acknowledge there was any possibility that they were anything but charlatans and mountebanks. However, seeing Xavier under the spell of Block had changed his mind.
Fortunately, both he and Vic seemed impervious to the powers of a mesmerist and that would be vital on the day of Claire’s hanging. Vic had assured him that Captain Meyers was also immune to their wily ways. Since Vic would not be at the hanging, it gave him comfort to know Meyers would be able to back him up if any of his men failed.
The Future of Scotland Yard Page 11
