No rest for him, though. Instead, a walk through the sweltering heat of town to the Metropole Hotel.
‘What do you have for me, Seth?’ Harper asked as he settled at the table. He poured a glass of water from the jug. Lukewarm, but better than nothing.
‘Scraps, Mr Harper.’
‘Let’s hear them.’
The man was right. Bits and pieces, crooked deals that had put money in their pockets. More weight, but not what he needed.
‘The Smiths?’ Harper asked, and Myers shook his head. ‘The North Leeds Company?’ The same again.
Harper nodded, then left.
The clock had turned seven when Walsh returned. He looked dusty and rumpled, a serious expression on his face.
‘We can’t come up with any trace of them in Hunslet, sir.’
‘How many men do you have working on it?’
‘I managed to scare up ten bobbies. A few new recruits, a couple of those specials who’ve just started, too. They’ve been going house-to-house, fanning out from the shop. I had a word with the fella who runs it. He swears he’d never seen them before today.’
‘Could be worth finding out who’s new in the area.’
‘I’m doing that, sir. Followed up on three so far.’ He shrugged. ‘All clean.’
‘Keep going. It’s the best thing we have at the moment. Who did you leave in charge out there?’
‘Sergeant Dunkley from ‘B’ Division. He’s solid. I warned him not to go in if he finds them.’
‘Good.’ He was going to have the pleasure of leading that, however long it took. ‘Go and get some sleep. Another long day tomorrow.’
‘And there I was thinking Sunday was the day of rest.’ He grinned.
‘You ought to know by now. Remember what they say: no rest for the wicked.’
‘You’d think they’d make an exception for coppers. I’ll see you in the morning, sir.’
At half past nine he turned off the gas to the mantle and put on his hat. He’d had another go at Charlie Cutter, question after question, every one of them answered by silence, until Harper slapped the wall with the palm of his hand.
‘The men you hired will be spending plenty of time at hard labour for attacking a copper. You’ll serve even longer.’
‘Where’s your evidence?’ The first words he’d spoken during the session, and the first small spark of defiance.
‘The testimony of two men.’
‘Prove they’re telling the truth!’
‘And your own record.’ Two convictions for fixing up something similar; that would be enough. But neither had been on a policeman. Cutter shut up. Not another word.
He wasn’t going to find out who’d ordered the attack. So simple, so bloody simple, and he’d never know. Charlie was so terrified he’d rather do a year’s hard labour than give up the name. Who in God’s name could have that effect on him? He could guess.
‘Penny for them, sir.’ He turned and saw Ash waiting.
‘Right now they’re not worth a farthing. What are you still doing here?’
‘I thought I’d come along with you tonight, if you don’t mind. I quite fancy a little action, and I’d like to see how the new man is doing. And have the pleasure of nabbing the burglars, of course.’
‘If it happens tonight.’
‘We can try to propitiate the gods, sir.’
Harper stared at him doubtfully. ‘Sometimes I don’t have a clue what you’re saying.’
The inspector grinned. ‘Blame my Nancy, sir. It’s all this stuff she has me reading. Right now it’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by some chap called Gibbon. Quite stirring.’
‘You should talk to Sissons. He has a head for that type of thing.’
‘Happen I will sometime, sir.’
They began the walk through town, up Eastgate and the Headrow, before turning on to Woodhouse Lane. All the raucousness of the night around them, shouting, crying, singing. Life.
The lights glowed in the Dunns’ rooms, faint shapes moving behind the curtains. Half an hour and they snapped off.
‘Go and tell Fowler,’ Harper ordered Sissons. ‘Be ready to move.’ His gaze was fixed on the front door. But it didn’t open. He kept utterly still, breathing softly, then Sissons was back.
‘They slipped out the back and down the ginnel, sir. The others are behind them. Mr Dunn was still limping. Not as bad tonight, though.’
‘Right. Let’s go.’
As soon as he reached the main road, he could see them. Dunn was carrying a bag, the weight making one shoulder sag. He was moving awkwardly. But it was going to be tonight. Finally. Harper smiled. The man must be a good climber if he could attempt something with a bad ankle.
‘Let’s cross the road,’ he said quietly. ‘People never look that way.’
Fowler and Ash were dawdling. Impossible to miss them, though. Finally they vanished into a shop doorway. Good, Harper thought. Out of sight. But the Dunns never even glanced back, acting as if they were on another casual stroll.
All the way down past the college. No hurry, and eventually a turn on to Blackman Lane. Going back to the Blenheims. Exactly what he expected.
‘Hurry up,’ he said to Sissons. ‘Run to the corner and keep an eye on them.’ He waved his hand, trusting the others would notice.
By the time they’d all gathered, the Dunns were out of sight. Then Sissons seemed to materialize from nowhere.
‘Second ginnel along on the left, sir. Couldn’t see which house.’
‘Good work. Fowler and Ash will go to the far end and work their way back down. You and I will start here.’
TWENTY-FIVE
For a large man, Ash could walk with surprising silence. He appeared out of the darkness and placed his mouth close to Harper’s good ear.
‘Fourth house from the end.’
‘Mrs Dunn should be waiting in the yard. You two whisk her away. Make sure she doesn’t have a chance to call out. Sissons and I will wait for the husband to come out of the house.’
He gave it a full minute, long enough, then began to move softly along the ginnel behind the houses. A strange street, Harper thought, the buildings towering to three grand storeys and a cellar kitchen, but still only a small yard of flagstones like any ordinary terrace.
Ash stood by the back gate. ‘Hasn’t come back down yet.’
‘No problems arresting her?’
‘Taken to the lock-up on Woodhouse Moor.’ A moment’s pause. ‘You’re going to get the shock of your life, sir. I’ll just wait out here in case of any escape.’
Baffled, Harper led Sissons into the yard. Filled with shadows, there were plenty of places to hide. A light burned in the kitchen; he had to hope that none of the servants popped outside and spotted them.
Five minutes edged closer to ten. Finally, Sissons nudged him.
‘I heard a scrape of something, sir,’ he whispered. ‘I think he’s coming out.’
He hadn’t noticed any sound. Harper strained his eyes, staring at the drainpipe that ran up the back of the house. Then he picked out a shape, something blacker against the dark bricks.
His heart was so loud he was astonished the burglar didn’t notice.
Down, down … and at the last moment Harper emerged and locked a handcuff around one of the burglar’s wrists. The figure turned …
For a moment, he was too astonished to speak. Ash had said … but never mind. Then Sissons was there, removing the bag.
‘Mrs Agatha Dunn, I’m arresting you for burglary.’
She tried to pull away, but he was expecting that, giving her just enough room to fall as he yanked her back towards him. A cuff on the other wrist behind her back.
The servants were spilling out of the door, drawn by the commotion. Sissons opened the bag.
‘Plenty of jewellery in here, sir.’
‘That belongs to the mistress,’ a maid said as he held up a brooch. ‘She keeps it on her dressing table.’
But Harper barely n
oticed. He was staring at Agatha Dunn, still trying to overcome his surprise. It served him right for having assumed something. A woman could be as good a criminal as a man. He ought to have considered the possibility. With Dunn’s bad ankle, the signs were right in front of his bloody eyes. More fool him.
Her thick hair was hidden by a cap, her body clothed in a tight-fitting black outfit, a pair of trousers and a top that clung snugly against her body. Like a circus performer, he thought. A high-wire act.
‘Is there a skirt in that bag?’ he asked.
‘Yes, sir, cushioning everything so it doesn’t rattle.’
‘Pass it over.’ The least he could do was make her decent.
She glared as he dropped the skirt over her head, then pulled off the cap. A sudden silence in the yard as everyone realized.
‘That’s your burglar, ladies and gentlemen. Sissons, take her to the station. With her loot.’
A few questions for the servants and he knew the facts. The owner of the house was a professor at the Yorkshire College. He and his wife had gone to the Grand Theatre, seats booked a week before. Easy for Carl Dunn to have heard something at work.
‘Someone will come by in the morning and take statements,’ he promised.
Ash was waiting out in the ginnel.
‘I told you that you’d have the shock of your life, sir. Could have blown me over when Fowler came out with the husband.’
‘Yes,’ Harper agreed. He began to laugh. The signs had been there, if he’d had the wit to see: she loved to climb, she was good at it. He’d assumed it would be the man; without thinking, he’d taken it as given that she’d be the lookout. His own blindness. ‘I think it’s time to go home.’
‘I’ll walk down to Sheepscar with you, sir.’
‘A bodyguard?’ For a second, he bristled. May had shot his bolt with last night’s attack. After a moment, he calmed. Better safe than sorry. For tonight, at least.
‘I thought we could have a chat, sir, that’s all.’
They began to walk. The night air was still warm and close. ‘Something on your mind?’
‘This business with the councillors, sir. What are we going to do? Charlie Cutter’s too scared to give up a name.’
‘I know.’ Harper wiped sweat from the back of his neck. ‘Believe me, I know. We still need to find out who’s behind the Smiths.’
‘They won’t talk when we catch them, sir.’
Harper knew that, too. He’d realized it from the very first murder. The brothers wouldn’t give them a thing.
‘We haven’t caught them yet,’ he said. ‘They’ve managed to run us ragged so far.’
‘They’re out of options and out of money now, sir. It’s just a matter of time. We can sweat them once they’re behind bars.’
He expected nothing. The link between the Smiths and the councillors was real; he knew that in his heart. But he wondered if they’d ever be able to drag it into the light.
They parted at the Victoria. They’d seen no one on the streets, heard no footsteps anywhere. All the way home he hadn’t given a thought to the possibility of attack.
‘Thank you.’
‘All part of the duty, sir.’ He nodded towards the light in the window upstairs. ‘Looks like Mrs Harper has waited up for you.’
He wondered about that as he climbed the stairs. It wasn’t like Annabelle. She was sitting calmly on the settee, staring straight ahead and brooding.
‘Is something wrong?’
‘Yes,’ she answered simply as she turned to face him. ‘I heard what happened last night.’
He could hear the accusation in her voice.
‘It was nothing that hasn’t gone on before,’ he said. ‘You were still asleep when I left this morning. When was I supposed to tell you?’
‘You know who was behind it?’
‘I do. I’ve spent half the day questioning the men who did it. And they won’t say.’
‘Why not, for God’s sake?’
‘They’re more afraid of him than of prison. But it’s over now. He won’t try again.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘Yes.’ He had no doubt.
‘I worry, Tom. I’m your wife.’
‘Look at me. I’m fine. They never laid a finger on me.’ He paused. ‘It’s not just that, is it?’
‘No, I suppose it’s not,’ she admitted. ‘It’s … I don’t know. Everything.’
He drew her to her feet and hugged her close.
‘Come on,’ he said softly. ‘Tell me.’
‘I finally had a cup of tea with that Liberal from the Guardians today,’ she said. ‘Told him how I thought the rules should change so we can protect children properly.’
‘What did he say?’ He had to ask, although he could already guess the answer.
‘He heard me out, all polite, then he said, “Madam, I appreciate that the law means we can now have women elected to the Board of Guardians. That doesn’t mean I have to like it, or that I will act on anything a woman suggests.” Haughty as you like. Got up and walked out. I about had my jaw on the floor.’
Some men would never change. And there was nothing they could do about it.
‘What now?’
‘My best hope is the one who’s Temperance.’ He felt her breathe slowly against his neck. ‘I don’t think I’ll have his support. Still, the chairman agreed to a meeting so I can put forward my ideas.’
Gently, he stroked her back.
‘Let’s go to bed. Maybe it’ll feel better in the morning.’
It wouldn’t and they both knew it, but the words were like a salve.
Another day. As Harper quietly locked the door of the Victoria, he wondered if he’d even rested. With the burglars in their cells, he should have felt some relief. Instead, he’d lain there, mind refusing to wind down as he made his plans.
Maybe he’d managed two or three hours. His eyes stung as he blinked; it was still early, long before the first tram, but he could feel the heat rising off the cobbles.
The milkman was on his rounds, cart parked on Sheepscar Street. As he passed, the horse glanced at him with a big brown eye.
The Dunns would have been transferred to Millgarth overnight. He’d leave the questioning for Sissons, with Fowler to help. The new man had done all the work; he deserved the experience, as well as the credit for the arrests.
Harper sighed as he looked at a small mountain range of papers waiting on his desk, his expression softening as Sergeant Tollman brought him a mug of tea.
‘You’re a lifesaver.’
‘Can’t have you parched, sir.’
The station came to life around him. The shift changed at seven, boots tramping up and down the corridors, constables lining up in the yard outside before going off to their beats.
Harper watched them disperse, lost in his thoughts. Arresting the Dunns had bought him some time; the councillors wouldn’t dare come after him for a little while now. But they’d be circling, and back on the attack soon unless he managed to stop them.
‘It’s the strangest tale I’ve ever heard, sir,’ Fowler began. He’d come into the office, Sissons hurrying behind him. Harper glanced out of the window. Half past eleven and he felt cooped up in this place.
‘Tell me over some food,’ he told them. ‘I need fresh air.’
The cafe by the market. It was handy, it was quick, and as close to cheerful as anywhere else.
‘Right,’ the superintendent told them as their sandwiches arrived.
‘We already knew they both like climbing, sir,’ Sissons began. Harper nodded. ‘Apparently it all started as a game. They were out for a walk one night and saw a house with no lights on. Mrs Dunn challenged her husband to climb up the drainpipe to the roof. He did, and the next night she told him to do it again, then walk across the slates.’
‘But she was the one who was the burglar,’ Harper said.
‘He challenged her to try it.’ Fowler picked up the story. ‘She made herself that outfit she was we
aring last night. He egged her on and she discovered she enjoyed it. Mrs Dunn was willing to go further than him. She developed a taste for it.’
‘Was all this in Newcastle?’
‘Yes, sir. She’d do a bit more each time. In through an open window, walk around, take a little something.’
‘And soon she was taking more?’
Sissons nodded. ‘They started doing it regularly. He’d go off and sell what they stole, always in another town. Once the force up there began looking for them, they decided to move. Mr Dunn found a job down here, and …’ He shrugged.
‘What did they think? We wouldn’t be as bright as the coppers in Newcastle?’
‘I don’t know, sir,’ Fowler answered. ‘But we proved them wrong.’
‘They’ll have plenty of time to think about that once they’ve been sentenced.’ He chuckled. ‘Unless they manage to climb the wall and escape.’
Fowler winced. ‘Don’t even think it, sir. Where do you want us now?’
‘Back on the Smiths,’ Harper said. ‘We’ve won this one. It’s well past time to wrap up the other.’
By three o’clock, the small victory felt like ancient news. One more added to the pile of cases solved. The Dunns had led them a dance, but the music had stopped, the band packed up and gone home.
When the telephone rang, Harper reached for it without thinking, holding the receiver to his good ear.
‘A good job on the burglars, Tom.’ The chief constable’s voice came clearly through the line. ‘Give my congratulations to your men.’
‘Thank you, sir, I will. It’s the new lad, Sissons; he did all the work.’
‘Already paid for himself?’
‘With change left over.’
The smallest of silences and Crossley said: ‘You’ve bought yourself some time, Tom. For now, anyway.’
He didn’t have to spell it out. Finish the job and find the Smiths and the councillors would be off the chief’s back.
‘We’re doing everything we can, sir.’
‘I’m sure you are. I’m not really ringing about that, anyway. As I said, that threat has receded. It’s the other one that concerns me.’
The Leaden Heart Page 21
