The Kit Aston Mysteries (All Five Books)

by Jack Murray

  Kit nodded at this. He understood all too well a promise forged in the suffering of the last few years. Then he smiled, replying, ‘All the same, you’re certainly a fast worker.’

  ‘I’m the fast worker,’ corrected Esther with a smile, ‘You must excuse us though, Mary, I believe, was rather curious.’

  ‘Of course,’ responded Kit, ‘But can you all join us in the library afterwards?’

  Bright looked at Kit and said, ‘Have there been some developments?’

  ‘Yes, but I’ll wait until everyone is together if you don’t mind. Anyway, please don’t let me slow you down.’

  The couple took their leave and went up the stairs. Kit watched them go and he felt immense relief as well as happiness. Esther was one of the most beautiful women he had ever met and yet he had realized soon she was not the one for him. Unquestionably, he had been dazzled both by her beauty as well as a grace that disguised her playfulness, a delight in the ridiculous which surfaced most when she was with her sister.

  And then there was Mary.

  She had seemed to be trying to push him and Esther together. Even Lord Cavendish often looked at him when he was standing with Esther. Something in his manner suggested the old boy had a romantic streak in him. It was the arrival of Richard Bright which crystalized where his feelings lay. Until then he had been caught in a quandary, not just in choosing between the two sisters but also a feeling of insecurity that either would be interested in a cripple like him. This uncertainty extended to the seeming inseparability of the sisters. Thankfully this problem was going to be resolved. But would the events of the last few days forever throw a shadow between himself and Mary?

  He had found his discomposure difficult to overcome since the arrest of Harry. It stemmed not just from his fears for Harry but also in Mary’s role in bringing it about. Now he hoped this uneasiness would end. Seeing Polly come out of the dining room, Kit asked her to have Curtis assemble the staff, for the second time this morning and bring them to the library. He went upstairs to ask the guests to join him there, too.

  -

  Half an hour elapsed before all of the staff and guests were gathered together. Kit was standing by the desk alongside Stott. All of the ladies sat at the front with Miller, Constable Coltrane standing at the back beside Bright and Strangerson. The staff were arrayed along the back wall along with Henry who was with Jane. The change in Henry, in such a short space of time, had astonished all. Unquestionably he and Jane, thought Kit, would make a beautiful couple, however unmatched they were in social rank.

  The final person to arrive was Reverend Simmons and he made his way to stand with the other male guests. Kit nodded a greeting to him and then began to speak.

  ‘I want to talk to you about the recent events, specifically, the sad loss of Lord Cavendish and the arrest of my manservant Harry Miller. You’ll no doubt have seen that Harry is back with us along with Inspector Stott and Constable Coltrane.’

  Stott looked on at Kit but remained silent.

  Kit continued, ‘A few days ago, following Lord Cavendish’s passing, I asked you to assemble. At that time, I alerted you to the probability of a police investigation. For a number of reasons, I was not at liberty to explain why beyond acknowledging the unexpected nature of his death would be grounds for some kind of inquiry. With Inspector Stott’s permission I can now tell you the reason we interviewed you. Over the last few years Lord Cavendish received Christmas cards threatening his life. This meant we could not rule out the possibility of foul play being a cause of death.’

  This announcement caused a stir amongst the staff.

  ‘After the death of Lord Cavendish, these Christmas cards went missing from the library and were subsequently found in the coat of Harry Miller.’

  There was further stir from the staff and even Reverend Simmons glanced at Harry with surprise.

  ‘I have reason to believe the Christmas cards were planted there by another person and that Harry is innocent of having sent them. I will return to this in a moment, but I will ask Inspector Stott to update you on the results of the coroner’s report.’

  Kit stood back and let Stott take centre stage. In his hand, he held the envelope containing the report.

  ‘Thank you, Lord Aston,’ said Stott before looking directly at the Cavendish sisters and Lady Emily, who were sitting beside one another.

  ‘I’m sorry to have to discuss so distressing a subject in this public forum, but Lord Aston and I agreed it was entirely necessary.’

  The three ladies nodded, and Esther took Mary’s hand as they waited for Stott to continue.

  ‘I can confirm that the coroner, Doctor Farrell, is firm of the belief that Lord Cavendish died of natural causes.’

  Stott paused to let this news to permeate. Mary and Esther hugged one another, and both fought to control their tears. Kit looked down at Mary. She turned around and held his gaze. She wasn’t sure what he was thinking but her hopes began to rise.

  ‘Further confirmation of this view comes from Lord Cavendish’s physician in Harley Street. We understand Lord Cavendish had recently made several visits to him and that he was under medication for a weak heart. This was clearly not a murder, and therefore Harry Miller has no charge to answer. I’ll hand back to Lord Aston because this is not quite the end of the matter.’

  Stott stepped back allowing everyone to see Kit, who had perched himself on Lord Cavendish’s desk. He was holding the photograph of the army battalion in his hand.

  ‘The key to this affair has been sitting in the library all along. It’s why we’re all here today. The murderer tried to frame Harry because of an extraordinary coincidence.’

  Bright spoke up at this point, ‘Murderer, Kit? I thought the Inspector had just confirmed no murder took place.’

  Kit looked directly at Bright, ‘Oh there was a murder all right, Richard. In fact, had Lord Cavendish not passed away when he did, it might’ve been two.’

  From where he was standing, Kit could see the confusion on most of the faces in the room.

  ‘With Harry’s permission I will explain why the murderer framed him.’ Kit held up the photograph of the battalion and pointed to Miller’s brother.

  ‘Clearly not everyone will be able see this but the soldier I am pointing to is Harry’s brother, Daniel. He fought in the same regiment as Robert Cavendish. Sadly, he died for reasons that remain unclear, but I will say it was a military execution. Robert and Lord Cavendish each had a role in the execution. Robert headed up the firing squad that executed Daniel and Lord Cavendish headed the tribunal which turned down his request for clemency. This would, in theory, have constituted a clear motive for Harry to murder Lord Cavendish or, at the very least, threaten to do so. But Harry did not. Harry had no idea of the connection with the Cavendish family.’

  Bright put a hand on Harry’s shoulder as he listened to Kit talk about the death of his brother. The tension in the room was palpable.

  Kit continued, ‘Harry’s not the only person in this room who had a brother in this battalion; a brother, I might add, who was executed.’ Kit paused and waited for someone to speak.

  Finally, a voice said, ‘Very clever Aston, but none of this proves anything.’

  All heads turned around to the speaker. It was Eric Strangerson.

  ‘I think you should hear the rest of my story, Strangerson.’

  ‘Dragging it out a bit old boy, aren’t you? You detective-types really are frustrated actors, you love being the centre of attention.’

  Gone was the buffoon. Instead Strangerson’s tone was of the cold killer that had dispatched so many German soldiers in No Man’s Land.

  ‘Proof? Oh, I think you should stick around for the rest,’ returned Kit, drawling sarcastically, ‘Old boy.’

  ‘Well, I can tell you that I fully intend catching the five o’clock train to London, so if you don’t mind, I’ll be going,’ responded Strangerson.

  Stott nodded his head and Coltrane put a hand on the shoulder of
Strangerson. ‘If you don’t mind Mr Strangerson, I think you should wait for Lord Aston to finish,’ said the young Constable. Stott raised his eyebrows. Perhaps there was hope for the young pup yet.

  ‘Thank you, Constable,’ said Kit. ‘As you may have gathered, our friend Strangerson also had a brother in the battalion.’

  Out of the corner of his eye, Kit could see the sisters look at one another. He asked them where they thought Eric Strangerson was sitting.

  ‘Front row, far right,’ replied Esther.

  ‘Correct. But did you notice the man with the cocked hat at all, sitting at the opposite end of the row? You correctly identified him as Harry’s brother. However, you failed to look at the very last man in the row. His head is turned slightly away.’ Kit handed Esther the picture.

  ‘Oh, my goodness,’ said Esther, showing it to Mary.

  ‘Indeed. At first, I thought Strangerson had pulled the old trick of running around the back to the other side so that he could appear twice in the same photograph. But I checked just in case. It turns out this man was, in fact, Joseph Strangerson. Sadly, he was also executed by a British firing squad on the same day as Harry’s brother.’

  Strangerson broke in, ‘Thank you for bringing up my poor brother’s death. I don’t see how this is relevant. You’ve just confirmed Lord Cavendish died of natural causes.’

  ‘True,’ acknowledged Kit. ‘However, you’ll at least concede that it provides a motive for sending the threatening Christmas cards.’

  Strangerson shrugged. ‘Maybe, but you’ve no proof I sent them never mind planting them in your man’s coat.’

  ‘But Kit,’ interjected Bright, ‘Why do you keep referring to a murderer?’

  ‘Because a murder did take place, let me explain.’

  -

  ‘We have to go back to Cambrai in France, just before Christmas 1917. I was returning from a mission which had taken me behind enemy lines. When I say returning, I mean I was crossing over No Man’s land in the middle of the night from the German side, hoping to God no one would see me. I nearly succeeded but not quite. Not sure if it was a mine or a bomb, but before I knew it, I was lying in a crater and pretty badly injured. I couldn’t move, my arm was trapped on barbed wire and I kept losing consciousness.’

  The audience was rapt. Mary seemed to be fighting back tears. Kit continued, ‘I would’ve been done for had it not been for an extraordinary man.’

  Everyone turned to look at Harry who smiled and held out his hands to indicate it was all in a day’s work.

  ‘Harry was a sentry on this particular night. He spotted me almost by accident. He was asked by the commanding officer if he would go out and see if I was alive. Incredibly, and luckily for me, he agreed. This meant crawling out into No Man’s Land. Let me add, he could’ve been shot at any point on his journey. His courage still astonishes me. Anyway, before I knew it, I was being dragged and carried back to our front line. I owe this man my life. It seems the very least I can do is make sure he is not falsely accused of something that it’s certainly not in his character to do.’

  Mary turned around to Miller and looked at him in gratitude. From this, Miller understood life could soon change for Kit and him. He smiled and shrugged to her. The attention was becoming too much; he hoped Kit would move on. The tension was unbearable.

  ‘The commanding officer that night was,’ Kit’s voice faltered for the first time, he looked down at Lady Emily, ‘Robert Cavendish.’ She looked back at him. Tears were brimming in her eyes as she realized what Kit would say next.

  ‘As Harry carried me, a bomb landed near us and we fell just short of the trench. Robert was the first man out of the trench to drag me in. I have no words to describe his bravery, Emily. There are none. He risked his life for me by climbing over the top to help drag me in.’

  Kit paused for a moment to compose himself.

  ‘He was shot as he attempted to help me into the trench.’

  Kit also felt tears sting his eyes, ‘I’m sorry Emily, Henry, I was partly the cause of Robert’s death.’ Mary put her arm around Lady Emily who could no longer hide the fact that she was crying. Moments later Henry had joined them. He knelt down and held his mother tightly.

  ‘For the last two years the assumption was a German sniper killed Robert. It wasn’t.’ Looking directly at Strangerson, Kit pointed to him and said, ‘It was you, Strangerson. You murdered Robert Cavendish.’

  Chapter 34

  ‘How dare you!’ roared Strangerson. ‘I’ve had enough of this slander, Aston.’ Strangerson shrugged off Coltrane and started forward towards Kit. However, a combination of Miller, Bright and Simmons restrained him as Kit looked on coolly.

  ‘I haven’t finished with you yet,’ snarled Kit with evident dislike.

  ‘All lies, you can’t prove any of this,’ said Strangerson.

  ‘Can’t I? What if I told you there were two witnesses to the murder of Robert Cavendish? Would this convince you?’

  This stopped Strangerson in his tracks. He was clearly astonished by the new revelation.

  ‘I saw the shot which killed him. I’ve seen it virtually every night since then,’ confessed Kit. ‘I’ve seen enough men die to know that the direction of the bullet could only have from behind. It couldn’t have been a German.’

  ‘Preposterous, you’re making it up.’

  ‘Really? Then how do you explain a letter the War Office received earlier this year? A German commander wrote claiming to have witnessed a British army sniper murder a British officer. The date and the time tallies exactly with the death of Robert and, crucially, he described you perfectly. Not only that, according to this officer, your partner Teddy Masters saw what happened. It was the night he was killed by a sniper. He probably took a bullet meant for you.’

  Strangerson looked dismissive, ‘Are you really going to take the word of a dirty Boche ahead of a British officer? Fritz was after me for half the War. I killed so many of their men. They couldn’t kill me so now they want to smear me, and you’re falling for it.’

  ‘You’re forgetting one thing Strangerson. The Christmas cards,’ pointed out Kit.

  ‘Back to those, are we? So? Why would I send one to Lord Cavendish?’

  ‘Because he headed up the tribunal that did not reprieve your brother. And you didn’t just send them to Lord Cavendish. Robert Cavendish led the firing squad. Two Cavendish men, both connected to the execution of your brother. You didn’t just send them to Lord Cavendish; you sent one to Robert, too.’

  Lady Emily who had been watching with growing astonishment gasped, ‘Robert said nothing to me about a threatening Christmas card.’

  ‘It was found among his belongings. The ministry kept it back for fear of distressing you further, Emily,’ explained Kit. ‘The truth was the army didn’t believe the message in the card. They thought it a German trick, perhaps to unsettle Robert.’

  Kit looked back at Strangerson and said, ‘The note inside the card was typed. The police are in your Bayswater flat as I speak, Strangerson. What do you think the chances are they’ll find a typewriter? I’d say they were very strong, wouldn’t you? Oh yes, there’s a bottle of a foul-smelling liquid underneath the mattress in your bedroom. My guess is that it contains a poison. Probably a curare or some such thing you picked up on your travels. I think you intended to use this on Lord Cavendish, possibly in small doses, certainly enough to make him ill and give you time to exit before the cumulative impact of the poison wrought its deadly impact. As I recall you offered to pour him a drink on a number of occasions. Sadly, for you he declined. If fate hadn’t given you such a helping hand, I suspect you would’ve become quite desperate.’

  Strangerson looked defeated. His shoulders slumped; his body seemed to go limp. Then, without warning he sprang to life and threw off Bright and Miller. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun. Pointing the weapon at Kit, Strangerson’s composure returned.

  ‘Well, I suppose congratulations are in order, Aston. You�
��ve assembled a fairly effective case which could put a noose around my neck. However, I’m not sure I want this to happen quite yet.’

  He looked down at the sisters. It was clear to Kit he intended taking a hostage. Strangerson continued talking, ‘Yes, it was a useful drive I had with Devlin. Familiarised myself with the car and the area, too, just in case things went a bit sticky. I think it’s time to say “toodle pip’, though. Unfortunately, I’ll have to take one of the lovely ladies with me as security. Don’t worry, I shan’t harm them. My business with the Cavendish family was strictly with the males. Now, who shall I choose?’

  ‘Take me,’ said Mary.

  ‘No!’ shouted Esther but Mary was already on her feet and moving towards Strangerson.

  ‘Let the lady through, gentlemen,’ said Strangerson, while gesturing to Miller, Bright and Simmons to stand aside. He walked slowly backwards towards the door holding the gun at Mary. Kit looked on, impotent with rage. His raced furiously about how to rescue the situation. He was angry at himself for not anticipating that Strangerson might have a gun. If anything happened, he knew he’d would never forgive himself.

  The room seemed to part for Strangerson as he led Mary towards the door. The killer of countless German soldiers looked like he was on an afternoon stroll. ‘Thank you, gentlemen,’ said Strangerson, smiling malevolently at the men he was passing. They reached the door of the library. A strange silence descended on the room. The only sound came from the grandfather clock ticking solemnly. Without looking at Curtis, Strangerson ordered him to open the door.’

  Curtis did as he was told. Strangerson’s right hand gripped Mary’s elbow. His left pointed the gun at the men to his left. The door opened. First there was a bark and then the sound of claws on the parquet floor. Moments later, Sam came running in. Caught by surprise, Strangerson looked down. This was his mistake.