The False Inspector Dew

by Peter Lovesey

  'You stood us the champagne,' said Paul. 'Weil call it quits.'

  'One should always pay one's debts,' said Katherine. 'Barbara, here's my pound.'

  Jack with unexpected force, said, 'Put it away. You don't pass money across a table here. Are you crazy?'

  Katherine pushed the pound note at Barbara and said, 'Take it.'

  Barbara hesitated. She looked to Paul for help.

  Paul took the note and said, 'Yes, I'll buy a round for you, Katherine. That's really generous.'

  'Leave me out,' said Jack, still angry. 'I've had enough for tonight — of everything.' He curtly wished them goodnight and left.

  Katherine's eyes had filled with tears.

  Barbara took her hand. She gave Paul a look that said she was capable of looking after Katherine. She said, 'Maybe some coffee would be better than a drink, Paul.'

  He went to arrange it, still unable to account for the force of Jack's outburst. Gambling was against the Cunard regulations, but everybody knew it happened. They would hardly be hauled before the captain because a pound was passed across a table.

  He ordered the coffee. He was in no hurry to go back to the table. He reckoned Barbara would cope better with Katherine alone. He was about to go to the bar and order a scotch when he saw Livy at the smoking room entrance. He remembered the three hundred bucks he owed him.

  'MrCordell.'

  'Livy to you, son.' He put his hand on Paul's arm. 'How about a drink? Marje has gone to put her feet up. Her ankles were starting to swell. Too much dancing.'

  'I'd like to clear my debt with you,' said Paul. He took out his billfold and handed Livy the money he owed him. It was a simple transaction that made the scene of a few minutes before seem all the more unnecessary.

  'Thanks,' said Livy. 'A scotch?'

  'I'd like that.'

  They stood at the bar counter with their drinks. 'Nice atmosphere on the Maury,' said Livy. 'She's a great ship. I was travelling on liners when you were just a kid. I know them all. That was before I met Marje. Now I'm kind of retired. I only get on ships in the vacation.'

  'What was your line of work?'

  'Import, export. Plenty of profit if you have a nose for trade. I made mine and put it in gilt-edged. We live off the interest.'

  'Smart.'

  'You said it, son. Here I am at forty-six and I can take it easy for the rest of my life. No more sweat for Livingstone Cordell. I have my own apartment overlooking Central Park. I have the cutest wife in New York and a beautiful stepdaughter as a bonus. Say, what happened to Barbara? I thought she was with you.'

  'She is. That is to say she's over there in the alcove. We were playing cards.'

  "Where? I don't see her.'

  'She has her back to us. She's with that lady in the blue dress.'

  'Her? What's she doing with her?' Livy's tone had changed. He seemed to imply that Paul had ditched his stepdaughter.

  It was too much to explain to Livy. 'They had something to discuss. They sent me to order coffee. I can take a hint.'

  Livy put his hand on Paul's arm and pushed him firmly towards the table. 'You go right back to them, son, and break it up. When two women get together, you're sunk. Don't let it happen.'

  Paul glanced at Barbara. She was deep in conversation with {Catherine. Katherine was smiling.

  He said,'Okay.'

  But Livy had left.

  16

  After dinner Johnny Finch entertained Alma and the Americans from their table. He sat in an armchair in the centre of the lounge and told motoring stories. They were very funny. They were spiced with the names of people in society. The gentlemen bought expensive motor cars to impress the ladies. Either the cars or the gentlemen always got overheated, in the art of seduction,' Johnny told his audience, 'the motor car is an unreliable accessory.' He told a story of the late King Edward and a car that he had hired. The owner had a soft drinks factory and was hoping for a warrant of appointment in lieu of payment. The King drove into the country with a lady friend. The car ran out of petrol. The King was not dismayed. There was a pleasant interval. Eventually the King lighted a cigar. He told the lady all was well. A reserve supply of petrol was on board. He got out. He unstrapped the can. It was full of lemonade. The manufacturer failed to get his royal warrant.

  Johnny's stories drew more people to the circle. He was still holding forth at midnight. The stories got more risque. A woman and her husband left the group. Alma was the last woman left. She waited for the next bout of laughter and got up to say goodnight.

  'Leaving us so soon?' said Johnny.

  'It's after midnight.'

  'So it is, by George. And I was hoping to show you my Lanchester.'

  Everyone laughed, including Alma.

  'Perhaps later in the crossing,' said Alma.

  'I'll keep you to that. Goodnight, my dear.' Johnny launched into a story about Henry Ford.

  Alma made her way back to DDeck. She was slightly unsteady. She had drunk more wine than she intended. Each glass had helped to dilute her fears. She could not have faced a night in stateroom 89 without it.

  The corridors were quiet. The ship was steady. Any sway was

  Alma's. But she had no trouble finding her way. She followed the signs to the rooms beginning with the digit 8. She counted them off to 89.

  "Do Not Disturb" had been removed.

  She opened her bag and fumbled for the key. She held it under the light and checked the number. She pushed it into the lock. She waited a second. She turned it and opened the door.

  The light was on and there were curtains drawn across the portholes. The cabin trunk was open.

  Alma took a long breath. She stepped close enough to look inside. The trunk was empty. She said aloud, 'Thank God.' She closed the stateroom door.

  She looked inside the bathroom. She opened drawers and cupboards. She could not think of sleep until she knew exactly what was in that room. She saw Lydia's clothing, neatly folded. Everything looked clean and new. There was a nightdress in black satin. She would not wear it.

  She took off the georgette evening gown. She cleaned off the make-up in the bathroom. She decided to take a bath. While she was in the water she felt as if the ship changed course. The cadence of the engines altered. The bath water slurped around her. It happened more than once. For a time she thought the ship had stopped. It lurched again as she reached for the towel. Her stomach heaved. She wished she had drunk less wine.

  The ship seemed to settle to its usual rhythm. Alma was grateful. She put on her petticoat and got into bed. She had not put out the light. But she was less frightened than she had thought. The worst was over now. She turned her face to the wall. She was soon asleep.

  17

  The sound of someone in the passage wakened her. It was a steward serving tea. There was sunlight on the ceiling. Alma checked her watch. It was nearly eight o'clock. Sunday morning. She had slept at least seven hours. She stretched her limbs. She thought of Walter in his cabin. Had he slept so well?

  She bathed and dressed and went to breakfast. The restaurant was busy. People were wearing lighter clothes. The ship's officers were now in white.

  She went to her former table. Breakfast was a meal to be enjoyed alone. If Johnny Finch came over she would decline to join him. She did not look to see if he was there. She ate undisturbed, and well.

  He was not the kind of man to disappear for long. After she left the restaurant, Alma went on the boat deck for some air. It was a glorious morning for a stroll. After a few steps she heard the familiar voice.

  'Someone is out to prove that she got to bed early last night.'

  He was seated in a deckchair with his feet up. He was wearing a blue guernsey and white flannels.

  Alma stopped and greeted him.

  'Did you really sleep so well?' he asked.

  'Yes, thank you. I was very comfortable.'

  'Lucky you. I was up half the night.'

  She smiled. 'You shouldn't tell so many stories.'
/>   'No, my dear, it wasn't that. It was all the excitement. Wasn't long after you went to bed. The blessed ship changed course.'

  'I thought I noticed something.'

  'So did we. We all went up on deck to see. There must have been fifty people up here asking what was happening. No-one seemed to know. But you can take my word, we turned about and started back to England. Then we turned again. The ship had turned full circle.'

  'Whatever for?' asked Alma.

  'Man overboard.'

  Alma stiffened. 'What did you say?'

  'Man overboard. Some poor soul had fallen off the ship. A courting couple on the boat deck were looking at the moon and saw someone fall into the water. They told the captain and he turned the ship to make a search. Regulations, I was told. They had to turn the ship and look, even if there's not much chance. So they switched the searchlights on, while the ship retraced its course. Very powerful beams, those searchlights have. We all leaned over trying to help. And would you believe it, my dear, we spotted her?'

  'Her?'

  'Yes. It was a woman, poor soul. They put down a boat and picked her out of the water. But she was dead already. What a horrible way to go.'

  PART FOUR

  His New Job

  1

  After breakfast there was great activity in the main lounge. A team of stewards set to work. They moved the occasional tables to the sides. They brought in one of the large tables from the dining saloon and placed it at the top end of the lounge near the grand piano. They arranged the easy chairs and sofas in rows to face the table. Meanwhile a squad of bellboys brought in upright chairs from the restaurant and positioned them in rows behind the armchairs. Two boys moved along the rows and left a hymnbook on each chair.

  At a quarter to eleven the first class passengers who wished to worship took their places. All the armchairs were filled. Latecomers used the upright chairs. At five to eleven the congregation was completed by passengers from the second and third classes. Those who could not get chairs stood at the back with members of the crew. Among them was Walter, looking self-composed.

  Alma, several rows ahead, felt sure he had seen her. She had turned only once to look for him. She was trying to stay calm. The recovering of Lydia's body was desperately unlucky, but it was not the end. Who was to know that it was Lydia? It was simply an unknown woman who had fallen or jumped overboard. They would check and find that no-one was missing. It would remain a mystery for ever.

  Captain Rostron entered the lounge with the senior officers. They took their places at the table. The service began with a hymn. The purser read a lesson about "they that go down to the sea in ships, and occupy their business in great waters". The congregation stood while the captain said prayers. Another lesson was read and another hymn sung.

  After the hymn, Captain Rostron asked everyone to be seated. He moved round the table and stood in front of it. He said, 'Ladies and gentlemen, our service is concluded. It is not my custom to address the passengers on this occasion, but something occurred last night that I feel bound to speak to you about. Some of you know that a passenger, a lady passenger, was seen to fall overboard. It was reported to me and I gave orders at once for the ship to be turned about and a search made. The passenger was recovered, but it was too late to save her life. We are not yet certain who she was, or in what circumstances this tragic incident occurred. The master-at-arms, Mr Saxon' — he indicated one of the officers, who stood up — 'is making inquiries. If you can help over the matter of identification or in any way that throws light on what happened, I would be obliged if you would speak to him. His office is situated next to the purser's. I would only add that tragedies of this sort are bound to occur from time to time on great ships making regular ocean crossings with up to two thousand passengers and eight hundred crew aboard. The appropriate action is taken by the captain, but the routine of the ship continues. I hope that this will not prevent you from enjoying your voyage on the Mauretania.''

  Captain Rostron picked up his prayer book and left the lounge. A muttering somewhere in the congregation rapidly became a chorus in full voice. There was hardly a person in the room without some recollection of the previous night. Sounds and strange movements had been noticed, lonely women seen on deck. Those who had watched the search gave their account of it.

  Alma turned in her chair and pretended to listen to a man in the row behind who said he had heard a scream. She looked towards Walter. Their eyes met. He did not look disturbed. He made a slight movement of the head from side to side. Then he turned away and joined the other passengers making for the door. Alma understood his meaning. There was no need to be alarmed. She got up and made her way along the row towards the other door.

  Marjorie Livingstone Cordell had managed to acquire an easy chair in the second row for the service. She had enjoyed the hymns, but she wasn't impressed by the captain. 'It's easy for him to tell us not to panic, they pick bodies from the water every trip. It doesn't satisfy me. I mean suppose the poor lady was pushed. Who's going to find out the facts? That little guy with a ginger moustache who stood up when the captain called his name? He doesn't inspire me with confidence.'

  'Well, no, he doesn't. You've got a point there,' agreed the woman next to her.

  'Marje, if you'll forgive the expression, you're all at sea,' said Livy from her other side. 'This is just the kind ofjob the master-at-arms is trained to do. He's the cop on the ship. Any trouble, he deals with it. Stowaways, smugglers, drunks.'

  'Stowaways are one thing, murder is another,' said Marjorie acidly.

  'Who mentioned murder, for heaven's sake?'

  'I thought it might be suicide,' said the woman on Marjorie's right.

  'Murder, suicide, accident — do you really think ginger moustache can tell the difference?'

  'His name is Saxon, honey,' said Livy.

  'I tell you one thing, Livy. If it was me or my daughter fished out of the sea, you wouldn't be so happy with him in charge. Where is Barbara? I didn't see her in here.'

  'No. I guess she decided to miss the service.'

  'We didn't see her at breakfast, either. Oh my God! Livy, where is she?' Marjorie stood up and looked wildly around the lounge.

  'Take it easy, Mane. She could be anywhere — her stateroom, the cafe, the library. She could be laid out somewhere.'

  Marjorie gave a cry of distress.

  'On a deckchair, honey,' said Livy. 'On a deckchair.'

  'We've got to find her.'

  'Okay. You check the stateroom. I'll look around the other places.'

  'Should we speak to the captain? They could put out a call on the public address.'

  'Not before we check, Marje. Just do as I say, will you?'

  2

  When Captain Rostron returned to the bridge, the ship's doctor was waiting to see him.

  'If you can spare a few minutes, Captain, I'd like you to look at the body in the mortuary.'

  'I saw her last night, doctor. I didn't recognize her.'

  'It isn't that. It's something nobody noticed last night.'

  'Can't you tell me about it?'

  The doctor's eyes flicked towards the other officers in range of his voice.i think you should see for yourself, Captain.'

  'Very well. Let's get it over with. I shall probably hold you responsible for ruining my lunch, doctor.'

  In the narrow storeroom on the lower deck that served on occasions as a mortuary, the captain watched the doctor peel back the sheet and indicate the reason for his concern.

  'I see.' The captain heaved a deep sigh. 'Bad, doctor. This is bad. Have you shown it to Mr Saxon?'

  'Not yet, captain.'

  'I think you had better. At once. Between ourselves, I hope he is equal to this. I really do.'

  Livy Cordell found Barbara shortly before lunch. She was sitting at a table in the smoking room with Paul. They had some playing cards face upwards and seemed to be discussing them.

  'Jesus, am I glad to find you!' said Livy.

 
'Hi, Livy,' said Barbara airily. 'You're just in time. Can you play auction bridge? Paul is trying to teach me.'

  'We haven't seen you all morning. Your mother is nearly out of her mind with worry.'

  Barbara shook her head gravely. "She's worried? Livy, how do you think I feel about a parent who panics when I miss breakfast? I'm not a child any more. I managed to live in Paris for a year without Mother holding my hand. You and I are going to have to talk to her.'

  'Barbara, she had a reason to be worried. You weren't in the lounge for morning service, were you?'

  'Is that it?' Barbara turned to Paul, i miss church. I really am a lost soul now.'

  Livy ignored the sarcasm. 'What I mean is that you didn't hear the captain tell us about the dead woman.'

  'Dead woman? Who died?'

  'That's it. No one knows. She fell in the sea last night and she was dead when they got her out. They don't know who she is. Now do you see why Marje is in such a state over you?'

  Barbara got up. 'I'd better go to her right now. Where is she?'

  'She went up to check your stateroom.' As Barbara left, Livy said to Paul, 'That'll be quite some reunion. How about a beer?'

  They took their glasses back to the same table. Livy said, 'So you want to teach Barbara to play bridge?'

  Paul nodded. 'It's a good game. We played whist with some people last night and we were getting on quite well towards the end. They said that bridge is a better game, so I was trying to show Barbara how the bidding goes.'

  'You young people ought to make a good team. Didn't you both study maths in col lege?'

  'I don't know if that's much of an advantage,' said Paul with a smile.

  'These people you were playing with — how did you come to fix up the game with them?'

  'Oh, it was pure chance. I happened to be talking to the guy who handed in my billfold and this woman came around asking us to join the concert party.'