‘Don’t get me wrong,’ said Howard. ‘I won’t shed any tears over that man being dead. Whoever killed him did the world a favour. And you have given me something to think about. Thank you for that. It helps take my mind off other things. But … I’m really not convinced by any of the things you’ve said. So you go right ahead and do whatever you feel you have to, but please leave me out of it.’
He got up and went back to his own seat. Sita glared after him, then at Rupert and finally at me and Penny. I saw no reason to look away this time, so I just smiled cheerfully back at her. Sita turned away and scowled at the empty seat before her. I could tell she was still working on some new form of rebellion, so after a moment’s thought I got up, walked along the aisle and sat down opposite her. She looked up, startled.
‘I’m not answering any more questions!’
‘You know, you don’t have to be afraid of me, Sita.’
‘I’m not afraid of you!’ she shot back immediately. ‘Brian is the one who’s scared of you, though God alone knows why. You’re not exactly impressive. What did you do to Brian?’
‘He wanted to know the truth about me,’ I said. ‘But when he got a glimpse of it, he couldn’t cope.’
Sita frowned. ‘Am I supposed to understand any of that?’
‘Not really,’ I said.
‘Just as well, then.’
‘I’m only interested in working out what happened to Sir Dennis,’ I said patiently. ‘Unless you’re the killer, you have no reason to be afraid of me.’
‘Do you think I did it?’ said Sita, meeting my gaze unwaveringly.
‘I’m so tired I don’t know what to think,’ I said.
She seemed a little surprised that I was ready to be so open with her. Or that I’d admit to something so ordinary as weariness.
‘We’re all tired,’ she said finally. ‘Comes from not being able to trust anyone.’
‘I saw you talking with Rupert and Howard, and then Brian,’ I said carefully.
She sniffed loudly. ‘You’ve no reason to worry about any of them. They don’t have enough balls between them to give you any trouble.’
‘Unlike you?’
Sita smiled coldly. ‘You’re running out of time, aren’t you? And you’re no closer to finding the killer than when you started. What will you do when we get to Bath and you have to admit to the authorities that you’ve got nothing? Are you going to have us all arrested?’
‘I don’t do things like that,’ I said.
‘Then what do you do?’ said Sita. ‘Who are you really, Mr Jones?’
‘I’m the one who gets to the truth,’ I said. ‘Whatever it takes.’
‘I thought that was my job,’ said Sita. She sat back in her chair and folded her arms defiantly. ‘What do you want from me?’
‘Just some space. And a little cooperation,’ I said. ‘So I can do my job.’
‘Don’t let me stop you,’ said Sita.
You just know some conversations aren’t going to go anywhere you want them to. I went back to sit with Penny. She slipped her arm through mine and leaned against me companionably.
‘I’m guessing that didn’t go at all well.’
‘Not really, no.’
‘I could have told you that, darling. Did you really think you were going to get anything useful out of her?’
‘No,’ I said. ‘But I had to try.’
Penny sighed. ‘What are we going to do?’
‘I’m thinking.’
‘Well, think faster, darling.’
And then we both looked round as Rupert rose suddenly from his seat and hurried down the aisle to join Howard.
‘What the hell is going on now?’ I said quietly to Penny. ‘Why can’t everyone just stay put?’
‘I’m glad someone’s talking to Howard,’ said Penny. ‘He needs bringing out of himself.’ She looked at me. ‘Do you have to listen to them this time? It might not be anything to do with the murder.’
‘I still need to know,’ I said.
Howard was looking wearily and not at all patiently at Rupert. His voice was barely polite.
‘What do you want now, Rupert? I’ve got a lot on my mind and I’m really not in the mood for company.’
‘Can’t honestly say that I am,’ said Rupert. ‘But there are things we need to talk about, Howard.’
‘Like what?’
‘Who do you think the killer is?’
‘Why are you asking me?’ said Howard. He actually sounded a little amused at the idea that he of all people might know the answer.
‘Because I’ve decided that out of everyone in this carriage, you’re the only one I trust,’ said Rupert. ‘Though, admittedly, that isn’t saying much.’
‘I’m flattered,’ said Howard. ‘I think. But I genuinely have no idea who killed Sir Dennis. It’s all a complete mystery to me.’
‘I know I’m not the killer,’ said Rupert. ‘And I really can’t see you in the role either.’
‘Why not?’ said Howard, a little nettled at being dismissed so quickly. ‘I might have it in me to kill a man like that.’
‘I think you’re only interested in killing one person,’ said Rupert.
Howard sighed quietly. ‘You heard me talking to Jones.’
‘You did get a bit loud there, at the end,’ said Rupert. ‘I’m pretty sure everyone heard.’
‘It’s still no one’s business but mine,’ said Howard. ‘Look, Rupert … I really don’t care about the murder, or who might be involved in it.’
‘But what if Jones is right, and the killer decides he needs to finish us all off before we get to Bath?’
‘I’m not interested!’
Rupert sat back in his seat and studied Howard carefully. ‘You know, you and I have a lot in common.’
Howard gave Rupert his full attention. ‘All right, I didn’t see that one coming. What could you and I possibly have in common?’
‘You lost everything that mattered to you,’ said Rupert. ‘And I think I may be about to.’
Howard nodded slowly. ‘What is it you want from me, Rupert?’
‘I’ve got enough shit about to rain down on me,’ said Rupert. ‘I want this murder business over and done with, so I can concentrate on my own problems. I need you to help me figure out what’s going on here.’
‘The killer can’t be one of us,’ said Howard. ‘We were all in plain sight when Sir Dennis died.’
‘Jones seems pretty sure that one of us must have managed it somehow,’ said Rupert.
‘That’s his problem.’
‘Unfortunately,’ said Rupert, ‘he seems determined to make it our problem.’
Howard suddenly sat up straight as a new idea took hold of him. He looked quickly at me and then turned back to Rupert.
‘What if the killer really isn’t one of us? What if … it’s him?’
‘What?’ said Rupert. ‘I don’t …’ And then he stopped and looked quickly at me before staring wide-eyed at Howard. ‘You think Jones killed Sir Dennis? How is that even possible?’
‘Think about it,’ said Howard, fixing Rupert with a hard stare. ‘None of us left the compartment. But Jones did. We all saw him do it. And then he came back and told us Sir Dennis was dead.’
Rupert slumped in his seat as though he’d been hit. It was a while before he felt able to say anything.
‘If you’re right, then we’ve been trapped in here with the killer all along. It does make sense. What better cover could a professional killer have than to masquerade as the man investigating the murder? But then … that would have to mean Penny—’
‘Yes,’ said Howard. ‘She’d have to be a part of it too.’
‘But I like her!’ said Rupert. ‘She seems so nice, so helpful …’
‘That’s probably her job,’ said Howard. ‘To make us think someone was on our side and keep us from seeing the obvious.’
‘But … What can we do?’ said Rupert.
‘There’s only one thing you can d
o: challenge Jones to his face and, if need be, take him down.’
‘What? Are you kidding?’ Rupert’s voice rose sharply, and it took him a moment to bring it back under control again. ‘Why does it have to be me?’
‘Because you’re the brave young man, and I’m not.’ Howard sighed. ‘I’d rather not be involved in any of this, but I can see I’m never going to get a moment’s peace until we sort it out. I can’t go up against Jones, because he’d never take me seriously. And Brian is afraid of him. I suppose if you’re not up to it, we could always ask Sita; I don’t think she’s afraid of anyone.’
‘Of course not,’ said Rupert. ‘She takes on the establishment for fun. But I think … this is going to take all of us. You, me, Sita and Brian. It’s not like Jones is going to admit anything, is he? But if we all just pile on to him and drag him down …’
‘Oh, hell,’ said Howard, smiling suddenly. ‘Why not? It’s something to do, until I get to Bath.’
They both got up out of their seats, carefully not looking in my direction, and walked casually over to join Sita. I kept watching and listening, fascinated to see how far this would go. Sita fixed Rupert and Howard with a cold stare as they sat down facing her.
‘What do you two want? I thought you’d decided you didn’t believe anything I had to say?’
‘We think Jones is the killer,’ said Rupert.
‘We think it’s a possibility,’ Howard said quickly.
‘It was your idea!’ said Rupert.
‘Keep your voice down,’ said Howard.
A slow grin spread across Sita’s face. ‘OK … I like that. It would explain a lot. I never did trust the man.’
‘Rupert thinks we need to overpower Jones, maybe tie him up, before we get to Bath,’ said Howard.
‘It was your idea to confront him!’ said Rupert.
‘But we’re going to need Brian’s help to take Jones down,’ said Howard, concentrating on Sita. ‘Do you think you could talk him into it?’
‘I might be able to,’ said Sita.
They all looked surreptitiously at me, while I pretended not to notice.
‘Hold it,’ said Rupert. ‘Jones has a gun. He took it from Brian, remember? If he even suspected we were on to him … Maybe we’d be better off waiting till we get to Bath, and then denounce him to the authorities there. Let them handle him.’
‘Why would they take our word for it?’ said Howard. ‘He’s one of them.’
‘Only if he is who he says he is,’ said Sita. ‘Maybe he killed the real security man and took his place!’
‘I don’t think we can wait till we get to Bath,’ said Rupert, changing direction at speed. ‘Remember what Jones said earlier, about the murderer needing to kill all the witnesses?’
‘I think if Jones was going to do that, he’d already have done it,’ said Howard.
‘He could be waiting for just the right moment,’ Rupert said stubbornly.
‘We’ve got to get that gun away from him,’ said Sita.
‘How?’ said Rupert. ‘Professional assassins are probably very good at spotting people who want to take their guns away from them.’
‘You two distract him,’ said Howard. ‘And I’ll move in from behind and take the gun out of his pocket.’
‘Why you?’ said Sita.
‘Because Howard doesn’t care what happens to him,’ said Rupert.
Sita looked at Howard. ‘That’s no way to live.’
‘That’s what I thought,’ said Howard.
Sita frowned. ‘If we’re going to take Jones down, we’re going to need a better plan than just sneaking the gun out of his pocket. Whatever Jones might really be, he’s definitely a professional. You’d never get anywhere near him.’
‘And even if he didn’t suspect something, Penny probably would,’ said Rupert. ‘She doesn’t miss much.’
‘Then someone will just have to talk to Penny,’ said Howard. ‘Keep her distracted.’
‘You should do it,’ Rupert said to Sita. ‘Girl to girl, that sort of thing …’
She shook her head immediately. ‘No offence, but I’m a better fighter than both of you put together. You can’t do this without me. You talk to her, Rupert.’
‘Why me?’
‘Because she wouldn’t see you as a threat.’
‘She has a point,’ said Howard.
Rupert nodded glumly. ‘All right. I’ll think of something to say …’
Howard looked thoughtfully at Sita. ‘So it’s you and me against the experienced security man. How are we going to do this, exactly?’
Sita smiled. ‘We use an old street tactic, from my student protest days. How to stop a policeman, without being violent: send a pretty girl to hug him tightly. Before Jones figures out how to react, you get the gun out of his pocket and then pass it to me.’
‘Why should you have it?’ said Howard.
‘Do you know anything about guns?’ said Sita.
‘No. Do you?’
‘Enough to fake it.’
Howard shook his head. ‘I’m not sure about this … You said it yourself: Jones is a professional. You saw how easily he disarmed Brian and took down the private detective.’
‘Are you scared of him?’ said Sita.
‘Yes!’ said Howard. ‘There’s something about that man …’
‘He’s just putting on an act, to intimidate us into behaving,’ said Sita. ‘He’s not really scary, any more than Penny is really friendly.’
‘Bad cop, good cop,’ said Howard.
‘Exactly,’ said Sita.
‘He could still be dangerous,’ said Rupert.
‘No! Hold it! Wait a minute …’ Sita frowned fiercely, concentrating, and then shook her head regretfully. ‘No. Nice try, boys, but … no. Forget it. Jones isn’t the killer.’
‘What?’ said Rupert. ‘Why not? How can you be so sure?’
‘Because if he had been the killer, he wouldn’t have put so much time and effort into trying to get a confession out of one of us,’ said Sita. ‘And there was already a railway guard outside the locked toilet, before Jones got there. I heard him banging on the door and calling out. So Sir Dennis must have been dead before Jones left the carriage.’
‘Oh, hell!’ said Rupert. ‘I really thought I was on to something there.’
They all sat and looked at each other for a long moment.
‘Well,’ said Howard. ‘That was a nice touch of excitement, but I think I’ll go back to my own seat now. I have some important brooding to be getting on with.’
‘Isn’t there anything we can do to help?’ said Rupert.
‘No,’ said Howard.
He went back to his seat. Rupert and Sita watched him go.
‘You can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped,’ said Sita.
‘Maybe we could help him to want that,’ said Rupert.
‘He’s had a long time to think about this,’ said Sita. ‘What could we possibly say to Howard that he hasn’t already come up with himself?’
Rupert didn’t have an answer to that. He went back to his own seat, and Sita went back to concentrating on her own thoughts. I was quietly relieved that what could have been an open rebellion had come to nothing before I had to do something to defuse it. And yet … After listening to all of that, I was more convinced than ever that none of them could be the murderer. Which put me right back where I started.
Penny suddenly grabbed my arm and squeezed it hard. ‘Ishmael! I’ve just had an idea!’
‘Oh, good,’ I said. ‘That’s one more than me.’
‘Maybe there’s a reason why we never saw anyone go past us! What if the killer released a gas into the carriage that put all of us to sleep? Just long enough for him to get past us, kill Sir Dennis and then hurry back to his seat before any of us woke up? We wouldn’t know anything had happened!’
I looked at her.
‘And that’s your idea?’
‘Yes! What do you think?’
‘I
think you’ve been watching too much television,’ I said.
‘But it would explain the gap in our memories …’
‘It wouldn’t explain how the killer was able to smuggle a canister of gas into the compartment without being noticed, and then hide the empty canister afterwards. Or how he could time the effects so exactly, when any gas affects different people differently. Or a dozen other practical problems. No, Penny, that kind of thing only works in bad television shows. There’s a reason why they call them mission impossible. And, anyway, if there had been a gas, I’d have smelt it.’
‘All right!’ said Penny. ‘You come up with something!’
‘I’ve been trying,’ I said. ‘And I’ve got nothing. I don’t see how anyone could have done it.’
SIX
A Shot in the Dark
For a long moment, Penny and I just sat and stared at each other, both hoping the other would come up with something … but neither of us had anything to offer. Finally, Penny fixed me with her best stern stare.
‘I’ve never known you to give up on a case before, Ishmael.’
‘I’m not giving up,’ I said. ‘I’m just lost for where to go next.’
‘We have to do something!’ said Penny. ‘We’ll be arriving in Bath in …’
‘Don’t look at your watch!’ I said sharply. ‘The last thing we need right now is more pressure.’
‘If we’re stumped,’ Penny said carefully, ‘it can only be because we’ve missed something. Some vital clue, or piece of evidence, that would make everything fall into place. That’s usually what happens at the end of one of our cases … Someone says something, or you spot something – and, just like that, you see everything in a new light. Then you put it all together and point out the murderer. So stop and think, Ishmael. What is it you’re not seeing?’
I nodded slowly. ‘When in doubt … assume that everyone has lied to you, and you can’t trust anyone or anything to be what they seem to be.’
‘All right,’ Penny said steadily. ‘Let’s say we assume that’s the case. Where does that take us?’
‘It means we need to verify for ourselves that everything we think is true really is,’ I said. ‘Until we come up with something that clashes with what we’ve been told, and that’s our new starting point.’
Night Train to Murder Page 15
