Come the Fear arnm-3

by Chris Nickson

  The house was down towards the river, almost opposite the office of the Mercury. Glancing across the street he saw Rob’s father bent over his desk, stopping only to put more ink on his quill. A sour taste filled his mouth and he swallowed it away, turning his attention to the merchant.

  The house needed a new coat of limewash. The mullioned windows were warped in their frames, the glass thick, a few small panes missing and never replaced, rags stuffed in their stead by a man who couldn’t afford the repairs. It wasn’t the home of someone rich, but rather someone who had little to lose.

  He knocked and was shown in by a serving girl, the skin on her hands red and raw. She showed him into a parlour where the fire was laid but not lit, the room chilly and unwelcoming. Dust on the mantle showed a couple of objects missing since it had last been cleaned.

  Collins arrived quickly. He was a small, thin man, barely reaching to Nottingham’s shoulder, with startled eyes and a questioning mouth. His clothes were middling, the breeches of fair cut and style, the jacket older but clean, the material made to last.

  ‘Constable!’ he said. ‘Milly said it was you, but I can’t think why you’d come here. What can I do for you?’ His voice sounded strained, the skin tight on his face.

  ‘I heard that someone had stolen some items from you.’

  ‘Really?’ The surprise was so forced it wouldn’t have fooled an infant. Nottingham raised his eyebrows.

  ‘I hear quite a few things, Mr Collins. Your father was on the Corporation, if I remember.’

  ‘He was.’ The merchant eagerly nodded his agreement, happy to move on.

  ‘It was the Corporation that created the post of Constable,’ Nottingham continued. ‘They needed someone to take care of the crime in Leeds. That’s what I do. But if I don’t know a crime’s happened, I can’t help, can I?’

  ‘No.’ Collins started to blush.

  ‘I believe some people have been looking to this thief taker, the one who’s new here, to help them. Everything returned for a small fee, I believe, and everything kept quiet. But I’d like to think that good people in Leeds would rather have the thief caught and tried.’

  ‘Of course, of course.’ Collins agreed quickly, staring intently at the ground.

  ‘I’ll leave you to think on it,’ Nottingham told him mildly. ‘You might discover some items missing that you want to report to me.’ He moved to the door. ‘I’ll bid you good day.’

  Collins would be at the jail later in the day, red-faced and tongue-tied, the Constable was certain of it. He left the house, glanced across the street to the Mercury again and walked away, bunching his fists.

  It was a short stroll to the Talbot. He sent word up to Walton and sat in the corner with a beaker of musty ale that had sat too long in the cask. The thief taker came down the stairs yawning, his clothes dishevelled, raking a hand through his hair.

  ‘You wanted to see me, Constable? I hope this is important. I was still asleep.’

  ‘There have been four burglaries in Leeds within a week, Mr Walton.’

  The man raised his eyebrows. ‘In London that’s no number at all.’

  ‘I’ve told you before, this isn’t London. And four is too many for this city. But there’s an odd thing.’

  ‘Oh?’ Walton asked without interest.

  ‘Two of them haven’t even been reported and the third withdrew his complaint.’ He glanced up at the thief taker. ‘You won’t mind if I look at your room?’

  ‘And why would you want to do that?’ Walton asked with a small grin.

  ‘Just to be certain that everything there belongs to you,’ Nottingham said.

  ‘What if I refuse?’

  The Constable stood.

  ‘You don’t believe I’m an honest man, do you, Constable?’

  ‘I don’t trust you, Mr Walton.’

  The thief taker’s smile was like an adder’s. ‘And if you find nothing in my room?’

  ‘We’ll see,’ Nottingham said warily.

  ‘Then shall we go?’ the thief taker suggested. ‘You can see for yourself.’

  Following the man up the stairs, the Constable felt dismayed. He’d hoped Walton would have been careless, too proud of his little tricks, and left things openly around. But he must have been wrong; the man wouldn’t have let the law in otherwise. Still, it had been a gamble, something worth doing in the moment.

  Walton made a performance of unlocking his door, turning the large, heavy key and ushering Nottingham inside. It was a sparse, small space, the shutters thrown wide, the window open to the yard behind the inn. A small chest stood in the corner, its lid up, empty inside. There was a candle, holder and tinder on the shelf, and an old bed. Nottingham rummaged over the straw mattress and through the blankets and pillow, but it was just for the sake of appearance. There was nothing to be found here and they both knew it. Walton leaned against the wall, looking smug.

  ‘I told you,’ he said. ‘Everything that’s here belongs to me. There’s precious little of it.’

  ‘You asked if I thought you were an honest man, Mr Walton. I’ll give you your answer. I don’t believe you are.’

  ‘Be careful what you say,’ the thief taker warned. ‘Slander’s a crime even in these parts.’

  Nottingham smiled. ‘But the truth isn’t. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you again, Mr Walton.’

  He frowned as he walked back to the jail. The thief taker had made him look foolish, but he wasn’t the first and he wouldn’t be the last. For all that, it had been worthwhile; he’d learned something from the room.

  At his desk he scribbled quick notes to Sedgwick and Lister with new instructions for the men. With God’s good grace they’d have Walton soon enough. He steepled his hands over his mouth, feeling the roughness of bristles against his fingertips. Sometime soon he’d need a shave.

  He sat back, wondering what he could do to ease Emily’s pain and realized there was nothing. What happened depended on Rob, and he felt sorry for the lad. Whatever he chose he’d lose something. If he followed his father, he might well believe he had to leave the job, just when he’d learned how to do it well. Nottingham sighed. No good would come of any of this.

  He was still thinking when the door opened and Alice Wendell entered. Her back was straight, her clothes clean, hair neatly hidden by an old cap washed pure white. But her face had aged over the days; sorrow haunted her eyes, the lines so deep in her flesh they might have been put there with a chisel.

  ‘Sit down,’ he offered, pulling out a chair and pouring her a mug of ale from the jug. She drank politely, then set the beaker on the edge of the desk.

  ‘I need to find out what you’ve learned about my Lucy’s death,’ she said, and he knew it had been the only thing in her mind since he’d given her the news, stealing her sleep and tearing at her waking hours.

  ‘We’ve been trying, but we haven’t managed to find much yet,’ he admitted, knowing he was really saying nothing at all.

  She stared at him. ‘Please?’ she asked. ‘Tell me what you know.’

  He sat down slowly. He shouldn’t say anything to her, but how could he refuse the woman’s request? Hard as it might be, the knowledge was all she’d have left of her daughter.

  ‘She tried her hand at whoring for a night, but she didn’t have any luck. Then we know she was staying with a group who camp down by the riverbank at night. It seems she was there for a week. After that we simply don’t know. I’m sorry. We’re trying to find out.’

  ‘Thank you.’ She made to get up and he said,

  ‘She told people she couldn’t go home because he’d find her. Do you know what she meant?’

  Alice Wendell shook her head sadly. ‘There’s nobbut me there, and her brother when he comes to visit. Just family who love her.’

  ‘No man who’s been interested in her?’

  She snorted. ‘How many of them you talked to would have wanted her? Eh?’

  He nodded his head slightly in acknowledgement.

  ‘I
’ve heard about you,’ she said. ‘They say you’re not like them as run Leeds. You care about us.’

  ‘Everyone deserves justice, Mrs Wendell.’

  She held her head up. ‘Get the bastard who did this to my Lucy, then. You can do that for her. I want to see him hang up on Chapeltown Moor.’

  ‘If I can, I will.’

  ‘I’ll have to live for that, then.’

  Alone again, Nottingham rubbed his eyes. How many women had come to the jail over the years wanting news of husbands, sons and daughters? He’d lost count long ago. He’d been able to give good tidings to a few, but for most there were no happy endings. He hoped that in time he’d be able to tell Alice Wendell who’d murdered her daughter, but for now the path had ended and they’d managed to account for little more than one of the three weeks before the fire. She’d been somewhere in Leeds. Someone would have seen her face, maybe even known her name. The city wasn’t so big that they couldn’t find out. A few thousands souls, so many of them pushed together in the cold, crowded spaces of the poor: faceless, anonymous folk, all working for the few who tasted luxury each day without thought. He’d discover where she’d been. The image of her in the cellar, the half-formed child on her belly, would remain in his mind forever; no one in this world deserved to die that way. She’d had precious little voice in life, and he was damned if he’d let her be silent in death.

  Rob had dressed in his best suit and breeches. His hose were spotless, his shoes lovingly polished so the steel buckles shone. He’d washed and run his hands through his hair, staring at himself in the looking glass until he was satisfied with what he saw.

  He waited outside the school, standing aside as the girls ran out into the city. He felt as nervous as a child called in to be disciplined, his eyes anxiously darting to the door, knowing she’d be there soon.

  When Emily came out, she was talking to Mrs Rains, and he caught his breath. He knew she’d seen him; she had turned her head pointedly away, letting the conversation drag out, making exaggerated gestures with her small hands. But sooner or later she’d have to pass him and then he’d have his chance. Unable to sleep, he’d spent the day formulating the words, grinding them deep into his memory.

  Finally she finished and walked towards him. He stepped away from the wall, right into her path.

  ‘Please,’ he begged quietly, ‘hear me out.’

  She tilted her head and said nothing, but stopped and crossed her arms, her face expressionless. He took a breath.

  ‘What I told you was just what my father had said to me. Please, you have to believe me, it’s not how I feel about things. He can find me a hundred women to marry and I’ll turn them all away.’

  Emily looked at him. A curl had escaped her cap to hang down her cheek. He wanted to reach out and push it behind her ear but was too scared to touch her.

  ‘Have you told him that?’ she asked.

  ‘I tried.’

  ‘Then you’d better tell him again and make sure he understands.’ She moved around him and started to walk away.

  ‘Your father even asked about it this morning.’

  She stopped and turned. ‘What did he say?’

  ‘He said I should talk to you.’

  ‘He’s proud of my grandmother, did he tell you that?’

  ‘Yes,’ Rob said.

  ‘What she did took a lot of courage,’ she said, admiration in her voice.

  ‘I know,’ he agreed.

  ‘I’m not sure I could be that strong,’ Emily admitted.

  ‘Then pray God you never have to find out.’

  ‘If I had to, what would you do?’ she asked. ‘Would you be proud of me?’

  ‘Yes,’ he answered without hesitation.

  She moved closer and looked deep into his eyes. ‘And what about your father? What do you think he’d say?’

  ‘You know exactly what he’d say,’ he told her and she nodded sadly.

  ‘But I’m not him,’ Rob protested desperately. ‘That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. Since I became a Constable’s man I’ve seen things he couldn’t begin to understand.’

  ‘He’s still your father.’

  ‘He can’t make me think like him.’

  ‘He has money, Rob, he has influence,’ she said sadly. ‘Sooner or later he’s going to try and make you do what he wants. Can’t you see that?’

  ‘He won’t succeed,’ he promised. ‘Trust me.’

  ‘I want to believe you.’ She took his hand. ‘I really want to believe you. But I daren’t love someone who might hold my family’s past against me some day.’ She walked away, leaving him standing, torn and hopeless.

  The deputy arrived home in the early evening. He’d made his final round of the day and passed the keys over to Lister, along with the Constable’s note. Collins had arrived in the afternoon to report his robbery.

  ‘What does it mean?’ Rob asked. Sedgwick had shrugged.

  ‘The boss knows what he’s doing. Just put your man on the yard instead of the front entrance of the Talbot and see what happens.’ He paused. ‘What’s wrong with you, anyway? I’ve seen happier looking corpses.’

  ‘It’s nothing.’ Lister turned away and sorted through some papers.

  If the lad wanted to talk about it, he would, the deputy thought. It was his business.

  ‘Right, I’ll leave it all with you, then.’

  He made his way home through the streets, most of the houses already shuttered and locked for the night, keeping the robbers and evil spirits at bay. The inns and alehouses glistened with noise and music, lights shining in the gathering darkness but they held no appeal for him any more. He’d rather be with his family at his own hearth.

  He opened the door of the tiny house on Lands Lane and walked into a room full of the rich scent of cooking meat. The day before one of the butchers on the Shambles had given him some beef as thanks for a small favour and he’d been looking forward to it all day.

  Lizzie stood over the pan, stirring the stew with an old wooden spoon. Glancing across he could see Isabell asleep in her basket, eyes pressed firmly together, fat little hands showing above the blanket, black hair beginning to grow in thickly across her scalp. He bent down close enough to see her chest rise and fall in the slow pattern of breathing, then kissed Lizzie.

  ‘Has she been down long?’ he asked softly.

  ‘About an hour. Slept well this afternoon, too. It’s starting to get better.’ She stretched, pushing her hands against her back to straighten it, then put her arms around him and gave him the smile he loved. ‘And before you ask, James is upstairs asleep. I fed him when he came home from playing.’

  ‘How was he?’

  ‘Just the way he used to be,’ she said with a bemused shake of her head. ‘Sweet and loving. Settled down when I told him and went straight off. I don’t understand what gets into him sometimes.’ She ladled hot stew into a bowl and put it on the table for him, along with a beaker of ale and a crust of bread. ‘That should see you right.’ Lizzie watched happily as he spooned the food into his mouth, scarcely stopping to savour it, only slowing down as he sopped up the gravy.

  ‘That was grand,’ he said finally, reaching out and taking her hand. ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Don’t thank me; that butcher of yours did you proud. It’s better than we could afford. Plenty of meat and it wasn’t even spoiled. There’ll be enough for tomorrow, too. What did you do for him, anyway?’

  ‘Just showed him how his apprentice was stealing from him. Nothing much.’

  Lizzie glanced over at the sleeping baby. ‘We could have an early night ourselves,’ she said coyly, her fingers twining in his.

  ‘We could,’ he agreed.

  ‘Then you’d better get up those stairs sharpish, John Sedgwick, and make sure you’re quiet so the little one doesn’t wake.’

  Twelve

  There was no more than a band of pale light on the horizon when the Constable walked up Kirkgate but already the day felt oppressive. The thic
k clouds in the sky seemed weighted and full, the air heavy. He could feel sweat in his armpits, and his hair was damp when he ran his hand through it.

  Lister had the window open wide, but there was no breeze to flow and cool the place. Rob’s jacket hung on a nail, his long waistcoat unbuttoned and the sleeves of his shirt pushed up.

  ‘Morning, boss,’ he said. ‘It’s close out already.’

  ‘If it keeps up like this, tempers are going to flare sooner rather than later. People don’t take the heat well here.’ Nottingham poured himself a mug of small ale and drank it down quickly. ‘Anything worth knowing about? Did putting the man on the yard of the Talbot help?’

  Lister sat back and laughed.

  ‘As soon as it was dark Walton climbed down the kitchen roof and was off down the back way. Johnson was on him. He said the only time he’s seen anyone move faster was when a husband’s come back without warning.’

  Nottingham grinned with satisfaction. ‘Where did he go?’

  ‘A place off Currie Entry. There’s a small court there.’

  ‘I know it. About as wide as your arm to get in, then just a few houses back there. Was Johnson able to see which one he went into?’

  Rob nodded. ‘He did a good job. Walton stayed there almost half an hour by the church clock, he said, then went back and climbed up to his room. Johnson found me and showed me where Walton had gone.’

  ‘Good. I think we’d better take a look at this place. Somehow I doubt our thief taker was just visiting an accommodating widow.’

  The Constable carefully avoided the other subject that hung between them. He’d talked to Mary the night before, waiting until Emily had gone to her room to work after arriving home in a flustered, sour mood. They’d discussed it in low voices, Mary’s anger at Rob’s father brittle and bitter, his own sadder, tempered by experience. But finally he’d convinced her that there was nothing they could do. Everything depended on the decisions Rob made. He’d put no pressure on the lad. He wouldn’t even hold it against him if he caved in to his father. The lad needed time to make up his mind fairly.