‘Do you believe him?’
Her voice was as steady as her gaze when she answered. ‘You’ve not seen him when he’s been drinking. Of course I bloody do.’
‘When did he last see his sister?’
She shook her head and snorted. ‘You think he tells me where he goes?’
The Constable paused, then said, ‘When do you know he saw her?’
‘When she had a day off. He went over to see her and his mam.’
‘I thought you said he always took you. Where were you?’
‘He’d done me so bad the night before that I had to stay here.’ She nodded over at the bed. ‘In there.’
‘How was he after he learned she was dead?’
Anne shrugged, a small gesture that expressed nothing. Her fingers moved over the fabric of her dress, finding a stray hair and winding it tight around her finger.
‘Was he worse?’ the Constable asked. ‘Better? What did he do?’
‘He was just him,’ she replied. ‘Quieter, mebbe, I don’t know.’
‘He hasn’t said anything?’
‘To me?’ She shook her head again. ‘He doesn’t talk to me, never has. Got his friends for that. I’ll tell you summat, though, he’s not been over to his mam’s as much.’
‘Why?’
‘No Lucy, is there? And his mam just nags him about his drinking.’
‘Is he at work today?’
‘Aye, putting in his labour for the money he’ll spend on drink later.’ She sighed.
He stood slowly. ‘Thank you,’ he told her.
‘If you talk to him, you won’t say owt, will you? About. .’
‘Not a word,’ he promised.
Could Peter Wendell have killed his sister, Nottingham wondered as he returned to the jail? It seemed unlikely, if he cared for her as much as Anne claimed, but certainly not impossible. He could be a man with a twisted sense of family honour, who decided her pregnancy had brought shame on the family. But that didn’t answer where she’d been for two weeks before the fire. Still, there were enough questions to warrant talking to the man.
‘Where do we start?’ Lister asked Sedgwick as they crossed the bridge. The river was flowing fast and free from rain up in the Pennines. Barges creaked where they were moored, and wood rubbed against stone as the water lapped on jetties and along the bank.
‘Same as we always do. We just ask. Find out if anyone saw a woman with a lad that wasn’t hers, if anyone new has moved in.’
‘But where?’
The deputy pointed at the large new houses along Meadow Lane, where merchants had moved away from the city for cleaner air and more land to display their wealth.
‘We can forget those. If anyone from them had been doing it the servants would have seen something.’
They walked into the poorer streets, courts where colour and light and hope seemed to have been leached from the air.
‘We’ll do it like we did on the Calls,’ Sedgwick announced. ‘You take one side, I’ll take the other. And when we’ve finished here we’ll move on to the next road.’
‘Do you think it’ll work?’ Rob asked in an unsure voice.
‘No idea, lad. But for now it’s all we’ve got, isn’t it?’
By afternoon they’d only covered five streets, repeating the same questions over and over. The dust had settled in their throats, their voices were strained, the answers they heard all too similar. No one had seen a woman with a child that wasn’t hers. New people came and left all the time. The old women kept an eye on things and knew who was who and where they lived, but none of their hints or gossip had come to anything.
‘I need to go,’ Rob said finally. ‘We’re doing no good here and I’m working tonight.’
‘Going to see that lass of yours first?’ the deputy asked with a grin.
‘I am, but. .’
Sedgwick raised his eyebrows. ‘Like that, is it?’
Lister shook his head. ‘I told her that my father didn’t want me to marry her.’
‘You shouldn’t be so daft as to think on marrying yet.’ The deputy glanced around. ‘Come on, there’s a beer shop over there. Let’s get something down our throats before we die of thirst. You’ve got time for a drink.’
Rob knew better than to refuse. And he was parched, it was true; some ale would go down well.
The place was almost empty, save for two old men in the corner, eking out their days over mugs of beer. They glanced up briefly at the newcomers then returned their stares to the bench.
Sedgwick banged on the trestle to bring the owner out of the back room, a small man with a face set in a sneer.
‘What’s the best you have here?’
‘That,’ the man answered without hesitation, pointing at a barrel. ‘Fresh brewed, that is. Just ready to drink.’
‘Two, then.’
At the table they drank deep, letting the ale wash away the grime and the words of the day. The deputy wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
‘By Christ, I needed that. It’s thirsty work, this.’ He looked at Lister and shook his head. ‘You’re not really thinking of marrying the boss’s daughter, are you?’
‘I don’t know.’ Rob took another drink and sighed with frustration. ‘I just told her what my father said and she thought it meant I didn’t love her.’
‘Why doesn’t he want you marrying Emily? She’s a grand lass.’
‘He says she’s not good enough.’
‘What?’ Sedgwick put the mug down hard. ‘The Constable’s daughter isn’t good enough? Where does he get ideas like that?’
‘He thinks I should marry someone with position and money.’
The deputy laughed. ‘Aye, if she’d have you.’
‘I don’t want anyone else.’
‘Have you told him that? Have you told Emily that?’
‘I’ve told her.’ Rob took another drink. ‘She says she doesn’t want someone she can’t trust. She thinks I might give in to my father. .’
‘Well, you can’t blame her there,’ Sedgwick told him. ‘But keep trying. Give her some time. She’ll come around, they all do once they know you mean it.’
‘I hope you’re right.’ He pushed a hand through his red hair. ‘I don’t want to lose her, John.’
‘She’s got her head on right, that one. She won’t let you go, not if she cares about you. Have you told the boss what your father said?’
‘Yes.’
Sedgwick let out a low whistle. ‘What did he do?’
‘Nothing. Just nodded, the way he does.’
‘Aye, I know, and you wonder what he’s thinking. What’ll your father do if you don’t go along with his idea?’
‘I don’t know,’ Rob answered bleakly.
‘Do you want some advice?’ the deputy asked, his voice serious.
‘I’ll take anything that might help.’
‘If you love that girl, you make sure she doesn’t get away from you. If that happens you’ll spend the rest of your life regretting it.’
Lister nodded absently and let the silence drift before saying, ‘What did you think yesterday? When it happened?’
The deputy pushed the mug around the table.
‘I wasn’t thinking,’ he answered eventually. ‘That was the problem. Don’t ever do what I did. I got scared and I reacted. I’m just grateful the girl wasn’t badly hurt.’
‘What did you do? After, I mean.’
‘I looked to her first. The blood wouldn’t stop coming out of her head. I thought I’d killed her.’
‘What about Walton?’
‘Who cares about him? He’ll be forgotten tomorrow.’ Sedgwick paused. ‘I’m just lucky the boss stood up for me and didn’t decide to get rid of me. He came as close to losing his temper with me as I’ve ever seen.’
‘Mr Nottingham?’ Rob asked disbelievingly.
‘Aye, and you know what, that hurt as much as anything. I let him down by being so bloody stupid.’ He took a drink. ‘Go on, you’d better go and persuade that l
ass there’s some good in you. You’ll have an uphill task, mind.’
Sixteen
The deputy took time over the rest of his drink. He kept seeing the girl’s face as Walton put the chain around her neck. The image had knitted itself deep into his sleep, waking him constantly during the night, the sweat chilled on his forehead, his muscles tight and aching, his breathing quick and shallow. When Isabell began to cry he lifted her from the cradle, taking comfort from the warmth of her small body and the joy of him in her eyes. He soaked a rag in sugar water and let her suckle on it until she slept again. He could hear James’s breathing on the pallet in the corner and just make out Lizzie’s shape, her hair all a-tangle on the pillow. He’d tried to sleep but the events of the day ran over and over in his head and kept rest away.
He made his way back to the bridge, dodging between women carrying their purchases home and the piles of horse manure in the road. In the distance he could hear the raw, strained sound of a violin playing a tune that had been changed by experience, scarred, full of weariness and the sadness of life. Its edges had been filed down, all the excess rubbed away until only the essence remained. Then he saw the blind fiddler by the old chantry chapel, working the strings of his instrument with a bow whose best years had passed decades before. He reached into his pocket for a coin and tossed it into the ancient hat that sat on the ground.
‘Thank you, Mr Sedgwick.’
The deputy stopped. ‘I thought you were blind, Con,’ he said.
‘That I am, Mr Sedgwick,’ the fiddler answered with a grin that showed a mouth empty of teeth. ‘You know that.’
‘How did you know it was me?’
‘Your footsteps. People walk in different ways, it’s like a signature, like seeing them. Now you’re a man with a long stride, and you bring your heel down hard. No one else does it quite the same way.’ There was still a faint whisper of Ireland in his voice, a musical lilt that the deputy liked.
‘Can you tell many people that way?’
‘Some,’ Con admitted. ‘And I can tell plenty of things about people from hearing them move. And half of them seem to think that because I don’t have my sight I must be deaf and dumb, too.’ He laughed, a wheezing cackle in his chest. ‘They say all sorts in front of me.’ He lifted the instrument and played a fast jig for a minute, smiling at the jingle of coins in the hat as a man passed.
‘You heard about that boy who disappeared on Saturday?’ Sedgwick asked.
Con chuckled. ‘Show me someone in Leeds who didn’t hear about it. Bad business, though. Very bad.’
‘If you hear anyone talking, let me know.’
‘And what might they be saying, Mr Sedgwick?’ the fiddler asked shrewdly, turning his empty eyes to the deputy.
‘You’ll know if you hear it, Con. There’d be some money in it, too.’
The man nodded. ‘I’ll keep my ears open, then. A few more pennies never go amiss, now do they?’
‘Might be a bit more than that.’
‘Might it now?’ he said thoughtfully. ‘That’s interesting.’
‘Just remember, if you hear anything, tell me.’
‘I’ll do that, Mr Sedgwick. And say hello to that lad of yours. He always has a kind word. You’ve got a good boy there.’
The deputy smiled. ‘I’ll do that, Con.’
He made his rounds, circling the city to see all was well, and finished at the jail. The Constable was there, laboriously writing a letter.
‘Anything?’ he asked.
‘No,’ Sedgwick answered with a long shake of his head. ‘You didn’t expect much, did you, boss?’
Nottingham put down the quill and the knife he used to keep it sharp.
‘I’m always hopeful, John. Ask enough questions and eventually you’ll get some answers.’
‘Aye, but we need them fast before that bitch does it again.’
‘I know that well enough,’ the Constable said seriously. ‘I’ll go out myself tomorrow. I want you to talk to Peter Wendell.’
‘You talked to his girl?’
‘I did. He treats her badly.’
‘We’d seen that. Did she give you anything?’
‘Not really. But I think it wouldn’t hurt to have another word with him. He might well know something.’
‘I’ll go and see him in the morning.’
Nottingham nodded. ‘You go home,’ he said. ‘And try to forget what happened on Sunday. The girl will be fine and Walton’s no loss.’
‘Yes, boss.’ Sedgwick gave a small, weak smile.
‘I mean it. Give it a few days and folk won’t even remember it.’
Rob watched the girls file out from the school then run off in a swarm down the street, laughing and grabbing at their freedom. A few more minutes and Emily would come out of the building and look around the way she always did. He brushed dust off his coat and breeches with his palm, tightened his stock and licked his fingers to try to tame his hair.
Then he leaned against the stone wall and waited. The sun was trying to push through high white clouds and the air was spring warm, full of promise, but all he could feel was the heady anticipation of seeing her. He ached to talk to her, to make what suddenly seem fragile solid again. He straightened as she approached, warmed by the way her pace quickened as she saw him and the smile on her face.
‘I thought I’d come and walk you home.’
‘Good,’ she said happily. ‘I’m glad you’re here.’ She slipped her hand into his and he held it lightly as they set off down the road. ‘I’ve hardly been able to work today,’ she told him.
‘Why?’
‘I kept worrying that perhaps you wanted to break from me.’
‘Me? I’ve told you, I’m not going to do that,’ he insisted.
‘I know, but those are words.’ She paused and blushed slightly. ‘I’m sorry, that was wrong. I just couldn’t concentrate. Mrs Rains wondered if I was ill.’
‘I won’t let my father bully me,’ he promised.
‘You haven’t had to make that choice yet,’ she pointed out.
‘I’ve already made it up here,’ Rob answered and tapped his skull.
‘But are you sure?’ she asked seriously.
‘Of course I am.’
‘A girl with money and position. . it’s what most men would want.’
‘I want you.’
‘I’m glad you do.’ She squeezed his fingers.
‘You’re everything I need.’
She smiled again, glanced around to be certain no one was watching and kissed him softly on the lips.
‘Just as I am?’ she asked.
‘Exactly as you are.’
She stayed quiet as they turned on to Kirkgate. His eyes moved to the jail, the office empty. He felt content, as if they’d manage to settle everything with just a few words.
‘I love you,’ he said as they approached Timble Bridge.
‘I love you, too,’ she replied. ‘But what do you want us to do?’
‘What do you mean?’ Her question confused him.
She leaned on the parapet and looked down at the water.
‘What do you expect?’ she wondered. ‘Marriage and children?’
‘I suppose so, in time,’ he told her warily. ‘That’s what men and women do. They marry.’
‘Not all of them, Rob.’
‘What do you mean?’ He could feel fear rising in his stomach.
‘Not everyone marries. Life isn’t always as simple as that.’ She turned, her eyes staring at his. ‘Are you happy with me?’
‘Of course I am. I said I love you.’
‘They’re not the same things,’ she said with a small shake of her head.
‘Then I love you and I’m happy with you,’ he corrected himself.
‘Good.’ She kissed him again, moving closer, her lips lingering against his. ‘Do you think everything is fine as it is, the way we meet like this, the courting?’
‘Yes,’ he grinned, tightening his grip around her waist. �
��I think it’s close to perfect.’
‘What would you say if I told you I’d never marry you?’ Her voice was quiet and wary.
‘What? What do you mean?’ He pulled back to watch her face, to see if this was a strange joke she was playing.
‘You know what marriage means,’ she told him. ‘You’d own everything I have. And you’d own me.’
He opened his mouth to speak but she placed a finger over it to quiet him.
‘Please, Rob, hear me out. I’ve been thinking about this, it’s important to me. I can’t ever let anyone own me like that. I’m not a chattel or goods. However much I care about you, no matter how much I love you, I’ll never be your wife. Or anyone’s wife. But I don’t want to lose, you, either.’ She gave a small, wan smile. ‘So if it’s a wife you really want, maybe you should do what your father asks.’ She began to walk away across the bridge.
Rob took a deep breath.
‘Don’t go,’ he said, and she turned to wait for him. Her words had been a shock, a blow to his belly. What she said went against everything he’d known, strained against all his upbringing. But he knew he’d rather have her on any terms than not at all.
‘We don’t have to marry. We can stay as we are.’
Her face glowed and she put her arms around him.
‘You know, Papa will say I’m a foolish girl,’ she said. ‘He won’t understand why I don’t want to marry anyone. Mama will weigh it carefully in her mind. But in time they’ll understand it’s me, it’s always been me.’ Emily looked at him. ‘What will your father say?’
‘I don’t care,’ he told her, and realized he meant it.
They stopped outside the house on Marsh Lane and she gave him another long kiss. ‘I’d best go inside,’ she said. ‘Mama will be waiting for me. Can you meet me in the morning?’
‘Yes,’ he agreed and watched as she walked away with small backward glances and smiles.
The evening was gathering as the Constable walked home, his footsteps raising dust in the dirt along Marsh Lane. Glancing ahead he could see a light in the window of the parlour and another from Emily’s bedroom upstairs.
The glow of the tallow candle gave enough light for Mary to read, the greasy scent filling the room. He hung his coat on the nail by the door then bent to kiss her.
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