by Iris Gower
Meggie nodded, staring down at the bottle which gleamed in a sudden shower of sparks from the fireplace.
Lily let herself out through the back door and looked around carefully before hurrying across the open lawn towards the road. Saul was waiting for her, his hands thrust deep into his pockets. ‘Well?’ he asked.
‘She’s going to do it,’ Lily said and smiled as Saul took her in his arms and held her close, his cheek against her hair.
‘That’s my clever girl,’ he said. ‘Now come on, I’ve got to get you back to your lodging house before anyone realizes you’re missing. Can’t have folk talking about my bride-to-be, can we?’
Neither of them saw Watt Bevan standing under the shadow of the trees or realized that he watched until they were out of sight. Both were congratulating themselves on a good night’s work. Lily felt pleasure at what she’d done and Saul was thinking that perhaps he and Lily had more in common than he first realized.
It was the screaming that woke Llinos. She leapt out of bed and saw that Joe was already dressing. It was still dark.
‘My God!’ Llinos said. ‘What on earth is happening?’
Joe lit a candle, watching as the flame flickered into life. ‘I don’t know but I intend to find out. Stay here, Llinos, until I see what the noise is all about.’
She heard running footsteps, calling voices, and sat on the bed in a fever of impatience. Then she got to her feet, knowing she could not wait any longer, she must find out what was wrong.
The noise was coming from the direction of the kitchens. Llinos ran along the passage and came to an abrupt halt as she saw Cook and the maids standing in a circle staring downward. Joe was kneeling on the floor bending over an inert figure.
Llinos pushed her way through and stopped in her tracks. ‘Meggie!’ she gasped. The girl was stretched out on the cold flags, her arms flung outwards as if to ward off an attacker. Joe felt her temple, trying to find the throb of life in her veins.
‘It’s no good, sir, she’s dead as a doornail,’ Cook wailed. ‘Cold as the grave she was when I found her.’
Llinos bent over the maid’s still figure. ‘What is it, Joe, what’s wrong with her?’
He looked up at her, his face grave. ‘She’s been poisoned,’ he said, holding up his hand. Llinos felt her mouth go dry with fear as she saw the small glass bottle, the candlelight reflecting on it. She recognized it, of course, everyone in the kitchen recognized it. It was a bottle of Joe’s medication.
‘I don’t know, Constable,’ Joe said again. ‘I don’t know where the girl got it from. The last I saw of any of the bottles was when Dr Jones took them away. Why don’t you go and question him?’
The constable plucked at his moustache and frowned, his heavy eyebrows drawn together as he tried to concentrate on the problem before him.
‘But you could have made more, sir?’ he said at last.
‘I could have, but I didn’t,’ Joe said. ‘There was no need.’
Llinos stared out through the windows, not seeing the lawn and the stark branches of the trees. It was a nightmare, a repeat of what had happened when her father died. Meggie had been taken to the infirmary although it was clear she was beyond help. Behind her, silent and white-faced, Charlotte and Sam were seated side by side, clutching each other for support. Outside in the row, people were grouped together, staring up at the house, mumbling among themselves, no doubt accusing Joe of yet another murder.
‘Why would anyone want to harm Meggie?’ she said in a low voice. ‘Perhaps she took the medicine herself.’
The constable continued to question Joe as though he had not heard her.
‘You are the only one who knows the ingredients of this stuff, aren’t you?’
‘Yes, I’ve never denied that,’ Joe said. ‘But I told you, I had no reason to make any more, there was no-one sick in the house.’
‘That’s not what the kitchen staff have been saying.’ The constable sounded triumphant. ‘I understand the old man . . . er, Mr Marks, was taken poorly a few days ago, wasn’t he?’
‘Yes, he was,’ Joe said. The silence became oppressive and Llinos put her hands over her eyes. This could not be happening, not again.
The door opened and Watt entered the room. He was flushed as though he had been running. ‘I’ve got to talk to you,’ he said. ‘I saw two people here last night, creeping about the back of the house.’ He stared at the constable. ‘I think you should be questioning Saul Marks and Lily, not Joe and Llinos.’
The constable sighed heavily. ‘Why, sir?’ he asked.
Llinos looked at Watt and her heart fluttered with hope. He caught her eye and she could see that he was white and trembling with the effort of betraying the girl he loved.
‘I saw Lily from the paint shop and Saul Marks, Sam’s son. They had no right to be around here and Lily should not have been inside the house.’
‘I might have known it.’ It was Samuel who spoke. ‘It’s that son of mine up to his evil tricks again.’
The constable looked from Joe to Samuel and back again. ‘You’ve had trouble with this son of yours before, sir?’ he said.
Samuel sighed. ‘Oh, yes.’
‘Well, perhaps I’d better talk to them. Can you get hold of any of them?’ He addressed his remark to Watt.
‘I’ll fetch her, she should be on her way in to work by now, perhaps I will meet her on the way,’ he said heavily. After he had gone, no-one moved. It was as though they were frozen into a sense of disbelief. A young woman was dead, but why?
The constable began talking quietly to Samuel, questioning him about Saul. It seemed like an eternity before Watt returned with Lily beside him. ‘What’s happening?’ she asked. ‘I can’t get a word out of Watt. Is Meggie sick or something?’
‘Why should you ask that?’ the constable said slowly.
Lily looked at him pityingly. ‘I saw her being carried out of here, we all did.’
The man nodded. ‘This young man,’ he pointed to Watt, ‘says he saw you outside, late last night.’ He paused. ‘With a man.’
Lily flushed and lowered her head. ‘I know it was wrong but, see, we’re in love.’ She held out her hand and the ring sparkled in the early morning sunshine. ‘We weren’t doing any harm, mind, just courting, that’s all.’
‘Sir?’ The constable looked at Watt. ‘What did you see, exactly.’
‘I saw her coming out of the back door. I saw her being met by Saul Marks. I saw them kissing.’
‘And then?’
‘And then, they walked away down the road. He was taking her home I suppose.’
‘Doesn’t sound very dangerous to me, just meeting up and kissing,’ the constable said reasonably. He turned his attention back to Lily. ‘You work in the paint shop?’
‘Yes, sir,’ she said softly.
‘Then why were you in the house?’
Lily was startled, her eyes grew large and she swallowed hard. ‘I came in to see Meggie,’ she said at last. ‘We were friends, you know, and she’s been upset lately. I was worried about her.’
‘Upset? About what?’
‘I don’t know, she wouldn’t say.’ Lily licked her lips.
‘So you came to see her at that late hour?’ the constable asked.
‘Well, I was going to meet Saul and I saw the candlelight in the kitchen window. I guessed it was Meggie, she was always the last one up, so I went in.’
‘What did you see?’
‘Nothing, sir. Meggie was sitting by the table holding a little bottle in her hand. She said it was medicine Mr Mainwaring had given her to make her better.’
‘You liar!’ Watt spat out the words. Lily looked at him briefly.
‘I’m sorry, Watt, but I can’t help it if I like Saul better than I like you. Don’t be bitter, please, it won’t help you or anyone else.’
Watt looked at the constable. ‘She’s lying and maybe, just maybe, I can prove it.’ He moved to the door and paused, glancing back at Lily.
‘I never rea
lly knew you, did I?’ he said sadly. ‘I worshipped a dream, an image. Well, Lily, you have told your last lie and I think I know just how to get you to tell the truth.’
He left the room and Llinos watched him go, knowing that all her hopes were pinned on him. If Watt failed, Joe would be accused of murder and this time not even the clever tongue of the lawyer Grantley would save him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
BERT CIMLA STARED at the shelf where he had left the remainder of the stolen bottles of medication; only one contained any of the liquid and that was only half full. ‘Damn and blast!’ He held up his hand to throw the bottle against the wall and then thought better of it. He was desperate for money, he had not eaten for two days, his belly was growling in protest even now. Perhaps he could refill the bottle with something, but what?
He searched around the rooms of his mean lodgings but it did not take him long to realize that he had nothing that would serve his purpose. He looked through his window and saw that his landlady was outside at the gate berating the baker for some shortcoming or other. Quickly he made his way down the dark passage towards the kitchen and, not noticing the smell of old cabbage and boiling washing, began opening cupboards. He kept glancing over his shoulder, afraid of discovery. Mrs Beadle had a sharp tongue on her and he usually kept well clear of her, particularly when he owed rent as he did now.
Under the shelf in the scullery, he saw a container full of white powder; it was probably used for cleaning the floors or something. He picked it up. Perhaps he could get away with mixing it with a little milk or water, it was worth a try. He scooped a handful of the powder into the palm of his hand and beat a hasty retreat back to his room.
The water from the bowl on his table was murky; he had not used it to wash and it had been standing there for some days. Still, he could not risk another trip downstairs. He mixed a little of the powder, making a milky paste of it. It was difficult getting it into the bottle and on inspection, the mixture looked a little thick. Perhaps Saul Marks would not even notice.
Cimla sank onto the sagging chair near the window and smiled in satisfaction. Idly he shook the bottle, mixing the powder more thoroughly. It did not look too suspicious. He smiled, feeling he could look forward to his meeting with Saul Marks in the anticipation of receiving enough money to keep him for at least a week.
Llinos waited, white-faced, for the young doctor to make his pronouncement on the cause of Meggie’s death. Dr Walsh was new to the district, tall, young and eager to acquire a healthy medical practice. Beside him stood the constable, his sharp eyes missing nothing.
Llinos glanced at Joe; he was standing before the fire, his hands thrust into his pockets, staring out through the window into the distance. Samuel and Charlotte were seated side by side, Charlotte clutching nervously at her husband’s sleeve.
‘It looks as if the young lady took her own life,’ the doctor said. ‘The bottle was found with her, I understand?’ He smiled at the constable who nodded knowingly; he had probably discussed the matter with the doctor before entering the house. The constable was well dressed, because of his position and reputation. Llinos could only hope he was reasonable and would accept the doctor’s findings without question.
‘I talked to Dr Jones,’ the doctor continued, ‘and he agreed that the medication had been stolen from his house at some time. Goodness knows how it came to be in the possession of this young girl. That is something we will never know.’
Llinos breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced up at Joe but he seemed preoccupied and for once did not meet her eyes.
‘There was the smell of alcoholic drink on the young lady as well as traces of the medication around her mouth. Poor girl was probably harbouring some feelings of unrequited love; such things are common in girls of her age and class.’
‘Well then.’ The constable opened the door. ‘I can go and make my report on the matter.’ He seemed anxious to be on his way. ‘Thank you for clearing the matter up for us, Doctor.’
The doctor inclined his head graciously. ‘I was trained by very able doctors myself,’ he said. ‘One of my tutors took a special interest in poisons and, fortunately, passed his knowledge on to me. The medication would probably not be lethal in itself but by the smell and the edging of powder on the rim I can only assume that other poisons were introduced into the medication. With the addition of alcohol . . .’ He shrugged. ‘Death was inevitable.’ He looked at Joe. ‘I shall send you my bill in due course and if there is any other way in which I can help, please do not hesitate to send for me again.’
Llinos sighed hugely and rose to her feet. ‘Thank heavens no-one is accusing you, my love.’ She looked up as Joe came to her side. ‘But what on earth would make Meggie take her own life? Perhaps I should have seen that she was distressed, I might have been able to help her.’
‘No-one is to blame, at least no-one in this household,’ Joe said. ‘But I intend to find out as much as I can about her death. I must before anyone else takes the medication.’ His mouth was set in a grim line, the blue of his eyes dark with anger.
‘I know who is behind this,’ Samuel spoke abruptly. ‘It’s my son. I spoke to Watt and then to Maura Dundee, both of them saw Saul here on that night. I don’t know what he’s up to but I do know he wants me out of the way and you too, Joe.’
‘But why should he want to harm you? Surely he was only courting with Lily, wasn’t he?’ Charlotte asked, slipping her arm through Sam’s as if in support.
‘There was more to it than that. He thinks I have undisclosed assets, assets that he would inherit.’ Samuel looked at Joe. ‘He also wants that parcel of land. You think so too, I know you do.’
Joe nodded. ‘You’re right, Sam.’ He rubbed his cheek with his forefinger. ‘I’ve thought long and hard about this and I think the plan was that Meggie put more medication in your food, Sam. Obviously she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She must have been so frightened that she took her own life.’
Llinos bit her lip. She wanted to catch hold of Lily and force the girl to tell the truth. She saw Joe smile for the first time.
‘Remember, little Firebird, there is more than one way to snare a fox.’
Samuel rose to his feet. ‘I think I’ll go out for a walk, I feel I need some fresh air.’ He looked down at his wife. ‘And before you say anything, yes, I will wrap up warmly, I promise.’
Joe followed Samuel into the hallway and Llinos heard him talking quietly. ‘You’re not going to confront your son, are you?’
‘No no,’ Samuel said quickly, too quickly. ‘I simply need to blow the cobwebs away, that’s all.’ He raised his voice. ‘I have to get away from my nagging wife sometimes, you see.’
Charlotte did not smile. She stared down at her hands and a tear slid down her lined cheek. ‘He’s going to do something silly, I know he is.’
‘I know,’ Llinos said. ‘I think Joe will follow him, just in case.’ She was right. When Llinos looked into the hall it was to see Joe pulling on his overcoat.
‘Be careful, my love, I don’t want you in any more trouble.’ She crossed the space between them and clung to him, pressing her cheek against his heart, loving him, wanting to protect him. But she knew that nothing she said would change his mind. ‘Just be careful, that’s all, my darling.’
Watt and Maura stared at each other across the polished floorboards of her sitting room at the top of the house. ‘It was good of you to back me up about seeing Lily and Marks together,’ he said.
She looked different somehow; her hair had been cut and soft curls, red and gold in the pale sunlight, framed her face.
‘I just told the truth,’ she said. ‘I did see them together.’ She smiled ruefully and a dimple appeared in her chin.
‘What is it?’
‘The other servants,’ Maura said, not looking at him, ‘they think you and me, well that we were up to no good out there in the darkness. Now, inviting you to my room has confirmed it, at least in their eyes.’
Watt blinked suddenly. Maura and him, did the servants really believe that? She was older than he was and married.
‘Sure, ’tis sorry I am,’ she said. ‘However much I denied it they were all convinced that I’ve got tired of being an old maid in all but name and have taken myself a lover.’ She glanced up shyly. ‘I would be a lucky woman if only half of it was true.’
Watt smiled at her; she was so vulnerable, so alone. He made up his mind. ‘Tell you what we’ll do,’ he said. ‘We will give them something to talk about. Please, Maura, would you come out with me to town on your day off? We can drink coffee and let the whole town see us together. What do you think?’
‘You don’t have to do that,’ Maura said. ‘We don’t have to pander to silly gossips.’
‘We don’t have to, but wouldn’t it be fun?’
‘Well, yes, I’d like that, but coffee shops cost money.’ Maura plucked at the edge of her woollen jacket.
‘I am not a poor man, Maura, Llinos pays me well.’ He stared at her. ‘In any case, I would like to go out with you.’ He realized he meant it. Maura was a woman who at least did not deceive and torture a man. Lately she had ceased talking about Binnie, had stopped planning to go to America and have her revenge. She seemed more interested now in making a life of her own.
‘All right.’ She smiled brightly and her face was transformed. ‘Sure ’tis going to be the talk of the place, mind.’
‘Good!’ Watt rose to his feet. ‘All right then, when is your day off?’ He smiled down at her and there seemed to be an imp of mischief in her eyes.
‘Today, why do you think I’m in my rooms and not working?’
‘Oh, I see. Right then, get your outdoor clothes on, we’re going to town.’
Joe followed at a safe distance, always keeping Sam in his sight. Samuel did not seem to be aware that he was being watched. He walked along the river bank staring down into the waters as though he could read something there. After a while, he turned towards the town. Joe smiled, Sam was no fool, he would not go directly to his son’s house.
At the bottom of Wind Street, Sam suddenly lifted his hand and climbed into a cab. The horse was jerked into motion and the wheels of the cab rattled past where Joe was standing. It did not matter, Joe had recognized a figure in the distance, making his way towards the Castle Inn. It was Saul Marks. Even if Sam did look for him, he was heading in quite the wrong direction.
