by Emily Organ
“How dare you suggest such a thing!”
“It has taken me a long time to believe it, but sadly I see now that it is true. You’ve done all this to cover up for the perpetrator of these dreadful murders. You have no interest in anyone being brought to justice; instead, you have tried to remove the very people who have come closest to the truth. Now you’re threatening an innocent woman who just happened to read her brother’s diaries in order to understand why he should have met with such an horrific and untimely death.”
Chief Inspector Cullen laughed. “You’ve spent far too much time with this reporter. That sounds like the sort of story she’d concoct for her newspaper!”
“Do you deny it, sir?”
“Of course I deny it! Now give me your warrant card. You no longer have the authority to execute the duties of a Metropolitan Police detective.”
James stared back at him. “I refuse, sir.”
“You cannot refuse this order, Blakely!” Chief Inspector Cullen’s reddened face was just inches away from James’ and I feared the senior officer would strike him. He was a strongly built man.
“Inspector Cullen, old chap,” said Mr Sheridan, standing to his feet. He appeared quite diminutive in comparison. “I fear that matters are getting a little out of hand. I feel this sort of altercation should never take place in the presence of ladies. Shall we save it for later? I’m quite happy to leave Miss Holland’s home now. I think we’re finished here.”
The chief inspector took a step back and jabbed a finger at James. He was quaking with rage. “You’ll regret this, Blakely. I shall ensure that you never work for any police force again!”
James cleared his throat. “I’m still unclear,” he said calmly, “as to why Mr Sheridan should be interested in Alfred Holland’s diaries.”
“Mr Sheridan told me he had never heard of Alfred Holland when I spoke to him outside the Burlington Hotel,” I said.
Chief Inspector Cullen paced the floor, his fists clenched. “Don’t respond to a single word these two put to you, Sheridan! He is no longer a police officer, and she will no longer have a job by the time this day is through. I had her dismissed before and I’ll do it again!”
“I think it is time for me to leave. Thank you for your time, Miss Holland,” said Mr Sheridan, giving Emma a polite bow.
“Why are you interested in Alfred Holland’s diaries, Mr Sheridan?” James asked again.
Chief Inspector Cullen bared his teeth.
“Did you know Alfred Holland after all?” continued James. “He stole opium for Mr Forster, didn’t he? And Mr Forster worked for your company.”
“Perhaps I can explain all this to you another time, Inspector Blakely, without your hot-headed superior present,” said Mr Sheridan curtly.
“Hot-headed?” snarled the chief inspector. “You wish to resort to petty insults after all I’ve done for you?”
Mr Sheridan smiled politely. “Thank you for your help, Chief Inspector Cullen,” he replied. “Our meeting here is concluded, and I’m quite sure this nice young lady no longer wants us cluttering up her home.”
“You haven’t answered Inspector Blakely’s question,” said Emma, rising to her feet. “Why are you so interested in my brother’s diaries?”
“Ask him,” said Mr Sheridan, pointing at Chief Inspector Cullen. “He took them!”
Emma turned to face James’ superior, her mouth opened wide in shock. “You broke into my home and stole them?”
“Not personally, Miss Holland,” said Chief Inspector Cullen irritably. “It was important that they didn’t fall into the wrong hands. I took them under orders from Mr Sheridan.”
“Gentlemen, now is not the time to be trading accusations,” said George. “I think this matter should be discussed at a later date when everyone has calmed down.”
“Your client is doing rather a good job of making me appear to be the guilty party, Mr Billington-Grieg,” said Chief Inspector Cullen. “I took the diaries on the orders of Mr Sheridan, and I also tried to get these two out of the way” – he gestured toward me and James – “on the orders of Mr Sheridan.”
“How much was Sheridan paying you, sir?” asked James.
The chief inspector spun round angrily. “Paying me? What are you talking about, Blakely?”
“You must have received a decent sum to go to such great lengths to cover up Sheridan’s crimes.”
Mr Sheridan laughed. “And what crimes might those be?”
“The murders of Augustus and Olivia Forster, Alfred Holland and Charles Mawson.”
Mr Sheridan shook his head. “Oh dear! I see that Cullen here was right about you all along, Blakely. You really don’t have a clue, do you? Forster got himself into terrible debt, Mawson was a thief and Holland was an opium addict. All three got themselves into tricky situations and only have themselves to blame for their inevitable demise.”
“No one ever deserves to be murdered,” I hissed, “and you’ve forgotten about Mrs Forster, who was entirely innocent of any wrongdoing!”
“She was indeed innocent, and her death was extremely tragic,” replied Mr Sheridan. “You’re speaking as though I had something to do with it.”
“Oh, but you do,” said James. “With your company about to sign a lucrative contract with the India Office you needed to ensure that no one had a chance to make any trouble for you. It wouldn’t do, would it, to be found guilty of trading in illegal opium?”
“The trading activities of my company are perfectly legal, Inspector Blakely. Or perhaps I’m mistaken in addressing you as inspector. I believe Chief Inspector Cullen has just dismissed you from the Metropolitan Police.”
“Once the commissioner has been made aware of the arrangement between yourself and Cullen it will be he who leaves the force, not me,” retorted James.
Mr Sheridan laughed. “At this present moment I’m not convinced either of you has any authority. Come on, Mr Billington-Grieg, it’s time we were on our way.”
I could see George hesitating. “I’m not really sure what’s going on here,” he said. “I think I shall return to my office.”
“Nonsense, man, you’re coming with me,” said Mr Sheridan. “There’s a good deal still to do.”
James moved to block the doorway, standing directly in their path. “Mr Sheridan, I am placing you under arrest.”
Chapter 68
“Leave him alone, Blakely!” threatened Chief Inspector Cullen.
James simply ignored him.
“Arrest me?” asked Sheridan with a smile. “On what possible grounds?”
“You arranged the murder of your former colleague Mr Forster, who handled stolen opium from the factory at Ghazipur while working for your company. Not only were you aware of this work, but it was carried out at your request. It was your company that smuggled the stolen opium into China.”
“What nonsense!” Sheridan said with a chuckle.
“Unfortunately for you, Forster was clumsy,” continued James. “He was careless in his financial affairs, and no doubt with the stolen opium. I’m sure that once you realised how risky he was you arranged for him to be sent back to England and out of your way. It should have been easy to forget all about him, but when the possibility of a contract with the India Office came your way you realised the existence of this man could cause serious problems. If the India Office learned about your company’s illegal dealings the contract would never have gone ahead. That’s when you approached a notorious gang to dispose of him. Never quite sure how much Mrs Forster knew of her husband’s illicit dealings you decided to be rid of her for good measure. After the supposed burglary and tragic murder of his wife you were among the first to console him, but you were also keeping a close eye on the man as he had foiled your initial murder attempt.”
Mr Sheridan folded his arms and smirked at James. “What an interesting storyteller you are, Blakely! Do go on.”
“Don’t give him the time of day,” said Chief Inspector Cullen.
�
��No, I must say that I’m interested to hear the rest of his tall tale. Imagine how ridiculous it’ll sound in court!”
“It won’t even get to court,” said the chief inspector.
I stole a look at George, whose face had paled.
“A few days later your hired gang caught up with Mr Forster and he was stabbed in the back in St James’s Square,” continued James. “It was a dreadful murder, which shocked London. However, getting rid of Forster didn’t eliminate your problems. Two other men knew about the stolen opium, and you thought it possible that they would begin speaking of it. Mr Holland had discovered what you were up to, and when he reported Mr Mawson for stealing you had no choice but to recruit him. Using a combination of money and threats you had him falsifying forms, just as you had paid Mr Mawson to do. I haven’t yet had a chance to read Alfred Holland’s diaries, but I understand from what Miss Green tells me that he was trying to identify who he was stealing the opium for. Isn’t that right, Miss Holland?”
Emma nodded. “Yes, and he became quite friendly with the native gentleman he always dealt with, hoping that he could find out some clue from him with regard to what was happening to all the opium he stole.”
“And perhaps he was successful,” said James. “It explains why there was suddenly so much interest in his diary. It’s the secret information Cullen was trying to keep hidden. Perhaps you can tell me, sir, if Sheridan and Company was named in Mr Holland’s diary?”
Chief Inspector Cullen stared at James but said nothing.
“More nonsense,” Mr Sheridan chipped in. “Is your story almost at its conclusion, Blakely?”
“Almost,” said James. “Murdering these men to keep them silent was always going to cause a stir, and that’s why you employed the services of Chief Inspector Cullen. I don’t know how long you’ve been acquainted, but you knew him well enough to judge that he might be persuaded to hush up the investigation in return for payment. In theory it was easy to hush up because the men doing the dirty work were merely men you employed. No doubt they were also persuaded, through a combination of fear and bribery, to remain silent when questioned by the police. I daren’t speculate on where they obtained a severed finger from, but we’ll get to the bottom of it.
“Poor Mr Mawson’s time on earth was always going to be limited. Although his superiors had found out what he was up to and he was duly returned to England, it would only have been a matter of time before the trail led back to you.
“As for Mr Holland, the man’s circumstances had taken an unfortunate turn and you assumed few people would miss him when he was shot dead at the opium den. However, you didn’t account for the bravery and determination of his sister, Miss Emma Holland, who did all she could to find out who had killed him. Fortunately, her brother had left some detailed diaries, which no one knew existed until Miss Holland mentioned them to Miss Green.
“Miss Green was also determined to find out who had killed Mr Holland, and in good faith she mentioned the existence of the diaries to Chief Inspector Cullen, who did what he needed to do to take them into his possession. I’m sure they contained all manner of incriminating evidence, which Cullen has presumably destroyed by now. Fortunately, Miss Holland had read some of the diaries and found out enough to enable Miss Green to make the connection between the victims. This, Mr Sheridan, is the reason you’re here with this imposter and your trusted legal advisor today. You wished to find out what Miss Holland knew. I don’t like to think what might have happened if Miss Green and I hadn’t arrived when we did.”
“I would have made sure the young lady remained unharmed,” said George shakily.
“Would you indeed?” said James. “Are you sure about that? As Mr Sheridan’s lawyer you surely had some idea what your client was up to.”
“I cannot be certain that your account is accurate, Inspector Blakely,” George replied. “Nothing has been proven at this stage.”
“It will be in due course,” said James. “In the meantime, I think you’ve been rather short-sighted in your choice of client. Or perhaps the money you were set to make from his lucrative contract with the India Office was enough for you to turn a blind eye?”
“Now that’s unreasonable, Inspector. I would never ignore actions that were clearly illegal.”
“It’s all nonsense anyway, Billington-Grieg,” said Sheridan. “Now, out of my way, Blakely.”
“I’m afraid I cannot do that. I must detain you, sir.”
Chief Inspector Cullen marched over and shoved James aside. “Let the man out of here!” he shouted. He pulled a revolver from beneath his jacket and pointed it at James.
Chapter 69
With a horrible lurch in my stomach I realised James was still unarmed.
“Thank you, Cullen,” said Mr Sheridan, opening the parlour door. “Come on, Billington-Grieg.”
I could see that George had no idea what to do. Following Mr Sheridan would mean that he was associating with a known criminal.
Emma leapt to her feet. “Put your gun away, Chief Inspector!” she shouted. “You have no right to brandish a weapon in my home!”
Chief Inspector Cullen turned to face her. “I would advise you to remain calm, Miss Holland.”
“Then put your gun away immediately.”
“I’m simply trying to prevent one of my officers from making a mistake.”
“I don’t think he’s making a mistake at all. From what I read in Alfred’s diary Inspector Blakely’s theory sounds entirely plausible.”
He pointed the gun at her. “You know too much, Miss Holland.” He exchanged a glance with Mr Sheridan that made my blood run cold.
“No!” I said. “No, you mustn’t harm her!”
Mr Sheridan gave Chief Inspector Cullen an almost imperceptible nod. Emma ducked down, as if trying to avoid the shot which was sure to come. I looked at the revolver in Cullen’s hand, knowing that if I made a swift move toward it he could shoot at any one of us before I reached him.
Emma stood again and I saw that she also had a gun in her hand. It was pointed at Chief Inspector Cullen. I could only guess she had kept it in a stocking holster.
“Miss Green will recall me telling her that I was determined to defend myself after my brother Alfred was murdered. I always feared that the man who killed him would also come after me. How right I was.”
The senior officer was startled. “Put the gun down!”
“No, this is my home! You drop your gun.” She took a step toward him.
“Just do the right thing, Cullen,” said Mr Sheridan. “We agreed it, didn’t we?”
A deafening shot rang out and I saw Chief Inspector Cullen crumple to the floor. James leapt over to him and I heard the injured inspector cry out.
Emma had a wide smile plastered across her face, still pointing the gun at him. “I got him!” she said. “I aimed for his leg and I got him!”
I was relieved to see James wrenching Chief Inspector Cullen’s gun from his hand. He lay on the floor groaning with pain, blood beginning to seep through his trouser leg. Emma turned her attention to Mr Sheridan, who had frozen beside the door with a look of horror on his face. George was quivering beside the bay window.
Emma pointed the gun at Sheridan. “You killed my brother,” she snarled.
Sheridan turned and ran out of the room, but Emma immediately gave chase.
“Miss Holland!” shouted James, following her into the hallway. “Put the gun down!”
Mr Sheridan was already at the front door.
“Let me arrest him, Miss Holland, and he’ll be put on trial,” pleaded James. “Let a judge and jury try him!”
“Give him a chance, you mean?” she cried. “He didn’t give my brother a chance!”
She was gripped with anger and I could understand her yearning for revenge, but I knew this wasn’t the right way to exact it.
“Put the gun down, Emma!” I cried, running toward her.
Mr Sheridan had opened the front door and was descending the step
s with Emma in hot pursuit.
“No, Miss Holland!” said James, still giving chase. “You might harm an innocent person!”
I heard another gunshot and winced. I prayed that Emma and James were both all right. Then I heard laughter.
I stepped outside to see Mr Sheridan writhing in pain on the pavement.
Emma was laughing gleefully. “I got him, too! Now I just need to finish him off!”
“Please, Miss Holland,” said James. He handed me Chief Inspector Cullen’s gun and began to wrestle with her. “You’ve done enough. Give me the gun!”
“No! I won’t rest until he’s dead!” she shrieked.
“He’ll be punished, you wait and see,” said James.
There was another loud bang and James staggered backward.
“No!” I screamed. “Stop!”
“Just let me do this!” snarled Emma, her eyes black with fury.
I could see that James was unhurt but had placed himself between Mr Sheridan and Emma. “I forbid you to shoot this man,” he called to her. “He needs to face the law courts!”
Sheridan lay on the ground, groaning and clutching at his stomach.
“Get out of my way!” shouted Emma.
“Emma, please,” I said as calmly as I could manage. “Please stop this now.”
I glanced down at Cullen’s gun in my hand. Should I threaten her with it?
Emma sensed my movement and pointed her gun at James.
“Don’t!” I screamed.
“I told him to get out of my way, but he refused,” she replied in a flat-sounding voice.
She pressed her finger down on the trigger.
Chapter 70
I squeezed my eyes shut and a heavy wave of despair washed over me.
There was nothing more I could do.
I prayed that James would leap out of the way, or that Emma would miss her shot. But just as I had finished preparing myself for the worst I realised nothing had happened.
