by Amy Cross
***
“Hey! Inspector, wait up!”
As she reached the threshold of Edgar's property, Cavaleri stopped and saw to her surprise that Fernando Mediaci was running to catch up.
“Not you too,” she said with a sigh. “Been enjoying Le Compte's hospitality, have you?”
“I wanted to scope the place out,” he replied. “No harm in learning as much as possible about the enemy.”
“And did you uncover anything interesting?”
“Not much. Le Compte's fiance is basically an alcoholic, and the men who work for him seem incapable of giving anything other than one word answers.” He paused for a moment. “I don't doubt that the guy has some dark secrets, but whatever they are, they're stashed away out of sight.”
“I had no idea the people of Thaxos were such cretins,” Cavaleri continued, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looked back up the hill toward the mansion. The band could still be heard playing, and the sound of laughter was drifting across the entire island. “After everything that has happened, all he had to do to make things right was to slap on some fake charm and toss some food at them. You'd think the sun shone out of his -”
“I'm more interested in that thing,” Fernando replied, looking the other way.
Turning, Cavaleri spotted Le Compte's large black boat docked down in the harbor. There was something absurd about the sight, as if the boat was clearly too large for the island's small, stone-walled harbor area.
“It'll be gone by nightfall,” Cavaleri muttered darkly. “I refuse to stand for such a flagrant breach of the rules.”
“I heard you serving him with those papers just now,” Fernando continued. “Do you really think he's going to do what you asked?”
“He has to,” she replied. “Whatever's on that boat, it'll be gone soon.” She paused for a moment, as her natural curiosity began to creep into her thoughts. Turning back to look up at the mansion again, she listened to the music for a moment, before turning to Fernando.
“What's wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing,” she replied, “except... Everyone's up at the mansion right now, aren't they?”
“The whole goddamn town.”
“Which means that boat is probably unguarded.”
Fernando paused, but it was clear that he was starting to understand what she meant.
“No-one knows exactly what the hell goes on with that thing,” she continued, “so I'm thinking that it'd be useful to take a look. I suppose I could probably demand to inspect it properly, but that'd just tip Le Compte off and give him time to hide anything he doesn't want me to see. Whereas if someone were to sneak onboard while all his men are busy up at the party, we can see everything. Warts and all.”
“What exactly are you suggesting?” Fernando asked.
“As the official representative of the police,” she replied, “I can't be seen to act improperly. There's no way I can risk being caught trespassing on the boat.” She paused. “But you, on the other hand, have no such restrictions.”
“You want me to board the boat and go sneaking around?”
“You're a sailor,” she pointed out. “You know boats.”
“It's illegal!”
“There's no way he'll ever find out,” she continued. “It'd do it myself if I could, but I can't, so I need someone I can trust. Come on, do you seriously want him to get away with all of this?”
“Of course not, but -”
“Think about Alice Marco,” she added. “That poor girl's body is cold and stiff in a coffin in her parents' home, waiting for the funeral tomorrow. You knew Alice, Fernando. You were friends. If there's something on that boat that I... that we can use against Edgar Le Compte, don't you think we owe it to that dead girl to take action?”
“You're the island's only police officer,” he pointed out. “Aren't you supposed to uphold the law, instead of encouraging people to break it?”
“My job is to maintain peace and order,” she replied firmly. “The law is just a tool, a means to an end.” She waited for him to reply, but she could see that he was already starting to crack. “Don't do it for me,” she continued. “Do it for Alice.”
Another pause, but this time it was clear that Fernando was being won around to her way of thinking.
“Fine,” he replied uneasily. “I'll go and check it out. Just promise that if I get caught and Le Compte wants me slung into jail, you'll go easy on me. This can't come back and bite me on the ass!”
“Don't worry about that. Anyway, I can unofficially keep watch from the shore and warn you if anyone's approaching. I doubt that'll happen, though. Le Compte has so many men working up there at the garden party today, there's no way he can have anyone left over to keep an eye on the boat. And I'll look after you, I promise. The same way I look after everyone on Thaxos.”
“And you're sure there's no other way?”
“There's nothing,” she continued, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “For Alice Marco, for the whole of Thaxos, I need you to do this for me, Fernando. It's time for us to start pushing back at him with more than words.”
“Then I guess I've got no choice, have I?” he replied. “Let's just get this over with as fast as possible.”
IV
“Kate?”
“Jesus!” Kate shouted, spinning round as soon as she felt Edgar's hand on her shoulder.
“I'm sorry,” he replied, looking genuinely startled. “I didn't mean to scare you. I saw you standing here with a rather faraway look in your eyes and I wanted to make sure that you were okay.”
“No, it's fine,” she continued, “I just...” Pausing, she took a deep breath and tried to stay calm. She wanted more than anything to ask Edgar about the cloth-faced woman in the upstairs room, but she felt that a direct question wouldn't get her very far. Besides, she didn't want to admit that she'd been snooping around.
“The party seems to be going wonderfully,” Edgar continued, “despite Inspector Cavaleri's rather ill-timed intervention. She seems to have a rather dim view of me. Still, I must thank you, Kate, for agreeing to stay for a few days and help out. Without your guidance and planning, I'm sure that today would have been much less successful.”
“It was nothing,” she replied nervously.
“Please,” he continued, “don't diminish your contribution. Organizing an event such as this might seem easy to you, but to someone like me...” He paused, clearly feeling a little awkward. “Let's just say that I lack the popular touch. I'm fully aware that I put people on edge, and that I have a tendency to misjudge social interactions. It's something I've struggled with my whole life, but I gave up trying to alter this facet of my personality a long time ago. We can all change certain aspects of our behavior, but I'm not sure that we can change who we really are.”
“I'm sure you're doing just fine,” she told him. “So what are the plans for the rest of the party? Is it going to go on into the evening?”
“I imagine so,” he replied, “although...”
She waited for him to finish.
“I have a surprise lined up,” he continued, with a faint smile. “I thought about everything that the island has been going through, and I felt that while this party would certainly offer some temporary relief, I should try to do something more permanent. To that end, I invited a friend here today, Doctor Dale Young, and between us we have cooked up a rather extraordinary development. I'm confident that everyone on Thaxos will be extremely grateful. Well...” He paused again. “Grateful is not the word, perhaps. Thankful. Shocked, but in a good way.”
“A surprise, huh?” Kate asked, thinking back to the figure in the darkened room. “Any clues?”
“I'd rather wait,” he told her.
“But you just said that you have trouble with social things, so maybe it'd help to get a second opinion?”
“I think that on this occasion everything will be okay,” he continued. “Trust me, Kate. This day will live long in the memories of everyone who i
s here. Why, even Inspector Cavaleri would have been impressed, if only she had stayed long enough. I anticipate announcing the surprise in a few hours' time, once the final touches have been completed. Not long to wait now. I just need to wait for Doctor Young to confirm that everything is ready.”
Kate smiled awkwardly, but she couldn't help but feel worried that Edgar's 'surprise' might go a little wrong. The image of the cloth-faced figure was still haunting her, and she couldn't imagine how such a creature could possibly cause a positive reaction. There had to be a link though, and she felt a shiver pass through her body at the thought that perhaps that figure had been hidden away in the house all this time.
“You looked concerned,” Edgar added. “Is everything okay? Are you still suffering from the effects of the wolf attack?”
“No,” she replied, “I'm fine, really. I guess it's just been a long day.”
“And are you still determined to leave tomorrow?”
“After everything that has happened -”
“You still don't feel safe?”
She paused.
“I understand,” he continued. “What happened to you must have been extremely traumatic, and you were lucky to escape with such minor injuries. Have you recovered any of your memories from that night?”
“Only flashes,” she replied. “Just sensations, really. Moments in my dreams.”
“Dreams can be as real as waking life,” he replied. “You should never fall into the trap of prioritizing one above the other.”
“I need to get my head straight,” she continued. “I don't feel settled, not after... whatever happened to me. My scars are healing, but inside... I still feel wrong somehow, as if maybe there's some damage I don't really know about yet. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and it's as if I'm having palpitations, like my heart is fluttering. I know that sounds crazy, and I've asked Doctor Burns about it but he can't find anything -”
“Perhaps I can be of assistance,” Edgar replied. “As I mentioned, my personal physician, Doctor Young, happens to be with us today. Would you allow him to take a look at you?”
“That's really not necessary. If I just -”
“For my sake,” Edgar added. “Please, I am most keen to ensure that you are in the prime of health, and Doctor Young is, in my opinion, the finest doctor in this part of the world. It would put my mind at rest if you were checked by him before you return to London. Trust me, if there are any lingering health problems associated with your experience, he will find them.”
Although she felt that an additional check-up was probably unnecessary, Kate suddenly realized that she'd like a chance to talk to the man who seemed to be somehow involved in Edgar's secrets.
“Sure,” she said finally, forcing a smile. “I'd be glad to have someone else check me over.”