Murder at the Dolphin Hotel

by Helena Dixon

  Kitty’s grandmother expected her to come to dinner in her suite at seven. There were still quite a few things to sort out before she left for Scotland. Kitty planned to ask about Matthew Bryant, and how he had been hired. Normally she knew in advance if any staff were needed and had some input into the interviews. There was something going on that didn’t feel right and she intended to find out more.

  Her headache had subsided to a dull throbbing in her left temple by the time she had changed into a plain black evening gown and joined her grandmother in her rooms.

  ‘You look pale, darling. Are you feeling well?’ Her grandmother greeted her with a kiss on her cheek and a glass of dry sherry.

  ‘Just a headache. I’m sure it’ll go soon.’ Kitty frowned at the sherry. It was all part of the pre-dinner ritual. Her grandmother always insisted a small glass improved the appetite and aided digestion. Kitty wasn’t so sure, but sipped obediently to please her. She would have preferred a cocktail.

  A tap at the door signalled the arrival of the trolley containing their dinner. The mouth-watering smell of grilled salmon escaped from below the ornate silver cloches as Kitty took her place by her grandmother. The oak table, which had been owned by Grams’ father, had been laid in the wide bay window, affording an evening vista of the river. Coloured electric lights hung on strings glowed orange and yellow, marking the edge of the waterway; an improvement on the old gas lamps. Some of the boats were lit for the first evening cruises of the summer visitors’ season and a few couples walked hand-in-hand along the footpath.

  Her grandmother took her seat and the waiter served them both with minestrone soup before leaving them to eat their first course.

  ‘I bumped into Mr Bryant at lunchtime.’ Kitty smoothed her white linen napkin across her knees and picked up her spoon. ‘He told me you’d hired him to look after security here and that some of the other guest houses had been having problems.’

  ‘And?’ the older woman queried.

  ‘I was surprised you hadn’t said anything about taking on staff so early in the season, or that you hadn’t mentioned that you were worried.’ Kitty took a spoonful of her soup and waited for her grandmother’s reply.

  ‘Matthew is the son of an old friend of mine, General Bryant. He has considerable expertise in security; he worked for the government after the war and has recently resigned from his post. It appeared to be the perfect solution, considering there was so little time before I leave.’

  ‘It would have been nice if you’d mentioned him though, or your concerns with security.’ Kitty knew she sounded childishly resentful, but it was a fair comment. She was supposed to be running the hotel jointly with her grandmother, after all.

  ‘It didn’t seem that important, darling. It’s really reports of petty thefts, some vandalism. Of course, with the murder of that poor man found in the river this morning, it seems I made a wise decision. By the way, I gave Matt the vacant staff room on your floor.’ The older woman rested her spoon in her empty dish and dabbed at the corners of her mouth with her napkin, leaving red smudges of lipstick on the linen.

  Kitty’s headache kicked up a notch. ‘Grams, I thought we’d agreed that those rooms were to be used for storage.’

  ‘Well, darling, he has to live somewhere, and this is only a temporary position. I expect he’ll find somewhere else in time. His parents would like him to settle down permanently.’ Her grandmother collected the soup dishes and carried them over to the trolley. She then lifted the silver cloches from the plates containing their main courses and returned to the table. Kitty silently counted to three as she stared at the plate of salmon and salad that her grandmother had placed in front of her.

  When she’d turned twenty-one, she’d insisted on taking a room on the top floor where she could have privacy. Now she would have Matthew Bryant just a few doors away from her at the other end of the corridor. That thought was more than a little disturbing. There had been something about the self-mocking gleam in his eyes when he’d looked at her at lunchtime which had ruffled her senses.

  Her grandmother changed the subject to her forthcoming trip to Scotland and they spent the rest of the meal finalising the arrangements. Once the remains of dinner had been cleared away and a tray of coffee deposited on the low table in front of the fire, they moved to the sofas.

  ‘What have you done to your leg?’ Her grandmother leaned forward to peer at the dressing on Kitty’s knee.

  ‘A silly accident at lunchtime. Someone barged into me as I was on my way to the post office and I had a close encounter with a truck. Luckily your Mr Bryant happened to be there to catch me. Typical clumsy me, completely ruined my stockings.’ Kitty attempted a laugh so her grandmother wouldn’t be alarmed.

  Her grandmother didn’t smile. ‘Please be more careful, Kitty. I’ve enough to worry about with Livvy.’

  ‘I’m fine, Grams, honestly, it was one of those silly accidents that happen sometimes.’ She wished she hadn’t told her the whole story. She should have made something up to stop her grandmother from worrying. Then again, if she had bumped into Matthew, he could well have mentioned the incident, so whatever she’d decided to do would have been wrong.

  ‘Hmm, it sounds as if it was a good thing that Matt was there.’

  Heat mounted in Kitty’s cheeks as she recalled the strength in his grip as he’d pulled her to safety and the frisson of electricity that had hummed between them in that brief physical contact. ‘Yes, I suppose it was.’

  Silence fell as both women sipped their coffee.

  Her grandmother sighed. ‘Kitty, I am worried about going to Scotland and leaving you here. I know you think I’m a bossy, fussy old woman, but you and Livvy are all I have and as one gets older, I suppose it’s natural to think of the worst things that can happen in life. This American jazz singer, well, it’s not like having one of our local entertainers, it’s a lot of work for you.’

  Kitty swallowed. She’d never seen her grandmother’s expression quite like this before; a mix of fear and worry highlighted by the fine wrinkles around her eyes and mouth.

  ‘I promise I’ll take care, Grams. And Miss Delaware will give us a wonderful start to the summer season. Room reservations are up already and tickets for the ball are selling briskly. You said yourself that the hotel was busy.’ She reached out to give her grandmother’s hand a reassuring squeeze. The older woman’s fingers felt frail and cold in her grasp and a sliver of fear iced through Kitty’s heart.

  ‘Since your mother went missing all those years ago, it’s made me even more aware of how things can change in the blink of an eye. She’s been in my thoughts a lot again lately.’

  ‘I know, Grams.’ She wondered what had made her grandmother suddenly think of Elowed. Her grandmother might exasperate her, but she still loved her dearly and was grateful for everything she’d done to raise her after her mother’s disappearance.

  She’d also thought about her mother a lot recently. Over the years her grandmother had spent a small fortune trying to trace her, without any luck. As Kitty had grown older and each landmark birthday had passed with no news or contact, both she and her grandmother had been forced to conclude that she had to be dead. Indeed, one of the private investigators her grandmother had hired had come to that same conclusion, even giving them details of what he thought may have happened. It was all conjecture however, as he had not provided a shred of proof.

  Her mother had vanished when Kitty was six. She’d arrived at the Dolphin from London with Kitty, stayed for a few months and had then disappeared from the face of the earth. Kitty often wondered what her life had been like before then. She vaguely recalled a brownstone building with stairs and a park. She had no idea where her father might be, she couldn’t recall him at all. The name on the birth certificate had led her nowhere and her grandmother had never appeared to have any information other than she believed he had gone to America.

  Kitty finished her drink. ‘I’m going upstairs to finish reading the book I started
yesterday. It’s a Dorothy L. Sayers, and I had to leave it at a good bit.’ She placed her cup down on the tray.

  ‘I don’t know how you can enjoy those dreadful crime novels, so gory. I think I’ll get an early night too, though. It’ll be a long day tomorrow with all the travelling.’ Her grandmother’s voice was vague, as if her thoughts were elsewhere.

  Kitty bent and kissed her cheek, savouring the familiar scent of the roses in her grandmother’s favourite perfume. ‘By the way, did you pop into my room earlier for something?’

  The older woman frowned. ‘No, why?’

  ‘Nothing. I thought you might have been looking for something you needed to pack.’ She gave a small shrug to show it wasn’t important. ‘Night, Grams, see you tomorrow.’

  Matt made his way to Mrs Treadwell’s suite as soon as he received her message.

  ‘Tell me what happened to Kitty at lunchtime,’ she commanded as soon as he entered her room.

  He took a seat on the sofa opposite her and told her about the incident with the truck. He guessed from the empty cups on the tray in front of him that Kitty had just left. The older woman paled as he told her his theory that Kitty might have been pushed deliberately.

  ‘I don’t like it. I don’t like it at all. I have to leave tomorrow, but it worries me that Kitty might not be safe.’

  ‘At this moment the best you can do is trust that I will be looking out for her. You truly have no idea who could have been behind this or the letters?’

  She shook her head in response to his question, but her gaze didn’t meet his. ‘No idea at all. I’ve lain awake at night racking my brains trying to think what this could be about. Kitty is the only thing of value that has ever been left with me, when Elowed disappeared without a trace. Painful though it was, I have accepted that my daughter is most likely dead, and even if she were alive, there is no reason she would send these notes instead of coming herself.’

  Matt leaned back in his seat. He could see she was genuinely worried, but he still felt she was keeping something from him. ‘Thanks for all the information you gave me about the letters. I’ve started to sift through it all, looking for pointers.’

  Mrs Treadwell nodded, the creases on her brow showing she was still troubled, and making her look older than she had previously seemed. ‘There’s one more thing. Kitty asked me if I’d been looking for something in her room. She made something of a joke about it, but it has me worried. Why would she think I had been in her room?’

  ‘You think someone else might have got into her room?’ This was concerning. It meant whoever was behind the strange happenings might have access to the hotel, and really was targeting Kitty.

  ‘It struck me as an odd thing for Kitty to say. Mickey, our maintenance man, has spare keys in his office.’

  Matt turned the information over in his mind. ‘It’s a good thing I’m on the same floor as Kitty. At least if there is a problem, I’m close at hand. She’s quite isolated up there from the rest of the hotel.’

  The old lady smiled for the first time during their interview. ‘Thank you, Matt. Though I’m rather afraid that Kitty doesn’t feel quite the same way about having you as a neighbour.’

  Chapter Four

  Kitty was surprised at how alone she felt when her grandmother’s hired Bentley finally drove away. She blinked back the tears which unexpectedly prickled beneath her eyelids.

  ‘What is the matter with me? I’m not usually this maudlin,’ she muttered to herself. She tugged the edges of her neat navy-blue cardigan closer together to protect her from the spring breeze blowing across from the river and turned to re-enter the hotel.

  A lock of her hair blew across her eyes, the blonde tendril further blurring her vision. She put up her hand to return her hair to order and promptly cannoned into an older man just leaving the hotel.

  ‘Oh, I’m so sorry,’ Kitty apologised.

  She’d only seen this particular guest a few times before, although he’d been staying with them for a few weeks. A thick-set middle-aged man with glasses and a surly expression, he’d stood out from their usual guests. He dined alone and never appeared to receive any post or messages. She had assumed he must be a commercial traveller in the area on business of some kind.

  The man nodded and grunted a brief acknowledgement before hurrying off down the street towards the centre of town. Kitty walked into the hotel lobby, rather discomforted by the man’s brusque reaction. Usually guests at the hotel were cheerful and chatty. This man had seen her several times before when he’d come to the desk for his room key. It was clearly going to be one of those days where everything seemed out of kilter.

  When she reached her small office tucked away at the back of reception, she discovered Matthew Bryant seated and waiting for her in the chair opposite her desk, obviously refreshed from a night’s sleep and wearing a well-tailored dark grey suit.

  ‘I see you’ve made yourself at home.’ Irritation at his presence in her office warred with the involuntary jump her heart gave when his gaze locked with hers.

  He ignored her barbed comment. ‘Good morning to you too. Your grandmother mentioned something to me last night that I wanted to talk to you about.’

  Kitty took her place behind the desk. ‘I’m not sure I understand. Is it to do with your contract of employment?’ She supposed she would have to try and do some kind of induction for him, although he seemed to have made himself pretty familiar with everything already.

  His brow furrowed. ‘No, my contract is fine. Your grandmother and I agreed terms when I accepted the position. It is to do with my job here, though. Mrs Treadwell told me she thought you were worried that someone may have had access to your room yesterday.’

  ‘What made her say that?’ She held her breath for a moment as she waited for his answer. She’d thought she’d managed to avoid alarming her grandmother.

  ‘I gather it was a feeling she got about something you said to her.’

  ‘Okay.’ Kitty leaned back in her chair. ‘Yes, someone was in my room yesterday and I don’t mean the chambermaids. I think it was while I was with you at lunchtime. Whoever it was searched through my things. Nothing was taken as far as I can tell, but it was odd and… creepy.’ She had tried not to think too deeply about it, convincing herself that she must have been mistaken.

  Matt’s gaze grew more intense, forcing her to look at him. ‘You’ve no idea what they might have been looking for?’

  She shook her head. ‘No clue. Unless of course they were after money or expensive jewellery. My jewellery was untouched, but most of it is costume, and I don’t keep any money in my room. But they were tidy about it. Everything was neatly replaced in my drawers and cupboard, but things weren’t quite in the right place. That’s how I knew my things had been tampered with and I hadn’t imagined it.’ There, she’d admitted the truth out loud, and it scared her.

  He rested his elbows on the arms of the chair and steepled his hands together beneath his chin. ‘If you don’t believe it was a member of staff, how do you think they got in?’

  Kitty shrugged. ‘I don’t know. My first thought was that maybe they’d found the spare keys in Mickey’s office.’ Her pulse speeded as he dropped his hands and leaned forward in his seat, his dark blue gaze calling heat into her cheeks.

  ‘I’ve asked Mickey to order a proper key cabinet. The question is, why did someone take the key to your room? And then having carefully searched your room, place the key back on its hook in Mickey’s office?’

  The implications of his questions hit her like a bucket of ice water. ‘You think they deliberately chose my room? It wasn’t a random thing?’ She’d been so stupid, of course it couldn’t have been random if whoever it was had gone to that much trouble. This was even worse than she’d imagined.

  ‘You’ve had nothing go missing from other guests? No comments or questions to suggest their possessions have been disturbed?’

  ‘No, but, it could just have been someone taking a random key and trying
their luck. My room is quite isolated.’ Her voice faltered. That wasn’t quite true any more. Matt’s room was only separated from hers by a couple of storage closets. The key had also been replaced, and why would a thief only try one key or leave her few bits of jewellery and her mother’s picture frame? If they wanted money, then even those things would have provided a few shillings.

  The gleam in his eyes told her he didn’t believe the theory of a random thief any more than she did. She suspected that he also knew her feelings about sharing her floor with him, which perhaps was somewhat ungrateful as he’d saved her life.

  Matt knew it was risky alerting Kitty to the potential threat to her safety, especially when her grandmother had asked for his discretion. In his view however, when someone had attempted to push Kitty under a truck, that had changed the rules. She had to be made aware that there was a potential threat, without alarming her unnecessarily or giving away too much.

  It had been his idea to secure accommodation on the same floor as Kitty. Her self-imposed isolation at the top of the hotel bothered him. Something else bothering him was the niggling feeling that Kitty’s grandmother hadn’t been entirely frank with him about her suspicions of who might be behind the threats. She had mentioned Elowed, Kitty’s mother, but had remained cagey on the subject of Kitty’s father.

  ‘What about any of the current hotel residents?’ he asked.

  Kitty blinked. ‘I’m not sure what you mean.’

  Matt studied her face. ‘Is there anyone who you think may be responsible? Anyone who makes you feel uneasy at all for any reason?’

  Confusion clouded her grey-blue eyes. ‘At this time of year, a lot of our guests are regulars who travel with a touring motor coach company or via the train. They come every spring and autumn before the main rush and the prices rise. Our main visitor season starts soon though, when Miss Delaware launches our summer entertainment. We have a few private guests, and again, some of them are regulars. They have business locally and stay with us several times throughout the year.’