by Helena Dixon
‘Yellow roses?’ Matt asked.
‘Yes, sir. I did as instructed, sir, and moved the other vase from the window. Have I misunderstood?’ The girl looked worried.
‘No, Ellen, that’s fine. Did the flowers come with a message?’
‘There was the instructions, miss, and I think there is a small card with them but of course I didn’t open that.’
‘No, of course not. Thank you, Ellen.’
‘Who delivered them?’ Matt asked.
Ellen frowned, clearly perplexed by the fuss. ‘The florist’s boy, sir, on his bike.’
Kitty hurried up the stairs with Matt close behind her, to see if there was anything on the card with the flowers.
Her fingers fumbled the key as she tried to put it in the lock and Matt had to take it from her to unlock the door. Sure enough, the red roses had been moved to the side table on the far wall and a fresh vase of yellow roses now stood in the window.
Kitty dropped her handbag and gloves down on the sofa and went to the flowers. A small florist’s envelope stood propped up against the vase. She tore it open and eased out the small square of card.
Roses for my girl. Will see you soon, E
She sat down slowly on the sofa. ‘More waiting, I suppose.’ Her heart was still racing.
‘At least you know he saw your message.’ Matt examined the card. ‘It’s from the florist in town, so he’s still close by.’
‘Even if Inspector Greville can’t find him.’
Chapter Twenty-Four
The morning of the masked ball dawned dull and cloudy. Kitty rose early to supervise the decorators as they manoeuvred the huge pots of fronded palms and peacock-embellished screens she had ordered to decorate the ballroom.
The tables were grouped around the edge of the dance floor with greenery at either side of the stage and around the grand piano. Peacock feathers were also incorporated into the table decorations and the backdrop for Vivien’s performance had been changed to one showing carnival masks decorated with gold glitter.
‘What do you think?’ she asked Matt.
He looked around the room. ‘Very splendid, Vivien must be delighted that the Dolphin is going to so much trouble for her big finale performance.’
‘The hotel has always been about providing entertainment for local people as well as our guests. It was one of the first things Grams taught me about managing the hotel. The holiday season can be quite short, and a bad summer could be a disaster if we didn’t try to entice more paying customers through our doors. The tickets we sell for visitors attending our entertainment and suppers keep our accounts healthy.’
The staff left the room to go for their lunch break, leaving Kitty and Matt alone.
‘Talking of Vivien and Bobby, have you seen them at all since yesterday?’
‘No, I’ve been busy in here all morning.’
Matt produced a folded copy of the Torbay Herald from under his arm. ‘Walter has certainly done his bit to publicise the ball.’ He opened the paper out to show her. There was a picture of Vivien subtitled ‘enchanting American chanteuse’, and a glowing paragraph of praise for the promised delights of the masked ball at the Dolphin Hotel.
‘Hmm, I do hope he’s not trying to ingratiate himself with me again. Oh, perhaps this is what Bobby was handing to Walter.’ Kitty rolled her eyes.
‘But Walter is such a catch.’ Matt grinned at her and stepped swiftly sideways when she lobbed a mock punch at his arm. ‘And somehow I don’t think it was simply publicity material in that envelope.’
Kitty’s laughter was cut short by the arrival of Vivien to inspect her new set. ‘Darling, peacocks, how quaint. I do hope they won’t be unlucky though, the evil eye and all.’
‘I’m sure you’ll have a full house. You have a wonderful piece in the local paper.’ Kitty reopened the newspaper to show her.
Vivien gave her an indulgent smile. ‘Marvellous, darling, Bobby has done a great job. Did you say your grandmother would be here in time for the performance?’
Kitty shook her head. ‘No, my aunt Livvy is very frail since her fall, so it’s taking them longer than they thought to get here. You may get to meet her if they arrive before you leave to board your ship.’
Vivien pouted. ‘I’d like to meet her. I heard so much about her from your mother. It must have been so hard for her when Elowed went missing, having all her things around her every day while she waited for her to come back.’
‘Yes, I think she must have found it distressing.’ Matt’s tone was bland.
‘I have very few things of my mother’s, that’s why it was so upsetting when my room was burgled, and my cuckoo clock was broken. It was one of the few things I had that had been hers.’ Kitty wished now she’d kept the broken clock. Instead she’d asked the maid sorting out her room to get rid of it.
‘Those ugly brown wooden things with the bears and such on the front are terribly old hat now, honey. I’m sure you’ll be able to get something much nicer to replace it,’ Vivien said lightly as she wandered over to the piano and idly pressed a couple of keys.
‘Perhaps, but it won’t have the memories.’ Kitty wished Vivien would leave and let her get on with preparing the room. Her lack of sensitivity was as annoying as her soft, southern drawl.
Matt waited until Vivien had finished her tour of inspection and gone back to her room.
‘How did she know what your mother’s clock looked like?’ he asked.
Kitty frowned. ‘I don’t know, I didn’t notice that, I was too annoyed at how insensitively she was behaving over my mother’s disappearance.’
‘She was fishing to find out if your mother had any other belongings stashed anywhere. I suspect that’s why she’s keen to meet your grandmother.’ Matt refolded the newspaper.
‘Do you think she was the person who broke into my room?’
‘She knew what the clock was like and Bobby could have been keeping lookout for her to make sure we didn’t go upstairs. The way your room had been ransacked, it looked as if it had been searched in a hurry and there is no other way she could have described your clock.’
Kitty shuddered. ‘That’s horrid. Whoever broke my clock did it in temper; it looked as if it had been thrown against the wall. It could explain why Bobby always appears to be loitering around the lobby too.’ The idea that it could have been Vivien who had searched her room and broken her clock angered her deeply.
‘Good morning, Miss Underhay, Captain Bryant. I trust you’ve both recovered from your adventures the other night?’ Inspector Greville strolled into the ballroom and glanced around at the decorations. His expression appeared to indicate he was impressed by the new décor.
‘Yes, thank you,’ Kitty replied. Her heart thumped a little faster. It was illogical, she knew, but she hoped he wasn’t there to say he’d arrested her father, or that he’d somehow found out that she had the ruby in her possession.
‘Any news on Cora or Hubert Farjeon’s murders?’ Matt asked.
‘There’s been a suspected sighting of Colin Wakes a few miles from here. Constable Jones is checking it out.’ Greville paced up and down in front of them. ‘I would like to have two of my men in attendance at the ball here tonight, Miss Underhay, if that would be acceptable?’
‘I see. Not in uniform, I hope, Inspector Greville. My guests would be most alarmed at the sight of uniformed constables near the dance floor. The recent events in the town have already caused a great deal of concern.’
The inspector paused in his pacing. ‘Your guests will be unaware of their presence, I assure you.’
Kitty swallowed the lump of fear in her throat. There was a sense of relief from knowing that the police would be on the premises, vying with a dread that there might be more events yet to come. ‘Thank you, Inspector, that does reassure me. Do you anticipate any further problems during the ball?’ She wasn’t sure how to phrase the question.
He appeared to be considering what information he could share, his brow furrowi
ng. ‘I do have some concerns, Miss Underhay. Those are that whoever is searching for this gem is unlikely to cease until they either obtain it or are caught. I am also concerned that you personally may be in some danger.’ His eyes appeared to bore into hers and Kitty’s conscience gave her a sharp prick when she thought of the ruby, carefully locked away inside her grandmother’s secret safe.
‘I shall do my utmost to ensure Miss Underhay’s safety,’ Matt said.
The inspector raised his left eyebrow slightly in a thoughtful fashion. ‘I don’t doubt that, Captain Bryant, but I do not wish to see either of you hurt or worse. This person or persons have already murdered three people and violently assaulted another.’
‘I understand, sir.’ A look appeared to pass between Matt and the inspector.
‘Please continue to be alert and report any suspicions to me. Good day, Miss Underhay, Captain Bryant.’ He raised his hat and sauntered out of the ballroom.
‘Do you think he really is expecting trouble at the ball this evening?’ Kitty asked as soon as the door had closed behind him.
‘I don’t know. I can understand his concern. There will be a lot of people here tonight. Everyone will be wearing masks up until the midnight reveal. The potential is there for someone unscrupulous to try something.’
‘At least the police will be in the ballroom. You and I will be there, and Mickey and the night porter will add to our security.’
‘I’d still feel better if you weren’t in possession of that damned ruby.’ The ferocity of his muttered response did nothing to reassure her.
Matt too wondered exactly what Inspector Greville thought might happen, and what he had asked his men to look out for. It could be that he suspected Edgar Underhay or Colin Wakes might attend the ball, their identities safely concealed behind their masks. That same thought had come into his own mind, and he was pretty sure it had entered Kitty’s too. He also wondered if the policeman suspected that Kitty had the ruby.
The staff returned from their lunch break to finish setting out the ballroom, and he escorted Kitty to the dining room for luncheon.
Vivien and Bobby were seated at their usual table and already finishing dessert as they entered the room. Matt noticed Vivien studiously ignore them as they were shown to a quiet table on the far side.
Kitty appeared preoccupied as she gave her lunch order to the waiter and he suspected that the inspector’s warning was playing on her mind.
‘Do you think your father will attempt to contact you this evening?’ he asked, once the soup course had been set before them.
Kitty crumbled a small portion of her bread roll between her fingers. ‘He would be mad or extremely reckless if he did, wouldn’t he? There will be so many people around, and who knows who will be watching me, hoping to find him?’
On the edge of his vision, Matt could see Bobby. He thought the man appeared uncomfortable. He had his gaze fixed on whatever was outside the window and was fidgeting in his seat.
‘What are you looking at?’ Kitty asked, her voice soft.
‘Bobby and Vivien. Especially Bobby, he’s acting most oddly.’
‘I can’t see properly from here,’ Kitty grumbled. ‘What is happening?’
The waiter cleared their soup bowls and returned with the cheese omelettes and salad garnish they had ordered for their second course.
Matt continued to discreetly watch as another waiter approached Bobby and Vivien’s table. He appeared to hand Bobby a note. As he opened the sheet of paper and read the contents, Bobby’s normally florid complexion changed to ghostly white then to mottled purple fury. The waiter appeared to ask if there was a reply. As Bobby shook his head, the waiter took his leave.
Within seconds of the man withdrawing, Bobby’s head was close to Vivien’s and they seemed to be locked in a heated discussion.
‘What’s happening?’ Kitty asked.
‘Bobby has received some kind of note which appeared to upset him and now he and Vivien are having quite a conversation.’
‘She had better not let me down tonight.’ Kitty speared a piece of her omelette with her fork.
Matt wished he could follow Bobby and Vivien as they left the dining room. He would love to know what was going on. Instead, he called over the young waiter who had delivered the note to Bobby.
‘You took a message to Miss Delaware’s table a few minutes ago. May we know who the message was from?’ Matt asked.
The lad glanced at Kitty in confusion as if unsure if it was permissible to answer Matt’s query. On receiving her slight nod of consent, he started to talk. ‘A boy brought it to the front desk, sir, said he’d been promised a shilling to make sure the gentleman dining with Miss Delaware got the message.’
‘I see, I don’t suppose you happened to catch sight of the message at all?’ Matt asked.
The young waiter shook his head. ‘No, sir, the gentleman seemed most put out by the note. Quite angry, he seemed, said there was no reply.’
‘Did he say anything at all as he read the message?’ Kitty asked. ‘Please think, it could be very important.’
‘He muttered something, miss, under his breath, like. I don’t know if it’s important or not, though. He said something about a pound of flesh.’ The boy looked perplexed.
Kitty exchanged a glance with Matt.
‘Thank you, you’ve been very helpful.’ Kitty smiled at the waiter and he dashed back to his work with an air of relief.
‘We had better stay alert. It appears that something is happening,’ Matt said.
Kitty looked at Matt. ‘I agree.’
Chapter Twenty-Five
The masked ball was due to open at eight in the evening and to continue until one in the morning the next day. The house band was to play for the first two hours, followed by Vivien Delaware’s performance for an hour. Piano music would play during the supper for the ticket holders, followed by the unmasking at midnight, with Miss Delaware singing once more for the grand finale of the evening’s entertainment.
Matt had arranged to meet Kitty in her grandmother’s suite so they would go down to the ball together. Since the burglary, she had been reluctant to return to her own room until all the new locks and security devices had been put in place, which had been delayed by the carpenter and his slow pace of work.
The muffled sound of voices from within the room reached him as he raised his hand to knock on the door. His pulse quickened. Surely her father had not managed to gain admission?
‘Come in,’ Kitty called.
To his relief, he discovered she was seated at the bureau, holding the telephone receiver in her hand, her mask beside her. ‘Yes, Grams, it’s Matt. We’re about to go downstairs to the ballroom now. Did you wish to speak to him?’
Matt raised an eyebrow in enquiry.
‘Yes, of course. Matt, Grams would like to speak to you.’
He accepted the receiver from her as she stood and walked away to stand in the window that overlooked the river.
‘Mrs Treadwell, good evening.’ He watched Kitty as she carefully tidied the roses her father had sent her. She looked so slender and delicate as she worked.
‘Matthew, Livvy and I hope to be at the hotel by late afternoon the day after tomorrow. Kitty assures me that this Inspector Greville is providing protection for her within the hotel. Is this correct?’ Her tone was anxious.
‘Yes, two men will be stationed within the ballroom this evening. Don’t worry, the guests won’t know who they are.’
‘She said that scoundrel, Edgar Underhay, has had the temerity to try to contact her.’
‘Indeed, Mrs Treadwell.’ He glanced at Kitty. She had her back to him as she stared out at the night, her delicate gold dress shimmering and sparkling in the light of the side table lamps.
‘Captain Bryant, Matthew, I beg you to take care of her. She can sometimes be too much like her mother; soft-hearted, impulsive and headstrong. That man is a manipulator and a rogue. I lost her poor mother, please, don’t let anyth
ing happen to Kitty.’ Her voice quavered on the line.
‘I will do my best, Mrs Treadwell.’ Her plea made him uncomfortable. Hadn’t he already pledged those same words to another parent? His own darling Edith’s widowed father had made the same request of him on their wedding day. ‘Promise me that you’ll take good care of my girl.’ His father-in-law’s words still haunted him even though he knew there was nothing he could have done to prevent what had happened to Edith and Betty in those grim, dark days of the war.
‘Kitty told me about the tunnels. I always wondered and worried for years that Elowed might have been taken into one of them.’ The old woman’s voice cracked. ‘It’s the not knowing that is the hardest. Thinking I see her on the street, passing by in an omnibus, walking in the park.’
‘I understand.’ Sometimes he thought he saw Edith. So many others had also lost loved ones, sons, brothers, nephews, during the war. Missing; believed killed. No body to bury, no grave to mourn at, and the faint, desperate hope that somehow, somewhere, they might have survived, perhaps concussed or injured, with no memory to guide them home.
‘That Colin Wakes was always a bad lot. His father was the same; in and out of prison. Poor Cora was too weak with Colin, always giving him money, making excuses, poor soul.’
‘You think he may be involved in the murders?’ Matt asked.
‘He would sell his own granny for a shilling, so I don’t doubt he is up to no good, but murder? Well, murder is another matter, Captain Bryant.’
Mrs Treadwell’s warnings rang in his ears as he walked down the broad oak staircase to the lobby with Kitty, her hand on his arm. They had carefully donned their masks before leaving the suite. His mask was plain black velvet, covering his eye area and the bridge of his nose. Kitty’s mask was gold and glittery to match her dress.
The sound of the band greeted them as they descended the last few steps. Everywhere was a hive of activity, with guests arriving for the evening’s entertainment. Ladies in fur stoles chattered and kissed cheeks as they greeted each other, while the men shook hands and looked pleased with themselves. The night porter stood by the front door, and along the corridor, next to the cloakroom, was Mickey, resplendent in an ancient evening suit.