by Guy Adams
‘What’s happened?’ asked Shining, walking up to Mark Rowlands, who was supervising.
‘Translator working with HMDS,’ he said, ‘managed to fall over in the bathroom and brain herself.’
‘You’re obviously cut up about it,’ said Toby.
‘Damn right. This whole conference is a big enough mess without this sort of thing. Now I’m having to run around tidying up after the clumsy.’
Shining turned on Rowlands and Toby took a step back. His employer was unquestionably one of the gentlest men he had ever met, which is not to say that a special kind of idiot didn’t bring something ferocious to the man’s surface on occasion.
‘A woman is dead and all you can do is whinge like an infant? What sort of pathetic man are you?’
‘I beg your pardon?’ Rowlands almost choked with shock.
‘Not only pathetic but idiotic. We have three deaths that could seem like accidents, and now a fourth. How stupid do you have to be to ignore that?’
‘The whole thing was so obvious we may as well have caught it on camera,’ Rowlands shouted. ‘She cuts her thumb on a pair of nail scissors, runs to the bathroom, bleeding like a stuck pig, slips, falls into the bathtub, hits her head going down. Only someone stupid would try and turn it into something it clearly isn’t. Stupid or mad.’
‘Mad? I’m beginning to think I must be … Did you not read the reports on the other deaths? Have you not twigged the fact that they all appeared natural?’
‘Yes, they did. And in my opinion obviously were …’
‘Then you’re so mentally deficient you shouldn’t even be here!’ Shining shouted. Toby noted a couple of Rowlands’ men smirked at that. ‘What’s the bloody point of you?’ He did his best to calm down. ‘Why did nobody think to come to us with this?’
‘You’re here under sufferance—’
‘Oh I know, and so far it’s everyone but you who is suffering. Which was her room?’
‘We’ve been all over it—’
‘I doubt that. Was it wet?’
Rowlands paused and that was enough for Shining.
‘It was! And that wasn’t enough for you to twig there might be more to this than met the eye?’
‘Look …’ but Rowlands was on the back foot now and Shining knew it. He moved over to the body bag, unzipped it and made a cursory examination.
‘Medical expert now, are you?’ Rowlands asked.
Shining ignored the comment. ‘What room?’ he asked again.
‘Ophelia,’ said one of the other men. ‘East Wing.’
‘Thank you!’ Shining replied spinning around and walking back towards the house.
‘Impossible man,’ said Rowlands.
‘Oh, piss off,’ said Toby, unable to help himself, before following on after his Section Chief.
b) Lufford Hall, Alcester, Warwickshire
By the time Toby caught up with Shining, the man was working out his anger by bounding up the stairs two at a time. It never ceased to amaze Toby how much energy the older man possessed.
‘I’ve spent the whole morning telling you not to get cross, haven’t I?’ Shining asked, finally pausing at the entrance to the East Wing.
‘Yes, but I don’t hold it against you. He had it coming.’
‘He did.’ Shining agreed and pushed the door open.
They walked along the corridor, checking the names on the doors. They found the Ophelia suite and made their way inside.
The security officers had done their best to tidy up after themselves, acting with the sort of automatic arrogance that only really comes from inflated authority. There would be no police investigation here, just an investigative report signed off and rubber-stamped by offices nobody could even begin to argue with. Eventually, a family would be left to wonder exactly what had happened to their daughter and why they seemed to have been told so little about it.
The curtains had been drawn, the brightness belying the eerie patter of bloodstains leading towards the bathroom. Those stains were now part of an extensive network of markings, the wet carpet having taken an impression of the muddy shoes of those who had come in after. Looking around, Shining could partially recreate the work of the security officers as they had moved around the room, searching for sensitive material and indications of foul play.
‘Clod-hopping lot,’ he said, standing up straight and moving through to the bathroom. Here the officers had made more of an attempt to clear up, the bath had been showered down in a rush, the corner of the soap dish still bore a smudge and a couple of hairs. ‘To hell with the truth, just make it go away, that’s the Security Service way.’
‘The bed’s soaked, too,’ said Toby, still in the bedroom. ‘I can’t understand how they could just ignore the fact.’
‘Because sometimes that’s easier,’ Shining replied, appearing in the bathroom doorway. ‘Rowlands can’t believe in the real solution so he ignores the evidence that makes it undeniable. He isn’t the first, won’t be the last.’
‘But it’s stupid.’
‘It’s human nature. Minds are born open and then are slowly closed shut from that point on.’ Shining tapped at his chin. ‘I wonder how the curse was sent. Not digitally, unless she had snuck a phone or something in.’
‘There’s no sign of anything,’ said Toby, ‘unless Rowlands has it.’
‘I doubt he’d see it as significant. After all, he doesn’t believe in the curse as a method of assassination. I suppose it’s not altogether important. “How” is neither here nor there. A note would do it. “Who” is what we need to know.’
Toby nodded. ‘Another thing: if the curtains were closed then it happened overnight,’ said Toby, ‘before you put the marks on the wall.’
‘Yes. Though that leaves one other small detail we need to know.’
‘The light?’ Toby moved over to the light switch but paused before flicking it on.
‘Precisely. She was fully clothed. It’s safe to assume she hadn’t gone to bed. So she can’t have been sat here in the dark cutting her nails.’
‘She was sat by the dresser,’ Toby pointed towards the initial sign of blood on the carpet. ‘The curse spirit appears, she’s shocked, cuts herself …’
‘Backs away,’ continued Shining, edging back into the bathroom, ‘hits the edge of the bath …’
‘Or just slips, we know this thing increases the chances for an accident.’
‘Absolutely. Into the bath she goes.’
‘So we need to know if the light was still on when Rowlands found her.’
‘Yes, chances are the killer is the one who turned it off when they checked up on their work but we need to know for sure. Won’t it be fun to ask? Maybe we should try and make friends with one of his subordinates.’
‘Could be easier. I’ll do that, you get a print off the switch and finish off whatever needs to be done with the chalk and the candle.’
Shining nodded. ‘Yes, boss. Meet you by the front entrance in half an hour.’
c) Lufford Hall, Alcester, Warwickshire
Toby intended to avoid Rowlands as the only thing he was likely to share with him was punches.
Stepping out onto the balcony over the main entrance hall, he saw the small team of security officers gathered at the centre of the chessboard floor. Rowlands was whispering instructions to them, pointing for two of them to stay by the conference room while the other three accompanied him towards the rear of the house.
Whatever you’re up to, Toby thought, I hope you stay out of my way while you’re doing it.
He descended the stairs and moved over towards the conference room where the two remaining security officers stood.
‘Nobody else died since we last met?’ he asked with what he hoped was a suitably friendly smile.
‘We’re taking bets on your boss being the next in line,’ said one of them, a black guy who clearly worked out so hard Toby was surprised the floor tiles didn’t crack underneath him as he walked.
‘Yeah, wel
l, he’s normally a mild-mannered old thing.’
‘Rowlands isn’t,’ the man admitted.
‘Why don’t you shut up?’ the other officer suggested. ‘He doesn’t want us talking to either of the spooks.’
‘Just being friendly,’ the black guy replied. ‘I’m Arnold and this grumpy sod is Bateman.’
‘Toby.’ He shook Arnold’s hand. ‘Bateman your first name?’ he asked the other.
‘Piss off.’
‘Some parents have no shame.’
Arnold smirked slightly at that. Bateman was obviously not all that popular. ‘How did you end up working for Shining, then?’ he asked.
‘Fucked up,’ said Bateman.
‘True enough,’ admitted Toby. ‘It’s not worked out badly, though.’
‘You hear stories,’ said Arnold. ‘The old guy’s been in the Service for years.’
‘Which speaks for itself,’ said Toby. ‘Our caseload is unusual but the man’s a genius.’
‘Not if he picks fights with Rowlands, he isn’t,’ said Bateman. ‘Rowlands is going places.’
‘Oh,’ said Toby, ‘like that, is it? I remember when some of us looked at this job as a vocation as well as a career.’
‘Eh?’ said Bateman.
‘Doesn’t matter.’ Toby turned back to Arnold. ‘Who found the body upstairs?’
Arnold grinned. ‘Shining’s sister. You should have heard her … That whole family’s on Rowlands’ shit list this morning.’
‘I can imagine. She can be—’
‘Called him an “insufferable turd”.’
‘— Outspoken,’ Toby finished. ‘Do you know where she is?’
‘In there.’ Arnold inclined his head towards the conference room. ‘She’s being diplomatic.’
‘Great. Don’t suppose you know when they might be taking a break?’
‘Rowlands rushed them in there while we sorted the upstairs out but they’re not due to start formal discussions just yet so they’ll be back out soon enough. We’ve cleared the Koreans’ rooms and luggage.’
‘Fair enough.’ Toby looked at his watch. ‘I’ll pop back in about twenty minutes. If you see her before then, could you ask her to hang about?’
‘I can try,’ Arnold replied. ‘But she strikes me as the sort of person who doesn’t take kindly to being asked to do anything.’
‘You’re not wrong there,’ Toby admitted. ‘If she kicks up a fuss,’ he nodded at Bateman, ‘get him to shoot her.’
d) Lufford Hall, Alcester, Warwickshire
Toby spent the spare time taking another quick walk around the building. He thought he ought to familiarise himself with it as much as possible.
He found himself in the building’s library, its walls piled high with old books. In the centre was a large, revolving globe, no doubt labelled with countries that hadn’t existed for years.
Climbing up a small stepladder to reach an upper shelf was Fratfield.
‘Short of night-time reading?’ Toby asked.
Fratfield jumped slightly, having not heard Toby come in. He visibly relaxed once he realised who it was. ‘Now if I’d fallen off and broken my neck …’
‘I could have just pretended you were the latest victim.’
Fratfield nodded. ‘Lucy Baxter? Mark is determined to write it off as an accident.’
‘Do you agree with him?’
Fratfield climbed down, an old book in his hand. He turned the cover towards Toby. ‘Don’t laugh.’ It read Ancient Superstitions and the Occult.
‘That’ll keep you up all night.’
Fratfield appeared deeply uncomfortable. ‘I just … Well, it doesn’t seem like it could have been anything but an accident, but after what happened before …’
‘You thought you’d think outside the box a little.’
‘Yeah, which probably seems silly.’
‘Not to me, obviously, though Rowlands would hate you for it.’
‘He’s not so bad you know. He’s just determined to keep this conference safe and when faced with something he doesn’t understand …’
‘He ignores it.’
‘No, he just tries to find an alternative that does fit. That’s no bad thing.’
‘It is if focusing on the alternative makes you ignore what’s really going on.’
‘Yeah, maybe.’ Fratfield held up the book. ‘Which brings me back to this.’ He looked around, trying to pick his words carefully. ‘When you first joined Section 37,’ he said, ‘did you believe in this sort of thing?’
‘Not a word of it. I thought I’d been transferred into the care of the biggest lunatic in the Service.’
‘Which is saying something!’
They both laughed.
‘I say that,’ Toby continued, ‘but it’s not quite true. I didn’t believe in the supernatural, no, or preternatural as Shining calls it, but I didn’t think he was a lunatic. From the first moment I met him he was too …’ he tried to think of a suitable word, ‘together for that. That was the really confusing thing. I couldn’t believe what he was telling me but I also couldn’t write him off. He’s not mad.’
‘No,’ Fratfield admitted, ‘and his record is amazing. Accepting the fact that every report he files gets junked, anyway … People don’t want to talk about him, but when they do they’re like you, they can’t say anything but good things.’
‘I became a believer,’ Toby said, ‘that’s the important thing. In a matter of days.’
‘What convinced you?’
‘My own experience. That’s the only thing that can, really. Being told about things that you think are impossible is never enough, however convincing the person is who’s telling you. You have to experience it. You have to see it. You have to feel it. You have to hold the impossible in your hands, accept it as real and then move on. There’s no point in denying something just because you’re uncomfortable with it, that’s just sticking your head in the sand. I saw so much during those first couple of days in the section, experienced so much … Denying it would have been idiotic. In fact it would probably have killed me.’
‘I’m surprisingly envious,’ Fratfield admitted.
‘I wouldn’t go that far. To be honest it was more comforting to not believe a word of it. The world is a bigger and scarier place for it.’
‘Doesn’t look like it’s knocked you back, though.’
‘No,’ Toby admitted, only too aware that Fratfield had probably read all about him. His record was not exactly glowing. ‘If anything, it’s made me stronger.’
‘Well, then,’ said Fratfield, holding up the book, ‘I’d better get reading.’
e) Lufford Hall, Alcester, Warwickshire
Toby and Shining were lucky in their timing. No sooner had they met at the front entrance and Toby had explained who had discovered the body, than the conference room doors opened and the gathered delegates began to file out.
‘How does she do it?’ Shining wondered, looking at his sister, who was now arm in arm with Tae-young. ‘There’s just no middle ground with her. She’s either your worst enemy or your best friend.’
‘Darlings!’ April waved. ‘Come and meet the loveliest woman in all of South Korea.’
Tae-young laughed in embarrassment and waved the compliment away. Behind her, Chun-hee scowled slightly, clearly uncomfortable at the familiarity being shown by his superior. A little further back and the same look could be seen on Clive King’s face. Toby smiled, he couldn’t help but love the effect April had on her environment, she was like an adorable atomic device.
‘You are April’s brother?’ Tae-young asked, taking August’s hand. ‘You are a very lucky man.’
‘I am,’ August admitted.
‘He doesn’t usually say that,’ April chipped in.
‘As long as he thinks it,’ said Tae-young, turning her attention to Toby. ‘And this is your son, perhaps?’
Toby found himself robbed of words at the thought. As always, April had no such problem. ‘Lord, no,’ she
said. ‘I’m far too young.’
Toby raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He went to introduce himself and suddenly realised he wasn’t used to giving his real name. ‘Toby Greene,’ he said, feeling utterly exposed. ‘I work with Mr Shining.’
‘The only one who does,’ said April, ‘except me, and our upstairs tenant and … oh, lots of people, I suppose, but he’s the only one who gets paid a salary.’
‘Thank you for putting it so well.’ Toby shook Tae-young’s hand.
Clive King was now in a panic that Section 37 had introduced itself to the head of the visiting delegation and buzzed around them desperate to butt in.
‘If you’d like to go to your room now?’ he asked the Koreans.
‘Like naughty children?’ Tae-young laughed.
‘Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. To check that you are happy with your accommodation, I mean.’
‘Dear Clive always likes to make sure a woman is happy in her bedroom, don’t you Clive?’
‘Obviously, I want you all to be happy with the rooms we’ve laid on for you.’ He glared at April. ‘You’re all in the West Wing, if you’d like to follow me?’
‘I like her,’ said April once they had been led away. ‘She’s terribly nice.’
‘I see you’ve made yourself quite at home,’ said Shining.
‘Well, I didn’t have a great deal of choice did I? After that poor Lucy girl—’
‘Which is exactly what we’d like to talk to you about,’ said Shining, taking her arm. ‘A walk in the fresh air, perhaps?’
The three of them stepped outside with April scrabbling in her handbag for her cigarettes. ‘I’m gasping,’ she admitted. ‘Never have I talked for so long without the aid of minty death.’ She put a menthol cigarette in her mouth and began hunting for a lighter. ‘I’m glad they fetched you,’ she said. ‘I rather feared they wouldn’t.’
‘Fetched us?’
‘Oh, the buggers,’ she said, having lit her cigarette. ‘I would have kept schtum until I could have told you myself, but I had to leap into the breach and thought it was a bit off to just leave her up there. Ranesh sent me to fetch her, you see – have either of you seen poor Ranesh? He was terribly cut up about it.’