by Mark Hayden
‘Some of it.’
‘Raven was obsessed about the new kingdom of Wessex. She said we should change our statutes to allow one of us to stand. She even hinted that she’d changed her mind about having men in the Covens.’
‘And that’s why Georgia is Alys’s new best friend,’ I said.
‘Pretty much.’ She hesitated. ‘Did you know that three of the full Coven members are in long-term relationships with men?’ I shook my head and frowned. ‘You just can’t be married, that’s all, and your children have to be educated in single sex streams from eleven.’
I pulled my lip. Mina started to shuffle papers together.
‘There’s one more thing,’ I said. ‘I found this in Mowbray’s desk.’
I opened the folder and took out a big bundle of envelopes. They were greeting cards, each one addressed to Eseld Mowbray at the Pellacombe cover address.
‘Birthday cards,’ said Isolde. She reached out reflexively and stroked the envelopes. ‘Arthur must have intercepted them.’ She looked up at me. ‘Eseld must think I’ve forgotten. That was mean of him.’
‘No, mum,’ said Cador in a very small voice. ‘It was worse. Much worse. Every year, he’d tell her that you’d sent one. He wouldn’t let her have it because she destroyed the first four. Burnt them in front of me. He said he was hanging on to them for her.’
Isolde started to cry.
‘Can I take those?’ said Cador. ‘I’ll hang on to them like Dad did.’
I slid the pile across to him and said, ‘You may want to be with your mother, or you may want to join your family in the main hall. Ethan is addressing the staff. We couldn’t keep it from them any longer.’
‘Shit,’ he said without thinking, and half rose from his seat. ‘Erm, Mum…’
‘Go,’ she said. ‘I’ll go down to the dock and talk to Raven, if that’s okay.’
‘We’re done,’ I said. I stood and let them out of the door back to the morning room.
‘Well?’ said Mina. ‘Where do we go from here? We are sure about Isolde, aren’t we?’
‘We are. Any woman who still calls Lord Mowbray Arthur couldn’t stand in front of him and watch his heart blown out of his chest.’
I leaned against the fireplace and did a couple of stretches to try and get the tension out of my leg. Something stirred at the back of my mind and then disappeared when Mina spoke.
‘Do all tall people snore, or is it just you and Raven?’
‘I wouldn’t know, and I don’t snore that much.’
‘You do sometimes. Now I know why they put her in a room of her own.’
I froze, one leg in the air. ‘What did you say?’
‘When Erin and I interrupted their beauty sleep, Raven came out first, from the single room nearest the fire doors.’
‘Double shit. Ow, my leg hurts. Run after Isolde and stop her, love. Scout! Find Isolde.’
He shot out of the door with Mina in hot pursuit. Mina would have headed for the main hall, but Scout led her into the room that the Daughters had used for the conference, and out of the door in there. I tried to relax my muscles and the thought buried at the back of my head sent me a note. I now knew who had killed Lord Mowbray, and I had a fairly good idea why. I gave my leg a shake and set off after the others.
39 — Teamwork
They hadn’t got far. At the far corner of the house, leading down to the docks, Isolde was trying to stop Scout nipping her ankles. Mina caught up with them and pointed to me. I walked steadily, lengthening my stride to get rid of the last of the cramp.
‘What’s going on?’ said Isolde, blinking tears away from her eyes. It was much lighter now, heading towards a bright crisp sunrise.
‘Who slept in which room last night, and how did it happen?’ I said.
‘What?’
‘Just tell me. This really is important.’
She blew out her cheeks, thought for a moment and gave a self-deprecating smile. ‘When Eseld turned up, just before the banquet, I thought she wanted to see me. I’ve thought it every time I’ve seen her, but she grabbed Morning and asked what was going on. I was so proud of her it was devastating.’
She trailed off into silence.
‘Why? What did she do?’ said Mina, putting her arm round Isolde.
‘She didn’t put herself first. She thought of Signe, and of how Signe must feel with her mother in hospital. She told us to let Signe have the single room and to stop arguing. Then she just left. She didn’t even ignore me, she just left.’
I gave her a moment to get past the worst of the pain. ‘What happened next?’
She pulled herself together. ‘Because we’d lose face if there was any more arguing, we had to find a solution. Signe said something like, “I wouldn’t inflict Raven’s snoring on anyone. I’ll share with Morning, if that’s okay.” And then Alys jumped straight in with, “And I shall share with Zoe and Brook.” And that was that. We all got on with it.’
‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘Come on, Mina. I wonder if the staff meeting is still going on.’
We hurried along the path. ‘What?’ said Mina.
‘Morning and Signe,’ I said. ‘They did it. Specifically, Morning did the actual killing and Signe did the Necromancy. They had to be sleeping in a room together for it to work.’
We had arrived at the main entrance. The grand doors had been closed to keep the cold out. I pushed slowly at one and dislodged a rugged man who’d been leaning against them. He jumped away and moved to protect his wife – Leah Kershaw was sitting just inside the hall, cradling her bump. To the right of the doors were Michael, his sisters and his mother. His father was no doubt still checking over the Smurf. There was no sign of Erin, but I could make out Saffron’s halo of white hair.
‘Keep the door open,’ I whispered to Mina.
Half way up the stairs, Ethan and Cador were taking questions. The rest of the Mowbrays were gathered at the bottom. As soon as we entered, the great space fell deathly quiet, and Eseld started to push her way through the crowd. There were a lot of people in there. It must have been every worker and tenant on the estate.
I used my height to peer over the throng, searching for Lena. Yes! She was still wearing the Steward’s badge. ‘Kommen sie her, bitte. Langsam. Ist wichtig.’
Ethan’s German had got beyond the very basics, and he understood the first part: Come here. Whether he got the rest (Slowly. It’s important) is another matter.
The crowd was focusing on Eseld’s more aggressive progress through their number, and barely noticed Lena join her slipstream. A space appeared in front of the door, and Eseld filled it.
‘Well?’ she said. ‘Have you arrested the bitch, or is she already dead? I can hope.’
The crowd immediately swelled with a murmur of anticipation, and I addressed myself to them, not Eseld. ‘Even if we’ve not spoken, you all know who I am. This is a very difficult time for everyone here, and I know I can rely on your support to find out what happened. Ethan? Have you told them the timescale?’
From the stairs, Ethan said, ‘I’ve asked for anyone who saw or heard anything to speak up. No one did.’
Lena had arrived and had slipped past Eseld to stand with Mina at the open door.
‘Then I shall leave you in peace.’
I made one last scan of the room, and there was one face missing. Shit. I walked backwards out of the hall, and when I’d crossed the threshold, I said, ‘Close the door, Eseld.’
She slammed it with anger and turned to face us. ‘Well?’
‘It’s not your mother. Call Saffron and tell her to meet us in the King’s Watch suite. We’ll sort it in there.’
Lena was now looking unsure. The hate and anger in Eseld’s eyes would put anyone on their guard. ‘Ist nicht du,’ I said, forgetting for a moment and using the familiar form: It’s not you. ‘Let’s take the fire escape route.’
I held my arm for Lena to go first, and she bustled off. Eseld took out her phone and followed behind. I heard her s
aying, ‘No, I don’t fucking know what he’s up to, but if he doesn’t sort it out soon, he’ll regret it.’
The first rays of the sun were kissing the top of Lamorne Point across the bay when we got back to the suite. Scout immediately started sniffing around, checking for stray Spirits, I suppose. When he found none, he curled up in his basket. It had already been a long day, and it was barely dawn.
Saffron was there ahead of us.
‘Where’s Erin?’ I said.
‘She’s helping the staff by keeping an eye on some of the pots in the kitchen. And raiding the fridge, I expect. She’s got the munchies after last night.’
‘Sit down, everyone,’ I said. ‘I’m just going to grab something from your bag, love.’
Mina raised her eyebrows, but said nothing. I made the mad dive into Mina’s overnight bag and emerged with what I needed. When we were investigating the Flint Hoard, she’d taken to packing a jeweller’s loupe along with everything else. Perfect for getting the evidence I knew had to be there.
‘Lena, can I have the Steward’s badge, please?’
She lifted the heavy metal medallion off her neck and handed it to me by the ribbon. I took it over to the window and peered through the loupe. There. She hadn’t even tried to wash it off. Probably didn’t notice in the rush to get changed and wash herself. I owed it to Eseld to let her see the evidence with her own eyes.
‘Take a look at this,’ I said.
She got up and joined me at the window. She scanned the badge and ribbon for a second, and then said, ‘What am I looking at?’
‘Your father’s blood. Kerenza wore this to get into the Lab, and she was still wearing it when he died.’
‘No! It can’t be her.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because she may be a failed actress, but she’s the best thing that’s happened to Dad in years. You saw the way he dotes on little Grace.’
‘Izzi. With an i. Her name’s Izzi.’
‘Who? Kerenza? I know that’s a stage name, but she’s had it since she was sixteen.’
‘Not Kerenza. Grace. Until her mother met your father, Grace was Isolde. Izzi. Any mother who would make her daughter change her name like that is capable of anything.’
‘What? No.’
‘I’m afraid so. We could get the ribbon DNA tested. Unless she confesses, we’ll have to.’
Eseld was still holding the medallion. She looked at it again, focusing on the metal this time, and not the ribbon. ‘You’re right. There’s organic matter here.’ She looked up. ‘Why? Why would she?’
‘That can wait. We need to get hold of her. Lena, why wasn’t Kerenza at the staff meeting?’
‘She said she had to wake Grace and tell her what had happened.’
‘Does Grace have a separate room?’
‘Ja. With bathroom.’
‘Then that’s where she hid the evidence and got herself cleaned up. Let’s go.’
Eseld had finally accepted the truth, and moved on to the next stage. ‘Who did she do it with? We’re back to square one. It could be anyone.’
‘Later,’ I said. I took the medallion gently from her hand and gave it to Mina. ‘Take the ribbon off and put it in a plastic bag, then give the badge to Lena.’ She nodded. ‘Where’s Kerenza’s car?’
‘At Lamorne.’
‘Let’s just hope that she can’t get the engine started on the skiff,’ I said, knowing full well that she had plenty of time to get away. ‘Let’s go.’
I ran down the back stairs as fast as I could, with Eseld and Saffron on my heels. When we scooted through the family area, I could hear voices as the staff dispersed from the meeting. We ran into the bedroom corridor and heard frantic pounding from one of the doors to the left.
‘Let me,’ said Eseld.
She used her key – and a little extra magick – to open the door. A hysterical Grace/Izzi was standing behind it, still in her pony pyjamas, screaming for her mother. She’d been locked in.
I didn’t bother trying to ask her any questions, but I did open the laundry basket. Half way down, I found a sopping wet bath towel. ‘She used this to dry the shower after she … after she came here.’
Saffron was at the back, and turned to run towards the dock. I paused to say, ‘Someone’s coming, Izzi. We’re going to find your mummy, OK?’
I ran after the others as fast as I could. Nowhere near fast enough. When I emerged into the office, three women were staring open mouthed through the windows. A nightmare vision of Saffron dying to protect Kerenza flooded through my mind. Upstairs, she’d been rational, but Eseld was on a hair trigger. If she attacked Kerenza…
I flung the door open and stopped in my tracks. Eseld was going for Kerenza, but it wasn’t Saffron protecting our killer, it was Raven.
The giant Witch was standing by the dock, one hand clamped on Kerenza’s shoulder. Kerenza had been forced into a kneeling position and was trying to dislodge Raven’s mighty claw. In front of them, Eseld was being restrained by Saffron. Eseld had lifted her left hand, and I could feel the heat of Lux from over here. Raven was grinning, an even scarier look than normal. Scout had got there, too, and as the magick built, he turned and ran to me.
‘Enough!’ I shouted. ‘Eseld, back off.’
She turned to look at me, and Saffron took the opportunity to drag her further away from Raven. When I’d got closer, Saff let go, moving to stand between Eseld and Kerenza.
‘Is it true?’ said Raven. ‘She came out of the cottage, carrying those.’
I hadn’t noticed the suitcase a little further down the dock. Next to it was a black bin liner. ‘Saff, check them out.’
As well as struggling, Kerenza had been shouting. I only realised when I saw her mouth move in silence. Or Silence. A knee-high Silence. Neat.
‘It’s true,’ I said. ‘We have proof.’
Raven’s face turned impassive. Whatever she thought of Kerenza’s betrayal, it didn’t make it to her eyes. ‘What shall I do with her?’
‘Hold her a second longer.’
I checked Kerenza for Artefacts and removed a small chain of them, far fewer than I’d expected. I took out a cable tie and, when Raven applied a little extra pain, I got Kerenza’s arms behind her and secured her hands. ‘You can let go now.’
Raven cancelled the Silence and removed her hand. I dragged Kerenza to her feet and said, ‘By the powers granted to me, you are under arrest for murder and suspicion of regicide. You will answer to the appropriate court.’
‘Sir!’ shouted Saffron. The black bag was open at her feet and she held up a low cut top. ‘Bloodstains.’
‘That’s disgusting,’ said Eseld.
‘What is?’ said Raven.
I answered. ‘After she killed Lord Mowbray, Kerenza hid her clothes in Grace’s room and took a shower in there to wash away the blood. The only thing she couldn’t hide was the Steward’s badge. We found blood on it. The disgusting part is that she did it with her daughter there.’ I turned to our prisoner. ‘Did you use magick or tranquilisers to put her out? I’m thinking drugs.’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Kerenza. ‘I haven’t killed anyone.’
Eseld leaned forwards. ‘It’ll be in your hair. You didn’t wash that. I’m going to cut it off. Not for evidence, you understand, but so you won’t go to your grave with my father’s remains on you.’ She paused. Kerenza was just about hanging on. Eseld leaned even closer. ‘Did you read the Deed? Regicide is a reserved crime. You’ll be tried in Kernow and I’ll ask for the death penalty.’
Kerenza looked at me. Her voice trembled. ‘Get her away from me.’
‘Why should I? What she says is true. I’ve done my bit. I can get in my car and drive away with my conscience clear. After a good breakfast, of course.’
‘You can’t!’
I turned to Eseld. ‘You will wait until after breakfast to hold the trial, won’t you.’
‘I’ll chain her up in the Labyrinth until after the f
uneral.’
Kerenza’s voice broke completely. ‘Stop her. Please.’
‘Why should I?’
‘Because I didn’t kill him!’
‘Then explain the blood.’
‘They made me. They made me do it.’
‘Who did?’
She shook her head.
I turned and shouted to Saffron. ‘Anything else of interest?’
‘Lots of gold in the suitcase.’
I started to walk towards my partner. From behind me, I heard Eseld whispering something in Kerenza’s ear. I got to Saffron and peered down.
‘It was Morning,’ said Kerenza. ‘She killed him! And Signe bottled his Spirit.’
Eseld Grabbed Kerenza’s hair and twisted it so violently that the other woman sank to her knees with her neck close to breaking. ‘Is his Spirit still intact? Tell me.’
‘I don’t know. I don’t understand. She drew it back down from upstairs. Then we ran. That’s all I know.’
Raven moved like lightning, grabbing Eseld’s bicep and squeezing.
‘Aagh,’ said Eseld. She let go of her nearly step-mother and clutched her arm.
Raven slowly put her index finger on Kerenza’s chest, right above her heart. ‘Say that again.’
‘What?’
‘Who did it. Who helped you.’
‘Morning. And Signe. They called me when I went to check on Grace, after the banquet. They made me let them into the Labyrinth and distract Mowbray.’ She looked down at the finger on her chest. Her arms flexed as she tried to break the cable tie. ‘They threatened to hurt Grace. I had no choice.’
‘Liar,’ said Eseld. ‘Morning would never hurt a young girl. You were in on it with them. Why did you do it?’
‘We can argue about that later,’ I said. ‘We need to stop that bus before it gets to Glastonbury. And we’ve got an audience.’
Raven withdrew her finger slowly and we turned to look. Most of the staff had gathered in a semi-circle on the dock, with the family in front. The only person with their back to us was Mina, holding her arms out and using sheer willpower to keep everyone at bay.