Edge of Indigo
Page 19
She looked at Riggs defiantly, “Maybe I shouldn’t have saved you, but I guess I took a bit of a liking to you after all…”
“And, isn’t there more, Miss Danes?” inquired Kelly Riggs, his eyebrows raised, his eyes the color of dark pewter.
Kendra Danes shrugged, though she visibly sagged slightly, before gaining control. Her voice took on a prideful tone, that made what followed even more disconcerting, “Oh, I guess you mean the demise of our pirate friends. I didn’t have anything to do with the parrot—or Cutty Shark. Or, the Captain. But Mr. Gee was another matter… I despised him, and his nasty insinuations, and looks…” Kendra Danes’ eyes narrowed slightly, and she said with impish defiance, “I came up behind him, but I made sure he knew it was I, before he, well, you know…”
“With one of your violin strings, Miss?” coaxed Sergeant Bellows gently.
Kendra Danes’ affirmative “Uh, hum,” was barely audible.
Finally, she said, “We tried to make it look like they killed each other, but we heard someone coming, and had to scarper upstairs. Shayne went the back way.”
“And Flora Phipps?”
“Yes,” she said a bit more softly, “I’m afraid so. I ran into her when I came up the stairs, you see, just after Shayne and I had done Mr. Gee and Mr. Shark. And oh, the look she gave me. Those eyes got so wide—terrified she was. She knew, you see… even without being there, she knew… so I just struck her, and struck her and—”
“And then you stole her crystal,” said Riggs, completing the thought.
“Yes, I did that. It was just a silly bauble. But I’m glad I didn’t actually kill her. Not a bad old biddy I suppose, but she knew too much, and this got her out of the way. Oh, well…”
“Having killed once, it was easier the second time, even though thankfully you didn’t succeed.”
She was silent for a few moments and when she spoke the timber of her voice was no longer defiant and bore every trace of defeat. She looked down ruefully at the children, who stood aghast.
“Sorry, kiddos, don’t think it wasn’t fun—while it’s lasted.”
She bore her shame with what little dignity was left to her, giving a deep shrug of her slim shoulders, chin thrust forward, eyes half hidden behind her fair hair. “All right, Inspector, I’m ready.
“The interval has been a bore… shall we get on with the next act?”
Constable Croft took her by the arm and led her away, the rest watching them go, standing in stunned silence.
Then little Jenny burst into tears.
“No, no, no!” She rushed to the back door and managed to fling it open wide. She stumbled across the court to the edge of the rock—and the edge of the world.
She stopped abruptly, and they could tell she was crying. Michael and Mandy wanted to comfort her, but Kelly Riggs restrained them, “Let her have a moment, she’ll be all right.” They waited anxiously beside him at the back door, as the others watched through the large back window.
On the horizon, the glimmering edge of indigo met the hazy morning light of the sky, and a hint of sea-tinted air breathed a warm kiss inland.
Jen’s sobs subsided, and Riggs crossed softly out to her. He reached down an offered his hand, “Up you go, lass.” She took his hand and he hoisted her up into his strong arms. He nodded down at the swatch of plaid in his breast pocket. “Take it.” She gratefully accepted the proffered hankie, and honked heartily, leaving it sodden.
“All better, now?” asked Riggs.
Jen nodded.
“Right, then, down you go.” He put her down, and she almost smiled, offering him back his plaid handkerchief.
“You may keep it as a souvenir, Miss Prescott,” he said. They turned and walked gravely back toward the inn as the others slowly emerged to meet them.
Jen stopped, frowned, placed her tiny fists on her hips, and addressed Michael, Mandy, and everyone there, “Well, if I’ve learned one thing it’s this: we shall have to be very careful, and keep a sharp eye on all our nannies from now on!”
Kelly Riggs smiled his lopsided smile.
And so, the children would, but not before they met again, along with Sergeant Bellows in their next big case—
The Sly Silver Fox
Save the surprise ending for your friends to discover, and remember…
Tell no one!
Further Investigations
Part of detection is making connections.
A Brief Glossary
Acquiesced: give in, surrender
Bowsprit: the foremost part of a ship, extending from the bow, where the forestays fasten
Bubble and Squeak: leftovers, usually vegetables
Cul-de-sac: a dead-end street
Facilitate: assist, help
Fo’c’sle: sailor speak for the forecastle, the forward deck of a ship
Fluctuations: irregular rising and falling within a certain range
Intermittent: off and on, erratic, occasionally
Lugger: small sailing ship with two or three masts, each with lugsails
“Mod-cons”: modern conveniences
Omnipotently: with God-like power
Taper: a long candle, tapered, so the end is smaller the base
Literature
Charteris, Leslie, The Saint series, including: Enter the Saint, Hodder & Staughton, 1930; Knight Templar AKA: The Avenging Saint, Hodder & Staughton, 1930; The Misfortunes of Mr. Teal/ AKA: The Saint in London/ The Saint in England, Hodder & Staughton, 1934; The Saint Goes On, Hodder & Staughton, 1934; The Saint in New York, Hodder & Staughton, 1935; Saint Overboard, Hodder & Staughton, 1936; The Ace of Knaves, Hodder & Staughton, 1937; The Happy Highwayman, Hodder & Staughton, 1939; The Saint in Miami, Hodder & Staughton, 1940; The Saint Goes West, Hodder & Staughton, 1942; Saint Errant, Hodder & Staughton, 1948; The Saint Around the World, Hodder & Staughton, 1956; Thanks to the Saint, Hodder & Staughton, 1957; Trust the Saint, Hodder & Staughton, 1962.
Christie, Agatha, And Then There Were None, (AKA Ten Little Indians) Dodd, Meade, 1940.
Cordingly, David, Pirates: Terror on the High Seas from the Caribbean to the South China Sea, World Publications Group, Inc., 1998.
du Maurier, Daphne, Jamaica Inn, Doubleday, 1936.
du Maurier, Daphne, Rebecca, Doubleday, 1938.
Marquand, J.P., the Mr. Moto series: You’re Turn, Mr. Moto, 1935; Thank You, Mr. Moto, 1935; Think Fast, Mr. Moto, 1937; Mr. Moto is So Sorry, 1938; Last Laugh, Mr. Moto, 1941; Right You Are, Mr. Moto, 1957.
Sabatini, Raphael, Captain Blood, Houghton, Mifflin and Co. Stevenson, Robert Louis, Treasure Island, Scribners, 1911; originally published serially in England as The Sea Cook in Young Folks Magazine, beginning in 1881.
Van Dine, S.S., The Philo Vance series. Philo Vance is an effete, rather snobbish art coinsurer who also assists the New York D.A. and police in solving “locked-room” murder cases: The Benson Murder Case, 1926; The Canary Murder Case, 1927; The Green Murder Case, 1928; The Bishop Murder Case, 1929; The Scarab Murder Case, 1930; The Kennel Murder Case, 1933; The Dragon Murder Case, 1934; The Casino Murder Case, 1934; The Garden Murder Case, 1935; The Kidnap Murder Case, 1936; The Gracie Allen Murder Case, 1938; The Winter Murder Case, 1939.
Cinema
And Then There Were None (1946) B&W, 97 Minutes; Directed by René Claire, based on the novel, (AKA Ten Little Indians) by Agatha Christie, starring Barry Fitzgerald, Walter Houston, Louis Hayward, Roland Young, June Duprez, C. Aubrey Smith, Judith Anderson, Mischa Auer.
This is a tremendous telling of the Christie classic, very atmospheric, with a superb cast. Ten people are invited to a strange house on a private island, but the host never shows up. “Ten little Indians went out to dine, one choked his little self and then there were nine…” and the guests are bumped off one by one, until…
Bulldog Drummond Comes Back (1938) 64 Minutes; Directed by Louis King, Starring John Barrymore, John Howard (as Drummond), Louise Campbell, Reginald Denny, E.E. Clive, J. Carroll Naish.
Comes Back is a fast-paced entry in Paramount’s Bulldog Drummond series, with John Howard making a terrific Drummond. John Barrymore hams it up as the long-suffering Col. Neilson in various disguises, Louis Campbell is winsome as Drummond’s perpetual-bride-about-to-be, and Reginald Denny is always a hoot as Drummond’s pal Algie Longworth. Clive is wonderful as the ever-droll Tinney, and Naish always makes a delicious villain. B-grade fare, but this, and the entire series are plenty entertaining.
Captain Blood (1935) B&W, 119 Minutes; Directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the novel by Raphael Sabatini, Starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Lionel Atwill, Basil Rathbone, Ross Alexander.
This is the rousing Warner Bros. adventure that catapulted Errol Flynn to stardom, (and you’ll see why!) along the always beautiful and oh so talented Olivia de Havilland, in the first of their eight films together; here appearing with future Sherlock Holmes, Basil Rathbone. (Later to appear with the duo again in The Adventures of Robin Hood.) Loads of piratical action, romance and sword fights, in the story of a doctor falsely imprisoned and sentenced to death. When he is rescued by pirates…
Ten Little Indians (1965) B&W, 123 Minutes; Directed by George Pollack, based on the novel, And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie, Starring Hugh O’Brian, Shirley Eaton, Fabian, Leo Genn, Wilfred Hyde-White, Stanley Holloway, Dalia Lavi.
A stylish sixties remake of And Then There Were None, with another excellent cast, an effective jazzy score, this time set on a Swiss mountaintop that can only be reached by cable car.
The Echo Murders (1945) B&W, 74 Minutes; Directed by John Harlow, Starring David Farrar, Dennis Price, Pamela Stirling, Julien Mitchell, Cyril Smith, Ferdy Mayne.
Pure low-budget B-schlock all the way, but David Farrar (Black Narcissus) is perfect as the tough hero in his second outing as Sexton Blake. Set in Cornwall, the plot is a mess of secret caves, cardboard rocks, and Nazi spies, but it is kind of fun…
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) B&W, 104 Minutes; Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Starring Gene Tierney, Rex Harrison, George Sanders.
A young widow moves to a seaside cottage and discovers it to be haunted, but eventually falls in love with its ghost, a crusty sea captain. This haunting, mystery-romance is a cinema classic, beautifully photographed and acted, and one you won’t forget.
The Kennel Murder Case (1933) B&W, 73 Minutes; Directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the novel by S.S. Van Dine, starring William Powell as Philo Vance, Mary Astor, Eugene Pallette, Ralph Morgan, Robert McWade.
As tight and nifty a little mystery as one can find. William Powell is a year out from playing Nick Charles in The Thin Man, here reprising the role of the dilatant crime solver, Philo Vance. This one has it all—a champion show-dog is killed, a mysterious beauty, Mary Astor, (The Maltese Falcon) a locked room suicide—or is it murder? There are plenty of suspects, and it will keep you guessing! Enjoy the repartee between Vance and Detective Sergeant Heath (Eugene Pallette) in this well-done thriller.
The Old Dark House (1932) B&W, 72 Minutes; Directed by James Whale, Produced by Carl Laemmle, Jr., based on the novel, Benighted, by J. B. Priestly, with KARLOFF, Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Stuart, Charles Laughton, Lillian Bond.
This is THE spooky, old dark house mystery. As a storm rages, several travelers are stranded at an old mansion, and terror ensues! Watch for young Gloria Stuart, (Titanic) future Hunchback of Notre Dame, Charles Laughton, and Boris Karloff, fresh off his triumph as the Monster in Frankenstein.
Mr. Moto—20th Century Fox series starring Peter Lorre, based on the novels by J. P. Marquand: Think Fast Mr. Moto (1937), Thank You, Mr. Moto (1938), Mr. Moto’s Gamble (1938), Mr. Moto Takes A Chance (1938), Mysterious Mr. Moto (1938), Mr. Moto’s Last Warning (1939), Mr. Moto in Danger Island (1939), Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation (1939)
Hungarian-born Peter Lorre immigrated to the United States in the early 1930s and soon began to play a myriad of character roles, including the Japanese detective in the Fox series. These are intelligent, fast-paced offerings and Lorre gives an honest portrayal of an Asian. Lorre starred and co-starred in many fine films including: M (1931), Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934), Mad Love (1935), The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942), Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), The Mask of Dimitrios (1944), Three Strangers (1946), The Beast with Five Fingers (1946), My Favorite Brunette (1947), Beat the Devil (1954), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), Silk Stockings (1957), Tales of Terror (1962), The Raven (1963), and Comedy of Terrors (1963).
“The Saint” appeared onscreen in a series of pictures for RKO, and one for Republic between 1938 and 1954, starring three different actors in the title role. The Saint in New York, 1938, starred Louis Hayward; The Saint Strikes Back, 1939, was the first of five pictures starring George Sanders—The Saint in London, 1939; The Saint’s Double Trouble, 1940; The Saint Takes Over, 1940, and The Saint in Palm Springs, 1941; The Saint’s Vacation, starred Hugh Sinclair as Simon Templar, also The Saint Meets the Tiger, 1943; and Louis Hayward reprised the role in The Saint’s Girl Friday, 1954.
The Saint TV series starring Roger Moore, B&W, Color, (1962–1969). You’ll surely want to “meet the Saint” in this sophisticated sixties series starring the debonair Roger Moore, with many of the episodes based on the original Leslie Charteris stories. Moore was one of the top stars in the world as the Saint, and five years after the series completed its run, he went on to star as James Bond 007 in seven films.
stives-cornwall.co.uk
thefirstandlastinn.co.uk
visitcornwall.com
Cinema Retro.com
IMDB.com
Film Noir Foundation.org
Sinister Cimema.com
Turner Classic Movies.com
A Final Puzzle:
There are three book titles by three famous mystery/ thriller writers your author has incorporated into this novel. Each title is part of a character series. Two of the authors share the same last name. See if you can spot them…
The Sly Silver Fox
A Sneak Peek at the Next Case for Kelly Riggs
Kelly Riggs is back!
And this time Scotland Yard’s Tartan ‘tec is up against one of the most clever and cunning criminals he’s ever faced—
He’s a Man Known to No One… a man without a passport, a man without a visa, a man without a country… he’s
THE SLY SILVER FOX
No one knows what he looks like, yet he’s WANTED on three continents, in North America from San Francisco to Vancouver, Colorado Springs to St. Louis, Chicago to New York City…
Next, he turns up in South Africa, from there Europe, Berlin, then Paris, and each time he makes a killing…
You see, he’s a “Bankster,” and he robs his own banks…
Now THE FOX is in London, and only Chief Inspector Kelly Riggs, Sergeant Bellows, the young sleuths, Michael, Mandy, Jen, and their old friend Toby can stop him! But this time they have extra help, in the form of a brassy young reporter, Verity Quest. This engaging, witty and intricate mystery, set in a stylish, Noir, mash-up of the 1930’s is a cultural connection to another era, of fedoras, platinum blondes, roadsters, and dirigibles, with elements of steampunk, for ages 10to 110, and up, with illustrations by the author.
See if you can solve the case and keep up with THE SLY SILVER FOX—
The New Kelly Riggs Mystery!
Part of detection is making connections, so you won’t want to miss it!
THE AMPHLIFIED VOICE coming from the metal grille high up in the wall was commanding and steady. It was a man’s voice, a strong voice, a voice that inspired confidence and trust. There was a trace of an accent in the voice; an interesting accent. It might be Canadian, or mid-Atlantic, or something else. One that made the voice all the more authoritative. A cultured voice. A voice that assured. A salesman’s voice. A voice from on-high, The Great Orator.
Five men stood silently listening to the voice. They were of varying height and weight, and similarly dressed in dark
clothes and hats, and all wore scarfs or handkerchiefs covering the lower part of their faces. All five men were criminals, their careers as varying as their sizes. The oldest was forty, the youngest twenty-two. He and one other had recently been on the “inside.”
The old Canary Warf warehouse in east London where they were standing was cold and barren, save for a long metal table on which there were folders with numbers writ large upon them. Two shaded lights hung high overhead from beams, casting harsh light over the men, blackening their shadows. They had never met one another before, had never met the man whose voice they now listened to with rapt attention.
The metallic voice continued: “You have each been given a number, and that is your only identification. This is the only way you will be known to each other or referred to on this job. Starting with Number One, state your number and stand in line from One to Five.” The men did so, their voices muffled under their coverings as they shuffled to their places in line.