Fair Play’s a Jewel (Harry Reese Mysteries Book 5)

by Robert Bruce Stewart

  “And do you believe it?”

  “Well, it does fit the facts.”

  “Then it must be true. Did she succeed?”

  “No, McGee tied her up and got away. A woman was helping him. A different woman. We’ve sent out wires, but he’ll be fur off now.”

  “I should let you know,” I told him, “I’ve learned Branscombe was sleeping with May, and she led him to think it was his baby she was carrying. It may well have been him who supplied the pennyroyal.”

  “How’d you learn that?”

  “Oh, one of the staff was feeling talkative… a dishwasher, I think.”

  “A dishwasher?” Peabbles seemed doubtful. “Well, McGee told me the same thing when I interviewed him. I spoke with Branscombe last night. He confessed he did give her the pennyroyal, and then tossed it from her window the morning she died. But insists he didn’t poison it. Says he’s never taken digitalis.”

  “Did McGee know anything about the fire?”

  “He gave me an alibi for that night: he was up in Bath. It checked.”

  He went off and I went to my room to catch up on lost sleep.

  23

  I was in the midst of a vivid dream, one which featured an affable family of Seventh Day Adventists, when a familiar laugh roused me from my reverie. It had come from Emmie’s room. Curious, I crept into the bath to better listen.

  “Who was it who told you Harry and I were married?” Emmie asked.

  “The Teaguelander, Bridget, let it slip,” Delia answered. “Then she put the facts before me.”

  “The dirty linen?”

  “Yes. Not literally, of course. She insists it’s proof of your love for one another.”

  “It takes a romantic mind to see soiled sheets as proof of genuine affection.”

  “Are you saying you aren’t yoked to him?”

  “No, I’m not denying that. We’re all entitled to our mistakes. And the sooner I can get past this one the better. Why do you think we’re in separate rooms?”

  “He tells me it’s just a ruse.”

  “A ruse?”

  “So you can play authoress.”

  Emmie made one of her more complex noises, one which harmoniously blends equal parts scorn and skepticism with overtones of amusement. “Is that what he told you?”

  “Not so?”

  “I suppose it’s his way of maintaining a modicum of self-esteem. No, I’m done with Harry Reese. I’ll tell you what—given that you speak so highly of him, I present him to you with my compliments.”

  “Present him to me?” Delia asked.

  “Yes. He’s all yours. Do with him as you please. Or rather, I should say, what you can. He’s in many ways inadequate. Most acutely in the areas a healthy young woman values most.”

  “Oh, dear. You mean, he’s no good at sinking the little man in the boat?”

  “The little man in the boat?” Emmie asked. “Oh. Yes. Well, Harry likes to play hide-and-seek with the little man in the boat….”

  “But no direct hits?”

  “Alas, no direct hits. So you can see…”

  “But is he eager to please?”

  “Well, in much the same way as Naggie’s puppy is eager to please.”

  “Naggie?”

  “Mrs. Naggle. We’ve become quite well acquainted. Quite well. She also plans on leaving her husband. She’s invited me to France with her.”

  “Has she?”

  “Yes. She says she’s in need of a change, told me she has one other encumbrance she must shed, but that was taking care of itself.”

  “Did she now? Well, I should warn you about her, that Carmilla.”

  “Carmilla? As in LeFanu’s Carmilla?”

  “Yes. And like the one in LeFanu’s tale, she sucks dry any young maiden within her reach. Don’t be fooled by her. She’s not what she seems.”

  “No? Well, neither am I a young maiden.”

  “Makes no difference to that viper. When she’s done with you, you’ll be a spent shell.”

  “My, Mrs. Field, you make it sound so exquisitely enticing.”

  “Enticing? After a single night with her, girls find themselves at death’s door.”

  “Perhaps they began the evening in a weakened condition. I’m naturally robust.”

  “Are you fool enough to think that will protect you from this vampiress? See how sanguine you feel after a night of bloodletting.”

  “I think now you exaggerate, Mrs. Field. Whatever your differences with Mrs. Naggle, I must ask you not to disparage the woman I love in this scandalous way.”

  “I speak nothing but the truth, Mrs. Reese. As you’ll find out if you’re not careful. Good day to you.”

  The door to the hallway closed, and a moment later Emmie joined me in the bath.

  “Were you eavesdropping again, Harry?”

  “Yes. Wasn’t I supposed to be?”

  “Can’t see that it matters. There wasn’t anything said you weren’t privy to.”

  “What about your impending elopement with Naggie?”

  “Poor Delia,” she chuckled. “I think she believed me.”

  “I think so, too. She has a blind spot when it comes to reading people. You might want to be careful about egging her on.”

  “You really think she’s dangerous?”

  “It depends how threatened she feels,” I said. “For instance, there was a page torn out of May’s notebook before Delia showed it to me.”

  “You think May Goodwin was blackmailing Delia over her relationship with Naggie?”

  “Sure. That must have been the reason for their talk the night May died.”

  “But you can’t think she gave May the pennyroyal?”

  “No,” I said. “Branscombe gave her the pennyroyal. He’s confessed to Peabbles about that.”

  “Then it must be Branscombe who poisoned her.”

  “Not if she was poisoned through some other medium and the digitalis was added to the pennyroyal after she was dead, just to implicate Branscombe.”

  “That sounds far too elaborate. But I suppose it’s possible. Still, it doesn’t mean Delia was behind it. We know May was also blackmailing Mr. Lang. Why couldn’t he have done it? Certainly he had more to lose. Delia hadn’t committed any real crime.”

  “Are you sure?” I asked. “The law’s pretty narrow-minded when it comes to carnal cavorting.”

  “Speaking of which, it seems there’s an alternate interpretation of Tommy Dodd. The first line under Jolly the firebug. It is rhyming slang for odd, but also for sod.”

  “Sod? As in turf?”

  “No, as in sodomite.”

  There was a knock at my door. I went through and found Ed looking surprisingly chipper.

  “Where have you been, Harry? It’s nearly three o’clock.”

  “Is it? I’d fallen asleep. Come on in while I get dressed.”

  He closed the door and sat on the bed.

  “I’ve been out at the site, Harry.”

  “Which site?”

  “The arson site! For god’s sake, Harry, we’ve wasted enough time. I went out there with the shovel that Libby fellow gave us.”

  “Digging? I thought he was speaking figuratively.”

  “That’s your problem, Harry. You spend too much time philosophizing. A man tells you to dig and you spend the day considering the matter in bed.”

  “Did you find something worth digging for?”

  “That’s what’s so ironic. I found it that first afternoon you arrived. Remember? I was showing you around and tripped on something.”

  “You said it was an outcropping of bedrock.”

  “Yes, but what I didn’t realize was that it only recently had been exposed. The soil on the seaward side is subsiding. I looked more closely at the hotel’s foundation and I could see where it’s cracked. Then I went into Portland and hired an engineer to look at it.”

  “So you’re saying they never should have been building there?”

  “That’s the way
it looks to me, but we’ll see what the engineer has to say.”

  Ed’s transformation seemed complete. As we made our way to the site, not once did he bring up Annie. Though he did from time to time rub the knot on his head she’d left him as her parting gift.

  “I’m glad you’re taking Annie’s departure so well, Ed.”

  “I’ve thought it over and there’s no denying you were right, Harry. I’m better off without her.”

  “When’d you arrive at that revelation?”

  “This morning. I hope you won’t think ill of me, Harry.”

  “For what?”

  “I took advantage of a girl.”

  “You took advantage of a girl? When’d you have time for that? We didn’t get back to the hotel until after four.”

  “When I got into bed, I found Bridget there.”

  “The chambermaid?”

  “Yes. She was there… and… well…”

  “You don’t need to give me the details.”

  “No. But I took advantage of her.”

  “Ed, if a girl crawls into your bed and awaits your arrival, I don’t think anyone would accuse you of having taken advantage of her.”

  “No, I suppose not. What I don’t see is how she knew I’d be coming to bed alone. She said Mrs. Field told her. But how could she have known?”

  “Mrs. Field told Annie about our plan to break McGee out of jail.”

  “So she helped her to run away with him?”

  “That was her plan. But Emmie lacked faith in our ability to break him out and suggested Annie leave earlier, equipped with a bottle of whiskey. So when we arrived, McGee was already out of the cell.”

  “Well, I’ll have to thank them both.”

  At the site, Ed introduced me to the engineer, a fellow named Elgar.

  “I don’t see why anyone started to build here in the first place,” he said.

  “The problem is that obvious?” I asked.

  “Obvious enough. Who was it approved it? They must have had someone check the site.”

  “What do you think it means, Harry?” Ed asked.

  “I’m not sure. But maybe you can head back into Portland with Elgar. See who sold the lot to the corporation. Then see if you can find out if the corporation had an engineer look at the lot before they bought it. The secretary is a lawyer in town, he should have a record.

  “All right. By the way, I’m going to marry Bridget, Harry. I don’t want you to think I’d leave her….”

  “Does she know about the two kids in Jersey?”

  “Yes. She said she’s anxious to see them. And New Jersey.”

  Poor girl was more unschooled than I’d thought.

  They left in Elgar’s carriage and I took a leisurely walk back to the hotel. Just past the casino, I caught sight of Peabbles and Delia. They turned down the path that led to where the explosion had occurred. I caught up to them as they were negotiating their way down the now-stairless cliff.

  “Out for a swim?”

  “Why not?” Delia said.

  When we reached the beach, she began unbuttoning Peabbles’ shirt.

  “Now, now, Mrs. Field. None of that sassiness. Why was it you wanted to bring me down here?”

  “This is Maiden’s Cove, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, it’s called that.”

  “Do you have the notebook?”

  He pulled it from his pocket and Delia took it. She found her page and explained: “Under the heading ‘Bed,’ it reads, ‘The quim at a fresh bit.’ Don’t you see?”

  “No, frankly, I don’t.”

  “A bit is a girl, and a maiden is a fresh one. Not yet deflowered.”

  “I see. And quim?”

  “The fresh bit’s commodity.”

  “She’s a dealer in something?”

  “Or soon will be. And her quim her only ware.”

  “I see. But what exactly is this quim?”

  “Her eel-pot, her fly-trap, her teazle, her fie-for-shame, bower of bliss, cave of harmony, cranny, tool chest, smock alley….” Peabbles looked back at her blankly. “For god’s sake, man, you must know of the divine monosyllable and the end of all sentimental journeys. Need I illustrate?”

  She began unbuttoning her trousers, but Peabbles stopped her.

  “All right, now, I understand,” he said.

  “What is it you call it?” Delia asked.

  “Well, respectable people don’t call it anything. But cave of harmony got me to think of something. You see up the cliff, just over there? You can see a kind of ledge. If I remember right, there’s a little cave up there.”

  He clambered up the cliff with Delia just behind him and me to her rear. The mouth of the cave was recessed, and barely large enough for a full-grown man to enter on his knees. Just inside was a sort of gallery, not much higher, but about fifteen feet wide. Where exactly it ended was impossible to say. The floor was littered with empty bottles, broken glass, candle stubs, and a few stray pieces of clothing.

  “A place of assignation!” Delia said.

  “Oh, everyone here about knows it,” Peabbles confirmed.

  “Do you think Bed meets the girls up here?” I asked.

  “Where else?” Delia asked.

  “I suspect he meets them on the beach,” Peabbles said. “But maybe makes use of this.”

  “There’s a rendezvous scheduled for tomorrow, isn’t there?” Delia asked.

  “You figured those numbers were dates, too, did you?” Peabbles said. “Mattie Alles. And I suspect it will be very early in the morning.”

  “How do you know that?” I asked.

  “Don’t know. Suspect,” he corrected. “It’s the only way it figures.”

  “The only way what figures?” Delia asked.

  “Never you mind. I’m in a delicate situation just now, and I have to keep my secrets. Lord knows you’ve all kept plenty from me. But I’ll let you be in on it in the morning. If you want to come down here about midnight and wait with me.”

  “What fun,” Delia said.

  “Are you expecting to make an arrest?” I asked.

  “Maybe not then, but soon after. And I could use some help.”

  “So you know who Bed is already?”

  “Think I know. But I’ll need sure-fire proof.”

  “What about the other names, Jolly and the rest?”

  “Haven’t figured out Jolly, your arsonist, and only have some ideas about the others. But I’m hoping if I can solve one, he might lead me to the next. So will you help me?”

  “Yes, of course, Harry and I will join you,” Delia assured him. “But I must make one condition.”

  “What’s that, Mrs. Field?”

  “This dell, Mattie Alles. You’ll leave her to me.”

  “Leave her to you, Mrs. Field? All right, I’ll leave Mattie to you. I’m sure Mr. Reese and I can handle the other.”

  She sealed the agreement with a cackle, then started down the cliff.

  “That was generous of you, leaving the girl to her.”

  “Don’t you worry about Mattie, Mr. Reese. She can take care of herself.”

  “So you know her?”

  “Oh, yes, I know her. Know her inside and out.”

  I raised my eyebrows and he winked. “You go along, Mr. Reese. I want to look around here a bit more. See you at midnight.”

  As I started down, I saw him pick up one of the candles and light it. Delia was waiting on the beach.

  “Our Peabbles is a right rum cove, Harry. Letting us in on the fun.”

  “Yes, I wonder why?”

  “He sees our mettle. Though I hope you won’t let me down again. Why didn’t you get me out of that cell after McGee left last night?”

  “He tied us up and dumped us out of town. You might have let me in on your plan to tell Annie.”

  “My plan? Who was it you think interfered with my plan? Your mort, Miss Meegs?”

  “Seems so. Annie came to her asking for money and Emmie suggested her odds would
be better if she got there before us.”

  After we’d climbed up the cliff from the beach, she turned to me again. “I don’t mind telling you, Harry, she’s become a thorn in my side, this Slyboots. Her schemes run counter to mine. We need to make sure she leaves here with you.”

  “Is there any reason to think she wouldn’t?”

  “Harry, you gormless simpleton. You see nothing.”

  “I appreciate your concern, Delia. I suppose I could use some help.”

  “Good. That just leaves Peabbles and Miss Tway.”

  “You know about them?”

  “Peabbles told me how he can’t get her to the altar. But I have a plan. If you see Miss Tway, invite her to our ambush.”

  “What do you have in mind?”

  “To force the issue.”

  Just as we reached the shore road, we saw Emmie and Naggie coming up, arm in arm.

  “Hide, Harry!”

  We ducked behind some bushes. When they’d passed, Delia whispered that she intended to follow them and insisted I come along.

  Naggie and Emmie continued down the road to the old farm, then past the abandoned house. All the time we were less than a hundred feet behind them, creeping from tree to shrub to tree. When we reached the pond, I saw the makeshift bridge had been reassembled. Emmie crossed it and then Naggie, more gingerly, followed. We waited a bit and then Delia started after them. I pulled her back.

  “It’s a trap,” I warned.

  “Yes, and I’m about to spring it. Don’t go turning white-livered. We must take time by the foreskin.”

  “Isn’t it ‘take time by the forelock’?”

  “That depends on how determined you are to get the old bugger’s attention.”

  She wriggled out of my grip and started across the bridge, getting about as far as I had a few days before. When it collapsed, she sank to her knees—then began cursing in her colorful cant. I considered helping to free her, but I’d seen enough of her foul moods to know what sort of thanks I’d have in store.

  Emmie and Naggie emerged from the shack, both looking a little over-disheveled given the brief amount of time they were inside. They pretended to be genuinely surprised at seeing Delia, and while they treated her to a theatrical abundance of solicitude, I silently crept away.

  24

  I went up to my room to consider the complexities of the case. An hour later Ed woke me with his knock.