‘And then to you, Ivy,’ said Dorinda.
‘They suggested she come down here, as you know. What neither you nor she knew was that Brother Anarawd and his “followers” had also come down here. He was still pursuing his step-daughter, who for some reason he saw as his property, hoping to take her back to one of the – er -clubs he frequented in town.’
‘One of those clubs where Aramantha worked?’ put in Maude.
Colyer nodded. ‘Unfortunately for him he was recognised, not just by Jessie, but by Aramantha, who decided to try a little blackmail.’
‘Blackmail!’ said Ivy. ‘Blimey!’
‘Oh, no.’ Dorinda closed her eyes.
‘And then he was murdered.’ Colyer looked briefly at Dorinda. ‘And no, it wasn’t Ethel – Aramantha, although she was worried someone would think it was. Foolishly, she sent a telegram to the club.’
‘A telegram?’ gasped Dorinda. ‘That was dangerous, surely? Anyone could have read it!’
‘Indeed.’ Colyer nodded. ‘But I imagine she took care to couch it in rather less forthright terms. So, when their representative, who we gather is actually a member of the consortium which owns the premises, and others like it -’
‘Jim’s toff?’ asked Will.
‘Jim’s toff,’ confirmed Colyer, ‘appeared, she decided to try the blackmail on him, too. Not about the girls, but about the boys.’
‘And he kidnapped her?’ said Maude.
‘Why didn’t he kill her?’ asked Dorinda.
‘This man, Sebastian Wilcox, knew about Jessie and her act, and it appears there’s a taste for it. Male impersonation.’ He glanced at Dorinda again.
‘So he – what? What did he try to do?’
‘As far as we can tell, he was hoping to persuade her to help get Jessie away from you. He kept Aramantha in the boathouse, threatening her and near starving her. Then young Jim appeared, having run away. Unfortunately, when he paid his last visit, he saw Jim leave the boathouse and followed him here. I don’t think he was in his right mind from the time he arrived in Nethergate and killed Brother Anarawd. He was scared stiff. He’s a very well-respected man in the City – moves in the first circles.’
‘So what will happen to Aramantha?’ asked Dorinda.
‘I don’t know,’ Colyer admitted. ‘I think she’ll be charged, but what the offence will be I can’t tell yet. She’s being as helpful as she can be at the moment.’
Dorinda was frowning. ‘What I don’t understand,’ she said, ‘is why Wilcox killed Evans, or Anarawd, and why did he have two names anyway?’
‘Evans? Well, as a regular client of the clubs he frequented, he would hardly wish to be known as Brother Anarawd, and as a lay preacher he certainly would not wish to be known as Evans. What is unclear at the moment, and I don’t suppose we will ever know, is why the two sides of his character were merged when he married Jessie’s mother. As to why Wilcox killed him, he was considered to have become a risk to the people running the illegal clubs. He had more or less revealed himself to Jessie remember, when he attacked her, even though she knew nothing about the clubs, and from what Ethel Small tells us, to her as well. And Ethel was a threat, especially when she showed her hand.’
‘Well, I’ll tell you one thing,’ said Ivy, accepting another cup of tea from Maude, ‘I’m not bringing any more girls down here from London. They’ve made so much trouble for Dolly.’
‘And don’t anyone talk her into leaving The Alexandria,’ said Maude. ‘She’s been the making of it.’
Dorinda looked round the group and smiled. ‘I won’t and next year I hope we can turn it into a full-scale theatre and keep going all year, not just the season.’
‘So we won’t have to go to London!’ said Maude.
‘So you won’t be coming up to town, then?’ said Colyer, turning to Dorinda.
‘No.’ She shook her head.
‘Perhaps, then,’ he said standing up, ‘it’s a very good thing that I’ve been offered the post of Area Superintendent down here in Nethergate.’
DEATH PLAYS A PART
Lesley Cookman
Dorinda Alexander is a former governess who now owns the Alexandria Theatre in the seaside town of Nethergate. Her troupe is rehearsing for a season of music hall performances, a new experience for the theatre – and when mysterious young singer Velda Turner arrives looking for employment Dorinda, impressed by her talent, hires her.
But soon optimism turns to tragedy when a body is found after an apparently motiveless break-in at the theatre.
Published by Accent Press Ltd 2019
Copyright © Lesley Cookman 2019
The right of Lesley Cookman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
The story contained within this book is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the publishers:
Accent Press Ltd
Octavo House
West Bute Street
Cardiff
CF10 5LJ
ISBN 9781786152817
eISBN 9781786152824
Proudly published by Accent Press
www.accentpress.co.uk
Death Treads the Boards Page 11