A Drowning in Bath

by L. A. Nisula

  “They did,” I said, taking over the questioning now that Milly had set it up but before Milly could come up with a story that would complicate everything. “But we were looking in that direction when it occurred, so we wanted to be certain they got our story completely and correctly.”

  Mrs. Grangeway nodded. “That was very conscientious of you. When we were questioned, we couldn’t wait to get away.”

  I had the feeling she wanted to get away from the topic again, so it seemed the only chance I was going to get to ask anything. “Did either of you see anything when it happened?”

  “We want to make certain our memories are correct,” Milly added, although whether she thought that excuse would help or she merely wanted to be in on the conversation, I wasn’t certain.

  Mrs. Grangeway shook her head. “I wasn’t looking in that direction. I’m afraid I wasn’t looking at anything, really, just resting in the water.”

  “I wasn’t looking that way either.” Miss Grangeway smiled a little. “I was distracted, I’m afraid. Mr. Langley was there, you see.”

  Milly leaned in. “Have you seen him in that very modern bathing costume?”

  “The one with the shorter trousers? Oh my, yes.”

  I sighed. How was a murder supposed to compete with Mr. Langley’s legs? “And you didn’t notice anything about Miss Caldwell?”

  Mrs. Grangeway shook her head again. “I saw her when we got into the bathing pool. I was going to ask her to join us, as her—chaperone wasn’t with her, but just as I was going to call to her, she said something and started for the end of the pool.”

  “‘Fancy that.’ She definitely said, ‘Fancy that,’ as she passed me,” Miss Grangeway said.

  That wasn’t particularly enlightening. “What do you think she meant by it?” I asked.

  Miss Grangeway shrugged. “It seemed at the time as if she’d seen someone she wasn’t expecting to, but when I looked over, I didn’t see anyone out of the ordinary.”

  “Did you see anyone ordinary?” I asked.

  Miss Grangeway paused. “No, I don’t think so, but I wasn’t really paying attention. If there had been someone I was expecting to see, I don’t know that I would have noticed.”

  “So it could have been someone from the hotel, Mr. Armstrong perhaps, or Mr. Longridge, or one of the staff?”

  “I think so, yes.”

  “But not someone from town?”

  “No, I would have noticed that. There were so few people from town there, they would have stood out.”

  “And how long did you watch her?”

  “Not long at all. I’m afraid I lost interest when I saw she wasn’t joining us.”

  “And Mr. Langley was there,” I said.

  “Exactly.”

  Milly sighed. “It was all so tragic. But Cassie, didn’t you want me to help you with that dress?”

  So she thought it was time for us to leave, although if that was because she sensed that Miss Grangeway wouldn’t tell us anything else or because she wanted to be certain she didn’t miss her meeting with Mr. Langley I couldn’t tell. “If you don’t mind, it would be best to get it done this afternoon.”

  We both rose and made our farewells to the Grangeways. I had the feeling neither was particularly sorry to see us go. Talk of the drowning probably hadn’t been what they were expecting when they invited us to join them. As we walked beck towards the lobby, Milly asked, “Was that helpful? Neither of them saw anything.”

  “They did, actually. Mr. Langley’s alibi is thoroughly corroborated since both the Misses Bates and the Grangeways saw him on the side of the pool, and we found out that Miss Caldwell may have seen someone she wasn’t expecting to.”

  “But not who.”

  “No, but it most likely was not an outsider according to Miss Grangeway. So there must be some link between her and someone in the hotel, either another guest or the staff. The question is who.”

  “Does this mean we won’t be questioning Mr. Langley?” I could tell that was the most pressing matter for her.

  “He may still have seen something.”

  “Then you might as well come shopping with us. I can be your second set of ears.”

  At least if I was with them, it would stop her from questioning him on her own and missing the important parts because she was distracted by his legs. “Where were you meeting Mr. Langley?”

  “In the lobby. I should hurry so I don’t keep him waiting.”

  I followed her back inside.

  Mr. Langley was already in the lobby when we entered. He saw Milly and gave her his most dashing smile. “Miss Prynne, how nice to see you. I hope you weren’t waiting long for me.”

  “Not at all, Mr. Langley. In fact, I think you’re early.”

  “In anticipation of seeing you. And Miss Pengear, were you coming with us?” He turned the same dashing smile on me.

  I glanced at Milly’s reaction. Milly noticed my look and shrugged her left shoulder a fraction. Either she really had become interested in our case again and wanted to help question Mr. Langley, or she realized that his attention was most likely part of his employment with the hotel and didn’t mind sharing him. Either way, I took it as permission to say, “I do have a few things I’d like to buy. Thank you.”

  “Wonderful.” Mr. Langley offered each of us an arm and led the way out of the hotel.

  Chapter 7

  MR. LANGLEY LED US THROUGH the warren of small streets near the hotel in the opposite direction from the police station and the center of town to some of the shops behind the hotel. Milly mentioned she was looking for chocolates, so our first stop was a confectionery shop on the corner. While Milly was making her choices, I decided it was as good a time as any to start questioning him. “How is Mr. Fellcroft managing with all the difficulties?”

  “Well enough, thank you for asking. He’s terrified that her father will try to say there was something wrong with the baths, or simply yell about the mixed bathing. Either way, Mr. Caldwell is a wealthy man and could cause trouble.”

  “And how are you doing? You were there when it happened.”

  “I was, yes. So were you and Miss Prynne, I remember. It’s very sad, even though I barely knew her. We have an older clientele, but still very few pass away. A friend of mine works at a place that bills itself as a health spa on the coast, and they have far more who pass in their sleep than we do. Still, it is sad no matter what.”

  We gave a moment of respectful silence, then, as he didn’t seem upset enough to not speak of it, I asked, “Did you see anything when it happened?”

  Mr. Langley grinned at me. “They said you were looking into it.”

  I wondered if it was a good thing or a bad thing in this case. Probably it depended on who it was doing the talking. “Who said?”

  “Miss Emmaline, and Miss Bates seemed to agree even though she didn’t say anything either way. So you think there was something wrong about it?” When I didn’t answer, he said, “Don’t want to taint your witnesses, eh? I’m afraid I’m not much of one anyway. I wasn’t looking in that direction at all. I was watching the other side of the pool. The other young lady, Miss Grangeway I think it is, and her mother or aunt or whoever she is were there, and the Miss Bateses. I’m afraid I didn’t see Miss Caldwell until it was too late.”

  “And when you saw she was having problems, what did you do?”

  Mr. Langley smiled ruefully. “What you’re really asking is why didn’t I jump in and try to assist. It’s all right, I know it’s a natural question. I’m not a strong swimmer, not a swimmer at all actually. So when I realized she was in trouble, I knew there wasn’t anything constructive that I could do in the water, and I saw Mr. Armstrong was already going towards her. I did think to run for the management, but two of the attendants were already running to summon help, so there wasn’t much I could do but stand there. I did manage to let the Fredricksons and their children out the side door. We’re not supposed to let guests use it as it leads to the lawn
and they could sneak away with their rented things, but I thought it was best to get the children away as quickly as possible.”

  “I’m sure the Fredricksons were grateful. But you’d been at the bathing pools most of the day?”

  “Mr. Fellcroft likes me to be there, to be looked at. I’m afraid that’s my occupation, being looked at. I tried the stage, but I can’t act or sing. I have done some modeling for picture postcards of the area, but the work isn’t steady. I’ve thought of going to London to be an artist’s model, but it takes money to live in London, and I won’t be able to do this forever, so I have to save while I can, in case I don’t marry money. Mercenary, I know, but I’m afraid my talents are limited.” He said it so matter-of-factly it was hard to see him as disagreeable or even truly mercenary.

  “So you’re certain the Misses Bates and the Grangeways were all at the side of the bath when the alarm was raised?”

  “The Misses Bates, yes. The younger one, Miss Emmaline, waved at me, and her sister sort of shook her head and laughed. The Grangeways, I think they were there, but if someone asked me to swear to it, I couldn’t be certain.”

  “There were two men there I didn’t recognize.”

  Mr. Langley nodded. “Mr. McSwain and Dr. Gaines. They’re both from town. They come to the Fellcroft quite regularly to use the baths. I suppose since they’re less crowded than the more famous ones.”

  “Is Dr. Gaines a medical doctor?”

  “Yes, he is. That’s why I thought it was odd he didn’t rush to the poor girl’s side. But perhaps he knew he couldn’t do anything to help her.”

  “And you didn’t see either of them at the time?”

  He shook his head. “The only ones I could swear to were the two Miss Bateses.”

  “And do you know where I could find Mr. McSwain or Dr. Gaines?”

  “Dr. Gaines has a consulting room on Hill Street. Mr. McSwain owns the barber shop near the Pump Room.”

  I made note of that in case I was in the area. “Did you notice anything out of the ordinary while you were there? You must know the baths as well as anyone.”

  “I probably do, but every new group of guests makes things a little different. I didn’t notice anything that seemed important, but that doesn’t mean that there wasn’t something. My job is to watch the guests and chat with them, and it would be easy enough for one of them to distract me with a question of some sort, intentionally or not.”

  Milly had finished her purchases by then, and I could see she was watching us while she pretended to be putting her wallet away. So she was interested in helping me solve the case, at least at the moment. I gave her a small nod so she would see that it was all right for her to rejoin us. When she had, Mr. Langley asked, “What next?”

  “I wanted to bring some gifts back for my neighbors,” Milly answered.

  “Then I know just the place. There are all sorts of little shops just down this way.” Mr. Langley led us out of the confectioner’s shop and continued down the street. He stopped outside of a small shop on the opposite corner, with a rack of postcards just inside the door and a display of patent medicines in the window. “This is a nice place for buying any little souvenirs you wanted to bring back. It’s a chemist’s, so the things inside are priced better than the stalls along the main road.” He gave the rack of postcards a slow spin until he spotted the one he wanted. “That’s one of mine.”

  I looked at the card Mr. Langley pointed to. It was indeed him, from behind, wearing his bathing costume and looking out over a painted backdrop of a beach filled with sea-bathers. I decided against asking why a postcard that clearly depicted somewhere on the southern coast was being displayed in a shop in Bath.

  “Oh Cassie, we really ought to get one.” Milly dug into her handbag. “I seem a bit short.”

  It seemed easier to agree than to argue. I pulled out my coins and went to the till inside to pay for it. Milly looked expectantly at the card, but I slipped it into my handbag. I’d told Inspector Wainwright I’d bring him a postcard, and as I doubted he believed I would, I fully intended to. Milly pouted, then went to peruse the shelves of small items designed for tourists.

  The shop didn’t seem to have much in the way of Austen items, and as I planned to see something of her Bath before I left, I wandered back to the door to wait for Milly with Mr. Langley. While we waited, Mr. Langley nodded to the next street over. “That’s Hill Street, where Dr. Gaines has his consulting rooms.”

  As I wasn’t doing anything but waiting, and I didn’t really want to end up paying for any more of Milly’s purchases, I asked, “Milly, would you mind if I nipped over there for a minute?”

  She turned away from her souvenirs. “Are you feeling all right?”

  “He was one of the people from town in the baths.”

  “Oh, certainly, you ought to go, I mean. I’ll keep Mr. Langley company, if that’s all right.”

  So she wasn’t quite so immune to his charms. “Of course. I’ll meet up with you when I’m done.”

  ~ * ~ * ~

  I found Dr. Gaines’s consulting room with very little trouble. It was in an old building with an interior that had been decorated in the most modern of fashion, including a large number of clockwork devices that did nothing but looked complex and expensive. The nurse at the desk was pushing papers around in a way that told me she had very little to do but didn’t want the doctor to know she was woolgathering. She looked up as soon as she heard the door.

  “Could I speak to the doctor?”

  “Of course. I’ll see if he’s busy.” Her tone told me she knew he wasn’t but wasn’t supposed to say. She disappeared into the consulting room and came out almost at once. “He’ll see you now.”

  “Thank you.” I went back and saw Dr. Gaines seated at a large desk. He looked more professional in his suit and tie than he had in his bathing costume, but just as distracted. “Dr. Gaines?”

  “Yes, that I am. I take it you’re a visitor to our fine city? Such a pity to be ill on holiday, but we’ll fix you up in no time. What is the nature of your complaint?”

  I sat in the chair across from his desk without being invited to. An oversight on his part I assumed. “It isn’t that sort of a complaint. I’m staying at the Fellcroft, and I was at the baths when Miss Caldwell passed away.” Normally with a medical man, I would not have felt the need to be so delicate with my description, but I had the impression saying anything as shocking as “Miss Caldwell died” would have given him, if not fits, at least vapors.

  “And you wanted something to help you sleep, is that it? I can give you a nice dose of laudanum, fix you right up.”

  “I’m really trying to help her friend.” It wasn’t a complete lie, and in any case, I doubted he would see Miss Morrison. “I wanted to know if anyone saw anything when it happened.”

  “It’s very kind of you to want to help, but I’m not sure that’s the best way. Finding out the details will give her more to imagine, and that can’t be a good thing.”

  “If that happens, I’ll be certain to tell her to come here for some laudanum,” I said trying to keep my tone level.

  “Well, if that’s all...”

  I decided to try shocking an answer out of him. “I did have one other question. When it was clear to everyone that she was drowning, why didn’t you go to offer medical assistance either at the moment or when she was pulled out of the water?”

  Dr. Gaines glared at me, but his glare was nowhere near the level of Inspector Wainwright’s. I glared right back.

  “You’re not just poking around for one of her friends, are you? Who sent you?”

  “No one, I’m simply trying to find out what happened.”

  “So the medical—I mean, her family didn’t hire you to look into this?”

  So he was worried that some medical society was looking into his practice. “No, not yet. I have done some investigating with Scotland Yard, however.” No need to tell him that it was usually without their approval.

&nb
sp; “Well the reason is simple, I wasn’t looking that way when it happened. Those two old spinsters were giving me the eye, and I was watching them, trying to give a good show, if you know what I mean.”

  Somehow I didn’t think the Bates sisters would be pleased with any part of that assessment.

  “When I came here, it was with the understanding that the hotel would send me their clients. I mean, in a spa town you would think there would be all sorts of widows with complaints looking for a sympathetic ear while they took the waters, ready to find a charming fellow to spend their final years with, but not at the Fellcroft. I thought the baths in situ would be attractive to the sort I’m looking for, but they all seem to prefer the places with historical provenance. So I have to make do, visit the hotel, get to know any likely guests. I say, if you’re doing investigating in town anyway, could I hire you for a little project?”

  I was about to say “no” but he went on without waiting for my response.

  “Just look into the Bateses and see how the money is situated. I wouldn’t do anything underhanded, I promise you. A proper marriage proposal fair and square, but I’ve got to know if it’s worth my time. I know I won’t always look like this, so I do have to plan for my future.”

  I was very tempted to tell him that it wouldn’t be worth his time until he developed a pair of legs like Mr. Langley’s, just to see his expression, but that would have meant staying in his company for another two minutes at least, so I merely said, “I don’t take commissions,” and hurried away before he decided to try using his “charm” on me.

  Outside, I started back towards the shops to look for Milly and Mr. Langley. I was halfway down the block when Mr. Douglas stepped out of an alleyway. “Miss Pengear, I was looking for you.”

  “Really?” I stopped myself before I added “why?”

  “I met up with Miss Prynne and Mr. Langley just as Miss Prynne was beginning to feel the effects of the sun. I told Mr. Langley that, if he wanted to escort her back to the hotel, I’d be happy to wait for you and see you got back safely.”