Murder Flies the Coop

by Jessica Ellicott

  “I would tell you not to worry, Alice, but I’m sure that you’re going to anyway. The best advice that I can give you is to stay away from Hambley until you hear from one of us,” Beryl said. Edwina nodded in agreement and they both raced off in search of someone who could stop whatever was planned at the mine.

  * * *

  Beryl found Constable Gibbs trying her luck at the coconut shy. After a moment of watching her during her approach Beryl had decided it was a good thing that the constable was armed with a billy club rather than a pistol. She certainly would not have struck terror into the heart of any criminal perpetrator with the sort of aim she was displaying to the masses there at the May Day fete. If she were not on an important errand, Beryl would have been sorely tempted to give the constable a display of her own prowess with a firearm if only to get back at her for all the harassment she and Edwina had endured during the course of the investigation. Fortunately for Constable Gibbs, time was something she was sure she did not have to spare.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt you but I must speak with you immediately,” Beryl said, stepping up beside the constable and removing a wooden ball from her hand.

  “I wasn’t done with that,” Constable Gibbs said. Beryl raised the ball and effortlessly hurled it at a coconut perched upon a slender base. The target toppled to the ground. Beryl turned to the constable and lowered her voice below earshot of the rest of the queue.

  “Now you are. I’m here to report a crime, or rather a crime that’s about to take place,” Beryl said. “I thought you were eager to be the voice of law and order in the village rather than leaving such things to Edwina and myself.” Constable Gibbs turned and faced her, seeming to forget entirely about winning a prize.

  “I’m glad to see you’ve come to your senses,” Constable Gibbs said. “It’s high time the two of you realized who’s in charge here and what the boundaries are. What do you have to report?”

  Beryl inclined her head toward the spot a bit away from the crowd assembled in front of the coconut shy tent. Constable Gibbs took the hint and followed her to where they could speak privately.

  “I have it on good authority that there is some sort of major sabotage incident planned for the Hambley mine while so many of the miners are here at the May Day festivities. I thought you should know in order to stop it before it happens,” Beryl said.

  “You say there’s a problem about to take place over at the Hambley mine?” Constable Gibbs said, her eyes straying back over towards the coconut shy tent. Constable Gibbs’ husband, a man with great aim, had knocked over three coconuts in rapid succession and Beryl noticed the constable wince as the person in charge of the tent handed over a pouch of tobacco as a prize.

  “That’s right. If you hurry you might get there before whatever trouble is planned breaks out,” Beryl said.

  “I have no intention of hurrying anywhere,” Constable Gibbs said. “I’m not even going to amble over there at a leisurely pace.”

  “Whyever not?” Beryl asked. Surely winning a prize was not more important than her policing duties. While Beryl did not particularly care for Constable Gibbs or even respect her abilities, she had come to believe that the constable took them seriously and could not understand her reluctance.

  “Because the village of Hambley is not my responsibility. Walmsley Parva is my sole purview and I intend to stay here keeping an eye on its citizens rather than haring off to someplace where I have no authority in order to stop a crime you say has not yet been committed,” Constable Gibbs said.

  “Who is in charge over there then?” Beryl said.

  “That’s Mr. Ecclestone-Smythe’s problem, not mine. I think he hired some sort of private detail to keep an eye on things, but there were rumors that he had cut back on that several weeks ago. At this point I’m not sure that anyone’s in charge of the security at the mine,” Constable Gibbs said.

  “And you don’t feel like you want to take a look, as a good citizen?” Beryl asked, trying to appeal to the police officer’s better nature.

  “One of the ways in which I behave as a good citizen is to know my place. I’ve been trying to tell you and Edwina to do the same. But you two just don’t listen. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go back to my game and to my responsibilities here in Walmsley Parva.” With that, Constable Gibbs strode back to the coconut shy tent, pushed to the head of the line, and picked up a wooden ball once more. Beryl was delighted to see her aim had not improved during their conversation. While she expected Edwina would be sorely disappointed in the constable’s attitude, Beryl found that she was not. She was happy to see they would have no interference from Constable Gibbs or from anyone else in authority. As far as she could see, it provided them with the perfect opportunity to solve the case themselves.

  Chapter 41

  “Constable Gibbs has absolutely no interest in assisting us with anything that happens over at Hambley,” Beryl said. Edwina was not surprised to hear the constable had no desire to stretch herself to assist others outside of her purview. In the many years Edwina had known her, the constable had not been someone she would have described as overly generous on any front. Unless one counted the way she exercised her authority with her citation pad.

  “I wonder if they have their own police force of a sort over at Hambley,” Edwina said. “Someone we could contact with this information?”

  “According to Constable Gibbs, whatever force they had was a private concern and one for which Mr. Ecclestone-Smythe paid for himself. Constable Gibbs said rumors have it that he cut back on their services some time ago,” Beryl said. “I should think that there’s very little help to be had.”

  “The person who seems to know the most about what’s going on at the colliery is Miss Chilvers,” Edwina said. “Perhaps we should ask her if there is someone to notify.”

  “She should be at the tombola tent, shouldn’t she?” Beryl asked. Edwina nodded and the two of them took off for the far side of the green. The tombola booth was always amongst the most popular at any sort of fete. It had been Edwina’s suggestion to set it down at the end so that fete-goers would need to pass all of the other booths on their way to try their luck at winning a prize. She had been prepared for a line in front of the tombola booth but she was surprised to see quite how large the throng in front of it had become. As they reached the crowd, one of the festival-goers turned and pointed an accusing finger at Edwina.

  “Aren’t you one of the people on the committee for this fete?” the woman asked.

  “I am. Is there something the matter?” Edwina asked.

  “There’s no one here operating the tombola. That’s what’s wrong. We’ve been waiting for at least twenty minutes to try our luck. Isn’t that right, Frank?” the woman asked of the portly gentleman standing next to her. He nodded his head silently, his beefy arms crossed over his barrel chest. Edwina struggled through the crowd to the front of the throng, Beryl following closely behind.

  “Miss Chilvers is not in there,” Edwina said. “Where can she be?” She turned to Beryl as a sense of dread filled her.

  “You don’t think she’s had reason to return to the mining village, do you? Or the colliery itself?” Beryl asked.

  “If she did, she may be in danger. Who knows what is planned at the mine and what could happen to her if she interrupts them,” Edwina said. “We need to get over there right away.” The two women hurried away from the tombola booth as quickly as the crowds would allow. Edwina flagged down Prudence Rathbone on her way and asked her to take over at the booth. It would not do to lose all the fundraising money because it was unstaffed. Edwina heard Prudence calling after her with questions about what had happened to Miss Chilvers but she waved her off and continued on her way.

  “We’ll go to the garage and fetch my automobile,” Beryl said. “As long as it’s not up on blocks with all of its wheels removed, we can drive it over.”

  Beryl’s motorcar was most fortunately parked outside of Blackburn’s garage. The d
ent was still there but the vehicle was in working order. They jumped in and Beryl roared off at a terrific rate of speed. Clouds of dust billowed up all around as they sped out of Walmsley Parva. Edwina kept one hand clamped upon her hat and braced herself against the dashboard with the other in order to not be flung forward. But she issued no recriminations concerning the speed. In fact, she found herself in the unusual position of wishing they could proceed even faster.

  They squealed to a stop in record time and tumbled out of the vehicle. All around them the village of Hambley lay silent. It seemed that the efforts on the part of the May Day committee to interest the miners in attending had been wholly successful. Not even a stray cat or an unfriendly dog wandered past as they stood surveying the village.

  “Do you think we should have stopped at Miss Chilvers’ boardinghouse first?” Edwina asked.

  “No. Whatever is planned is planned for here, not for Shady Rest Boardinghouse. We did right to come, but I think whatever we were looking for we shall find in the mine itself or over at the colliery office,” Beryl said.

  “Let’s try the office. I have no fondness for tight spaces and dark places. If we can avoid entering the mine that would be my preference,” Edwina said.

  “Believe it or not, Ed, it would be mine as well. I’m much more comfortable with heights and speed. I’ve always wanted to go up. I’ve never been interested in heading down. In fact, it makes my head go all swimmy,” Beryl said. Edwina was astonished at the expression she saw on Beryl’s face. She never thought of Beryl as having any sort of fears or circumstances in which her courage would falter. Beryl was absolutely dauntless in the face of every sort of thing Edwina most dreaded. Still, Edwina knew that look. It was the one that so many of the young men would suddenly have flit across their faces. Something had bubbled a scorchingly terrifying memory to the surface. Edwina didn’t know what had caused the memory in the first place but she was certain the possibility of descending into the mine had triggered it. To find that Beryl had a weak spot made Edwina feel protective and braver somehow.

  “Then that’s settled. We will head for the mining office,” Edwina said. She strode off with what she hoped looked like confidence in the direction of the small building at the edge of the mine.

  * * *

  As silently as they could manage Beryl and Edwina entered the mining office. The doorknob turned silently in Beryl’s hand and the floorboards most accommodatingly refrained from squeaking under their feet. Beryl tilted her head to one side to listen for footsteps or voices in the rooms beyond the front office. The inside of the colliery office seemed to be as silent as the center of the mining village had been.

  Beryl moved farther into the office for a better look. She stepped around the side of a potted palm and almost tripped over a pair of suitcases and a small valise perched on top.

  “Edwina,” Beryl whispered, beckoning with her hand. “What do you make of this?” Beryl pointed to the two pieces of luggage. They weren’t a matched set but both were made of leather and were altogether unremarkable.

  Edwina joined her and looked where Beryl indicated. “It looks like someone is planning a trip,” Edwina said. “I wonder to whom they belong.”

  “Perhaps there is something inside that will tell us whose it is,” Beryl said. She reached down and unlatched the valise, pulling it open widely. She rummaged about inside, somewhat surprised not to hear Edwina admonishing her for taking such liberties. Instead her friend had leaned forward to get a better look inside the handbag herself.

  “What’s that small bag?” Edwina said pointing to a drawstring pouch tucked into the corner of the valise. Beryl reached in and plucked it out. She crossed the room and placed the bag on Miss Chilvers’ desk then loosened the drawstring. A beam of light streaming through the colliery office window landed on the contents making it look as though a small fire had started atop Miss Chilvers’ desk. Beryl heard Edwina gasp as she reached out to run her finger over the pile of sparkling jewelry spilled out in front of her.

  “It looks as though we’ve solved one part of the case,” Beryl said. “Mrs. Ecclestone-Smythe will certainly be happy to see these once more.” Beryl gathered the drawstring back up around the jewels and slipped the pouch into an inside pocket of her coat for safekeeping.

  “Let’s take a look into the suitcases themselves,” Edwina said. “Someone’s got to be around here somewhere if he or she has left something so valuable as that jewelry lying about in the office.”

  Edwina hurried across the office and loosened the straps on the larger of the two suitcases. She lifted the lid and riffled through the contents. A pair of trousers, two cotton shirts, and a few pairs of socks took up most of the space. Edwina removed a thin bundle of yellowed envelopes tied up with string. She tipped the stack towards Beryl.

  “Does that name seem familiar?” she asked.

  “Morris Howe was checked off on the list I found in Mr. Cunningham’s pocket.” Beryl said. “Do you think he is here working at the Hambley mine?”

  “I can’t see any other reason for someone to have these letters in their possession, can you?” Edwina said, “If there is sabotage going on in Hambley and he is here I would be willing to bet he could be the one spearheading it.”

  “It looks as though he’s taking off for somewhere and doesn’t plan to return,” Beryl said. “He can’t have left yet though if he hasn’t collected his belongings and the jewelry.”

  “Who is he though?” Edwina said. “Dennis Morley? Martin Haynes? Even Ambrose Ecclestone-Smythe could really be Morris Howe, couldn’t he?”

  “You don’t really think it is Mr. Ecclestone-Smythe, do you?” Beryl asked. “He seems far too established and frankly too boring to be living under an assumed name.”

  “Once one has lost all faith in one’s greengrocer, one finds it easy to entertain all sorts of outrageous notions,” Edwina said. Beryl felt a tug of guilt. In many ways, Edwina was quite naive and she felt a pang at having involved her in a business that exposed her to the sordidness of humanity. Still, it was too late to give it much thought and there was still a case to close.

  “The only way to know who he is will be to keep looking for him. Even if we have to go down into the mine itself,” Beryl said. Edwina nodded.

  “I suppose you’re right although it is tempting to simply take the jewels back to Mrs. Ecclestone-Smythe and to consider our part in this case resolved,” Edwina said.

  “But that wouldn’t be the right thing to do, now would it?” Beryl said. “After all, if we wish to be engaged in the private enquiry business we have to be willing to follow wherever a case will lead.”

  “Of course you’re right, I’m simply pointing out that the idea of leaving immediately and avoiding a descent into the mine is hard to resist,” Edwina said.

  “I’m the one who is troubled by being tempted far more than you, Ed. You’re quite a moral compass for me, you know,” Beryl said. Beryl was gratified to see her friend color slightly. Edwina was really coming into her own.

  “Off we go then,” Edwina said. She strode out the door with Beryl close on her heels.

  Chapter 42

  At first glance the mine yard appeared as deserted as the rest of the complex. It was strange to see all the clamor of production halted. There was no clinking of machinery, no tumbling sounds of the coal as it moved along a conveyor belt, no squeak of pulleys lifting buckets aloft and sending them towards cargo train cars. No men called to one another and no horns blew, announcing a change of shift. The quiet was eerie and Beryl felt more nervous than ever at the thought of descending down into the pit. After all, she thought, they did not know the nature of the sabotage planned, only that the scale of it was intended to be crippling.

  Still, she had a reputation to uphold as a swashbuckling adventurer. The fact that she had confessed trepidation to Edwina as far as underground spaces was concerned did not mean that she could give in to a case of nerves. Archie was a good friend but she was not entirel
y confident he would be able to resist writing a story that trumpeted the fact that they had failed to solve the case because she had been bested by something as commonplace as a coal mine. Such a report would reflect poorly on their fledgling business. Until they became more established they needed every ounce of proof that they were capable, and worthy, of pursuing their course in a man’s profession.

  She felt comforted by the heft of her pistol in her right-hand pocket. She had not thought it prudent to mention the firearm to Edwina when she had added it to her ensemble that morning. But she was relieved to think she had it with her now.

  With more bravado than actual confidence Beryl threw back her broad shoulders and headed for the opening into the mine. Iron supports holding up a conveyor belt cast shadows on the ground and lent the entrance an even more menacing air. She asked herself how terrifying could it actually be considering all the workers she had seen coming and going from its depths during her visits to Hambley over the last week. Edwina stood so closely behind her that Beryl felt her bump into her back when she stopped short of the descent. Beryl looked to the side and noticed a row of well-used lanterns lined up on a girder supporting the mouth of the pit. Hanging on pegs above them was a long row of metal safety helmets. Edwina plucked two from the row and placed one firmly on her own head before handing the other to Beryl.

  “We’d best take lanterns, too,” Edwina said. “I don’t suppose you have a box of matches in your pocket, do you?”

  “I don’t but I’m sure they must have some here with the lanterns.” Beryl looked about and spotted a small metal tin. She pried off the lid and wished she had not found exactly what they needed. She tipped the tin towards Edwina and they each lit their lanterns before crossing the threshold into the mine.

  The light bounced off the close walls and cast strange shadows as it angled off the irregular surface of the rock face. Beryl found she was holding her breath and forced herself to exhale slowly and silently. Even though they picked their way carefully along, every now and again she or Edwina managed to kick a pebble or a bit of debris along the path in front of them. The sound of it echoed through the gloom and increased her feeling of unease. Beryl thought she heard a noise from up ahead but wasn’t sure whether her mind was simply playing tricks on her until Edwina grabbed her by the arm and held her back.