Murder on the Rocks (The Ralph Chalmers Mysteries Book 7)

by P. J. Thurbin

  “It all sounds complicated, Inspector but I still fail to see what it has got to do with me. With all due respect, am I being accused of something?”

  “Not at all, sir. I just wanted to put you in the picture. Well, the truth is, I’ve been ordered to warn you not to get involved any further. Sorry to put it so bluntly, but I think you can see why they might see you as a potential problem, so to speak. You must admit that there have been times in the past where you might have, shall we say, got a bit too close to the action.” Inspector Linham could see that Ralph was getting annoyed. He desperately tried to think of how he might defuse the situation, but before he could continue, Ralph jumped in.

  “So what you’re saying is that it’s none of my business and that I should keep clear of anything to do with this affair.”

  “I wouldn’t put it like that, sir, but yes, it would be very helpful if you would. You see, it’s all being handled by Interpol and Europol. If they can find the syndicate that’s driving this whole sordid business, money, cocaine, arms, money laundering and terrorism in Europe, then it would make a lot of people very happy. Best, as you said Professor, to keep clear.”

  For one moment Ralph forgot he was speaking to a policeman. If the tea and sympathy approach had been a ploy it had worked. Once he had cooled down, he remembered the photograph that Katie had insisted on taking when they were in Tangier and decided he had better tell the Inspector about it.

  “There was one thing, Inspector,” Ralph said, in an effort to mend the little setback he had just had with Linham. “We did see Miles Stigart when we were in Tangier. He’s one of Colonel Stigart’s sons whom we met when we went over for dinner on Stigart’s boat. Anyhow, we were just walking around in the town and happened to see him talking to some dodgy looking characters in one of those little alleyways that are all over the place down there. Katie, Ms Eggleton, managed to take a photo of Miles talking to the driver of a truck. I don’t know how important it is, but when we got back to Gibraltar, Stigart’s other two sons chased us, me and Ms Eggleton, although we escaped into one of the tunnels up on the cliffs there. It probably has nothing to do with those things you just told me, but I thought I should mention it, just in case there’s a connection.”

  “You’re probably right. But you never know about these things, Professor. Was there anything else?”

  “Only that when we saw Miles Stigart in Tangier we did wonder. We were thinking that Colonel Stigart seemed too intelligent to just sit on his yacht waiting for the sun to dip over the yard-arm before he had his gin and tonic. He struck us as the sort of man who would be out there doing something. Especially since he had told us that his father owed his life to the Basque guides that got him out of France and down to Gibraltar during the war. Some of the Basques are supporters of Eta... So he might have some motive for helping them get arms in from Morocco and elsewhere.”

  The Inspector leant back in his chair clasping and unclasping his hands.

  “Professor, I’d appreciate it if you could let us have a statement about what you just told me. We may need to pass it on to our colleagues in Gibraltar.”

  Ralph was a bit perplexed. One minute he’s warned away from anything to do with that whole Gibraltar business and asked to give a statement about what he knew about things down there the next. So much for staying out of things, thought Ralph.

  “What I just told you, Inspector, it’s not based on a lot of hard facts. They’re just some of my thoughts. But I’m happy to write something up and then bring it in so your people can prepare a formal statement. I’m always happy to help in any way I can, Inspector, although I’ll try not to get too close to the action, as you say.” Ralph realized that he was sounding a bit testy, but dammit, he didn’t ask to be involved in the first place. As far as he was concerned, he and Katie and their friends only wanted a holiday away from Kingston and the University. Maybe he was still tired from all the excitement and the long sail back. He thought of what Katie would say and reminded himself to just chill out.

  “That’ll be fine, Professor. Just ask for Sergeant Wilson when you come in. He’ll take care of things.” Inspector Linham was aware that he had ruffled Professor Chalmers’ feathers. There was little he could do about it except hope he could smooth things over. He did value the Professor’s input, but orders were orders, and he had not gotten to where he was by bucking the system.

  They chatted on as Ralph sympathised with the position the Inspector found himself in and he too wanted to ease the mutual embarrassment. They talked about the latest changes in the traffic patterns in the town and the new student accommodation that was being built and several other mundane goings on around the town.

  “The local residents are finally being won over,” the Inspector commented when Ralph mentioned this year’s intake of students descending on the University as well as on the unsuspecting community.

  “I think it has to be good for business,” Ralph observed. “College kids seem to have a lot more money these days than back when we were students, and no doubt the merchants don’t mind taking their share of it.” Ralph’s reference to we did not go unnoticed. Inspector Linham was relieved that the little rift seemed to be mended.

  “Yes, we had been getting a lot of complaints about late night revelry, especially at pub closing time at the weekend, but this recession seems to make the locals appreciate the injection of cash into the economy.”

  The Inspector promised to keep in touch and Ralph went back to Gypsy Hill. This week he had a full teaching schedule and still had not managed to catch up with Katie. He hoped that meant that she was enjoying her new job.

  ***

  At first Katie was amused at Granger’s offer of a truce. She told Ralph about the Prague conference and explained that she had only heard earlier that week about the prize. She apologized for being incommunicado for the past week and said that all of her energies had gone into settling into her new job at UCL. When he told her about Granger’s invitation to Goodwood he had to hold the phone away from his ear because the peals of laughter were so loud that they actually made the device vibrate.

  “Granger knows Sparini and I were at Cambridge together and he thinks I can do a bit of schmoozing to help his cause,” Ralph explained.

  But when he told her that if Granger moved up to the deputy VC post that he might consider applying for the Dean’s slot, she went ballistic.

  “Look Ralph it’s up to you but I thought you wanted less stress not more. And you hate doing administration jobs. You would have to go to health and safety meetings, do all those interviews, and deal with revalidation of the courses, chair exam boards and worse, you’d have to look as though you actually enjoyed it. You hate petty politics and all that posturing. Do you realise that at the graduation ceremony you’d be expected to dress up and strut around and lead the processional or whatever nonsense they call it.” She paused for breath. ”It’s just not you.”

  The expected barrage further confirmed his view that the telephone was almost as dangerous as twitter. As far as he was concerned, without face to face contact, nuances were missed and it all but eliminated personality. Having come to that conclusion, he had to concede that Katie’s personality had certainly come through on that occasion. Loud and clear.

  Ralph proceeded cautiously.

  “Well I haven’t actually been offered the job yet. And I don’t know that I would accept it if asked. It’s just that in some ways it would be nice to finish my career with some position in the University.”

  “If you think doormat is a position then you’re not the man I thought you were,” Katie said defiantly.

  He did not like the way she put it, but he knew she was right. If he took the job he would be expected to rubber stamp policies and dictates handed down from the system. He was a good teacher and he valued being an educator. He knew he would be letting himself down if he hid in some bureaucratic backwater with a fancy title until he could retire.

  Katie was not finished.
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  “Next you’ll be telling me that you want to be Chair of the library committee or some such nonsense.” He could see that it would take a lot to backtrack from the mess he had created.

  “Look let’s talk about it when we get some quiet time, Katie. You’re up for the trip to the races I assume?”

  “Of course. I can be a hypocrite with the best of them,” she laughed. “But just sort that all out with Granger before we go. I don’t want to have to sit there and watch you play lap dog to that old bugger. From what you said about that Italian business friend of yours, all you need to do is act the part of the long lost friend and chum the waters a bit and he’ll be happy. Promise?”

  “Okay. Leave it to me. I’ll sort everything out.”

  “Sorry I got a bit annoyed, Ralph. I guess I just saw us as getting to the point when we could go off to our cottage in Devon and just let our jobs tick over. That sure won’t happen if you get stuck in some admin job where you need to be on tap seven days a week. Right now I know I’m the one who’s clocking in all the hours, but in a few weeks I’ll have things on a better footing. Then I’ll have more free time. But I had better go and sort out some papers for a presentation at the staff seminar. Look why don’t we try to get together later this week?”

  They made some small talk to ease the tension and then Katie rang off. As he sat back he realised that he had not said anything to her about his meeting with Linham. It was probably not a good time, he mused ruefully. He called Peter who agreed to go to the pub and chat over Ralph’s dilemma.

  ***

  A trip to the Black Lion pub was something he and Peter enjoyed. The other customers were engrossed in watching the football on the big screen, so they found a table just inside the door and ordered their meal and two beers. Peter was driving for a change, and as he had a few points on his license for speeding on the M3, he was sticking to one beer. After a meal of steak and chips he told Peter about his meeting with Dean Granger and his opportunity for promotion. He knew he could rely on his friend to respect anything he told him in confidence.

  “Don’t worry old man. You’ve got enough on me to bust up my marriage, finish my career and put me away for years. Probably in that order. Peter put down his glass and sat back.

  “I hope you’re not thinking of passing up on the chance to become Dean. I know you, and I would take a bet that some stupid principles are buzzing around in that complicated brain of yours.”

  “Look. It’s not straight forward.”

  “Yes it is. Look as I see it, being Dean gives you a chance to act as a buffer between the bean counters, the admin jokers, and the poor sods on the front line. The ones that do the teaching and try to educate the great unwashed. That’s why you and I joined, Ralph. I sat there for years moaning about the injustices being heaped on us poor buggers down below. You know how it goes: not providing coffee for overseas guests unless you had a chitty, faffing around if you didn’t put the right number on some poor bloody part-timer’s pay claim, agreeing to lower admission standards just to get the student intake numbers up without regard to the knock on consequences, and only thinking of balancing the books. I used to complain that the place was being run more like a corner shop than a University. But as Dean I can make the changes that are needed and get the Music School back to what it was meant to do.”

  “I suppose I hadn’t really thought about those things at all,” Ralph admitted. “I guess I only thought about the things I would hate about it, like all of that bloody paperwork and having to answer directly to the big brass in the Vice Chancellor’s office. I’d thought about the status, of course, but not about it actually giving me any power to change anything.”

  “Think of it as you being the Abbot of a monastery. The monks go about their teaching and helping to save the souls of the poor folk. Your job is to make sure they get enough beer and vitals without having to sell their own souls to the robber barons that provide the means. Take the job, Ralph, and between us we can turn this place around. It’s given me a new lease of life.”

  Peter sat back with a contented smile.

  “Marcia says I am a new man. Well almost,” he laughed. “We think that in two or at the most three years, I’ll be ready to retire. Once I’ve set the Music School back on its feet and we have a few world class musicians on their way then I can rest on my laurels. Then we’d like to set up a place in the countryside, somewhere like Devon or Cornwall, where musicians can come and relax. You know the sort of place where they can regenerate their enthusiasm for music and new creations. It’s something that I would have loved to do a few years ago. Marcia is all for it so we are going to work on a plan to make it happen.”

  They chatted on about things that Peter was planning for the Music School and he in turn tried to build up Ralph’s enthusiasm for taking the post of Dean.

  Ralph was a lot more relaxed by the time he got back to his apartment. And after his little chat with Peter, he was now determined to take the promotion. He had also decided that he was finished with Stigart and the Gibraltar police. It was time to concentrate on his work again. Linham was right. He could just let it all go. It was nothing to do with him anymore, and he could forget all about it. Time to move on.

  ___________________

  Chapter 6

  The brand new Jaguar XJ Series 3.0 D with its V6 engine purring gently, eased its way through the traffic as they approached Goodwood. Peter had made all the arrangements for Nick, their driver from Trident Chauffeurs, to pick them up from Katie’s mews house in Chelsea. Nick was everything that their website had promised. Formative years in the Irish Guards and tours in Iraq and Afghanistan made him an ideal driver to have in case they ran in to any terrorists, as Katie told Ralph with a straight face. That was after she had finished ribbing Ralph about updating his own now very vintage Jag. Driving through the leafy lanes of Surrey and Sussex as the early morning mist cleared gave them time to talk about their future plans.

  After much discussion, Katie had agreed that Ralph should take the offer that Granger had placed on the table. Katie would concentrate on her career at UCL and they would both take care to safeguard their lifestyle. Katie had joked that in a couple of years there might be a vacancy as Dean of Education at Kingston. Once she got that, then what with Cynthia at Dorich House, Peter running the Music Faculty and Ralph running the Business Faculty, they would have the place sown up. Ralph pointed out that they could model the University on the mafia and turn it into a true family business. In four years they would have achieved all they wanted and then they could retire and spend their time sailing Gypsy Lady around the world. The idea of waking up every week in some new exotic port and then returning to enjoy the calm of England for the spring and summer sounded perfect.

  Nick apologised for getting them to the race track a bit early, but he explained that he had to start ferrying executives and race horse owners from Gatwick Airport. Some were flying in by helicopter and others using executive jet services, and he anticipated that it would be a busy day.

  He promised to pick them up at around 9 when the festivities finished. He tapped Ralph’s mobile number into his smartphone, and with a smooth ‘clunk’ of his door and a ‘purr’ from the exhaust, left them to enjoy their day.

  The organisers had a dress code and they had attired themselves appropriately. Ralph wore his linen suit and sported a cravat and a Panama hat. Katie had made a rare visit to Selfridges and wore an English floral print dress and a hat. The hat was not obligatory, but her friend had told her that she had it on good authority that it was encouraged.

  Goodwood Race course was set on the slopes of the Downs and the ladies were advised to wear flat shoes. That suited Katie fine. She literally lived in sandals, anyhow. Ralph offered his arm as they turned towards the Richmond Enclosure and headed for the Charlton Hunt Stand where they had agreed to meet Granger. To their right were panoramic views of the Isle of Wight, where Ralph had enjoyed many days sailing in the Solent during Cowes Week. The rac
e course presented a brilliant spectacle. The dark green of the grass looked immaculate from where they stood. The white railings picked out the undulating course and the colourful stands and hospitality tents acted as a perfect backdrop. Ralph loved the smell of the freshly cut grass that blended with the aroma of the food as they walked past the hospitality marquees. It reminded Ralph of when he was a kid and went with his parents to local race meetings. In those days there was that tangy smell of fish and chips and whelks and pink mussels. He noted that nowadays it was more like the aroma that tempted your taste buds as you walked past upmarket restaurants in London. The fact that this was the playground of the famous and wealthy, or as the media now phrased it, ‘the great and the good’, was evident everywhere he looked. Even the so called 3 Furlong Picnic Park was filling up with Rolls Royces and Bentleys. They were not quite driven by liveried chauffeurs, but pretty damn close, he mused. The buzz of the growing crowd of race-goers became more noticeable. Katie clutched the pink race card that had been sent with their invitation pack as they made their way toward the smiling and waving form of Rupert Granger and his wife Ruth.

  “Let’s see how he handles this one,” she whispered to Ralph.

  “You made it in good time. What a marvellous day for it,” said Granger enthusiastically as he shook Ralph’s hand and introduced them to Ruth. “And Katie. How nice to see you. I hear great things about you these days. I believe I heard that you just received a prize from the European Union,” he beamed.

  “Thank you,” Katie said. “How nice of you to include me. It does seem a long time since we last met.” Katie held out her hand first to Ruth then to Rupert Granger.

  Ralph was pleased that the ice had been broken and that they could begin to enjoy their day out. Ruth seemed happy to play second string to Granger and went off with Katie towards the pre-lunch champagne reception that had been laid on.