by Clara Benson
She ran back upstairs, past her room and along to the end of the passage, less careful of the noise she was making this time, then knocked on Mr. Hesketh’s door. He answered immediately and she was not at all surprised to see that he was fully dressed and wide awake. Quickly, she explained in a whisper what had happened, and his face set into a grim expression.
‘You’d better show me,’ he said, and shut the door behind him. They had not gone far when he said, ‘Wait. I’ll go and get my torch,’ and turned back.
It was at this point that disaster struck. Miss Devlin, who had been woken up by the sound of Angela hurrying along the passage to fetch Mr. Hesketh, came out of her room to see what was going on just as Mr. Hesketh was passing, and the two of them bumped into one another. Since nobody had informed Miss Devlin that the Latin master was staying there at present, she immediately took it that the strange man with whom she had collided in the dark was a burglar. She shrieked, and for a few seconds the two of them grappled together in the gloom, until Mr. Hesketh managed to free himself and stepped back.
‘Oh, no you don’t!’ cried Miss Devlin. ‘Help! Police!’
She accompanied her yell with a neat yet powerful right hook, which connected with Mr. Hesketh’s jaw and laid him out flat. As he lay there groaning, Miss Devlin stepped over him and turned on a nearby wall-lamp.
‘Why, it’s Mr. Hesketh!’ she said in astonishment as she looked down at the young man’s prostrate figure.
She glanced up and saw Angela standing open-mouthed nearby, and her eyes widened. Despite herself, Angela almost laughed as she quite clearly saw an awful suspicion enter the Games mistress’s head, but other concerns swiftly intruded and she ran forward and bent over the unfortunate young man, who was rubbing his jaw groggily and attempting to sit up.
‘Are you all right?’ said Angela. ‘Help me get him up, Miss Devlin.’
‘I’m all right, I think,’ said Hesketh. He refused her hand and got to his feet slowly.
‘But what—’ Miss Devlin began, looking from Angela to Mr. Hesketh and back again. ‘Why is Mr. Hesketh here? I thought you were a burglar.’
‘No, I’m not a burglar,’ said Hesketh grimly, moving his head from side to side to make sure it was still attached to his neck. He winced.
It was finally beginning to dawn on Miss Devlin that laying out the Latin master with a single punch was perhaps not the best way to foster good relations with a fellow teacher, and she went pink in the face at the enormity of what she had done.
‘Oh, dear me!’ she exclaimed. ‘Oh, Mr. Hesketh, I’m most dreadfully sorry. How will you ever forgive me? Let me run downstairs and get you some ice.’
‘No, no,’ said Hesketh.
‘Oh, but I insist,’ said Miss Devlin. ‘It’s the least I can do.’
All three of them were by now very embarrassed, but how the situation might eventually have resolved itself will never be known, for at that moment there was an interruption in the form of Miss Bell, who emerged from her room in a hurry, glanced around at them all and said urgently:
‘Where is the Princess?’
ELEVEN
Despite the pain in his jaw, Hesketh was instantly alert.
‘What do you mean? Isn’t she in there with you?’ he said.
‘No,’ said Miss Bell. ‘I woke up and heard a noise out here, and thought she must have left the room for some reason. Where is she?’
‘I beg your pardon,’ said Mr. Hesketh, and went into Miss Bell’s room, followed by the others.
The bedside lamp was switched on, and it was immediately evident that there was no-one in the room. Hesketh looked at the little bed which was Irina’s, then bent over and peered under it, but without much hope.
‘But how did she get out?’ he said. ‘You locked the door, I assume, Miss Bell?’
‘Of course I did,’ she said. ‘And I put my keys in my bedside drawer here, as I always do.’
She pulled open the drawer as she spoke. Her mouth opened then closed again.
‘Gone,’ said Mr. Hesketh, and it was not a question.
Miss Bell nodded wordlessly.
‘But why?’ said Angela. ‘Why did she leave the room of her own accord if she knew she was in danger?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Mr. Hesketh, ‘but we had better hurry if we want to catch her.’
He turned to leave the room, and Angela followed him.
‘Wait!’ said Miss Bell, and went after them in her dressing-gown. Miss Devlin, not understanding at all what was going on, followed.
They all hurried down the stairs and along the corridor to the rear atrium, Miss Bell switching on lights as they went. When they arrived at the back door, they saw what Angela had already seen some time earlier.
‘My keys!’ exclaimed Miss Bell, as she spied the articles in question dangling from the lock of the door. She took them and put them in her pocket.
‘Then there’s no doubt,’ said Angela. ‘Irina took the keys and went out of her own volition.’
The four of them went outside. There was a sharp chill in the air but Miss Bell, awake and capable in her night-things, made no mention of it.
‘Which way did she go, do you suppose?’ she said.
‘I don’t know,’ said Hesketh. ‘Of course, it depends on why she came out. If she came out to meet someone, then the summer-house or one of the outbuildings might be the most likely place. If, on the other hand, she was intending to run away from the school, then she might have gone along the path to the village, or even out through the front gates.’
‘She might just be out for mischief,’ said Miss Devlin, who knew nothing of the assassination plot. ‘Don’t you remember, Miss Bell, when the Third took it into their heads to go and play tennis at midnight?’
‘Oh, goodness me,’ said Angela, in sudden terror that this was all a scheme of Barbara’s.
‘At any other time I might believe it,’ said Miss Bell. ‘But not now. She knows perfectly well her life is in danger, and she assured me that she would take special care not to get out of the sight of the people who were placed to protect her.’
‘We had better go and look for her,’ said Angela, exchanging glances with Mr. Hesketh, for it was now more than twenty minutes since she had followed her mysterious quarry to the back door, and whether it were Irina or someone else, the person must surely be some way away by now.
‘Yes,’ said Hesketh. ‘Suppose we split up. Mrs. Marchmont, you and Miss Devlin go across and look in the outbuildings and the summer-house; Miss Bell, you and I shall go around to the front gates. I rather fear she has been lured out under some pretext, and may have been spirited away in a motor-car.’
‘Very well,’ said Miss Bell. ‘Miss Devlin, I believe there are some torches in the Games cupboard. Would you be so good as to fetch them?’
‘Certainly,’ said Miss Devlin, keen to make amends for what she was rapidly realizing had been an egregious error on her part earlier. She hurried off, and the others began to discuss how best to conduct the search.
‘But what about Mr. Everich?’ said Miss Bell suddenly. ‘I had completely forgotten about him. He must be informed immediately.’
‘Is he staying here in the school?’ said Angela.
‘No,’ said Miss Bell. ‘He said very generously that since the Princess was evidently under the excellent care of the school and the British Government, there was no need for him to remain on the premises at night, and so he has gone to stay in the village.’
‘Well, the British Government can only protect someone who wants to be protected,’ said Hesketh, a little tetchily. ‘If the silly girl will go wandering about at night when she has been specifically instructed to stay indoors, then there’s not a lot I can do.’
‘If Everich is in the village then we shall be wasting valuable time in fetching him,’ said Angela.
‘Yes,’ said Hesketh. ‘The important thing at this moment is to find the Princess, and quickly.’
A thought struck
Angela.
‘You don’t suppose she has gone to meet Everich and he has taken her away to safety, do you?’ she said.
‘No,’ said Hesketh. ‘If that were the plan then I am certain Everich would have told me about it. He said only that he was awaiting orders from the Grand Duke’s cousin, Count Paul, as to whether Irina ought to be brought back to Morania, and in the meantime he had been charged with the task of helping British Intelligence keep an eye on her.’
Just then, Miss Devlin, still in her dressing-gown and slippers, returned with the torches and the search began. Angela could not blame Mr. Hesketh for not wanting to be paired with the Games mistress, but was rather comforted herself by having Miss Devlin for a partner, having seen the damage that lady could do to a grown man while still half-asleep. They hurried down to the summer-house as instructed and looked in, but saw nobody inside. Angela was beginning to think that they might be too late, for Irina had had ample time to get away if she wished. What on earth had possessed the girl? She knew perfectly well she was in danger. Had she decided to try and return home to Morania by herself? That would be absurd, when she might do it in the company of a member of Moranian Intelligence who had been sent specifically to protect her. Why, then?
‘Not here,’ said Miss Devlin. ‘Let’s go and look in the huts over there.’
Without much hope, Angela followed her. They poked about dutifully in each of the outbuildings, but saw nothing.
‘It’s useless,’ said Miss Devlin. ‘Why, the child might be anywhere. The school grounds are surrounded by trees and bushes, and it would be as easy as anything for her to hide for as long as she liked.’
‘But why?’ said Angela.
‘Don’t ask me,’ said Miss Devlin. ‘Everyone seems to know much more about the thing than I do. I only wish somebody would tell me what it was all about.’
Angela was just wondering whether she ought to enlighten Miss Devlin on the subject, when the Games mistress stiffened and said:
‘Look! Over there!’
Angela turned and thought she saw something dart towards the path along which she had followed Miss Fazackerley the other day.
‘Is it Irina?’ she said.
‘I don’t know, but whoever it is they’re heading for the village,’ said Miss Devlin.
Of one accord, the two women hastened towards the entrance to the path and stopped to listen. Angela thought she could hear something moving in the distance.
‘Are you quite certain it was human?’ she said.
‘I think so,’ said Miss Devlin. ‘It was someone creeping quite low to the ground, but I’m pretty sure it was a person rather than an animal.’
She did not stop to wait for a reply, but switched on the torch and ploughed ahead onto the path, Angela following behind. Here under the trees, the moonlight was unable to penetrate and so the torch was a necessary object. They walked briskly along the path, their footsteps making the only sound.
‘We ought to go faster,’ said Angela, remembering that they were most likely following a young girl who knew she was being pursued. She speeded up her pace, and Miss Devlin followed suit.
They finally emerged on to the road which led to the village and looked in both directions, and there, about a hundred yards away, running towards the village, they saw what looked like the figure of a girl. Even as they watched, a shadow seemed to detach itself from the hedgerow to her left. What happened next was not clear in the dim light, but it seemed to Angela that the shadow stepped out and pulled the girl to the side of the road and out of sight.
‘Quick!’ exclaimed Angela.
Miss Devlin had seen it too, and the two of them ran as fast as they could towards the spot where the girl had disappeared.
‘There,’ said Angela.
Miss Devlin shone the torch on the spot at which they thought Irina had disappeared, but they saw nothing. The hedgerow was pristine and undisturbed, and there was no trace of a struggle. For several minutes they scouted about, looking for any sign of the missing girl, but it was no use, and finally they had to give up. They stared at one another in dismay.
‘We had better go back and tell Miss Bell and Mr. Hesketh what has happened,’ said Angela grimly. ‘We are useless by ourselves. Perhaps they will suggest a search-party.’
The two of them returned, defeated, to the school, to find Miss Bell and Mr. Hesketh just returning from their own search. Miss Bell made an unhappy bleating noise when she heard what they had to say.
‘Oh dear,’ she said. ‘What am I going to tell Mr. Everich?’
Hesketh looked as though he were thinking the same thing about Henry Jameson.
‘Well, there is nothing you can do at present,’ he said. ‘I shall call the police now, and later I shall speak to my superiors in London, who will no doubt give me further instructions, but in the meantime I suggest you all go back to bed. It is very late, and two of you are hardly dressed for the cold.’
This last remark was addressed to Miss Bell and Miss Devlin. The two mistresses were with some difficulty persuaded to return indoors—although Miss Bell had no intention of returning to bed, and instead went straight along to her study, there to begin writing a list of things to be done urgently the next day, while Miss Devlin went to her room, rather confused about the events of the night and still wondering secretly why Mr. Hesketh and Mrs. Marchmont had been creeping about together in the dark.
‘Hadn’t you better go too?’ said Hesketh. He was rubbing at his jaw, Angela noticed with some sympathy.
‘Are you all right?’ she said.
‘I think so,’ he replied ruefully, ‘although of course my pride has taken a dent. I’d like to think that if she hadn’t caught me by surprise in the dark I’d have stayed on my feet, at least. Luckily, she doesn’t seem to have done too much damage.’
‘Good,’ said Angela, ‘because we need to go back to the village and look for the Princess.’
‘What, now?’ he said in surprise.
‘Yes,’ said Angela. ‘The man in the barn, don’t you remember? I’d forgotten about him in all the excitement tonight, but what if he was the man Miss Devlin and I saw just now? We know where he’s staying, and if it was he who did it, then he may well have taken Irina back to the barn with him.’
He looked at her for a second and then made up his mind.
‘Very well,’ he said. ‘Do you have your gun?’
‘Yes,’ she said, showing him.
‘Then we had better go. But you must do as I say and keep back if I tell you. To be perfectly frank, Mrs. Marchmont, I’d much prefer to take a man with me for something like this, but failing that, a woman with a gun will have to do.’
‘Thank you,’ said Angela dryly. ‘I shall do my best not to disappoint. But as a matter of fact, there is a man we can bring. He’s dying for an adventure and he can take us in the car, too, which will be much quicker.’
Little more than five minutes later, the Bentley was speeding back towards the village, with William at the wheel, while Mr. Hesketh sat in the back with Mrs. Marchmont, who had refused to remain behind on the grounds that she alone knew where the barn in question was. Since they did not want to draw attention to their approach, they left the car by the post-office and Angela indicated the lane in which the old barn was situated.
‘Now,’ said Hesketh quietly. ‘Don’t forget that the most important thing is to get the Princess back safely. We know that there are people who wish to do her harm, and can only hope that she is still alive. If she is, it is our job to make sure she is returned to the school safe and well. William,’ he went on, ‘you and I will creep into the barn and apprehend this man, if he is there. Once we have him, Mrs. Marchmont, you shall take care of the Princess.’
Angela and William nodded in understanding, and then they all set off quietly up the lane. Outside the barn they stopped to listen, and then Hesketh and William crept inside. All was silent, and it seemed most unlikely that a mysterious abductor would be able to hold a frig
htened schoolgirl captive in the building without attracting attention, at the very least. Of course, that was always assuming Irina was still alive, thought Hesketh grimly.
Suddenly, a noise came from the darkest corner of the barn, making the two men jump. It sounded like a foot scraping against the hard floor. Hesketh immediately switched on his torch and shone it towards the sound, hoping to blind whoever it was temporarily and catch him by surprise.
‘I know you’re in here,’ he said. ‘Come out, and no funny business.’
‘What do you want?’ came a whining voice from the corner.
Hesketh and William approached warily and saw, sitting on a heap of blankets, a man. He was dirty and unshaven, and looked as though he had just woken up.
‘You know what we want,’ said Hesketh. ‘We’re looking for the Princess. What have you done with her?’
‘What are you talking about?’ said the man. ‘What princess? Is this a joke?’
‘It’s no joke,’ said Hesketh. ‘Where is she?’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said the man again. He noticed the gun that Hesketh was pointing at him and shrank back into his corner. ‘Don’t shoot me!’ he cried. ‘I only came in here to sleep. I’m an honest man.’
‘Oh yes?’ said Hesketh. ‘If you’re an honest man, then where did you get these blankets? They don’t belong to you, do they?’
‘Someone gave them to me,’ said the man sulkily.
William, meanwhile, was searching the barn.
‘There’s nothing here,’ he said.
‘No, I didn’t think so,’ said Hesketh. ‘Still, we can’t let this fellow go just yet. I shouldn’t be surprised if he knows something.’