'Which may give us some more clues,' Dodie said slowly. 'It's the first theft we know about from the ground floor. I think we ought to tell Sheila and ask her to tell the guests. You don't need to keep quiet about it. That might give us some interesting reactions.'
'She won't want suspicions being thrown on her staff.'
'She doesn't want any of them to be guilty, which is understandable but unrealistic. It must be one of them.'
'How shall we play it?'
'Let's not mention theft, just say you think you may have lost it, and ask everyone to keep an eye open for it.'
'OK, shall we go and see her now? She'll be in the office, it's not one of Felicity's days.'
'Then that seems to eliminate her. And Terry, if he was at the pool while you were swimming.'
Elena nodded. 'Yes, he was for once. I think all the therapists had clients, but we can check that with Sheila.'
'I'll change ready for dinner first. I cancelled the sessions I'd booked for today.'
'I can cancel my hair appointment. I'll change too, then we can both go and speak to Sheila.'
Half an hour later they were in the office. Sheila was aghast.
'It's still going on? I rather hoped they'd be satisfied with what they had, or afraid to risk more.'
'We're dealing with a persistent crook,' Dodie said. 'They'll go on until they get caught, it's a kind of compulsion once they've got away with it the first time.'
'The ring isn't valuable,' Elena reassured Sheila. 'It's glass, a good reproduction, but it's unlikely the thief has had any opportunity to get rid of it yet.'
'It must be one of the maids,' Sheila said. 'I was so hoping it wasn't. Do you think I should search their rooms?'
'Not yet. And if it's one who lives in the village, that would not help. It would merely upset all of them.'
'That means Mandy or Pat, I suppose. Or Rosie might have given it to Sam to hide.'
'If it's one of them, but I'm not totally convinced. It's too obvious, using the day they clean the ground floor rooms, as if to throw suspicion onto them.'
'Then what do you suggest I do?'
'Can you make an announcement at dinner, when all the guests will hear it, and some of the staff, that Elena has lost the ring. Frank and the waitresses will soon pass it on to the others. They have all seen it, it was intended to be flashed around. Ask them to keep an eye open for it in case it has dropped down somewhere.'
'And then?'
'We await developments. We know the ring was stolen, not just mislaid, so does the thief.'
'I suggest you tell them it's not real emeralds, so not valuable,' Elena said. 'That might give them second thoughts. Then we see who, if anyone finds it and where.'
*
On the following day Dodie and Elena went for coffee with Sheila, to review any progress. Felicity smiled and told them to go straight in. One of the male guests was with Sheila.
'Good, come in. You know Mr Barratt?' Dodie nodded. They had talked a few times, and she had thought him a pleasant, unassuming man.
'I think I had something stolen,' Mr Barratt said. 'This was when I was here three years ago. I believed I had dropped it, so never mentioned it to Miss Sheila, but now I am wondering. It could have been stolen, as could your ring, Miss da Rocha.'
'What did you lose?'
'I've been telling Miss Sheila. It was a rather ostentatious silver tie clip, inset with a two-carat diamond. Something my wife gave me just before I divorced her. She was the one with the most money,' he added as an aside. 'She hoped to soften me up, as she didn't want the divorce and the publicity about her affairs. I never liked the thing.'
'How did you come to lose it?' Dodie asked.
'I never wore it here, but I had it with me. I didn't bother putting it in the safe, I slipped it into that shallow drawer in the middle of the dressing table. I didn't notice it was missing until I was packing to go home.'
'Which room did you have?'
'The one I always have, 303.'
'On the top floor again,' Dodie nodded. 'How did you think you could have lost it if you never wore it?'
'I remember, one evening, taking it out of the drawer when I was fishing for a handkerchief. I think I left it on the top, but I can't be sure, and then I completely forgot about it until I was leaving.' He laughed slightly. 'Quite frankly, I was glad to be rid of it and able to claim on the insurance.'
'But you must have wondered what had happened to it?'
'I looked behind the dressing table in case it had dropped down. I suppose I thought it might have been hoovered up without the maid noticing.'
'You didn't suspect it had been stolen?'
'Oh no! Not then. It's only now I have considered the possibility. Those girls are all so pleasant and helpful, and I still can't believe any of them could be a thief.'
He could tell them no more, and went off for his massage.
'Any more remembered losses?' Dodie asked.
Sheila nodded. 'Three. One last year, a ring she thought had slipped off in the garden, it was loose and always slipping off, but which she claimed was not worth a great deal, and which she had never liked, so she didn't want to create a fuss and a big search. That would be another claim on the insurance. And a silver cigarette case, also last year but a different week, with a monogram picked out in rubies. She says she didn't smoke a great deal, and didn't miss it until she reached home. She thought she must have slipped it down between the chair cushions instead of into her bag. She left it on her dressing table most of the time. The third is a gold pen she also thought she had dropped between the cushions. Before you ask, all had rooms on the top floor.'
'So we have at least four more possible thefts, going back three years, all from the top floor.'
'How many more?' Sheila was distraught. 'If three of this week's guests lost things in previous years, and one more this week, how many more thefts can there have been in other weeks? It could be dozens, and the reputation of The Crags will never recover!'
'It will if we can find the thief,' Dodie said reassuringly. 'This latest theft narrows down the options. I think we need to start questioning the maids, if you agree. They are the most likely thieves, of course, but they must have some outside help, if only to get rid of the things.'
'As well as get a duplicate safe key,' Elena reminded them.
'Let me think. Perhaps it would be better to talk to Mrs Jones first? She must know the maids, she could perhaps give us some information,' Dodie suggested.
'She is also a possible suspect, though I thought I could trust her implicitly!'
'Can we talk to her this afternoon, ask her not to mention it, and perhaps see the maids, Rosie and Mandy at least, when they are doing the rooms this evening?'
*
Elena went off for reflexology, saying she needed something gentle to soothe her. Dodie found her way into the gardens. There was a walk along the top of the cliffs, and behind it a tall, thick yew hedge that sheltered the rest of the garden from the sea breezes. It was laid out with several winding paths, patches of lawn and shrub borders with what Dodie assumed were tough varieties able to withstand the salt spray and the cold winds. More yew hedges were situated to provide sheltered alcoves where wooden benches might tempt strollers to sit. One soon tempted Dodie, and she leaned back, trying to decide which, if any of the men at The Crags might be involved in the thefts.
She was almost dozing when two voices close by shook her awake. A man and a woman were arguing. The woman's voice was faintly familiar. Dodie craned round, but the voices came from the other side of the yew hedge, and it was far too dense for her to be able to see through it. She glanced sideways, wondering if she might casually stroll that way, but the hedge continued for a dozen yards or more in each direction. By the time she was on the far side the argument might well have finished. She'd do better to listen to what she could from here.
The man's voice rose. He sounded angry. 'Get rid of it, I say. It's foolish at this time, an
d you should know better.'
'Sam, no! I can't!'
'Rosie, my girl, you'll do as I say or that's it, I'm not being let in for any more trouble.'
The girl burst into tears, and said something Dodie couldn't catch, then it sounded as though she was running away. Dodie gave her a few minutes, then rose and strolled round behind the yew hedge. A man she had seen before, with Mrs Jones's husband who had been trying to sleep in a shed, small and chunky, with dirty blond hair and a rugged complexion, presumably Sam, was pruning some bushes. This was a path leading to the small orchard, visible a hundred yards away, and the vegetable garden which provided most of The Crag's vegetables. Some way over to the left were what Dodie assumed were the old stables, where Sam had a flat.
'Good afternoon,' she called out. 'I must say the gardens are a credit to you. Do you manage them all on your own?'
It was clearly an effort, but despite the anger he could not hide he managed to give her a smile and reply politely.
'I've one man under me, Walter. It's far too much for one man, and rather a struggle for two. But we get some extra help during the summer when the soft fruit and vegetables need a lot of attention.'
'It's a credit to you. It can't be easy so close to the sea.'
'Well, you need to know your stuff, and plant the right things,' he said. 'I had to change a lot when I came, the previous chap was all for bedding plants. They may look nice, but they're too much work.'
'It looks good now. How long have you been here?'
'Three years. Miss Sheila lets me do much as I like, so long as I provide the veg and don't spend more than she says on the rest. But I can do a lot from cuttings, and I have some good pals that let me have things cheap.'
'I don't see any flowers like they have in the house.'
'Well, no, they mostly won't stand the wind. Miss Sheila orders them each week from a local nursery. I can't work miracles.'
'You seem to have done that,' Dodie said, and with a smile she walked on. So this was Rosie's fiancé, and true love did not seem to be going smoothly. What was it Sam wanted her to get rid of so urgently? Something she had stolen? But what could Rosie want to keep so desperately? Surely she couldn't want to keep Elena's very recognisable ring? Perhaps, when she next saw Rosie, she might find out.
*
After lunch Dodie and Elena went back to Sheila's sitting room. Mrs Jones was already there, seated on a hard chair, looking puzzled and rather belligerent. Sheila gestured to Dodie and Elena to take the armchairs, while she went to stand by the window, fingering the curtains nervously.
Mrs Jones did not wait for Dodie to speak. She was speaking before Dodie had seated herself. 'Miss Sheila says you want to speak to me? I can't think why. I hope it's not a complaint about one of the maids. I have complete confidence in them all, they have worked for me for years.'
'What we have to say must not be repeated outside this room, to anyone, Mrs Jones,' Dodie said. 'We need your help. It's not a complaint, yet, because we don't have enough information.'
'Not a complaint – yet? That sounds very odd, if I may say so.'
'You have heard about the loss of my ring?' Elena said. 'It was in my safe, which was somehow opened.'
'And you are accusing one of the maids of stealing it? Rubbish! How can they open these safes? You must have dropped it somewhere.'
'There have been other thefts, also from these safes which had been locked,' Dodie said. 'The maids are the obvious suspects as they have the easiest access to the rooms. We'll leave for the moment how the safes could have been opened, but it is a fact several of them were, and so far as we can tell it was always when Rosie and Mandy were on duty, and usually from the top floor rooms. Now, Mrs Jones, please co-operate and tell us what you can about these two.'
Mrs Jones was still looking indignant. 'They are both good girls, and I'd trust them any time! It's wicked to accuse them of being thieves!'
'Mandy lives in the village?' Dodie asked quietly.
Mrs Jones took a deep breath, hesitated, then clearly decided answering would do no harm.
'Yes, with her mother. Her father is dead. She lived in when she first came here, before I did, but after he died she said her mother needed the company. Why should she steal anything? She gets a good wage, and the guests are generous with the tips. Which we share,' she added, glaring at Dodie.
'And Rosie?'
'She lives in, as you no doubt know, since you have been prying.'
'Mrs Jones, please,' Sheila said. 'That is not helpful. I asked Mrs Fanshaw to help, rather than bring in the police and make news of these thefts public, which would do none of us any favours.'
'Humph! If there really have been thefts, what good can she do? Rosie comes from Manchester, and I know nothing about her family. She is going to marry Sam, one of the gardeners. And if any of the maids stole that gaudy ring you have been flashing about, Miss, do you think they would dare wear it?'
'They could sell it.'
'Well, you can take my word for it, neither of them are thieves! Now, I have work to do. Have you finished your third degree?'
'Yes, Mrs Jones. You have been most helpful.'
She glared at Dodie, suspecting sarcasm, rose to her feet and stalked, her back rigid with anger, from the room.
Sheila sighed. 'I can see I will soon need a new housekeeper. But how was she helpful?'
'I may be imagining things, but it seemed to me she was protesting far too much. I feel certain she knows something or has some suspicions. She clearly isn't going to tell us, though.'
*
CHAPTER 7
Sheila arranged for Dodie and Elena to eat dinner with her and Joan in their sitting room. Looking puzzled, Diane wheeled in a trolley and seemed disappointed when Sheila said they would serve themselves.
'You don't want me to help? I can lay the table for you.'
'No thank you, Diane.'
None of them had much appetite.
'Mrs Jones insists on being present,' Sheila said as she pushed away her uneaten salmon mornay.
Dodie stared in dismay. 'How come?'
'She said that if there were a trade union the girls would be entitled to have an adviser with them.'
'True, but this is not a union matter, nor even a disciplinary one. It's simple questioning.'
'I suspect she will encourage the girls to refuse to answer any questions, or even to come, if I exclude her.'
'Then you sack the three of them.' Dodie was uncompromising.
'And if one of them is guilty, we lose any chance of finding out,' Joan said.
'Plus we face actions for unfair dismissal, which could drag on for months,' Sheila added. 'Maybe, if she is the guilty one, we can see something from her reactions.'
'Would you prefer me to do the asking?' Dodie said. 'I'm an outsider, they don't know who or what I am, whether I have any official status.'
'Pretend you're a private detective?'
'If you like. How much do we tell them about previous thefts?'
'I wouldn't give too much away,' Elena warned.
'I'll just say we know of several other thefts, mainly from the top floor, or the ground floor, when they have been on duty there. It can be mainly to do with your ring, and I won't stress it's not expensive.'
Elena grinned. 'No doubt they'll have heard the gossip about your former exploits, Ma. Hazel has been talking long and loud, pretending she knows all about them, and the staff will have heard.'
'It might help if you do it,' Joan said. 'They'll be less antagonistic towards us, and if they are innocent that will be better for future relations. Sorry if that puts you in a spot, Dodie.'
'I can stand it. I don't have to work with them afterwards.'
'I think I'll sit unobtrusively at the side and observe Mrs Jones in particular and her reactions,' Elena said. 'I'll take notes.'
'And make sure I'm not using thumbscrews. Right, let's put this trolley out in the office, so we won't be interrupted.'
T
hey had just settled themselves when there was a peremptory knock on the door, and without waiting for an invitation Mrs Jones marched in, trailed by the two apprehensive-looking maids. They were still wearing their uniforms, but Dodie was intrigued to see that Mrs Jones had discarded her own blue dress and was wearing a grey suit with built up shoulders. Was this what she thought of as power dressing? Did she think to intimidate them if she were not in her usual dress as an employee?
'Do come in,' Sheila said, and Dodie suppressed a grin at the tartness in her voice. 'Rosie, Mandy, sit down please. Don't be worried. Mrs Fanshaw just needs to ask you some questions.'
They had arranged two chairs facing Dodie across the table, with another behind. When Mrs Jones pushed these chairs apart and inserted the third between them, which she proceeded to sit on before the flustered girls had had time to sit, Dodie merely raised her eyebrows. Mrs Jones gave them all a satisfied look. She clearly thought she had taken the initiative.
'Mrs Jones, I believe you are quite satisfied with the work of these two girls?' Dodie began, her voice quiet.
The woman looked startled. She clearly had not expected to be answering questions herself.
'Yes, of course.' She paused for a moment, then went on firmly. 'They're honest, hard working, and utterly reliable.'
'Good. That's encouraging. Rosie, Mandy, I wanted to talk to you to see whether you could help us solve a mystery. There have been several thefts from the guest rooms, most from the top floor, which you clean, but some from the ground floor on the days when you do those rooms too. I am wondering whether you can help me explain them?'
They both looked puzzled, and Mrs Jones opened her mouth, but Dodie cut in before she had a chance to speak.
'I am wondering whether whoever is committing these thefts is trying to put the blame on you.'
Mandy clearly did not see the point of this. 'You're accusing us of thieving? That's wicked, that is.'
'As I said,' Mrs Jones said quickly.
She had clearly primed the girls. It would have made no difference, Dodie thought, if they had asked her to say nothing. Her loyalty was to the girls, and she meant to protect them as much as she could.
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