‘And you think he killed her?’
Fortescue paused to consider the question. ‘I thought so at the time, which is why I didn’t come forward. I was distraught with grief and…well, I also knew that my father would not be best pleased if our family name was dragged into the matter. Scotland Yard had their man, so…’ He shrugged, lifted his palms from the surface of the table and allowed his words to trail off.
‘Do you know if Fuller still forced himself onto Maisie after you and she became close?’ Riley asked.
‘She assured me that he did not. She barricaded herself into the same room as her sisters and told him she’d stand at the gates to my father’s warehouses and tell everyone who passed through them what he had done to her if he didn’t stop.’
‘He must have been fit to be tied,’ Salter remarked. ‘A man of his ilk, accustomed to bullying and intimidating, using his strength to get whatever he wanted, being usurped by a mere slip of a girl. Did it not occur to you that he might have killed her and then dumped her body outside Caldwell’s shop to implicate him?’
‘At the time, frankly, no. I suppose I wanted it to be Caldwell. I was jealous, even though I knew that Maisie saw him for my sake.’ He looked up at Riley, his eyes luminous with grief. ‘What sort of man does that make me, Inspector, if I am unable to look after the girl I adored and left her to prostitute herself for my sake?’
‘Try to remember that she did what she did as an act of love. Love for you.’
‘Thank you, but it doesn’t help much.’
‘You have chosen to talk to me,’ Riley remarked. ‘I cannot help wondering why.’
‘Because I am now thinking more coherently and I suspect that Fuller very likely did kill his own daughter. I have seen him beat men half to death for the flimsiest of reasons. He hates being gainsaid, you see.’ Riley nodded. He did see. He had observed direct evidence of Fuller’s temper for himself, and wondered how much restraint it had taken him not to let his fists fly at Salter the previous day. ‘And more to the point, your sergeant tells me that Fuller gave you my name. He’s taunting me, you see, believes me to be a coward incapable of standing up for myself.’ He straightened his shoulders, showing a brief glimpse of backbone. ‘Well, as you can see, I am not quite so easy to goad as he appears to think. It is beyond time that someone confronted the vile man. I cannot think why my father tolerates him and have often said as much, but Father does as Father likes without recourse to anyone else. He certainly doesn’t listen to my opinions.’
‘Caldwell told his barrister that it was he who ended the affair with Maisie because she was becoming too dependent upon him.’
Fortescue shook his head emphatically. ‘Maisie was not dependent upon anyone. She’d learned the hard way to look out for herself. I dare say Caldwell made that up to divert suspicion from himself.’
‘Very likely. Anyway, what you have told us is very helpful, Mr Fortescue,’ Riley said.
‘It has made me feel better to have it all out in the open. But I don’t see how it will help bring Fuller to justice. If he did kill Maisie, he will have covered his tracks well. And even if he has not, no one will have the courage to speak out against him.’
Riley stood and offered his hand to Fortescue. ‘If nothing else, what you have told us will help to prevent an innocent man from hanging.’
‘If he is innocent.’ Fortescue looked alarmed. ‘Will I be asked to testify?’
‘That I cannot say. Lord Isaac Arnold is defending Caldwell. I will pass on to him what you have said to me. It will be for him to decide.’
‘You may tell Lord Isaac that I am at his disposal. I would like the world to know what Fuller did to his daughter. What kind of man he really is. Then Father will have no choice but to dispense with his services. The warehouses will be better places without him throwing his considerable weight about.’
‘Well, well,’ Salter said, watching the young man being escorted from Scotland Yard. ‘Is it my imagination or is he walking a little taller than he was when he came in?’
‘We all have our limits, and Fortescue has discovered his. Unless I mistake the matter, he will now find the strength to stand up to his father and exert himself, so at least some good has come out of Maisie’s death.’
They walked back to Riley’s office together, still discussing Fortescue’s revelations.
‘If he had come forward at the start then perhaps Caldwell wouldn’t have been charged,’ Salter said.
‘I believe him when he says that he wasn’t thinking straight,’ Riley replied. ‘He probably resented Caldwell almost as much as Fuller. He also probably assumed that he would be looked upon as a suspect if the truth came out. I mean, a wealthy young man with expectations willing to take on the likes of Maisie who then discovers that she has been a little too free with her favours. Most men, fuelled by jealousy, would react violently to that discovery.’
‘Ah, right enough.’ They reached the sanctity of Riley’s office. ‘What next?’
‘A visit to Barchester is long overdue. I suspect that we will find him at the Archaeological Society. He gives another of his fund-raising lectures later today and will be preparing for it.’
Sergeant Barton put his head round the door. ‘Another shy visitor for you who doesn’t want to be seen. I’ve put him in the same room as Fortescue.’
‘Does this visitor have a name, Barton?’
‘Oh, right, yes. Dunlop. Peter Dunlop.’
Riley’s permitted his surprise to show. ‘Sir Robert’s junior barrister? I wonder what the devil he wants.’ Riley pushed himself to his feet. ‘There’s only one way to find out, I suppose. Thank you, Barton. We’ll seen him immediately.’
Unlike Fortescue, the young barrister sat calmly on one side of the table, drumming his fingers absently on its surface. He stood when Riley and Salter entered the room and offered Riley his hand.
‘Good morning, Mr Dunlop,’ Riley said, motioning him back to his seat. ‘I confess to being surprised by this visit. What can I do to help you?’
‘It’s rather a case of what I can do for you.’ He rubbed his patchy whiskers. The young man’s attempts to grow a beard did not look too promising. ‘It’s just that I was in chambers yesterday when your sergeant spoke with Price about various matters. I don’t believe anyone knew I was there.’
‘That’s right,’ Salter said. ‘Price’s assistant was out somewhere and Price told me we could talk in the clerks’ room since you, sir, and Mr Milton were both in court.’
‘I was not. I had returned about ten-minutes before your arrival, Sergeant. My case ended quickly and I had some reading to do on one of Sir Robert’s cases that Mr Milton had asked me to look at. When I got back to New Square Passage, there was no one in the clerks’ room and I closed the door to my own room in order to enjoy a little privacy. The papers I had to read related to a complex case of fraud and I needed to concentrate on them without interruption, you see.’
‘Go on,’ Riley said when Dunlop paused.
‘I overheard your conversation with Price, Sergeant. The walls in chambers are thin and my room is closest to the clerks. Anyway, my point is, I thought it odd that Price denied knowing anything about a man called Barchester.’
‘He is known to you?’ Riley asked, trying not to show his excitement at hitting upon a potential lead at last.
‘Not personally, but on the evening before Sir Robert’s death I was against closeted in my room with the door closed. I don’t think Price was aware of my presence then either. Jessup, his assistant, had seen me return from court, but Price had not. Jessup had left for the day and Price himself was about to leave when a visitor called. He gave his name as Barchester and asked…no, demanded to see Sir Robert.’
‘Did he indeed.’ Riley glanced at Salter, who scribbled away in his notebook. ‘Are you absolutely sure about the name. It’s vitally important.’
‘Oh yes. I heard it quite distinctly. Price told him that S
ir Robert didn’t see anyone without an appointment and Barchester became quite insistent. Sir Robert must have heard them because he came out of his office, told Price that he would see Barchester and sent Price home.’
‘Do you know how long Barchester stayed, or did you happen to overhear his discussion with Sir Robert?’
Dunlop shook his head. ‘No, I cannot say that I did. I left myself a few minutes after Price. Sir Robert and Barchester were in Sir Robert’s room with the door closed. Barchester’s voice was loud, I do recall that much, but I didn’t presume to eavesdrop on a private conversation.’
‘Thank you for telling us, Mr Dunlop,’ Riley replied, wishing that he hadn’t been quite so respectful of Sir Robert’s privacy. ‘The information you have provided is more helpful than you could possibly know.’
‘I want you to find who killed my mentor, Inspector, but I would prefer it if no word of my call here reached the ears of Mr Milton.’
‘You think he would object to your helping us?’ Salter asked.
‘I have absolutely no idea. Most likely not, but he is head of chambers now and holds my career in his hands.’
‘We understand completely,’ Riley assured him, ‘and he will not hear anything about your visit from us.’
Dunlop nodded, apparently satisfied to have done his duty, and took his leave.
‘Damn it!’ Riley swore profusely as soon as the door closed behind the constable who had been summoned to show Dunlop out. ‘I’ve been a blind idiot!’
‘More than likely,’ Salter agreed. ‘Care to narrow it down a bit?’
‘I have suspected all along that we were missing something fundamental and now I know what’s been nagging at my subconscious.’ Riley prowled around the small room like a caged animal. ‘Price was so convincing, the epitome of the devoted clerk who had given years of unblemished service, and I took him at face value. A basic error that I would expect from a new detective. Question everything and trust no one, that’s always been our mantra, has it not, Jack?’ Riley slapped his hand against the wall. ‘I have been privately upbraiding Hardgrave for his sloppy investigation into Maisie Fuller’s murder and yet I have been equally negligent in Sir Robert’s case.’
‘You ain’t charged a man who’s likely innocent.’ Salter raised a placating hand. ‘Calm down, sir, and tell me what you’re thinking.’
Riley let out a slow breath. ‘Not here.’
He led the way back to his own office and Salter closed the door behind them, watching Riley warily, probably because he had never seen him in such a truculent, self-effacing mood before. Riley threw himself into the chair behind his desk and took several deep breaths, making a herculean effort to calm down. Salter was in the right of it. It wasn’t too late to get things right and finally run Sir Robert’s killer to ground.
‘I assume we are going to have Price in here,’ Salter said.
‘Not quite yet. We need a clearer idea of what went on between Price and Sir Robert, the precise nature of their relationship, before we tackle him.’
‘Do you think he killed Sir Robert, or is he simply attempting to protect whoever did?’
‘That I cannot say. I wouldn’t trust my own judgement at this moment anyway.’ Riley allowed a reflective pause, running the side of his index finger across his lips as he thought about this latest revelation. ‘Price mentioned that Sir Robert offered him employment after some unpleasantness that saw him dismissed from his position and prevented him from gaining another. I assumed twenty-year-old unpleasantness would have nothing to do with current events, but I should not have jumped to that conclusion. We need to find out what that unpleasantness was without actually asking Price and alerting him to the fact that we suspect him of…well, something.’
‘How do we do that?’ Salter asked, scratching his head.
‘I seem to recall Sir Robert telling me once that the law was not his first choice as a career and that he fell into it by accident. I think we should visit Lady Glover and asked her how her husband made his living before becoming a barrister.’
‘What about Barchester?’
‘I haven’t forgotten about him, and now that I know he visited Sir Robert in chambers I have something to throw at him.’
‘At a time when Sir Robert had the dagger in his possession in his room at New Square Passage,’ Salter pointed out. ‘Dunlop said Barchester’s voice was raised. We have to assume he was aware of Sir Robert’s visits to his wife and demanded an explanation for them.’
‘Precisely so, and matters would have become heated. Sir Robert would have found himself on the horns of a dilemma. He would not have wanted to reveal his true reason for visiting Mrs Barchester for fear of creating problems between husband and wife. But he wouldn’t have wanted Barchester to think that they were involved in an affair either. I wonder how he resolved the issue.’
‘We shall never know for sure, but what we do know is that Barchester would have had ample opportunity to get his hands on that dagger. Price said he left it on his desk.’ Salter fixed Riley with a dour look. ‘You have always suspected Barchester’s hand in this business but his inability to get hold of the dagger had us baffled.’
‘Quite so.’ Riley stood. ‘Come along, Jack. We’ll pay a call upon Lady Glover, then decide where our priorities lie.’
Lady Glover appeared pale yet composed when Riley and Salter were shown into her drawing room. Her daughters flanked her, garbed in black but looking bored and not especially upset by their recent loss. They perked up a little when they saw Riley and one of them offered him a flirtatious smile that disgusted him. Of Norman Glover there was no sign.
‘Ah, Lord Riley.’ Lady Glover held out a limp hand. ‘What news do you bring me? Are you any closer to finding out who did this terrible thing?’
‘We are closing in on the culprit, Lady Glover,’ Riley replied gently. ‘But I need your help before making an arrest.’
‘Whatever I can do.’ Her son had clearly not mentioned the grilling he had received at Riley’s hands. Had he done so, Riley suspected that his reception would not have been nearly so welcoming. ‘It might sound like an odd question, but I wonder if you could tell me how your husband made a living before he turned to the law.’
‘What on earth do you want to know for?’ one of the girls asked. ‘That is ancient history. It happened before we were born. Why bring it up at such a time, upsetting Mama?’
Riley ignored the interruption. ‘Lady Glover?’ he coaxed.
‘Why, of course I can tell you. He managed a warehouse at London Dock.’
Chapter Thirteen
Those damned docks again, Riley thought, experiencing the thrilling tingle that usually assailed him when he started getting close to the truth in a difficult case.
‘Why did he give up that position, Lady Glover? He was young to have secured it. I should have thought it would have been in his best interests to show how well he could discharge his duties.’
‘Oh, something happened. There was a large disparity in the figures, I think.’ Lady Glover seemed remote, unsure of herself. ‘We were not married at the time, merely walking out together, and he didn’t like to trouble me with the particulars. Most unsavoury, he called it, but I know it played upon his mind. Anyway, I think the authorities were called in to investigate. Robert helped them to get at the truth but his appetite for that line of work became tainted and so my father helped him to train and then establish himself as a barrister.’
‘I see.’ Riley smiled at her, aware that her father was a circuit judge and that his endorsement would have smoothed Sir Robert’s path. ‘Can you recall the name of the warehouse?’
‘Oh yes. Quite distinctly.’ She wrinkled her brow. ‘What was it now?’ Riley curbed his impatience and allowed her to ponder without distracting her. ‘Ah yes!’ She smiled up at Riley. ‘Erwin and Son.’ Riley glanced at Salter. They had seen that name on some of the old wooden hogsheads in Fortescue’s warehouse. ‘Erw
in sold up a few years after those problems. Robert said he had lost both credibility and a taste for the business. I don’t know if he is still alive. I dare say that he is. He was not much older than Robert. Anyway, why do you ask?’
‘Someone connected to Sir Robert’s current work is associated with your husband’s past, ma’am. We wondered if it might be significant but if Erwin is no longer in business, clearly we have it wrong.’
‘Precisely,’ said the said girl who had previously spoken. She looked smugly superior, affording Riley a fresh understanding as to why Sir Robert’s legitimate children had been such a disappointment to him. ‘Norman mentioned that his friend Mr Boland will be calling again today to help us recover our spirits. But if you do not feel equal to receiving him, Mama,’ the girl added somewhat disingenuously, ‘then you need not put yourself out. Clara and I will entertain our guest.’
‘Depend upon it, dearest Mama.’ Clara patted her curls and added her voice in support of her sister’s.
Riley had seen enough and, he suspected, learned as much as he was likely to from the vague Lady Glover. He reassured her that they were doing all in their power to find Sir Robert’s killer. She seemed satisfied with that assurance—but the girls, clearly emboldened by the lack of a father’s restraining hand and, presumably, anticipating an inheritance that would not come their way, seemed less sanguine.
‘I hope it will not be too much longer before we can make the arrangements to bury dearest Papa,’ one of the girls said, making it sound as though she was speaking to a person below her notice. ‘The delay is beyond upsetting for Mama.’
‘More like them girls can’t wait to discover the extent of their inheritance,’ Salter said with a derisive sniff once they were back on the pavement. ‘I’d give a lot to see their faces when they find out the truth.’
‘We have more important things to worry about than the aspirations of silly girls,’ Riley replied.
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