In spite of everything, Sophie couldn’t help thinking how strange it was to hear him address her directly. She realised that she hadn’t ever heard him say much at all – only the few brief words that she had overheard in the box at the theatre. Then he had been clipped and authoritative, almost curt: now he seemed more expansive.
As she stared, she realised that he was staring back at her just as keenly. ‘I would appreciate it if you could give me back what you took from me,’ he said coolly, after a few moments had passed.
‘We’ve already got them, sir,’ said one of the men holding Joe, looking excited. ‘Tommy. Bring the books.’
A weaselly little man dashed forwards and presented the Baron with the two account books that they had already taken from Joe.
‘Not those,’ said the Baron, coldly. ‘She knows what I mean. The papers you took from my laboratory, if you please.’
He looked back at Sophie again, and this time it was like a flash of electricity. It felt as though he was seeing into the very core of her. Then he did something that she had not expected. He laughed.
‘It’s a shame, really, that it has come to this, but you and your little band of comrades have inconvenienced me twice now, and I can’t let that sort of thing continue.’
To her utter astonishment, he leaned forwards, quite close to her. ‘You’re like him, you know,’ he said in a low, intimate voice. ‘Not in colouring, perhaps, but the way you hold your chin up. That arrogant look in your eye. I’d know you were his daughter anywhere. You think you’re a little bit better than everyone else, don’t you, just like he did? But I don’t see much of her in you. She was the prettiest girl I’d ever seen. No – not pretty – that’s too weak a word. She was beautiful.’
Sophie gaped back at him. Her blood was pounding in her ears. He was talking about her parents: how had he known them? How could he say these things to her?
‘But enough talk. Give me back what I came for.’
In her pocket, her hand found the folded sheets of paper. She took them out slowly, stepping backwards as she did so until she was separated from Mei and Lil by several feet, standing right beside the edge of the docks, beside the dark river water.
‘Do you mean these?’ she snapped out suddenly, taking even herself by surprise. ‘These bits of paper? Why are they so special that you’d come all the way down here to get them back?’ She held out her hand: the papers were above the water now.
‘That’s quite enough. Hand them over.’ His voice was sharp, suddenly less easy.
‘I’ll give you them if you tell me why they’re so important,’ she said.
‘My dear, you are hardly in a position to bargain,’ said the Baron, but to her surprise, the chauffeur had darted forwards.
‘Why they’re so important ?’ he spat out. ‘You don’t even know what you’ve got! That formula is going to change the world . Do you have the first idea what a weapon that powerful will be able to do?’
‘No,’ said Sophie, standing fast. ‘And I don’t much want to, either. Maybe I should just throw them in the river now and be done with it.’
‘Think carefully,’ said the Baron in his smooth voice. ‘Whatever you may believe, you’re not a detective. You’re not the heroine of a sixpenny novel. You’re a girl. A silly, ignorant little girl .’ He took a step closer. ‘A little girl all alone. No one to come looking for you. No one who cares. Not since dear Papa passed away, anyway.’ He paused: he was so close to her now that she could feel the warmth of his breath. ‘Have you ever wondered how he died?’
A little gasp escaped Sophie’s lips, but he had already turned away as he continued: ‘My point is that no one will mind very much if you wash up in the river tomorrow. Not like Miss Montague – her accident caused quite a fuss – but girls like you disappear in this city every day . Do you really think anyone will notice one more?’
Seizing his opportunity, he turned back, wrested the papers from her grasp, and handed them to the man in the chauffeur’s uniform, who clasped them possessively to his chest.
‘Thank you,’ the Baron said quietly. ‘That wasn’t so difficult, was it?’
To Sophie’s horror, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a long, sheathed knife, with an ornate handle shaped like a twisting dragon. She made a last desperate effort to dart away, but Cooper grabbed her immediately and pulled her back. The Baron removed the knife from its leather case and began slowly polishing the blade.
‘Now . . .’ he said in a leisurely voice. ‘You’re all going to learn a lesson about what happens when you cross me. Which one first, I wonder? This little girl? Or the lovely young lady perhaps? Hold on to her tightly: she’s stronger than she looks. Miss Taylor, I believe I’ll save you until last.’
Joe managed to break away from his captors, and tried to dart towards Beaucastle, but Jem caught him again and gripped him savagely, half choking the life out of him. ‘Your turn next,’ chuckled Jem in his ear. ‘Or maybe he’ll let us deal with you ourselves, if we’re lucky. Bye bye, Joey Boy.’
Joe could see Lil gazing at him in distress. He felt desperation wash over him: surely there had to be something else, something more that they could do. But before he could think or move or act, something extraordinary happened.
‘Mum! Dad! ’ screamed Mei.
Racing along the docks towards them were the people of China Town. They were carrying what at first glance looked like weapons, but as they came closer, it was clear that they had armed themselves with anything they could find – shovels, rakes, rolling pins. Mrs Lim shoved her way roughly through the throng, and rushed up to Mei, wrapping her arms protectively around her daughter.
‘Enough!’ she cried furiously, looking round at the men. ‘We’ve had just about enough from you. You want to hurt them? Well, you’ll have to come through all of us first.’
The Baron looked startled. ‘Who on earth are these people?’ he murmured low to Cooper. But Sophie was close enough to hear.
‘That’s Lim’s daughter-in-law,’ Cooper hissed back.
For a moment, Sophie thought she saw the Baron’s face whiten. This was what he had always worked so hard to avoid, she realised suddenly. He had kept himself so carefully hidden from the people of the East End for so long. But he had already recovered himself. He gave a short laugh. ‘This is a delightful touch of local colour, but I’m afraid it’s rather misguided,’ he said, addressing Mrs Lim directly. ‘What exactly do you intend to do? My men have revolvers and knives and clubs. Your . . . people have kitchen utensils. I admire your bravery, my dear, but I’m afraid this is a fool’s errand.’
But even as the words were out of his mouth, a horn was heard honking loudly and persistently. To Sophie’s astonishment, she saw another motor car pull up: the doors were flung open, and out sprang two young men dressed in silk robes and turbans. They were accompanied by three young ladies, one of whom appeared to be wearing fairy wings, another in a frilly white dress and beribboned bonnet.
‘Miss Whiteley ?’ choked the Baron.
‘Stop!’ shrieked Veronica. ‘We know everything!’
‘Mr Pendleton!’ cried Lil, in amazement. ‘Mary! Phyllis!’
‘Don’t worry, Miss Rose! We’ve come to rescue you,’ announced Mr Pendleton in a thunderous voice. He leaped forwards, Mr Devereaux close at his heels.
‘Let go of them, you brutes!’ screeched Phyllis, in a voice that no one could say was at all ladylike.
As if her cry had been the match igniting a fuse, suddenly chaos seemed to explode in all directions. One of the Baron’s Boys aimed a blow of his club at Mr Devereaux, who ducked nimbly and put the skills he had learned at his boxing gymnasium to good use by dealing the fellow a smart punch to the nose. Together, Mary and Phyllis were raining blows upon Henry Snow, whilst beside them Mr Perks wielded his spade with unexpected vigour. ‘That’s what you get for taking my pub from me!’ he was heard to yell, as he advanced upon a particularly burly Baron’s Boy. Mei clung to her mother, frozen
with astonishment, as Mr Lim leaped into the fray, sending two of the Baron’s Boys crashing to the ground with a single, forceful kick.
‘I didn’t know Dad could do that !’ exclaimed Mei breathlessly.
‘He learned kung-fu from the monks when he was a boy,’ said Mrs Lim, as she pulled Mei away. ‘But it’s been a long time since he had cause to use it.’
Meanwhile, Ah Wei could be seen smashing Jem over the head with his iron frying pan, forcing him to release his grip on Joe, who at once ran towards Lil.
‘What is going on here?’ yelled Cooper angrily, reaching for his revolver.
But before he could draw it back out of his pocket, there came a dazzling flash of bright light that fixed them all dazedly for a long moment. Then everything was moving again, louder and more chaotic than before. There was the shrill blast of a whistle and the clang of a bell. There was the roar of an engine, and then there were people, policemen, spilling everywhere. Cooper let go of Sophie in panic, and she fell to the ground.
‘Stop right there! You’re surrounded!’ yelled a voice.
Sophie gaped upwards. Above her, the Baron stood motionless, before shooting her a distinctly poisonous look. It was the first time he had looked at her with any expression that was not coldly triumphant.
‘You said I was silly and ignorant – and maybe you were right,’ she found herself choking out. ‘But whatever else I am, I’m not alone .’
‘Really, Miss Taylor,’ he hissed back sharply, ‘I’m wishing I had simply let Freddie put a bullet through you when I had the chance.’ He looked at her contemplatively. ‘Still, I can’t deny you’re cleverer than I gave you credit for. I daresay we’ll meet again. For now – adieu. ’
He swept her another exaggerated bow, then there came a sharp pinging sound, and the whole place was plunged suddenly into darkness.
‘He’s shot out the lights!’ someone cried out.
More shots rang out above her, and Sophie instinctively flung her hands over her head. She heard Lil scream again, and in the dim light, she groped blindly towards the sound. She stumbled to her feet, sliding on the cobbles. Then someone else screamed, and then she heard Joe’s voice quite close, yelling: ‘Get a light!’ She struggled towards him, but all at once hit something very hard, so hard that stars danced before her. She fell back to the ground again, dazed – there was a scuffle and a splash – and then all at once, light returned, and she saw that Joe and Lil were standing beside her.
‘What’s happening?’ she asked, groggy and disorientated. They were at the edge of the docks: across the river, a small dinghy was moving very fast over the water. In it was the Baron.
‘He’s getting away!’ called voices. ‘Quick, after him!’
But Joe and Lil weren’t looking at the boat. They were both looking gleefully down at the man who was bobbing up and down helplessly in the dark water. ‘Help!’ he called out. ‘I can’t swim!’
Joe’s face was cut and swollen, but his bleeding lips were cracked into an enormous smile. ‘You only went and knocked him right in the river,’ he said delightedly, nodding to the figure in the water – and Sophie realised that it was Mr Cooper.
By now, Sophie had gathered her wits enough to see that all around them were uniformed policeman, several of whom were gripping struggling members of the Baron’s Boys. Mr Lim was shaking hands with one policeman whilst Veronica stood and watched as another hauled away a downcast Henry Snow. Best of all, running towards them across the docks were Billy and Song. They looked tired but delighted.
‘Miss Taylor,’ said a very familiar voice from above her.
Sophie looked up to see none other than Mr McDermott leaning over her. He held out a hand. ‘Let me help you up.’
PART V
The Supper Party
An impromptu supper party may be quite a delightful occasion. I speak not, of course, of the formal banquet supper at a ball – that is a much more formidable affair, with its ornamented cakes, oyster patties, and champagne cup. Let us consider instead the simpler pleasure of gathering together around a small supper table at little notice. The remains of the chicken might be fricasséed, a savoury omelette prepared, to be followed by tarts, cakes, cheese and biscuits. Such a cosy gathering is the perfect setting for a tête-a-tête between intimate friends.
Lady Diana DeVere’s Etiquette for Debutantes: a Guide to the Manners, Mores and Morals of Good Society. Chapter 14: Supper – Appointments of the Table – Impromptu Suppers – Ball Suppers
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
There was quite a party in Lim’s shop that evening. There were so many people that they could not all be fitted into the back room, but instead spilled out on to the shop floor, where Ah Wei had set out a feast of dishes from the Eating House along the counter. Mary and Phyllis helped Mrs Lim to hand around mugs of tea, whilst Mr Devereaux rushed out to fetch the two bottles of champagne that by happy chance he had in the motor. Meanwhile, Shen and Jian were watching the goings-on from the upstairs landing, well pleased by the unexpected late-night activity – and delighted that Mum and Dad had not even noticed that they were out of bed. They were even happier when Mei slipped up the stairs to bring them a plateful of tasty morsels from Ah Wei’s spread.
In the kitchen, Song was at the stove, cooking up another batch of his now-famous dumplings.
‘I say, these really are jolly good,’ exclaimed Mr Pendleton, attacking a second plateful with enthusiasm. He was so busy tucking in that he merely nodded when Mei explained to him that his fine new carriage and pair were waiting for him not far away in an abandoned warehouse.
Meanwhile, Sophie, Lil, Billy and Joe were sitting around the kitchen table, talking furiously. Veronica was with them, sitting in a chair beside Billy. Her white dress was bedraggled now, and she looked somewhat sheepish – but still very pleased to be part of the group.
‘Tell us what happened after we split up,’ Lil demanded eagerly.
Billy looked up from his case notes, which he had been busily updating. The dog-eared exercise book was now almost full. ‘Well, we managed to get back to the boat and then we set off down the river,’ he began. ‘But it was awful not knowing if we were being followed – and having no clue about what had happened to the rest of you. We weren’t sure of what to do – but then I remembered that there was one other person, apart from Mr McDermott, that we could trust to help us.’
‘Who?’ asked Joe, frowning.
‘Mr Sinclair, of course,’ said Billy with a grin. ‘After what the Baron tried to do to Sinclair’s department store, we knew that he would help us. But still, we felt a jolly pair of fools ringing the bell to the Captain’s private apartments, I can tell you.’
‘But he wasn’t at home!’ exclaimed Sophie. ‘He was at the ball – we even saw him talking to Lord Beaucastle!’
‘That’s right, he wasn’t – but Mr McDermott was there waiting for him! He’d got your letter and come home straight away. He’d just got off the boat train from Paris, and he’d gone to your lodgings, but of course you weren’t there – so he came to Mr Sinclair.’
‘Golly – what a stroke of luck!’ exclaimed Lil.
‘As soon as McDermott saw us and heard what we had to say – well, he went into action at once,’ Billy went on. ‘He was on the telephone in two seconds flat – and it was scarcely more than five minutes before some fellows from Scotland Yard arrived in a motor car and whizzed us off to the East End to find you.’
It was just then that Mr McDermott himself appeared in the doorway. He nodded to Song, at the stove, and then came over to where they were all sitting at the table. He took the empty chair beside Sophie. ‘I’ve just spoken with Scotland Yard,’ he explained. ‘I thought you would all like to know that they have confirmed that the documents you obtained are more than sufficient to prove Lord Beaucastle’s connection with a whole host of illegal activities in the East End. He’s a wanted man now.’
‘That’s wonderful!’ Lil exclaimed, as a buzz of excitement ran
around the crowded kitchen. ‘We did it! We proved who the Baron really is!’
‘Well, in one sense you’re quite right, Miss Rose – but I’m afraid that you’re wrong too,’ said McDermott enigmatically, as he gratefully accepted a mug of tea from Mei. ‘Unfortunately, I’m afraid that things have proved a little more complicated than we expected.’
‘What do you mean?’ asked Sophie in surprise.
‘It looks as though the man that everyone knew as Lord Beaucastle may not, in fact, have been Lord Beaucastle at all,’ McDermott announced, taking out his pipe. He turned to Veronica. ‘Miss Whiteley, what can you tell us about Beaucastle’s background and family?’
Veronica thought for a moment. ‘He was the second son,’ she remembered. ‘He didn’t get on very well with his father, and went off to join the army when he was young.’
‘Oh yes, that’s right!’ said Mr Devereaux, pitching in. ‘He was something of a traveller, wasn’t he? Always full of all sorts of tales of places he’d been.’
‘Frightfully dull stuff, if you ask me,’ added Mr Pendleton, looking around to see if there might be any more dumplings ready yet.
‘A traveller, indeed,’ said McDermott, lighting his pipe and settling back into his chair. ‘The story goes that he went abroad with his regiment when he was a very young man. He severed all ties with his father and elder brother, and no one heard from him again for a number of years. In the meantime, the old lord died, and the elder son inherited the estates, but then he died too, just a few years later, without leaving an heir. By all accounts the family lawyers had to go to all sorts of lengths to track down the second son – there were even rumours that he had died abroad – but eventually they found him. He came back to London, where he inherited the whole Beaucastle fortune. By that time, he had been away for over fifteen years.’
Sophie was frowning. ‘Do you mean to say,’ she asked slowly, ‘that the man who came back wasn’t the real Lord Beaucastle?’
The Mystery of the Jewelled Moth Page 21