Blood on the Line (16 page)

‘This is starting to get me down,’ she admitted.

‘I know,’ he said, kissing her and starting to unbutton her dress. ‘I have just the cure for that.’

‘I keep thinking about Gordon and Susanna. What are they going to say when they realise that we ran away from them?’

‘I hope they have the sense to say nothing but I can’t guarantee that. Anyway, you can forget them. There’s no chance whatever of Inspector Colbeck finding out where we stayed in London.’ Undoing the last button, Oxley slipped his hand inside the dress to caress her breast. ‘He’ll still be chasing his tail at Scotland Yard.’

Victor Leeming was flabbergasted at the turn of events. When they followed the trail to Willesden, the last thing he envisaged was that they would arrest two people wanted by the Bradford Borough Police for a series of so-called mercy killings. On the train journey back to London with them, he thought that they were being arrested for having sheltered two killers. It was only when Philip and Anna Oldfield were in custody that he learnt of their criminal past. Leeming was staggered by the number of victims involved.

‘There were over a
dozen
?’ he gasped, eyes bulging. ‘I’m glad that he was never my doctor.’

‘The patients all seem to have been elderly women who begged him to rescue them from their misery. Oldfield still refuses to accept that he was committing a crime.’

‘It was murder, pure and simple.’

‘That’s not how he describes it,’ said Colbeck. ‘He claims that he spared them horrid, lingering deaths. I must write to the police in Bradford. After all this time, they’ll be grateful to get their hands on Dr and Mrs Oldfield again.
It’s their case, Victor, and not ours. We have other fish to fry.’

‘I’d call Oxley more of a shark than a fish, sir.’

‘He certainly has a shark’s viciousness.’

‘He kills anyone who gets in his way.’

They were in Colbeck’s office at Scotland Yard, reviewing the day’s developments. Ordinarily, the inspector would have reported to Tallis as soon as he entered the building. That was no longer possible because his superior had resigned. He left behind him a feeling of emptiness. When Colbeck glanced in the direction of Tallis’s office, Leeming read his mind.

‘I don’t think that the superintendent should leave,’ he said.

‘Neither do I,’ said Colbeck.

‘It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? There have been hundreds of times when I’ve wished him out of here, yet the moment he does go, I miss him. He did his job well even if it meant yelling at me whenever I got within earshot of him.’

‘I don’t think his resignation will be accepted, Victor.’

‘If he wants to go, nobody can stop Mr Tallis.’

‘I’m hoping to talk him out of it.’

‘How can you do that?’ asked Leeming. ‘He was so shocked by what happened. Because they’d both been in the army, he looked on Ian Peebles with especial favour. I’m ashamed to say that I thought he’d never make the grade at first.’

‘He won’t get the opportunity to do so now, Victor. We just have to make sure that he didn’t die in vain,’ said Colbeck, ‘and the way to do that is to call Jeremy Oxley to
account. Unlike Dr Oldfield, he can’t pass off his murders as mercy killings.’

‘You’re in complete control now, sir.’

‘That rather unnerves me. It feels wrong somehow.’

‘Will you draft in someone to replace Constable Peebles?’

‘No, I think that we can manage on our own.’

‘As acting superintendent, you’ll have several detectives to deploy and lots of other cases to supervise.’

Colbeck was adamant. ‘I’m still an inspector,’ he said, ‘and I intend to remain so for the foreseeable future. One thing I won’t do is to relinquish my part in this investigation. I owe it to Constable Peebles to pursue our enquiries with vigour. In a sense, he died in place of me. That leaves me with a sense of obligation.’

‘It’s the young lady I keep thinking about,’ said Leeming, sadly. ‘He talked so fondly of her – Catherine, her name was. It’s a tragedy. All their plans have suddenly turned to dust. He told me that the banns of marriage were being read for the first time next month.’

‘That would have been a very special moment.’

‘It was for me and Estelle. I was shaking with fear. When the vicar asked if anyone had just cause or impediment why we shouldn’t be joined together in holy matrimony, I was terrified that someone would jump up and spoil everything.’

‘They’d have had no reason to do so.’

‘That didn’t stop me worrying,’ said Leeming. ‘I suppose that the truth of it is that I never felt good enough for Estelle. I never believed that I deserved a wife as wonderful
as her, so I kept waiting for someone to step in and take her away from me.’

‘Your fears were groundless. Anyone who’s seen the two of you together knows that you’re ideally suited.’

‘I still thank God every day for my good fortune. With a face like mine, I thought I’d be lucky to attract any woman, yet I finished up with a beautiful wife.’ He laughed with delight. ‘But I do remember sitting through the banns with my hands shaking. It was a test of nerves, I can tell you. Well,’ he added, ‘you’ll find that out for yourself, sir. When are
your
banns being read for the first time?’

Colbeck was taken aback. The question was innocent enough yet it left him befuddled. The truth was that he hadn’t given the matter any thought at all. Since the killer of Helen Millington had reappeared in his life after so many years, everything else had been pushed to the back of his mind. It was unfair on those close to him. They’d been neglected. Talk of marriage had reminded him of his engagement to Madeleine and he felt more than a twinge of guilt at the way he’d kept postponing a decision about the date of the wedding.

‘That’s yet to be decided,’ he said, evasively.

‘I think that you and Miss Andrews are a perfect match, sir.’

‘Thank you, Victor. I like to think that as well.’

‘Dirk Sowerby is still on about it,’ moaned Andrews. ‘He has this daft idea of sailing across the seven seas on a steamship.’

‘What’s so daft about it?’ she asked.

‘It will never happen, Maddy. He can’t afford it on his pay.’

‘Everyone is entitled to dream.’

‘It’s not a dream, it’s sheer nonsense. It just won’t happen.’

‘You never know, Father. Look at me. I used to think about marrying Robert one day but I never really believed that my dream would ever come true. Yet, against all the odds, it did.’

‘That’s because you’re very special, Maddy – Dirk is not.’

‘You’re being unfair on him. Last week you were telling me what a good driver he’ll make.’

‘It’s only because I taught him all he knows.’

‘Stop mocking his ambitions.’

‘I like to tease him. What harm is there in that?’

Andrews had returned home that evening in a jovial mood. It was not simply because he’d been drinking with his friends. As his retirement got ever nearer, he was coming to see the benefits that it would bring. He could still visit his favourite pub of an evening but he would no longer have to get up early the next morning to begin work again. A yoke would suddenly be removed from his neck. When they finished supper, he touched on a subject he’d raised before.

‘How would you feel if I was to get wed again, Maddy?’

She blinked. ‘Do you have someone in mind, Father?’

‘I might and I might not.’

‘Well, I’m not going to object, if that’s what you’re asking. You’re old enough to make your own decisions.’

‘It would be different if you were still here,’ he said. ‘I wouldn’t feel it was right to bring another woman into the house. But when you’re gone and I have the place to myself, I may get lonely.’

‘Do you
want
to be married again?’

‘I do and I don’t.’

‘Stop going around in circles,’ she chided. ‘I might and I might not. I do and I don’t. I can and I can’t. If you start playing
that
game, we could be here all night.’

He cackled. ‘I simply wanted your opinion, Maddy.’

‘Then my opinion is that no woman would be misguided enough to take you on,’ she said, jokingly. ‘You’re too set in your ways and you’re too cantankerous. Why should anyone even look at you?’

‘Your mother did.’

‘You were a lot younger then.’

‘Love is nothing to do with age, Maddy. It can happen to us whether we’re seventeen or seventy. In fact, I fancy it goes deeper when you’re more mature. You’ve learnt how to appreciate it by then.’ She narrowed her eyelids. ‘Why are you staring at me like that?’

‘There’s something you’re not telling me, Father.’

‘Is there?’

‘I think you’ve met someone.’

‘I have and I haven’t. That’s to say,’ he added quickly to still her protest, ‘I’ve seen someone who aroused my interest. It’s nothing more nor less than that, I swear it. I just wanted to sound you out. When we’ve spoken
about this before, there was a lot of bravado in what I was claiming. It’s different now. I’m serious.’

‘Then I’ll give you a serious answer,’ she said, affectionately. ‘I want you to be happy. If the best way to achieve happiness is to get married again, then I’m very much in favour of it.’ She smiled. ‘I wondered why you started coming to church more often. It’s someone in the congregation, isn’t it?’

‘Wait and see.’

‘Don’t be so coy about it.’

‘I’m just being practical,’ he said. ‘It’s pointless of me to think about
my
wedding when we still haven’t had yours. It’s only when you’ve left that the house will start to feel empty. That’s when I’ll need companionship, Maddy.’

‘Robert and I will set the date very soon.’

‘I think you should read today’s paper before you say that.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘This case will take longer than you think. The man they’re after has killed again. Yesterday evening, he shot one of the detectives helping the inspector.’ She rushed into the other room and snatched up the newspaper. ‘Don’t worry – it’s not Sergeant Leeming.’

‘Then who is it?’ she asked, anxiously.

‘It was someone named Peebles.’

Tallis had always been a religious man. The Bible was his guide and he read a passage from it every day. In times of stress, he would always slip into church to pray for help and to get spiritual support. Head bowed low, he was on
his knees now, pleading for forgiveness. Convinced that he was responsible for the death of Ian Peebles, he singled out pride as his besetting sin. It had blinded him to his shortcomings. He’d been too proud to admit that he had any failings and believed that he could emulate and even surpass Robert Colbeck. That myth had been shattered when he knelt over the corpse. Tallis now knew that he had profound limitations both as a man and as a detective. Given the facts, most of his colleagues would lay the blame squarely on him. Their silent disapproval was nothing compared to the way that he condemned himself. He was suffering.

He prayed hard until his knees began to ache. Hauling himself upright, he stepped into the aisle, inclined his head towards the altar then quietly left the church. On the walk back to his lodging, he was deep in thought. When he reached the house, therefore, he did not at first notice the figure standing outside it. Colbeck had to step right in front of him to get his attention.

‘Good day to you, sir,’ he said.

Tallis gave a start. ‘What are
you
doing here, Colbeck?’

‘I came to talk to you.’

‘I’m not in a talkative vein.’

‘There have been some important developments.’

‘They don’t concern me any longer,’ said Tallis, flicking a dismissive hand. ‘I’ve resigned from my post.’

‘That’s not strictly true, sir. When I spoke to the commissioner, he told me that he’d refused to accept your resignation and that he’d asked you to take time off in order to think again.’

‘I
have
thought again and my decision stands.’

‘There may be factors you haven’t taken into account.’

‘I blundered, Colbeck, that’s the only factor relevant.’

‘I disagree, Superintendent.’

‘And you can stop calling me that,’ said Tallis, testily. ‘It’s a title that I’ve surrendered. I’m just an ordinary citizen now.’

‘Not in my estimation,’ said Colbeck. He looked around. ‘Need we have this conversation in the street?’

‘There’s no need to have it at all.’

‘Have you already discussed it with someone else, then?’

‘No,’ conceded Tallis. ‘Apart from the commissioner, I haven’t confided in anyone. There’s no point in any discussion when my mind is so firmly made up.’

‘I think there’s every point, sir.’

It took Colbeck another ten minutes to persuade Tallis to invite him in. He’d never been there before and was interested to see where and how his superior lived. Tallis occupied the first floor of a large Georgian house in a square with a park at its centre enclosed by iron railings. As they entered the well-proportioned living room, Colbeck was surprised to see so much evidence of the older man’s religious devotion. There was a crucifix on one wall, marble angels at either end of the mantelpiece and three paintings of scenes from the New Testament. A leather-bound Bible stood on the desk in the window.

The air of piety was offset by an array of military memorabilia. There was a display cabinet filled with medals and small weaponry, a collection of sabres hanging
on the walls and, in a dominant position over the fireplace, a portrait of the Duke of Wellington, the soldier Tallis most revered. A tall oak bookcase contained a few books on aspects of Christianity but it was largely given over to histories of various battles and the memoirs of those who’d fought in them. War, religion and the pursuit of criminals had been enough for Tallis. He sought nothing else from life.

Though he waved his visitor to a wing chair, Tallis offered him no refreshment. It was a signal that Colbeck would not be staying long. He was there on sufferance. Tallis sat opposite him, his features set in a permanent scowl. It was as if he were daring Colbeck to begin so that he could deny his request.

‘I’ve come of my own volition,’ said Colbeck. ‘I’m not here on behalf of anyone else – except Constable Peebles, that is.’