Blood on the Line (5 page)

‘It’s just after two o’clock.’

‘I can walk to the station with you.’

‘There’s no need for that,’ she said, sharply.

‘But I can look after you. Deansgate is a jungle. You need a father to protect you.’

Irene was about to reply that the time she needed protection was when she was much younger and when he had gone into decline. But she saw no point in dredging up the horrors of the past. Her father was a sick man. He might not survive another bad winter. She would not have long to wait. Once he’d died, she would be free to pursue her new life without any vestigial family ties. Meanwhile, she still had sufficient family loyalty to keep an occasional eye on her father. Her gift had been generous but it would not last long. It would soon be wasted on drink and a few sordid nights with some of the whores who infested the area. Irene was disgusted at the thought, yet it did not stop her giving him the money in the first place. She’d salved her conscience and that was why she came.

‘Why don’t you write to me anymore?’ he asked.

‘I never have the time, Father.’

‘Well, I have plenty of time. Let me have your address and I can write to you instead.’

‘I’m not allowed to have letters.’

He was indignant. ‘Not even from your father? What sort of hard-hearted employers do you work for, Irene? They’ve no right to stop you having letters.’

‘I have to go,’ she said, planting a token kiss on his cheek. ‘I don’t want to miss my train.’

‘But you’ve only been here a few minutes,’ he complained.

‘I’ll stay longer next time.’

And before he could stop her, she let herself out and hurried off down the street. Crime had helped her to escape from Manchester and to give her a surface respectability.
Yet a visit to her father plunged her back into the city’s most notorious area of vice, lawlessness and grinding poverty. Irene did not belong there. She was destined for a better life with the man she loved. While she was still disturbed by the thought of shooting someone, she was quick to see its benefit. It had earned her Oxley’s respect and love. In pulling the trigger, she had passed a kind of test. They were kindred spirits now.

The quality that most irritated Leeming about their new recruit was his willingness. Ian Peebles was like a dog, eager to do anything that might please his owner. Had the sergeant thrown a stick, he was sure that the Scotsman would fetch it for him.

‘What can I do, Sergeant Leeming?’ asked Peebles.

‘For the moment, you can just watch and wait.’

‘The superintendent explained the background to the case and I read the reports in this morning’s newspapers. According to one of them, Jeremy Oxley is a
will-o’-the-wisp
.’

‘Don’t believe everything you read in the press, Constable. They are often unjustly critical of us. Above all else, don’t talk to any journalists. They’ll twist your words to their own advantage.’

‘Och, man, I found that out when I was in uniform.’

‘Where were you based?’

‘In K Division at first,’ said Peebles. ‘That’s in Barking. It’s a very rough district. I was later moved to A Division.’

Leeming was impressed. ‘That’s Hyde Park Police
Station,’ he noted. ‘We’d all like to have worked there. It was a kind of promotion for you. What did you do to earn it?’

‘I made one or two significant arrests,’ said Peebles, modestly. ‘I enjoyed my time in A Division, then I was recommended for the Detective Department.’

‘You were lucky,’ said Leeming. ‘My days in uniform were spent in the worst parts of London, the kinds of places where police are very unpopular.’

Peebles stood to attention. ‘I didn’t join the police in search of popularity,’ he declared as if taking an oath. ‘All that matters to me is that we sweep the streets clean of villainy. London is the greatest city in the world. It deserves to be purged of crime.’

‘You’ve been listening to Superintendent Tallis.’

‘I think he’s an inspiration – don’t you?’

‘In some ways,’ said Leeming, hiding his true feelings.

‘But then the same could be said of you and Inspector Colbeck.’

‘We do our job to the best of our ability, no more, no less.’

‘The superintendent told me that you’re his best men.’

‘Really?’

It was a surprise to Leeming, who got a continuous string of complaints from Tallis, often couched in unflattering language. It was the same for Colbeck. There was an underlying tension between the superintendent and him that prevented Tallis from giving anything but the most reluctant praise to the Railway Detective. Yet behind their backs, it transpired, the superintendent was lauding them.
Leeming was annoyed that he was prepared to confide in a detective who was effectively on probation while saying nothing to the two people about whom he was talking. In Leeming’s view, Tallis was a different breed of dog. If Peebles was a tail-wagging retriever, the superintendent was a terrier barking incessantly at their heels.

They were in Colbeck’s office and Peebles was diverted by some of the posters on the walls. They listed wanted criminals and the rewards that were on offer. He peered intently at them.

‘That’s one of the things I admire most about you and the inspector,’ he said, turning to face Leeming. ‘You never rely on informers or people in search of a reward. You solve your cases by hard work and deduction.’

‘It may be true up to a point,’ conceded Leeming. ‘I provide the hard work and the inspector supplies the deduction. But we take help from anyone we can. Inspector Colbeck is a great believer in picking up something useful wherever he can find it. He has a word for it.’

‘Serendipity.’

‘Yes, that’s right – serendipity.’

‘I think there’s far more to it than that,’ argued Peebles. ‘I’ve kept a scrapbook of your cases, you see. I cut out newspaper reports of them and paste them in. It’s taught me a lot about your methods.’

Leeming was uneasy. ‘Has it?’

‘Look at that train robbery, for instance. You were so thorough. You dealt with the railway company, the post office, the Royal Mint, a bank in Birmingham, a lock manufacturer in the Black Country and you infiltrated the
Great Exhibition to make your first arrests.’ He grinned with frank adoration. ‘It was brilliant detective work.’

‘One thing led to another,’ explained Leeming.

‘You got through an immense amount of work between you.’

‘That’s certainly true.’

‘Then there was the severed head found on Crewe station.’

‘You don’t need to remind me of that.’

‘How on earth did Inspector Colbeck know that there was a connection with the forthcoming Derby? He even sailed off to Ireland at one point.’

‘He was acting on a sixth sense. It’s what he always does.’

‘Well, I don’t have that gift.’

‘Neither do I, Constable.’

‘The case that really intrigued me was the one that took you and the inspector to France. It all began when someone was killed on a train then hurled off the Sankey Viaduct. In fact—’

‘Let me stop you there,’ said Leeming, interrupting with both hands raised. ‘This may surprise you but we never look back at old investigations. We always have our hands full with new ones.’

Peebles was astonished. ‘You don’t keep a scrapbook?’

‘It would never cross my mind.’

‘But you should have a record of your triumphs.’

‘I’m not that vain, Constable.’

‘I keep a list of every suspect I’ve questioned and every arrest I’ve made,’ said Peebles. ‘Not that I’ve handled the
sort of complex cases that you and the inspector do, of course. I’m still a raw beginner.’ He rubbed his hands. ‘I can’t wait to join the hunt for Oxley and his accomplice. When we catch them,’ he went on, face shining and buck teeth aglow, ‘we’ll have wonderful press cuttings. If you don’t wish to record your successes, I’ll happily do so.’

Leeming groaned inwardly. While they were involved in a difficult case, the last thing they needed was a
self-appointed
recording angel like Ian Peebles. Their every move would be enshrined in his scrapbook. It would make them far too self-conscious to do their job properly. Leeming was so alarmed at the prospect that he made a silent wish.

‘Come back soon, Inspector Colbeck – I
need
you.’

Colbeck had never been in a cotton mill before and he found the noise deafening. Ambrose Holte, the mill owner, occupied a large, almost palatial office that was insulated against the pandemonium. When Colbeck explained why he was there, Holte was more than ready to help. He was a beefy man of middle years with a pallid face and white hair that had retreated to the rear of his head like so much foam left on a beach by the receding tide. He had a strong Lancashire accent and a habit of keeping one thumb in his waistcoat pocket as he spoke.

‘Yes, I remember Irene Adnam very well,’ he said with rancour. ‘She robbed us of items worth hundreds of pounds.’

‘Female burglars are rare, thankfully.’

‘She didn’t break
into
the house, Inspector. She was
already there, working as a governess to my youngest daughter.’

‘When did you begin to suspect her?’ asked Colbeck.

‘We never did,’ said Holte, ‘that was the trouble. She wormed her way into our affections until we trusted her completely. Alicia, whom she taught, doted on her.’

‘Did she come to you with good references?’

‘They were excellent, Inspector. It was only after she’d left that we learnt that they were forgeries. When the police tried to find the various addresses, they discovered that none of them existed.’

‘How would you describe Miss Adnam?’

Holte snorted. ‘I think she’s the most loathsome, duplicitous, black-hearted creature on God’s earth.’

‘You’re saying that with the advantage of hindsight,’ Colbeck reminded him. ‘Try to remember how she struck you when she first came for interview. What made you choose Irene Adnam?’

‘It was sheer folly!’

‘You didn’t think so at the time.’

‘No, Inspector,’ admitted Holte, jowls wobbling. ‘That’s correct. She seemed ideal for the position. Not to put too fine a point on it, I was beguiled by the cunning little vixen.’

Holte gave a clear and detailed description of Irene Adnam and she began to take on more definition in Colbeck’s mind. Her work as a governess had been above reproach and she had stayed long enough in Holte’s employ to become an auxiliary member of his family, taking her meals with them and joining them at church on Sundays.
It was because he had placed such trust in her that Holte was so embittered when she turned out to be a thief.

‘What exactly did she steal?’ asked Colbeck.

‘She emptied my wallet and took some of my wife’s jewellery. But the bulk of the haul consisted of small items of silver. They’d be fairly light to carry and easy to sell to a pawnbroker.’

‘Oh, I think that Miss Adnam might have higher ambitions than relying on a pawnbroker. If she’s the seasoned criminal she appears,’ said Colbeck, ‘she’d probably deal with a fence who’d offer better terms. I don’t think she’d steal anything unless she knew exactly where she could get a good price for it.’

‘You could be right, Inspector. When I gave them a list of stolen items, the police visited nearly all the pawnbrokers in the city. They drew a blank. None of our property was recovered.’

‘Evidently she knew exactly what to take and when to take it.’

‘We were all fast asleep at the time.’

‘How did she know where everything was kept – your wife’s jewellery, for instance? Surely that was in a safe?’ Holte lowered his head, plainly discomfited. ‘I can’t believe that items of such value were not locked away.’

‘They
were
locked away, Inspector.’

‘Then how did she get her hands on them?’

‘Someone told her the combination.’

Colbeck was surprised. ‘She had an accomplice on the staff?’

‘He was a member of the family,’ said Holte, running
his tongue over dry lips. ‘Not that he realised what he was doing at the time. I’m talking about my eldest son, Lawrence. He became enamoured of Miss Adnam. I warned him against it, of course, and urged him to pay for his pleasures like a gentleman. That way they don’t infect the family home.’ He sucked his teeth. ‘But Lawrence wouldn’t listen, I fear. He fell completely under her spell. When she asked if she could leave a few valuables of her own in our safe, he duly obliged by opening it.’

‘And she memorised the combination while he was doing it,’ guessed Colbeck. ‘She’s a calculating young lady, no doubt about that. I can see why you’re so anxious to see her caught.’

‘You can imagine the embarrassment this has caused me,’ said Holte, running a hand over his forehead. ‘It’s been a heavy cross to bear. The woman is a monster. She betrayed me, stole irreplaceable items of my wife’s jewellery, broke Alicia’s heart in two and relieved Lawrence – idiot that he was – of his virginity. I’d not only
pay
to see her executed, Inspector,’ he growled, ‘I’d even volunteer to act as the hangman.’

Caleb Andrews had lost count of the number of times he’d brought a train safely into New Street station in Birmingham. As one set of passengers departed and another set converged on the carriages, he had time to wipe the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

‘I won’t be doing this for much longer,’ he announced.

‘You keep saying that, Caleb,’ said his fireman, ‘but I don’t believe you. The only way you’ll quit the railway is in a coffin.’

‘That’s what you think, Dirk.’

‘It’s what we
all
think.’

‘Then perhaps you should have a word with Mr Pomeroy.’

Dirk Sowerby shrugged. ‘Why?’

‘I handed in my resignation earlier on today. Mr
Pomeroy accepted it with regret. The decision is made. I’m going to retire and put my feet up at last.’

The fireman was amazed. No driver in the LNWR had the same enthusiasm for railways as Andrews. It was at once a job and a passion for him. Spending each day hurtling up and down the track helped him to defy age. He seemed indefatigable. How the company would manage without such a dedicated servant was an open question. Sowerby would miss him, both for his companionship and for his fund of knowledge about the operation of the railway system. Firemen who’d been taught their trade by Caleb Andrews were uniformly grateful for his expertise.

‘Did you talk it over with your daughter?’ asked Sowerby.

‘I told her what I was going to do, if that’s what you mean.’

‘And Maddy had no objections?’

‘None whatsoever, Dirk. She’s seen the early shifts and the long hours taking their toll on me.’

‘When is she getting married?’

‘Sooner rather than later,’ said Andrews with a smile. ‘It’s part of the reason I decided to retire. If I’m at home all day, it will annoy her like mad and make her set a date for the wedding at last. I’ve been waiting an eternity for that to happen.’

‘I thought that they only got engaged last year.’

‘They did – but it seems much longer to me. I don’t want Maddy hanging around for ever when I retire. Not when Inspector Colbeck has a much larger house than ours. She should move in with him.’

Sowerby frowned. ‘Don’t you
mind
her marrying a detective?’

‘She can marry anyone she likes as long as she does it fairly soon.’ He cackled. ‘No, that’s not true,’ he said, seriously. ‘She’s found herself a good man and I couldn’t be happier with her choice.’

‘But he’s a policeman, Caleb.’

‘I don’t hold that against him.’

‘Have you forgotten what happened when we steamed into this station yesterday? Two policemen were left behind us on the track. They’d been murdered,’ said Sowerby, his frown deepening. ‘That tells you what a dangerous job it is.’

‘The inspector can take care of himself, Dirk.’

‘But he’s chasing the man who escaped from the policemen.’

‘I know and I mean to help him catch the fellow.’

‘This man who escaped – I think his name is Oxley – has no respect for the law or the people who try to uphold it. And there are far too many people just like him. I’d hate a daughter of mine to marry a policeman.’

‘You don’t
have
a daughter, you imbecile.’

‘I know,’ agreed Sowerby, ‘but if I did, I’d be afraid that she’d be a widow before too long. I hope that doesn’t happen to Maddy.’

‘There’s little chance of that.’

‘The inspector spends all his time chasing desperate criminals. It only takes one of them to fire a gun or pull a knife on him and you’ll be attending the funeral of your son-in-law.’

‘That’s arrant nonsense!’

Andrews’s vehement denial masked his deep anxiety. His fireman was only airing concerns that the driver had raised with Madeleine on a number of occasions. Loving his daughter and wanting her future happiness, he was troubled by the nagging fear that Colbeck might one day lose his life in pursuit of a suspect. Madeleine had dismissed the suggestion but it remained a source of deep unease to her father. It was why he kept urging her to set a date for their wedding. If Colbeck’s career in Scotland Yard was indeed to be foreshortened by disaster, Andrews wanted his daughter to have as full a taste of married bliss as possible. After years of waiting, she deserved that.

It was late evening when she heard the footsteps on the pavement outside. They did not belong to her father and, in any case, Madeleine did not expect him back until he’d repaired to the pub he routinely frequented at the end of the day. Thinking that the pedestrian would walk past the house, she was surprised when there was a knock on the door. It made her rise from the chair and cross to the window. The moment she looked out, she emitted a cry of joy and ran to open the door. Colbeck was waiting to enfold her in his arms and kiss her.

‘What a lovely surprise!’ she exclaimed. ‘The only time I know that it’s you is when I hear a cab drawing up outside the house.’

‘I made the driver stop at the end of the street this time,’ he said, ‘so that I could catch you unawares.’ He looked
over her shoulder into the house. ‘Am I to be allowed in, Madeleine?’

‘Of course – nobody is more welcome.’

Ushering him into the house, she closed the door behind them before surrendering to another embrace. Only when they parted did he take off his hat and set it aside. He glanced at her easel.

‘Is there anything for me to see?’ he asked.

‘Not until it’s finished, Robert.’

He pointed a finger. ‘Can’t I just take a peek?’

‘No,’ she said, administering a playful pat on his hand. ‘You must behave yourself. An artist must not be hurried into displaying her work until she feels that it’s ready.’

He smiled. ‘I’m glad to see that you consider yourself to be an artist now. When I first urged you to be more ambitious, you claimed that you were nothing more than a painter with moderate talent.’

‘My attitude changed when I first sold something.’

‘I knew that it would,’ he said, kissing her cheek. ‘But I can’t tarry, I’m afraid. This is only a flying visit on my way to Scotland Yard. I have to report to the superintendent.’

She glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. ‘Will Mr Tallis be working
this
late?’

‘He’s at his desk until midnight sometimes, Madeleine. Nobody can accuse him of being lazy. He’ll sit there until I turn up and tell him what happened in Manchester.’

‘Is that where you went looking for Jeremy Oxley?’

He raised an eyebrow. ‘You
know
about the case, do you?’

‘I know more than you think,’ she replied. ‘By
coincidence, my father was driving the train when the prisoner escaped. Be warned, Robert. He thinks that entitles him to join in the investigation.’

‘He always did fancy that he had the makings of a detective.’

She was firm. ‘One detective is enough in any family.’

Colbeck gave her an abbreviated account of his visits to Wolverhampton, Birmingham and Manchester. He did not simply do so out of courtesy. To begin with, he knew that he could trust her to keep all the information to herself. But there was another reason why he liked to keep her abreast of his movements. Madeleine had been able to offer practical help in some of his past investigations. Had he known about the involvement of a woman, Tallis would have been apoplectic. The superintendent felt that policing was essentially a male preserve. He’d be astounded if he knew how much Colbeck had relied on Madeleine to collect evidence on his behalf.

‘Now that you’ve told me
your
news,’ she said, ‘I can pass on mine. Brace yourself for a shock, Robert.’

‘Is it that serious?’

‘It is to me – Father is going to retire.’

He was startled. ‘Does he really mean it this time?’

‘He was going to hand in his resignation this morning.’

‘Well, that
is
an unexpected disclosure,’ said Colbeck, ‘but it’s a pleasing one. After all those years of sterling service, he’s earned the right to retirement. A lesser man would have given up when he took that beating from the train robbers but your father fought his way back to full health and was soon back on the footplate.’

‘It will bring about some changes,’ she cautioned.

‘Yes, you won’t have to get up early every morning to make his breakfast and to send him off.’

‘That’s a benefit but there’ll be hazards as well.’ Her gesture took in the whole room. ‘The main one is that I’ll lose my studio. I work best when I’m alone and I’m going to have Father here.’

‘There’s a simple answer to that, Madeleine.’

‘Is there?’

‘Yes – you can use a room in my house as a studio. After all, it’s only a matter of time before you move in there permanently.’

‘That’s what I was coming to,’ she said, tentatively. ‘Father has been badgering me to set a date for the wedding. I know that you don’t wish to be rushed and I understand why, but it would be helpful if I had at least some idea of when it would be.’

Colbeck took her impulsively in his arms. ‘If it were left to me,’ he said, softly, ‘I’d marry you tomorrow. But the demands of my job won’t permit that, alas. Since the time we became engaged, I’ve had one case after another to deal with. I work from dawn to dusk seven days a week, Madeleine.’

‘I accept that,’ she said, pushing back a strand of hair from his forehead. ‘As soon as one investigation finishes, another one starts. I can see that this latest case will eat up all your time. That’s in the nature of police work. It’s just that I would like to have a date to give Father so that he’ll stop hounding me.’ She smiled hopefully. ‘Is that an unfair request?’

‘No, Madeleine,’ he answered. ‘It’s an extremely fair one. You are right about this investigation. It will need my full commitment and take precedence over everything else. I have personal reasons for wanting to catch Jeremy Oxley. It’s something of an obsession, so I must ask you to bear with me. When it’s all over,’ he told her, ‘I promise you that we’ll sit down together and finally set a date for our wedding. Will that please your father?’

She laughed happily. ‘It will please
me
a lot more, Robert.’

Oxley was the best lover she’d ever had. He knew how to take his time and to ensure that Irene enjoyed full satisfaction. He was the first man to whom she gave herself completely. With the others, she’d always held something back. Irene had been in her early teens when she learnt how to use her charms on a man. She would secure his interest, tighten her hold, then tease, torment and ensnare him until he’d do whatever she wanted. All of her early victims had been young men lured by a promise of surrender that was often never fulfilled. When they made the mistake of putting absolute trust in her, she chose the moment to strike then disappeared with their money or other valuables. Many were too embarrassed by their own gullibility to report the crime to the police. Those – like Lawrence Holte – who did want her arrested discovered that she was remarkably elusive.

As she lay naked in bed with Oxley that evening, she did not have to think about stealing from him or decide when to take to her heels. They were partners and their
spoils were shared equally. It was inconceivable that she would ever run away from him.

‘Are you happy?’ he asked, lazily stroking her breast.

‘I’m happier than I’ve ever been, Jerry.’

‘Is that because of me?’

‘What other cause could there be?’

‘I wondered if it was to do with what happened during the rescue. When I’d killed for the first time, I felt this glow inside me for days. Even when I’d been arrested, I had this extraordinary sense of pleasure.’ He tapped his chest. ‘I’d taken another man’s life.’

‘That thought gives me no pleasure at all.’

‘It’s like a coming of age.’

‘I see it differently,’ she said, uneasily.

It was still there at the back of her mind. Irene might no longer shiver when she recalled the moment she fired the gun, nor did she flinch when she thought about the two bodies being butchered by a speeding train. Yet it would not go away. Every so often the grotesque memories would pop up uncontrollably in her brain and cause her intense regret. Only in Oxley’s arms was she safe from any twinges of guilt. Alone with him, nothing else mattered.

‘You could have been an actress,’ he observed.

‘I don’t have the training for it, Jerry.’

‘Training isn’t necessary when you have such natural ability. You know how to play a part, Irene. Your performance fooled all three of those policemen.’

‘There were only two on the train.’

‘I was thinking about the one who told you what time we’d be leaving Wolverhampton – Constable Marner.’

She giggled. ‘I put a pillow inside my dress and told him that I was carrying a child. He couldn’t wait to help me then.’ Her face clouded. ‘What will happen to him?’

‘Nothing at all,’ he assured her. ‘He’ll have the sense to keep his mouth shut. Otherwise he’ll be arrested for being an accessory and will end up behind bars.’

‘That’s what worries me. If he’s caught, he’ll be able to describe me. We talked for several minutes. He had a good look at me, Jerry.’

Oxley grinned. ‘Not as good as the one that I’m having,’ he said with a laugh, gazing at her smooth, shapely body. ‘Policemen will always be tempted by a bribe. It’s the same with prison warders. They’re so poorly paid that five or ten pounds looks like a fortune to them. That’s how I escaped when I was on remand. I bribed someone to look the other way.’

‘How did you smuggle the money into prison?’

‘There are always ways to conceal it when you’re searched. Mind you,’ he went on, ‘you have to choose the right person. I picked on Marner because I sensed that he was our man.’

‘Think how he must have felt when he discovered that he’d been tricked,’ she said. ‘Two of his friends went to their deaths because of him. That would have upset him terribly.’

‘It serves him right, Irene.’

He reached for the bottle of champagne on the bedside table and emptied it into the two glasses. Handing one to Irene, he picked up the other and raised it in a toast.

‘Let’s drink to a prosperous future together!’