The de Vere Deception (David Thorne Mysteries Book 1) (30 page)

            Hammersmith interrupted. “Gentlemen, if we could, I’d like to wrap up the matter at hand, and then you can conduct your business affairs between yourselves. I need to be back in Stratford on business.” He looked at his notes briefly before continuing. “To get back to the Forestal matter, I found a Nanette D’Autry, evidently a driver for Forestal, waiting outside the kitchen loading area. After D’Autry was apprehended, she told of their plans to drive to Zurich after the business in the hotel. She’s also been implicated in other robberies around Paris. Michael Kelly was also apprehended at the Stockton-Rohmer studio earlier today. He had tried to coerce Cravelle, the INTERPOL officer who was masquerading as Rohmer, into giving them information about your visit to Delain. Cravelle allowed him to escape to protect Cravelle’s identity as Rohmer. They want Dassin Stockton in London to be unaware INTERPOL has taken over the studio in Paris. Kelly was to have been apprehended before he could return to London, but the French police allowed him to give them the slip.”

            Hammersmith shook his head. “I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t understand how INTERPOL and Europol come up with their ideas. The Foreign Office has asked me to defer to them, so . . .”

            He stood and put his notebook in his coat pocket. “We don’t want to forget we still need to identify and apprehend Forestal’s partner—or partners. We’re finished here, and I’m on my way back to Stratford. Mr. Thorne, if you can, finish up with any work you have to for Mr. Bada. We do hope you have a pleasant trip back to the States after you’ve finished.” He stopped at the door and said, “Good luck on your activities at the castle. I think you may need it.”

            Thorne looked again at the contract before taking a pen from his pocket and signing both copies. Bada placed his copy back in the envelope and put it in his pocket. He withdrew another envelope and placed it in front of Thorne. “Here’s the retainer. As I recall, you prefer a cashier’s check.”

            Thorne smiled. Bada had been sure of himself.

            “By the way, we would enjoy you spending Christmas with us at the manor house—if you like.”

            Thorne’s thoughts returned fleetingly to Gweneth Bada. She would take Forestal’s involvement hard.

            But, he was relieved Forestal and Roberts would no longer be threats. Kelly was still on the loose, and Thorne knew he had not seen the last of the big man, or the shadowy figure behind the whole affair

PART 5

Chapter 72

STRATFORD-UPON-AVON

Monday, January 3

9:45 AM

The construction on the castle was interrupted by the holidays and heavy snow and Thorne and the Bada family enjoyed the respite. During this time, Thorne made efforts to encourage Gweneth to put Forestal’s involvement behind her, but with little success. Her depression was understandable, this being the second potential husband she had lost. Despite Thorne’s comforting, she was convinced she was the problem. After two unsuccessful attempts to help her out of her depression, he resolved not to give up on her, but realized it would require more time.

Thorne sat in a hard straight-backed chair in the outer office of the Stratford Police Station reading an article about the upcoming Shakespearean Festival. The dispatcher sitting behind a desk across the room picked up a telephone and listened. She hung up the phone and said politely, “Inspector Hammersmith will see you now, Mr. Thorne.”

            Hammersmith tossed a folded newspaper across his desk as Thorne came through the door. “Mr. Bada was quick in letting the cat out of the bag. Now, everyone knows what you’re after.”

            Thorne glanced at the headline. BADA CORPORATION SEEKS ANTI-SHAKESPEARE DOCUMENTS IN STRATFORD. He couldn’t restrain a chuckle.

            Hammersmith said, “You have no idea how upset the people here in Stratford are about this. Roger Linsdame called me this morning and insisted I arrest you. I guess he heard about your little escapade in France. I do want you to know you’re a lucky man, Mr. Thorne. Gilbert Bada and Bada, Limited carry a lot of weight around here—and in France, too—so, that’s it. Now what do you want?”

            “Like I said, I just wanted to check in with you, and see if you have leads on the other man—Forestal’s partner.”

            Hammersmith stared at him with incredulity. “Mr. Thorne, I don’t understand you. You steal a valuable necklace, lead us all over France, indirectly get a man seriously injured because of your foolishness, and now you come in here as good as you please asking questions, just as if it never happened.”

            “Inspector, Mr. Bada has dropped all charges against me. Both the French and English authorities don’t consider me a threat, and as far as I know, the matter has been dropped here in England, too.”

            Hammersmith said sarcastically, “It may have been officially dropped as far as the Foreign Office is concerned, but I assure you it has not been forgotten by a lot of people around town.”

            He took a folder from his file cabinet and spread it out before him. “We’ve been unable to find out who the other man was. The cell phone he used was new and had no record of previous calls on it. His call also went to a new phone number we have been unable to track. It appears he and his partner took a lot of precaution to remain anonymous.”

            Thorne stood and prepared to leave. “I’ll be staying at the Bada manor home if you need me.”

            “Need you? Why would I need you?” As Thorne passed through the door, Hammersmith said loudly, “. . . And please keep out of my hair.”

            Thorne went to the door, paused, and started to return. He wanted to ask if he could carry protection as he still expected confrontations as he had in the past. He thought better of it and turned back.

            As he continued down the hallway, he heard Hammersmith grumble, “I would appreciate you letting me know what you find out.”

Chapter 73

Thorne met with Bada’s staff of security people early the next day in the Great Hall. Activities at the castle had been suspended for the holidays, and now assignments were given to continue the search for the documents. They were instructed to look for clues in various areas of the castle where anything relating to “where the poesies welcome” might be.

            Thorne created a large printout of each floor of the castle, attached it to a cork board, and added color-coded pins for each member of the search team to keep track of their daily searches. The remainder of the group was assigned as security guards to restrict access to the grounds to construction personnel only. Visitors, consultants and vendors went through a screening process and were only given access at certain times of the day, and they would always be accompanied by security personnel.

A week passed and after a grueling day in the castle, Thorne returned to the manor house and stayed in his room to avoid being invited to dinner. During dinner, he moved into the parlor and situated himself in a deep chair in the corner of the room. He had asked Charles to tell Gweneth he would be there and wished to see her after dinner. He had no idea what he’d say to her. Maybe he would start by talking about the weather or other mundane subjects, hoping to put off the discussion of Forestal as long as possible. Knowing they’d have to talk about it eventually, he wanted to help her confront her situation. It wouldn’t be easy.

            The door to the dining room opened, and he heard voices as the diners moved into the hallway and foyer. The large figure of Charles loomed over the others as he moved slowly in the direction of the parlor.

            Thorne stood and waited nervously as Charles pushed the wheelchair into the parlor and closed the door. “Hello, Gweneth,” he said softly, “It’s good to see you again.”

            Gweneth said nothing as Charles pushed her close to the fireplace. In the past, she had smiled at the sound of his voice. She was not smiling now.

            He said, “Hello Charles.” Charles said nothing, but gave him a slight smile before going back to the door. He turned and said, “Can I get you anything, Ma’am?”

            Gweneth’s voice was small and strained. “No, thank you, Charles. Please close the door when you leave.”

            She and Thorne said nothing for a long while before she broke the silence. It appeared she didn’t want to start the conversation with small talk. There was a sadness in her soft voice Thorne had not seen before. “This has been extremely difficult—and heartbreaking for me, David. It’s so hard getting through it.”

            “I know.”

            “It’s confusing. I think—I did think—I loved Neville. But now, I’m not sure. How could he—how could I—have loved a man who did what he did. Shouldn’t I have known, David? It’s tragic losing both Freddie—and now Neville. I feel like a fool. How could I not have known about Neville?”

            “Don’t blame yourself, Gweneth.” he said. “You had no way of knowing. None of us did. He moved over and sat on the hearth before her, taking her hands in his. “You know the old saying, Love is blind.”

            A smile broke on her face and she gave a slight chuckle as he took her hands. “David, you don’t know how glad I am that you came back. I know you’ll be a great help to Gil—and me.”

            He squeezed her hands and said, “It’s wonderful to see you again, too, Gweneth. I’ll help all I can.”

            She smiled and regained her composure. “All right, David. Tell me how things are going at the castle. I must say, I had no idea what Gil and the others were up to. Andrea read the newspaper article to me. It all sounds very exciting.”

            Thorne returned her smile. He warmed at the thought this still young woman may yet get over Forestal, and find a man worthy of her.

Chapter 74

For the next few days the search continued, but without success. At the end of a day of rummaging through the stables, Thorne sat on a stone bench in the courtyard of the castle. As he reflected on what had happened over the past week, his train of thought was broken as the supervisor of the guards came by.

            “Mr. Thorne, we’ve completed the sweep of the top floor. Since it’s almost the end of the day, the men would like to know if you want to meet and discuss their findings, or wait until tomorrow morning.”

            “Tell them tomorrow will be fine. We’ll meet briefly at eight and discuss their activities for the day.”

            The supervisor said, “At the meeting tomorrow, perhaps you could amplify your comments on this  “where the poesies welcome”. We’ve scoured the top floor and other areas, and I know you also spent a lot of effort before we came on board. We’re coming up empty, but we’ll keep trying. I’ll be around for a few minutes more, and then I’ll close down for the night.”

            After the supervisor left Thorne arose from the bench. It was true, nothing of interest had been found. If things continued as they had up to now, maybe they wouldn’t find anything. He stood in the middle of the courtyard and turned in a circle, surveying the various walls, windows and doors. The courtyard had been one of the first areas examined in detail and searches there had proved fruitless.

                        Thorne turned and looked back to the main gate. He stood for a long time surveying every area above and on either side of the gate to see where there may be a cavity or recess where the documents could have been hidden. He then turned to his right and walked to the stables just off the main courtyard. Inside the stable he repeated the cursory survey he had done on the main gate. There were no areas in the stables where anything could be secreted away.

            The sun disappeared over the top of the castle walls as he returned to the stone bench. He turned his head in all directions, searching the courtyard for a clue—any area not fully investigated.

            The large front entrance doors again caught his attention. He walked slowly over to the steps, and looked up at the wood-paneled, fanned out decorative soffit—the ceiling above the entryway. A half-circle tiled roof projected out and covered the entrance. The approach to the front doors was wide, funneling in to the doors..

            He had previously examined the large bronze panels on either side of the door approach. The relief of the ship at sea was on the left panel, and the panel opposite to his right contained a collection of short poems incised in the bronze panel.

            Suddenly his mind jumped, almost as if he had been prodded.

            He remembered a poem he’d recently read which contained the line—”and poesies I have sung to thee.”

           
The poesies the letter spoke of were
not flowers
as he had originally thought.
Poesies
I have
sung
, meaning
spoken
—or
read’
. They were
poems
!

His answer was on the wall before him.

Chapter 75

Thorne moved quickly to the panel and searched the edges. The panel was set in a beveled opening in the stone wall at least an inch deep. There was nothing to show they had ever been disturbed. He tapped the panel with the end of a multi-purpose tool he carried. There was a hollow sound, indicating there may be a cavity behind the panel. He moved across and tapped on the panel on the opposite wall. Solid.

            An investigation on the wall with the poesies was a triangle-shaped stone mass and showed no disturbed mortar joints. Inside the castle, the joints in the foyer’s stone wall also showed no signs of the mortar being tampered with. He returned to the outside entryway and looked up. The truncated wood panels in the soffit followed the curve of the roof overhang and were at least three feet across at the wide ends and were separated by curved wood beams.