The Measby Murder Enquiry (38 page)

By now, tears were running down Alwen’s pale cheeks. So she must once more go through all those good and bad years since he had promised to love her forever, but now she knew that he had lived on, alone and probably lonely. Why hadn’t he got in touch and come home? Too scared to face the music. What a terrible price he had paid! She folded the letter carefully, and put it back in the drawer.

Now she thought of the girls. She must tell them, and Bethan would be sad but brave, since she had been too small to get to know her father well. But Bronwen was a different matter. Alwen realised she had no idea how Bronwen would react. She had always thought that in many ways, her elder daughter was stonyhearted, caring only for herself. Perhaps it was because she had had no children, and her husband had turned out to be such a disappointment. But she might remember how William had doted on her, and still comfort herself with those few years when she had come first in his world.

There was a knock at the door and Katya came in. “Do you feel like coming down for a cup of tea before bedtime? Your friends are playing cards, and would, I know, welcome you among them.”

“Cards?” said Alwen. “I think not, Katya. Tomorrow, perhaps. Now I am ready for sleep.”

THEO HAD BEEN walking for half an hour around the two largest chestnut trees in the Hall park, tracing as he went a large figure of eight, something he had done when solving a problem since he was a child. It was not that there were any magical properties to the number eight, but because the trudge round and round presented no sudden distractions, and he found he could concentrate. He was not even aware that he had fallen into this old habit, and had earlier set out to check the sheep. But then he had become lost in thought, wondering how he could get out of taking Deirdre to Ozzy’s Casino in Thornwell that evening.

He had been careless, he decided, that in the heat of passion, he had agreed to Deirdre’s request without thinking, but now he knew that he could not possibly be seen with Bert Bloxham’s widow in amongst the riffraff who made up the motley crew of gamblers in Thornwell.

Still without a solution to his problem, he broke out of his reverie and set out across the park towards the Hall, thinking that perhaps a strong coffee might help. As he approached the gravelled courtyard at the front of the house, he saw a familiar figure. It was Augustus Halfhide, his tenant from Hangman’s Row.

“Good morning!” he called. “Are you looking for me?” He did hope it was not another complaint about faulty plumbing or dangerous electrical wiring. Those old cottages should really be pulled down, but he relied on the rents to supplement his meagre bank balance.

“Not really,” said Gus, restraining Whippy from an overenthusiastic greeting to Theo’s dog. “It was just such a fine morning, I thought I would walk this way and perhaps take a few photographs of the Hall, if you don’t mind. It’s such a magnificent old building, and positively glows with sun on the ironstone.” He hoped Theo didn’t spot that he was improvising as he went along. He had had no intention of taking photographs, but luckily had his camera in his pocket.

No, he had come this way in the hope of catching Noreen in the kitchen. He intended to warn her that it was all round the village that Theo was going to replace her with the Polish girl from Springfields, and she had better smarten herself up if she wanted to stay. Added to concern for the old slattern, he was fond of Katya and hated to think of her shut up in the gloomy old Hall with the predatory Theo.

“Splendid!” said Theo. “Do carry on. Perhaps I might see them later? Haven’t thought to take pictures of the old place for years. Anyway, now you’re here, why don’t you come in for a coffee? I could do with a bit of intelligent male conversation!”

“Ah,” said Gus. “That would be very nice. Thank you.”

Theo led the way past the kitchen and put his head round the door to ask Noreen for coffee, frowned when he saw the breakfast dishes still unwashed, and took Gus up the stairs to his study. “It’s the only warm room in the house,” he said. “Quite a chill in the air this morning, don’t you think?”

The conversation proceeded pleasantly enough. Both had from time to time lived in London, and one or two names of mutual friends emerged. “Were you ever at the Ritz Casino?” Theo asked. “I’m sure I’ve seen your face around.”

Gus shrugged. “Only too likely, I’m afraid,” he said. “Finished with all that now, though,” he said, and Theo suddenly saw the answer to his problem. Heaven sent!

“Now, Gus,” he said. “I may call you that, mayn’t I? I wonder if I could ask a terrific favour? I have promised an old friend that I would take her to Ozzy’s Casino this evening, just to look around, and now I find it impossible to make it. Could you take my place, and save my life? Hell hath no fury, and all that. Do say yes!”

Gus was silent for a whole minute, and Theo’s heart began to sink. “Gus?” he asked anxiously.

“As it happens,” Gus said finally, “I am going there this evening myself. May I make an intelligent guess as to who your friend is?”

Theo nodded, looking a little guilty. He had forgotten Enquire Within and the four members of its team.

“Deirdre Bloxham?”

“Of course. You knew that, didn’t you, Gus. Colleagues, and all that. Do hope I haven’t blown it with the dear girl. I’ll give her a ring and explain.”

“Do that,” said Gus, and, making excuses that he must take advantage of the clear light and see what he could do with snapping some good shots of the Hall, he left.

 

 

“WHY DON’T YOU come up to Tawny Wings for an early supper, and then we could go on to Ozzy’s together?” Deirdre asked. Gus had given Theo time to make his call, and then he rang her himself, saying that although it was a change of plan, he thought they could do some useful observation together.

He walked through the village slowly, aiming to be with Deirdre around six o’clock. He had a niggling dread brewing in the pit of his stomach, and told himself this was just being unnecessarily dramatic. But he could not deny that he feared walking through the casino door. What would happen when he saw the dimly lit room filled with gaming tables, some people with poker faces, concealing their reactions at the contents of their hands of cards, others seated in attitudes of excitement or despair? Would there still be that old smell of stale, fear-induced sweat mixed with heady alcohol fumes? And would he be drawn in, the temptation proving too great?

He was at the gates of Tawny Wings now, and took a deep breath. He reminded himself that he would be with Deirdre, the most sane, confident woman he had ever met, one with her feet firmly on the ground. With Deirdre beside him, with any luck he would see Ozzy’s through her clear-eyed objective view.

Nevertheless, he was unusually silent during supper, and Deirdre took a good look at him. “You okay about all this?” she said, setting down a large helping of sticky toffee pudding in front of him.

“Fine,” he said. “I don’t have to watch my weight, as I’m sure you have noticed.”

“Idiot,” she said and reached out to put her hand over his. “You know perfectly well what I mean. Not too late to back out, Gus. I can go by myself, make up some excuse about doing research for my work for social services with compulsive gamblers.”

Gus was silent for a few moments, and then he began fumbling in his pocket. He pulled out a handful of silver coins and a battered old leather wallet. He emptied the wallet of two twenty pound notes and added it to the coins. Then he pushed the whole lot over the table to Deirdre.

“Please put that in your handbag, there’s a love,” he said. “Don’t ask questions, just be sure that you’ll be doing me a favour.”

Deirdre was going to ask him if he’d like her to harness him to her belt with Whippy’s lead, just in case, but then she saw the tension in his expression and knew that it was no joke. Her heart went out to him, and she went to stand behind him, planting a kiss on the top of his head. “Come on, Augustus Halfhide,” she said. “Let’s go and do a job of work. And that’s all there is to it.”

 

 

“WELL, I NEVER!” said Deirdre cheerfully as she approached the desk in the casino. “If it isn’t my old pal Mandy! The girl who lived next to me when we were all kids playing hopscotch in the street!”

A heavily made-up woman smiled with genuine pleasure at seeing Deirdre. “Good God, girl,” she said. “What are you doing here? Bert would turn in his grave!”

Deirdre roared with laughter. “That’s all you know, Mandy Wise,” she said. “My Bert loved a Saturday afternoon flutter on the gees. Anyway, now I’m here, just tell me how I should choose a surefire winner.”

Gus marvelled at her composure. She had manoeuvred herself to shield Gus, and made no attempt to introduce him. She listened carefully as Mandy explained what she should do with her twenty pounds’ worth of chips, and directed her to the roulette table. “Start there. Easy peasy, that is,” Mandy said. “All you need to do is cross your fingers. And I’m always here if you need more chips. Have fun, you two.” She raised her eyebrows at Gus and asked if he was Deirdre’s brother. But giving him no time to answer, Deirdre marched off towards the roulette wheel, perfectly relaxed.

With beginner’s luck, Deirdre won at the first spin, and she looked round at Gus, standing behind her. “Shall I have another go?” she said, and then her expression changed. She stood up abruptly, and whispered to him to follow her. She retreated into a shadowy corner where there were a few empty chairs for onlookers.

“Gus, look over there, by the desk. Keep out of sight and don’t make a sound. Thank God they keep this place so dark.”

“It’s so nothing distracts the punters, and nobody sees the dealer fiddling the cards,” Gus whispered into her ear. His heart was pounding, but he put both hands in his empty pockets and sat down. He looked over towards the desk, peering through the gloom.

“Oh, my,” he said as he watched a smartly dressed woman turn and walk towards the roulette wheel. She stood there with the accustomed ease of someone who’d been there many times before. Gus caught sight of her face, and knew at once, without question, that he was looking at an addict.

“It’s her, isn’t it?” said Deirdre.

Gus nodded. “Alwen’s pride and joy. Wonderwoman Bronwen, God help her.”

DEIRDRE AND GUS waited in the shadows until they could see that Mandy Wise was, for the moment, surrounded by a group of punters newly arrived. Then they sidled out with their faces averted. Outside, they walked swiftly to Deirdre’s car and drove out of the car park and sped off towards Barrington.

They were in total agreement. There had been no point in staying longer. What they had seen was so important that no gossip or rumour could match it. And they needed to get out before Bronwen Evans saw them. Two other pairs of eyes watched them leave, but they were not aware of these.

“So there we have it,” Gus said as they left the outskirts of town and took the shortcut to the village through dark, overhanging tunnels of trees. “Alwen’s beloved daughter, so sophisticated and successful, is a compulsive gambler, and has probably worked her way through her own and her mother’s savings, and any other source of income she could get her hands on. Oh, yes, Deirdre, that’s how it works, believe me. The only thing that matters is the conviction that you will scoop a fortune with the next game. Game! What a misnomer, my dear. Never think of it as only a game. To quote our Ivy, it is the work of the devil.”

“But not everybody gets addicted,” Deirdre said, though she believed every word that Gus had said.

“True,” he replied but added that until you tried it you wouldn’t know. And then it would be too late. “Mind you,” he continued, “some of the best casinos offer helpful advice on how to recognise the signs of a growing addiction.”

“Quietening their bad consciences?”

Gus shrugged as they drove into Tawny Wings gateway. “Bad consciences are soon smothered, Dee-Dee, when there are larges sums of money involved.”