‘He’s become one of the family. Mother dotes on him.’
He moved even closer to her. ‘What else did the inspector ask you?’
‘He wondered if I knew where Mr Heygate kept his money.’
‘Any income from the ticket office and the refreshment room goes straight into the safe at the end of each day. You should know that.’
‘He was talking about Mr Heygate’s own money,’ said Dorcas. ‘When they searched the house, they couldn’t find a penny, yet he must have had some cash to buy food and so on. I think it’s odd that there was nothing at all there.’
‘It may be in a hiding place,’ he ventured.
‘The search was very thorough, according to the inspector. He gave me a couple of books on how to look after canaries. Mother’s been reading them.’
‘Forget canaries,’ said Woodford, impatiently. ‘Did they find anything of real interest in the house?’
‘I don’t know. They were simply vexed at what they
‘The money, you mean?’
‘Yes, Mr Woodford — and the diary.’
He became wary. ‘What diary was that?’
‘The one I told the inspector about,’ she explained. ‘It was really to do with his birdwatching, you see. Mr Heygate used to keep a note of all the species that he saw and where he’d found them. You can understand why the inspector wished that he’d found the diary. It might have told him where Mr Heygate went that night in order to see that owl.’ Woodford seemed distracted. ‘Did you hear what I said?’
‘Yes, yes,’ he said, abruptly. ‘That diary could be important.’
‘Yet it wasn’t anywhere in the house.’
‘Or if it was, it was carefully hidden.’ He rubbed a hand across his chin and seemed to forget that she was there. After a minute, he noticed her again. ‘Back to work, Miss Hope,’ he ordered. ‘You’re going to be very busy before too long.’
‘Yes, Mr Woodford,’ she said, relieved to get away.
While she went back into the refreshment room, he sauntered down the platform towards the stationmaster’s house. He studied it with fresh interest and was about to get closer when a uniformed policeman came into view. The house was still being guarded. Woodford gave the policeman a friendly wave but his emotions were in turmoil. He suddenly felt under threat.
When yet another summons came from the bishop’s palace, Superintendent Steel was irritated. He had far too much to do to dance attendance on the bishop. After toying with the idea of ignoring the letter, he elected to obey the request in the end but made a point of arriving late. Predictably, it infuriated the bishop.
‘I don’t like to be kept waiting,’ he rasped from his chair in the library.
‘I had something more important to do, Bishop.’
‘Nothing is more important than what I have to say. I want that woman hauled before a magistrate at once and sent to prison.’
‘I think you’re being unnecessarily vindictive,’ said the other.
‘Don’t you realise what she did, man?’
‘My officers gave me a full report.’
‘She defiled the house of God and, by implication, challenged my authority.’
‘When she entered the cathedral,’ said the superintendent, ‘I don’t believe the lady had you in mind at all. It was an impulsive act by a desperate woman.’
‘It was also a calculated attack on me,’ declared the bishop, ‘and it comes on the back of a murder that was an orchestrated assault on my position in the city.’
‘I’m sorry, Bishop, but I fail to see that.’
‘There are far too many things you fail to see, Superintendent. Blindness in a police officer is a grave shortcoming.’
‘Lack of compassion in a bishop is an even graver one.’
Bishop Phillpotts could not believe what he’d just heard. His eyes were aflame, his cheeks scarlet and his whole body shaking. They were alone in the library and he’d been sitting behind his desk. His visitor’s retort made him leap to his feet.
‘Do you have the audacity to accuse me of such a fault?’
‘It was not an accusation,’ said Steel, striking a conciliatory note. ‘It was an observation. I respectfully submit that your attitude towards Mrs Rossiter falls short of Christian forbearance. The woman is patently unwell. She needs help and understanding.’
‘Punishment is what she needs,’ said the bishop. ‘It must be a harsh and visible punishment to deter others. Charges must be brought against her.’
‘Inspector Colbeck felt that that would be unkind.’
‘He’s not the person who suffered a gross public insult.’
‘And neither were you, Bishop,’ said Steel. ‘Mrs Rossiter didn’t know what she was doing. For some reason, she lost all inhibition. We should strive to forgive her for what was clearly uncharacteristic impetuosity.’
‘Heavens above, man!’ exclaimed the bishop. ‘She grabbed the crucifix.’
‘It was a foolish gesture.’
‘It was a denial of the very existence of the Almighty.’
‘As such, it’s to be condemned,’ said Steel, ‘but I still don’t believe it deserves imprisonment. Inspector Colbeck concurs. He’s arranged for her to be examined by Dr Swift. If she is to be incarcerated, it will be in the County Asylum.’ The bishop seemed partially soothed. ‘May I return to my duties now, please?’
‘No, Superintendent, you may not.’
‘We have a killer to find.’
‘That’s the other matter I wished to discuss. Browne must be arrested.’
‘He’s proving elusive.’
‘Then you need more men to search for him,’ said the bishop. ‘To that end, I urge you to call in the troops from Topsham Barracks.’
‘Oh, no,’ said Steel, holding up both palms. ‘That would be quite wrong. You seem to forget that relations between the police and the military are strained at the best of times. We need to stay well apart. Besides,’ he continued, ‘it’s not simply a question of having more men. The best way to track down Bagsy Browne is to seek good intelligence. That’s why Mr Quinnell has increased the amount of money on offer for information leading to his arrest.’
‘Has any information been forthcoming so far?’
Steel was uncomfortable. ‘We’ve had none that’s entirely reliable.’
‘And we both know why,’ said the bishop. ‘Whenever he’s here, Browne terrorises this city. People won’t help you because they’re afraid of the consequences. They want the reassurance of seeing army uniforms on our streets.’
‘It would be a disastrous step to take.’
‘We need protection, Superintendent. I, in particular, demand it.’
‘Why so?’
‘Browne committed that murder out of spite against me. And he’s still
Steel mastered a surge of hope that such an eventuality might occur.
‘That’s absurd, Bishop,’ he said, reasonably. ‘There’s no evidence at all to suggest that the killing of Joel Heygate is in any way directed at you. Bagsy Browne is a deep-dyed villain who acts out of malice rather than because he has a hatred of the Church. Of one thing you can rest assured — you are completely safe.’
‘Then why don’t I
Steel saw a chance to get rid of him. ‘Why not withdraw to Torquay?’ he counselled. ‘There’d be no sense of danger there, Bishop. You can return to Exeter when we’ve got Bagsy Browne in custody.’
The bishop struck a pose. ‘I don’t run away from danger,’ he boasted. ‘I stay to confront it and take positive action. I give you this warning. Catch this vile recreant in the next few days or …’ he paused for effect ‘… or I will
