The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories by Women (Mammoth Books)

The noise of the machines was slightly muffled here, but still reverberated through the very walls, calling soft answering clicks from somewhere inside the caligraph.

“Well, Mr Lassiter? Can you tell me about how you found Mr Wishart?”

“I was on the way up to discuss a plan he had, for a new safety device. He’d been promising it for a while . . .” Lassiter looked down, and tugged at a loose thread on his sleeve.

“There were difficulties?”

“He’d get distracted. He had a wonderful mind, sir, no doubt of it. But he did get distracted.”

“I see. So, on this particular evening?”

“I just went up to give him a bit of a nudge, as it were. And when I got there, there he was, poor fellow.”

“Did you hear or see anything? Did anyone pass you on the stairs?”

“I took the lift, sir. It was working fine then. The corridor was empty when I got out.”

“Did you hear anything?”

“There was some shouting, I took it to be outside in the street. And then I did hear something. But it wasn’t a sound a person would make, it was like a long note on a fiddle, drawn out; a sort of a wailing, but not anything from a mouth, or a throat.”

“And then?”

“And then . . . well, have you ever dropped a copper pot, Inspector? There was that sort of sound. Like lots of copper pots, falling. It struck me something was up, that there’d been an accident, so I hurried, but when I got around the corner . . .” he shrugged. “The door was open, and I went in, and there was poor Jamie.”

“And whatever you heard falling?”

“No idea about that, sir. There was nothing there when I got to the room.”

“Did you touch anything . . . move anything?”

“I went close, to see if there was anything to be done. Foolish, I suppose. I could see straight away that his poor head was quite stoved in. I hope I didn’t do wrong?”

“No, not at all.”

“There was something else, sir.”

“Yes?”

“It’ll sound odd, sir, but I could have sworn I heard music, just before. Only it could just be the machines.”

“I’m afraid I don’t follow you?”

“It’s the noise, see, sir. Sometimes when I leave I can still hear them, even in my sleep. They put odd noises in one’s head. But normally it’s ringing, or a sort of buzz; what I heard, it sounded like proper music, like you’d hear down at the concert halls, only . . . well, like all the instruments were made of silver.” Lassiter gave him a sidelong glance, looking a little flushed. “Sounds fanciful, I’m sure.”

To Gairden, it sounded as though the man had heard fey music, though the fey had a notorious dislike of the manufactories, and rarely ventured into the cities at all. And though they could be dangerous, they tended to be subtle; simply breaking a man’s head open like an egg was hardly their style. Or perhaps the machines had had an unfortunate effect on Lassiter, had driven him a little mad. It would hardly be surprising.

“Music, and then shouting. Well, thank you. I shall keep it in mind. Oh, Mr Lassiter?”

“Sir?”

“Have there been problems with the Children of Lud? Anything Mr Rheese might not know of?”

Lassiter stiffened a little; his face became wooden. “Not had any of that manner of thing, sir, no. I don’t believe there’s many of ’em still about. And of course if we had, I’d be obliged to report it to Mr Rheese.”

“Of course. Tell me, do you drink gin at all?

“Wouldn’t touch it, sir. We’ve lost some good workers to gin; I won’t have them in if they smell of it. It’s sneaky, wretched stuff and makes for accidents.”

“Hmm. Thank you, Mr Lassiter. I think that will be all.”

The next person to knock at the door was a young woman with strong dark curls escaping from beneath her headscarf. The glow of outdoor work had not quite faded from her skin, and she lacked the grey starveling look so many of the workers had; her arms were solid with muscle, her shoulders broad and strong. Her eyelids were swollen.

“Good evening, miss. Did you have something you wished to speak to me about?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Could I take your name?”

“Mattie Drewrey, sir.”

“Thank you. And what was it you wanted to tell me?”

“There was someone with him.” She was biting her lip, her eyes brimming. “Oh, if I could get my hands on her …”

Gairden took a clean handkerchief from his pocket; he always kept several about him. “Now, don’t fret yourself. Whoever did this was a dangerous person; it’s just as well you didn’t meet them, eh? Her, you say?” He handed Mattie the handkerchief.

She took it, and blew her nose. “Yes, sir.”

“And what did she look like?”

“I didn’t see much, sir. I’d gone out, for a breath, see. We don’t take our food at the machines, so we get a little time, a few minutes to eat, and I like to go outside.”

“Even when it’s raining?”

“I was brought up on a farm, sir; you don’t hide from a bit of rain when there’s stock to be tended. Anyway, I happened to look up at Jamie . . . at Mr Wishart’s window.”

“Was that something you did often?”

She flushed, and lifted her chin. “So what if I did? He needed someone to look after him, did Jamie.”

“I’m sure. And what did you see?”

“They were dancing. He’d barely look at you, sir, he was that shy; took me six months before he’d so much as bid me good morning, and there she was, bold as you please, with his arms about her, dancing!” Her fingers clenched in her lap.

“Could you make her out?”

She shook her head. “With the rain, and all; the window was wet, and there was smoke from the street. But I saw the shape of them, whirling about. Shameless, it was. Some opera-house floozy, you mark my words.”

“You think this woman was involved in Mr Wishart’s death?”

She shrugged. “All I know is she was there. And they’re strong, those dancers, you ever seen them? Muscles like my uncle Jed, some of them. Maybe she wanted money, and he wouldn’t give her any.”

Rattattarattattarattatta! Gairden knocked his chair over as he leaped to his feet. Mattie shrieked.

The caligraph’s keys were moving, the letters blurring up and down, faster and faster, until, with a clunk, they stopped. Several of the metal arms had become entwined, forcing some of the keys into a tight bunch, g and h and y and t and b. The machine quivered like a dog, and was still.

Mattie was on her feet, her hands clamped to her face. “Oh, sir, it’s Jamie!”

“Or,” said Gairden, “the vibrations of the machines set the thing to rattling, and now it’s tangled itself up. Well, I shan’t touch it; I’ll leave it to someone who knows how.”

“There’s no paper,” Mattie said. “If there’d been paper in it, he might have written a name.”

“Well, there wasn’t,” Gairden said. “It’s just a machine. Now, Mattie, did you hear anything? After you saw this woman?”

“No, sir.” She glanced anxiously at the jammed caligraph. “But I was back at the bench by then, so I wouldn’t have heard much.”

“And you didn’t see her go in or out?”

“No. If I had, I’d have had something to say to her!”

“Thank you. You get on home, miss. And if you think of anything more, you come and tell me, just as I