A Bespoke Murder

‘You should have spotted it by now, Joe.’

‘There’s no roof space — a building that size must have an attic.’

‘That’s irrelevant,’ said Marmion. ‘Besides, I couldn’t get up there. I had to use a ladder to inspect the first floor.’ He beamed. ‘Come on, Joe. You’re missing something very obvious.’

‘Then put me out of my misery.’

‘Count the doors.’

‘Why should I do that?’

‘Because they could give us the breakthrough we need,’ argued Marmion. He used his fingers to indicate. ‘There are one, two, three locked doors between the shop and the upstairs office.’

‘So?’

‘The man who killed Jacob Stein was not part of the mob that stormed into the shop. He wouldn’t have been able to reach him.’

‘He might have done so when the fire destroyed the doors.’

‘That would have been far too risky.’

‘Then that leaves us with only one possibility, Inspector,’ said Keedy as he worked it out. ‘The killer didn’t need to get past three locked doors.’

‘Your brain is clicking into action at last.’

‘Why didn’t we think of it before?’

‘We didn’t have my drawings at our disposal,’ said Marmion, tapping the plans. ‘Tell me why someone was able to wait until the safe was opened before he stabbed Jacob Stein in the chest.’

‘I think that he watched and waited for the right moment,’ Keedy deduced with growing excitement. ‘The fire was lit as a diversion. Nobody went from the shop to the office because it was unnecessary. The killer was already upstairs in the building before the mob even arrived.’

‘That has to be the answer.’

‘It’s bloody brilliant, Inspector.’

‘I’ll choose another way of saying that to the commissioner.’

‘It sharpens the focus of the whole investigation.’

‘It does, Joe. We come back to my original assumption that someone with a detailed knowledge of the layout of the premises has to be involved. Keys would have been needed to get the killer in there.’

‘I thought Mr Stein had the only set.’

‘Duplicates must somehow have been made, Joe. I doubt if he kept the keys on his person throughout the day. There must have been times when he went to the toilet or left the keys in his office.’

‘David Cohen was the only employee allowed up there.’

‘Then we must have him watched,’ said Marmion. ‘If I haul him in for questioning, it will put him on his guard. Put a man on him and we’ll see just how loyal the manager really was to Mr Stein.’

‘I still think there’s an anti-Semitic element here.’

‘Not if the culprit is David Cohen.’

‘Then I’m inclined to think that he’s innocent.’

‘Reserve your judgement until we have more evidence,’ said Marmion, sitting back and rubbing his hands. ‘I think that we’re on the right track at last.’

‘Who the devil was the killer?’

‘I don’t know, Joe, but I feel that we have one hand on his shoulder now. It’s only a matter of time.’

Irene Bayard could not be idle. After doing some chores around the house, she made Miss James a cup of tea, asked her if she could do any shopping on her behalf, then went out to catch the tram. It was well past noon when she headed for the shoe shop where Dorothy worked, hoping to tempt her out for a light lunch somewhere. Thrilled to see her, her sister was quick to accept the invitation. She took the two shopping bags from Irene.

‘I’ll put these in my office for the time being,’ she said.

‘Thank you, Dot.’

‘I rather like the idea of being taken out for lunch.’

Irene laughed. ‘I didn’t say that I was paying.’

Having put the bags safely in the back room, and having given orders to one of her underlings, Dorothy led the way to the front door. As she stepped out into the street, she came to a dead halt and looked carefully in both directions before moving on.

‘What’s the matter?’ asked Irene.

‘Oh, it’s probably just my imagination.’

‘What were you looking for, Dot?’

‘I’m not even sure that he was even there.’

‘Who are you talking about?’

‘That’s the trouble, Irene — I don’t know.’

‘You’re not making much sense.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Dorothy with a gesture of apology. ‘Something happened when I got here first thing today and it’s been on my mind all morning. I don’t often get feelings like this but they were too strong to ignore.’

Irene stopped and took her by the shoulders. ‘Why don’t you tell me what happened?’

Dorothy bit her lip before blurting out a question.

‘Have you ever had the feeling that someone was watching you?’

‘Yes,’ said Irene after a pause. ‘As a matter of fact, I have.’

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

‘Thank you, Ray,’ she said, putting the lawnmower in the garden shed, ‘but there was no need to bring it back so soon.’

‘I always return things I borrow. Besides, Harvey has a lawn to mow as well. I don’t want him wondering where his machine is.’

‘He doesn’t have much time for the garden these days, I’m afraid. Alice has taken over from him. She loves pottering about out here. Unlike me, she’s got green fingers.’

‘You have your own talents, Ellen.’

She pulled a face. ‘I sometimes wonder what they are.’

Raymond Marmion had called in to hand over the lawnmower. Resplendent in his Salvation Army uniform, he looked as buoyant as ever. He was sad to hear the note of self-deprecation in her voice and sought to bolster her morale.

‘You’re a wonderful cook,’ he told her, ‘a supportive wife and a caring mother. That’s three things in your favour and there are lots more.’

‘I don’t feel much like a caring mother at the moment,’ admitted Ellen. ‘All that I’ve managed to do is to upset Alice.’

‘That’s only because you care for her too much.’

‘Do you think that I crowd her?’

‘Not in the least.’

‘It’s what Alice feels, I’m sure, and she resents it.’

‘Most children resent their parents at some stage,’ he argued. ‘I know that Lily and I irritate ours like mad from time to time. But they get over it.’

Raymond described some of the arguments he’d had with his children. He soon had Ellen laughing. It made her take a more relaxed view of her differences with her daughter. If Alice did join the WEC, it was not such a disastrous step. In some ways, she could see, it was an admirable thing to do. It’s just that she would have preferred her to remain in the teaching profession. What irked her was the way she’d provoked such a sharp reaction when she’d offered advice about Joe Keedy. It had been a foolish thing to do, Ellen saw that now. She recalled how angry she’d been as a young woman when her own mother had tried to manoeuvre her into a romance.