his valet?’
‘Oh, no,’ replied Leeming. ‘That would only upset her.’
‘I think it would have upset you even more,’ said Colbeck with an avuncular smile. ‘Why not spare your wife the distress and save yourself the embarrassment?’
‘I think I might do just that, Inspector. What about you?’
‘Me?’
‘Are you going to tell Miss Andrews about those two women?’
‘Only if Madeleine asks me,’ said Colbeck, ‘and I have a strong suspicion that she will.’
Thrilled to have him back in London again, Madeleine had pressed for details of the investigation. She saw it as both an insurance against the future and a form of education. If she was to be the wife of a detective inspector, she wanted a forewarning about the kind of life she would be sharing. At the same time, she found it instructive to learn about the criminal underworld in which Colbeck spent most of his time. Madeleine had been actively involved in some investigations but was completely detached from this one. When he told her about the relationship between Agnes Reader and Miriam Tarleton, her first reaction was to blush. Having met neither of the women involved, she just couldn’t comprehend the strength of feeling between them. It was something entirely outside her experience.
Though she didn’t flinch from any of the details, she was glad when Colbeck had moved on to discuss their own relationship. He admitted that he had prevaricated for too long and he promised her that, when the superintendent returned, he would tell him about the engagement at the earliest opportunity. It was a final hurdle that needed to be cleared. As she prepared breakfast that morning, she glanced up at the clock on the mantelpiece and felt a glow of pleasure at the thought that Colbeck would be breaking the news to Tallis later that same day. Having heard so much about the superintendent and his hostile attitude to marriage among his detectives, Madeleine was alive to the irony of the situation. While she knew that he’d never accept her with any enthusiasm, it was only when he’d been told about her existence that she’d feel wholly accepted by Colbeck. She would be a recognised feature in his life and not something that had to be kept hidden from his superior.
When Tallis came back to work that morning, Colbeck was waiting for him. He noticed how uncharacteristically subdued the superintendent was and put it down to grief. It made him think twice about the promise he’d made to Madeleine and he wondered if he should postpone his declaration until another time. After consideration, however, Colbeck decided that he couldn’t let her down again. It was time to grasp the nettle and explain his situation.
‘There’s something I must tell you, sir,’ he said.
‘I don’t wish to know any more,’ warned Tallis. ‘Whatever you read in the dreadful letters from that woman is no concern of mine. I’ll simply cherish the memory of two wonderful friends. They were buried side by side, you know.’
‘I hoped that they would be, sir.’
‘The funerals took place after nine o’clock in the evening. It was a very moving occasion. Miriam was accorded the rites of a Christian burial while her husband was denied them. But they were together,’ he emphasised, ‘and that was what the colonel would have wanted.’ He took a cigar from the box and rolled it gently between his palms. ‘We have you to thank for that, Inspector. If you hadn’t exposed the rector for the villainous hypocrite he was, we’d still be arguing about when and where the funerals would actually take place. I’m sorry to have missed seeing the rector and his wife in court. I’m grateful to you for putting them there.’
‘Mr Reader deserves some of the credit, sir.’
‘Don’t mention that man’s name,’ said Tallis, sharply, ‘and, whatever you do, don’t bring his wife into the conversation.’
‘I understand,’ said Colbeck. ‘Did you have the opportunity to speak to Mrs Doel and her brother about their plans?’
‘I found it more useful to talk to Mr Everett. He knows what the children are set to inherit. He hinted to me that Eve will receive the bulk of the estate while Adam will have only a token sum of money.’
‘That will upset him.’
‘It’s no more than he deserves,’ said Tallis. A fond smile then lit up his face. ‘Mr Everett was kind enough to inform me that I’d been remembered in the colonel’s will. I was very touched.’
He went off into a reverie and Colbeck saw his chance. He waited until the superintendent came out of his daydream then he plunged straight in.
‘There’s a personal matter I wish to discuss, sir,’ he said.
‘Is there?’
‘I haven’t had the opportunity to tell you this before but now, I feel, is the right moment to do so.’
Tallis was worried. ‘You’re not going to resign, are you?’
‘No, no, it’s nothing like that.’
‘Good – you’re the best man I have, Colbeck.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ said the other, not stopping to savour the compliment. ‘The fact is, Superintendent, that I recently became engaged to be married.’
‘Yes, I know.’
Colbeck was astonished. ‘You know?’
‘For obvious reasons, I don’t read that sort of thing in the newspapers but the commissioner does. He saw the announcement and mentioned it to me. He sends his congratulations, by the way.’
‘Thank you, sir.’
‘Is that all you have to say?’
‘Yes,’ said Colbeck, amazed that he’d escaped the lecture and the condemnation he’d feared. Overcome with relief, he reached for the tinderbox on the desk. ‘Let me light your cigar for you, sir.’
‘This is not my cigar, man – it’s for you.’
Colbeck took it from him. ‘That’s very kind of you.’
‘It’s in lieu of the congratulations I’m unable to extend. There’s no need to explain why,’ said Tallis, taking a second cigar from the box. ‘For a man like you, marriage will be an unmitigated disaster. It will weaken your resolve, slow your responses, impede your readiness to work away from London, divide your loyalty and act as a permanent distraction. Well, you only have to look back over the last week to realise the damage that ensues when you take a woman into your life. Not that my strictures will have an effect,’ he went on, creating a spark to light his cigar. ‘Marriage is madness.’ He puffed hard until there was a glow at the end of the cigar then he beamed at Colbeck.
‘I want you to do me a favour, Inspector.’
‘What’s that, sir?’
‘Prove me wrong.’
It was a long time since Madeleine had been able to spend a whole evening in Colbeck’s company and she was determined to make the most of it. Since he was taking her to the theatre, she spent much longer than usual in front of the mirror on her dressing table. He arrived in a cab to pick her up and marvelled at her appearance. Only one thing was on Madeleine’s mind. As soon as they settled into the cab, she turned to Colbeck.
‘Did you tell him, Robert?’ she asked.
‘Tell who?’
‘This is serious. Did you speak to the superintendent today?’
‘I spoke to him several times.’
‘Don’t tease me,’ she said. ‘Did you or did you not tell him?’
‘I suppose the truthful answer is that I didn’t,’ said Colbeck.
‘Robert…you promised!’
‘I know and I did my best but it was totally unnecessary. He already knew. Mr Tallis had been told by the commissioner.’
She was angry. ‘Have I been suffering all this time without really needing to?’ she asked. ‘Why didn’t the superintendent tell you that he already knew about the engagement?’
‘That’s the sort of person he is, Madeleine.’
‘You mean that he deliberately made no comment?’
‘I mean that this kind of behaviour is in the nature of the beast.’
