in value. And the buyer has the money, had already paid a deposit, which Svenson retains until delivery.”
“Who was the buyer?”
“A man called Randolph Bradley. He’s an American living in Paris, though he also has a home in New York. One of those back-and-forth people.” She ran her fingers through her hair and looked away.
Billy rolled his eyes. “I think I’ll put the kettle on again.” He stood up and left the room, taking the tea tray with him. Maisie said nothing. Though she understood his annoyance at such amounts of money passing hands in such troubled times, she was dismayed that he had felt it necessary to leave the room. Maisie made small talk, a series of barely consequential questions, until he returned.
“Several pieces? So, was this ‘piece’ like a jigsaw puzzle, Miss B-H?” Billy set a cup of hot tea in front of Georgina and the customary tin mug in front of Maisie. He placed his own cup on the table and took up his notes again. Maisie was relieved that he had been thinking as he made tea, and not just fuming with resentment.
Georgina nodded. “Well, yes, you could say that. Before the war, Nick was studying art in Europe. He was in Belgium when war was declared, and he returned home very quickly.” She shook her head. “Anyway, in Belgium he became very interested in the triptych form.”
“Triptych?” Maisie and Billy spoke in unison.
“Yes,” continued Georgina. “A triptych comprises three parts, a center main panel with smaller panels on either side. The stories depicted on the smaller panels give more detail to the scene in the main panel, or augment it in some way.”
“Bit like the mirror on a dressing table, eh, Miss B-H?”
The woman smiled. “Yes, that’s right—though a stained-glass window in a church might be a better description. Triptychs are often religious in nature, though many are quite gory, with scenes of war, or execution of someone important at the time—a king, perhaps, or a warrior.”
“Yes, I’ve seen some in the museums. I know what you’re talking about.” Maisie paused, making a note to come back to Nicholas Bassington-Hope’s background as soon as she had a sense of the circumstances of his death. “So, let’s continue with his death—he was at the gallery—what happened, as far as the inquest revealed?”
“There was scaffolding against the main wall. All of the smaller, less important pieces had been placed, and Nick was working on the main wall, as I told you. The scaffolding was there so that he could situate the pieces correctly.”
“And would he do this alone?”
“Yes, that was his plan. Though he had help with the scaffolding.”
“Wouldn’t Svenson have arranged for workers to set up the scaffolding?”
“No.” Georgina paused. “Well—yes, usually he probably would, but this time he didn’t.”
“Why?”
She shook her head. “You don’t know Nick. Has to do it all himself, wanted to ensure that his scaffolding was in the right place, that it was strong and that there was nowhere the work could be compromised by the structure.”
“And he had help?”
“Yes, his friends Alex and Duncan helped.”
“Alex and Duncan?” Maisie glanced at Billy to ensure that he remained attentive. If they both took notes, then nothing would be missed as they studied the cache of information later.
“Alex Courtman and Duncan Haywood. Both artists, Nick’s neighbors in Dungeness, where he lived. His other friend, Quentin Trayner, had a twisted ankle and couldn’t help. He’d fallen while bringing a boat ashore.” She paused briefly. “The three of them always helped one another out. They were all artists, you see.”
“And they all lived at Dungeness—in Kent? It’s a bit bleak and isolated, isn’t it?”
“And freezing cold at this time of year, I shouldn’t wonder!” Billy interjected.
“There’s quite an artists’ haven there, you know. Has been for a few years now. In fact, when the Rye to Dungeness railway closed down—I think in ’26 or ’27—they sold off the railway carriages for ten pounds apiece, and a few artists bought them to set up as houses and studios on the beach.” Georgina paused and her voice cracked, just slightly, so that both Maisie and Billy had to lean forward to better hear her. “I called it the ‘place where lost souls were beached.’” Georgina leaned back in her chair. “They were men of an artistic sensibility who had been drafted by the government to do its dirty work, and afterward all four of them were left feeling sick about it for years.”
“What do you mean?” asked Maisie.
Georgina leaned forward. “Nick, Quentin, Duncan and Alex met at the Slade, that’s how they forged such a strong friendship. And they had all seen service in France. Nick was wounded at the Somme and was sent to work in propaganda after he’d healed—he was no longer fit for active duty. Alex worked there too. Then Nick was sent back over to Flanders as a war artist.” She shook her head. “It changed him forever, that’s why he had to get away after the war, to America.”
“America?”
“Yes, he said he needed lots of space around him.”
Maisie nodded and flicked back through her notes. “Look, Miss—Georgina—I suggest we complete our notes on the actual events of your brother’s death today, then let us make another appointment to talk about his history. That will give you time to gather other items that might be of interest to us—journals, sketchbooks, letters, photographs, that sort of thing.”
“All right.”
“So…” Maisie stood up, placed her index cards next to her teacup and walked to the other side of the table to look across at the snow-covered square. “Your brother, Nick, was working late, preparing the gallery’s main wall to
