The reminder brought her fully awake. Josie struggled to sit up in bed, her naked breasts spilling out over the bed sheet like a pair of balloons filled with water. She rubbed a knuckle against both eyes.
‘I remember now,’ she said with annoyance. ‘I was followed.’
‘As I guessed you would be,’ he bragged. ‘You have to keep one step ahead of the police, Josie. I know the way they work.’
‘Does that mean I can never go back to my house?’
‘You may never need to, my love.’
She yawned again. ‘What time is it?’
‘It’s time for me to go.’
‘You’re not going to leave me here alone, are you?’ she protested.
‘I have to,’ he explained. ‘There’s breakfast waiting for you in the kitchen downstairs and I’ve left money if you want to send out for drink. My friend’s name is Walter, by the way. Ask him for anything you need. Walter will look after you.’
‘I’d rather
Josie looked around the room with a mixture of interest and distrust. It was bigger, better furnished and very much cleaner than her bedroom at home. They were obviously in a sizeable house. The bed was extremely comfortable. She and Chiffney had tested the mattress to the limit. She watched him as he put on his jacket and did up the buttons. The new suit made him look so much smarter. She wanted to believe that the two of them were going up in the world but she was haunted by doubts.
‘Everything is going to be all right, Dick, isn’t it?’ she said.
‘Put your faith in me, my love.’
‘I want to come with you.’
‘No, Josie,’ he said, restraining her as she tried to clamber out of bed. ‘I’ve got business I can only do on my own. In any case, I don’t want us to be seen in public again.’
She bristled. ‘Are you ashamed of me, then?’
‘Don’t be silly.’
‘Have you got someone else, Dick?’ she said, accusingly.
‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘I’ve got a gentleman who’ll pay me more money than I’ve ever earned before to do one small job. You’ll be fine here, my love,’ he said, jokingly. ‘If you have any fears for your virginity, there’s a rifle under the bed. I don’t need that today.’
He picked up the pistol that lay on the table and opened his coat to tuck the weapon into his belt. Slipping some ammunition into his pocket, he reached for his hat. Josie was concerned.
‘How long will you be?’ she asked.
‘I could be away for most of the day.’
‘Why – where are you going?’
‘Brighton,’ he said.
Robert Colbeck was away for such a long time that Thornhill assumed that he was not coming back to the house. He was already composing a letter of complaint to Scotland Yard when the detective was finally shown back into the library.
‘I thought you’d abandoned me, Inspector,’ he said.
‘I’d never do that, sir,’ Colbeck told him. ‘There was a large area to search but it was worthwhile. I found the exact spot from which that shot was fired at you.’ He held up a tiny piece of cloth. ‘Your attacker was hiding behind a bramble bush some fifty yards away. His jacket must have caught on the spikes.’
‘There’s no guarantee that the material came from his clothing,’ Thornhill contended. ‘It might have come from anyone else who’d walked that way – from my gamekeeper, for instance.’
‘I think your gamekeeper would have more sense than to stand in a bramble patch, sir. Besides, there are clear footprints there. From that position, he had a good view of the terrace.’
‘What use is that information now?’
‘I thought it might reassure you.’
Thornhill was perplexed. ‘How could it possibly do that?’
‘It proves that your would-be assassin was no marksman, sir,’ said Colbeck. ‘From fifty yards away, a trained rifleman would have been confident of hitting you when you were sitting down. This man waited until you got up so that you presented a larger target – and yet still he missed.’
‘Only by a matter of inches,’ said Thornhill.
‘Someone who knew how to handle a rifle could have shot you dead from hundreds of yards away. This man had to get close and even then he failed. In your position,’ said Colbeck, ‘I’d draw comfort from that fact.’
‘The only comfort I get is when the house is properly guarded and I’m locked up safely inside.’
‘I meant to speak to you about that, sir. After today, I suggest that you stand down some of the men at the gate and those patrolling the estate.’
‘That’s an insane suggestion, Inspector.’
‘If you want the man caught, it’s the best thing to do.’
‘Lay myself open to the possibility of a
‘It will tempt him to come back.’
‘That’s the last thing I want to do, man.’
‘Then we may never find him,’ warned Colbeck. ‘He’ll melt into the crowd and stay there until you’re sufficiently recovered to leave the safety of your home. It may take weeks, even months, before he strikes again – and it will be when you least expect it. If we can lure him into making a second attempt, however,’ he went on, ‘we can bait the trap.’
‘I won’t be used as target practice,’ said Thornhill, hotly.
‘There’s no danger of that, sir. Now, you have a reputation as a public speaker. As well as taking part in Parliamentary debates, you’ve addressed meetings on a regular basis.’
‘One has to spread the word.’
‘Do you keep a record of such meetings?’
‘Naturally,’ said Thornhill. ‘Everything is listed in my diary. As it happens, I was due to speak here in Brighton tomorrow evening.’
Colbeck was pleased. ‘In that case,’ he said, ‘you must honour the commitment.’
‘How can I when someone out there is waiting to shoot me? I’ve instructed my secretary to say that I’ve had to withdraw.’
‘Has he done so yet, Mr Thornhill?’
‘Yes, he’s advised them to find another speaker.’
‘I think you should rescind that instruction and announce that you’ll address the meeting, after all. It would impress your audience greatly that you’ve made light of your injuries.’
‘I’ve no wish to appear in public.’
‘You may not have to, sir – just do as I ask.’
Thornhill was reluctant. ‘I’ll think about it.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ said Colbeck. ‘Meanwhile, I’d be most grateful to see the list of public meetings you’ve addressed in recent months. When I have that in my possession, I’ll go back into Brighton.’
‘Why is that, Inspector?’
‘I need to look at some newspapers, sir.’
If nothing else, the visit to Chalk Farm had confirmed the fact that it was Dick Chiffney who had knocked Victor Leeming unconscious in an alleyway. It served to concentrate the victim’s mind. Leaving the Shepherd and Shepherdess, he turned to the next task assigned to him by Colbeck and headed for the offices of the LNWR. As he was about to go in, he met Captain Ridgeon on his way out.
‘Good morning, Sergeant,’ said Ridgeon, brightly.
‘Good morning to you, sir,’ returned Leeming.
‘Are you still persisting in your unnecessary inquiry?’
