‘But, you’ve no proof, have you?’ objected the Chief Constable, coming down to earth with a bump. ‘I can’t see people like Chauncey Davenport stepping into the witness, box and admitting that he’s let a bunch of crazy women geld him, can you? Have you got anything else?’
Dover shook his head. ‘No, nor ever likely to get it, either. These Ladies’ League women, you know, they aren’t fools. Unless one of ’em decides to spill the beans, which isn’t likely, we haven’t a thing we could even apply for a warrant on, never mind convince a judge and jury. That’s why I set up this MacGregor thing.’
‘You don’t mean you’ve let MacGregor …’
Dover nodded. ‘ What else could I do? I reckoned we’d just let ’em get it all set up and then walk in and nab the lot of ’em. I went to a lot of trouble to prepare the ground, too,’ he added resentfully. ‘Wore myself out, I did, slogging round telling everybody that MacGregor was the gayest spark since last Guy Fawkes night. Trying to build him up as some sort of sex tomcat.’ Dover frowned. That didn’t sound quite right. ‘ I’ve been on the go for days. Oh well, I suppose I shouldn’t complain. God only knows, I ought to be used to it by now. They give you assistants but, if you want a job doing properly, you’ve still got to do it yourself.’
‘So you’ve tried to build MacGregor up as a threat to Wallerton’s fair maidens,’ mused the Chief Constable, thus displaying a greater ability to grasp the situation than Dover would have given him credit for, ‘in the hope that they’d try to deal with him as, according to you, they’ve dealt with others of the same ilk. What, if anything, makes you think the Ladies’ League is going to play?’
Dover scowled. They were always the same, these perishing Chief Constables, niggle, niggle, niggle. ‘Of course they’ll play,’ he blustered. ‘They won’t be able to resist it. I’m telling you, MacGregor’s reputation stinks to high heaven. I’ve had him hanging around that Country Club night after night. And then I let the word drop in the right quarters that it was MacGregor who was on to the Ladies’ League. I made it out that he was beginning to connect ’em with the Hamilton business, see? They’ll have to fix him to save their own fat necks.’
‘I don’t quite follow that,’ said the Chief Constable. ‘If by fixing him you mean – fixing him, that’s no safeguard for them, is it? He’ll still be able to talk, won’t he? Are you sure they won’t just try to kill him?’
‘Good grief, sir!’ ‘They’re not murderers! Besides, MacGregor wouldn’t talk. None of the others have done. That’s the Ladies’ League’s strong point. Their victims won’t make a cheep to anybody.’
The Chief Constable shivered. ‘This MacGregor fellow of yours must be a brave man. Fancy volunteering to run a risk like that! Rather him than me.’
Dover tried to look nonchalant. ‘Well, actually, he doesn’t know.’
‘Doesn’t know?’
‘I thought it better not to tell him. What the eye doesn’t see and all that. I just told him I was going back to London and more or less left it at that.’
‘He must have thought your behaviour was very odd.’
Dover looked annoyed. ‘I don’t see why the devil he should. I’ve been very subtle about the whole thing. I passed the word around that I was leaving Wallerton for good tonight and that MacGregor was going off on leave first thing tomorrow morning. That was to force their hand and make them act tonight, you see. This way they’ll be able to keep MacGregor out of circulation for a week or so after the operation without anybody asking any awkward questions. Nobody’ll even know he’s missing. And if there are any questions later, he’ll be the first one to cover up what actually happened.’
The Chief Constable looked at his watch. ‘It’s gone nine o’clock.’
Dover wriggled uncomfortably. ‘ Well, I expect we’ll be there in plenty of time. They probably won’t make a move till much later on.’
‘You hope.’
‘It wasn’t my fault the damned train didn’t stop where they said it would,’ objected Dover, seeing only too; clearly that, once again, he was going to be left holding the can if anything went wrong.
‘We’re there,’ said the Chief Constable as the police car drew up outside the hotel. ‘What do we do now?’
Dover peered morosely out of the window. ‘I suppose we’d better find out if MacGregor’s still there. Just in case.’ The driver switched off the engine. ‘ I can’t go,’ said Dover. ‘That’d give the whole game away.’
‘We’ll send Taylor then,’ said the Chief Constable.
‘I don’t know that that’s a good idea,’ objected Dover. ‘He’s in uniform. They may be keeping MacGregor under observation before they snatch him. It’ll blow the whole works if they see a copper walking in.’
‘Well, what do you propose?’ asked the Chief Constable impatiently.
‘Perhaps you could just nip in, sir?’
‘I am not in the habit of nipping in anywhere and I am, I flatter myself, a rather well-known figure in this town and in the whole county. Suppose you lend Taylor your hat and coat so that he can cover his uniform up?’
‘I’d sooner borrow yours, sir,’ said the driver quickly.
‘The Chief Inspector’s more your size,’ the Chief Constable said firmly. ‘Now, come on! We don’t want to mess about here all night.’
In the confined space in the back of the car Dover divested himself with considerable difficulty of his bowler hat and dusty overcoat. Taylor reluctantly donned the garments which were pushed across the back of the seat to him. Dover and the Chief Constable watched him cross the pavement and go into the hotel. The bowler hat had sunk down over his eyes and the skirts of the overcoat all but brushed the ground.
‘With a bit of luck,’ said the Chief Constable grimly, ‘ he’ll get a
