When the meal was over, Andrews was in such an ebullient mood that he challenged his daughter to a game of draughts. He soon repented of his folly. Madeleine won the first two games and had him on the defensive in the third one.
'I can't seem to beat you,' he complained.
'You were the one who taught me how to play draughts.'
'I obviously taught you too well.'
'When we first started,' she recalled, 'you won every game.'
'The only thing I seem to do now is to lose.'
He was spared a third defeat by a knock on the front door. Glad of the interruption, he was out of his chair at once. He went to the door and opened it. Robert Colbeck smiled at him.
'Good evening, Mr Andrews,' he said.
'Ah, you're back from France.'
'At long last.'
'We read about you in the paper.'
'Don't keep Robert standing out there,' said Madeleine, coming up behind her father. 'Invite him in.'
Andrews stood back so that Colbeck could enter the house, remove his hat and, under her father's watchful eye, give Madeleine a chaste kiss on the cheek. They went into the living room. The first thing that Colbeck saw was the draughts board.
'Who's winning?' he asked.
'Maddy,' replied Andrews, gloomily.
'This game was a draw, Father,' she said, eyes never leaving Colbeck. 'Oh, it's so lovely to see you again, Robert! What exactly happened in France?'
'And why did you have to solve crimes on their railways? Don't they have any police of their own?'
'They do, Mr Andrews,' replied Colbeck, 'but this was, in a sense, a British crime. It was almost like working over here. British contractors have built most of their railways and French locomotives are largely the work of Thomas Crampton.'
'I'm the one person you don't need to tell that to, Inspector,' said Andrews, knowledgeably. 'In fact, there are far more Cramptons in France than here in England. Lord knows why. I've driven three or four of his engines and I like them. Shall I tell you why?'
'Another time, Father,' said Madeleine.
'But the Inspector is interested in engineering, Maddy.'
'This is not the best moment to discuss it.'
'What?' Andrews looked from one to the other. 'Well, perhaps it isn't,' he said, moving away. 'Now where did I leave my tobacco pouch? It must be upstairs.' He paused at the door. 'Don't forget to show him that picture you drew of the Sankey Viaduct, Maddy.'
He went out of the room and Colbeck was able to embrace Madeleine properly. Over her shoulder, he saw that the tobacco pouch was on the table beside the draughts. He was grateful for her father's tact. He stood back but kept hold of her hands.
'What's this about the Sankey Viaduct?'
'Oh, it was just something I sketched to pass the time,' she said. 'It's probably nothing at all like the real thing.'
'I'd be interested to see it, all the same.'
'Your work is far more important than mine, Robert. Come and sit down. Tell me what's happened since I last saw you.'
'That would take far too long,' he said, as they sat beside each other on the sofa. 'I'll give you a shortened version.'
He told her about his visit to Paris and his long conversation with Gaston Chabal's mother-in-law. Madeleine was startled by the revelation that the engineer appeared to have seduced another woman for the sole purpose of gaining an additional investor in the railway. She was fascinated to hear of Brendan Mulryne's success as a spy and pleased that Superintendent Tallis had been forced to admit that the Irishman had performed a valuable service.
'Mr Tallis couldn't actually bring himself to thank Brendan in person,' said Colbeck. 'That would have been asking too much. What he did concede was that the notion of putting an informer into the ranks of the navvies had, after all, been a sensible one.'
'Coming from the superintendent, that's high praise.'
'I pointed out that Brendan Mulryne would be an asset if he were allowed to rejoin the police force but Mr Tallis would not hear of it. He'd sooner recruit a tribe of cannibals.'
'Why is he so critical of your methods?'
'There's always been a degree of animus between us.'
'Is he envious of you?'
'It's more a case of disapproval, Madeleine.'
'How could he possibly disapprove of a man with your record?'
'Quite easily,' said Colbeck with a grin. 'Mr Tallis doesn't like the way I dress, the approach I take to any case and the readiness I have to use people such as Brendan Mulryne. Also, I'm afraid to say, he looks askance at my private life.'
She gave a laugh of surprise. 'Your private life!'
'He thinks that you're leading me astray.'
'Me?'
'I was only joking, Madeleine,' he said, putting an arm around her. 'The truth is that Superintendent Tallis doesn't believe that his detectives should have a private life. He thinks that we should be like him – unattached and therefore able to devote every waking hour to our job with no distractions.'
'Is that what I am – a distraction?'
'Yes – thank heaven!' He kissed her on the lips. 'Now, let's see this drawing of the Sankey Viaduct.'
'You won't like it, Robert.'
'Why not?'
'It's too fanciful.'
'I love anything that you do, Madeleine,' he said, warmly. 'And it must be worth seeing if your father recommends it.'
'He only saw an earlier version.'
'Please fetch it.'
'I'm not sure that I should.'
'Why are you being so bashful? I really want to see it.'
'If you wish,' she said, getting up, 'but you must remember that it's a work of imagination. It has no resemblance to the real viaduct.' She crossed the room to pick up a portfolio that rested in an alcove. Opening it up, she selected a drawing. 'It was simply a way of keeping you in my mind while you were in France.'
'Then I must have a look at it.'
Colbeck rose to his feet and took the sketch from her hand. He was intrigued. The viaduct dominated the page, but what gave him a sudden thrill of recognition was the way that it connected England and France. It was like a bridge across a wide gulf. He let out a cry of joy and hugged her to him. Madeleine was mystified.
'What have I done to deserve that?' she said.
'You've just solved a murder!'
CHAPTER TWELVE
Victor Leeming was thoroughly delighted when Colbeck called on him that morning. Simply seeing the inspector again was a tonic to him. Time had been hanging with undue heaviness on his hands and he desperately missed being involved in the murder investigation. He felt that he was letting the inspector down. They sat down
