03 - Murder in Mink (22 page)

She sobbed hard and Clara took her hand.

“I’m sorry.”

“I would have had the baby too, if it weren’t for Billy,
the father, getting cold feet and up and leaving me. I thought we was to be
married, I really did. I never would have got cosy with him otherwise.”

“These things happen.” Clara said softly.

“I just feel so empty now. I didn’t think of that, I was
so scared about losing my job. Mother can’t work because her nerves are bad, so
I support us both. And if I lost that job what then? But when it was all done
and the baby gone, I felt as though I had nothing left. What was there for me
except serving on people?” Ethel choked on her sorrows, “The doctor says I
might not ever be able to have children, after all this. What have I done?”

“This is why Mrs Patterson has to be stopped, because she
takes advantage of girls in a bad state. She doesn’t care how you feel after,
or whether you are scared or hurt. All that matters to her is that she is
paid.”

“But what can I do about it?” Ethel cried.

“There is a police inspector outside, you can talk to him
and explain.”

Ethel’s eyes went wide in panic.

“No! Send him away!”

Clara took a deep breath before responding.

“He isn’t going to arrest you. He only wants to talk. He
might want you to make a statement against Mrs Patterson.”

“I can’t do that! Everyone will know what I done!”

“The inspector has ways around that, I am sure. But you
are the only hope we have Ethel. We might wait weeks or months before we find
another girl willing to speak and how many will have been to Mrs Patterson by
then? What if one of them dies? All I am asking is that you speak with him.”

Ethel shook her head.

“What would mother say?”

“Stop thinking about what other people will do or say and
think about your own conscience. Ask yourself, what is the right thing to do?
There is really only one answer to that.”

“I don’t want to get into trouble.”

“You are not in trouble Ethel.”

Ethel closed her eyes and pulled a face.

“No one can know. The shame of it would be too much, my
mother could never hold her head up again.”

“You must discuss that with the inspector, Ethel.” Clara
was trying her hardest to think of other ways to persuade the girl, “In any
case, I’m afraid it is already known what you have done, because someone saw
you.”

Ethel blanched.

“Who?”

“A neighbour. The problem is, if we don’t have a
statement from you, he is our only witness and he will have to explain how he came
to know what Mrs Patterson was about. On the other hand, if you were to give a
statement we might persuade Mrs Patterson to make a confession and you will
never have to speak.”

Ethel considered this for a long time.

“That neighbour, knew who I was?”

“Yes. He recognised your voice.”

Ethel cursed herself.

“I don’t say my Rs and Ts right.” She shook her head, “So
what am I to do? I don’t want all this commotion and fuss, but I reckon you
aren’t going to let this be.”

“No.” Clara said softly, “Too much is at stake.”

Ethel gave a soft moan and closed her eyes.

“Send in the inspector then.”

Clara left the room and told Jennings he could go in and
talk with Ethel. She remained outside, waiting for the return of Mrs Thwaite so
she did not interrupt the discussion. Of course, how she was to explain Ethel
talking to a police inspector was another matter entirely.

It wasn’t long before the clumsy shape of Mrs Thwaite
appeared, balancing a cup of tea in one hand and a sandwich in the other. She
stopped before Clara and it seemed as though it was the first time she had
really
seen
her.

“Ethel is just having a chat with Inspector Jennings,
because he thought she might have witnessed something to do with that murder
the other day.” It was a reasonable lie, full of snippets of truth.

Mrs Thwaite ran this through her memory.

“Oh, that girl at the race track?”

“Yes, you see a Lyons girl sees a lot of people during
the course of the day. She might have seen her with someone.”

“Couldn’t that wait until Ethel is better?” Mrs Thwaite
glanced suspiciously at the door.

“I’m afraid the inspector is in a dreadful hurry, for he
can only be in town a short time.” Clara elaborated with only a slight glimmer
of remorse.

“Still…”

“Now you must sit down Mrs Thwaite, it has been such a
day for you. Sit here and eat that sandwich.” Clara smiled brightly as she
ushered the woman into a seat, “Ethel is very hearty now, I think she will be
perfectly fine.”

“Yes, she does seem over the worst.” Mrs Thwaite took a
bite from her sandwich, “She hasn’t been quite right since that Billy left.
That shook her right up, they had been walking out over a year. I didn’t like
him though, not really. Bit on the worldly side, if you ask me.”

“I’m afraid it seems to me most trouble that befalls a
woman starts with a man.” Clara said glumly, thinking of the present drama she
was caught in.

“Isn’t that true? Why, I got married and thought all
would be well and then he ups and dies before Ethel is twelve and I’m left
trying to look after the house and a girl. And me with my bad nerves. It was
almost more than I could take.”

“At least you have Ethel.”

“Oh yes, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am you came
past and helped us when you did. I don’t know where I would be without my girl.
You have my endless thanks for coming to our aid.”

“Sometimes we just happen to be in the right place at the
right time.” Clara smiled.

The inspector emerged from the room and gave a polite
smile to Mrs Thwaite.

“Sorry to take up your time.”

Mrs Thwaite gave him a long look, clearly disapproving
and then bustled off to see her daughter. Clara and Jennings walked down the
corridor a little way before they spoke.

“She told me everything. We have Mrs Patterson.”

“Good.” Clara felt a strange relief come over her, “What
about the…erm… baby?”

“Took it to the doctor, he’s not sure he can tell if it
was human or not. Too small, you see. Apparently up until a certain point a
foetus from different animals can be rather similar. But he will see what he
can do. I have got something else for you, though.” Jennings pulled a folded
slip of paper from his pocket and gave it to Clara, “Uncle Eustace’s
post-mortem report.”

Clara unfolded the paper and read the typed report very
carefully.

“What do you want to do about it?” Jennings asked, “I
don’t think I can make a murder charge and even with manslaughter it’s going to
be iffy. Besides, who do I accuse?”

“No, your job is done.” Clara agreed, “Now it’s my turn.
A guilty conscience can be punishment enough, in some cases. Anyway, I have no
intention of letting the culprit remain anonymous.”

“Be careful.” Jennings insisted, “Need I add that I would
prefer you to keep our other case separate from this?”

“Of course, I won’t jeopardise that.”

“Well, I have a woman to arrest, and I doubt it will be
pleasant.”

“You could take that young constable with you, for the
experience.” Clara added mischievously.

“He’s only just recovered from his encounter with you.”
Jennings looked grave but he was close to laughing, “I imagine the Brighton
constabulary are terrified of you.”

Clara gave a little shrug.

“It is not as though I am the one committing murders.”

“What are we all doing here?” Peg surveyed the room,
“This gathering of all of us is rather sinister Clara, what are you about?”

Clara had gathered the Campbell family, along with Tommy
and Annie, into the drawing room without giving an explanation for her actions.
There had been grumbling from various parties about being interrupted in the
middle of the afternoon, except for Andrew who had turned a corner with his
appreciation of Clara. He had been the only one really willing to participate.

“I thought it was rather important I got you together
since I have just learned some news about Eustace’s death.” Clara said.

Gloriana seemed to spasm a little in her chair.

“News?” She asked nervously, “From the coroner?”

“Yes, the inspector asked me to relay the information.”
Clara paused to examine the room, all were waiting for her pronouncement with
varying degrees of interest. Glorianna was clearly the most anxious, “The
doctor found that Eustace died from a heart attack.”

Glorianna gave a fluttering gasp.

“Oh… oh, well… oh…” She glanced at the family, “He was a
big man, his heart was surely under strain.”

“The arsenic someone was feeding him hardly helped.”
Clara added coolly.

The room fell silent. Hogarth suddenly spluttered and
began to cough, but it was Glorianna with her mad trembling that was drawing
everyone’s attention.

“Arsenic.” Hissed Peg, “How?”

“His tonic water was laced with it. They found some in
his vomit and more in his stomach. The only saving grace for the poisoner is
that the heart attack killed him before the arsenic could. Though a case could
be made that perhaps the poison induced the heart attack.”

“You took the jug!” Glorianna scowled at Clara, “It was
you!”

“Yes, I was concerned Eustace’s death wasn’t accidental.”

“A spy in my own household!” Glorianna reared up from her
chair and pointed at Clara, “Watching us all, spying on us! Telling tales to
the police!”

“Shut up Glory.” Andrew put a hand on her shoulder and
firmly placed her back in the chair, “Clara has been watching out for us. If
there is a poisoner I would rather he or she were caught before another of us
comes in for their attention.”

“Do you know who?” Susan asked quietly.

“I only suspect.” Clara began, “And, I have to state,
because of the nature of Eustace’s death the police cannot make a case for
murder on the matter. Not without being able to prove that the heart attack was
directly caused by the arsenic poisoning, which they can’t. But I am sorry to
say one of the Campbell family is a cold-blooded poisoner and we should all be
aware of that.”

“But who” Susan repeated, looking anxiously from one
family member to another.

“My initial thought was that Glorianna was the culprit.”

Glorianna gave a stilted laugh.

“Me? Why me?”

“Little things. You were so worried about the jug going
missing and you had a natural antipathy towards Eustace. He drove you insane.”
Clara said, “You really detested him. Besides he had already placed the thought
into my head that you had murdered the first Mrs Campbell.”

Glorianna hissed through her teeth.

“I did not!”

“No, I am certain you didn’t. For a few reasons, not
least that Mrs Campbell took years to die, years when you were waiting
impatiently. I think if you were a poisoner things would have moved along
quicker. For that matter I had to ask myself what opportunities would you have
had for poisoning her? You were Hogarth’s secretary, not her nurse. She ate the
same food as everyone else, you would have had great difficulty planting the
poison regularly in her drink, just from the point of view of access. In fact,
the more I thought on it, the more unlikely it seemed. Then there was one last
piece of the puzzle. I was at the hospital earlier today and that gave me an
idea. I decided to make a discreet inquiry. No one had bothered to tell me that
the first Mrs Campbell spent the last month of her life in the hospital, in a
place you could not reach her with poison.”

Glorianna tried to speak, but the words failed her.

“Eustace liked to goad you Glorianna, telling tales about
you was part of that. Once I dismissed the notion that you had already poisoned
one person, other questions came into my mind. The most obvious one, and the
one which it is shocking I didn’t pick up before, was
when
was Eustace
poisoned. It was natural to assume the tonic water was the
only
source
of poison, but then I recalled Hogarth saying Eustace went to bed with a
bilious attack on the night of his death. That was
before
he had touched
the tonic water. The jug was a red herring, or perhaps insurance. Eustace had
consumed arsenic earlier in the evening. So, I asked myself, why was Glorianna
so worried about that water pitcher?”

Clara looked straight at Glorianna. The woman twitched in
her chair, fumbling with her dress.

“The jug? It… I…”

“You knew the water was poisoned.” Clara continued, “My
only mistake was thinking that meant you were the poisoner, when in fact you
were covering for someone else.”

Glorianna appeared to being having trouble breathing.

“You are very conscious of reputation, the way only a person
from poor stock who has risen up beyond her expectations can be.” Clara was
speaking quite calmly and the room was focused on her, “Reputation means
everything to you. When Shirley Cox turned up in the church your concern was
for the reputation of the Campbell name. The same when Susan revealed her
secret. All the time you are constantly guarding this family from any hint of
shame.”

“And what is wrong with that?” Glorianna snapped, “No one
else seems to bother! But your reputation is the one thing in this life you
keep forever, good or bad. I do worry about it, I admit that. I would hate to
be known as ‘that woman from the dreadful Campbell family’. I’ve worked hard
all my life to be in this position. I won’t see it spoiled now!”

“This is nonsense Glorianna.” Hogarth spoke, offended by
his wife’s ramblings, “No one is threatening the family’s reputation.”

“No? Can’t you see it? Can’t you see how you all harm
yourselves? You care so little for your actions, but everyone is watching. I
hate that everyone is watching us, waiting for us to fall. Laughing because you
were raised up above your position in life and so was I, and all they want is
to see us come tumbling down.” Glorianna started to sob, they were deep,
heartfelt sobs, dredged from a place they had been hidden in too long, “Don’t
you see?”

No one answered her except Clara.

“Who were you covering for, Glorianna? Who did you fear
would disgrace the family this time?”

Glorianna dabbed at her eyes, the sobs almost
uncontrollable as she hiccupped out her words.

“Since none of you seem to care, I don’t suppose it
matters if I tell the truth? Well Clara, I was covering for someone else,
because I saw them in the act of poisoning the water.”

“Who Glorianna?”

“But Eustace didn’t die from poisoning.” Susan said
sharply, “What’s the point of this?”

“The point is that someone had the intention of murdering
him. That they failed doesn’t make them any less guilty of the attempt. I would
prefer to know who is so free with arsenic about this house.” Clara said
angrily, “Personally.”

Glorianna was calming herself and looking sternly at her
family.

“I might not have liked Eustace much, but at least I
tried to get along with him.”

“So who are you accusing?” Andrew interrupted, “I hope
it’s not me again, I have one murder on my plate already.”

“I’m sorry Hogarth.” Glorianna spoke very quietly, but
perfectly clearly, “It was Peg who poisoned your brother.”

If there was such a thing as a collective gasp of air,
the crowd in the room took it. Peg was sitting opposite Clara and had not said
anything for some time. She was smoking, one leg crossed over the other,
wearing men’s slacks and shirt.

“I saw her add the arsenic to his water jug.” Glorianna
persisted as no one had responded to her announcement, “It was by chance, I had
gone to the kitchen to see if cook would make up a mustard plaster for the
blisters on my feet. Those damn wedding shoes were too tight. It was after
dinner, about nine o’clock. The maid had just set down the pitcher with
Eustace’s tonic water on the table. I knew what it was because the bottle of
water was nearby. She had gone to fetch a lemon to cut up and put a slice in
the water; that was always how she did it. I was just in the doorway. The
lights were off so it was dark. I saw Peg come out of the pantry with the Oxo
tin. She took a spoonful of white powder from it and dropped it in the water.
Then she stirred it hastily and retreated back to the pantry as the maid
returned. I didn’t know at the time what that powder was, honestly Clara else I
would have stopped the maid taking the water to Eustace.

“I was going to say something. I thought maybe Peg had
added salt to the water, I never thought… but then cook appeared from her room behind
me and I mentioned the plaster and she said she had some made up in her room,
better than the ones from the pharmacist. So I went into her room and I was
completely distracted. I have had such things on my mind since the weekend. The
jug was forgotten, until the next day…

“When I saw Eustace I knew something awful had happened.
The look on his face was just… I went to the kitchen when I called for the
doctor and I asked cook what did she keep in the Oxo tin, was it salt? She was
horrified, ‘oh no Mrs Campbell, don’t go thinking that is salt that is arsenic
for the mice and rats’. So then I knew and I went to fetch that jug with every
intention of pouring away the contents. But it was already gone.”

“It wouldn’t have really matter if you had Glorianna,
Eustace was full of arsenic.” Clara said, “It would have made knowing the exact
cause more complicated, but otherwise things would not have changed. Besides,
Eustace was poisoned before he drank the tonic water, that was just for
insurance, wasn’t it Peg?”

Peg tapped out her cigarette without haste. She smirked
at Clara.

“Why would I kill Eustace?”

“I could suggest a few reasons, but I think what really
did it, what sealed his fate, were the snide comments he made about you. I can
only postulate, but noting Eustace’s character I wonder if he could resist a
few unpleasant, or rather, in his mind, too honest, remarks about the man you
loved and lost.” Clara replied.

Peg gave a sort of snort, as if she found this all
amusing, yet at the same time rather dull.

“Could it be that simple?” She said.

“Yes.” Clara answered, “Murders are committed usually for
very simple, uncomplicated reasons. Hate being one of the strongest.”

“Peg, is there any truth in this?” Hogarth was torn
between his wife and his daughter. Glorianna appeared truthful, but she could
be lying, she could be trying to cover herself.

Peg gave a long sigh.

“What does it matter now anyway?” She drawled, “Everyone
in this room wanted to kill him at some point, well maybe not quite everyone.
Clara hardly knew him, but he had this way about him. Somehow he always knew
your weakest spot.”

“So you did attempt to kill him?” Hogarth asked wearily,
tired of the lies and secrets within his family, “Did you poison his food?”

“It was his evening drink.” Clara enlightened them, “That
was the reason I began to suspect someone other than Glorianna. The meal was
too difficult without poisoning everyone. He was ill before the tonic water, so
that left his after dinner drinks. And who nearly always made them?”

Peg ran her finger around the edge of the ashtray and
smiled.

“I thought I was being rather clever. I’ve been working
on it for years, you know, no one has suspected me until now.”

“A man the size of Eustace with an appetite for rich food
and drink? It was natural to assume he was a regular victim of dyspepsia. No
one was really listening when he said he was always worse when he stayed here.”

“Except you.” Peg gave a respectful nod to her cousin,
“What it must be like to be suspicious all the time.”

“In general it appears to be quite a healthy state of
mind.” Clara said pointedly, “After all, who else were you planning on
poisoning?”

Glorianna paled, but Peg was not looking at her. Her
stepmother was a nuisance but not anything worth more than disdain.

“Shall I tell you why?” Peg asked.

“Please.” Hogarth said stiffly.

“He was rude about… Johnny. My fiancé. Johnny was killed
in No-Man’s-Land, he took a bullet in the back, there was some trouble
concerning exactly how it had happened. No one was quite sure why Johnny was
out there.” Peg’s voice began to tremble, “Eustace made comments about maybe
Johnny being a coward, that he was running away when he was shot.”

“It was only said in jest.” Glorianna interjected.

“He knew it hurt!” Peg threw the ashtray to one side and
her calm evaporated, “I loved Johnny more than anyone can ever know. I’ll never
love anyone else. He was brave and loyal, he had been in the trenches over a
year. He had had some trouble with shell-shock, but he stayed on the front all
the same. He never would have run away. Eustace insisted on disgracing his
name, insisted. Until I was so sick of it, so sick of
him
, that I wanted
nothing better than to see him dead. But he didn’t die, he just kept coming
here.”

“When did you start poisoning him?” Clara asked.

“Three years ago, approximately.” Peg couldn’t meet
anyone’s eyes now, “I learned what was in the Oxo tin and I had the idea. In
fact, all I wanted at first was just for him to stay away. I wasn’t thinking of
killing him, not until later. Because no matter how I poisoned him, he always
came to stay again and again and again. This time was the last straw. The
things he was saying about Andrew…”