Death of a Fop (Bow Street Consultant series Book 1) (7 page)

She burst into tears.

Jane put her arms around her; and let her sob out how she missed her nice job and her family and Frankie all about as much as each other. Ella came in without knocking as a good servant must to tell Jane that a room had been prepared and Jane sent Dolly up to undress and lie down for a while. It would be convenient too for the doctor when he arrived.

She cuddled Frances for a while then handed her back to Annie to take back to the nursery; by which time the doctor had arrived and could be shown up to Dolly.

Jane used Dr Wingfield, the physician who was recommended by Isabella Knightley; and he came into the room looking grave.

“Mrs Churchill, I cannot know where you found that unfortunate woman but the burns on her did not occur by accident; she was burned deliberately.”

“Yes I know” said Jane impatiently “I was going to see her – she was my husband’s mistress – and found the villain actually hurting her. Are the burns going to heal without complication?”

“I believe so” said Dr Wingfield. “Excuse me, Mrs Churchill, why would you wish to go to see, er, your husband’s mistress?”

Jane had no intention of sharing her husband’s possible shame with the doctor.

“Don’t you consider it civil to inform the poor woman that she too is bereaved?” she said with as much hauteur as she could muster. “Thank you; you have given a prescription to my maid to have made up?”

“Yes Mrs Churchill I have; and I believe that the young female will soon be on her feet again and in no need of foisting herself onto you any longer” said Dr Wingfield in disgust.

“I believe” said Jane sweetly “I pay you for your medical opinion not your social judgement. Good day.”

Jane asked Fowler to show Caleb Armitage into the parlour when he arrived.

“Mr Armitage,” she said, as the tall figure of the Bow Street Runner entered the room, “I believe I may be able to throw some light on the documents my husband was writing – forging. It was Dolly describing the necklace for your affidavit that made me think of it.”

She passed it over.

Caleb read through Dolly’s laborious scrawl.

“Hundreds and hundreds…… you think he was describing jewels, perhaps to fences? – that's the name of men as can sell such stolen things?” he asked. “Why would he need parchment?”

“Perhaps you have never seen one of these” said Jane, passing him a piece of parchment.

He read it through, his eyes narrowing as he perused the contents.

“So this is the copy of a letter to Lloyds of London to insure a necklace for travelling….. with a minute description of the necklace. But surely it would be a risk to claim ownership and then subsequent theft……”

“This is the necklace belonging to Frank’s grandmother which was sent to us for me to wear on our wedding day” said Jane. “Set with, as the document says, thirty five rubies of seven carats to eleven carats in ascending order towards the centre and small diamonds numbering seventy in between them. It is a hideous thing” she added. “However I was advised that should I ever need to sell it, this insurance description may count as something called ‘provenance’ which is a proof that I have the right to the necklace; and Lloyds also require, should I have it reset, that a description of the reset piece be appended to the original document” she went on, adding thoughtfully. “There was also much made of the fact that Mr Churchill has a letter from his ancestor who first gifted it to the first ancestress to wear it in 1687. It would appear to me that if there were false provenance for newly reset pieces that had been made up from stolen jewels so that the original owners themselves would not recognise them, then this might constitute a means by which higher prices might be commanded for pieces sold to regular jewellers who can see what appears to be proof of ownership; where surely if the ownership is unconfirmed and the seller seems in a hurry to sell, as must often be the case with stolen items, any jeweller is going to be wary of giving a full price.”

“Mrs Churchill; you are prodigious clever” said Caleb.

“I also recall Frank asking me what became of the Lloyds’ documentation because he wanted to check something” said Jane “Which is a discrepancy; you said discrepancies are clues. Frank never bothered himself with paperwork; he threw all correspondence that was not personal unopened into the escritoire; and bundled in personal letters on top too. Bills that he found that I had not dealt with he dealt with by throwing on the fire. I believe that his aunt dealt with most of the matters arising in their household before her death and Frank had very little experience of undertaking any kind of record keeping. It surprised me at the time that he should want to actually deal with anything pertaining to paperwork. ”

“Well I already knew he was useless and feckless” said Caleb. “How’s the girl Dolly?”

“Grieving more than I” said Jane with a sigh that might have been regret; whether regret on behalf of Dolly, or on her own behalf that she felt no urge to mourn, Caleb was unable to divine . “Perhaps I am deficient in that I have shed no tears of grief for Frank; though I cried enough bitter tears when I found out that his affection for me was never more than superficial and that I may as well have been a superior kind of housekeeper to whom he might also boast of who he had seen and to whom he had spoken in town and that he had……” she paused. “I was considering that I was making a cake of myself speaking out so but he said that he had made a friend who would see him right-and-tight for life” she said “I took it for a social acquaintance, a potential patron; but it was when he gave me the fifty pounds. He laughed a lot and said that you could not call his new friend a Tulip of Fashion but that he was onto a better thing than the original tulipmania and that Holland had plenty to give with two lips that might whisper promises. He liked word plays like that” she added.

“I should of said it was a little forced meself” said Caleb “I would’ve thought rather than labouring the connection if he wished to be obscure he’d of done better to hint at ‘two lips meeting in financial gain across the north sea’ if he wanted to say without saying that he was speaking of a Dutchman.”

“Why Mr Armitage, that is extremely subtle!” said Jane. “You are a much cleverer man than your speech suggests if I may say so without causing offence.”

“I take no offence, Mrs Churchill” said Caleb “And right glad I am to be able to speak as I think and have my love of words and wit appreciated; for I have not lost my rough Soho accent nowise and most expect me to be stupid. Which has its advantages.”

“To be underestimated must be an advantage” agreed Jane “So too was I underestimated when Frank and I courted secretly; though often I was angered at the lengths to which he went to disparage me in public, yet I hid it.. I do not know why I tell you this; I have never been so forthcoming to any.”

“Bless you, Mrs Churchill, you may have learned indifference to Mr Churchill, but you still grieve for the love you once held for him; and you will be shut of me when we have uncovered who has killed him so you may speak freely without worrying about what a neighbour or friend might later think” said Caleb heartily.

Jane gave a small smile.

“I fancy, Mr Armitage” she said, “that perhaps it is more that you are a man who is big and safe and good at listening who thus elicits confidences from people that they might not give were you not good at just sitting.”

Caleb gave a shy smile.

“I do not say that the same does not happen,” he said, “but there are those as talk and those as are good at keeping close mouthed whether it is for their own good or no; and I fancy you are used to concealing all within, even from yourself, and a shock has brought it out before one who you do not have to consider as important in your world. For you cannot talk to a servant as there is no better way of letting out a secret. The most loyal servant may be induced to talk if they may be made to boast of their gentleman or lady.”

Jane was startled.

“That I had not considered” she said. “So how much have you learned about Frank and me from my household?”

“That he kept you short; but demanded perfection. That he demanded near slavery from you; that he hated the baby and was jealous of her especially as she is a girl not a boy; that he beat you when you rebelled and would not submit to tyranny by becoming monosyllabic towards him – not that your servants know such a word – and he accused you of having a lover which the servants knew well that you had not, but declared that his mistress had expensive tastes in perfume and was blonde. From the scents and hair on his laundry you understand” he added.

“There are apparently
no
secrets in any family!” cried Jane, shocked.

“No Ma’am” agreed Caleb. “The only ones who can keep secrets do not keep servants; and they are generally of the estate that live so close to others that the neighbours know instead.”

“I find I am quite cast down” said Jane “And not a little humiliated.”

“Mrs Churchill” said Caleb earnestly “Not one thing have I learned from the servants that in any wise might diminish any one’s opinion of you who are a patient and kindly lady, never taking out your feelings on the servants and speaking douce words even when your husband has beaten you – and I
do
want to shake the fambles of whoever turned him off” he added “And it is only
he
what shows deficient in all that I have heard.”

Jane flushed.

“It gives you more reason to think that I may have had a hand in his death” she said.

“If you had had a hand in his death, Mrs Churchill you would have been more readily able to deal with such matters as turning off his servants, and disposing of the horse because such details a meticulous lady like yourself would have considered ahead of time” said Caleb. “You may not be saddened by that blasted rascal’s death if you pardon my French, but you are plainly quite shocked. Even though I am most impressed by how quickly you can think out details and implications. And I am certain that you have the truth of the matter that he was forging provenance for reset jewellery to hide its origins. Maybe even with several pieces having their stones mixed and matched. The price would not be top sovereign but it would as you surmise be higher by far than without any provenance at all, and if done systematically then two thousand guineas is a small price to pay off a forger
and
a salary into the bargain. It is my belief” he added excitedly “That we may be onto the greatest jewellery robbing ring that London has ever known!”

“Why did they kill him?” asked Jane “If he was of such use to them?”

“Because he cheated them!” cried Caleb enthusiastically. “He took the Avon necklace – and before it was reset too, so that if anyone had seen it, he could, unless his tongue was silenced, lead the law enforcement officers right back to the thieves! They tortured him to find out what he had done with it – and they went to retrieve it from Dolly who showed a remarkably venal and stubborn streak in not giving it up. Had we not arrived when we did I make no bones about it that I believe they would have killed her too.”

Jane shuddered.

“I think it is less venality on her part than sentimentality” she said “The girl is inclined to an excess of sensibility; though she has her reasons. I had thought that I should hate a woman of such a kind but actually I feel nothing but compassion for her. And she is scarce more than a child; though she is so,” she blushed, “well grown; I cannot think her more than fifteen years, little older than our nursery maid.”

“More than likely” said Caleb. “And as you have not fainted for the thought of her being turned off by these rogues I fancy you are like the excellent Elinor in the novel by ‘A Lady’ called ‘Sense and Sensibility’.”

“I should prefer never to be like that silly widgeon Marianne” said Jane. “So might this help to catch the jewel thieves? That will surely enhance your career?”

“It had crossed my mind” said Caleb “And the fact that there is a substantial reward for information leading to their capture would benefit you too if I make it clear that your help was essential.”

“But would not the reward be yours?” asked Jane.

He shook his head.

“We are not permitted to partake of rewards, bribes or other remuneration outside our salaries bar the reward for a conviction” he said “And I don’t say bribery don’t go on because it do. Does I mean. But it ain’t supposed to.”

“It does seem unfair that you should not benefit” said Jane. “However” she brightened “If all goes well and I may help you to catch these precious villains and avenge my foolish and weak husband and if there
is
a reward, there is nothing to stop you partaking in it so far as dining with me regularly.”

“Now Mrs Churchill that's generous right enough but not wise” said Caleb.

“I have tried to be wise so long” said Jane “It has cost me the love of a husband, his life, and possibly financial security. Perhaps the time has come to be a little foolish. Disregard my distempers, I pray you; let us go into the dining room, it is time for dinner for I hear Fowler making discreet noises with the cutlery.”

Dolly was subdued eating, and surreptitiously watched Jane to see how she managed her cutlery. Jane smiled at her.

“You are doing very well” she murmured.

“Ta” said Dolly looking pleased. “What you gwine ter do if I am pregnant?”

Fowler almost dropped the plate of potatoes he was carrying.

Jane flushed.

“Here, Dolly, me gal, not at the meal” said Caleb. “When you ladies withdraw, that’s the time to talk lady stuff; we men is too delicate to cope.”

Dolly subsided with a muttered apology. Jane mouthed a thanks to Caleb who – she could hardly believe her eyes –
winked
at her. Nobody had
ever
winked at her before.

It was most reprehensible that it made her want to giggle. She looked down quickly at her plate.

Caleb was dismayed; he had somehow broken etiquette. Her chin was wobbling; surely he had not made her cry? No – that little single dimple of hers was popping in and out, such a tiny, half hidden dimple, hardly a dimple at all in a face that should have more colour, be less thin and drawn….. she was laughing. He heaved a sigh of relief.