‘And Ash spotted her, did he?’
‘Without doubt. And she saw him, too. But her reaction wasn’t what you might expect. The train was standing in Guildford station when the door to the compartment opened and a man put his head in. Eva and Rosa were talking hard and at first they didn’t register his presence. This was what Eva told me. But then she looked up and saw he was staring at her. It was Ash. Eva recognized him at once — or thought she did — and it must have shown on her face. The next instant he slammed the door shut. That pilot I spoke to, Tyson, only saw the look on Rosa’s face. She seemed startled, but it’s clear now that what she was responding to was Eva’s reaction. She kept asking her what was wrong, but Eva didn’t say. She’d been struck dumb.’
‘But surely by the time they reached Waterloo she must have recovered enough to report it?’
‘Recovered, yes, but not in that way.’
Madden paused. He was remembering the anguished look on the young woman’s face as she had tried to explain the workings of her mind to him.
‘All she’d managed to do by then was persuade herself that she’d imagined the whole thing: seen a man who resembled the one she’d spotted for an instant in the hall at Sobel’s house four years earlier. You see, this wasn’t the first time it had happened to her. On several occasions in the past few years she’s seen faces that reminded her of the killer’s. I didn’t say this to her, but a guilty conscience probably played its part in that. My guess is she’s been tormented by the memory and also by her failure to offer herself as a witness.’
‘Why on earth didn’t she, then? Surely after all this time …?’ The chief inspector couldn’t contain his chagrin.
‘Time was partly the problem, Angus. The poor girl’s mortified, but I think I understand the way her mind worked. After all these years, what was the point? For all she knew, the real killer might have been arrested and dealt with long ago. The last place she would have expected to meet him was in England, and that only reinforced her feeling that she was a victim of her own fantasies. But the biggest factor in all this has been her husband.’
‘Her husband-?’
‘From the very start he’d been against her going to the authorities, not only in Paris, where it made sense, but here in England, too, and it seems he was persuasive. He took the view that there was nothing she could do to help in apprehending the man she had seen, at least until the war was over. She’d achieve nothing by going to the police here except involve them both in a situation from which no good could come. Technically she’d been in breach of the law in Paris, and the only likely result was that she’d be entangled in an enquiry which might well turn out badly for them, given their position as aliens. It’s a pity they’ve been apart so much, Eva and her husband, otherwise I think she might have persuaded him to the contrary. But she seems to have been reluctant to act against his advice. At least until she went up to Norwich.’
‘What happened there?’
‘She visited her husband in hospital and told him about her experience on the train. He repeated the arguments he’d used before, but something had obviously changed in her. By the time she returned to Liphook she had made up her mind to act, and though it took her a while to pluck up her courage she went to her employer a few days ago and told her the whole story. Mrs Spencer said the authorities had to be informed at once and offered to accompany her to police headquarters in Petersfield. It was agreed they would do so immediately after Christmas.’
‘And she had no idea of what had happened to Rosa?’
‘None at all. They never see a newspaper down here. Although she had given Rosa Mrs Spencer’s telephone number and was hoping to see her again, she had no way herself of getting in touch with her, or of finding out what had happened to her.’
‘I take it she didn’t see Ash again when they reached Waterloo?’
‘Apparently not, though I’m not sure how hard she looked. I think by that time she’d convinced herself it couldn’t have been him. We shouldn’t overlook how it must have seemed to her: the sheer unlikelihood of him turning up in England after four years of war. What matters, though, is the effect seeing Eva that day had on him.’
‘Why do you say that?’
‘It explains what happened afterwards: what’s been baffling us. The speed with which he acted. He’d come face to face with the only witness who could send him to the guillotine, and from the look on Eva’s face he knew she’d recognized him. That forced him into recklessness: first, killing Rosa without any forethought; then, once he’d realized his mistake, getting hold of Alfie Meeks, someone he’d have done well to steer clear of. Admittedly the Wapping robbery came off, but he took a huge risk there, as well. The point was, he was running scared. His assumption must have been that Eva had reported his presence here to the police and that with Paris liberated now, word of the Sobel killing would have reached London.’
The chief inspector grunted.
‘I won’t quarrel with your reasoning, John,’ he said. ‘It makes good sense. But unfortunately in one respect the situation hasn’t changed, and that’s what’s worrying me now. Eva Belka is still the only witness who can convict him.’
There’d been a change in his tone of voice. Madden had picked it up.
‘What do you mean, Angus? Why do you say that?’
‘Because he’s still after her. I’ve been waiting to tell you.’
‘After her …?’
‘A private investigator was murdered in Paddington two nights ago. We’re fairly sure he’d been working for Ash, looking for a Polish girl on his instructions. A girl who wasn’t Rosa Nowak.’
‘Looking for her where?’
‘Somewhere outside London, in the country. We’ve no name, but it sounds like the same young woman: this Eva Belka.’
Madden was silent. He was thinking. ‘Two nights ago, you say?’
‘Yes, but we’re not sure yet whether the detective — Quill was his name — had found her, and if so whether he’d told Ash. There’s no time to go into it now, but it seems this Quill was attempting to play Ash. To prolong the inquiry. He’d already been given an advance, and there’s a suggestion he was after more of the same.’
‘But if Ash killed him …?’
‘It could mean he’d been given the information he was seeking. We simply don’t know. And since we can’t afford the risk, I’ve decided while we’ve been talking to take this young woman into protective custody. I’m sending Styles and Grace down to Liphook in a car. They’ll have orders to bring her back to London right away. Can you prepare her for that, John? Tell her it’s for her own sake?’
‘Yes, of course.’ It took Madden a moment to respond. He was still coming to terms with the new situation. One question: how did Ash know she was Polish?’ Then, before the chief inspector had a chance to reply, he went on, Of course — it’s obvious. He stood there long enough to hear them talking. He may not speak Polish, but he probably recognized the language, and even if he didn’t he would have seen that paragraph in the papers about Rosa’s murder. It mentioned her nationality. I’m sorry, Angus. I’m rambling. How long will it take Billy and Grace to get here?’
‘At least two hours, I imagine. Perhaps longer with the snow.’
‘Then you might do me a favour and ring Helen at Highfield. Tell her I’ll be late getting back this evening.’ Madden’s mind was still busy. ‘There’s also the problem of Mrs Spencer,’ he went on. ‘’ll son. What if Ash comes looking for Eva?’
‘I’ve thought of that. As soon as we’re done I’ll ring Petersfield and tell them to send some men over. Armed officers. They’ll keep a watch on the house until this is over. In the meantime, what about the Liphook bobby? Should I send him out there?’