‘Go on,’ Narraway prompted.
Pardoe resumed reluctantly. ‘Ingrid fell in love with Bennett, and wrote him love letters that she never sent. He had no idea. When he finally found out, he was horrified. He had no intention of having anything but the occasional friendly conversation with a girl that age. He was about thirty at the time. Perhaps he wasn’t as gentle as he could have been, or maybe he was! Regardless, the result was that she felt rejected, humiliated, even deceived. She took her own life, rather dramatically. Drowned in a stream near the house, but it was definitely suicide. The family blamed Bennett and read her letters to mean that he had seduced and deflowered her, and she died of misery and shame.’
‘What a wretched tragedy,’ Narraway said quietly, trying to imagine the pain of it, the misunderstanding, the hysteria of youth. ‘Is that why Bennett couldn’t go back to Sweden?’ He was disappointed. It didn’t seem to be relevant to Dudley’s treason, but he could not tell Pardoe that.
‘Good God, no!’ Pardoe gave a grating laugh. ‘The … family regarded him as a rapist and had him charged. The whole town was up in arms and he was arrested pretty much for his own safety. The father was a man of some influence. Gradually he prevailed on the local authorities to make the charge stick, and bring Bennett to trial. He was painted as an arrogant foreigner who went around seducing young girls too decent and too innocent not to be taken in. Abuse of hospitality is one of the most morally repellent of crimes in a lot of cultures. It’s a betrayal of all that’s basically good. It’s practically a denial of God to some people-’
‘I know that!’ Narraway cut across him. ‘What happened? Bennett died in England, didn’t he?’
‘Yes … yes. When Dudley heard of it he was frantic. He went to Sweden to do anything and everything he could to rescue the brother he adored.’
‘And succeeded?’
‘Yes. But at some cost. It turned into a very ugly battle, and Dudley finally found the help of a man called Harold Sundstrom, who had a great deal of influence. He used all his power to get Bennett out on bail, and then to escape out of the country altogether, and home to England. From England he persuaded the Swedish authorities to let the matter drop. He pointed out how much better it would be for the family’s reputation, especially that of poor Ingrid. He paid the local coroner, or whatever they’re called in Sweden, to say the death was accidental, and let the girl be buried in peace, without the stain of suicide, whatever the cause, or of having been virtually raped.’
‘I see,’ Narraway responded. What he saw was that Dudley Kynaston had saved the reputation, and possibly the life, of the brother he loved, and incurred a debt towards Harold Sundstrom that he would never be able to pay for the rest of his life — except by instalments of treason, an inch at a time.
Pardoe said nothing, but the answering emotion was in his face.
Chapter Seventeen
Early next morning, Pitt was sitting in his own kitchen with a cup of hot tea and fresh toast, butter and marmalade. With him were Stoker, Narraway, Vespasia, and of course Charlotte. Minnie Maude was busy making more toast, holding the slices of bread on the toasting fork as close as she could to the open door of the stove where the coals were hottest.
Narraway had already told them what he had learned about Ingrid’s death and the accusation against Bennett Kynaston, and how Dudley gained such a debt of honour by having Harold Sundstrom rescue him, possibly from death.
‘And Ailsa was his son, Anders Sundstrom’s, wife, and then widow?’ Charlotte said as it became clear to her. ‘So she is collecting Harold’s debt from Dudley?’ She frowned. ‘Is Harold dead?’
‘No,’ Narraway replied. ‘I’ve been up half the night checking various details with people I know. Harold Sundstrom is quite an important man. He was certainly alive and well a few days ago. He has a position in naval research …’ He let that last sentence hang in the air, its implication clear.
Pitt sat silent for a few minutes, turning over the pieces in his mind. ‘And Ailsa manipulated her dead husband’s brother into betraying his own country because she is a loyal Swede?’ he asked thoughtfully. ‘Or to help her first husband’s father? That seems an odd division of loyalties.’
‘And a betrayal of Bennett as well,’ Charlotte added. ‘Rosalind said that Ailsa was still so in love with him that she can’t consider marrying anyone else … but she is still having a sort of an affair with Edom Talbot.’
Vespasia’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Edom Talbot? For heaven’s sake why? She’s a beautiful woman, certainly very striking. She could easily find someone of her own social class. And I think that would matter to her.’
‘Perhaps she loves him?’ Narraway suggested.
‘No … she doesn’t!’ Charlotte said quickly. ‘She finds him …’ She struggled for a word that was exactly right.
‘Distasteful,’ Pitt supplied it for her, remembering her description of the scene she had observed.
Stoker looked puzzled, and with some embarrassment Charlotte told him what she had seen reflected in the mirrors.
Instead of disapproval, which Pitt knew she had expected, Stoker’s face reflected a degree of admiration. ‘So she is still in love with Bennett Kynaston, her late husband, she is daughter-in-law of this Swedish chap in their naval department, and is using Edom Talbot, who is close to our Prime Minister, and sometimes to Dudley Kynaston, who is giving away our naval secrets to the Swedes,’ he observed with incredulity. ‘It doesn’t make sense. Especially added to the fact that she was the one who was trying to hunt down Kitty Ryder. We’ve missed something.’
‘Rather a lot,’ Narraway said bleakly.
‘Did Ailsa know anything about Bennett and Ingrid’s death?’ Vespasia asked.
‘She had to,’ Pitt replied. ‘It was her father-in-law at the time who rescued him, at some considerable labour and cost to himself.’
Vespasia looked at him, her brow puckered in thought. ‘What was Ailsa’s surname before she married Anders Sundstrom?’
Narraway pushed his chair back and stood up. ‘I shall find out. She is still a Swedish national, living here in Britain. It will be a matter of record. May I use your telephone, Pitt?’
‘Of course,’ Pitt replied quickly. ‘It’s in the hall.’
Narraway nodded and went out immediately. They heard his footsteps along the linoleum in the passage.
No one spoke until he returned. Minnie Maude silently made another piece of toast and refilled the teapot with boiling water, the patter of Uffie’s claws on the floor behind her the only sound.
When Narraway returned, the tension in his body and the look in his face gave him away.
‘Revenge,’ he said simply. ‘Ingrid Halvarsen was her sister. She probably married Bennett Kynaston for the purpose of revenge, only before she could ruin him he died of what seems to have been natural causes. She carried her vengeance on to Dudley. After all, he was the one who rescued Bennett from what she saw as justice the first time.’
No one argued, in fact no one said anything. It all made perfect sense now.
Charlotte was the first to speak. ‘So she wanted to have an exquisite revenge, the disgrace as well as the ruin,’ she said slowly. ‘I suppose she meant to get Dudley in beyond any way of extricating himself, and then she would have exposed him?’
‘Would have?’ Vespasia said quickly. ‘Surely she still will do?’
‘We must prevent that!’ Pitt responded. ‘It would do immeasurable damage to us. We would lose all respect, or credibility. Even our own navy would have no belief in us. Our allies, enemies-’
‘We understand,’ Narraway cut him off. ‘She is having an affair with Talbot, but does not like him. Therefore she has another reason for it. Does it have anything to do with the information going from Kynaston to Sundstrom?’