‘I’m sorry,’ I said.
Diana stepped slowly forward, her gaze fixed on the Colonel’s frozen face. ‘What have they done to you, James? I wanted so much to see you again, but not like this. Oh Walter; our baby’s dead …’ She turned to the man who used to be her husband, to comfort him, but Melanie was already there, blocking the way. Diana took in the cold implacable look on her replacement’s face and turned away. Sylvia was quickly there, to hold and comfort her friend.
I turned to Jeeves, as he seemed to be the only one who still had all his wits about him. ‘Jeeves! Where can I put the body? It needs to be somewhere safe and secure and out of the way. With a door we can lock.’
‘Of course, sir. There is a side room down here, on the left; only used for storage now.’
‘Show me,’ I said.
Jeeves started down the hall, and I picked the Colonel up. Everyone fell back, to give me plenty of room. I went after Jeeves. He stopped before one particular door, produced a large key ring with many oversized keys, and unlocked the door. He pushed it all the way open, and I carried the Colonel through. The room was dark and gloomy, and distinctly chilly after the warmth of the hall. It was full of piled-up old furniture and other junk. There was a table to one side, so I put the Colonel down on that. The body was still locked in its cross-legged position. I settled it carefully in place, and then took the head out of the lap and put it back where it belonged. The frost on the face was starting to melt, running down the impassive features like so many slow tears.
‘Sorry about this, Colonel,’ I said quietly. ‘I’ll come back when your body’s had time to thaw and lay you out more respectfully. I know you’re usually very firm about not interfering with evidence or crime scenes; but I couldn’t leave you outside. Alone. In the cold and the dark. Why am I here, Colonel? What did you bring me here to do? Was the danger aimed at you, all along, or were you killed trying to protect one of your family? I promise you; I will get to the truth of all this, Colonel … James.’
I left the room without looking back.
I stood thoughtfully in the hall as Jeeves locked the door. It was all very still, very quiet. I could just hear the murmur of the storm outside.
‘Who else has a key to this room, Jeeves?’
‘No one, sir. I have the only key. I am in charge of all the keys to this house.’
‘Then you hang on to them, and don’t let them out of your sight. Don’t let anyone else take them. No one is to go into this room until the police get here. For any reason.’
‘I feel I should point out, sir, that I work for Mister Belcourt,’ Jeeves said carefully. ‘But since those are very sensible instructions, I have no problem following them. Mister Belcourt … seems too upset to take charge, for the moment.’
I went back to join the others, who were still standing close together in the hall, looking at the spot where the Colonel’s body had been. A large patch of melted snow was soaking into the carpet.
Diana emerged from the drawing room, carrying two mugs of hot steaming liquid. She gave one to Penny, who made low murmurs of contentment as she warmed her hands on the mug, and then gave the other to me. She smiled weakly. ‘It’s just the hot toddy, I’m afraid. All I could lay my hands on, at short notice. You need something to warm you up.’
‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Thank you, Diana.’
I sniffed at the dark steaming liquid, winced internally, and then knocked the stuff back in several quick gulps. A hearty glow coursed down my throat and built a fire in my stomach. Good stuff, in its own way. Penny tried to do the same, and then yelped as she all but scalded her mouth. I hadn’t realized it was that hot. I kept drinking, at a slower pace, until I’d finished it all, and then handed the mug back to Diana. Penny sipped doggedly at her toddy, glaring balefully at me over the rim of her mug. Colour was slowly coming back into her face, and the hands holding her mug weren’t shaking anywhere near as badly.
‘How could you drink this stuff so fast?’ said Penny. ‘It’s practically boiling!’
‘It was hot,’ I said. ‘We needed hot. And it doesn’t actually taste that bad.’
‘Yes, it does,’ Penny said firmly.
‘Well,’ I said. ‘I’ve tasted worse.’
‘I’d hate to think when,’ said Penny.
‘Drink your nice toddy,’ I said. ‘You need the heat.’
Walter stepped forward. He’d used the time to pull himself together again, and as head of the house he wanted answers. He fixed me with a fierce gaze. ‘What happened out there? Who did that to my son?’
While I was still considering how best to say what I knew, and what I suspected, Penny stepped in. She explained the circumstances behind our finding the snowman and what was inside it. She did a pretty good job, sticking to the facts even when they clearly upset her and the people listening. She didn’t mention my smelling blood, so I didn’t either.
Walter nodded slowly, struggling to take it all in. This kind of thing just didn’t happen, in his world. ‘We must call the police,’ he said firmly. ‘The killer could still be around here, somewhere.’
He hadn’t made the deduction yet: that the killer almost certainly had to be someone in the house. Given the weather, there was nowhere else they could be. When I looked around, it was clear to me everyone else had got it. Slowly dawning suspicions showed in all their faces. Except Jeeves, who seemed to be thinking hard.
‘Excuse me, Mister Belcourt,’ he said. ‘Unfortunately, I have to inform you that the landlines are down. I discovered that some time back. The storm, presumably.’
Everyone immediately thrust their hands into their pockets, digging for cellphones. Melanie got there first, but Walter snatched the phone out of her hand the moment she’d tapped in the emergency code. He was head of the house, so he had to take command.
‘Hello? Give me the police! This is an emergency … Come on, come on … Ah! Yes! I wish to report a murder! What? Oh yes; I am Walter Belcourt, of Belcourt Manor. My son has been killed!’
I could hear the voice at the other end quite clearly, even if the others couldn’t. So as they all watched impatiently, I just leant back against the wall and quietly listened in as the emergency operator put Walter through to the local police. Their response, though understandable, wasn’t what Walter wanted to hear.
‘I’m sorry, sir,’ said a polite, overworked voice, ‘but there’s nothing we can do for the moment. We can’t get to you. It’s the storm, you see. No one’s seen anything like it. All the roads are blocked. Major, and minor. My entire force is out, stretched dangerously thin, doing what they can. I can’t get anyone to you until the weather’s calmed down.’
‘But my son has been murdered!’ said Walter.
‘Yes, sir, I understand that. I am sorry for your loss. But my men would probably be killed just trying to get to you! The conditions are impossible.’
‘Then get some snowploughs on the job!’ said Walter.
‘They’re all occupied, fighting to keep the main roads open, sir,’ said the voice. ‘We have to concentrate our resources where they can do the most good. Where they can save the most lives.’
‘Don’t you know who you’re talking to, man? Don’t you know who I am? This is Walter Belcourt!’
‘I am aware of that, sir, yes. I understand this must be very disturbing for you. For the moment, touch nothing, and try not to disturb the crime scene. We will get out to you as soon as we can.’
The phone went dead. Walter looked at it incredulously, and then thrust it back into Melanie’s hand.
‘Well?’ said Diana. ‘What did the police say? When are they coming?’
‘No one’s coming!’ Walter snapped. ‘We’re on our own … He hung up on me! On me! I’ll have his guts for this …’
‘But what did they say?’ said Khan. ‘Why isn’t anyone coming?’
‘Because of the weather, you damned fool!’ said Walter. His face was dangerously flushed.