‘Besides,’ said Ralph, mischievously, ‘if memory serves me aright, the lord Mauger has more knights at his beck and call than you. If you try to threaten him, he’ll beat you all the way back to your manor house.’
‘There’ll be no violence between the two of them,’ continued the sheriff. ‘This county is subject to the rule of law and I’m charged with the duty of enforcing that law.’ He gave de Fontenel a meaningful look. ‘Do you still intend to go your own way?’
‘Not if you apprehend Mauger.’
‘That’s not the answer I look for, my lord. You warmed the ears of my deputy with a blunt message for me. You swore to take the law into your own hands. Are you still of the same mind? If you are,’ Bigot said, unequivocally, ‘I’ll give you time to reflect on your stupidity in one of the dungeons. Is that what you want?’
‘No, my lord sheriff.’
‘Then repudiate your boast.’
There was a long pause. ‘Perhaps I spoke in haste,’ conceded the other at length.
‘Spoke in haste and acted in fury.’
‘I’m sorry about that.’
‘Rein in your temper,’ ordered Bigot, ‘and say no more about the lord Mauger. He’ll not escape close questioning. Other lines of inquiry must also be explored.’
‘That’s why I asked about your steward,’ said Ralph, seriously. ‘Did the fellow have many enemies?’
‘None at all, as far as I know,’ grunted de Fontenel.
‘Was he married, my lord?’
‘Hermer lived alone.’
‘He must have had family or friends of some sort.’
‘His parents came from Falaise but they died years ago. As for friends,’ he said with a slight smirk, ‘Hermer took his pleasures where he could find them. He liked the girls to be young and pretty.’
‘Why do you think he was murdered?’ asked Ralph.
‘Because he knew too much. Hermer was bribed to steal the elephants from me. When he handed them over to his paymaster — and I know who that was — his tongue was silenced in the most brutal way.’
‘It’s the brutality that worries me, my lord.’
‘For what reason?’
‘Put yourself in the position of this alleged paymaster,’ suggested Ralph. ‘For the sake of argument, imagine that you bribe someone to steal precious items from a rival. When that’s done, you decide to have your hireling killed.’
‘Go on.’
‘Wouldn’t you take care to hide your tracks? Wouldn’t you bury the body some distance away instead of leaving it under the nose of the lord sheriff?’
‘Probably.’
‘I certainly would,’ opined Bigot.
‘There’s another point,’ continued Ralph. ‘Your steward looks to have been sturdy enough but he was no soldier. It wouldn’t have been difficult for someone to take him unawares with a sly dagger.’
‘So?’
‘Why stab him a dozen times or more when one well-placed thrust would’ve done the task? Your steward was defenceless, he wore no armour. Why was his body so cruelly abused? If you had seen his ankles, you’d have noticed the ugly weals left by a piece of rope. Your steward was dragged on his back over rough ground, my lord. Who’d wish to do that?’
‘Mauger.’
‘Keep his name out of it,’ ordered the sheriff.
‘I agree,’ said Ralph. ‘The man who murdered your steward had a personal score to settle. It was a vengeful death. That rules out the lord Mauger. From what I hear, he’s no saint but neither is he a coldblooded killer. Remember those missing hands, my lord. Why were they cut off? There has to be a meaning in that brutality.’
‘The lord Ralph is right,’ concluded Bigot. ‘The man we seek didn’t bribe your steward into stealing those elephants. He slaughtered Hermer for a purpose.’
‘To strike at me,’ said de Fontenel.
‘No,’ argued Ralph. ‘To get revenge. I come back to my original question, my lord. This is an intensely personal crime. Who were Hermer’s enemies?’
‘I told you. He had none.’
‘Think hard.’
‘There’s no need. Hermer was a conscientious steward who carried out my orders to the letter. Nobody could have any cause to dislike him, let alone hate him enough to carry out such a barbaric attack.’
‘What about Alstan?’
‘Who?’
‘An old man we met along the way,’ said Ralph. ‘One of your bordars.’
‘There are dozens of such men on my estates,’ said the other, dismissively. ‘I can’t be expected to remember the name of every churl.’
‘You should remember Alstan. Old age didn’t deprive him of his spirit. You reduced him to slavery. When he had the gall to complain, you had the fellow whipped and chased off your land.’
‘It was no more than the wretch deserved.’
‘That’s a matter of opinion, my lord. I saw Alstan’s scars. They’ll remain till his dying day. I was reminded of them when I went into the morgue earlier and looked at the wounds on your steward’s back. As a matter of interest,’ Ralph went on, ‘who actually administered that beating?’
‘I don’t know. I left the matter to Hermer.’
‘Could he have wielded the whip himself?’
‘Possibly.’
‘Then it seems he did have an enemy, after all. Who’d have a better reason to drag him at the tail of a horse than a man whose back had been lashed to shreds? I’m not saying that Alstan is the culprit here,’ Ralph emphasised, ‘because I’m certain that he’s not. The old man can barely walk, leave alone commit murder. But others might want revenge on his behalf. Others might want to cut off the hand that used that whip on Alstan. Do you see what I’m telling you, my lord?’
‘What?’
‘Forget the lord Mauger. Look nearer home for the killer.’
Gervase Bret lay on the bed and cradled his wife lovingly in his arms. Moonlight slanted in through the gaps in the shutters to create a striped pattern on the bare floor. He kissed Alys softly on the forehead.
‘I’m sorry, my love,’ he whispered.
‘It’s not your fault, Gervase.’
‘I should never have brought you with us.’
‘You weren’t to know that a terrible murder would be committed. Besides,’ she said, squeezing his hand, ‘I’d rather be with you whatever may befall us.’
‘The ride was too exhausting for you. I should have realised that.’
‘I’d be well enough after a night’s sleep.’
‘You’ll be able to rest all day tomorrow, Alys.’
‘I wouldn’t dream of it. Golde and I want to see something of Norwich.’
‘Take some of Ralph’s men as an escort.’
‘Don’t fuss over me,’ she teased. ‘I can manage, especially with Golde at my side. You just worry about the work that brought you here in the first place. The sooner that’s done, the sooner we can head back home to Winchester again.’
‘There may be some delay, I’m afraid,’ he sighed.
‘Why is that?’
‘This murder has complicated matters, my love. It has a direct bearing on the major dispute that we came to settle. Ralph has decided that we can’t even begin our deliberations until the crime has been solved.’
‘Surely, that can be left to the lord sheriff.’
‘We feel obliged to help him.’
‘No, Gervase,’ she objected with sudden alarm, ‘it’s far too dangerous.’
‘We’ll move with caution, I promise you.’
‘But you’re dealing with a brutal killer. I overheard some of the remarks made at the banquet. The victim was not merely killed. He was butchered to death.’
‘Don’t believe all the gossip,’ he warned, keen to allay her fears. ‘At times like this, people always exaggerate. The murderer was callous, it’s true, but he’ll soon be caught and punished.’
‘Why must you and Ralph join in the hunt?’
‘Because we need to, my love. No more questions.’
He kissed her softly on the lips to terminate the conversation. A long pause ensued. Hearing the change in her breathing, he thought that his wife had drifted off to sleep and he began to doze off himself. Alys brought him awake again.
‘Gervase?’ she murmured.
‘Yes?’
‘Who was that dreadful man?’
‘Which one?’