‘Yes, sir,’ replied Ravenscroft, staring at the floor with downcast eyes.
‘I’m taking you off the case, Ravenscroft, as from now. You’d best go back to London and leave the rest of the investigation to us. Your assistant, Cribb, can take over,’ said Henderson firmly.
‘Crabb, sir,’ corrected Ravenscroft.
‘Cribb, Crabb, whatever. He can carry on for a couple of days. I suppose I shall now have to write to this Rawlinson fellow, offering some sort of apology to his client. I tell you, Ravenscroft, this is just about the last thing I want on my plate.’
‘With due respect, sir, I believe that another two or three days will enable me to solve this case,’ said Ravenscroft hopefully.
‘You’ve nothing to go on, man. You’ve been here now over two weeks, and all you have managed to do is track down that ruffian Billy. Accept the fact, that he probably killed Evelyn as well. Let’s close the file and have done with it.’
‘I don’t believe that to be the case, sir — and we have not yet recovered the Whisperie,’ protested Ravenscroft.
‘It’s probably at the bottom of the Severn.’
‘I believe it may be in the possession of Dr Silas Renfrew.’
‘What evidence do you have to support this view?’ snapped Henderson glaring at him.
‘I believe that the Antiphoner, which is currently in his possession-’
‘What the devil is an Antiphoner?’
‘It’s an early medieval manuscript, which I believe was once in the possession of the cathedral authorities. Renfrew maintains that he purchased the work in New York some years ago.’
‘And I suppose you don’t believe him.’
‘I have my suspicions, that he may be telling us an untruth.’
‘So you think this Renfrew has got the Whisperie as well?’
‘That remains a strong possibility,’ replied Ravenscroft, beginning to see a faint glimmer of hope that he had engaged his superior’s interest at last.
‘But you don’t have any evidence?’
‘Not at present.’
‘And I suppose you want to search his premises in an attempt to find it?’ said Henderson sarcastically.
‘It might resolve the matter and draw the case to a satisfactory conclusion.’
‘Good grief. If I allowed you to ride roughshod all through Renfrew’s home, there would be a public outcry. Renfrew is a respected figure in this town. Met him myself a couple of times and found him a pleasant enough fellow — not bad at all for an American.’
‘If I could just have a few more days, sir,’ pleaded Ravenscroft. ‘With due respect it would not look good if the case was not bought to a satisfactory conclusion. It would reflect badly on the force — and on yourself as well, if the Whisperie was never recovered.’
‘Hmm, I suppose you have a point,’ grumbled Henderson.
‘The force would be derided for its failure to solve the case. I know the Dean and Chapter would be particularly annoyed if the work was never recovered,’ said Ravenscroft, sensing that a reprieve might just be in sight.
‘Yes, yes,’ replied Henderson irritably ‘All right, all right. I’ll give you just two more days to tidy up this affair, but after that I’m drawing a line under the case.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ said Ravenscroft, rising from his chair eagerly, anxious to leave the room as quickly as possible before his superior changed his mind.
‘On one condition, Ravenscroft, one condition: you are to keep away from this Cranston fellow, and there is to be no search made of Dr Renfrew’s house. Do I make myself clear?’ snapped Henderson.
‘Absolutely, sir, I quite understand. Will that be all?’
The superintendent dismissed Ravenscroft with a flick of his hand, and looked back at his paperwork.
Ravenscroft stepped out into the street and gave a sigh of relief. He had managed to deflect Henderson’s wrath and had gained another two days to continue with his inquiries — but the realization that he was now virtually forbidden to have any further contact with his two principal suspects now appeared as a severe blow to his hopes.
‘This is becoming something of a habit, Inspector,’ said Dr Edwards rising from his seat, as Ravenscroft and Crabb entered the room.
‘Our visit should prove but a short one, Dr Edwards. We would like some information regarding one of your past pupils,’ said Ravenscroft.
‘You mean the boy whom you thought committed suicide?’
‘Yes. Our investigations have shown that the information provided by the Tovey sisters was in fact true. One of your pupils did indeed kill himself, all those years ago,’ said Ravenscroft.
‘I see.’
Ravenscroft thought the headmaster sounded almost disappointed by his news. ‘The boy’s name was Martin Tinniswood. I would be obliged, sir, if you could consult your records to see what information they could provide us with,’ he requested.
Edwards rose from his seat and opened the door of a large cabinet in the corner of the room. ‘We keep an alphabetical list of all present and past pupils on cards. T — here we are — Tinniswood, Martin,’ he said, removing a card from the index.
‘May I see, please, sir?’
Edwards handed the card over to Ravenscroft, who read the entry aloud-
Tinniswood, Martin. Born, 1838, Radnor Lodge, Hay-on-Wye, son of Mr and Mrs Tinniswood. Admitted to the school in 1849. Member of the choir in 1850.
‘There is nothing else on the card’ said Ravenscroft, handing the card back to the Master.
‘I suppose the school did not wish to record the unfortunate circumstances of the boy’s demise,’ suggested Edwards returning the card to its place in the cabinet.
‘Thank you,’ said Ravenscroft, disappointed and about to take his leave.
‘There was apparently a brother,’ said Edwards, removing another card from the index and handing it to Ravenscroft.
Tinniswood, Malcolm. Born, 1853, Radnor Lodge, Hay-on-Wye, youngest son of Mr and Mrs Tinniswood. Admitted to the school in 1864. Member of the choir in 1865. Chess, Athletics Clubs. Left 1866.
‘He was not here for very long,’ said Ravenscroft.
‘Just two years, sir,’ added Crabb.
‘That was surely unusual, for a boy to leave after just two years,’ said Ravenscroft handing the card back.
‘It would seem so Inspector. Most of our pupils remain with us for at least five or six years.’
‘Can you think of any reason why the boy might have left?’
‘Perhaps his parents were unable to pay the fees, or there could have been a family bereavement,’ suggested Edwards. ‘Or there is always the possibility, I suppose, that he could have been expelled for some violation of the rules.’
‘Would that not have been recorded on the card?’ asked Crabb.
‘Not if the school wanted to keep that quiet as well,’ suggested Ravenscroft, answering the question.
‘This is all in the past, Inspector. It might be prudent to leave it there. It can do neither the school, or your investigation, any good to pursue the matter,’ said Edwards closing the door to the cabinet.
‘Just one last question: where is Hay-on-Wye?’
‘It’s a small town in Herefordshire, on the Welsh borders,’ replied Edwards.
‘Thank you, Dr Edwards. You have been most helpful,’ said Ravenscroft as he and Crabb left the room.
‘Well, that was most interesting,’ said Ravenscroft, as the two men walked away from the school. ‘So Tinniswood had a younger brother who was born two years after his death, and who also became a pupil at the school. Don’t you find it rather strange, that the parents of the dead boy would want to send another son to the same school where their first son had clearly been unhappy?’