‘It was Superintendent Wigg.’
‘That is a surprise,’ said Colbeck, recalling his earlier meeting with the man. ‘How did the two of them even meet? Wigg is a Derbyshire man through and through while Quayle’s world revolved around Nottingham. In the normal course of events, you wouldn’t have thought their paths crossed very much.’
‘I’m only going on what Lydia Quayle said.’
‘It’s the last name I’d have expected.’
‘What have you been doing while I was away, sir?’
‘Well, my main achievement was to gather some new information about the inner workings of the Quayle family. They came by courtesy of Lucas Quayle who is a much more amenable person than his brother. In addition to that,’ Colbeck went on, ‘I had a brief meeting with Mr Haygarth and a chat at the hotel with Superintendent Wigg. He was even more peppery than usual until your young friend turned up.’
‘Philip Conway — is that who you mean?’
‘It is, Victor, and he was good company. In fact, he’s helped me determine what we should do this morning.’
‘And what’s that, sir?’
‘Well, when we’ve left your luggage at the hotel, we’re going to catch the next train to Spondon. Apparently, that cobbler you told me about has been acting very strangely. I think it’s time that I made the acquaintance of Jed Hockaday.’
The news that Harriet Quayle had disappeared threw the whole house into turmoil. A servant had found Agnes stretched out on the floor and raised the alarm. When she’d been rallied with smelling salts, she explained what had happened. Stanley Quayle took control and ordered a thorough search of the house, even including the attic rooms and the cellar. He also sent for the doctor. If his mother could wander off without telling anybody, there was obviously something wrong with her.
‘It wasn’t my fault, Stanley,’ said his sister, close to tears.
‘You must take your share of the blame.’
‘Mother is entitled to her privacy. I can’t sit with her indefinitely.’
‘No,’ he agreed, ‘but you might have had the sense to lock her bedroom door.’
Agnes was appalled. ‘I’m not her gaoler,’ she cried, ‘I’m her daughter.’
‘It was your job to look after Mother.’
‘How was I to know that she’d go missing?’
‘This is the second time you’ve failed, Agnes,’ he chided. ‘Yesterday, you let her go off in the landau and today she’s escaped again.’
Before she could reply to the charge, her young brother came to her rescue.
‘It’s unfair to blame Agnes,’ he said. ‘She’s looked after Mother with great care. You should remember that, Stanley. Now let’s concentrate on the search.’
‘Where the devil is she?’ yelled his brother.
‘Well, she’s certainly not in the house. I’ve widened the search to the grounds. I wanted to alert you before I go and join in the hunt.’
‘I’ll come with you, Lucas,’ said his sister.
Stanley was vengeful. ‘If Cleary has dared to take her for another ride in the landau,’ he warned, ‘I’ll flay him alive.’
But the coachman was not the culprit. When they went outside, they found the gardeners and the estate workers awaiting orders. The coachman was among them and swore that he’d never seen Mrs Quayle that morning. Everyone was told to fan out and search every inch of the property. While her elder brother was barking orders, Agnes made sure that she slipped off with the younger one.
‘I feel dreadful, Lucas,’ she confided.
‘You deserve a medal for what you’ve been doing,’ he told her. ‘If anyone is to blame, it’s Stanley and me. We put too much responsibility on you. Mother is our problem just as much as yours.’
‘It’s so unlike her to disappear, especially when she’s so unwell.’
‘That may be the explanation, Agnes.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Mother has had a profound shock. It’s bound to have affected her mind in some way. She probably doesn’t know what she’s doing half the time.’ He inhaled deeply. ‘I just hope that we find her still alive.’
Agnes blanched. ‘You don’t think …?’
‘We must be prepared for anything.’
It was not long before Harriet Quayle was found. One of the gardeners called out and they all converged on the summer house. Wrapped in a shawl, she’d been sitting in a basket chair and had fallen asleep. The commotion had roused her and she looked in dismay at the anxious faces all round her. Agnes pushed forward to put an arm around her.
Harriet was dismayed. ‘Who are all these people?’
Lucas got rid of them all with a wave of his arm. When the others went quickly off, only his mother, sister and he remained. He knelt down beside the chair.
‘What are you doing out here, Mother?’ he asked, gently.
‘I was remembering something, dear,’ she replied with a wan smile.
‘But why did you come here?’
‘Your father proposed to me in this summer house.’
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Even his worst enemies conceded that Donald Haygarth had his virtues. He was tireless, single-minded and had the knack of getting things done quickly. He also had a gift for remembering names that endeared him to those who liked to be recognised. It was part of his strategy for befriending influential people, though his critics pointed out that he only lured them into his social circle for the purpose of exploiting them in some way. Haygarth was a bundle of contradictions, steely, supple, ruthless, caring, assertive, detached, manipulative and easy-going by turns. When he entered the office that morning, Maurice Cope wondered what mood he would find the acting chairman in. Haygarth looked up with a welcoming smile. Cope relaxed.
‘Good morning, Cope.’
‘Good morning, sir,’ said the other, deferentially. ‘I thought I’d get here before you for once.’
‘To do that, you’ll have to start taking a train instead of riding a horse. I set out at the crack of dawn every day.’
‘You can only see so much out of the window of a train. When I’m on horseback, I feel as if I’m part of the landscape instead of just being an observer of it.’ He saw the pile of papers on the desk. ‘You’ve been as busy as usual, I see.’
‘Yes,’ replied Haygarth, sitting back in his chair. ‘I’ve been going through this projected scheme to link Nottingham directly with London. It was Vivian Quayle’s dream but it will have to wait. We don’t have a direct line from Derby yet. That’s something I’ve pledged to get for us. We need a new London terminus so that we can be free from our financial obligations to the GNR.’
‘They’ve given us running powers on their tracks, sir, so we ought to be grateful. It’s not an ideal situation, I agree, and it’s something Mr Quayle vowed that he would change.’
‘Forget his vows. They have no relevance now. His plans for Nottingham will have to be put aside. It will never be at the heart of the Midland.’
‘But it doesn’t have to remain quite so isolated,’ said Cope, reasonably. ‘It really ought to be on the main line.’
‘Mr Quayle is dead,’ said Haygarth. ‘His scheme died with him.’
Cope accepted the rebuke with a penitential nod. ‘Yes, sir, it did.’
‘Let’s hear no more of it.’
‘No, sir.’ He brightened. ‘I did what you asked, Mr Haygarth.’
‘What did you find out?’
‘Inspector Colbeck has talked to a number of people on the board,’ said Cope, handing him a sheet of paper. ‘Their names are listed there. The ones with a cross against them went voluntarily to see him.’
‘I’ll remember that,’ said Haygarth, scanning the list. ‘Knowing one’s enemies is always an asset. What else has he been doing?’
‘The inspector has continued to gather evidence patiently.’
‘Has he been bothering you in any way?’
‘No, sir, he hasn’t been looking too closely at the operation of the Midland.’
‘That’s reassuring to hear.’
‘He’s diverted by other things.’
‘Let’s hope it stays that way. Keep an eye on him, Cope.’