The table in the centre of the dining room was bare apart from two candlesticks and a bowl of fruit. Matty helped himself to a pear while Sherlock sat in a chair on the far side, with the light of the windows behind him. Matty followed him around the table and stood behind him eating the pear.
Sherlock tried to quiet his breathing. He knew what he wanted to achieve over the next few minutes, but he knew that he was dealing with people, not chess pieces, and people sometimes did what you least expected them to do. What if Mrs Eglantine had more influence over his uncle and aunt than just her possession of some incriminating material? Perhaps they would defend Mrs Eglantine, despite what had already gone on in the house. Perhaps the three of them would join forces against him.
The door opened and Sherrinford Holmes entered, with Aunt Anna close behind him.
‘It is unusual for a man who is master in his own house to be summoned by his ward,’ he said mildly.
‘I apologize if Mrs Eglantine gave the impression that I was summoning you,’ Sherlock replied quietly. ‘I merely wanted to talk to you both about something serious.’
‘Is this related to what happened in the library earlier today?’ Sherrinford Holmes asked. ‘If so, I distinctly remember saying that we would speak no more about it.’
‘This concerns a man named Josh Harkness,’ Sherlock said, ‘and his influence on this family.’ He felt that he should ask his aunt and uncle to sit down, but that would have been rude. It was their house and their dining room: he didn’t want to be seen as being arrogant.
Before Sherrinford could reply, Mrs Eglantine entered the dining room. Two maids followed her; one carried a plate of sandwiches while the other held a tray with a jug and four glasses. They put them on the table.
‘Please,’ Sherlock said to Mrs Eglantine as the maids left, ‘stay for a few moments. This concerns you as much as it concerns my aunt and uncle.’
She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it again. She seemed edgy, uncertain. Even scared.
‘You haven’t introduced me to your friend,’ Sherrinford said. He pulled out a seat at the dining table for his wife. She sat, and he followed.
‘This is Matthew Arnatt,’ Sherlock said. ‘He lives in Farnham.’
‘A gypsy,’ Mrs Eglantine said. ‘Of no worth.’
‘I told you before,’ Matty said from behind Sherlock, ‘I ain’t no ’Gyptian.’
Sherrinford Holmes tapped the table briefly. ‘Even if you were,’ he said, ‘not only are the Egyptians a noble and ancient race who are often mentioned in the Bible, but you are also named for one of Jesus Christ’s disciples and the author of one of the four Gospels. You are welcome in my house, Matthew.’
‘Cheers,’ Matty said.
‘Are you hungry?’ Sherlock’s aunt asked. ‘Perhaps you would like a sandwich and a glass of lemonade.’
‘Don’t mind if I do,’ the boy said, and reached over Sherlock’s shoulder to grab a couple of sandwiches.
‘So,’ Sherrinford Holmes said, ‘what is so important that you have convened a family conference, and what does this have to do with the man you mentioned – a man whose name I cannot bring my lips to form.’
Sherlock took a deep breath. ‘Josh Harkness is a blackmailer,’ he said. ‘He collects facts about people – facts that they would rather did not become public – and he threatens to expose them if they don’t pay him money on a regular basis.’
‘Are you implying,’ Sherrinford said, a quiet note of warning in his voice, ‘that this criminal has somehow discovered a secret about this family? I am a respected biblical scholar, and my wife is a pillar of the local community. What secrets could we possibly have that would attract the attention of a villain of this calibre?’
Sherlock shook his head. ‘It doesn’t matter what he may or may not have discovered. The important thing is that all of his files – his entire collection of documents and letters – have been destroyed.’
Mrs Eglantine gasped, and brought a hand up to her mouth.
‘Are you sure?’ Sherrinford Holmes asked, leaning forward. ‘ “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” James, chapter three, verse eight.’
‘Absolutely sure,’ Matty interrupted through a mouthful of sandwich. ‘We did it together.’
‘You saw it?’ Sherrinford asked. ‘You saw it yourself?’
‘I did. The contents of every box have been rendered unreadable.’
Sherrinford Holmes leaned back in his chair and ran his right hand across his brow. With his left hand he reached out and patted his wife’s arm. ‘Then the nightmare is . . . over.’ He sighed.
There was silence in the room for a minute or so. No noise, no movement, but something changed. It was as if a cloud had moved away from the sun. The room seemed lighter and warmer than it had before.
‘You have done this family, and many others, a great service,’ Sherrinford Holmes said. ‘I can see the same mark of character in you that I see in your brother, and also in your father – my brother. I am in your debt.’ He turned to face Mrs Eglantine. ‘And I am no longer in thrall to you, evil woman that you are. Whatever you were looking for in this house, you will never find it. Pack your bags. If you are not out of this house within the hour then your possessions will be placed in a pile and I will personally set light to them and then horsewhip you into the bargain. I wish never to see your face or hear your voice for as long as I live. You are not welcome here.’
‘I still know what I know!’ Mrs Eglantine proclaimed, stepping forward. ‘You will not get rid of me so easily.’
‘Nobody will believe you,’ Aunt Anna said. She stood up, her diminutive form seemingly towering over the tall housekeeper. ‘England is full of former housekeepers with a grudge. Nobody believes their stories, and for good reason. “Gossiping and lying go hand in hand,” as they say.’
Sherrinford nodded. ‘“Thy voice shall be a rebuke unto the transgressor; and at thy rebuke let the tongue of the slanderer cease its perverseness,”’ he quoted softly. ‘Leave here now, woman, while you still can.’
Mrs Eglantine glared at the four of them – Sherlock, Matty, Uncle Sherrinford and Aunt Anna. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, as if she knew she wanted to say something but she didn’t know what exactly. Then she turned and slipped out of the room like a shadow banished by the opening of a curtain.
‘Can it be that simple?’ Sherrinford asked. He reached out to take his wife’s hand.
‘You’ll have to watch out for her,’ Sherlock replied. ‘She may try to take something. She may even try to slip back into the house when there’s nobody around. There’s something here she wants, and I can’t see her giving it up easily. But it’s going to be a lot more difficult for her now. Her power base has been taken away.’
‘I almost can’t believe it,’ Aunt Anna said. ‘She has been such a malign presence here for so long that I almost cannot imagine life without her.’
‘Do you have any idea what she was looking for?’ Matty asked.
Sherrinford shook his head. ‘She never said. It was some time before I even realized she was searching for anything. She applied for the job of housekeeper three years ago, and since her references were impeccable I gladly gave her the job, but she was sullen and the staff did not take to her. Eventually I asked her to leave, but she revealed that she knew . . . certain facts about this family that I would not wish to be revealed. She forced us to let her stay, and she forced us to make payments to her that she transferred on to that odious man Joshua Harkness.’ He sighed. ‘One day I found her searching our bedroom. I demanded to know what she was doing. She told me to mind my own business. I told her that she was in my house and it was my business to know what she was doing. She laughed scornfully, and said that it was her house now.’