A Well Kept Secret (37 page)

They hadn’t been home for more than a few minutes when the telephone rang. Somehow, Martin was not surprised to hear Charles on the line.

“I think you must be trying to set some sort of speed-record,” Martin observed. “You will be getting drummed out of the legal profession if you keep this rate up.”

“Then I just hope your so-called sense of humour holds up when you get my account,” Charles retorted good-humouredly. “I trust you will think it has all been worth it?”

“Depends what you have to tell me?”

“Well, although I hate to admit it I think your instincts are possibly pushing you in the right direction. Firstly, I have to confirm that your housekeeper’s husband is no longer inside. It seems he has been released on the government’s crack-pot early-release scheme some weeks ago because he has shed the required quantity of crocodile tears and expressed deepest remorse for his crimes, etc., etc. Naturally there are certain restrictions on him, and we both know how lax the authorities can be at times. He has advised his parole board that he is visiting Wellworthy ‘on business’.”

“And they have swallowed this?”

“Certainly, as far as they are concerned he has become a model of a reformed character. Naturally, at the moment they have no idea that his wife is in the same area; even if they did, it probably wouldn’t register as being anything out of the ordinary unless their noses were rubbed in it!
 
Do you want me to advise them of a potentially dangerous situation?”

“If it was up to me, I wouldn’t hesitate.”

“Meaning?”

“June Brent is still very anxious to keep her whereabouts and identity secret. I will try to get her to see that we ought to alert the police to the potential danger of the situation; I’ll let you know what she decides.”

“Well, that is up to the pair of you to sort out.”

“What else have you come up with?”

“Some quite interesting information concerning Mrs Brent’s father Charles Edward Carpenter. His background wasn’t too hard to track down; the man has a police record. It seems that in his day he was a top-class wheels man.”

“What’s that?”

“He was the man who would drive the get-away vehicle from crimes such as major robberies and the like,” Charles explained. “The police know quite a bit about him and as far as we can ascertain from a preliminary investigation he was only ever convicted once, and that was more than thirty years ago. It seems he was an extremely careful man, well informed about forensics, and always ensured he left little or nothing for the law to go on when he abandoned a vehicle after a crime. Although linked to several major crimes he was never actually charged and convicted, apart from that one occasion. He suddenly disappeared from the scene without trace some twenty-five years ago. His wife made enquiries about him at the time, yet he was never found and the police eventually gave up looking. Just for the record, the car he was driving at the time he vanished was a Ford Cortina, registration No. RJT 260R. That has never been found either, even DVLA don’t know what happened to it.”

“In other words, you are confirming that he vanished at about the time his daughter claims that he came to Wellworthy to get a job?”

“So it would seem.”

“Well, from what she has said to me, she had no idea it was anything other than a genuine job; she has never admitted anything that would suggest that she knew her father was a criminal.”

“That does not surprise me; such records as my man has been able to gain access to suggest that he was extremely careful to keep his private and criminal life separate. Ostensibly he was a taxi-driver, and his extra-curricular activities were only known to a few major criminals, and of course the police.”

“I’m getting an unpleasant feeling about all of this!”

“I’m not surprised, and no doubt the feeling will be exacerbated when I tell you what else has been uncovered.”

“Go on.”

“As you suspected, at about the same time that Carpenter disappeared there was indeed a major crime in the Wellworthy area. I do not have all the details to hand at the moment, yet the little I do know is significant. Just to the north of Wellworthy lies a road that actually links in with the motorway some miles to the west. It is called Hollingbury Lane, and it is sometimes used as an alternative route by long distance drivers when there is an obstruction on the motorway.”

“I’m listening.”

“On this particular night, information having been received by the police that a certain metropolitan crime-lord was sending a considerable sum of money to another villain in Sheffield by car, and being informed that their route would naturally take them straight up the motorway, an innocuous census point was put up to snare them. It seems that the crooks somehow got wind of the fact that the police were stopping certain cars and searching them at this point. How they discovered this fact isn’t known, all the police were able to discover is that they diverted down Hollingbury Lane to avoid the trap. It would seem that the diversion was intentional because the car they were using was found at a point just past the junction with Waterman’s Lane the following morning. The driver and his companion were both dead from gunshot wounds, and there was no sign of the money they were reputed to be carrying. The identity of the victims was quickly established. One was a known London gangster with a long rap sheet; the younger man had no record, and was eventually identified as the son of the said metropolitan crime-lord. The identity of the killer or killers was never established, nor has there been any trace of the cash.”

As Charles was talking, things started to fall into place in Martin’s mind. Previously unconnected facts and suspicions started to form a pattern, and it all left a very unpleasant feeling deep in his gut.

“How was the crime discovered?” he asked as Charles finished his recital of the bare facts.

“It seems that the car and the victims were discovered by a local police officer out on a routine patrol.”

“Do you have his name?”

“Let’s see, ah, yes, here it is; Sergeant Burton.”

The name rang in Martin’s mind like a warning bell!

“Burton you say?” he exclaimed. “That’s very interesting!”

“Oh?”

“As you know, I went to see my uncle’s former housekeeper today. She told me that a police Sergeant Burton had been a frequent visitor at the house. She also said that she didn’t like the man, and believed that he was blackmailing the doctor.”

“Hm, sounds a bit unlikely to me; do you really think that there may be some connection?”

“You have to admit that is at the very least and odd coincidence?”

“Frankly, I think it’s a bit nebulous. However, I* will admit that it does tie in with something else.”

“Like what?”

“If you study a map of the area, you will notice that Waterman’s lane runs down to the end of South Lane where Springwater House is situated.”

“I’m liking this less by the minute.”

“All quite coincidental I’m sure, yet I grant you it might be construed as suspicious. On the other hand, you have to bear in mind that this crime happened an awful long time ago. There is absolutely nothing to suggest that your uncle or his home was ever connected with this sordid business. As far as I can see, the only matter that need directly concern you at the moment is the possibility that your housekeeper’s husband may be in the area. I’ll get on to that straight away as I promised, and if you are still concerned, you can always phone the local police yourself.”

“In the circumstances I may just do that.”

“So, changing the subject; have you decided yet what you are going to do with Springwater House?”

“What? Oh, no, not yet. I’m hoping to come to a decision over the weekend.
 
I expect to be calling you about this on Monday.”

“Well, if you will take my advice, which I admit you rarely do, I would sell the place while you have the chance. Make Mrs Brent an offer she cannot refuse, and then you can forget all about this whole sorry business.”

“Maybe I will; I’ll sleep on it. Bye Charles, and thanks.”

“Good bye Martin.”

He replaced the phone and sat deep in thought for a few minutes. As far as he could see, everything hinged upon whether his uncle had been involved, however indirectly, with the old double murder that Charles had told him about. On the face of it, an absurd idea, and yet there were things that pointed undeniably in that direction. Was it just ‘coincidence’ that the police Sergeant who had found the bodies was the man that his uncle seemed to be in fear of? If the officer was somehow involved in the crime, had his uncle really killed him? If he had, what possible reason would he have for going to such extreme measures?

Was it possible that the mysterious would-be purchaser was also someone connected in some way with the double murder? He couldn’t quite see how he could be, but the possibility could not be discounted. If, as Charles has told him, the car travelling from London was carrying a large amount of cash, what had happened to it? If no trace of it had ever been found, was it possible that it was still concealed somewhere in Springwater House? It would have to be a considerable sum indeed to warrant someone purchasing the place just to get at it. Was it conceivable that Hugh Edwards was the man trying to buy? Aside from all that, where did Peter Buxted fit into the picture, or didn’t he?

The suspicion that June’s father had been connected in some way with the crime was something that could not be ignored. He had come to Wellworthy for a ‘job’, and given his record, almost certainly it was connected to a major crime; why else would he abandon his position as a cab driver and vanish? If, as seemed possible to Martin, the car carrying the money had been ambushed, the robbers would have needed a car and an experienced driver to get them away from the area as quickly as possible. When all was said and done the question remained; did June’s father deliberately vanish with his share of the spoils to assume another identity and set up a new life? Even though June believed that her father would never willingly desert his family, it wasn’t impossible.

The only certainty, as Charles had pointed out, was that June’s husband was out of prison and in the Wellworthy area, and that was a totally different matter. There could be little doubt that if he was at liberty, he either knew, or strongly suspected, that his wife was in Springwater House. This would explain the attempted break-in, therefore the possibility that he would make another attempt to get at her was very real. He didn’t doubt that Charles would get onto the police without delay, but it could easily be some time before the man could be picked up and removed. Until he knew for certain what the situation was he needed to remain careful of June’s safety.

He leaned back in his seat, still deep in thought, absently thrusting his hands in his pockets. He suddenly realised that he had pocketed the photograph of the police officer he had discovered when helping to clear the upper rooms. He pulled it out to study afresh. Was this a picture of Phillip Burton? He wished he had thought of showing it to Mrs Jefferson whilst he had had the chance. He studied the picture, and eventually decided that there was something about the features of the man that reminded him of someone else, only for the life of him he couldn’t think of whom.

He eventually put it down on his desk prior to leaving the study. He went off to find June, and eventually discovered her down the garden with the girls who, by this time had pretty well finished their tree house and were inordinately proud of it. It was largely invisible from the ground unless one was actually looking for it, and they proudly demonstrated a rope ladder they had made that they could pull up once they were aloft. Naturally they expected both June and Martin to climb up and inspect things, and Martin had to grudgingly admit that they had made a pretty good job of it, although he suspected that much of the construction had been closely supervised by June! With the inspection complete, and plaudits duly handed out, the girls promptly clamoured for permission to spend the night there so that they could watch for foxes and any other nocturnal creatures that might prowl through the garden during the hours of darkness!