Blood on the Line (20 page)

‘The overwhelming majority cross the Atlantic regularly
without incident, Madeleine,’ he said. ‘There’s no need for anxiety, I assure you. Cunard has a good record.’

It was not only the safety of the vessel that concerned her. She was worried about the danger of arresting two people who had both committed murder in order to escape. Madeleine was tortured by the thought that Colbeck might be killed thousands of miles away from her. She was enveloped by a feeling of helplessness. If he went to New York, she’d forfeit his company for a long period and lose her peace of mind into the bargain. When he was leading an investigation in Britain, she rarely had qualms about his personal safety. Now that he was going abroad, however, she was assailed by a creeping terror.

Sensing her unease, he embraced her again.

‘There is one way to prevent your constant anxiety,’ he said.

‘Is there?’

‘You could come with me.’

She laughed in surprise. ‘I could never go all that way, Robert.’

‘Why not?’

‘Father would never countenance it,’ she said. ‘I know that we’re engaged but he’s very old-fashioned in some ways. If we were already married, of course, it would be a different matter.’

‘Once this is over,’ he promised, experiencing a stab of guilt, ‘we will marry, Madeleine. Until then, it’s probably asking too much of your father to allow us to be alone together for weeks on end.’

‘I’m not sure that the superintendent would endorse it either.’

‘He’d make loud protests. You know he has eccentric views about women. Unfortunately, he’s talking about coming on the voyage, so there’d be no way of smuggling you aboard without his knowledge.’

‘I’ll have to stay at home and count the days until you return.’

He kissed her again. ‘I can’t wait until this case is finally over.’

She was fatalistic. ‘There’ll be another one to replace it.’

‘No, Madeleine,’ he said, ‘there’ll never be a case quite like this. It’s unique. When I get back, I’ll explain why.’

Leeming’s experience of travelling by sea was limited to a short voyage to and from France but that had been more than enough to convince him that he was no sailor. His stomach had been as unruly as the wild, green water that had tossed the vessels on which he sailed hither and thither. If crossing the English Channel had such an effect on him, then the Atlantic Ocean would be a continuous ordeal. What helped to give him much needed confidence was the response of his wife. Dismayed that he’d be away for so long, Estelle encouraged him to go because she saw the fact that he was chosen for the assignment as a mark of the esteem in which he was held at Scotland Yard.

As a detective’s wife, she was habituated to adapting to situations as they arose. This one required more adjustment than usual but Estelle did not blench at that.
The children’s opinion also weighed with Leeming. They were highly excited at the news that their father would go on a long voyage to America. It was something they could boast about to their friends and they longed to hear about his adventures when he got back. With such unanimous family support, Leeming began to lose some of his reservations about the trip.

One particular fear, however, continued to loom large and he raised the issue with Superintendent Tallis at Scotland Yard.

‘I don’t see that it’s possible, sir,’ he said. ‘How can an iron ship float on water? It’s in defiance of common sense. If I drop a flat iron into a bowl of water, it will sink to the bottom at once.’

‘Colbeck will explain it to you.’

‘I simply can’t trust an iron steamship.’

‘Hundreds of thousands of people have trusted them,’ said Tallis, ‘and they’ve sailed much farther afield than America. There’s a regular service to Australia now.’

Leeming grimaced. ‘I hope none of our fugitives ever go there. I’d hate to have to chase them all that way.’

‘We’re an island race, Leeming. Our power and prosperity are based on our maritime skills. By rights, we should all have salt water in our veins.’

‘Well, I don’t, sir. The sea scares me.’

Tallis was brisk. ‘You’ll soon get over that, man,’ he said. ‘By the time you come back, you’ll be an experienced sailor and look down on landlubbers like me.’

‘I thought you were coming with us, Superintendent.’

There was a long sigh of regret. ‘That’s what I hoped but
the commissioner has refused to authorise it. He thinks I’m too important to spare.’

‘Oh, you are,’ said Leeming, rushing to approve the decision. ‘Without you here, the whole department would start to fall apart. In fact,’ he added, groping for a historical analogy, ‘I’d go so far as to say that you’re as important to the Metropolitan Police Force as the Duke of Wellington was to the Battle of Waterloo.’

Tallis glowed. ‘That’s very kind of you to say so.’

‘The inspector would say the same.’

‘We must never forget that the Duke led a coalition army. His genius lay in welding so many disparate elements together. That, I fancy, is where my talent lies.’

‘I agree, sir.’

Yet another of Leeming’s objections had just disappeared. Travelling with Colbeck would ensure that he had someone to keep up his morale on the voyage. Having the superintendent on board as well would rob the voyage of any hope of relaxation or pleasure. Leeming had likened it to being entwined in an anchor chain. Suddenly, that chain had been snapped in two. Tallis would not be going.

‘What about arrest warrants, Superintendent?’

‘They’ll be ready for you to take with you,’ said Tallis.

‘Then there’s the question of extradition.’

‘The documents are being prepared.’

‘What if they refuse to let Oxley and Miss Adnam go?’

‘Don’t waste time raising possibilities that will never exist. America is a young and expanding country. It needs emigrants but it will not take just anyone,’ said Tallis. ‘It will
discriminate. Oxley and his accomplice are bloodthirsty killers. My firm belief is that America will be glad to get rid of them.’

‘We’ll do our best to bring them back alive.’

‘Oh, yes, you must do that. I don’t want them to evade the noose by dying in a gunfight or even by shooting themselves. I want to be there when the pair of them are hanged,’ declared Tallis, describing the scene with his hands. ‘It’s the only thing that will reconcile me to the death of Constable Peebles.’

After a week at sea, Oxley and Irene had fallen into a comfortable routine. Good weather and calm conditions encouraged them to spend a lot of time on deck, promenading arm in arm. Their affability had won them a number of new friends, all of whom regarded them as a happily married couple. Oxley was already plotting.

‘People are so trusting on board,’ he said, as they stood at the bulwark one day. ‘It will be child’s play to rob them.’

‘I could have stolen a dozen reticules by now, Jerry. Ladies are so careless with their possessions. They spy no danger,’ said Irene. ‘I’ve lost count of the number of times I had to control the urge to reach out and take things.’

‘It’s far too early, Irene.’

‘I know that.’

‘We must wait until we are much nearer our destination. If there’s a spate of thefts now, the captain will have weeks to look into them. Bide our time and strike hard when the moment comes.’

‘There’s a small fortune on this ship.’

‘Then it needs to go to people like us who appreciate it.’ They smiled conspiratorially. ‘The crucial thing is to maintain their trust. That’s why I’m careful when I play cards of an evening. If I wanted to, I could win almost every hand but that would give the game away, so I allow others to have their share of the winnings.’

‘I hadn’t realised you were a practised cardsharp Jerry.’

‘Oh, I have many strings to my bow.’

‘I’ve discovered that. What other secrets are there in store?’

‘That would be telling,’ he said, archly.

They were diverted by a shout that brought all the other passengers rushing to their side of the deck. A school of whales had appeared in the middle distance, rising playfully out of the water before diving back into it. Irene was diverted by the spectacle and Oxley savoured it for a while. He then looked along the line of passengers and saw how vulnerable they all were to anyone with light fingers. Pressed against the bulwark, feeling the spray and the wind in their faces, they were so enraptured by the antics of the whales that they’d never feel wallets being removed or watches being lifted gently from their waistcoat pockets. Tempted as he was, Oxley stayed his hand. The moment of truth would eventually come.

Only when the ship had sailed past the whales did Irene turn back to him. Her eyes were bright with wonder.

‘Wasn’t that a wonderful sight!’ she said.

‘There’ll be lots more before we reach New York.’

‘I’ve read about whales in books but I never dreamt that I’d actually see any. They were an absolute joy.’

‘Shall I tell you why?’ he asked. ‘They were celebrating their freedom. They have the whole ocean in which to play and they were revelling in the fact. We should do the same, Irene. Because we left England, we’ve bought our liberty and can enjoy it as much as that school of whales.’

‘They’re not entirely free,’ she argued. ‘People hunt whales.’

‘Then we have even more liberty than they do, Irene. Nobody can hunt us now. We’ll never have a harpoon hurled at us.’

‘What if Inspector Colbeck finds out where we’ve gone?’

‘That will never happen,’ he said with a confident laugh. ‘And even if it did, there’d be nothing he could do. Colbeck belongs in our past just like your father. We’ll simply forget him as a person and preserve his memory on our passports.’

‘It was an inspiration to call ourselves Mr and Mrs Colbeck.’

‘I regard it as theft of the highest order, Irene. We’re two unconscionable villains yet we bear the name of a famous detective.’ He smirked. ‘There’s something almost poetic about that.’

SS
Jura
, a vessel of the Allan Line, was a propeller-driven steamship capable of a speed of eleven knots. While its beam engines provided its motive power, it also had ample amounts of canvas to harness the wind. With a gross weight of 2,241 tons, it was bigger, heavier and more
majestic than Leeming had ever imagined. Launched in 1854 for the Cunard Line, it had been a troop transport during the Crimean War and had given good service. It then plied Mediterranean routes before being transferred to the Atlantic where Liverpool, Cork and New York were its ports of call. When he first stepped aboard, Leeming discovered that the vessel had a pleasing solidity. Yet even though Colbeck had explained to him how an iron ship could float without sinking, he remained nervous. When it sailed off down the Mersey, therefore, he half-expected it to founder at any moment.

‘We’re so low in the water,’ he complained.

‘That’s because we have maximum coal stocks aboard,’ said Colbeck. ‘As they get used up, you’ll notice a progressive improvement.’

‘The engines are so loud.’

‘You’ll soon get accustomed to that.’

‘Can the ship really carry so many people? It’s a full passenger list and there must be well over a hundred crew members.’

‘I daresay she carried far more people when she was a troop ship. Soldiers, horses and equipment would have been crammed in. The
Jura
had no problem catering for such numbers. She came through the experience with flying colours.’

Leeming pulled a face. ‘I’m not sure that
I
will, sir.’

‘You’ll find your sea legs in time.’

‘I don’t think I have any.’ He looked up and down the deck. ‘I never thought she’d be this long.’

‘She’s over a hundred yards from stem to stern,’ said
Colbeck. ‘There’s enough room for us all to promenade without bumping into each other.’

‘What are we going to
do
all day?’

‘We’ll soon fall into a routine, Victor. By the way, I noticed that they have chessboards available in the saloon.’

‘But I can’t play chess, Inspector.’

‘It will be a pleasure to teach you.’

For the first couple of days, Leeming was unable to concentrate on anything but the queasiness of his stomach. Once he adapted to the roll of the ship, however, he was able to exercise on deck and take a full part in the social activities on board. He shared a state room with Colbeck that had been ingeniously designed to make the utmost use of the limited space. They had comfortable bunks, a table and two chairs bolted to the floor, large cupboards and a porthole through which they could watch the waves rippling past. The food was excellent and the portions generous. The stewards were universally pleasant and efficient. Every effort had been made to ensure that the passengers enjoyed the voyage.

Colbeck decided that they would not divulge the true nature of their business aboard. He confided in the captain but everyone else was told that he and Leeming were visiting friends in New York. They could hide their credentials but they couldn’t curb their instincts. When a succession of thefts occurred from first-class state rooms, the detectives felt obliged to offer their help and – by setting a trap – they caught the thief red-handed. The captain was so grateful that he invited them to dine at his table.

A week after they’d set out, Leeming admitted that all his fears about the voyage had been without foundation. Over a game of chess with Colbeck, he even claimed to be relishing the experience.

‘It’s been an education,’ he said. ‘I’ve learnt something new every day. There are so many interesting people aboard.’

‘The most interesting person I’ve met is the chief engineer,’ Colbeck told him. ‘I spent half an hour in the engine room with him this morning. It’s fascinating to see the stokers at work. They’re the real heroes aboard this vessel.’

‘And there was me, wondering what we’d do all day.’

‘Think of all the stories you’ll have to tell your children.’

‘We’ve seen so many amazing things,’ said Leeming, moving a bishop to take one of Colbeck’s pawns. ‘And even when the weather keeps us below deck, there’s plenty to keep us occupied. Who’d have thought there’d be a library aboard?’