The Reckoning (23 page)

He gestured to Billy.

‘Go ahead.'

Billy cleared his throat. ‘According to Selby, James wanted to find out who his father was. He knew from his adoptive parents
that his mother had died in childbirth, but he was able to learn from her relatives that his real father lived in Exeter and had a family of his own. They even knew his name, and Ballard went to see the bloke.'

‘With what result?'

‘Eve Selby didn't know. She only ever heard the story from Hazel, and that was after the war began and Ballard had been posted to France. She didn't tell her the man's name.'

‘But Hazel might have known it.' Madden frowned. ‘That's what you're thinking?'

‘And so might her daughter. That's one of the reasons we need to get in touch with her. I sent a telegram to the Canadian police today, asking them to trace her. She gave this solicitor the names of the places she was planning to stop at on her way west, and I've passed them on to the Mounties. If possible, we'd like to talk to her by phone ourselves. Failing that, we'll get them to question her for us. It isn't only that name we want. We'd also like to know where her mother lived after she left St Ives; how she spent the years before she settled in Richmond; and who she might have known or had contact with. Anything Alma can tell us about her father and his background could be useful, too. Of course, she never knew him – she was only a baby when he died – but there's no telling what she might have learned from her mother's lips.'

‘What about
her
family – Hazel's?' Madden's scowl had stayed fixed. ‘Didn't you say she came from Gloucester? She must have had some relatives there. One of them might know the answer.'

‘She did,' Billy answered. ‘But they hadn't seen her for years when she died. I got that from the Gloucester police. I'd asked them to check up on her background and they found a cousin of hers who knew the whole story. There'd been a rift in the family, she said. It all went back to Hazel's decision to marry Ballard, when the rest of her kin were against it. By the time James
died she was no longer on speaking terms with them, and I expect the court martial put a cap on things. She told them what she told others – that he had died in action – and said she was leaving St Ives for good and never wanted to see any of them again.'

‘That was an extreme reaction.'

‘But understandable, I reckon,' Billy said. ‘It would have been difficult, if not impossible, to keep the truth about her husband from getting out, once she'd made peace with her family. They were bound to find out sooner or later. The safest thing would have been to cut all ties with them.'

He hesitated as another thought struck him.

‘Did she even tell her daughter? I wonder. Does Alma know?'

‘That's something else we can ask her,' Chubb growled.

‘Going back to this woman who called on Mrs Singleton . . .' Madden rubbed the scar on his forehead, a sure sign to Billy of his preoccupation. ‘It sounds, from what you said, that you know something about her?'

‘That's right, sir. There's fresh information. It only reached us this morning.'

Billy opened the file on his lap.

‘It applies to at least three of the killings.' He sifted through the stack of papers and selected one. ‘In particular it throws a light on Ozzie Gibson's murder and on the testimony given by that shepherd. He was on the hillside above where Gibson was fishing, and he saw the killer walking up the path towards him. The man was wearing a red sweater that was particularly noticeable, and he knew he'd been spotted. He looked up when Hammond whistled to his dog.'

‘I remember.' Madden nodded. ‘He didn't seem bothered, if I recall.'

‘That's right. He just carried on to where Ozzie was gathering up his fishing gear and did what he came to do.' Billy paused. ‘I spoke to Vic Chivers this morning. On the day of Ozzie's
murder that young constable who took you around ran into a party of hikers coming back from the Downs. It included three women. Vic interviewed them the next day. Two of them were sisters, but the third told him she was there on her own.'

‘What was her name?'

‘Horton . . .' Billy checked the piece of paper in his hand. ‘Emily Horton. The name she went under, at any rate. When Vic looked at his notes he found that she had given him a home address in Colchester. I got Joe Grace to ring the police there. They told him there was an Emily Horton living in the town all right, but she was a young woman who worked in a dress shop and hadn't been away all year.'

‘What did the woman Chivers spoke to look like?'

‘Well, she had dark hair, same as the lady who called on Mrs Singleton in Oxford, but otherwise they didn't seem to resemble each other much. “Dowdy and spinsterish” were the words Vic used to describe her.'

‘Perhaps she changed her appearance.' Madden pursed his lips. ‘She might have guessed you'd get on to her sooner or later and didn't want to leave any clear trail to follow.'

‘She told Vic she had been in Lewes for a fortnight. She said she was a rambler. Now a fortnight was about right. It would have given her more than enough time to locate Gibson and confirm that he was the man she was looking for. We never did find out the sex of his visitor, the one who upset him, but I'm willing to bet it was her. Gibson went away for the weekend after that to stay with friends, so she would have had to wait a few days. But once he'd returned, they would have had him in their sights.'

‘
They?
She and the man you think she's working with?'

Billy nodded. He slipped the piece of paper he had in his hand back into the folder and took out another.

‘We know for a fact she was out on the Downs that afternoon, and I'm guessing she had a change of clothes with her. She
was carrying a knapsack – that was confirmed by the constable who spoke to her. This is the statement taken from the shepherd.' He tapped the piece of paper in his hand. ‘According to him, Ozzie Gibson's killer walked back down the path after he'd done the business and then disappeared. It would have been quite possible for this woman to have met him by arrangement somewhere in the bushes by the stream, so that he could change his clothes, get rid of that red sweater in particular. After that he could have disappeared into the Downs, while she would have joined up with those two other ladies and made her way back into Lewes. She might even have taken the gun with her, in case he was stopped and searched.'

‘Could I see that?'

Billy handed him the statement. Madden got to his feet abruptly. He began to walk about the office, scanning it as he went. Familiar with his old chief's habits, Billy watched with a smile.

‘What about the other killings?' Madden had stopped by the window. It was dark outside now and his reflection showed in the windowpane, along with an image of the lamp-lit office behind him. ‘How does she fit in with them?'

‘There's no obvious connection between her and Canning. But as you said yourself, she wouldn't have needed to confirm his identity. He was a public figure.' Billy spoke to Madden's back. ‘However, we know she called on Singleton, and we can place her in Scotland too. One of the visitors who called at Drummond's surgery a few days before he was shot was an Englishwoman. She gave her name as Mary Oakes and provided the doctor's secretary with a home address in Ipswich. We checked with the Suffolk police today and found that both the name and address belonged to a thirty-year-old housewife who has never been north of the border.'

‘How did she get hold of those two names?'

‘We think we know the answer to that. Both of them lost
their identity cards not long ago, either mislaid or stolen. The woman Vic spoke to used a card in the name of Horton at Lewes – there's a record of it in the hotel register – and although we haven't yet had a chance to confirm it, it's likely she did the same thing at Ballater, only this time using the name Oakes. It seems she's in possession of at least two cards.'

‘Are they difficult to come by?'

‘Stolen or forged cards? Not if you know where to ask.'

Chubb shifted in his chair. He had been listening in silence, elbows on the desk, chin cupped in his hands.

‘So that's where we stand, John. We've no clue to the shooter's identity yet, and we can only speculate on how he and the woman got together. It may turn out they're related. I told you we were looking into Ballard's background; the Plymouth police are helping us. It's possible these two are connected to Ballard on his father's side. Anything's possible. We're hoping Hazel Ballard might have been acquainted with them. She knew where her husband came from, after all. She may even have known the name of his father, and the same is true of Alma. As for the shooter himself, we've felt from the start that he's probably an ex-serviceman, someone used to handling firearms, and with other skills as well, the sort you only acquire through special training. Whoever stole the court-martial papers not only had the nerve to sit it out all night in the Public Record Office, but the know-how to open that cupboard without leaving a mark on it. But there's no use us scratching our heads wondering who he might be. We have to focus on her. It looks like she's doing the preliminary work, checking on the victims' identities, studying their movements. She's managed to leave a trail behind her, too, which we've been lucky enough to pick up. My feeling is that if we catch her, we'll catch him.'

He shifted in his chair.

‘Now to put you in the picture: Oxford CID sent a police artist round to Mrs Singleton today, to see if she can remember
the face of the woman who called on her well enough to make a sketch. Chivers is doing the same. If the two of them match, we'll know we're on the right track. At present, we're focusing on those identity cards. We want to know who sold them and to whom. Was it to the man or to the woman? Our snouts have been told to keep their ears open. And we've circulated those two names – Emily Horton and Mary Oakes – and the name Ballard as well. For the rest, we still don't know the name of that officer who presided at the court martial, though we're hoping the Royal Artillery will be able to help us. Styles took your advice and rang them. But the clock's ticking . . .'

He paused, weighing his next words.

‘I said at the start I'd welcome any idea you might have to offer, John.' He eyed the other man meaningfully. ‘I'm still in the market.'

Madden's response was to glance at his watch. Returning the statement he'd been reading to Billy, he went to the clothes rack by the door to collect his coat.

‘There's not much I can offer in the way of suggestions, Charlie. I'm still having trouble convincing myself there are two of them. It doesn't make sense. Either they had the same idea together, which hardly seems likely, or one talked the other into it, which is equally incredible. Leaving that aside, however, there is one thing. I can't help feeling that Hazel Ballard's death is somehow connected to this.'

‘To the
shootings
?' Chubb was surprised. ‘But how? Surely you don't think she had a hand in them, prior to her death, I mean?'

‘No, I wasn't thinking of that.' Madden shook his head. ‘She was a sick woman. But not long after she died this plan was set in motion. First the court-martial record was stolen and then the killings began. The coincidence is too strong to ignore.'

‘We can't exclude the fact that these two might have had some contact with her, though.' Billy spoke. ‘They might even
have visited her in Richmond. It's something we can ask her daughter when we catch up with her. In the meantime we've found someone else who might be able to help: Hazel's nextdoor neighbour. I got her name from that solicitor. He told me she not only witnessed Hazel's will, but also helped Alma clear out the house after her mother's death. I haven't had a chance to speak to her yet – she's been away for a few days – but I managed to get hold of her daily, who said she'd be back on Sunday. I'm going to ring her over the weekend and arrange to go down and see her.'

Madden grunted. He donned his coat.

‘Well, I've only one other suggestion, Charlie,' he said. ‘But I'm sure you've already thought of it. I mean making use of the newspapers. It might be time to tell them you think the killings are linked to the court martial. At the very least it might prompt that officer to come forward.'

His words brought a gleam to the chief super's eye.

‘I've been waiting for you to say that. I was wondering when you'd get round to it.'

‘Have I touched on a sensitive subject?' Madden smiled for the first time.

‘You could put it that way. Do you know who I mean by Cradock?'

‘Your new assistant commissioner?'

‘That's the fellow. He's being leaned on from on high at the moment, and it's not a pretty sight. We had a session with him this morning as it happens, Styles and I, and we did just what you said. We told him it was time to come clean about the court martial. That way we could clear the air and get down to the business of tracing this woman.'

‘And what was his reply?'

‘You tell him, Inspector.' Chubb nodded to Billy. ‘And you can wipe that smile off your face,' he added, turning back to their visitor. ‘Just wait till you hear what he had to say about you.'

‘About
me
?' Madden's jaw dropped.

‘He said he couldn't allow us to go to the newspapers with this.' Billy took up the tale with a smile. For reasons best known to the assistant commissioner, he'd been summoned to the meeting along with Chubb and had observed the confrontation that followed. ‘He'd read the report Mr Chubb sent him and reckoned our case was based solely on assumptions.'

‘Assumptions . . . Can you credit that?' Charlie shook his head in wonder.