Tales: Short Stories Featuring Ian Rutledge and Bess Crawford (12 page)
Read Tales: Short Stories Featuring Ian Rutledge and Bess Crawford Online
Authors: Charles Todd
Tags: #Mystery; Thriller & Suspense, #Mystery, #British Detectives, #Historical, #Traditional Detectives
“Good afternoon, Mr. Ashton. I’ve come from Canterbury with a warrant for your arrest for the murder of these men.” He held out several sheets of paper, and I could see that they were filled with names. “I shall be happy to read them to you, sir, if you insist.”
“I know the names of these dead,” Mr. Ashton said. “They are engraved on my soul. What evidence is there that I have caused their deaths?”
“You were at the mill earlier in the day, Sunday the second of April 1916, before the first blast, behaving suspiciously, and there again just after the explosions brought the buildings down, standing at the very spot where the flames rose as you were hurrying away. This has been attested to by a dozen people who have come forward and given their depositions. They were rushing toward the river, and they report that your expression as you turned their way was gleeful.”
“Gleeful? I see. And what possible motive could I have had for destroying my mill, much less wanting these men dead?”
“A court will hear that in due course, sir. I am here to take you into custody on the charges brought.”
“Yes, certainly.” He glanced toward his wife, standing still as if turned to stone, her blue eyes stark in her pale face. “Will you give me a few minutes to say good-bye to my family, and to give my son instructions about my affairs?” I could see Inspector Brothers hesitate. “I give you my word, Inspector. I will come through that door in ten minutes’ time and accompany you to Canterbury without fuss.”
Reluctantly—I think he was all too aware of the constables at his back, prepared for any resistance—the Inspector agreed. Stepping back into the passage, he shut the door, and all of us could hear his voice issuing abrupt orders for his men to wait outside.
I would have left, to give them privacy, but Mrs. Ashton was still gripping my hand as if it were a lifeline to hope.
Philip Ashton came across the room to her and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. “Nothing to worry about, my dear, it will all be resolved shortly. I want you to be brave and not do anything rash.”
I couldn’t imagine Mrs. Ashton doing anything rash, but I thought the words were meant for Mark as well.
He nodded to me, then turned to his niece. Clara was striving to hold back tears as she said good-bye.
“It might be best for you to go home,” he urged her. “Will you think about it?”
And then he was conferring in a low voice with his son, close by the window.
Without looking at us, three women still standing there like marble statues, unable to speak, he crossed the room. Mrs. Ashton put out her hand then as if to stop him, but let it drop. He opened the door, stepped through it, then shut it firmly behind him, and we could just hear voices as Inspector Brothers took him in charge. As well as the soft
clink
of handcuffs.
The spaniel went to the door, scratching on it and whining.
CHARLES TODD
is the author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, the Bess Crawford mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother and son writing team, they live in Delaware and North Carolina.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at
hc.com
.
The Ian Rutledge Mysteries
Wings of Fire
Search the Dark
Watchers of Time
Legacy of the Dead
A Fearsome Doubt
A Cold Treachery
The Bess Crawford Mysteries
Other Fiction
The Murder Stone
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
TALES: SHORT STORIES FEATURING IAN RUTLEDGE AND BESS CRAWFORD
. Copyright © 2015 by Charles Todd. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
“The Kidnapping.” Copyright © 2010 by Charles Todd.
“The Girl on the Beach.” Copyright © 2010 by Charles Todd.
“Cold Comfort.” Copyright © 2013 by Charles Todd.
“The Maharani’s Pearls.” Copyright © 2014 by Charles Todd.
Excerpt from
A Pattern of Lies
copyright © 2015 by Charles Todd.
EPub Edition July 2015 ISBN: 9780062443755
Print Edition ISBN: 9780062443762
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON M4W 1A8, Canada
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
Auckland, New Zealand
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007