The Circle of Sappho (6 page)

Mary arrived home and went upstairs to her bedroom. She took out her writing paper and began to rewrite the opening paragraph; the words flowing as if they had always been there but had simply been waiting for the chance to be set down. She sat back on her bed, read what she had written and felt deeply satisfied. It had been a productive morning after all.

For a moment she wondered what matter had kept Jack from returning home for breakfast, but she knew better than to enquire.

‘So what are your thoughts as to this unfortunate matter, Swann?' enquired Lady Harriet as they returned in her carriage to the city.

‘From what I have observed, Lady Harriet, it seems to be murder in the case of the pupil, perpetrated by the teacher, followed by self-poisoning. But if this is the situation, I do not understand why you have engaged my services; unless, of course, there is information not yet disclosed to me.'

‘In all likelihood, a murder and suicide is exactly what these two deaths are,' replied Lady Harriet. ‘However, I cannot risk overlooking the possibility that more sinister forces are at work, especially given the situation the country is in at present.'

‘What do you mean?'

‘Now we are at war with France again, Napoleon Bonaparte will do anything to gain an upper hand, to secure an advantage.'

‘I am lost, Lady Harriet. I do not understand how being at war with France can be connected to these two deaths.'

‘What I am about to tell you must not go outside this carriage.'

Swann instinctively moved forward in his seat. ‘You can be assured of my utmost discretion, Lady Harriet,' he said.

Lady Harriet seemed satisfied by this assurance.

‘For a number of years, even during the period of the Amiens peace, both our government and the French have been involved in the drawing up of plans to gain victory against the other. Bonaparte's are variations on how to invade us, while our plans focus on his removal from power, the belief by our government being that it would be easier to win the war against France if Bonaparte, as the First Consul, was not in office.'

Swann was silent for a few moments, deep in thought. He then spoke.

‘Well, given the fact that French troops are stationed on their own coast, and have been for several months, but are still led by Napoleon, it seems neither plan has yet been successful.'

‘It is not through lack of fortitude on our part. We have, for instance, recently enlisted the help of several dissident French generals sympathetic to our cause. They have their own agenda, of course, that of restoring the monarchy, or else assuming power themselves, but one of them came close to assassinating the First Consul four years ago.'

‘Cadoudal?'

Lady Harriet was surprised. ‘We refer to him simply as Georges, but you know of him?'

‘Only by reputation,' said Swann. ‘French politician and military General turned assassin and rebel. As leader of the
Chouannerie
he organised a failed uprising against the First Republic. Arrested, he managed to escape and took refuge in England and has been waging his own war against Napoleon ever since; most famously, as you have mentioned, in the attempt on the First Consul's life in December 1800. I have no further information, but assumed he had returned to England.'

‘You are right in your assumption,' replied Lady Harriet. She shook her head, remembering. ‘They came so close in the
Rue Sainte Nicaise
, where the bomb was planted; if only Bonaparte's carriage had passed the cart two minutes later.'

‘It is said that Napoleon was sleeping in his carriage and did not even wake when the explosion occurred.'

Lady Harriet nodded.

‘If it had succeeded, our concerns would have been over. As for this current plan, it began last summer when several royal insurgents, including Georges, along with many of our own men, were secretly landed on the coast of France. Reinforcements were sent at the beginning of this year. The aim was for them to travel to Paris, where they would assemble to undertake the task of kidnapping the First Consul and so removing him from power. We expected surveillance by their police, but we believed luck would be with us this time. It seems, however, one of the insurgents disclosed the plan, most probably under torture, although we are not discounting the possibility of a double agent within our midst. Either way, one by one, all of the main protagonists have been arrested. Georges, as we have recently learnt, was arrested two weeks ago. The plan has failed.'

‘And this is somehow related to the two deaths?' asked Swann.

‘Possibly,' replied Lady Harriet.

‘But how?'

‘As soon as we learned of the first arrests, a second plan, using less distinguished personnel, was made ready. I cannot divulge details, only to say that it involves our agents travelling to France, this time assuming the cover of French families and hopefully drawing less attention to themselves.'

‘Do I presume Miss Leigh and the girl were part of this plan?'

‘No, only the girl; she was to leave yesterday afternoon to join her family and then travel to France in the next few days.'

‘I find it hard to believe the French would go to so much trouble to kill a girl? And besides, how would they have known?'

‘I share your opinion, Swann, but there are spies and informants everywhere; Bonaparte has a network of them operating throughout the country. Thankfully, through our own channels, we know many of them and several have now started to work for our own government. We even sent one of these agents to protect the girl at the school, while at the same time helping her to improve her spoken French and learn the culture.'

‘So if you thought they may have been murdered, why did you allow their bodies to be taken off the island before I could observe the scene?'

‘The longer they were allowed to remain there, the greater the possibility of word leaking out as to the truth, whatever that may be. Bringing the bodies to the chapel immediately and reporting it as an accident saves a lot of unnecessary complications.'

‘What will be listed as the cause of death?'

‘A
reliable
doctor was summoned and performed his duties accordingly.'

‘Isn't that doing a disservice to the two victims and their families?'

‘As I thought you would be aware by now, Swann, there are bigger issues at stake. This is why I have engaged your services.'

‘If this is a matter of national security, may I enquire as to why you are not dealing with it yourself or assigning men from the Alien Office?'

‘I have my reasons,' she said.

Swann glanced out of the carriage window and saw they were heading along the top of Lansdown.

‘As I have said, Lady Harriet, if I do agree to this case then I have to be allowed to undertake it in my own way.'

Lady Harriet nodded.

‘I would also like the answer to the following question. Where was the girl's “protector” when she was murdered?'

‘According to his report, she climbed out of the dormitory window some time during the morning, as he stood outside her room. He then did not see her again until her body was discovered.'

‘And you believe him?' asked Swann.

‘I do not know what to believe, which is why I want you to find out exactly what happened.'

Swann nodded. ‘It does seem slightly improbable he would have murdered the girl and then not left the grounds.'

‘All I know is that our plan to remove Bonaparte has failed and will now give him the resolve to increase his preparations for invasion. He refers to the English Channel as “a ditch that can be leapt by the bold” and he is becoming bolder by the hour. We have reason to believe he is planning a three-pronged attack; from above, by sea, and subterranean.'

‘A tunnel under the Channel? Could they achieve such a feat?'

‘Our government believes it is possible.'

‘And how would the invasion from the air occur?'

‘We understand they would use hot-air balloons.'

The military's application of an activity previously undertaken for pleasure did not come as any great surprise to Swann.

‘Bonaparte will not be able to move until May, of course,' continued Lady Harriet, ‘as the currents and weather are against him until that time. The Admiralty has given its assurance that our navy is still unbeatable but nevertheless we have to be alert and watch his preparations. Especially as our domestic affairs are in a delicate state, what with the King ill again and the current Parliament seen as ineffective.'

‘What is wrong with King George this time?'

‘He was apparently inspecting his troops and caught a severe chill. But it is worse than that – his mind is not as it should be. He is apparently giving orders that make no sense. Whether the two deaths at the school are in anyway part of all these various states of affairs, I do not know, but I need to find out one way or another as I have to confess a personal interest. When news of these deaths becomes public knowledge, if it is seen as anything other than a tragic accident, Catherine's school may have to close down.'

‘I will be honest, Lady Harriet, I feel there is information which is being kept from me and if I am not in possession of all the facts, I am not sure I can take this case.'

‘Yes, there are things of which you have not been informed, Swann, but I cannot reveal them to you; all I can say is that there is more at stake than you can possibly realise. The entire future of the country's liberty is at stake and I have sworn to protect that at whatever cost. I am asking you as a personal favour to take this case.'

The carriage entered the city and headed towards the Guildhall, where Swann had requested to be taken.

‘I will take the case, then,' said Swann.

‘Thank you,' said Lady Harriet, gratefully. ‘I shall arrange for you to go to Frome the day after tomorrow. Miss Leigh came from the town and she has a sister who still lives there. You will be taken to visit her by an acquaintance of mine, Mr Thomas Bunn. I want you to talk to this woman and find out what kind of person her sister was, who she was acquainted with and where her sympathies lay.'

Swann looked puzzled.

‘I understand Miss Leigh spent some time abroad,' explained Lady Harriet. ‘This can sometimes have an effect on one's patriotism, let us say. Before then, I have arranged with Catherine for you return to the school tomorrow, to talk to those who shared the dormitory with the deceased girl.'

‘Could I not have questioned them today?'

‘Catherine wished to prepare the girls, to allow them to take in the news; and besides, I believe you have another appointment, one to which you desired to attend at the earliest opportunity.'

The coach arrived outside the Guildhall's front entrance. Swann went to leave the coach, but Lady Harriet held his arm.

‘Remember Swann, not a word of this matter to anyone, not even Mary. This could involve national security.'

Swann nodded and then stepped down onto the pavement. The sky had turned darker. His instinct told him there was something not right with this situation, but he had agreed to take the case as it would give him the opportunity to spend time with Lady Harriet and, if nothing else, allow him to find out about her connection with Lockhart.

As Lady Harriet's carriage drove off his attention turned to the steps in front of him, which lead up to the Guildhall and Fitzpatrick's chambers.

He placed the index finger of his left hand on the right side of his face and let it run down the length of the scarred tissue. It was now more than twenty years since he had received the wound to his cheek, from a searing-hot poker, and in that time it had come to define his life; no, more than that, it had
become
his life. If it had not happened he would never have been as close to Malone as he was, enjoying the benefits and protection that came with being second-in-command to one of the toughest crime bosses in London. He would never have become involved in the lucrative activities that provided him with more wealth than he could ever have imagined achieving if still on the streets. And he certainly would not have travelled to places like Dublin, Bristol and Bath, along with other towns and cities in England and Ireland connected with Malone's empire.

He thought back to
that
night, as he had done many times before. They had let themselves in with no trouble at all. An old, decrepit latch on a first-floor window at the back of the house had been their means of entry; with Malone's shoulders providing the platform he needed to prise open the window, the latch breaking apart as he did so. Once they were inside, the house was quiet, as if empty. But then they hadn't expected anyone, at least no one to fear. They had been told there would only be a near-deaf woman and young boy, whose resistance, had they been discovered, would have been of little trouble. Instead they had found a male servant who had taken it upon himself to defend the property. Having been surprised by this servant, the ensuing struggle had seen them both tumble into an adjoining room, in which, at the far end, was a glowing fire and a poker. At the memory of the agonising pain he had felt as the scorching metal seared the flesh on his cheek, he winced, even after all this time.

After entering the house Malone had gone straight upstairs, as agreed, while he had stayed on the first floor. He was looking for anything portable, valuable, saleable; the three elements that made any object worth taking. He was no expert in these matters, at least not then, but anything gold or silver would always be lifted. Depending on the property you could usually tell whether jewellery was real or imitation. This house was definitely the former and he had been able to fill his bag at least half-full before heading downstairs. The information they had received was correct, the owners were obviously rich and could afford the real thing. It was as he reached the bottom of the stairs things had gone wrong. As he turned the corner he knocked a table, which sent a small bronze statue falling to the ground. It was not damaged but had made a loud noise as it thudded onto the marble floor. He cursed under his breath and would have prepared for the worse, but given the nature of the occupants who were supposed to be in the house, he knew they could easily be overpowered. It was therefore a complete shock when a few moments later the male servant had come charging toward him and a struggle had ensued.