Sick of Shadows Part 16

SEVEN.

The Governor was strong upon The Regulations Act: The Doctor said that Death was but A scientific fact: And twice a day the Chaplain called, And left a little tract.

-OSCAR WILDE

Rose wondered what on earth was going on. Her father had put down his newspaper and had stared to look through the morning post. He slit open a square manila envelope. He drew out a photograph. He goggled at it, thrust it back in the envelope and shouted, "Get Cathcart. Now!"

Despite wondering frantically what had been in that photograph, Rose felt a surge of pleasure at the thought she might see Harry again.

"What on earth is going on?" she asked her mother.

"I am sure your father will cope with whatever it is. Eat your breakfast," said Lady Polly.

"Pervert," muttered the earl.

"What did you say?" demanded Rose.

"Hey, what? Oh, I said perishing newspapers."

Rose had never seen her father look so upset. His face was scarlet. At last he said to his wife, "A word with you, dear."

Rose and Daisy picked at their food. Then Rose heard her mother scream.

They ran to the office. The earl shouted at them, "Get out of here! Go to your rooms and don't come out until I tell you."

They went upstairs and stood by the window. At last they saw Harry arriving. Becket was not with him.

"Now what?" asked Rose.

Daisy gave a dismal little shrug. She had been expecting to see Becket.

Harry looked at the photograph. "Nasty," he said. "Sir Peter was entrapped."

"You can't be entrapped unless you're a ... you're a ..."

"Quite," said Harry. "Will you leave this with me? I think perhaps I might be able to get the negative and any prints. Petrey will go abroad for an extended period and it will all blow over."

"Rose will need to cancel the engagement!"

"Not yet. I have a feeling that that was just what someone wanted her to do. Leave it to me."

"Usual fee?" asked the earl glumly.

"No, you may have my researches as a present, for it will be my pleasure to deal with whoever did this."

"What do we say to Rose?" asked Lady Polly.

"I think you will find out that your daughter knew of Peter's tastes."

"What?"

"I do not for a moment think she believed that men actually had s.e.xual intercourse-"

"Lady present," growled the earl.

"But that she thought their love was platonic. She craved an arranged marriage."

"Why?"

"Because she does not want to be shipped off to India. If you threaten her with that, she will find someone else."

The earl mopped his brow.

"And I thought you were the worst thing that could have happened to her."

"Thank you for the compliment. Now, leave this with me."

Harry did not go back to his office but returned to Chelsea to ask Becket's advice. He told his manservant about the incriminating photograph. "Do you know anything about the h.o.m.os.e.xual underworld, Becket?"

"There is that brothel in Westminster that no one is supposed to know about. Who do you suspect, sir?"

"I suspect Berrow and Banks."

"Perhaps they hired a youth from there."

"I am sure a place like that would give me no information whatsoever. I wonder why the police haven't raided the place."

"Possibly there are too many important people who visit there."

"Where exactly is it?"

"Verney Street. I've heard servants gossiping about it."

"I'll go down tonight and watch who comes and goes. I'll visit Petrey first."

Harry went to Petrey's home and knocked as arranged. Petrey himself answered the door, looking haggard.

Harry followed him in. He sat down and removed his hat. "The situation is this. Your engagement to Lady Rose stands. You will invent a dying aunt in the south of France. You will write Lady Rose a letter saying you have the leave the country immediately. I think the purpose of your entrapment was to get Lady Rose to break off your engagement. We will not give them that satisfaction right away.

"Now, give me a full description of this Jonathan Wilks."

"He is very beautiful-young, with golden hair and large green eyes with flecks of gold. He is quite tall with a slim body. His skin is clear and without blemish. Believe me, there cannot be very many young men as beautiful as he is in London."

"Leave it to me."

Harry walked to Westminster that evening after the lamps had been lit. To his relief, Verney Street was short. He found a dark doorway and settled down to watch.

At first it was hard to tell which of the dark houses could be a brothel, but then, as the evening drove on, he saw a house in the middle of the street was beginning to be visited by various men who looked nervously up and down before hurrying inside. To his amazement, he recognized a major-general and then a member of Parliament. Still, he waited patiently as the evening dragged on past midnight. There was a cold nip in the air and he wished he had worn a warmer coat. The old wound in his leg was beginning to throb, and as the time approached two in the morning he was just about to give up when he saw a young man emerging from the building. Before he crammed his hat on his curls, they shone gold in the lamplight.

He started to walk briskly and Harry followed him. The youth went as far as the seedier end of Westminster and turned in at a doorway and disappeared.

Harry went up and lit a match and studied the names beside the bell-pulls.

Jonathan Wilks lived on the top floor. Goodness, thought Harry, he even used his own name.

He took out a set of lock picks and got to work on the outside door until he was able to enter.

He walked silently up the stairs to the top. The name "Wilks" was there, pencilled on the peeling wall beside the door.

Harry knocked. "Who is it?" he heard him call.

Taking a gamble, Harry shouted, "Banks!"

The door swung open. Harry shoved Jonathan backwards into his flat. The young man stumbled and fell on the floor. Harry pulled him up by the lapels and thrust him into an armchair.

"Now," he said, "before I ruin that pretty face of yours for life, you will tell me who paid you to entrap Sir Peter Petrey."

"I don't know what you are talking about."

Harry jerked him out of the chair and drew back his fist.

"No!" screamed Jonathan. "I'll tell you. They said it was just a prank. I was to pretend to b.u.mp into him. Then we arranged to go to Oxford, so they said they would book a hotel and gave me the name. They also gave me a leather mask. They said I was to put it on and say in a loud voice something about having the mask on and then they would do the rest."

"And just who are 'they'?"

Jonathan hung his head. "Lord Berrow and Cyril Banks," he whispered. Then he began to cry, saying between his sobs, "Don't hurt me."

"You gave me what I wanted. Now, a word of advice. You will forget this ever happened or I will come looking for you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-yes."

"I suggest you find yourself a protector and get out of that brothel or you will look like a diseased old man by the time you are thirty. Good night!"

"Wait! Where is Peter?"

"None of your business."

Harry began to walk until he managed to hail a cab and directed the driver to Cyril's address.

Once there, he paid off the cab and waited until the driver had driven off. Then he took out his lock picks and unlocked the front door.

He made his way silently up the thickly carpeted stairs, opening one door after another until he found Cyril's bedroom. He lit the gas and stood and looked down at the sleeping Cyril. He had a sudden impulse to drive his fist into Cyril's face but restrained himself. He looked around the room. There was a laudanum bottle on the bedside table with a spoon beside it. Cyril lay in a drugged sleep.

Harry was sure Cyril would have hidden any negative close to him. There was a safe in the corner, an old one which opened with a key rather than a combination. On a console table lay a bunch of keys. Harry picked them up and tried them until he found the key that opened the safe.

Inside he found a Kodak camera. He peered at the small film window, but saw nothing there. The film had already been removed and the camera was empty. He searched in the safe again and found an envelope with the negative and one print. He stuffed them into his inside coat pocket and locked the safe.

He then walked to Charles Street and gave his special knock at the door. Again Peter answered it. He was fully dressed and his face showed the mark of tears.

"I have a photograph and the negative," said Harry.

"Oh, thank G.o.d! Who did this to me?"

"Cyril Banks and Lord Berrow."

"But why? Why me?"

"As I told you in my office, I think the intention was to get Lady Rose to break off your engagement. I suggest you rouse your man and pack. Leave tomorrow. Where will you go?"

"The south of France, where I am supposed to be."

"Stay there a few months and this will all blow over. Hadfield is not going to talk."

"What about Berrow and Banks?"

"You need not fear them. I will deal with them."

Jonathan awoke after an uneasy sleep. He dressed and glanced down at the street. Lord Berrow and Cyril Banks had just turned the corner and were heading in the direction of the house where he lived. Cyril had found the photograph and negative gone and knew that Jonathan must have talked.

Jonathan let out a squawk of terror.