‘He wasn’t grateful to you at all?’
‘Only a little. He believes I seated myself too close to his wife and her friend. I told him I had a lot of experience in surveillance and that I hadn’t seated myself too close at all. The thief just happened to run past my table. But Mr Ramsden is clearly the sort who thinks he knows best.’
‘So he wants you to stop working for him?’
‘No, he’s given me one more chance.’
Augusta laughed. ‘How generous of him.’
‘And I agreed to it because the money is good. But if Charlotte Ramsden spots me again, then that will have to be the end of it.’
Chapter 34
Augusta thought about Tom Connolly as she travelled by train from Waterloo station to the suburb of Wimbledon.
Could Tom Connolly have harmed Alexander Miller? He looked like the sort of man who would quickly turn to violence if he deemed it necessary. Even though he was in his sixties, his muscled arms hadn’t escaped Augusta’s notice. There was little doubt he would have been capable of harming someone ten years ago.
But Augusta had to remind herself she was in danger of passing judgement on him. His appearance and background made him an easy man to suspect. And he was clearly aware of it. He was a man with an air of criminality about him. But that didn’t necessarily mean he was a murderer.
Jemima Campbell’s home was a well-presented, semi-detached house a short walk from Wimbledon station. It was set back from the road with a well-tended front garden. Augusta guessed it had a sizeable garden at the rear too.
She took in a breath before approaching the house and enjoyed the clean summer air. London’s suburbs lacked the excitement of the town, but Augusta could understand the appeal of living in places like this.
Jemima Campbell had dark, bobbed hair and dark eyes. She was beautiful, as Augusta had expected. But her eyes had a weariness about them, and she wore a drab apron over a plain day dress.
‘Can I help you?’
‘My name is Augusta Peel and I’m a private investigator. I’m investigating the disappearance of Alexander Miller.’
She blinked rapidly a few times. ‘Alexander Miller?’
‘Yes. Did you know him?’
A pause followed. As if Mrs Campbell was considering whether or not to admit to it.
‘Yes, I did. I suppose you’d better come in.’
A short while later, Augusta sat with Mrs Campbell in a tidy, comfortable living room. Framed family photographs were arranged on top of an upright piano and a box of children’s toys sat beneath the window. Mrs Campbell had made them both a cup of tea.
‘It was many years ago,’ she said. ‘Ten years I suppose.’
‘I’ve heard you worked with Alexander in the Great Western Railway accounts department.’
Mrs Campbell smiled. ‘That’s right. I did.’
‘And his friend John Gibson.’
‘And John, too. It was very sad… what happened to him.’
‘Have you got any ideas on what could have happened to Alexander?’
‘Alexander?’ Her eyes widened. ‘I heard he went away. His sister received a letter from him.’
‘His sister believes the letter was forged.’
‘Does she? I wouldn’t know about that. I heard a letter had been received from him and so I assumed he’d moved away. It seemed a strange thing to do so suddenly and he didn’t mention it to anyone. John was quite upset.’
‘He tried to find Alexander, didn’t he?’
‘Yes. He did everything he could to find him. I don’t think he believed the letter from him was real either.’ She paused and took a sip of tea. ‘I feel sad they’re no longer around.’
‘But Alexander could be somewhere, if you believe he wrote the letter to his sister.’
‘Yes, I suppose he could be. But so much time has passed now. I feel sure I’ll never see him again.’
‘I read some letters which John wrote to his sister Louisa,’ said Augusta. ‘I really don’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable when I say this Mrs Campbell. And I hope I’m not speaking out of turn. But it seems both Alexander and John had some affection for you.’
‘Alexander did? I never knew about that.’ Her face reddened and she bit her lip. ‘As for John,’ she continued, ‘yes, I knew about that. We went out together a few times. It wasn’t serious and nothing came of it. I actually met my husband Jeffrey a few months later. I was very sad when I heard about John’s accident. Jeffrey helped me through that time.’
‘I realise this isn’t easy, Mrs Campbell, and I’m grateful you’re happy to speak with me so frankly. Do you think there’s any possibility John could have deliberately jumped in front of the train at Baker Street?’
’No.’ She shook her head vehemently. ‘None. John would never have done such a thing. It was an accident.’
‘Or there’s a possibility he was pushed?’
‘No.’ She shook her head again. ‘He wasn’t pushed.’ Augusta wondered how she could be so sure.
‘Did Alexander and John ever fall out with each other?’
