‘But I was with you at the time.’
‘Yes, I’ll be happy to tell them that, Robert.’
‘Thank you, Walter. We met at eight that evening, didn’t we?’
‘I think it was a little later than that.’
‘Only slightly. You’ll tell them eight won’t you? It would help enormously. At the moment, it’s not looking good for me.’ He sank into his armchair. ‘Can you believe they tried to suggest I had something to do with my brother-in-law’s disappearance?’
‘Really?’
‘Quite ridiculous. Something about some money which Jane apparently owed Alexander. But the trouble is, he moaned to a friend about it who then wrote to his sister about it. And now the police seem to think Jane had an enormous debt which could only be solved if she got rid of her brother. And they seem to think I could have been in on it as well. Quite ridiculous.’
‘Completely ridiculous! I remember you telling me all about the letters Mrs Peel got hold of. Don’t tell me she mentioned the debt to the police?’
‘She must have done.’
‘That woman is nothing but trouble,’ said Walter. ‘She’s incapable of minding her own business. She seems to think there’s a mystery in everything and that everyone is up to no good. Who does she think she is?’
‘If she hadn’t found those letters, then I wouldn’t be being questioned about the money.’
‘Exactly. She’s responsible for all of this! If that letter from John Gibson to his sister had been discarded ten years ago, none of this would be happening. But instead, it was left in a book which happened to land in Mrs Peel’s hands. An ordinary person would have thrown that letter into the wastepaper basket. But not Mrs Peel. No. Instead, she marched off to the woman the letter had been sent to. And then she began harassing your wife. Your poor dear, departed wife who must have had a terrible time of it. She tried to do the same to me, you know. When my colleague was murdered, she ambushed me outside my office. Quite unbelievable behaviour. And who is she, anyway? Just a woman who repairs old books and flogs them for a bit of money. Books which are so worn and tired they should just be thrown out. Somehow, she manages to make a business out of it. And, at the same time, she fancies herself as a private detective. Do you know she worked for British intelligence during the war?’
‘No.’ This information made him feel even warier now. ‘That’s very interesting to hear, Walter.’
‘She needs to be brought down a peg or two. In fact, she just needs to stop doing what she’s doing. I’ve already published a couple of articles about her in the London Weekly Chronicle. But my next one is going to be the best yet. In it, I’m going to be revealing her real name and where she’s really from. I can tell she’s worrying about it.’
‘Really?’
‘What I’ve discovered is quite astounding. You’ll struggle to believe it yourself, Robert.’ He grinned.
‘She’s a lady with a past?’
‘Oh yes. And it’s some past, I can tell you. Augusta Peel isn’t her real name. And there’s a very good reason why she keeps that secret. It’s so sensational that my editor’s even worrying about publishing it.’
‘You must tell me more, Walter.’
‘I never reveal the details of a story before it’s published. This one has been slightly delayed because my editor is nervous about it. But I’m putting his mind at ease and I expect it will be published soon. You won’t hear another word from her then, Robert. I guarantee it.’
‘Good.’
When Walter had first turned up on his doorstep, he had told him to go away. But Walter had persisted and now he realised how useful he could be. He was going to provide him with an alibi and he was going to silence Mrs Peel. Walter Ferguson was a very helpful chap indeed.
Chapter 46
Augusta called at the little pharmacy on Marchmont Street after she had closed the bookshop for the day. She had a headache and had run out of headache powders. After she had paid Mr Barrett, the pharmacist, she noticed bottles of blood purifier on the shelves.
‘What does blood purifier do?’ she asked.
‘Some say it helps with ulcers,’ he replied. ‘Along with eczema, boils and pimples.’
‘Would it help someone cycle faster?’
A smile played on his lips. ‘I’ve not heard of that.’
‘I once heard of someone saying Jackson’s Blood Purifier helped him cycle faster.’
‘Jackson’s Blood Purifier? I don’t think that would have helped anyone cycle faster. It’s not available anymore. It was taken off the shelves after Jackson’s court case.’
‘What court case was that?’
‘Dr Jackson. Have you not heard about him?’
‘No. When was the court case?’
‘About eight or nine years ago. He wasn’t a proper doctor, he’d been pretending. His blood purifier was very popular for a while, but when it was examined by the British Medical Association, it was found to be little more than water, sugar and alcohol.’
‘Oh dear. So Dr Jackson went on trial?’
‘No. Not for that. It was one of the countless secret remedies about at the time. Dr Jackson got into trouble for poisoning someone with a new remedy he was developing.’
‘Someone died?’
‘No. No one died. But a man fell unwell after being given a large dose of cocaine. Dr Jackson was investigated, and it was found he’d never qualified as a doctor and had no medical knowledge whatsoever.’
‘What happened to him?’
‘He went to prison, but I can’t tell you how long for.’
