‘Those initials could stand for anything,’ said Mr Ramsden.
‘Fred found it on the same day you visited my shop.’
‘Lots of other customers would have visited your shop that day too, Mrs Peel. This isn’t evidence.’
‘It’s enough for now though,’ said Detective Sergeant Joyce as he got up and walked over to the window. He waved to the two constables waiting outside. Then he turned back to Mr Ramsden. ‘Clerkenwell police station will be happy to put you up for the time being.’
Mr Ramsden gave a laugh. ‘You’ve got nothing on me,’ he said. ‘Absolutely nothing!’
Chapter 60
Robert Stanton was a diminished figure as he slumped behind his desk in his office at the bank.
Augusta, Philip and Detective Sergeant Joyce sat in a row of chairs opposite him.
‘If you’re here to arrest me for Jane’s murder, then get it over and done with,’ he said. ‘But you’ll be wasting your time. I didn’t do it. Even though I can’t provide an alibi for the time she died, I was in the Westmoreland Arms. I was there at eight o’clock. And if you’re here because I assaulted that news reporter—’
‘Not Walter Ferguson?’ asked Augusta, with a hint of glee.
‘Yes. I admit it. But he asked for it, and—’
Philip held up a hand to quieten him. ‘That’s enough, Mr Stanton. Perhaps you can tell us everything you know about Dr Jackson.’
Mr Stanton’s jaw dropped. ‘No, I…’
‘If he’s threatened you, then you don’t need to worry anymore. He’s currently in police custody.’
‘Is he? How?’
‘Just tell us what you know, Mr Stanton. And start at the beginning. When did you first encounter him?’
‘I heard from a friend that the man behind Jackson’s Blood Purifier was looking for investors. I’ll admit to you now that I’m not good with money. I don’t know why I’ve pretended to people that I am, but there you go. It’s a shame, I suppose. I’ve made some risky investments and I’ve lost money through gambling. I’ll admit all of it to you now. I’ve got nothing left to hide. Since Jane’s death I’ve been—’
‘I realise this has been a difficult time for you, Mr Stanton,’ said Philip. ‘But please just tell us how you first met Dr Jackson.’
‘Alexander was always talking about how good Jackson’s Blood Purifier was. When I heard word Dr Jackson was looking for investors for a new remedy, then I put my money in. We were promised at least double our investment back.’
‘Did you meet him?’
‘Yes, a few times. He seemed a thoroughly decent man. He held a meeting for his investors. There weren’t many of us, so we had to put in quite a bit each. He told us all about the new remedy. Its purpose was to promote health and strength. He said he would be looking for volunteers to test it on and that he would pay well. When I mentioned this to Jane, she said she thought Alexander might be interested. He was a keen cyclist and enjoyed keeping himself healthy. And then I believe he went ahead with it and tried it out.’
‘Did you ever suspect Dr Jackson could have been behind Alexander’s disappearance?’
‘I don’t suppose I ever thought about it. Why would he have been? Oh, just a moment…’ He scratched his chin. ‘You don’t think Alexander was poisoned, do you?’
‘Yes, that’s what we suspect,’ said Philip.
‘Good grief. So Jane was right.’
‘Jane suspected it?’
‘Yes. But not at the time. Only recently. It was after Dr Jackson’s visit.’
‘He visited you recently?’
‘Yes. At our home on Baker Street.’
‘And he called himself Dr Jackson?’
‘Yes. It was a surprise to see him. We knew he’d gone to prison, but we had no idea what happened to him after that.’
‘Why did he visit you?’
‘He offered us money.’
‘Why?’
‘He said the business had ended so suddenly, he hadn’t found the chance to properly compensate all his investors. He was very contrite and said he regretted how it had all turned out. But he had served his time and learned a lot and was now in a position to repay me with interest.’
‘And you accepted his money?’
‘Of course! Why wouldn’t I? He was paying me back. He said we mustn’t tell anyone about his visit because he’d been advised he wasn’t supposed to be paying anyone back. His lawyers had advised against it, apparently. But he was doing so out of the goodness of his heart because he felt bad about what had happened. I thought the gesture was wonderful. But Jane was less convinced. She started asking him questions.’
‘Such as what?’
‘She asked him about the last time he had seen Alexander because we knew Alexander had been helping him test the new remedy. Then she asked if Alexander had mentioned to him if he was planning to go away. She told him she’d received a letter which was supposedly from Alexander, but she didn’t believe he’d sent it.’
‘How did Dr Jackson react?’
