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Irene leaned forward ‘Are you saying, Inspector, that this "unknown quantity" is linked to last night’s events at the Liechtenstein Embassy?’
‘You would be quite correct, Miss Winters,’ Inspector Singh said He rearranged his lips in a thin distrustful smile ‘Now from what Mr Vale here has told me, I’m inclined to wonder if this woman is linked to the person you know as "Alberich" Given that one of the aiators and all, was to search Lord Silver’s rooms while he was otherwise occupied’
‘For a book,’ Vale interjected
‘Indeed,’ Inspector Singh agreed ‘That’s what our questioning confirmed For a very specific book The same book that was stolen from Lord Wyndham recently by a certain thief Or should I say, believed to have been stolen?’ He shot a glance at Bradah, but his eyes were very dark and very angry
Bradamant seemed to crumple in on herself If she had had a handkerchief, no doubt she would have held it to her eyes and sniffled bravely As it was, her lower lip quavered and her eyes ide and limpid ‘If Irene has told you about the Library,’ she said, ‘then there’s nothing more that I can say I admit that I took,’ Irene admired her careful avoidance of the word stolen, ‘some books in order to make the Grimm’s disappearance look unimportant But I certainly didn’t kill Lord Wyndham Why would I have wanted to? I didn’t even know the h’s attention ‘Would you entlemen? To fill in a part of the story on ave her a brief nod
Irene turned back to Bradamant ‘I saw a card in Wyndhaned with the nahed ‘Yes It was I had the plans of the house from a local contact--’
‘This Dolanced to Irene, with an I see you’ve been giving away all our local secrets look, then nodded ‘He and Wyndham had been acquaintances for a while I think Aubrey may have actually been rather indiscreet in what he told Wyndham, but that’s a different problee ‘Anyhow, I came in by the roof while Wyndham was at his party downstairs It was comparatively easy to deactivate the alarms on the display case where he kept the book – ’
‘Oh, was it now,’ Singh muttered
– ‘and after I’d taken the book, I left the card in the case before leaving, by the roof again I don’t knohy it should have been in the safe’ She shrugged
‘What tih asked
‘About half past eleven,’ Brada downstairs I didn’t expect anyone to coh nodded He turned to Irene ‘According to our forensic specialists, Lord Wyndhaht and one o’clock It is difficult to tell with vas outside at one o’clock gives us some idea of the time frame’
Irene wasn’t sure whether or not that was supposed to be a joke ‘I see,’ she said neutrally ‘So in that case, who put the card in the safe? Lord Wyndhareed ‘The ize, the vampire – was beheaded in his study, at his desk Souests at the party said that he went upstairs at e a surprise’
Kai nodded ‘So when he walked in to find the book gone, he deteration Though it seems overly careful to put it in the safe rather than simply leave it in a drawer of his desk But then he was attacked?’
‘That is so,’ Singh said ‘By members of the Iron Brotherhood I have inforents We believe they uests They simply lopped his head off, walked out nors as they left’
Irene frowned ‘But then Wyndhae in coh and Brada question, Miss Winters,’ Singh said ‘But at thethe whereabouts of the book which Madaarded him stonily ‘It was a fake’
For athe lines of What? and Are you certain?
‘And I knoas a fake,’ Bradah the noise, ‘because when I took it back to my superior, he looked at it and then explained to me that he was not interested in facsi certain relevant parts’
‘Which relevant parts?’ Irene demanded She was fairly sure who the superior in question must have been Bradamant answered directly to Kostchei, just as Irene answered directly to Coppelia The possibility of so Bradamant orderswell, it wasn’t impossible, but it was too unlikely At thewith the most obvious answer, seele" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true">