Five Dead Canaries

CHAPTER SIX

Alice Marmion schooled herself to be patient. In joining the police, she realised, she’d expected too much too soon. The concept of a female constabulary was still relatively new and the force had an ill-defined role. Again, it was fiercely resented in some quarters, as Alice had swiftly discovered. The war, which had depleted the police force, had given women the opportunity to move into its ranks and show what they could do. At best, they faced a grudging tolerance from male counterparts; at worst, they had to endure stinging criticism of their limitations. Alice had learnt to ignore their acid comments and simply get on with her job. She’d made some good friends among the other women but their support was offset by the hostility of a superior officer.

Meeting her in a corridor, Inspector Thelma Gale pounced on Alice.

‘There you are,’ she said, ‘dawdling as usual.’

‘I’m taking this report to Sergeant Reeves,’ explained Alice, holding up some sheets of paper. ‘She wants it urgently.’

‘“Urgency” is not exactly your watchword, is it?’

‘What do you mean, Inspector?’

‘I mean that you trudge instead of walking briskly. I mean that you’re slow of mind and even slower of body.’

‘That’s unfair,’ said Alice, smarting at the reproof.

‘I’m not the only one who’s noticed. Others have complained as well.’

Alice knew that it was untrue but she was in no position to argue. The more she defended herself against the inspector, the harder she’d be slapped down. Thelma Gale was a stout woman in her forties with short hair and a flat, plain face twisted into an expression of permanent disapproval. Her natural authority was enhanced by the smartness of her uniform. She was a formidable character in every way and few people got the better of her in argument.

She tapped Alice’s shoulder. ‘What did I tell you?’

‘You’ve told me a vast number of things, Inspector.’

‘This concerned your father.’

‘Oh, that — yes, I remember.’

‘I warned you not to trade on the fact that you’re the daughter of Detective Inspector Marmion. Admirable as his achievements have been, they don’t entitle you to any preferential treatment.’

‘I neither expected nor sought it.’

‘And don’t you dare go running to Daddy with complaints about cruel Inspector Gale,’ said the other, wagging a finger, ‘because it will have no effect. I don’t answer to your father. I rule the roost here. Is that clear?’

‘You’ve made it abundantly clear, Inspector.’

‘Try to do your job properly for once and let your father get on with his. He obviously has his hands full at the moment.’

‘Yes, he does.’

‘Five young women blown to pieces — it’s an appalling crime. They were already risking their lives and ruining their looks by working in that munitions factory. I regard them as unsung heroines.’

‘So do I, Inspector.’

Thelma leant in closer to her. ‘What has your father said about the case?’

‘He hasn’t discussed it with me.’

‘Inspector Marmion must have said something.’

‘When he comes through the door at home, he leaves his work outside. My mother appreciates that. Besides,’ Alice went on, ‘I don’t live there any more. I have a flat of my own.’

‘But you’re also engaged to Sergeant Keedy. What has he told you?’

‘Nothing at all.’

‘Come now — you must have wheedled something out of him.’

‘It’s not my place to do so, Inspector.’

Alice’s face was expressionless under the searching stare of the other woman. To admit that she had taken an interest in the case would have been foolish. It would have unleashed a torrent of denunciation from the inspector, accusing her of trying to get involved in something that was totally outside her remit as a police officer. Behind the censure would be a deep envy. Thelma Gale would be suffused with jealousy at the notion that a junior member of her force was engaged, even tangentially, in such an important investigation. Alice got an even harder tap on the shoulder.

‘Get about your business,’ said Thelma, ‘and be sharp about it.’

‘Yes, Inspector,’ replied Alice. ‘Do excuse me. Please.’

Stepping past the older woman, she strode along the corridor and turned a corner, gasping with relief. The first thing she saw was one of her colleagues coming in through the main door and letting in a blast of cold air as she did so.

‘It’s so windy today,’ said the woman, straightening her hair.

‘Yes,’ agreed Alice. ‘Gale force.’

Marmion had no difficulty in finding Royston Liddle. He lived with his widowed mother only two streets away from the Golden Goose. When his visitor called, Liddle was feeding two rabbits who were scrabbling about in their hutch. He opened the side door of the yard and called up the entry that ran between the houses.

‘Who is it? I’m down here!’

Marmion peered down the entry. ‘Mr Liddle?’

‘That’s me,’ said the other, grinning broadly.

He was a short man with a compact frame. Though still young, he was totally bald. He had large protruding eyes with the gleam of innocence in them. Beneath his snub nose was a pencil-thin moustache that looked like a supplementary eyebrow. On a chill morning, Liddle wore nothing more than a collarless shirt, a pair of crumpled trousers and some dog-eared slippers.

‘I was just feeding Mild and Bitter,’ he said. ‘They’re my rabbits. When people go to the pub, they ask for mild or bitter. I like both, see? So that’s what I named them.’ He gave himself a congratulatory giggle. ‘Clever, isn’t it?’

‘Yes, Mr Liddle.’

Marmion introduced himself and explained why he was there. The grin never left Liddle’s face. He invited his visitor into the house and took him to the living room, a small, cluttered space with hideous green wallpaper and an abiding smell of boiled cabbage. Royston Liddle had to move a pile of clothing off the settee so that Marmion could sit down. Perched on an upright chair, he nodded away.

‘Mummy isn’t here at the moment,’ he explained. ‘She works in the shop.’

‘Actually, it’s about your job that I came, Mr Liddle.’

‘Everyone calls me Royston.’

‘So I gather.’

‘Which job do you mean, Inspector? I’ve got five altogether.’

He chuckled as if it was some sort of record. It transpired that he worked part-time at two pubs other than the Golden Goose. He also helped to deliver milk every morning and did two afternoons at a furniture warehouse. Liddle was anxious to display his full range of abilities.

‘Mummy cleans the big house on Wednesdays,’ he said, ‘and I sometimes help her, though of course, I don’t get paid for that.’

Marmion could see that the landlord had got the man’s measure. Royston Liddle was a willing simpleton. His glaring lack of intelligence was balanced by a burning desire to please, in whatever mundane station in life. Jobs that others might view as beneath them constituted a legitimate career in his view. When Marmion talked about the explosion at the Golden Goose, Liddle expressed shock and outrage but his grin nevertheless remained intact.

‘Where were you at the time?’ asked Marmion.

‘I was down the cellar of the Black Dog,’ said Liddle. ‘I was moving a barrel when the explosion went off. I heard it clearly even though I was five streets away.’

‘Mr Hubbard said that you did some work earlier for him.’

‘That’s right. I had to sweep the floor of the outhouse and put up that table. There was a birthday party there.’

‘And you did that when the pub was closed, I understand.’

‘Yes, Inspector.’

‘Did you lock up after you?’

‘Oh, yes, I have to or Mr Hubbard gets angry.’

‘Did you notice anything unusual when you went to the outhouse?’

Liddle was baffled. ‘Unusual?’ he echoed.

‘Was there anything out of place?’

‘No, Inspector, there was just the usual pile of crates. I moved them out of the way so that the girls had some room. Oh, and I used the brush to get rid of the spiders in the roof beams. I know that some people are scared of them.’ He thrust out his chest. ‘I’m not. I like spiders.’

‘Tell me about the key to the outhouse.’

‘It hangs on a hook in the corridor.’

‘I know that. Has it ever gone missing recently?’

Liddle became furtive. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’

‘Well,’ said Marmion, ‘from what I hear, it would have been easy for any of the customers to take that key and let themselves into the outhouse. Is that true?’

‘I suppose it is.’

‘Mr Hubbard confirmed it.’

‘Then it could happen.’

Marmion watched him carefully. The grin had now become sheepish and Liddle’s body had hunched protectively. Patently, he was hiding something.

‘You do realise that this is a murder investigation,’ said Marmion, putting some steel into his voice. ‘You are aware that withholding evidence is an offence, aren’t you?’

‘I’ve done nothing wrong, Inspector,’ bleated Liddle.

‘Let me be the judge of that.’

‘I just looked the other way.’

‘What are you talking about?’

Royston Liddle wrestled with his conscience and ran a hand across his pate. It suddenly occurred to him that he might be in trouble and his mother was not there to speak up for him, as she habitually did. He was alone and hopelessly unequal to the situation. He started to bite his nails and his grin was almost manic.

‘I think you’re holding something back, Royston,’ said Marmion. ‘You can either tell me what it is right here or we’ll go to the police station and have a formal interview. Is that what you’d prefer?’

Liddle emitted a squeak of terror. Having lived a blameless life, he’d never had the slightest trouble with the police. He was a fixture in the area. Constables on patrol treated him with amusement. The idea that he might be arrested by a detective from Scotland Yard sent a shudder through him. He got apologetically to his feet.

‘It only happened a few times, Inspector,’ he confessed. ‘And it wasn’t really my fault. I mean, he’s a friend of mine. I just did him a favour.’

‘Who are we talking about?’

‘He gave me two shillings once but that’s all.’

‘What did you have to do to earn it?’

‘I had to pretend I didn’t notice,’ said Liddle, ‘and say nothing to Leighton.’ He put his hands together in prayer. ‘You won’t tell him, will you, Inspector? If you do, I could lose my job there.’

‘It all depends on what you actually did for this friend of yours.’

Liddle breathed in deeply and gnashed his teeth. ‘I didn’t report it when that key disappeared on the hook. They wanted to use the outhouse.’

‘Who are they?’ pressed Marmion.

‘I don’t know her name but she lives in Hyde Road somewhere. On Tuesday, they were only in there for half an hour. I know that because I checked that the key was back on the hook. No harm was done. It wasn’t a crime or anything like that.’

‘What you’re telling me is that someone had unauthorised access to that outhouse and that you were aware of it.’ He stood up to confront Liddle. ‘Who is this friend of yours and where can I find him?’

Maureen Quinn sat in the gloom with her hands in her lap and her head on her chest. Time meant nothing to her. She was so preoccupied that hours slipped past unnoticed. Unknown to her, people had come and gone throughout the morning. When the heavy door squealed back on its hinges yet again, she was unaware of it. Even the clang of the iron latch being replaced failed to rouse her. It was her mother’s voice that finally brought her out of her meditation.

‘Maureen!’ cried Diane Quinn. ‘Thank heaven we found you!’

‘I had a feeling that she might be here,’ said Keedy.

Diane rushed to the pew at the rear of the church and embraced her daughter. It was a poignant reunion, both of them weeping copiously. It was some while before Diane was able to offer an explanation. She indicated Keedy.

‘When he came to the house yesterday,’ she said, ‘the sergeant noticed that you were wearing a crucifix. I told him that we don’t go to church very often because your father hates it. That’s why I never even thought to try here. It was Sergeant Keedy who suggested it.’

‘How are you, Maureen?’ he asked, gently.

Her voice was distant. ‘I’m fine, thank you.’

‘Why didn’t you tell us you were coming here?’ demanded Diane.

‘Daddy would have stopped me.’

‘I thought you’d gone to work.’

‘I wanted to,’ said Maureen, ‘but I came here instead.’

‘I was at the factory when your mother came looking for you,’ said Keedy. ‘I went to see Mr Kennett. He was able to tell me something about … the people at that birthday party. He’d gathered a lot of information about them. People said some very nice things about you, Maureen. You have a lot of friends there.’

‘The best ones have all gone.’

‘Is that why you came here — to pray for them?’

Maureen nodded. ‘I needed to think.’

‘I’ll take you home now, darling,’ said Diane, hugging her.

‘I’d like to stay for a bit, Mummy.’

‘But you’ve been here for ages. You must be famished.’

‘I don’t want anything to eat.’

‘At least come away with me. You can think at home.’

‘It’s not the same.’

Maureen continued to protest but her mother wouldn’t be denied. She wanted her daughter where she could see her. Keedy was anxious to return to the factory but he stayed long enough to hear Maureen’s desperate plea.

‘Don’t tell Daddy about this, will you?’ she said. ‘He wouldn’t understand.’

It was Marmion’s turn to meet the works manager. Like Keedy, he found him both pleasant and accommodating. Bernard Kennett answered all his questions readily and offered him free access to the site whenever he wanted it. Factories involved in the war effort were not always so welcoming. Marmion had had tussles with hidebound security systems on more than one occasion. Some managers sought to put the preservation of their rule book above a police investigation. Kennett took the opposite view. In the interests of solving a crime that had unsettled the entire workforce there, he would bend the rules to the full extent. In fact, Marmion drew a blank on his visit but he wasn’t dismayed. Establishing a rapport with Kennett was important. It was something he’d not yet managed to do with the irascible landlord of the Golden Goose.

Taking his leave, Marmion left the building and headed for the main gate. No sooner was he let out than he saw Keedy approaching with his usual jaunty stride.

‘It’s all right for some,’ complained the sergeant. ‘You have use of the car whereas I have to travel by Shanks’s pony.’

‘Mr Kennett told me you’d gone off with Mrs Quinn.’

‘You’ve met him, have you?’

‘Yes, and he’s as helpful as you said.’

‘What brought you here, Harv?’

‘Tell me about Maureen Quinn first. Did you track her down?’

Keedy explained that he’d followed his instinct and reunited mother and daughter. The incident had shown him just how afraid they both were of Eamonn Quinn. They’d agreed to say nothing about Maureen’s disappearance and to make Lily hold her tongue as well. When he got home, Quinn would be unaware of the female conspiracy in his household.

Marmion explained that what had brought him to the factory was a name that had been given to him by Royston Liddle. It belonged to one of the drivers who worked there. Unfortunately, Alan Suggs was not on the premises. He’d driven off with a consignment of shells and would be away for some time. Keedy was not sure that the man was worth pursuing.

‘I reckon he’s in the clear, Harv,’ he said. ‘If he only used that outhouse as a place for a rendezvous with his girlfriend, he wasn’t really breaking the law.’

‘He was trespassing, Joe.’

‘We can’t arrest a man for spending half an hour in an empty outhouse. Apart from anything else, it would blight his romance.’

‘I just want to talk to Suggs.’

‘Well, show a bit of sympathy. Think back to the time when you were courting Ellen. According to Alice, her parents were not exactly impressed at first by the idea of you as a future son-in-law. I bet that you had a few secret meetings when and wherever you could.’

‘That’s beside the point,’ said Marmion, unhappy at the reminder. ‘We didn’t hide in a place where five women were blown up only days later.’

‘Are you saying that Suggs is a suspect?’

‘I’m saying that we should check every lead we have. While I’m waiting for him to drive back here, I’m going to call at the homes of some of the victims and see what I can unearth. I thought I’d start with the one person that Maureen Quinn told us so little about and that’s Shirley Beresford.’

‘Well, I can tell you two significant facts about that young lady,’ said Keedy. ‘The works manager did some research on our behalf. I have his notes.’

‘Excellent — what do they tell you, Joe?’

‘Shirley Beresford was married and she was their star player.’

‘Star player?’

‘Believe it or not, this factory has its own women’s football team. They not only finished top of the league, they’re due to play in a cup final next week against a team from Woolwich. They take the game very seriously.’

‘That is interesting,’ conceded Marmion. ‘What about the other women at that party? Did any of them play in the team?’

‘Yes, they did. Maureen Quinn is their goalkeeper.’

‘Is she any good?’

‘She’s one of the reasons they won the league, Harv. She keeps out shots at one end of the pitch while Shirley Beresford scores goals at the other. They were both crucial members of the team. See what I’m starting to think?’

‘With two of their best players out of the way, they’d be badly weakened in that cup final. Woolwich would be clear favourites.’

‘It all sounds so far-fetched, though,’ argued Keedy. ‘I know that passions run high in sport but would anyone really stoop to something like this?’

Marmion needed a few moments to consider his answer. Weighing heavily with him was the fact the munitions factory at Woolwich would employ lots of people who knew how to handle explosives. Cup finals did tend to intensify feelings.

‘All’s fair in love and football,’ he concluded.

Diane Quinn sat on the bed with an arm around her elder daughter. She’d been so frightened by her disappearance that morning that she didn’t want to let her go. Maureen’s bedroom had blue patterned wallpaper, much of it covered by sepia photographs of the works football team and accounts of their progress cut out of the local newspaper. Her football kit was on a coat hanger on the back of the door and her goalkeeper’s gloves were on the bedside table. A football was tucked in a box among a pile of assorted items. The room was small but it had seemed vastly smaller when Maureen had shared it with her sister. The departure of their brothers to the army allowed the girls to have a room each. It was a boon to Maureen. While she yearned for the safe return of her brothers, she revelled in her new-found privacy.

‘Don’t feel you need to speak until you’re absolutely ready,’ said Diane.

After a long, uneasy, painful silence, her daughter finally spoke.

‘I’ll never forgive myself,’ she said, dully. ‘I was ashamed.’

‘You’ve nothing to be ashamed of, Maureen.’

‘I forgot. I only slept for a couple of hours last night but, when I woke up, I forgot. I thought it was a normal day so I got up as usual, got ready and let myself out. It was only when I stood on the corner waiting for her that I realised Agnes wasn’t going to come. Can you see how awful that was, Mummy?’ she asked. ‘My best friend was murdered yesterday and I somehow managed to forget. That was terrible.’

‘Not at all,’ said Diane, rocking her gently to and fro. ‘In a way, it’s only natural. You were so harrowed by what happened at the pub that you had to put it out of your mind — nothing wrong in that. A lot of people would have done the same.’

‘I felt that I’d betrayed Agnes — and the others, of course.’

‘You should have come straight back home. I’d have taken care of you.’

‘I was too frightened. Daddy would have known what I did.’

‘He loves you, darling. He’s just not very good at showing it.’

‘I stood on that corner in the cold for ages. People were staring at me.’

‘Ignore them. Having that complexion is not your fault.’

‘Do you know what I felt like doing?’

‘What?’

‘I felt like going round to Mrs Radcliffe’s house to apologise. I wanted to say sorry that I’d made a dreadful mistake waiting for her and that it didn’t mean I didn’t care for Agnes. I cared for all of them — they were my friends.’

‘Maureen,’ said her mother, taking her by the shoulders and turning her so that they faced each other, ‘I want you to promise me something.’

‘What’s that?’

‘Don’t — on any account — go to see Mrs Radcliffe.’

‘Why not? I always got on well with her.’

‘That was when Agnes was alive. Things are different now. When I was searching for you, I called on Mrs Radcliffe and got a real mouthful from her. She said some nasty things about you and I left before I lost my temper with her. I know she’s bereaved but that doesn’t mean she can abuse my daughter.’

Maureen was hurt. ‘What did she say?’

‘It’s better that you don’t know. Keep away from her.’

‘I loved Agnes — and the baby.’

‘That’s all in the past now, Maureen. Get used to it.’ She released her hold on her daughter’s shoulders. ‘Why did you go to church?’

‘I remembered what Father Cleary said to us at Sunday school once. He said that church wasn’t just a place where we held services. It was a place of comfort and it was open twenty-four hours. If any of us was in difficulty, that’s where we had to go. So I did. It’s why I went there, Mummy. I wanted solace.’

‘Did you find it?’

Maureen fell silent and picked up the football, fondling it in her arms as if holding a beloved child. It was minutes before she gave her answer.

‘I don’t know,’ she said.