Murder by Candlelight by Faith Martin

Author:Faith Martin [Martin, Faith]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Reggie had set up his ancient camera in a patch of gloriously flowering thistles in the hopes of getting a good photograph of some bees and butterflies. He was hoping to write and get published a modest but comprehensive volume of the fauna and flora of the Cotswolds (if he could find a publisher) with his own plates for illustration. Right now, he was glad to have something to take his mind off recent events.

With the thick black cover over his head, shoulders and the camera lens, he peered at the upside-down image of a gatekeeper butterfly and clicked the switch, counting down the exposure time. When he emerged from under the black-out material, however, he found himself face to face with an interested Arbie Swift and perked up. Just the man he wanted! An author like this was bound to know a publisher who might be interested in his natural-history project.

But before he could ask, Arbie spoke first. ‘I say, Mr Bickersworth, I had no idea you had a camera with you – and such a … er … beauty too,’ he said, looking at the Victorian contraption with a determined smile. It looked as if it came out of the ark and was nowhere near as good as his own Sico. Swiss made and only one year old, the camera’s unusual wooden casing had attracted him first, though he had quickly come to value it for its relatively compact form and reliability. It took 30 x 40 millimetre exposures with a 1-300 shutter speed, and he’d used it extensively to illustrate The Gentleman’s Guide.

‘It’s a total relic of course, but I’ve found it does produce marvellous plates,’ Reggie said, feeling a little ashamed of the horror. The truth was, the camera had been given to him by a friend clearing out his attic, and he was in no position to look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth. And at least he was of the generation that could still remember how to use one. Just!

Arbie was not, as some might suspect, totally insensitive, and saw that the old fellow was a little ashamed of his equipment and sought a way to be kind. And, as so often happened to Arbie – who had always had more than his fair share of luck – he came up with something that was also to his benefit. ‘I don’t suppose I could persuade you take some photographs of the Old Forge for me, could I?’ he asked craftily. For if he had to get on with writing another book (and it was beginning to look as if circumstances were so much against him that he just might), then why not farm out as much of the actual work as possible?

‘I’d be delighted, old chap, absolutely delighted,’ the older man said, for a moment forgetting his sorrows and actually beaming. ‘I say, does this mean you’re writing another Gentleman’s Guide? How exciting!’

‘Yes. I was thinking of concentrating on other tourist spots inland this time.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.