Mystery at the Station Hotel by Edward Marston

Author:Edward Marston
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Allison & Busby Limited
Published: 2025-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

A miracle occurred at Scotland Yard. When Robert Colbeck delivered his report, Superintendent Tallis did not once interrupt him. That was highly unusual. Tallis was in the habit of breaking up the inspector’s flow with demands for further detail about certain points in the narrative. He was now eerily silent. Colbeck took advantage of the unexpected freedom to talk at length about the murder investigation in Shrewsbury. It was only when the inspector’s report was complete that Tallis finally found his voice.

‘Are you convinced that the man calling himself Jack Brown was the killer?’ he asked.

‘I am, sir.’

‘And do you have a description of this individual?’

‘It was given to me by the stationmaster, the person who first made us aware of what had happened in Shrewsbury.’

‘Your telegraphs were full of praise for this man.’

‘The praise was well deserved, sir. Mr Biddle has been extremely helpful. But there have been others who deserve a mention – Dr Clement and Archie Reeves, in particular. They gave us invaluable information about the town.’

‘Yet there has still been no arrest,’ sighed Tallis. ‘Thanks to your warning, I was able to put Mr Lockyer’s house under surveillance. The suspect did appear, but Detective Constable Hinton was unable to arrest the man.’

‘I’m sure that he did his best, sir.’

‘There was a violent struggle but Jack Brown – or whatever his real name is – escaped. Hinton did, however, manage to wrest a weapon from him.’ He opened a drawer in his desk and took out a large knife. ‘This is it.’

‘The suspect is clearly a dangerous man,’ said Colbeck, studying the knife. ‘Hinton did well to disarm him.’

‘But he failed to overpower him, Inspector. The killer is still at large.’

‘And we still don’t know who hired him.’

‘Didn’t his son give you the names of his father’s enemies?’

‘No, sir,’ said Colbeck. ‘Young Mr Lockyer doesn’t believe that such enemies exist.’

‘Then what was the motive behind the murder?’

‘He has no idea. His love for his father verges on hero-worship. He can’t understand why anyone would wish to take the life of such a remarkable man. My own view is that the son is in for some very unpleasant surprises. I feel sorry for Pelham Lockyer.’

‘My sympathy is reserved for Julian Lockyer’s wife. She has lost a man with whom she lived for the best part of forty years. The one blessing is that she will be unaware of his death. I’ve met the poor woman, and her mind is no longer functioning.’

‘Then she will not be shocked by any revelations that come to light.’

‘Quite so,’ said Tallis. ‘What are your next moves?’

‘Firstly, I’d like to speak to Detective Constable Hinton about his brush with the killer.’

‘Then I should warn you that he came off worse in the tussle.’

‘If he was able to disarm the man,’ said Colbeck, indicating the knife, ‘then he deserves praise. He will be able to give us some sort of description of the suspect.’

‘You’ll find him here at Scotland Yard.’

‘Then I’ll talk to him at once.

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