The Cursed Writer (The Baker Street Mysteries) by Holly Hepburn

Author:Holly Hepburn [Hepburn, Holly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Boldwood Books
Published: 2024-10-17T00:00:00+00:00

10

Harry had very few memories of what life had been like during the Great War. She knew her father had served, could remember long periods of time when he was not at home, but her brothers had been too young to join up and the worst of the horror had passed her by. Plenty of her friends had been touched by the tragedy, however, and Harry was well aware how lucky she was. And never was she more conscious of her privilege than when she read Philip St John’s first novel, the one that had made his literary fortune.

The Blood-soaked Soil was set in 1917, and chronicled the life of a young man in the trenches, from his patriotic pride at signing up, to his horror as the reality of war stripped his romantic notions away. It was every bit as searing as the poetry of Wilfred Owen, and Harry was frequently moved to tears as she read. Even the dedication – To Rupert Templeton, who died that I might live – caused an ache in her chest. It took her two nights to read it, staying up far later than she should, and when she had finished, she understood why its author was considered such a prodigious talent. It made her all the more determined to solve the mystery of his illness.

All too conscious that John Archer was expecting an update on Thursday, Harry spent much of Tuesday evening poring over the book of poisons she had borrowed from the London Library. Many of the toxins described had symptoms that did not fit with what she had observed; often, they were instantly debilitating, making death an inevitability. There were only a handful that caused a gradual onset of symptoms, and she could not imagine how anyone at Thrumwell Manor could have acquired them. Her initial suspicion was lead poisoning from old pipes, but long-term exposure caused anaemia and a blue tinge around the lips and gums that she felt sure a doctor would have noticed. Short-term exposure in high doses presented itself as tiredness, appetite loss and hallucinations – all of which got Harry’s attention – but were also accompanied by nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, which were thankfully not symptoms Philip St John suffered from. It was a conundrum Harry would have given a great deal to solve but as yet no solution presented itself.

Her research was interrupted around eight-thirty by the telephone. She answered to hear Oliver’s voice on the line. ‘Hello. I thought I’d check in and see how you were faring with setting the trap for your bank burglar.’

‘Very well,’ she said, with some satisfaction. ‘In fact, I caught him. He confessed to the whole thing – it turns out he’s been working for Pemberton but now he wants to be some kind of double agent. Can you believe it?’

‘Yes, unfortunately,’ Oliver said, sounding disapproving. ‘It’s the kind of thing I hear a lot, working in the court system. Some of the more hardened criminals will say anything they think you want to hear.

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