The Corpse at Windsor Bridge (A Stephen Attebrook mystery Book 10) by Jason Vail

Author:Jason Vail [Vail, Jason]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-06-10T23:00:00+00:00

“You want to know how to pick locks, eh?” Dot asked.

They had taken seats on a grey bench that swayed a bit as they sat down, but fortunately did not collapse. Ida was grateful for the bench, even as she doubted it would hold up, because its availability meant she didn’t have to go back into the tavern and face the stench and the stares of those men.

“Whatever for?” Dot continued, with amusement.

On close inspection, Ida saw that Dot was a rather pretty girl with full, rosy cheeks and a small agile mouth. Dot was only a few years older that Ida, too, no more than nineteen or twenty. But she already had lines about her eyes from care and perhaps too much of an affection for wine.

Ida looked down at her hands folded in her lap. “I need to get in a certain room.”

“What’s in the room that is so important to you that you need to break in?”

“There are things there.”

“What sort of things?”

“Things that can be sold.”

“And why would you want to sell these things?”

“To pay my brother’s fine.”

“What’s happened with your brother?”

“He’s being held in Oxford gaol. If I don’t find a way to pay his fine, they’ll cut off his hand.”

“Why would they do that?”

“He’s accused of poaching. But he didn’t do it!”

“Of course, not.” Dot looked thoughtfully toward the Thames. “You know, if this room is rich enough, there might be those who would take on the work for you. For a fee, of course.”

“Really?” Ida asked.

“Hereabout the Red Candle there are those who specialize in such things, getting into locked houses, strong rooms, and the like. They are available for hire.”

“That’s so hard to believe.”

Dot chuckled. “Why a couple of people here, whom I cannot name of course, just burgled a place for a client — but a few weeks ago.”

“Why ever would they do that?”

“The client, a stinking rich cleric, said his property was in hold there. He was willing to pay a huge amount to get it back. It was too easy and well-paying a job to pass up.”

Ida held her breath for a couple of heartbeats, and then asked as disinterestedly as she could, “What could be so dear to him the he would risk so much?”

“A gold cross with jewels,” Dot said. “On a gold chain.”

“So he just paid up and you went on your way?” Ida asked with what she hoped was disbelief leavened with disinterest.

“That’s the size of it. We are professionals, after all. Now, about your problem.”

“It’s very dangerous.”

“How so?”

“The room of which I speak is in Wallingford Castle, a strong room in the tower,” Ida said. She had never been to Wallingford Castle, but it wasn’t more than a day’s ride from London. She knew of it because she had heard one of Percival FitzAllan’s sergeants, who had been in the garrison there, talk about it. “It’s well guarded. Surely you’d get caught.”

“Hmm. And you can get to it?”

“I am a servant there. No one pays attention to what I do or where I go.

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