The Family Secret. Terry Lynn Thomas

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СКАЧАТЬ had loyally served the Crown under a convoluted chain of command that led through Whitehall and straight to Downing Street. He had survived war, hand-to-hand combat, and a stint in a German prison camp. Sir Reginald had promised a long rest after his latest mission. It seemed as though his superior was going to renege on his promise.

      Sir Reginald ignored Thomas as he shook the paper and carefully folded it before setting it on top of the stack next to his chair. Just being in Sir Reginald’s presence set Thomas on edge.

      ‘I’m here, Reginald. Why did you want to see me?’

      ‘How’s the shoulder? Infection cleared up?’ Sir Reginald leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. He surveyed Thomas with his rheumy eyes. Thomas wondered when the old man would finish with this business. God knew, he was ready to leave it all behind. He thought about moving to the country, spending his days doing research and writing in earnest, not just as a cover for his various missions. Of course, Cat would be with him. They would marry … He turned his focus to Reginald. ‘Fine, thank you. My stay in the hospital proved beneficial.’

      ‘Haakon commended you. I thought you’d want to know. He credited you for keeping your head in Nybergsund.’

      ‘I wasn’t the only one who kept a cool head,’ Thomas said. ‘It was a group effort, believe you me. I’m just grateful they came willingly. I wouldn’t have relished forcing the King and the Crown Prince to come to England against their will.’

      ‘Agreed. Now, onto more pressing matters—’

      ‘No. I’m not interested in pressing matters. I’m finished. We had a deal. No more. I’m not fully recovered from the events in Norway. My shoulder isn’t healed yet. I’m tired and physically weak. I was assured a long rest would be forthcoming, and I intend to take it.’ He wondered what Reginald would do if he simply got up and walked away. Would the old man come after him? Send some henchmen to do his dirty work?

      ‘You can’t walk away from this, Thomas. You’re too far in. Trust me when I tell you civilian life would not suit you. You’re not fully recovered yet, so you don’t appreciate how you enjoy the excitement. This type of work gets in your blood. You’d grow bored in months, maybe weeks. You and I both know you’ve grown accustomed to the money. Have you thought about finding a situation that pays you as well as I do? And, just in case you’re not feeling appreciated, I need your delicate expertise.’

      Liar. Thomas watched as Reginald fussed with his gold cufflinks. They had been doing this dance for years now. How many times had Thomas told Reginald he was finished with this business, only to have Reginald ignore his words and send him on another mission, often more harrowing than the last one?

      ‘If I say no?’

      ‘But you won’t.’ The old man stared at Thomas through heavy lidded eyes. He hurried on, not giving Thomas a chance to object. ‘You’re to go north, to a small village in Cumberland called Rivenby, under the guise of a rest cure. Take Cat Carlisle with you. I’ve arranged a house for her. When you approach her, tell her you’ve found her a house, you want her and the child safe when the bombs come. Scare her. Tell her they will come. She’ll be of use to you. She grew up in Rivenby, lived there until her parents died and she moved to London with her aunt. She’ll provide an in for you socially.’ Reginald tossed a sealed envelope onto Thomas’s lap. The envelope slipped to the floor. The old man watched as Thomas bent to pick it up, as if he knew Thomas’s attitude would change now given Cat Carlisle’s involvement.

      Thomas let himself get carried away by his fantasy of a life with Cat in a quaint village. They’d have a garden, and a house filled with sunlight. Oh, Cat. I hope I’ve not ruined it between us. He shook his head, focused on the dingy room and the miserable man who sat before him. After thirty years, Thomas knew there was no such thing as an easy mission. Why did he think there would be one now? When he spoke, his voice was calm and steady. ‘And the nature of the mission?’

      Reginald rubbed a hand over his face. For a fleeting moment Thomas saw the exhaustion there.

      ‘This is serious business, Thomas. One of ours has been murdered. She was a major player in the last war, a brilliant cryptographer. She worked in the field before we discovered she had talents in code breaking. She’s made her fair share of enemies. Two weeks ago someone tampered with the brakes of her car. It crashed and she died. I’m afraid an enemy from long ago has tracked her down.

      ‘She has a son, a Phillip Billings. His picture is in the packet, along with a scant dossier. Phillip’s quite the Lothario. Actually lived in a house owned by his boss’s wife, if you can believe that. She doted on him, bought him clothes, a car, the two were attached at the hip.’

      ‘Her husband didn’t mind?’ Thomas asked.

      ‘Apparently not. In any event, she caught him with another woman and kicked him out of the house. Despite a wardrobe full of tailored suits, she wouldn’t let him have anything but the clothes on his back. She was spiteful, tried to convince the police that he made off with a rare diamond necklace. Phillip came close to getting arrested, until the lady’s maid – she was rather involved with Phillip too, if the gossip is accurate – found the necklace hidden in her mistress’s desk. So Phillip returned to Rivenby penniless. He spends money like a lord and has accumulated a fair share of gambling debts.’

      ‘Does his mother have anything in her possession the Germans could use now? Something they would buy? It just seems far-fetched they would come after her now. Codes and tactics have changed since 1919.’

      Reginald shook his head. ‘Not sure.’

      ‘Local police?’

      ‘Treating it as a homicide. Investigation ongoing. The woman’s name is – was – Win Billings. She’s got a niece she doted on, named Beth Hargreaves. Beth’s husband died six years ago. They’ve got a daughter, Edythe, who is 18 years old. The two have been living with Win. Phillip expected to inherit, but his mother changed her will, leaving the bulk of her assets to Beth.’

      ‘So if Phillip killed her, it was for nothing? What about Beth? Could she have killed her aunt?’

      ‘Anything’s possible, but I doubt it.’

      Thomas had already made up his mind. Sir Reginald would get his way this one last time. Thomas would do so because of Cat. All he needed to do was convince her to go with him.

      ‘What exactly do you want me to do? I have no standing, and surely the police are working the case.’

      ‘I need your eyes, nothing more. This is strictly a watch-and-observe mission, with an eye towards interested parties who may try to influence the investigation or who show an unusual or inappropriate interest in things. There will be plenty of time for you to rest and take care of yourself. The country air will build your strength. The long walks in the woods will put the colour in your cheeks. I told the police you were coming as a favour to me. The DCI in charge, one Colin Kent, knows of Win’s service in the last war. Kent’s a good chap. He understands the lay of the land. He’ll give you no trouble. You can speak freely to him. Mutual cooperation is the operative word here.’

      Trust Sir Reginald to make it all sound innocuous.

      ‘So am I correct in understanding you want me to observe the investigation, keep my eyes open in the village, and determine if anyone involved with Fifth Column operations murdered this woman as a vendetta killing? You’d think they’d have more pressing matters, like the war at hand, rather than the settling of scores from twenty years ago.’

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