The Midnight Peacock. Katherine Woodfine

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СКАЧАТЬ in her direction; customers nudged each other, recognising her photograph from the newspapers; and some of the older doormen shook their heads, muttering that they ‘didn’t know what the world was coming to’. It would seem that not everyone approved of the idea of a young lady becoming a private detective.

      But Sophie paid that no attention. She loved being part of Taylor & Rose. She had never really felt like she fitted in with Edith and the other salesgirls in the Millinery Department. It was not that she had minded selling hats for a living – in fact, there had been times when she had rather liked it. But her new work fascinated her like nothing else. Of course, the cases they dealt with were not on the same scale as the Baron’s schemes, but each was engrossing just the same. They put her brain to the test, forcing her to trust her instincts and hone her powers of observation – and they absorbed her completely.

      But today for once she was struggling to keep her mind on work. It was almost Christmas; and the office of Taylor & Rose was unusually quiet. Mr McDermott was away on the Continent on business, Lil had gone out to visit one of their clients, and whilst the rest of Sinclair’s hummed with people, on the first floor, Sophie had been alone all the afternoon. The office was a pleasant place, attractively decorated for them on Mr Sinclair’s orders, with a pretty sitting area, furnished with elegant chairs and a table spread with the latest fashion papers. There were two desks, one for Sophie and one for Lil, and even the telephone which Mr Sinclair had insisted must be installed stood on its own dainty little table beside a vase of flowers.

      Yet in spite of Mr Sinclair’s ladylike vision, the office of Taylor & Rose had swiftly acquired its own particular atmosphere, which was not really smart or elegant at all. It was a place where friends came to call, where crumpets were toasted before the fire on wet afternoons, where tea was poured from their own teapot, books and newspapers were read, and the latest cases were discussed – Sophie usually pacing up and down on the rug, whilst Lil leaned back in her chair, resting her boots on her desk in a most unladylike manner. In fact, the office had begun to feel like home, Sophie thought – in a way that nowhere had since she had left Orchard House a year ago.

      But thinking of Orchard House led her back to Papa, and thinking of Papa led her back to the Baron, and that was no good at all. Sophie went back over to the desk, curled herself in her chair, and pulled the sheaf of documents decisively towards her. She must stop thinking about all that, and actually do something useful.

      CASE NOTES, she read – but before she had got any further, there came an unexpected knock on the office door.

CHAPTER THREE

      ‘It’s only me,’ said a familiar voice, and Billy came into the room, bearing a stack of envelopes. ‘We’ve just finished downstairs. Mr Sinclair had the journalists eating out of the palm of his hand, of course. They’re ever so excited about the New Year’s Eve Ball. Here, I’ve brought up your post.’

      Before he handed it over, he paused for a moment to shake his head at Sophie. Billy was always very keen to ensure that Taylor & Rose operated as professionally as possible. Though he continued to work in Mr Sinclair’s offices, reporting to Miss Atwood, he had been given permission to spend one day a week, helping Sophie and Lil with their new business. And that was a jolly good job, he was given to remark, since neither of them had the first idea of how an office ought to be run.

      ‘If you want Mr Sinclair to take you seriously, then you have to do things properly,’ he reprimanded Lil half a dozen times a day. Billy had been well trained by Miss Atwood, and in his book, doing things properly meant writing reports, filing documents, keeping careful accounts with neat red lines ruled in all the right places, and making sure their desks were always tidy. That was an easy enough matter for Sophie, who rather liked putting things in order, but an almost impossible task for Lil, who was forever surrounded by a jumble of crumpled papers and spilled ink. Most importantly of all, Billy said, they must always be ready to receive clients who might turn up without an appointment. Now he looked at Sophie disapprovingly. Sitting comfortably curled up in a chair was not what he considered properly businesslike.

      But Sophie just grinned at him. ‘I don’t think we’ll get any new clients this afternoon,’ she said. ‘They’re all downstairs, choosing presents and buying delicious things to eat. Christmas just isn’t the season for mysteries. Why don’t you sit down? I’m sure Miss Atwood can spare you for a few minutes, and I was just going to make some tea.’

      Appreciating the logic of this, Billy shrugged, and flopped down into a chair. ‘Oh – are those the notes from the Albemarle case?’ he asked with interest. ‘Let’s have a look.’

      Sophie passed over the documents willingly, as she flicked quickly through the afternoon post. At first glance it all looked quite usual: two letters from clients that she put aside to read later; some bills and circulars; and the latest edition of Theatrical News for Lil, who combined working for Taylor & Rose with performing on the West End stage. But underneath them was a narrow envelope with a foreign stamp. She frowned. Surely that handwriting was familiar? She swiftly ripped the envelope open – but her gasp of surprise was stifled by the bang of the door opening again as Lil burst into the room, her cheeks rosy from the cold.

      ‘Hello, all!’ she announced breathlessly, casting off a stylish coat with a fur collar, and tossing a pair of new kid gloves carelessly down upon the chair. Whilst she might look very much the glamorous young actress these days, Sophie knew that underneath the fashionable clothes and hairstyles, Lil was just the same girl that she had been when they had met at Sinclair’s for the very first time. There could certainly be no doubt that she still talked just as much as ever, Sophie thought with a smile.

      ‘Gosh – I don’t think I’ve ever seen the store so busy before, have you? Oh yes, it all went quite well. Miss Balfour said she was awfully pleased with everything we’ve done – and she’s going to recommend Taylor & Rose to all her friends. I say, just look at how the snow is coming down! It makes it feel like it’s really Christmas. Isn’t it cosy in here? Joe’s on his way up and look – Leo’s come to tea with us. I’ve promised her cake, so I jolly well hope we’ve got some.’

      Sophie saw that another girl, of about the same age, had followed Lil into the room. In her plain, dark coat, now speckled with melting snowflakes, Leo Fitzgerald could easily have been mistaken for any ordinary schoolgirl. But the big portfolio she carried, and a certain dreamy gleam in her brown eyes were clues to the fact that Leo was a promising young artist, currently studying at London’s prestigious Spencer Institute.

      ‘Hullo, Leo!’ exclaimed Billy.

      ‘Come and sit by the fire and get warm – it’s so cold outside,’ Sophie urged her. ‘I didn’t realise you were still in London – I thought you’d have already gone home for the Christmas holidays.’

      Leo carefully set down her portfolio, and the cane she always used – a rather beautiful one, made from a rich, dark wood, with a handle carved into the shape of a lion’s head. ‘I’m going tomorrow,’ she explained, as she unwound her scarf. ‘Some of us students have been helping Mr Kamensky with the scenery for the New Year’s Eve Ball and there’s been an awful lot to do. But it’s been good fun – and truthfully I’ve been rather glad to have an excuse to stay in town a little longer. I’m in no rush to go home,’ she confessed. ‘In fact, that’s what I wanted to talk to you all about. I wondered whether you had plans for Christmas?’

      Sophie did not answer at once. She wasn’t quite sure what to say. She knew that the others would be busy on Christmas Day: Billy would spend the day with his mum and Uncle Sid, and she expected that Lil and her older brother Jack would go home to see their parents. But she herself had no plans at СКАЧАТЬ