Ravi paused outside Scotland Yard as Dr Carlingford marched ahead of him with her footman one step behind her. She had so much energy and passion, he couldn’t help but be drawn to her, as the air virtually radiated in waves of power around her. And it wasn’t like she was drop-dead beautiful, either. He couldn’t quite figure it out. Watching her created a slow burn inside him. She was of medium height, had a plain face with a mouth that was too wide, and lips that were continually in action. When she spoke, her features came alive with energy. Her wide, full mouth said outrageous things—all the things he wanted to be able to say—no wonder she fascinated him. Weak sunlight filtered through the smoke-clouded sky, creating a halo of light around her hair. The light created glints of gold among her light brown hair, and when she turned back towards him, the gold reflected in her eyes. Amber brown with streaks of yellow gold. No wonder she wore a gold necklace, as the jewel tone emphasised her eyes.
‘Come along. You have a job to do,’ she said. She managed to portray the sense that she had her hands impatiently on her hips, although she stood elegantly posed in the arched doorway. He bounded towards her, unable to stop a grin breaking out. He pulled his glasses from his jacket pocket, gave them a quick clean, and placed them on his face.
‘Yes, boss,’ he said as he pushed open the door. It had been a while since he last had to come here to help out one of his clients. The wooden reception bench was unchanged, however, a new large map of London now graced the wall behind the officers at the front desk with the new tube stations of the Metropolitan Line outlined neatly.
‘Excuse me, my name is Mr Howick,’ he said. ‘And I’d like to see the officer in charge of the Carlingford case.’
‘I hope you are treating Mr Carlingford with utmost care,’ said Dr Carlingford. The young officer sneered at them both.
‘This isn’t the circus. You can’t just come in here and demand to see people,’ he said.
‘I am Mr Carlingford’s lawyer.’
‘And I am the King of Spain,’ said the officer. ‘If you are done wasting my time …’
‘We are not finished here. And we won’t leave until we see the person we need,’ said Dr Carlingford.
‘Oh look, it’s one of those outspoken women. An insufferable suffragette. We have a cell just for the likes of you,’ said the officer.
Ravi cleared his throat. Trust his luck to get one of the new recruits with a head full of power. Dr Carlingford vibrated with rage beside him. He brushed his hand against hers, a gesture that felt way too intimate as he touched the soft satin of her glove, and he snatched his hand away.
‘Sir. You must be new to the Yard. I suggest you put your attitude back in your little pocket and get Officer Wedsley,’ he said quickly.
‘Is there a problem here?’ An older officer joined the conversation, and Ravi let out a small sigh of thanks.
‘He says he is Mr Carlingford’s lawyer,’ the younger officer said with a raucous laugh.
‘I imagine he is correct in that notion,’ said the older officer. ‘Good morning, Mr Howick.’
‘Good morning, Officer Richards. I see the latest recruits have yet to complete their education into the grand diversity of life in London.’
Dr Carlingford chuckled quietly beside him, the sound warming his chest.
‘Which peer are we bailing out today?’ said Officer Richards.
‘None. I’m here to represent Mr Carlingford. Do you know who has his case?’
‘Oh, the Carlingford case. Well, that one has everyone talking. It’s gone direct to Commander-in-Chief Hepelthwaite.’
‘But I understood that it’s a simple fraud case. Surely it doesn’t require such a high level?’
‘The Yard are rather touchy over matters concerning the turf, and this is a big one,’ said Officer Richards. Ravi nodded slowly as the case was unveiled. No wonder Dr Carlingford had hinted that it wouldn’t be simple. ‘Should I take you through to him?’
‘Yes, please. Come along, Dr Carlingford,’ said Ravi.
‘You’ll have to leave your lovely guest here. No women allowed.’
‘Surely you can make an exception in this case. This is the daughter of the accused.’
‘Rules are rules, I’m afraid. Miss Carlingford will have to wait.’
Ravi turned towards Dr Carlingford expecting to see her fuming with rage. However, he almost stepped backwards as she stood there with an expression of resignation. He raised his eyebrows in query. She responded with a tiny shift of one shoulder.
‘Rules are rules, Mr Howick. I will take my fragile feminine brain and wait over here. Please do ensure you apply that legal degree with utmost care to my father’s case. Come along, Higgins. Let’s take a seat over here.’ She spoke quietly, her words embalmed with a calmness at odds with the sneer in her words.
‘That’s the spirit, Miss Carlingford,’ said Officer Richards.
Ravi chuckled inside as her only response was to lift her nose slightly. He got the feeling that someone was going to hear about this later, and he wanted it to be him.
‘This way, Mr Howick,’ concluded Officer Richards, ignoring Dr Carlingford completely. Ravi nodded once to her, then followed the officer towards the door at the end of the room that led to the interviewing rooms.
‘Yes, Richards?’ Commander Hepelthwaite spoke with the cultured accents expected of a Baron’s son, although his bushy moustache did muffle his words a fraction. Hepelthwaite sat behind a frugal wooden desk with piles of paper neatly stashed on the desk, and in piles around the clean and functional room.
‘Mr Howick has taken the Carlingford case,’ said Richards.
‘Good day, Howick. Richards, could you get Wedsley? Thank you,’ said Commander Hepelthwaite. Richards left the office, and Hepelthwaite stuck out his hand for Ravi to shake. ‘Bored with the antics of young peers, are you? And how is your illustrious brother?’
Ravi ignored the first question. ‘He is fine, sir.’
‘Excellent. Most excellent. His continued support in Lords is highly appreciated.’
‘I will pass that on,’ said Ravi. He grinned internally at Dr Carlingford’s earlier comment about second sons, and wanted to see her reaction when she discovered the truth about his older brother, Lord Dalhinge.
‘I expect you want to hear all the details of the Carlingford case?’ said Hepelthwaite.
‘That would be rather helpful to my client, sir.’
‘We will wait until Wedsley gets here. He’s my most promising young detective, and knows all the intricacies of this case. Do you know much about the original Turf scam that led to the set-up of the Criminal Investigation Department?’
‘No, sir. That was before my time,’ said Ravi.
‘Of course. I forgot how young you are. It was a dirty business. It was a decade ago, 1877, you must have been only in school?’
‘I was twenty, part way through my degree, sir.’
‘Right, well, a lawyer brought a Turf betting scam to the notice of the Yard. You know, one of those betting schemes where people pay into an account, and initially get huge payouts from bets supposedly placed. Then the people continue to pay in greater and greater sums, but no more payouts come. The trick of this one was to scam people in Paris with betting on races at lowly meetings in England. Easy enough to fudge the results.’ Ravi nodded. He could see how that would work in practice, as devious as it was. ‘The real problem came when we tried to arrest the culprits. The Yard knew early on who they were—a Mr Benson and Mr Kurr—but eventually, it was uncovered that they were getting tipoffs from an internal source at the Yard. A bad, bad business. Three inspectors stood trial for corruption, and the CID was born out of that disaster.’
‘And because the Carlingford case hints at being involved in horse racing, your detectives have pounced?’ said Ravi.
‘There is no hint here, boy. Carlingford set-up a fake race meeting and won huge—simply huge—bets on the results.’ Ravi hoped his poker face was on point. Surely Carlingford didn’t need the money. Hepelthwaite appeared to be waiting for his response.
‘Fascinating. While we wait, is there any message I can pass on to Lord Dalhinge for you?’ he said in an obvious misdirection.
‘How kind of you. Yes, I’d love to meet before the next sitting in regards to the next draft of the repeal to the Statute Law Act,’ said Hepelthwaite. A short knock preceded Officer Wedsley who walked into Hepelthwaite’s office with a large bundle of papers in his hands. ‘Ahh, Wedsley. This here is Mr Howick, who has been granted the unenviable task of defending Carlingford.’
‘Yes, we have met before. Don’t you usually deal with the misbegotten deeds of the wealthy youth?’ said Wedsley with a cold smile.
Ravi nodded. He had the patience of a saint to hear this daft joke about his clients from every single officer, every single time he came here. And the implication that he was one of the peerage but not really one of them at all. Part peer, part servant, at least in their eyes. His nostrils flared as Wedsley sat down and fluffed with his pile of papers.
‘Just the overview, please, Wedsley,’ he said. Wedsley flicked a glance at his superior officer Hepelthwaite, who dipped his chin in an almost nod.
‘He almost got away with it. If it wasn’t for an error in the printed results which caught the beady eyes of bookmakers, the whole scam would have gone unnoticed. You do have to admire the cleverness of the plot, and that’s why we knew it had to be a man of substance who planned it.’
‘The evidence, if you will,’ said Ravi.
‘Two newspapers, the Sporting Man’s Times and the Racing Guide, both received notice that the Swainright Hunt Club would hold a race meeting on the first Monday in August. The date is, of course, the Bank Holiday. So many sporting events happen that day, I assume the point was that the Swainright Hunt Club meeting would get minimal attention.’ Officer Wedsley paused, a dramatic drawn-out pause that made Ravi want to thump the desk. He clenched his fist against his thigh rather than let his impatience show on his face.
‘Continue,’ said Hepelthwaite. Wedsley flicked an annoyed glance at his superior officer that made Ravi ponder their relationship.
‘The papers were sent the race day fields a week before, and they dutifully published them. Bookmakers took bets on the races, and the same source sent the results to the paper along with the prices that the winners paid. The bookmakers paid out, as per a normal race day, and no-one thought anything of it. Until one of the bookmakers, a Mr Hickman, queried the price on the winner of the hurdle. The simply named Roy won at 5-1, at least according to the notice in the Sporting Man’s Times, but paid 5-2 in the Racing Guide. Hickman asked the two papers to query their source for the correct price, and the scheme came undone when no-one responded. It didn’t take much digging for everyone to realise that Swainright Hunt Club didn’t exist. The other bookmakers who had paid out on the results wanted their funds back, and the Hunt—’ Wedsley guffawed at his own joke, ‘—was on.’
‘Can you explain how you connected this to my client?’ asked Ravi.
‘The news-sheets were sent letters by the Swainright Hunt Club. We traced the source of the paper they used to the Carlingford residence,’ said Wedsley.
‘Surely many residences use the same type of paper,’ said Ravi in a tone that suggested Wedsley needed to reveal more information.
‘Perhaps, but the real key was there on the page in front of us. Here.’ Wedsley handed Ravi a folded newssheet with the race meeting open at the top. One race had a large circle of blue ink around the list of horse names. Ravi ran his eye over the field quickly.
11 runners
1. Cox’s Mare
2. Angel Rose
3. Roy
4. Le Dasher
5. Into the Wings
6. Never Rains
7. Great Scot
8. Fred’s Favourite
9. Occy’s Trap
10. Racing Styles
11. Dreaming of Eclipse
Without the inked circle, he wouldn’t have seen it.
‘Either Mr Carlingford is incredibly egotistical, or this is—as he says—a set-up. No man in his right mind would put his own name into a scam,’ said Ravi, keeping his gaze firmly on Wedsley’s superior. Wedsley made a small choking sound.
‘The evidence that you have presented is flimsy. None of it points directly to Carlingford. I suggest that it only tells you that someone wants you to assume Carlingford is involved.’ Ravi breathed out to create a deliberate pause. ‘Please release my client until you have more concrete proof.’
‘But, but …’ started Wedsley. Officer Hepelthwaite waved his hand and Wedsley sensibly shut his mouth.
‘The CID takes gambling crime seriously,’ said Hepelthwaite.
Ravi waited. Hepelthwaite’s obvious response required no reply. Given their history, the statement was unsurprising, and he pounced on it.
‘In this case, I humbly suggest that your enthusiasm has created a situation where your department has overstepped the mark and prematurely arrested the wrong person,’ said Ravi. Wedsley’s face reddened, his fashionable black moustache twitching. Ravi catalogued his reaction. He would have to tread carefully around Wedsley in the future. ‘However, my client will fully cooperate with the next stage of your investigation. Mr Carlingford is motivated to discover the source of this threat to him and his business.’
‘Don’t get ahead of yourself, Howick. We haven’t agreed to let him out yet,’ said Wedsley.
‘I don’t see any other course of action. Your evidence doesn’t stack up. At best, you have proved that someone in the Carlingford household either did this scam, or has been made to appear as though they did this scam. You can’t pin that on Mr Carlingford when many others share his abode.’ Ravi bit back a smile as Hepelthwaite nodded his agreement, while Wedsley coughed again.
Ravi paused before he showed his best card. ‘Besides, Hepelthwaite, I believe we have a mutual interest in cooperating over this, and other, issues.’ Hepelthwaite’s nostrils flared, and Ravi clamped back the urge to rub the back of his neck. Had he overstepped by invoking his brother’s support? Using the peerage was a bad habit, grown over years of working for Woodleyville.
‘Wedsley—’ Blast. He had. No good could come of Hepelthwaite addressing his officer, rather than him. ‘I believe Mr Howick has the right of it.’ Ravi let out a slow breath between his teeth, one that almost whistled. No wonder it was a habit, it continually worked.
‘But—’ started Wedsley.
Hepelthwaite shook his head. ‘We will release Mr Carlingford. However, he remains our key suspect. As Mr Carlingford’s lawyer, I must insist that you do your utmost to assist Officer Wedsley and the CID with their investigation,’ said Hepelthwaite.
‘Mr Carlingford will cooperate fully in your investigation,’ said Ravi. Yes. The tightness in his chest turned into a slight puff as the simplicity of achieving something real sunk home. He had to win this case, his future goal of his own practice rested on it.
Twenty minutes later, Ravi followed Mr Carlingford and Officer Hepelthwaite into the front office of the Yard building. Dr Carlingford stood up and raced over with her hands outstretched. She stopped a few steps before the group, and Ravi smiled inside at the way she compiled her emotions and stood before her father composed and elegant.
‘Father.’
‘Nice job on the selection of Mr Howick. A few clever words and this ridiculous drama is over.’
‘Excellent.’
‘I suggest we invite Mr Howick for the evening meal tonight, and we can go over the conclusion,’ said Mr Carlingford. Dr Carlingford blinked once, and her tiny reaction intrigued him because she managed to give the impression that she was averse to the idea. He wanted to know if it was his presence she reacted to, or the idea of running over the details of the case with her father.
‘You are most welcome,’ she said with a nod in his direction. ‘I have a patient I need to see, so I will meet you there.’ She glanced over at her footman, and for the first time Ravi noticed that he carried a large black satchel.
‘And I must get back to business. I will see you at dinner,’ said Mr Carlingford. He nodded briefly in their direction, then paced out of the Yard.
‘You are most welcome to use the company carriage,’ said Ravi.
‘For my patient visits?’ she asked. A slight flush lingered on her cheeks. His glasses pressed against the wrinkle in his nose. She raised one eyebrow slowly, and the flush deepened. After a pause, a sly smile chased the corner of her lips, and he found himself leaning towards her so he wouldn’t miss what she said next.
‘I will take your offer. You might find the process quite instructive.’ She spun elegantly and walked away towards the exit. Her footman followed her, which left Ravi no choice but to join the parade.