After being dropped off at the hotel by Fuad Clara and Bella retired to Clara’s room for the afternoon to discuss the case. They agreed that their best line of enquiry was with the Europeans. They could not easily get to Quft to hunt for Mohammed Hassan – they’d have to leave that to Rahman and Mackenzie – and Clara had no idea where to start looking for the elusive Reginald Yorke. She wondered about him. The sightings of him and his odd behaviour were so far their strongest clues.
‘Was it Yorke who put the jewels of Ahhotep under the mummy?’ mused Clara. ‘Or was it Farnsworth? Daphne told me Scotland Yard had found stolen artefacts in his flat in London. I had assumed – and I expect the police do, too – that he had stolen them and was going to sell them on. But what if it was the other way around? He’s a Guardian, remember. What if he acquired the artefacts on the black market – or took them from museum stores – with the intention of returning them to Egypt? Was he intending to give them to Daphne so she could do that? Or they could do it together? If so, Daphne didn’t seem to know about it.’
Bella raised a finger. ‘Or maybe she did and just didn’t tell you. She’s not been totally honest in this, has she, Miss Vale? She didn’t tell you she was one of these Guardians.’
Clara nodded. ‘She didn’t. But that’s probably because she was sworn to secrecy.’
Bella pursed her lips. ‘Aye, that may be so, but she could have saved you a lot of bother if she had done.’
Clara agreed. ‘Yes, it would have been helpful. I’ll be having a chat to Daphne as soon as I can. But can’t do much while she’s being questioned by the police. But for now, let’s get back to the Yorke/Farnsworth’s timeline. First Farnsworth. So, he’s still on the train. He sees Yorke get on. Or Yorke seeks him out. Yorke could have killed him and switched the mummies between York and Newcastle.’
‘Did he switch the mummies or did the Maryam mummy come from London with Farnsworth?’ asked Bella.
‘No, I don’t think it did,’ said Clara. ‘Everyone I spoke to at the British Museum who helped crate it up said that Farnsworth left with the original mummy. So I believe Yorke had Maryam’s body with him in York. How he got her there from Egypt – and why – we still have to find out. But I’m going with the hypothesis that he did have her with him and switched her body on the train. I suspect he killed Farnsworth in the freight carriage – perhaps they’d arranged to meet there – and then put him in the coffin with the old mummy. And he broke the lock on the door so no one would walk in on them. Yorke then got off the train in Newcastle with the first sarcophagus, now housing Maryam’s body – and the jewels.’
Bella nodded. ‘Aye, that makes sense. But, assuming Farnsworth was dead when he arrived in Edinburgh, that means someone collected the crated-up coffin from the train and put it in the storage facility. So, as I suspected, there must be an accomplice involved. Unless Yorke rushed up to Edinburgh, got the body off the train, rushed back, broke into your house, and so on. Not likely.’
‘Indeed,’ said Clara. ‘So, we need to find out which of our archaeologists is involved.’ She tapped her finger to her lips. ‘Davies seems the obvious suspect.’
‘Why’s that?’ asked Bella.
‘Because he and Miss Philpott left Newcastle the day after the exhibition and went up to Edinburgh. Petit was very put out that they didn’t stay to help with the inventory of my uncle’s collection, remember?’
‘Aye, I do. And that means Miss Philpott could be involved too. She seems like a canny enough woman. I liked her – but that doesn’t mean owt, does it?’
‘No,’ said Clara, smiling, ‘it doesn’t mean owt. But it does mean that it’s possible Davies and Philpott – or just one of them – could have collected the coffin from the train.’
Bella frowned. ‘But they only went up the next day. They couldn’t have been there when it arrived.’
Clara nodded. ‘Hmmm, that’s true. But they could have simply paid someone to offload it and signed for it the next day. That’s something we – or the police – could find out. But we can’t know that for sure now.’
Bella agreed. ‘But we do know that Mackenzie said Davies was one of the archaeologists that the porter was investigating before he died. Him and Dr Stein. Stein remained in Newcastle, though. So it couldn’t have been him going up to Edinburgh.’
‘That’s correct,’ observed Clara, ‘but it doesn’t mean he’s not involved. He could have been there to receive the jewels from Yorke.’
Bella shook her head. ‘Aye, that’s something I don’t understand either. Why did Yorke wait until after the reception to try to get the jewels? Why didn’t he just take them when he was on the train?’
Clara shrugged. ‘Perhaps he thought it easier to deliver the sarcophagus and then get the jewels later – under the cover of darkness. Or perhaps he wanted to meet someone first. Perhaps he was waiting for payment before he revealed the whereabouts of the jewels.’
Bella’s eyes widened. ‘Aye, miss, that sounds more like it. So meeting either Davies or Stein. Or both.’
‘Or Petit …’ added Clara.
‘I thought Mackenzie said he’d been cleared?’
‘He did. But he didn’t say why.’
‘No, he didn’t,’ said Bella, frowning. ‘And he also didn’t say anything about Rudy or Larry. Have they been cleared, too?’
‘You’re not suggesting …’
Bella shrugged. ‘I honestly don’t know, miss, but isn’t it what Monsieur Poirot would do? Consider everyone a suspect until he had evidence they were not?’
Clara sighed. ‘You’re right, he would. And we should too. But do we really think they’re involved?’
‘I don’t know, miss, I’m just saying what Poirot would do. I like Rudy. I spent ten days with him. I’m a good judge of character. But he is Stein’s assistant. And Mackenzie said Stein was a suspect. Rudy himself told me Stein was angry that the Germans had been blocked from digs for so long. And he was even more angry that now they were allowed back in, the rules had been tightened so much they couldn’t get much out. So maybe he’s trying to make up for lost time. To try to get as much loot out of Egypt as he can before they shut it down completely. To enrich himself, even if he can’t put anything in his museum.’
Clara followed Bella’s logic. It made sense. ‘Yes, that sounds plausible. It doesn’t mean Rudy is involved, though. But he might be. So let’s keep an open mind about that. And I suppose,’ she sighed, ‘that means we need to keep an open mind about Larry too.’
Bella gave a tight smile. ‘Aye, it does. And let’s not forget he’s really German.’
‘Well, an American whose father is German. And he did fight on our side during the war. That must mean something.’
‘Aye, it might. But didn’t Rudy say Larry’s father is paying for this new dig? That he – a German – is the money man? That’s he’s good friends with Stein?’
Clara nodded. ‘You’re right. But we’ll need a lot more than that to involve him. I was with him when Yorke was seen here in Egypt.’
‘And I was with Rudy.’
Clara smiled. ‘Yes, you were. But Larry wasn’t in Newcastle. Rudy was.’
Bella sighed. ‘Aye, you’re right. So, what are we going to do about tonight? Are we still going with them to the restaurant?’
‘Why not?’ asked Clara.
‘Because Mackenzie said we shouldn’t leave the hotel.’
Clara laughed. ‘Bella Cuddy! Are you really going to obey that little instruction?’
Bella grinned. ‘No, miss. And you’re not neither.’