Page 81 of Fire Must Burn

‘Fine,’ said Iris. ‘What did you think of our new friend, Lucinda?’

‘She doesn’t seem overly mournful over her brother,’ said Gwen as they headed north. ‘Of course, it has been over three years since she lost him, and people react to loss in different ways, as we both know too well. That was quite the performance you put on in there, by the way. I wasn’t expecting tears. How do you do that?’

‘Part of my Intelligence training, oddly enough,’ said Iris. ‘They brought in an acting coach to work with us. The theoryfor women was if information came out of us while we were sobbing uncontrollably, it would be more likely to be believed. Now, I can cry on cue with the best of them.’

‘This was training for being interrogated?’ asked Gwen.

‘Yes,’ said Iris. ‘And tortured.’

‘My God, Iris,’ said Gwen, taking her hand and squeezing it for a moment. ‘I remember you telling me about the women you knew who were tortured and killed by the Nazis after their capture. They had this training as well?’

‘They did,’ said Iris. ‘Not a single one of them gave up a single thing.’

‘You were crying last night when you told me what happened at the Pickard place,’ recalled Gwen. ‘Those tears were real.’

‘They were,’ said Iris. ‘You were right, I needed to get that off my chest. The gin helped.’

‘I hope you’ll forgive me for that,’ said Gwen.

‘For what? For plying an alcoholic with drinks? It’s what we live for. If anything, you probably kept me from drinking even more last night.’

‘That was part of my thinking. It doesn’t make me any less complicit.’

‘Work it out at church or with Dr Milford,’ said Iris. ‘I personally absolve you. So, what else have you figured out?’

‘I am very interested in the fact that Mrs Dorter was set up in a very nice situation by Mr Pickard shortly after his son either fled or was banished from England,’ said Gwen. ‘The generosity of the gesture and its timing are curious, to say the least. It sounds like her silence was purchased.’

‘And if it cost that much, she must have known something of consequence,’ said Iris. ‘Have you ever been to Bradford-on-Avon?’

‘No. It sounds lovely. I think we should visit.’

‘If it’s on the Avon, maybe we could take my boat there,’ mused Iris.

‘Which would also be lovely if there were no urgency to our quest,’ said Gwen. ‘Come back to my place after our appointments and we’ll consult the train schedules. We’re off to the country for the weekend. My treat.’

TEN

The next morning, Iris packed her small suitcase for the two-day trip. She thought about their cover stories, then added her binoculars and the water beetle book.

She had planned to stop by the hospital to see Tony before meeting Gwen at Paddington station. She spotted the Brigadier’s man as she checked in at the visitors’ desk, monitoring the area once again in his porter’s outfit. He made no signals, so she continued on to the lift to the intensive care ward. A different constable was standing guard outside Tony’s room. He checked her ID and waved her in.

Tony was awake, though his eyes were somewhat unfocussed this morning. Still, he saw her and immediately lifted his hand in greeting.

‘Good morning, my angel,’ he said hoarsely. ‘How goes the avenging? And why the suitcase?’

‘I’m off to the country for the weekend,’ she replied, pulling up a chair next to his bed.

‘Because of me?’

‘Even Vengeance needs to go on holiday once in a while,’ said Sparks. ‘I’ll be refreshed and ready for more bloodthirsty pursuits come Monday. How are you feeling?’

‘They’re not letting me feel much of anything, yet,’ he said. ‘I dread the eventual reawakening of my nerve endings. It will be like opening a stack of unanswered letters, each containing a scream of pain saying, “Hello, remember me?” Oh, speaking of which, I received a lovely note from Miss Lowle. She said she knows the worst, but doesn’t care. She wants to see me. The nurse who read it to me has quite taken her side in this. She’s already cast Wendy Hiller in the movie version.’

‘Hiller’s too old,’ said Sparks. ‘You need a fresher face.’

‘I’m sure anyone’s face would look fresher next to mine at the moment,’ he said. ‘In any case, I’m thinking of relentingand giving the poor girl a chance. If she doesn’t flee screaming from the room when she sees me, then I might consider charging the general public admission to the one-man freak show.’

‘I think you’ll find she’s tougher than she looks,’ said Sparks.