Page 24

T oby left early on Monday morning for the Foreign Office, hoping to catch Gervase Quinn for a few minutes before he got too busy. The first post had already arrived, but it had nothing of specific import so he left it on the hall table, and then spotted their postman continuing the first round of deliveries to Ormond Yard.

On his way, he passed several delivery boys in horse and cart or and even one on a newfangled bicycle. The streets were littered with horse dung, and he crossed several times to avoid the most pungent smells.

His name was already known to the young man at the front desk who controlled entry and exit, so he passed quickly through the main hall and took the stairs to Quinn’s office. The door was open, so he rapped lightly on the frame.

Quinn looked up from his paperwork. “Good morning, Marsh. We didn’t have an appointment, did we?”

“No. I was hoping to take five minutes of your time.”

“Come in, then. All this dratted paper will wait. Have you learned something that might be of interest to us?”

Part of the connection between Toby, Magnus and the Foreign Office was that they would keep their ears open for anything that might affect her majesty’s government. “I’m honestly not sure,” Toby said as he sat. “I have come into possession of some information about the death of Mr. Nathan Walpert.”

“Now you have my attention,” Quinn said. “He has been the subject of much conversation here. Officers have been despatched to Walpert’s office to review what he knew about this Suez deal and whether that information might have been compromised.”

“You know, of course, that the soirées Magnus and I host attract a certain kind of men,” Toby said.

“Would that include Mr. Walpert?”

Toby shook his head. “Neither of us has any knowledge of him.”

Quinn knitted his hands together in front of him. “Then you must be referring to his alleged assailant, Mr. Curiel.”

“As you can imagine that knowledge is very delicate, and could potentially ruin the career of an innocent man.”

“You are certain of his innocence?”

“Reasonably certain. He has entered into a connection with a friend of ours, Silas Warner, a law clerk for barrister Richard Pemberton. According to Silas, Mr. Curiel fought in an early bout, and then the two of them decamped from the boxing arena to dine together at the Tabard Inn. From there, they attended a soirée at our home.”

“Interesting.”

“Magnus and I have gone over the timetable with Silas, and with another guest who would prefer to remain nameless at this time. Our guest states that at the time Silas and Ezra were at dinner, he was at the fights. He happened to find himself leaving the arena shortly after Mr. Walpert.”

“For an assignation?”

“If there was one intended, it was only on the part of our guest, not Walpert. Our guest witnessed a conversation between Walpert and a much larger man, which resulted in the large man punching Walpert in the chest. Walpert fell to the ground and the assailant departed. Our guest, whose father was a physician, is acquainted with the signs of death. He hurried over to Walpert, quickly identified that he was dead, and left.”

“Your guest, as you call him, must immediately report to the police,” Quinn said.

“It’s not that easy,” Toby said. “First, he cannot identify the assailant as he only saw him from behind, in the dark. Second, he does not want to admit to attending our soirée.”

“Your guest didn’t overhear anything of the conversation between the two men?”

“Not as far as he has told us. He was not close to them, and there was a great deal of noise from the ongoing fight.”

“So we have no way of knowing if this assault was related to Walpert’s work.”

“Both Silas and our guest have indicated that Walpert was a gambling man, and both have suspected that he might have met with someone from his bookmaker’s.”

“Since you have shared some confidence with me, I will share some in return,” Quinn said. “It is our understanding that Walpert was indeed a gambler, and that he might have been in significant debt. It is feared that he might have passed compromising documents in exchange for the release of that debt. However your evidence casts doubt on that.”

Quinn frowned. “Do you think Walpert’s death was an accident?”

Toby nodded. “From our guest’s testimony to us. And if he was a gambler, it makes no sense to kill him while he owes a significant debt.”

“That is certainly true. It is a complicated scenario. Any ideas why Curiel’s wife would put him in the frame if he is innocent?”

“It’s possible that she knows about his dalliance with our friend Silas. Putting him in gaol would free her to administer his funds and operate as an independent woman.”

“The fair sex. They often have schemes against us, don’t they? Sometimes I envy you, Marsh. You and Magnus have found a way to live that does not require a female.” Then he smiled. “Though I must admit the ladies have attributes that balance out their troubles.”

“Is the Foreign Office taking further steps to investigate Mr. Walpert’s death?” Toby asked.

“In conjunction with Scotland Yard, of course,” Quinn said. “I believe a detective will be interviewing Mr. Curiel, or already has, about his connections to Walpert and any knowledge of the Suez deal.”

“We will keep you informed of anything relevant we find,” Toby said.

“And consider convincing your guest to speak with the police,” Quinn said. “From what you have told me, his evidence could be useful, and what he did after seeing Mr. Walpert die is not relevant.”

He stood. “And then I must say goodbye, as I have a great deal of paperwork to go through, and I want to reserve some time to consider what you have told me. Be aware, though, that Walpert’s death is potentially a case of national security, which will increase the pressure on both the legal system and Scotland Yard to bring this case to a quick conclusion.”