The Mystery Woman (Ladies of Lantern Str - By Amanda Quick Page 0,29
that threatened to consume him, he had been drawn out into the streets of London’s violent underworld.
Victor Hazelton had found him on those streets and forever changed his life. Victor had understood him. The man known as Mr. Smith had shown him how to control the tempestuous energy that seethed in his gut, taught him how to focus and control the wild forces of his nature. Victor had become his mentor, his father in every way save by blood.
Joshua now faced a lifetime of knowing he had failed Victor, the man who had saved him from himself.
“If all goes according to my strategy, this matter will be concluded within a day or two at Alverstoke Hall,” he said.
“Nevertheless, it might be useful to have me conveniently at hand,” Nelson pointed out, still hopeful.
What the hell, Joshua thought. He had tried to keep Nelson out of the investigation as a favor to Hannah. She did not want him exposed to the world in which Joshua had once moved. But it was Nelson who had first realized that Hannah was being blackmailed. He had a right to assist.
“As it happens,” Joshua said, “I have another, very critical task that I would like you to undertake.”
Nelson’s excitement was palpable. He almost glowed with enthusiasm. “What is that?”
“I want you to look into Fleming’s murder. Several months ago it was a sensation in the press because of Fleming’s association with the paranormal. I want you to interview everyone you can find who was living or working near the building where the Academy of the Occult had rooms. Shopkeepers, servants, tenants, deliverymen, the local constable, the baked-potato man. Ask them if they noticed any strangers hanging about in the neighborhood in the days before the murder.”
Nelson frowned. “I don’t understand. I thought you said that the blackmailer was very likely the killer. You are off to Alverstoke’s country house to find him.”
“I examined the autopsy report this morning. There was information in it that leads me to believe that we may be dealing with a hired killer. It’s possible that he is also the blackmailer, but I am now inclined to think that it is more likely the blackmailer employed a professional. And blackmail may not have been the original goal.”
“What do you mean?”
“Whoever sent the killer to the Academy intended to have Miss Lockwood abducted.”
“Why?” Nelson asked.
“There are those who become obsessed with the paranormal and those who claim to practice that sort of nonsense. It appears that some deranged individual fixed his attention on Miss Lockwood and sent the killer to grab her. Obviously the assassin missed but he evidently found the blackmail material instead and turned that over to his employer, who is now attempting to profit from the affair.”
“Why wait nearly a year to blackmail Mother?”
Joshua smiled approvingly. “Excellent question. For all we know the blackmailer has been extorting money from other victims for the past several months and has just now gotten around to threatening Hannah. But there are other possibilities.”
“Such as?”
“I don’t know,” Joshua said. “That is why we refer to our efforts as an investigation. We are looking for answers.”
“Right.” Nelson was animated and enthusiastic once again. “I was not aware that one could hire a killer the way one does a housekeeper or a gardener.”
“It is a good deal more complicated than it sounds, especially if one wishes to employ an expert,” Joshua said. “I believe that Fleming’s killer was, indeed, an expert. Such men work methodically and cautiously because they do not want to take the risk of being caught. They study the daily habits and routines of their intended victims for some time before they make a plan.”
“I understand. You believe that Fleming’s killer very likely spent considerable time watching Miranda from various vantage points near the premises of the Academy.”
“That’s certainly how I would have approached the affair had I been in the assassin’s shoes,” Joshua said without thinking.
He realized that Nelson was watching him with far too much speculation and curiosity.
“Never mind,” Joshua said quickly. “It would be extremely helpful if you were able to obtain a full description of the killer, but after all these months that won’t be possible. Even if a few people remember a stranger who spent time in the neighborhood prior to the murder, they won’t recall the color of his eyes or hair. The one fact we do have is that the assassin spoke with a heavy Russian accent. That should narrow things down considerably.”