Shadow of the Dolocher Read online

  Just as it looked as though he were about to escape through a rear door, a beam of the roof cracked and he paused long enough for the section of the roof just in front of him to collapse and miss him by mere inches. Flecks of burning pieces of wood sprayed onto his clothes which must have been soaked in the accelerant also as they went up quickly.

  Muc and Edwards stopped in their pursuit at the shocking sight of this and looked on dumbfounded. The heat was becoming unbearable, and the man cried out in pain as he rushed about trying to remove his clothes. Through the shimmering heat haze, Edwards saw the man’s eyes, and he knew at once that it was Spencer. At that same moment, Muc grabbed Edwards' arm,

  "We need to get out of here," and he indicated a door that hadn't been blocked by flames.

  "I have to get him out," Edwards said pulling away.

  "Suit yourself," Muc shouted, and he strode to the door, uninterested in being of any assistance to Edwards in his folly.

  Edwards held his cloak against the heat and moved through the archway and came to where Spencer was,

  "Spencer, it's me, Edwards, we need to get you out of here!" he shouted and he rushed forward and threw his cloak around the spiralling Colonel.

  As he was wrapped in this Spencer lost his balance and fell over sideways but Edwards managed to take his weight, and he saw the fear in Spencer's eyes. Did he even know what was going on around him, Edwards wondered as he pulled him away towards the door Muc had left by.

  Edwards' lungs were filling with smoke, and he was feeling weak, but he was near enough to the door now that he could hear the oxygen burn as it whooshed in and he stumbled out into the light, and both of them fell to the ground.

  There was a blur in the light, and suddenly Edwards was cold and soaking wet, and the shock sent both men to their feet. Edwards looked to see the smiling face of Muc with a long trough, formerly filled with water for the horses, held in the air where he had doused the two men and put out the flames.

  "Was that entirely necessary?" Edwards said wiping the run off from his face.

  "I could have let you both burn," Muc said with a shrug. He looked at Spencer who was coughing and still looked wild -eyed with fright.

  "Spencer, it's fine now, you're safe," Edwards said to him.

  "You know him?"

  "He's one of the members here. A Colonel in the army."

  Loud cracks came from all over the house, and they manoeuvred Spencer to a safe distance from the building and looked on as it began to crumble to the ground. At this, Spencer began to come out his trance, and he looked on with seeming hope for something. Edwards was amazed by the spectacle himself, he had never seen a structure burn so fast and begin to fall down like this. Of course, it was only the wooden sections and the ramps of the entrance that were collapsing, the stone structure stayed put, but it was soon a hollow shell, smouldering and reeking of scorched wood and charred fabrics.

  "Is it gone?" Spencer said after a time. His voice was filled with a dreaded hope.

  "Is what gone?" Edwards asked.

  "The painting," Spencer looked at him as if entreating him to go and look as he could not bear to do so himself. So, that's what this little escapade was about, thought Edwards. This painting had surely done a number on Spencer's sanity; there was no question about it.

  "I'll go look," Edwards said, and he walked over towards the former lodge.

  He could feel the heat trapped in the stones as he got closer and he knew it would be unwise to try to clamber up into the shell of the building, so he walked around until he could see into the room that held the painting.

  Very much to his surprise he saw those two ferocious eyes looking out at him and the painting completely undamaged, not so much as a scorch mark or peeling of paint that he could see from this distance. A chill went up his spine, and for the first time in life, he felt unnerved by something so inanimate as this painting. He walked back to the two men.

  "Nothing left at all in there by the looks of it," he said cheerily. They said little else as they gathered the scared horses and started to ride down the hill away from the former Hellfire Club.

  Chapter 69

  The mortuary was dark and quiet when Edwards approached, but he could see the candles lit in Adams' office. He walked across the courtyard, and his steps made loud noises on the gravel underfoot. The candle flickered, and Edwards saw the shape of man come to the window. The man opened it and peered out into the night.

  "It's only me Dr Adams!" Edwards called out.

  "Mr. Edwards?" Adams asked, "What has you here at this hour, has there been another murder?"

  "How would I know?" Edwards said smiling.

  "Go to the door over there, and I'll let you in," the doctor said. Edwards did as he was asked and soon the bolt from inside lifted, and the door opened. "Come to the office, it's the only place with a bit of warmth left tonight," Adams said beckoning him to follow.

  They walked along the short corridor and into a small office where Adams had been working. He closed the door and gestured with both arms out for Edwards to take a seat. Edwards did so, and Adams sat down too.

  "Will you have a drink?" Adams asked, but Edwards shook his head no.

  "I have not come on a social visit," he said curtly. Adams seemed surprised by his tone.

  "No?" Adams said, raising a thick eyebrow.

  "You went too far in attacking Kate," Edwards said, and there was no hiding the anger in his voice.

  "What?" Adams was incredulous, he looked lost for words.

  "Don't toy with me Adams, I know what you've been up to."

  "I don't know what you're talking about."

  "Don't worry, the Alderman isn't close to catching you, he has another man pegged for these murders."

  "I don't know..."

  "You have been killing these people, starting with the man in the tower," Edwards interrupted him.

  "That man died in locked gaol! No one killed him, no one could have!" Adams protested.

  "Someone with the skill you have with a bow could have done it," Edwards said, he was very satisfied at having figured this out, and he watched as Adams' face dropped. "How did you do it, climb one of the buildings nearby and shoot with the arrow attached to a string so that you could reel it back in?" Adams nodded slowly with an air of dejection. "That was risky, what if you missed or if the arrow became ensnared in the bars when you tried to pull it back?" Adams shrugged,

  "Neither would have mattered. The man in there was of no importance; it was the location of the death that was key. If it had gotten caught in the bars, I just would have left it there. All that would have been different would be that it would have been obvious as a murder from the off."

  "It was some shot," Edwards said appreciatively.

  "Sweeter than I had hoped," Adams said with a grin of satisfaction. "He never suspected a thing until it slit his throat."

  "The Alderman had that room turned upside down and inside out and then burned looking for something he could have cut himself with,"

  "That's why you invited me to go hunting that day, isn't it? To see what kind of shot I had?" Adams smiled at Edwards’s cunning.

  "And you did not disappoint," Edwards also smiled at his own cunning.

  "You've known since then?" Adams was surprised by this. "Why did you not turn me in?"

  "What you are doing is of no concern to me so long as certain people don't get hurt," Edwards said coldly.

  "This 'Kate' you're talking about?"

  "Yes,"

  "Was this recently?"

  "Very, I was on hand to run you off."

  "So you saw me?"

  "Not well enough to recognise you if I had not already known," Edwards admitted.

  "I didn't know who she was; I still don't know who she is?"

  "She is someone who is off limits to you now."

  "Fine," Adams agreed, and it struck Edwards all of a sudden how odd this meeting was, it was like a formal business meeting, and they were agreeing
on an agenda. It was true that this was not the first time Edwards had dealt with a murderer, but it had never been like this before.

  "The Alderman has Spencer, who was with us hunting that day, for the murders. He'll pick him up soon and arrest him," Edwards said.

  "Why does he think Spencer has been doing it all?"

  "Spencer has become unhinged of late; he thinks that the Devil is following him around,"

  "Perhaps he is?" Adams said, and he looked at Edwards with a malevolent scowl.

  "You are the man with the red face?" Edwards asked. Adams nodded. "I thought that was all part of Spencer's madness."

  "Serves him right," Adams said bitterly.

  "What is it between you and Spencer?" Edwards asked, "You seemed fine in one another's company that day we hunted?"

  "He doesn't know who I am, never did, I trained under one of his surgeons in India, and I saw the callous disregard he had for all the troops under his command. He thought nothing of letting his men die for small victories or anything to make a name for himself. I had almost forgotten about him until I came here. So I decided to try to kill two birds with one stone, as it were," Adams smiled evilly. Edwards shook his head in gentle disbelief,

  "Well, an axe to grind is a powerful thing," he said wistfully. "Still, I will miss him."

  "I had no axe to grind, it was only an afterthought once I saw he was here," Adams scowled.

  "You need to finish up soon, go out with a bang," Edwards said changing the subject.

  "Is that so?"

  "It is so. You will have to kill Mullins, the blacksmith and perhaps Mary Sommers to tie it all in with the Dolocher and then you will have to leave the country,"

  "Leave the country!"

  "Yes, I can arrange it easily for you, and you can go on with your desires somewhere else, London maybe?"

  "What makes you think you can tell me what to do?" Adams sat forward in his chair and Edwards could see that he had clenched his fists.

  "You are only a free man right now because I have decided it, I could have told the Alderman at any time."

  "If you don't leave here tonight, you won't be able to tell anyone what you know." This was as clear a threat as Edwards could have imagined, but he laughed and shook his head in disappointment with Adams.

  "Adams, Adams," he said, "You should know that I would never have come in here with you without some sort of insurance?" Adams looked at him but remained silent. "There is a boy with a letter containing all that I know of this affair; it also says that I am coming here to see you tonight. That letter will be delivered to the Alderman if I do not come to personally reclaim it tonight."

  "So you've thought this through," Adams said. He looked like a chess player who could see he was soon to be checkmated but who looked around wildly for some amazing unseen move that would turn the tables completely in his favour. They were silent, and each regarded the other.

  "How did you first suspect me, before you knew about the arrow?" Adams asked.

  "When I came here with the Alderman, and we waited for you to arrive I was looking under things, and I saw some of your surgical sketches, they bore a keen likeness to the ones on the letters the Alderman had received." Adams nodded.

  "What is it to you that I finish this if I don't hurt anyone you care about?"

  "It is not so much for my sake than for your own."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Something is coming soon, something big that will eclipse everything you have done here. It is best for you to finish and revel in your glory before this thing comes to be," Edwards said, his eyes lighting in anticipation of this event that only he had the ability to see at present.

  "What do you speak of?"

  "I will not say, but you will no doubt hear about it no matter where you go," Edwards smiled. Adams looked rueful and tired and much older than his years suddenly.

  "There are more people connected to the Dolocher than the two you mentioned," he said presently.

  "I know, but I have told you who should go. I will need the Alderman to see what is coming."

  "Don't you want to know why I'm doing all this?" Adams asked, his face betrayed his eagerness to tell, and it put Edwards right off.

  Edwards had no need to know of the midnight cravings or lure of the moon that no doubt Adams would call on to describe his murderous instinct. Edwards knew this feeling only too well, he knew what it was like to seek out violence, to see it and feel it, to know its power. No, Edwards did not need any of this explained to him by Adams.

  "Not in the least," Edwards replied and seeing the disappointment in Adams he went on, "I would like to know what you did with Cleaves' body though when you dug it up."

  "It's in the ground on this very site," Adams said, and his eyes drifted out into the night to the area of the barracks it must be. Edwards nodded.

  "I have another question for you," he said as though suddenly remembering something. "The amulet?" Adams smiled at this.

  "That was completely by chance!" he laughed. "I snuck into Spencer's attic many months ago to look at his paintings and see how he was coming along with the one for your club so I could model myself on it.

  “I saw the painting of a woman with an amulet on that I knew I recognised. It took a while to come to me but then I recalled it was a woman who had recently passed away in a carriage accident. I took a sketch of Spencer's painting and then dug up the woman and saw that they matched." Adams was still laughing at this turn of luck. Edwards didn't find it funny, luck was a very serious business to him, a necessity for all that he had planned to come to fruition.

  "London would be a good place for you to go, I'm not sure how much they might have heard about the Dolocher over there but it would nice to sow that type of fear in the heart of the Empire too wouldn't it?" Edwards said with a wicked grin. Adams regarded him for a long time, his eyes scrutinising Edwards as if summing him up completely. He smiled to himself, and Edwards wondered what he was thinking.

  "I find it very odd that to the eyes of the outside world, I would be the evil one of our pair here tonight," he said.

  Chapter 70

  Spencer was at home when James and Edwards called. They were shown to his dining room where the Colonel sat at the table listless, wan and tired looking. He looked completely drained of life and energy, and James for his part was shocked at how much weight the man seemed to have lost in so short a time since he had last seen him.

  "You've come to take me," Spencer said as though confirming to the men themselves what they were there for.

  "Have we reason to leave you be?" James asked.

  "I've done terrible things Alderman James, terrible things," he said looking intently at James, "Bur, I was not under my own command."

  "I assume you are speaking of the Devil?" James said, and he could see in the corner of his eye that Edwards smiled at this. James was not joking, however, and he looked sharply at Edwards.

  "He's everywhere I go," Spencer said.

  "Still?" Edwards asked. Spencer shook his head.

  "What do you mean 'still?’” James asked.

  "Spencer here paid a visit to the clubhouse at Montpelier Hill yesterday and burned the place down, didn't you?" Edwards said, addressing this last part to Spencer.

  "I had to get rid of the painting," Spencer replied.

  "What painting?" James asked. It didn't concern him in the least that the Hellfire Club had been burned to the ground.

  "The one of the Devil," Edwards said. "It was destroyed in the fire."

  "I'm sorry for all the bad things that I've done," Spencer said, "I have no memory of them at all."

  "None?" James didn't believe this.

  "None," Spencer said.

  "You killed all those people, and you claim that you remember not one bit of it?"

  "The Devil was controlling me,"

  "Rubbish!" James said, angry at this cowardice and unwillingness to admit in full what he had done

  "I know how it sounds," Spenc
er said, his voice reasonable, letting James know that he would not believe this same tale from another man.

  "I suppose this means you can't tell me the significance of the amulet?" James asked, his tone exasperated.

  "The amulet?" Spencer looked genuinely confused at this. This had not been something that had made it to the public arena, and it looked for all the world as though this was the first time he had ever heard about it.

  "The one in your painting of the woman in the attic," Edwards said. Still, Spencer looked confused.

  "Can we go and see the painting in question?" James asked, "Perhaps it will jog your memory."

  Spencer said nothing but beckoned them to follow him and then made his way up the few flights of stairs to the attic. It was dark up there and very cold, and it took some time for Spencer to light enough candles so that they could see comfortably by.

  "Which painting are you referring to?" Spencer said. James looked to Edwards for him to point out where he had seen it. Spencer looked now at Edwards too, his face suspicious.

  "It's over here, in this pile," Edwards said making his way over to a dark corner. He moved a couple of paintings and pulled the one out that he was looking for. "Here we are," Edwards said as he held it up to the dim light.

  They all three looked upon the painting, and James looked to Spencer for him to say something.

  "I did this one a couple of years ago," he said. This is a lady who has since left this country to live with her new husband in England."

  "What is her name?" James asked.

  "Lady Partridge," he seemed convincing in this.

  "And what about the amulet?" Edwards said.

  "What about it? She was wearing it, so I included it in the painting."

  "Is she still alive?" James asked.

  "As far as I know, I've not had contact since the painting was done."

  "Why is the painting still in your possession?"

  "She didn't like the likeness, she wouldn't pay for it."

  "This amulet turned up inside one of the people who was killed," James said.

  "I've told you, I don't remember anything about them. I certainly don't ever remember Lady Partridge leaving her amulet behind." Spencer's voice was almost bored now as though he just wanted to be taken away and be done with the whole affair.