Page 88 of Disturbing the Dead
That might not be the only answer, but it’s the most likely one. We’ll need to investigate the tunnels again in hopes of finding those artifacts before Selim can whisk them away. Wherever they are, he’s not going to leave them there for long. He might even have removed them by now.
We rejoin Gustav and walk to where Queen Mab’s coach is hidden. Her town house is closer than Gray’s, and she apparently has another task for her driver after we’ve been dropped off, so she has him stop at her house first, and she takes her leave of us.
“Let me know Mrs. Ballantyne’s answer, and I will act as your intermediary there,” she says before she leaves.
“Thank you.”
“As for that other fellow, if you need to contact him, I would do so with care, but I suspect you already have what you want.”
“I likely have as much as I can get from him. Thank you, again.”
We say our goodbyes, and she takes Gustav and leaves. Then the coach rolls forward again, and it’s barely pulled from the curb before Mrs. Wallace says, “You think you know where those Egyptian items are hidden, don’t you?”
I give a start. “Hmm?”
“The stolen goods from the Christie house. You think those are the items that lad was referring to, and you think you know where they have been stashed.”
When I don’t answer, she snaps, “Do not ask how I know antiquities were stolen from the Christie house. I have ears, girl, and none of you discuss your investigations in hushed tones. Half the time, I can hear you from the kitchen.”
“Yes,” I say. “I believe they may be the same goods, and I have an idea where they might be held.”
“And now you are going to drag Dr. Gray off on a wild chase in the middle of the night.”
“No,” I say evenly. “I am going to convey my theory to him, and he will decide what we should do.”
She snorts. “You know what he will decide. That he should go haring off with you at this ungodly hour. You think nothing of waking him in the night. You think nothing of dragging him into it.”
I struggle to keep my tone calm. “I am not asking him to join me for a drink, Mrs. Wallace. This is an investigation. I have been out investigating, and I very much doubt he will have retired yet, given that he said he’d come after us if we weren’t back by two. If these stolen goods are hidden, the thief will seize his first chance to recover them. Which will be tonight, after everyone has gone to bed.”
“Then I will go with you.”
When I open my mouth to protest, she says, “If this is truly about recovering the goods or catching the thief, you will accept me as your companion. Otherwise, it has little to do with that and everything to do with Dr. Gray.”
My fingers white-knuckle the carpetbag. She’s goading me. There’s a perfectly good reason why I’d speak to Dr. Gray, rather than take her along. He’s my damn partner on this investigation. Hell, as far as she knows, he’s my boss. The lead detective.
If I say that, she’ll only find fresh arguments. The truth is that I could take her. She’d be adequate backup, and if we don’t stop at the town house, we stand a greater chance of beating the thief to the tunnels.
Do I trust Mrs. Wallace to watch my back? Not really. Do I trust her to watch the back of Gray’s assistant? Yes. She’ll do this for him.
“Fine,” I snap. “Do you have a weapon?”
She produces a knife from her boot. Then she reaches into the pocket of her wool coat and takes out a derringer. I bite back a surge of envy. I want a gun. I’ve joked about it, but I’m not really joking. I know McCreadie would help me find one, but then I’d also need to learn how to use it, as I’m sure it’s nothing like what I’m used to.
“Fine,” I say. “I believe the thief is, unfortunately, Lady Christie’s brother, who is from Egypt and worked with Sir Alastair on the digs. There are tunnels under the Christie house, and Mr. Awad definitely knows them—that’s where he was knocked out the other night. He uses them to sneak in and out of the house. There are places in there where he could hide the artifacts. They were thoroughly searched yesterday, so he wouldn’t expect the police to look in there. Does that make sense given what you heard?”
“It does.”
“Then I guess we’re giving the driver a new destination.”
TWENTY-EIGHT
It took me a moment to decide where the driver should drop us off. Too close and it could draw attention to us entering the tunnel. Too far and, well, it’s not late enough yet for me to stroll through the streets of the New Town dressed in a multicolored frock coat and top hat.
I settle for having him stop a couple of streets away, and we alight as quickly as we can and then get into the shadows before he pulls away. I draw my coat tight to hide my blindingly white dress and then hurry to the shed that marks the entrance to the tunnels.
I reach for the door, and there’s a massive new lock on it.
Without a word to Mrs. Wallace, I take out a hairpin, bend, and…
