James Benn - A Blind Goddess

High Street came up on my right and I took the turn fast, righting the Scout as it came out of the curve. If I was right, there was still a chance that Sophia Edwards was alive. For the moment. Pieces came together in my mind, not so much like a puzzle, but like the pieces of paper and photographs Dad used to mull over in his den, late into the evening, when a case was going nowhere. He’d look and look at the same thing, until something made sense. Like now.

It all fit. Bone was a killer and a child molester. He’d set up shop here to entice his targets with candy and charm. The way I figured it, when Margaret was killed he had to have another. Sophia’s disappearance fit with the best estimate we had of the date of Margaret’s death. I shuffled some more papers in my head, and there it was. Stuart Neville and Ernest Bone. Had Neville seen something at the sweet shop? Or recognized Bone when he was ditching Margaret’s suitcase near the Millers’? George Miller would have made an excellent scapegoat.

But all that didn’t matter right now. What did was the sign ahead, for Hedley’s Sweet Shop. And the jeep parked next to it.

I cut the engine and coasted to a stop several houses away. The street was silent. The wail of a siren in the far distance echoed along the valley. No one was out. People were either at work or returning from the maneuvers, at a much slower pace than Bone or I had. I crouched low and scurried along the front of houses and shops until I came to the corner of Hedley’s. I ran to the jeep and ducked behind it. Taking out my pocketknife, I slashed the front and rear tires on the passenger side. If Bone got by me, at least he wouldn’t enjoy a high-speed getaway.

I circled the store, listening for any sign of movement. I heard a faint thud from inside, perhaps an inner door closing. It had a heavy sound, not like a thin bedroom door but more solid. Something that couldn’t be broken down. His storeroom, maybe? I duck-walked under a window and raised my head to the corner of the glass. It was his kitchen. Large pots were arranged on the counter next to a black cast-iron stove. Hard candies were laid out on trays, ready to entice the innocent. There was no sign of Bone.

The rear entrance led directly into the kitchen. I tried the door but it was locked. Time was running out for Sophia, if she had any time left. The kitchen door was solid; there was no way to get at the lock. I went back to the casement window and worked on it, but it was shut tight. His toolbox was set up outside, next to a pile of lumber. I grabbed a hammer and went to work on the window.

It was loud and slow work. The glass was thick, and the metal frame around the panes was reluctant to give way. I reached inside and fumbled for the latch. As it gave I felt something warm on my hand. I pulled it open and squeezed through, blood dripping from my palm where the glass had sliced the soft flesh. I fell into the kitchen clumsily and got to my feet, looking for my next move.

I checked the storefront and found it empty. I darted down a hallway, opening doors with my good hand to a bedroom and a study, both empty of all but the most functional furniture. The pantry off the kitchen held shelves of jars and tins of sweets. It looked like enough inventory for the rest of the war. So where was the storeroom renovation Bone said he was working on?

I went back into the store, wanting to check the jeep and make sure Bone hadn’t got out some other way. The counter and cash register were on my left. I moved quietly on the bare wood floor and peered over the counter. A narrow carpet was bunched up in the corner, revealing a latch set in the floor. A trapdoor. I pulled out my revolver and gripped it as best I could, blood oozing from my palm. With my good hand I took hold of the latch and pulled. The door swung up with surprising ease. A set of wide stairs led down into a well-lit cellar. I held the revolver ahead of me and took a step.

“Come down, Captain Boyle, by all means,” I heard Bone say. “But leave your pistol behind, or I shall slit this poor girl’s throat.” He drew out the poor girl in a macabre imitation of pity.

“You’re going to kill her anyway,” I said, continuing down the stairs. It was what I needed to say to Bone, but as soon as I saw Sophia Edwards I regretted it. Bone held her bound hands at her back with one hand. The other hand had a knife at her throat. She was gagged, which only brought out the deep terror and anguish in her eyes, which stared straight at me.

“But now it will be because of you, Captain Boyle,” Bone said, edging closer to me in the narrow space. Behind him was an open door, the room beyond which had been first Margaret’s prison, then Sophia’s. It was painted a cheery yellow, with a bed covered in a quilt, a nightstand with a lamp, and stuffed animals in the corner. It made me sick. “You and Inspector Payne, that is. It felt good to lay him out like that. I trust his injuries are serious?”

“Bone,” I said, taking one step and lowering my pistol. “You can’t get away, not in a US Army jeep with every constable in the valley looking for you.” I didn’t mention Sophia. It made sense that he was going to kill her, if only to not be encumbered by her.

“Certainly not,” he said. “Now lay down that revolver and step aside.”

“I’m not giving you my weapon,” I said. He was using Sophia as cover. Even if my hand hadn’t been sticky with blood, it would be tough aiming well enough to incapacitate him. If I put it down, he’d go for it. I didn’t have many cards to play, but the pistol was an ace.

“Sensible of you,” Bone said, moving around me with his back to the basement wall, Sophia tight in his grip. “Be my guest and remain here. The bedroom is quite cozy.”

“I’ll drive you,” I said, holding up my hand. Bone tightened his grip and a muffled shriek escaped Sophia’s lips beneath the gag as the blade pressed into her neck.

“I don’t need you.”

“With me driving the jeep, there’ll be no questions, right? Isn’t that better than taking your chances at the wheel?”

“Captain Boyle, I do not wish to harm this pretty face, but if you don’t put that gun away, I shall. A nice scar along one cheek would do the trick.”

Bone had something up his sleeve. He should have been more concerned, but he seemed calm for a pervert killer with no getaway vehicle. Which meant he had a plan.

“No,” I said, backing up. I holstered the revolver, wincing as the pain got to me. There was really too much blood on the floor. I felt a bit dizzy. “How’s that?” Keep ’em talking, that’s what Dad always said. If they’re talking they’re not doing anything else, for the moment.

“Good enough to stay the blade,” Bone said. “Move farther away from the stairs.” There wasn’t much room; it was a tight space. I could see the evidence of fresh-cut wood where Bone had built an interior wall for the bedroom prison. His own do-it-yourself project.

“I can still drive you,” I said, shuffling to the side. “Your car or mine.”

“That wasn’t so hard to work out, now, was it? Leave nothing to chance, I say.” Bone approached the stairs, turning so he’d pull Sophia up behind him. His eyes flitted upwards and then back to me. He was calculating the odds. If he left me in the basement and locked me in, how long would it be before I was discovered? Long enough? Probably not. He needed me silenced, preferably someplace away from here. I saw the hint of a smile and knew he’d decided. He was the kind of guy who thought he was smarter than everyone else, who saw other people as fools, who enjoyed thinking two steps ahead.

“I’ll leave the revolver down here,” I said. “I’ll come up after you and we’ll all leave together.” It was too good a deal to turn down. My only prayer was to stick with Sophia and hope for a chance.