Page 60 of A Curious Ending

‘Becky is a competent florist who knows exactly what she is doing. She has the help of your mother whom she holds in high regard. Your mother was a nurse in one of the biggest and busiest hospitals in the country. I believe she can manage to sweep the floor, cut some flowers and deliver a few bouquets,’ Abby declared roundly.

Lara put her phone on silent and decided she would check it when Abby wasn’t looking. It was only when Abby started speaking again that it occurred to her; how did Abby know her mum had worked in one of the biggest hospitals in the country?

Before she could find out, Abby asked out of nowhere, ‘Have you ever been on a submarine?’

The question chased everything else from Lara’s mind. ‘Please don’t tell me you solved a murder five hundred metres under the Atlantic Ocean?’ Lara pleaded.

‘Now you are being facetious,’ Abby said in the manner of her governess, Miss Ampleforth. ‘Although that would be extraordinarily interesting,’ she added, dropping some of her old governess’s mannerisms. ‘No, the reason I ask is that I was once instructed on the fascinating subject of sonar by the Right Honourable The Earl Jellicoe, who was Admiral of the Fleet, and it strikes me that what he told me may be relevant in our current predicament.’

‘No…’ Lara said slowly, ‘you’ve completely lost me.’

‘It relates to the use of sonar alongside depth charges,’ Abby continued, oblivious to Lara muttering, ‘Oh boy, here we go.’

Changing tack completely, Abby asked Lara, ‘Do you think our suspects might be among those attending the Estate Ball?’

Lara gave up trying to follow her, so just said simply, ‘Very likely.’

‘Excellent,’ Abby beamed at Lara. ‘We are going to take some soundings on the night and then you are going to launch some depth charges and retreat while I gauge the reaction.’ Abby was watching Lara. ‘Now am I making sense?’

‘Yes, I think I’m getting there,’ Lara said, her brow clearing. ‘You want me to drop the odd explosive comment and then retreat so you can see what happens?’

Abby bowed her head.

Chapter 30

Lara decided to take a black cab to the V&A so that Abby could see as much of London as possible. The only hiccough on the journey came when Lara surreptitiously checked her phone and found she had missed a call from her mum. With a sense of rising panic she dialled her voice mail, disregarding Abby’s sniff of disapproval. ‘It’s okay,’ Lara mouthed listening to the message.

‘Of course it is,’ Abby said tartly.

‘Mum was just calling to say that she and Becky are having a lovely day and she and Dad have put some money in my account as they want to treat me to some shoes. Isn’t that nice of them?’ Lara smiled. It was so long since she had bought herself any new clothes that she felt fairly relaxed about splashing out on a new dress, but there was no doubt this contribution would help.

Abby thoroughly approved of the gesture, but had no time to comment as she was far too busy craning her neck at the back of the cab to get a better look at the Houses of Parliament. ‘I remember this so well,’ she said to Lara happily. There were other familiar landmarks and buildings around St James’s Park that Abby recalled. But of course much had changed. ‘The lake was not there in my day,’ she said, as they skirted the park. ‘I’m sure there was a canal that ran through St James’s,’ she reminisced. The further west they went the less Abby recognised. However, as they drove through Belgrave Square, Abby began to look around her in wonder. ‘But I know this!’ she exclaimed, delighted to find one more place that was still recognisable. ‘They had only just started building these houses. I remember Miles bringing myself and Henry to see the building works as he thought it might interest my uncle.’

Lara and Abby entered the V&A via the tunnels that ran under the building. Having passed through security, they came to a reception area where they waited for Lara’s friend Fiona. Lara explained to Abby that she and Fiona had been friends since primary school, but during the first year of secondary school Lara’s family had moved from Newcastle to Hampshire. They had been irregular pen pals and might have drifted apart completely but they both happened to attend universities in London and had got in touch with each other again.

Fiona greeted Lara warmly and led her to her office on the second floor. Lara was interested to see that this part of the museum was modern, in contrast to the great vaulted interior that she was used to visiting. Fiona’s office was small and boxy, but it was an enchanting space filled with books, piles of papers and various pieces of china. ‘Replicas, sadly,’ Fiona said when she saw Lara looking at her collection. In addition to a functional desk there were two chairs upholstered in art deco style tapestries.

‘Like the jacket,’ Fiona said, offering Lara a chair and pouring them both coffee. ‘I wish I could come out for lunch but I’m in the middle of curating a new ceramics exhibition and I have a conference call with our Dutch partners.’

Fiona still had a slight Geordie accent, which Lara rather envied. She had lost hers within a week of starting her new school. Abby perched on Fiona’s desk trying to imagine these two women as little girls. In some ways, Fiona was easier to envisage than Lara. She was a petite woman who looked like she had got to about twelve and decided to stop growing. She had a boyish figure and a neat cap of auburn hair. However, there was nothing childlike about the way she dressed. Her charcoal trouser suit and white shirt were beautifully tailored and she wore a pair of silver-grey court shoes with pink heels that Abby very much wanted to try on. The two friends talked about old times and caught up with each other’s news. ‘Who’s looking after the shop while you’re in town?’ Fiona enquired.

‘I have an assistant and today my assistant has an assistant – my mum,’ Lara replied.

‘Oh, I love your mum,’ Fiona enthused, ‘she was always so nice when I came around and she used to make us sausage sandwiches after swimming, do you remember?’

Lara laughed and nodded.

Fiona crossed one beautiful shoe over the other and sat waiting, nursing her coffee cup. ‘You said something in your email about a tea service,’ she said invitingly.

Lara started to tell her story. She had decided to stick close to the truth and say she had been left some vases and china. ‘I was happy to take a small legacy from this customer as we had become friends, but I wouldn’t want to take something that was too valuable or split up a set that should be kept together,’ Lara explained, holding out the well-wrapped parcel.

Fiona took it from her and, with the ease of someone who was used to handling precious objects, unwrapped the tea caddy. She took off the lid and examined both the exterior and interior. She looked at Lara briefly and, without saying anything, got up and examined her bookshelves, easily honing in on the two volumes she wanted. After flicking through a few pages, she left the books open on the table beside the coffee cups. By now, Lara knew that Fiona was excited.

Abby had known it from the moment Fiona had touched the wrapped parcel. But then she had a knack for these things.

‘May I keep hold of this for a while?’ she asked Lara.

‘Yes, of course. What do you think it is?’