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He mentally cursed himself for lowering his guard. He had been so focused on Jess that he hadn’t heard Ben creep up on him again. It was incredibly foolish given who was currently sharing the house. But, at least the lad had got a skill Marcus could utilise.
“I told Jess that I was going out but didn’t tell her where. I have been waiting in the trees for her to go shopping, and came back here to see what you are up to.” Ben’s face turned serious for a moment while he waited for Marcus to tell him what he was doing.
“I could do with your help,” Marcus confided.
“Are we going to search Mr Grant’s house?” Ben’s eyes were full of hope.
Marcus shook his head. “We are going to search this one. We need to go through the contents of each of the bedchambers.”
Ben nodded eagerly. “Count me in.”
They made their way to the first bedchamber. An hour later, they came out empty handed.
“There is nothing in there apart from a few changes of clothing. How could anybody live like that? I mean, there are no books or notes, or anything to give any idea what kind of things the man likes to do,” Ben grumbled. “What does Mr Abernathy do when he is in there?”
Marcus studied him. “That’s the problem exactly. What is he doing when he is in there supposedly for several hours at a time?”
“Not a lot given the look of that room,” Ben grumbled.
“He is supposed to be an accountant or some sort of desk clerk, yes?”
“I think so,” Ben replied with a frown. “He tells everybody he works in Retterton.”
Marcus nodded. “Have you ever followed him to see if he is telling the truth?”
Ben shook his head. “We usually take the guests on their word. We don’t usually go around stalking them to see if they are liars.”
“Fai
r point,” Marcus conceded. “However, I think that in Mr Abernathy’s case, we do need to follow him. I want to speak to the people who are supposed to employ him.”
“He does come back sometimes with ink stains all over his fingers if that helps?”
“It depends on what he has done to get the ink stains,” Marcus replied dryly.
“Doesn’t it prove that he is spending his days writing?” Ben asked with a frown.
“Yes, but what? What is he writing?”
Ben shrugged.
“So, we need to go to his supposed employers to check for ourselves that he works there,” Marcus reasoned.
“I can do that.”
Marcus shook his head. “On this occasion, I will do it. I don’t want the employers to be alerted to who I am, and tell Mr Abernathy that we have been asking questions.”
“I am coming with you,” Ben declared flatly. “You can’t involve me in this and then just expect me to stand back while you do everything. Let me help. I can, you know.”
“I am not saying you can’t,” Marcus sighed, and wondered what he had let himself in for.
While the lad’s enthusiasm was brilliant, it also posed considerable problems. That eagerness could very well bring the entire deck of cards crashing down around their ears. Still, having not had any word from Barnaby yet, he and Joe needed all the help they could get.
“Fine, you can come with me. Meantime, I think our Mr Abernathy has nothing in this room to do except sleep and stare at the wall. There are no hidden compartments, no secret walls, and nothing in the way of personal effects.”
“Correct,” Ben declared, as though Marcus had just asked for confirmation.
He hadn’t. He had just been thinking aloud, but he didn’t correct the lad.
