AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Really?” Pitt kept his voice expressionless, but with difficulty. Neither Daniel nor Jemima had mentioned a murder. It must have been in America. “Then he appears to be extraordinarily clumsy. If the charges are true, he embezzled small amounts from the embassy in a discreet way, like the petty thefts of a young man who cannot manage his own finances and is regularly in debt. That’s neither clever nor honest, but it’s not unique either. He was bound to get caught one day.”
“Yes,” Armitage agreed. “That is what it looks like.”
“But that is not what it actually is? He is telling the truth, and someone else has made it appear that he isn’t?”
“I prefer not to comment on that. I don’t know the details.” Armitage smiled apologetically. “Enough to say that young Morley Cross worked in the same department, and was found shot dead in the Potomac River. The embezzlement we can prove, and it is a crime. It is a cause for which Sidney can be dismissed from the Service, and for a small time, at least, imprisoned.”
“And that serves your purpose?” Pitt allowed his surprise to ring in his voice.
“I imagine between young Pitt and Tobias Thorwood, they will also manage to raise the assault upon Thorwood’s daughter,” Armitage answered. “A far more serious matter, even if it cannot be prosecuted in England. If mention of it came before the judge, he would be certain to imprison Sidney, and his word will be taken for nothing from then on.”
“And that is what matters to you? That his word should be dismissed?”
Armitage flushed and there was a look of real anger in his face for a moment.
“For God’s sake, Pitt! I’m not doing this lightly! This is only the part you can see. The truth beneath all this trivial but ugly rubbish is that Sidney is a traitor to England—and not just ideologically. He is telling the Germans all he can about our harbors, their depths, their navigation details, what defense we have in certain places. Cornwall and Devon, the north coast of Scotland. God knows, we are weak enough as it is! Our military is living in the past. And more important, our navy is bloody useless, compared with what the Kaiser is planning. Submarines! The Germans have a huge advantage over us in underwater vessels. We are an island nation, Pitt. We can be invaded from all sides, and now from under the sea, too. Worse than that, we can be starved, not only of weapons, supplies, but of food to survive with the use of these machines!”
He did not wait for Pitt, whose face was like stone, to respond, but went straight on. “I don’t know whether the damn fool assaulted Rebecca Thorwood, and since she is unhurt, frankly, I don’t care. Far bigger things are at stake. Treason, and I now know, also murder.” His face was tense, almost pinched, as if the strain was almost more than he could bear. “I can’t tell you more than that, Pitt. Leave the bloody thing alone! If Sidney goes down for some petty, stupid theft, and they manage to ruin him with the charge of assault, so much the better. I trust Tobias Thorwood. He’s a good man. If he says he saw Sidney in his house, let it stand. Far better that people don’t know Philip Sidney is a traitor, prepared to kill if it suits his purpose. Let young Daniel do his job. Just pray he succeeds!”
Pitt said nothing. There really was no response that expressed what he felt, or that would answer Armitage’s fear. He would already know that Pitt would do as he asked. There was no honorable alternative.
Pitt took his leave quietly and went out into the sunny street, but he still felt cold inside. What could he tell Daniel? As the head of Special Branch…nothing.
CHAPTER
Seventeen
THE SAME MORNING that Pitt went to see Armitage, Daniel caught Kitteridge’
s sleeve on the courtroom steps, before they went inside. Daniel realized how tense he had been, worrying something might prevent Kitteridge from coming here this morning. It was at the back of his mind that Marcus might still view the case as Daniel’s problem and forbid Kitteridge from helping him.
“What is it?” Kitteridge stopped. It was early in the morning but already he looked hot and short-tempered. “Can’t it wait until we get inside?”
“I’m not going in,” Daniel said bluntly. “With your permission, that is. We haven’t got a defense.”
“Well, goodness me! How did I miss that?” Kitteridge asked sarcastically. “That does not excuse you bunking off and leaving me to fry alone!”
Daniel kept his temper. He felt just as panicky inside as Kitteridge possibly could. “One of us has to stay. Do you think I can do better than you at stringing out these endless character witnesses? Not to mention the judge’s temper.”
Kitteridge did not hesitate. “No.”
“I’ve got to find something tangible to fight with. I’m going to see Miriam again. She might find some holes in this. If Sidney really didn’t do it, then someone else did.”
“There could have been no embezzlement at all,” Kitteridge said grimly. “I’m beginning to wonder if it’s a put-up job from the start. But I can’t work out why and by whom. Sorry, but I suspect your brother-in-law, for Thorwood to get justice for the attack on Rebecca. But how did he do it? How did either of them get into the embassy at all, let alone into the account books to fudge them?”
“I don’t know,” Daniel replied. “It…it could have something to do with Morley Cross. But his death could also be coincidence. There’s far too much we don’t know, because it doesn’t hang together as it is.”
“Do you think I don’t know that?” Kitteridge snapped. “We’re fighting blind! I don’t even know whether I believe Sidney is innocent or guilty—and I don’t mean just of embezzlement. You know, I know, and more importantly, Hillyer knows that any hour now we’ll get news of when Morley Cross died, and if it was before Sidney left Washington, they’ll charge him with it. And they might be right!”
Daniel could feel Kitteridge’s mounting desperation, as if it was transferable. “We aren’t getting anywhere,” he said. “And I’m not doing any good in court, except moral support, whatever that’s worth. Miriam might see something we’ve missed. If you’ve got a better place to look, I’ll do that.”
“No,” Kitteridge said, a little more graciously. “See if she can at least tell us what shape it is, this thing we’re looking for. Do we even have all the pieces?”
“I don’t know. You know I don’t! But perhaps we have them upside down? Trying to fit them in the wrong way?”
Kitteridge finally smiled. “At least you’re good entertainment, Pitt. I’ll say that for you. You’re never boring for long! Now please get out of my way, before I change my mind. I’ve still got to work out what I’m going to say that’s any use. Hillyer’s going to guess that we know about Morley Cross, no matter what I say, and that I’m here because of an escalation of the case. And I’m not going to lie openly to the court.”
* * *
