‘Yes, she must have been at school,’ said Laura, ‘but wasn’t it rather late in the evening for that?’
‘It was the end of the term, remember. It is likely that some festivity was going on… a tennis dance, perhaps. It is a mixed school with a mixed staff, you see.’
‘Oh, yes. And that would account for her having never known when she was likely to be interrupted on the telephone, I suppose.’
‘Then, there were references to people being about in the vestibule.’
‘Yes, that does, perhaps, sound rather schooly. Oh, but, look here, if you’re right, it ought to be easy enough to find out who her correspondent was supposed to have been! If there was a dance on, or some other school function, you’d only have to check with the staff to find out which master wasn’t present. I mean, whoever he is, he must know by now that Miss Faintley was murdered, and he must be guilty of the murder, I should say, or he’d have come forward by this time.’
‘That last is not a warrantable assumption. He may be abroad for his holiday and, if so, he may not have seen the London papers. But you are right to suggest that we may be able to discover his identity by checking whether he was present or not at the school on that particular evening.’
‘Of course, he may not be one of the masters. I still think that.’
‘I think he is. If Mr Mandsell reported the conversation correctly, the woman’s voice told him that it was Faintley speaking. He, quite naturally, thought she was using the adverb “faintly” and assured her that her voice was not faint! But you see what the implication is?’
‘Just giving her surname, you mean? Yes, most women put Miss or Mrs in front if they don’t give their Christian name, don’t they?’
‘Yes, that is the whole point! She did not put anything in front of her surname until he misunderstood, therefore it is almost certain that she was talking to someone to whom habitually she was known as Faintley, and not as Miss Faintley. That surely suggests a colleague. The only other kind of person who calls women by their surname is the employer of a domestic servant, and that, in the case of Miss Faintley, would scarcely apply —’
‘Unless the parcel was part of a dark and criminal deed, and Miss Faintley was, although not a domestic, definitely the servant of the man she thought she was speaking to.’
‘Quite true, but the school is the likeliest and certainly the easiest starting-point for our investigations in Kindleford, and Miss Golightly is the person to tackle. As I say, she is almost certain to be on the premises, for there is always much to be done when the school year opens.’
‘It’s bound to be a nasty sort of place,’ said Laura, wrinkling her nose, ‘and she’s certain to be busy, she won’t thank us for calling, will she? I wonder how much she’s upset about Miss Faintley’s death?’
They made the cross-country journey by car, with Laura driving. The school, which was well away from the centre of the town, looked pleasantly clean and modern and was surrounded by gardens and its own playing-fields.
Butters, the caretaker, whom Darling had already interviewed, was superintending the unloading of coke for the school furnaces when Mrs Bradley and Laura arrived.
‘Did you want someone?’ he asked warily, for it was not unknown for the myrmidons of the Education Office to descend upon the school with extraordinary queries and sheaves of official forms just when the head teacher was busiest. ‘And don’t stick that next load down there, mate,’ he added to one of the coalmen. ‘That there’s a means of egress, if you don’t mind me pointing it out, and if you goes and blocks it all up —’
‘I would like to speak to Miss Golightly,’ said Mrs Bradley. ‘Will you kindly direct me to her room if she is in the building? My name is Lestrange Bradley.’
‘Very good,’ said Butters. He led the way along a short stone corridor and into a cool, dim vestibule. ‘That there’s her door. You have to knock and then wait for the buzzer.’
Mrs Bradley carried out these instructions and the buzzer’s discourteous invitation took her into Miss Golightly’s presence. The headmistress was tall, spare and extremely well dressed. She gave an immediate impression of stonyhearted efficiency, her armour, Mrs Bradley supposed, against a world less sensitive than herself.
‘Good morning,’ she said, looking from Mrs Bradley, small, alert and elderly, to Laura, big, well-built and youthful.
‘I have come for some information about the late Miss Faintley, who, I believe, was on the staff here,’ Mrs Bradley began.
‘Miss Faintley’s case is in the hands of the police and they have already been to the school, I understand. May I ask for what purpose you require information about Miss Faintley?’
‘Certainly. I am consulting psychiatrist to the Home Office, and there are certain aspects of Miss Faintley’s case which I find interesting and which the police are willing that I should investigate.’
‘Yes, I see. Won’t you sit down? Excuse me just a minute.’ She went out of the room and closed the door behind her.
‘Gone to her secretary’s room to use the other phone and dig up our reputations,’ prophesied Laura. ‘Sensible woman, that. Tactful, too. Don’t want to hurt our feelings.’
‘No. And now you’d better leave me alone with her, I think.’
‘Right,’ agreed Laura cordially. ‘I’ll go and stroll round the games field. It comes to me with a blast like the crack of doom that I shall find myself on the staff here very shortly!’ She cocked an inquiring eye at Mrs Bradley. ‘Is that what you were thinking as we came home?’
‘I don’t know yet,’ her employer answered. ‘It depends upon what I learn about Miss Faintley to-day.’ She waved Laura out into the sunshine and took stock of the room while she awaited Miss Golightly’s return.
This was somewhat delayed. When the head teacher reappeared she apologized briefly for leaving her visitor alone so long.
‘It wasn’t that I doubted you at all, of course, but I get such a number of what I can only feel are casual callers, that I don’t really want to waste time on those who don’t matter.’ She smiled to take the sting out of this home-truth, but Mrs Bradley expressed entire agreement, and plunged straightway into business.
‘This, of course, is a co-educational school,’ she said. ‘May I ask whether the late Miss Faintley had any particular friends among the men on your staff?’
‘So far as I am aware she had not. In fact, as soon as I received the news of this dreadful business I sent to Mr Rankin, my first assistant, to ask him the very same question. His reply is here. It came by the next morning’s post.’
‘What made you send to him, I wonder?’
‘I wanted to be prepared for eventualities. I was naturally deeply shocked to learn what had happened, and I realized that the school was bound to be involved. I have noticed that when a woman is found murdered for no apparent reason, the police ask first whether she had any men friends. I have also noticed,’ she added tartly, ‘that the dead woman never seems to have heard of such creatures as men!’
‘Indeed, yes,’ agreed Mrs Bradley. ‘And Mr Rankin’s letter?’
‘Ah, yes. Here it is.’ Miss Golightly produced a letter post-marked Torquay. Mrs Bradley thanked her and opened the envelope.
‘I am most upset,’ Mr Rankin had written in a plain, unscholarly hand, ‘but can offer no suggestions. Our unfortunate colleague had no entanglements, so far as I am aware, but you will appreciate that her private life was a little outside my scope. As her death occurred on holiday there is every chance that the excitement will soon die down. It would be very bad for the school if it did not. But I really think we need not worry too much, particularly as it all took place such a distance away from Kindleford.’
‘It did not take place at such a very great distance away from Mr Rankin’s holiday address,’ said Mrs Bradley. Miss Golightly looked at her very sharply.