‘He stole them — it’s as clear as day!’
‘If you keep shouting like that, Mr Draycott, I’ll have to ask you to leave.’ He took a step back and glared sullenly. ‘Let me repeat the question, Mr Anstey.’
‘There’s no need,’ said Anstey. ‘I haven’t touched his pipe and tobacco.’
‘What about my trowel, my sickle and the knife I use to sharpen sticks? Yes,’ Draycott went on, ‘and other small things have gone missing as well.’
‘Well, I never took them.’
‘You’re a thief and a liar!’
‘I told you to keep your voice down, Mr Draycott,’ said Madeleine, sharply. ‘Since you can’t do that, I suggest that you go home until you can speak in a more civilised manner. Go on — off you go.’
Draycott issued a flood of apologies but Madeleine was immune to his pleas.
‘He’s the thief,’ he protested, ‘and I’m the one who has to go.’
Shooting a look of disgust at Anstey, he slunk off. Madeleine waited until he’d left before she repeated her question once more. Anstey spread his arms.
‘What possible use do I have for a trowel, a sickle and a knife?’ he asked. ‘I’ve got all I need for my work. If you still think I’m a thief, search my coat. It’s hanging on the trellis.’ He pulled out the pockets of his trousers. ‘As you can see, I have nothing about me. You and your husband have been good to me, Mrs Colbeck. I’d never let you down, I swear it.’
Madeleine was in a quandary. She wasn’t sure whether to pay Anstey off so that she could get rid of him altogether or to give him a day’s wage and invite him back for the morrow. The latter course of action would infuriate Draycott and suggest that she rated the word of a casual labourer above that of a loyal employee. Whatever decision she made would upset one of the men. She even toyed with the idea of paying Anstey for another day’s work but telling him not to return. To know that the man had been effectively dismissed might assuage Draycott’s anger a little but nothing short of arrest would really satisfy him.
She wrestled with the problem for a long time before asking herself a simple question. What was the point of being married to a famous detective if she didn’t make use of him when a crime had allegedly taken place?
‘Come back early in the morning,’ she said to Anstey, ‘before my husband leaves for work. I’ll pay you for today, of course, then there’s another day’s work if you wish to take it.’
‘I’ll take it,’ said Anstey, gratefully. He studied her for a few moments. ‘Before I go, I need to ask you something, Mrs Colbeck.’
‘Go on.’
‘Did you believe what Mr Draycott said about me?’
Feeling great discomfort, Madeleine searched hard for a noncommittal answer.
‘Let’s discuss it tomorrow,’ she said.
Because he got back home very late, she didn’t burden Colbeck with the problem she’d encountered. Madeleine waited until they were having breakfast next morning. She freely confessed that she didn’t know if she’d done the right thing.
‘I don’t think that Anstey will come back,’ she said.
‘Oh, he’ll be back, I assure you.’
‘What if he did steal those things?’
‘Then he’s hidden them somewhere in the garden so that he can take them with him today and sell them for a small profit. Draycott could be mistaken, of course,’ said Colbeck, reaching for his cup of tea. ‘We’ve noticed before that he has lapses of memory. He might just have mislaid the items he thinks were stolen.’
‘No, Robert, he wouldn’t do that. He’s very possessive about his tools.’
‘Who else does he work for?’
‘He has three or four gardens to look after, including the one next door, of course. I’ve spoken about him to Mr and Mrs Grayston.’
‘What’s their opinion of him?’
‘Much the same as ours,’ she replied. ‘They say that Draycott is inclined to be grumpy but he’s as honest as the day is long. He’s been their gardener for years.’
‘So who do we believe — a man like Draycott with a good record of service or some fellow plucked off the street by the superintendent?’
‘Anstey did it,’ she decided. ‘That’s why we’ll never see him again.’
The doorbell rang. ‘I fancy that may be wrong,’ said Colbeck with a grin. After draining his cup, he stood up. ‘I’ll get to the bottom of this.’
Taking him into the garden, Colbeck asked Anstey to show him exactly what he’d done on the previous day. The man responded quickly. While Sam went scampering off towards the far end of the garden, Colbeck was given a brief tour by Anstey who pointed out a whole range of things he’d done. Colbeck glanced down at the green patches on the man’s knees.
‘You forgot to mention the weeding,’ he said. ‘I think you spent a lot of time kneeling on the grass in that neglected area behind the trellis.’
‘My back was breaking by the time I’d finished.’
‘I can imagine.’
Anstey licked his lips. ‘It wasn’t me, sir,’ he said. ‘I’m no thief.’
‘I haven’t accused you of anything.’
‘Mr Draycott did. He’ll say anything to get rid of me.’
‘Let’s have no criticism of Draycott,’ warned Colbeck. ‘He’s an experienced gardener. The truth is that I simply don’t have time to take a proper interest in what happens out here. If it were not for Draycott, all this would be a jungle.’
‘He’s done a good job,’ conceded Anstey, ‘though he’s let those bushes at the far end grow far too much. They’ll need pruning in the autumn.’
‘I’ll take your word for it.’
Colbeck asked him a series of apparently innocuous questions about his past, probing away in the hope that he’d find the true measure of the man. Anstey’s replies became more and more hesitant. For the first time, he began to look shifty. They were still deep in conversation when Madeleine brought Draycott into view. The gardener surged towards the two figures.
‘Lay hold on him, Inspector!’ he cried. ‘He stole my tools.’
‘What evidence do you have of that?’ asked Colbeck.
‘I have the evidence of my own eyes, sir. Only one person has been working near my shed over the last couple of days and that’s the rogue standing next to you. Nobody else could have taken my things,’ he stressed, ‘unless, of course, you think that Mrs Colbeck is guilty.’
‘Heaven forbid!’ exclaimed Madeleine.
‘I think we can rule out my wife,’ said Colbeck, good-humouredly, ‘but suspicion is bound to fall on you, Anstey. Did you go into that shed?’
‘Yes, I did,’ admitted the other, ‘but it was only to put some things away.’
‘And to take others out,’ sneered Draycott. ‘Admit it — you were tempted.’
All eyes were turned on Anstey. He looked away and moved his feet uneasily.
‘Is that right?’ pressed Colbeck. ‘Did you yield to temptation?’
‘No,’ said Anstey, meeting his gaze. ‘I didn’t. When I found those flagons of beer hidden away in there, I wanted to slake my thirst because it had been hot work. But I held back. Because that beer was not mine, I never even touched it.’
It was Draycott’s turn to look hunted. Madeleine was shocked.
‘What’s this about beer?’ asked Colbeck, fixing him with a stare. ‘You were told when you first came here that no alcohol was allowed. How long have you been drinking in secret in the shed?’
‘Oh, I don’t drink it, sir,’ gabbled Draycott, ‘I’m looking after it for a friend.’
‘Don’t insult my intelligence, man!’
‘I’m not the criminal here, Mr Colbeck — he is.’
He pointed at Anstey but nobody else was looking. Colbeck and Madeleine were diverted by some excited yapping. The dog had obviously found something. Anstey ran to the bottom of the garden to see what was happening and the others followed. Sam had been thorough. Having sniffed around the base of some bushes, he’d found that he could easily get through to the neighbouring garden by moving a loose branch. At his feet was a trowel that he’d retrieved from next door.