William Monk 04 - A Sudden Fearful Death

aware of it.
    Berenice was dressed splendidly, as usual, her gown a mixture of rusts and golds with a touch of fuchsia pink, and cut to the minute of fashion. She smiled with casual charm, looking straight through Hester, and continued on her way. However, she had only gone a few steps when Sir Herbert came out of one of the doorways.
    “Ah!” he said quickly, his face lighting up. “I was just hoping to …”
    “Good morning, Sir Herbert,” Berenice cut across him, her voice brittle and a trifle loud. “Another very pleasant day. How is Mr. Prendergast? I hear you performed a brilliant operation. It is an excellent thing for the reputation of the hospital, and of course for English medicine in general. How did he pass the night? Well?”
    Sir Herbert looked a little taken aback. He was facing Berenice with his profile to Hester, whom he had not noticed standing in the shadows a dozen yards away. She was a nurse, so to some extent invisible, like a good domestic servant.
    Sir Herbert’s eyebrows rose in obvious surprise.
    “Yes, he is doing very well so far,” he replied. “But it is too early yet for that to mean a great deal. I didn’t know you were acquainted with Mr. Prendergast.”
    “Ah no, my interest is not personal.”
    “I was going to say that I—” he began again.
    “And of course,” she cut across him again, “I am concerned with the hospital’s reputation and your enhancement of it, Sir Herbert.” She smiled fixedly. “Of course this whole wretched business of poor Nurse—whatever her name was.”
    “Barrymore? Really, Berenice …”
    “Yes, of course, Barrymore. And we have another Crimean nurse, so I hear—Miss—er …” She half turned toward Hester and indicated her.
    “Ah—yes.” Sir Herbert looked startled and slightly out of composure. “Yes—it seems like a fortunate acquisition—so far. A very competent young woman. Thank you for your kind words, Lady Ross Gilbert.” Unconsciously he pulled down the front of his jacket, straightening it a little. “Most generous of you. Now if you would excuse me, I have other patients I must attend. Charming to see you.”
    Berenice smiled bleakly. “Naturally. Good morning, Sir Herbert.”
    Hester moved at last toward the dormitory and the opportunity for an hour or two’s rest. She was tired enough to sleep even through the constant comings and goings, the chatter, the movement of others, even though she longed for privacy. The peace of her own small lodging room seemed a haven it never had previously, when she had compared it with her father’s home with its spaciousness, warmth, and familiar elegance.
    She did not sleep long and woke with a start, her mind frantically trying to recall some impression she had gained. It was important, it meant something, and she could not grasp it.
    An elderly nurse with a bald patch on one side of her head was standing a few feet away, staring at her.
    “That there rozzer wants yer,” she said flatly. “The one wi’ the eyes like a ferret. You’d better look sharp. ’E ain’t one to cross.” And having delivered her message she took herself off without glancing backwards to see whether Hester obeyed or not.
    Blinking, her eyes sore, her head heavy, Hester climbed out of the cot (she did not think of it as hers), pulled on her dress, and straightened her hair. Then she set off to find Jeavis; from the woman’s description it could only be Jeavis who wanted her, not Evan.
    She saw him standing outside Sir Herbert Stanhope’sroom, looking along the corridor toward her. Presumably he knew where the dormitory was, and thus expected her the way she came.
    “Morning, miss,” he said when she was within a few feet of him. He looked her up and down with curiosity. “You’d be Miss Latterly?”
    “Yes, Inspector. What may I do for you?” She said it more coolly than she had intended, but something in his manner irritated her.
    “Oh yes. You were not here when Miss Barrymore met her death,” he began unnecessarily. “But I understand you served in the Crimea? Perhaps you were acquainted with her there?”
    “Yes, slightly.” She was about to add that she knew nothing of relevance, or she would have told him without his asking, then she realized that it was just possible she might learn something from him if she prolonged the conversation. “We served side by side on at least one occasion.” She looked into his dark, almost browless eyes, and unwittingly thought of the