A Fool and His Money by Marina Pascoe Read Free Book Online Page A

to tell me all his little secrets and stories about his life. Molly’s mother was in this very circus, years ago. She was Margaret Field – they called her the most daring high wire act in the world.’
    Bartlett looked round at Boase.
    â€˜I think I’ve heard about her – she was a Londoner, if I’m not mistaken. Yes, very famous she was. Go on, Anne.’
    â€˜Well, they had a relationship many years ago, she and Clicker, and Molly was born. For some reason, just a couple of months before the birth, Margaret ran away. She left a note for Clicker saying she wanted to get away and not to look for her. He was distraught. He loved Margaret so very much. Anyway, a couple of years ago, Molly James appeared with her husband. She told Clicker that her mother was in a sanatorium in Switzerland and that she had something wrong with her lungs. Clicker wanted to go and see her but Molly just said she was too ill. She also said that she was struggling to keep up with the medical bills and could Clicker help her out a little. Well, naturally, he was happy to. But it never stopped. She just kept on taking more and more money from him – he barely had anything left, Inspector Bartlett. He felt that she wasn’t capable of doing such a thing, he really believed that Edward, her husband was behind the extortion – that’s what it was, Inspector, extortion.’
    â€˜So how is this all your fault?’
    Anne looked at her sisters. Joan squeezed her hand.
    â€˜Go on, Anne dear. Tell Inspector Bartlett everything you know – for Clicker’s sake.’
    Anne dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief.
    â€˜I wasn’t really prying but I just saw something in an old newspaper. When I get homesick and bored – which is often – I go to the reading room at the library on the moor. I was looking at some papers a few weeks ago and that’s when I saw it – the article. I’m ashamed to say I stole it from the library. Look, here it is – am I in trouble now?’
    Bartlett smiled.
    â€˜Well, we don’t normally encourage stealing from libraries but, given everything that’s happened, I think we can overlook it.’
    Anne shook open the newspaper.
    â€˜Look, Inspector. It’s an article which is seven years old – it’s about Margaret Field.’
    Bartlett reached into his inside coat pocket for his reading spectacles.
    â€˜Well, this says she died in 1917.’
    â€˜Yes – and Clicker has been paying vast sums of money to the Jameses ever since they turned up here. They knew she was dead – there never was any clinic in Switzerland! I’m not ashamed to say that I showed this to Clicker the other evening. But I am sorry to say that now he’s dead and it could be because of me.’
    Boase flipped over another page in his notebook. As he did so, he gestured towards the wall outside.
    â€˜Were you talking to him just over there, before the performance?’
    â€˜Yes, that’s right, I was. I showed him this. He got very upset and said I shouldn’t have got involved. That was the last time I saw him.’
    Anne buried her head in her hands and sobbed.
    Bartlett patted the girl’s shoulder.
    â€˜This isn’t your fault, Anne – you must stop thinking like this immediately. We’ll leave you now but we may want to speak to you again, if that’s all right?’
    Anne smiled a weak smile.
    â€˜Yes, of course that’s all right – I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.’
    â€˜You’ve been very helpful. Thank you, ladies. Goodbye.’
    Two fairly uneventful days passed at the Falmouth police station, other than Clicker’s body being positively identified by his daughter and some sketchy news about the break-in at the church. Bartlett had been asking for almost a year for his office to get a new coat of paint and so it was that at seven o’clock in the morning, two