Page 84 of The Dark Hiss of Magic
‘Quentin Hightower. Yes.’ The witch’s chest puffed out. ‘It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr Williams.’
The Redcap stepped backwards, suddenly wary. ‘What can I do for you?’
‘We are here,’ Hightower began, ‘because?—’
‘Because,’ I interrupted hastily, ‘we’re investigating a series of recent deaths that have been linked to the Mathers Street mortuary. As the team leader of the Redcaps assigned there, we thought you might have some insight into them. You might have seen something that other people missed when you collected the bodies.’ I wanted to play this as casually as possible. It was the only way to encourage Fitz Williams to talk to us.
‘It’s my day off,’ he said. ‘Come and find me tomorrow and I’ll help you all I can.’ He started to close the door.
Hightower reacted with more alacrity than I expected and shoved his foot between the door and the frame, then he used his hand to keep it open. ‘We’ve already established that you know who I am. My coven is one of the most influential and important groups in the city, Mr Williams.’
I blinked. Hightower had spoken gently but there was an air of command in his voice. I could already see reluctant acceptance in Fitz Williams’ expression. Perhaps Quentin Hightower would have his uses here after all. His massive ego and vast sense of self-importance existed for a reason.
‘Fine,’ the Redcap muttered. ‘I suppose you’d better come in.’ He moved back and we were in.
The interior of the house was as unremarkable as the street. The walls were magnolia, there was no artwork on display, and the furniture was more utilitarian than pretty. We walked past a coat stand that held three identical versions of the red cap and two long, black coats. Three pairs of shiny black boots were neatly lined up on the floor, and a long black cane was leaning on the wall next to them. Everything had a place.
It was the same when we walked into the living room: there was no dust or dirt, and no haphazard cushions or books lying around. On top of the mantelpiece a gold-coloured carriage clock was ticking away merrily.
Fitz caught me looking at it. ‘It was my father’s,’ he muttered. ‘Received in return for forty years’ service to the Redcaps.’
It wasn’t a lot to show for forty years but I nodded anyway. ‘What a lovely memento,’ I said warmly.
Fitz wrinkled his nose in silent disagreement but my relaxed manner seemed to do the trick. He gestured to the chairs. ‘Please, sit.’
I perched on the edge of a chair so that I could spring up and either attack or defend as the situation called for. Quentin Hightower also sat down but he sank backwards, making himself as comfortable as he could.
‘We’ve met before,’ I said, as if Williams didn’t already know that. ‘Down at the river when Simon Campbell’s body was recovered.’
He didn’t miss a beat. ‘Campbell? That was his name?’
‘Yes. I didn’t like the thought that he would always be John Doe so I decided to find out who he was. That’s how I met Mr Hightower – he was at the river at the same time as SimonCampbell.’ I kept my eyes fixed on Williams. ‘In fact, they chatted to each other.’
Hightower nodded gravely. ‘Simon gave me some dried silphium leaves.’
Fitz tilted his head. ‘Silphium? What’s that?’
I watched him carefully as Hightower replied, ‘Just an old herb.’
The Redcap’s face betrayed little emotion. ‘Okay.’ He leaned forward. ‘I suppose you’re curious about why my Redcaps attended that scene instead of the closer cohorts.’
I smiled brightly. ‘Yes.’
Williams bit his lip. ‘It’s because of the coffee. Black’s serves the best coffee in Coldstream, so when we have time between jobs we head there to grab a cup. It’s worth the extra distance. We were already at the river market when the body was pulled from the water so it made sense to get involved.’
He addressed Hightower. ‘We were in full uniform which makes us pretty conspicuous. If we hadn’t helped with retrieving the body, people would have been upset. Nobody likes to see a corpse lying around unattended.’
‘Fair point,’ Hightower nodded. ‘Very fair. You did a good thing by getting involved.’
I cleared my throat. ‘You told me that you’d been ordered to take the body to Mathers Street, but you were the one in charge so you made that call, didn’t you?’
Fitz’s eyes were clear. ‘Yes. I lied to you because I thought you were a nosy member of public who was getting in our way. It happens more often than you think. And youwerenosy and youweregetting in our way.’
I couldn’t argue with that.
‘That sounds like our Kitty!’ Hightower said cheerfully. ‘Now tell me, did you notice anything about the body?’
Fitz frowned. ‘That’s not my job.’
