Page 66 of Murder on Harley Street
“Because I forgot about it. I found it this morning among my paperwork.” He indicated his office with its cluttered desk and workbenches. “I received it in the mail shortly after I dismissed him last year. It wasn’t signed but it’s written in his hand. I provided the police with a copy of notes he took when he worked here so they could compare the writing.”
“They arrested him a short time ago,” Harry said.
Mr. Reid swallowed. “Good. The sooner this is over with, the better.”
It was easy to believe a piece of paper got lost in the large, untidy office, but not for an entire year. “What did it say?” I asked.
“He accused me of not paying him appropriately for his design. If I didn’t compensate him, he would ruin me.”
Although I had sat, Harry remained standing. He now wandered around the office, his hands clasped behind his back. “Didyou use his design without adequately compensating him?”
“He was employed by me at the time. Any design he worked on was owned by me.” He pointed at the door. “I’d like you to leave.”
“We’re not finished.” Harry finally sat. “Let’s presume Hamlin did design the Electro Therapy Machine during his employment here.”
“He has no claim!”
Harry put up a hand to stop him. “I’m not interested in whether that’s true or not. It only matters if Hamlinbelievesit. Ever since his dismissal, he’s been something of a thorn in your side. Not only does he think he ought to have been compensated better, he established his own company to create a device that will rival yours.”
Mr. Reid sniffed. “It won’t be as good.”
“The reputation of your device is currently suffering. You just told us your reputation is being ruined a little more each day this isn’t resolved. By having your rival arrested, you remove the man who has been bothering you for some time.”
Mr. Reid shot to his feet. “Now listen here, Armitage. I didnotfake that letter. Hamlin wrote it. I dare him to deny it in a court of law.”
That was the part that niggled at me. According to D.S. Forrester, Duncan hadn’t denied it. He wasn’t talking at all. If he were innocent, why not say so?
“You once described Duncan as a good employee,” I said. “You even said you treated him like a son.”
“He betrayed me by taking my designs with him. I owe him nothing.”
“That letter could be enough to convict him. He’ll hang for murder, Mr. Reid. Is that what you want?”
He lifted his chin and peered down his nose at me. I peered back, unblinking.
After a moment, he sat again. “The death of Hamlin’s wife changed him. She was ill for quite some time before she finally passed. The disease weakened her, made her tired, and she could spend all day in bed. Apparently, she used a tonic and powders that eased the pain and enlivened her enough so he would come to work, but the effects never lasted long.”
Her file at the clinic said she was using the Nerve Elixir, which would explain her brief periods of revitalization. The cocaine’s effects were strong but temporary, and she would have required more and more of it to achieve the same result.
“I was very patient with him during that time,” Mr. Reid went on.
“You say her illness changed him,” Harry said. “Do you think he became a man capable of murder?”
“He adored her. If he blamed the doctor…” Mr. Reid shrugged, as if that answered the question.
“If he blamed the doctor, why kill Mrs. Kempsey?” I asked.
“It may have been an accident. I don’t know. That’s for the police to determine now.”
It may well have been an accident. Isabel Kempsey had complained of an erratic heartbeat. Dr. Iverson may have cleared her of a problem, but that didn’t mean it hadn’t existed. It was entirely possible the person who tampered with the machine never meant for her to die. They presumed the doctor would switch the device off immediately. She would be seriously hurt, but most likely alive.
Taking all the evidence into account, as well as the motive, it was looking very likely that Duncan Hamlin was guilty.
I insistedwe arrive separately at the hotel, just in case Uncle Ronald or Floyd were in the foyer and grew suspicious if we arrived together. They weren’t, and I found them in the ballroom. The large space was set up for Mr. Lombardi’s presentation with chairs placed in rows in front of a low platform where he would stand to speak. Tables were arranged behind the chairs with bottles of the tonics and pills his company manufactured, as well as glassware for the participants to sample each one. Brass plaques declared the name for each medicine—Soothing Syrup, Toothache Drops, Paralyxia Pills, Snake Oil Liniment, and Hair Restorer Quinine. Beside the plaques were stacks of leaflets extolling the virtues of the medicines.
Harry arrived shortly after me. We spoke briefly, as it would look odd if we didn’t talk at all, then he joined Peter and Goliath. Unlike the last meeting, this one did not contain just the heads of each department, although some where present. It was for the front-of-house staff whose job it would be to stop Mr. Pierce entering the hotel.
I stood near the back as Harry described Mr. Pierce’s appearance. After he finished, Harmony went through the details of the extra security she’d hired, and where she wanted everyone to stand and which part of the foyer they ought to monitor. Finally, she made sure everyone knew what to do if Mr. Pierce did show.
