River of Darkness by Rennie Airth Page B

Madden took out his cigarettes and placed them on the table with a box of matches. He waited while Wellings lit up. 'Gladys and I' - he took a long pull on the cigarette - 'we went to Tup's Spinney.' He blew out the match. 'What time?' 'About half past eleven, maybe a little earlier.' 'Where was Fred Maberley?' 'Asleep.' Wellings's smile flickered and went out. 'While you were there did you see or hear anything?' Madden asked. Wellings nodded. 'A motorbike. Just after we got there. It went past us through the fields.' 'In which direction? Away from Upton Hanger?' Wellings nodded again. 'What make of motorcycle? Did you notice?' He shook his head. 'What did you see?' Madden persisted. Wellings puffed on his cigarette. 'When I heard it, I got up and went to the edge of the trees. I thought it might be someone else coming to the spinney. You know . . .' He grinned knowingly at Madden, but received no sympathy from the inspector's glance. 'There was a moon up, I saw it clearly. A motorbike and sidecar.' 'A sidecar - you're sure of that?' 'Yes, I'm sure. At first I thought there was someone in it, you know, a passenger, but then I saw there wasn't.' Madden and Stackpole looked at each other. 'Let me get this clear,' the inspector said. 'There was something in the sidecar?' 'That's right - a shape. That's all I could see. Like I said, at first I thought it was a passenger. But it just didn't look right, not for a person. It was too low. There wasn't much showing over the rim of the sidecar.' 'How fast was it travelling?' 'Not fast. He was watching for the ruts.'
    'He? You saw the rider?' Wellings shook his head. 'Just his shape. Big bloke. He was wearing a cloth cap. That's all, Mr Madden, I swear. It was only for a few seconds, then he was gone, heading back towards the road.' Madden stared at him. 'You could have told us this two weeks ago,' he said. Wellings said nothing. The inspector stood up. 'Stay here.' He signed to Stackpole and the two of them went outside into the road. The constable filled his lungs with fresh air. 'I suppose he'll get off now, the little bastard.' 'Not at all.' Madden shook his head firmly. 'No bargain was struck. We're going to charge him. But don't tell him that yet. Get his statement first. Then tell him, but leave it for a few days. He may remember something more.' Stackpole's grin returned. He took out his notebook. 'Before you go back in, I need a telephone.' 'There's only one in Oakley, sir, at the post-office counter. That's in the store. You'll have to go through the Guildford exchange.' Five minutes later Madden was connected with the Scotland Yard switchboard. He caught Sinclair on his way out to an early luncheon appointment. 'We need to get the Surrey police on to this, sir. They'll have to go over their tracks, question the same people in the same villages. On this side of the ridge, at least.' 'But now we've something specific. A motorcycle and sidecar. A big man in a cloth cap. Well done, John!' 'We've Stackpole to thank, sir. He doesn't miss much.' 'I'll be sure to mention that to Norris when I speak to him. What was he carrying in the sidecar, I wonder?' Madden thought. 'Assuming he had a rifle with him, he wouldn't want to cart it around in the open. Perhaps a bag of some kind?' 'Hmmm . . .' The chief inspector mused. 'It was after eleven when Wellings saw him. Say he quit Melling Lodge around ten o'clock, what was he doing for the next hour? It wouldn't have taken him that long to get back to his motorcycle.' They fell silent. Then Madden spoke: 'I'll be back in a couple of hours, sir--'
    'No, you won't, John. There's nothing we can do from here at present. You need a break. Take the weekend off. I'll see you at the office on Monday morning.' 'But I think I should--'
    'Inspector!' 'Yes, sir?' 'That's an order.' Sinclair hung up. Coming out of the shop, Madden saw Helen Black well sitting in her car in the shade of the chestnut tree. Two women stood with folded arms chatting to her,