The Lost Treasure Map Series (15 page)

“
He had his car parked along the
road,
”
Inspector Bailey continued,
“
and he walked straight through ...
to the trees over there
–
where we caught him watching the
castle.
”

“
Why would a reporter go to such
lengths to photograph here?
”
Bryson instantly moaned, not understanding
the logic behind it
–
mostly confused about why he had not even
imagined it.
“
The man could have found more driving in here
... At the most, he would only have been refused an
interview!
”

“
The snow blocked the road ... And
from what I gather the young man went for a walk from there
–
to here.
Incidentally, thinking that it was better to photograph here from
the wood. Is that clear?
”

Bryson gave a reluctant nod, giving
Inspector Bailey an opportunity to move away to somewhere.

He had expected them to be defensive, and
not as gullible, with high alertness, questioning everything.

Merton and Mortimer headed back into the
dining room, aroused by the scents of soup, and the servants taking
in more food for them, leaving him standing in the hall. And he
just followed them.

“
Are you not having
anything?
”
Merton asked, between sips of soup.
“
There
’s
a plate over
there.
”

Of course, it was a good idea to eat as much
nutritious substances as possible; he more than likely would not
acquire a chance later. The events had absorbed a large chunk of
his precious time. None of them, as far as he was concerned, had
properly considered the words on the tomb.

The servants were cleaning up, and,
from the outer noise, the kitchen was receiving a final clean.
Their antics were now amusing
–
they sounded as though they were expecting
them to provide another body for them to deal with, and that the
place should at least be clean to a high standard.

There were suggestions that the recent
events were to appear on the news.

He could just imagine them spending the day
occasionally taking looks for bodies.

They could even be suspecting
them
–
they
had more motivation than anyone else did
–
they were trying to acquire the
money. They could be keeping silent, believing that the killer
would be the one who would be their future employer. He could not
imagine working there as a servant for a strangler of a
servant.

Chapter 33

Deadly Quest

A rhythmical patter of weak planks,
clattering under their feet, echoed amidst the corridor
–
reflecting off
the thick stone walls.

Bryson and Merton rhythmically copied
Mortimer
’s
steps.

Even though the rooms about them were dark,
he was sure that they had no damage done to them, and that the
others had not been there. It was more than likely that they just
did not believe that there was anything there.

His thoughts returned to the recent events,
and he wondered why they had not suspected a reporter. Did they
judge people by their jobs so much that they could not imagine it
being one?

He started to recall the main reason for
them having believed that it had been the killer. Originally, he
had believed that it had been him, when they had followed him
through the wood, because of his footprints being similar to the
prints of the person who had been at the castle.

They could have been very much mistaken, and
he might have been so cool due to his cover ...

He would have experience of the
police
–
how they work
–
and what he could get away with, being a
reporter. He could have been ready to make out that he had been
investigating the crime.

Yet, he could see their point, there
was no real evidence that it was him, and what sort of reporter did
something like that. He could easily be an inexperienced one,
working for a relatively unknown newspaper
–
desperate to give an
impression ...

The facts sank in
–
reporters did not do such
things, as they would have little reason to do so.

They moved straight to the
library
–
wherever it was
–
in the corridor (darkened by the early
winter nightfall). The light switches were now too distant, to make
any sense of using.

He would have expected the whole corridor to
have switches along it, which was the most logical idea.

He would continue his search of the books,
and trying to find any clues, especially anything to do with the
words that they had seen on the tomb.

The library did not have any indications
that anyone had been there since they had left.

If Robert had been there, there would
probably have been signs of it.

“
It would be a good idea to install
closed-circuit cameras about this place,
”
Merton sighed, relaxing into his
seat, almost fully relaxed for the first time since their
hike.
“
Think of what they could capture from the
outer walls ...
”

“
That
’s
an idea!
”
Bryson uttered, thinking of
it.

It would be a good idea for them as well, as
they could search through the tapes for any unnatural
disturbances.

Bryson went to the window, even though it
was dark.

The outside was more menacing that
ever, especially with it being on the ground level
–
where someone
could sneak about, at the window, at its hidden regions.

His awareness of danger was high, especially
with the amount danger that they had confronted. What was stopping
something from the wood smashing in through the window.

If it had happened before, they would not
necessarily know of it. It could easily have happened, and the
residents put it down to being something else. People said very
little about the castle.

The people who had once lived there might
have avoided the lower rooms at night. However, the lights might
deter any outer occurrences.

What a good idea it would have been if they
had installed cameras.

And they only needed a few of them to
cover the entrances, and perhaps some of the wood
–
making it
impossible to enter without being filmed.

The snow glowed, in lunar light, from the
moon somewhere overhead. While its distorted shapes reflected on
windscreens, further out.

The wood illuminated, showing its
deadness.

Yet would closed-circuit television do much?
Accept deter anyone from watching.

But an obscure view of something would be
worth acquiring.

Blackness edged against the
wood
–
from
thick clouds stretching across the sky
–
like a thick black
curtain.

Bryson strained his eyes, trying to see what
he could.

The coldness coming through the window
relaxed him, but made him shiver.

A gust blew up the snow from the ground,
below the ledge. And he turned, to protect his throat, from a
sudden draft from the edge of the window.

He adjusted his clothing, and moved back to
where he had been sitting.

He dropped a book onto the table, to look at
its tattered cover.

Now it was as if they were there
because of their complete lack of information
–
about anything vaguely
related with their present interests.

Had Sir Richard for some reason,
having time to spare, made sure that they did not find anything at
the castle
–
rigorously sifting through it
–
expelling all with slightest
suggestion of an answer.

Mortimer spotted his weary facial
expressions, and remaining restlessness.
“
We should try to find out something.
And we
’ve
not properly considered what the words on the tomb
mean.
”

Mortimer removed his bit of paper, and he
stretched it over the table, taking any creases out of it, making
it flat and readable. Then he pushed it over to him, and he took it
from him. But he saw that he had badly scribbled it, perhaps due to
the dark vault.

Nothing sprang to mind ... It had to be a
riddle, which he had kept imaging it as, and a message to
someone.

Merton sat staring over at it.
“
It might not be
referring to people at all!
”
he remarked.

“
What would it be referring to
then?
”
he
answered swiftly, seeking facts.

“
Spirits of the
dead!
”
he
anxiously uttered, in a strange tone, instantly grasping his
attention.

“
That could be so
...
”
Mortimer continued, with a serious professional
expression
–
thinking deeply, trying to sort out some way of explaining
some belief or something. He resembled a scientist unable to
conceive the obvious on a subject.

“
Many people in the past were
eccentrically superstitious ... They knew little
–
about how things work.
Unlike nowadays! It could suggest spirits that were believed to be
here!
”

Bryson considered if they were typical
psychic scientists or now down-to-earth people doing the job,
trying to find the answer to everything (like him), which had
tormented them.

Strangely, they had proven that something
was at work, but not what it was. There was no definite evidence to
hold any reasonable argument!

“
The answer to the
clue,
”
Merton spoke loudly, deliberately capturing his
attention,
“
where the last
dwell
, could be referring to where spirits
dwell.
”

“
Or where they had once
dwelled,
”
Mortimer spoke.
“
Many things alter
–
over time
–
even in a matter of
years.
”

It was a breathtaking thought: it referred
to ghosts!

Yet he, and most other people, never
knew Sir Richard
’s
beliefs on that subject, or if he would
have done such a thing.

There had been no suggestion from him
that it had been it, or even a joke. But if he had not believed
that there had been ghosts at Grovnor Castle, he might have used it
as a joke subject
–
to suggest something.

“
Somewhere that they believed that
they dwelled!
”

Merton moaned, shrugging to
them
–
identifying that the riddle might be just as complicated,
even with them knowing it.

“
It could not be where the tombs are
...
”
Bryson
moaned, mainly to himself.

“
Not necessarily,
”
Merton swiftly
replied.
“
They might have built it on the site of where
they were or had been.
”

Mortimer gave a look of surprise, and
briskly thought it over, from various viewpoints.
“
That could
explain why they built it a way out there
–
where it is not even accurately in
front of the castle
”

“
It may be out of the way for a
reason!
”
Bryson continued.
“
Most people do not have graves anywhere near
where they live. They could have chosen it as it had been out of
sight
–
away from everywhere. At a location where they could reach,
without too much strain
–
but still out of the way.

“
Finished!
”
Merton moodily returned, making
Bryson give a smile, and want to quit the argument.
“
But if
it
’s
on
‘
sacred ground
’
–
or a haunted place
–
it may be what we are looking
for.
”

“
But why would they put a burial site
on
‘
haunted
ground
’
?
Who would have wanted to have it on ground where there were
ghosts?
”

“
Many people might
have!
”
Mortimer replied.

“
Do you think that they would have
done it so that they would return as ghosts or
something?
”