Read Murder at the Castle for Free Online Page B

smiled and bowed, and moved us away from the little knot of people who remained.
    â€˜Well, that’s that. One aches for the poor victim, and the family, if any, but as Nigel says, it’s nothing to do with us, after all. I understand they’ve laid on transport back to Llangollen. So we should get back in good time for you to get your beauty sleep, Nigel. There are several good restaurants in Llangollen, I believe. Shall we try one of them for a spot of dinner?’
    Nigel was inclined, over dinner, to be apologetic. I was not about to put up with that. ‘My dear boy, you couldn’t possibly have predicted a bizarre accident like that! And it was a lovely trip until then. I’ll never forget the views of the mountains. And the river in Llangollen, with those lovely rapids . . .’ I trailed off. I was suddenly reminded of Alan’s comment about the rocks in the River Dee, not something I wanted to think about just then.
    We finished our meal quietly, drove back to Tower, and went to bed early and with great relief.
    â€˜But he was one of ours!’ Nigel looked up in great dismay from the paper he was reading at the breakfast table. ‘The man who fell yesterday. He was in the chorus for the opera scenes, or at least some of them. Remember that baritone I told you about? Daniel Green was his name, I remember now.’
    â€˜Oh, Nigel! And you said he was really good, with maybe a career in front of him. What a pity! What happened, does it say?’
    Nigel scanned the item again. ‘No. Just “police are investigating”. That sounds suspicious, wouldn’t you say?’
    He addressed the last remark to Alan, who made a rocking motion with one hand. ‘Perhaps. Most likely they either don’t want to commit themselves at this stage, or have some ideas they weren’t eager to release to the press.’
    â€˜It seems peculiar to me,’ said Nigel stubbornly. ‘I mean, if it was just an accident why don’t they say so? And if it wasn’t—’
    â€˜Sorry to interrupt, darling,’ said Inga, ‘but if we don’t start in five minutes you’re going to be late for rehearsal, and you know how much Sir John appreciates latecomers.’
    â€˜Oh, Lord, is it that late?’ Nigel pushed his chair back. ‘Just let me brush my teeth and get my music, and I’m right with you. Alan, Dorothy, you’re welcome if you want to come along.’
    I looked at Alan. ‘We might as well,’ he said. ‘You’ll find the castle interesting, and we’ve always liked to listen to a concert taking shape. We’ll take our own car, so if we get bored we can find something else to do.’
    In this unfamiliar part of the world I had no better suggestion, so Alan got the car and pulled it up to the door behind Inga, and when Nigel flew out the front door, his hair in disorder and his shirt untucked, we waited until he had thrown himself into their car, and then followed.
    â€˜Do you know where we’re going?’ I asked Alan tentatively. ‘Just in case we lose them?’ I had no idea what kind of a driver Inga was. Some are courteous when being followed, driving fairly slowly, signalling, and so forth. Some emphatically are not.
    â€˜I know where Flint Castle is, certainly.’ Alan’s voice was edging toward annoyed. Although he is a most even-tempered man, he tends, like most of the male sex, to be testy about the matter of asking directions.
    I sat back to enjoy the scenery. It was worth seeing. North Wales, where it is not mountainous, is rolling country, beautiful in its variety. I thought I saw a stone circle, or something of the kind, but before I could ask Alan to stop so we could take a look, he said, ‘Drat!’
    â€˜What?’
    â€˜That’s Flint Castle, just up ahead. And Inga and Nigel are nowhere to be seen. I lost them several curves back, but they were ahead of us until