The Unbelievers Read Free Page A

Chief Constable Sir Joseph Stewart was conspicuously sitting upright and holding a glass of water instead of the red wine of his companions. He smiled slightly at Allerdyce. If you just looked at him, thought Allerdyce, you might mistake him for a kind man. A concerned look had etched itself permanently onto his face, probably baked in by two decades of service as a colonial governor. With his ascetically hollow cheeks, close-cropped balding head and long, expressive hands he could have been mistaken for a mediaeval saint or mystic. His well-publicised support for charitable causes – reformatories for fallen women, gospel missions to the Zulus – might have affirmed that impression, but Allerdyce knew well enough that any convict or native who’d suffered under Stewart’s governance of the Tasmania colony would have no such illusion (although the inquiry into his Governorship had notoriously found no surviving native to testify against him).
    On the near side of the table, Allerdyce recognised Superintendent Burgess easily from behind, sitting upright in a worn-shiny grey suit which barely stretched over his powerful shoulders. His tight black curls reminded Allerdyce of a bull’s head. As Burgess turned in his chair Allerdyce saw by the candlelight the familiar ruddy and broken-nosed face which would have fitted a prize-fighter better than a policeman.
    â€œThank God we found you,” said the Superintendent.
    â€œNow, Mr Burgess, I don’t think there’s any need for blasphemy, is there?” said the Chief Constable. “But Mr Allerdyce, welcome. We hear great things about you. Please take a seat.”
    Allerdyce sat down beside Burgess.
    â€œI must apologise for insisting on your presence here tonight,” smiled the Chief Constable, “but we find ourselves in a delicate situation which we hope, through your skills, we can resolve.”
    â€œDelicate?” The Lord Advocate choked on his wine. “More likely to be grossly indelicate.”
    Sir Joseph continued. “We had intended to meet here tonight to discuss some matters of public policy. In particular, we wanted to discuss with a close friend, with substantial mining and agrarian interests, how the organs of the state could best be used to combat the threat of industrial insurrection. I’m sure you agree, don’t you, that in these dangerous times it is our duty to do everything we can to prevent the overthrow of the economic order on which our country’s security rests?”
    Allerdyce said nothing. Sir Joseph went on.
    â€œWell, to be brief, this friend was unable to join us tonight. We received a note from his wife, delivered by special courier, just as we were about to dine. It said that she’d waited until the last minute before writing, in the hope that she wouldn’t have to, but that her husband had failed to return home in time and that she regretted that they would have to present their apologies. She added that he’d not been home for some days and that she was increasingly concerned by his absence.
    â€œNaturally, we’re anxious to allay any concern that she may have for his safety, so we decided to invite Superintendent Burgess to advise us on how best to do so. He recommended you as the most efficient detective in our force, and we appreciate your kindness in coming here tonight.”
    Bloody hell, thought Allerdyce, you don’t care about the murders of ordinary men and women but you want the full power of the police service at your disposal when a friend is late for dinner.
    â€œIsn’t it a job for a private investigator, sir?” asked Allerdyce. “Marital inquiries aren’t normally part of police business.”
    Burgess shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Allerdyce saw the Chief Constable’s eyes narrow further, though he maintained his thin smile.
    â€œAs I explained to the Superintendent, Mr Allerdyce, our friend is not exactly in a