When he arrived at the solicitor’s office, he found to his surprise that the news had already got around and he had to call on the help of a local on-duty constable to disperse the crowd of onlookers and several eager reporters.
Showing his card, the chief constable was ushered in to be greeted by his old friend, Henry Arbuthnot. ‘Hello, Reggie, I thought it might be your inspector. Didn’t expect you to spare the time.’
‘We’ve heard so many rumours, I thought I’d like to find out for myself. Have all the candidates turned up?’
‘Yes, I’ve even got our friend Robert Bruce, who put me onto them. He’s brought Miss Gates with him.’
‘I thought he might. He’s got a sound head on his shoulders, that young man,’ declared Mayfield, nodding in approval. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if he made a name
