Read Online A Hundred Thousand Dragons by Dolores Gordon-Smith - Free Book Online Page A

good self.’
    â€˜â€“ such as my good self, and is there to evince surprise, alarm and horror when the sky falls in.’ Jack tapped the ash off his cigarette. ‘So yes, Ashley, it looks as if Vaughan could very well have done it.’
    â€˜We’re going too fast,’ said Ashley, suddenly doubtful. ‘Mr Vaughan didn’t say much on the phone when I rang him but he did say that the theft wasn’t straightforward. He hummed and hawed a bit and said he’d explain it fully when I arrived. There could be a whole raft of things we don’t know.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘That plaster should have set by now. I’ll lift the casts and open the gate for you.’
    â€˜Right-oh,’ agreed Jack. He started the engine as Ashley climbed out. ‘By the way, don’t be surprised if I have a sudden lapse of memory about last night. You see, if he says positively he did hear a car engine, I know he’s telling bouncers.’
    He parked the Spyker in the space in front of the outbuildings and, after stowing the plaster casts in the car, rang the bell.
    The door was opened by the butler, a burly, middle-aged man. ‘Mr Vaughan, gentlemen? I’ll tell him you’ve arrived. He asked me to show you into the study. He’ll be with you shortly.’
    The butler led the way through a hall adorned with various heads of animals mounted on wooden plaques. He paused and coughed deprecatingly before he opened the door, looking at Ashley. ‘Excuse me, sir, I hope you don’t mind me mentioning it, but my son’s in the force.’ Ashley looked at the butler with interest. ‘His name’s Oxley, sir. Sergeant Robert Oxley.’
    â€˜Robert Oxley?’ said Ashley warmly. ‘He’s in London now, isn’t he? He’s a very able officer. You can be proud of him.’
    â€˜We’re very proud of him, both me and my wife,’ said the butler, obviously gratified by Ashley’s response. ‘My wife’s Mr Vaughan’s housekeeper. Robert’s mentioned you a few times, sir.’ He opened the door to the study and showed them in. ‘I’ll just tell Mr Vaughan you’re here, gentlemen.’
    â€˜That could be useful,’ said Ashley, as the door closed behind the butler. ‘That he’s Bob Oxley’s father, I mean. It can be an uphill struggle at times, getting information out of the servants, but I won’t have any trouble.’ He looked round the study in appreciation. ‘There are some interesting things in here.’
    The study was a spacious and comfortably cluttered room lit by French windows looking out on to the gardens. There were buttoned-down leather chairs, a desk, a large bookcase, shelves of pottery, various silver cups and, in a corner of the room, a substantial safe. An oar, bearing names and the date 1889, was hung on the wall over a framed photograph of a group of fresh-faced young men in boating costume. Photographs of some of the remote and high places of the world bore testament to Vaughan’s love of the outdoor life. The tiger-skin rug which lay, its teeth bared, in front of the fireplace, was presumably the same animal that appeared in a large photograph on the back wall. Vaughan stood with one foot negligently on the tiger’s shoulder, rifle in his hand.
    â€˜He gets out and about, this chap, doesn’t he?’ said Ashley, gazing at the photographs with respect. He looked at the far wall, which was completely filled with books. ‘Is he a scholar as well, I wonder?’
    â€˜According to old Lady Stuckley, he digs up dead bodies.’ Jack grinned at Ashley’s bewildered expression. ‘She said as much last night. Apparently Vaughan’s an archaeologist.’
    Ashley’s face cleared. ‘I see. Tutankhamen, and so on.’ He looked at the pottery with interest, picking up a small terracotta dish. ‘It’s like a museum in here.