Read Online Come the Fear by Chris Nickson - Free Book Online Page A

man up at Town End.’
    â€˜They dismissed her.’
    â€˜Oh aye?’ For the moment there was a flicker of interest in his eyes.
    â€˜Where do you work?’ Sedgwick asked.
    Wendell looked at him. ‘What’s that matter to you?’ The man’s voice was surly.
    â€˜I’m just curious.’ The deputy smiled. ‘It’s my job.’
    â€˜The blacksmith on Swinegate. I’m a farrier.’
    â€˜Good work, is it? Steady?’
    â€˜It’s fair.’ The man kept his bulk close to Sedgwick, arms crossed over his chest.
    â€˜I’d have thought you’d earn enough to afford somewhere better than this.’
    â€˜You think what you like,’ Wendell said sullenly.
    â€˜You know anywhere your sister could have gone?’
    â€˜She’d have come here or gone to see me mam,’ he answered without hesitation. ‘We’re all the family she has.’
    â€˜No one else?’
    â€˜No.’ He paused. ‘You don’t know about our Lucy, do you?’
    â€˜What do you mean?’ Sedgwick asked.
    â€˜She’s a sweet lass, right enough, but she’s not all there in the head.’
    â€˜She’s bloody simple,’ the girl muttered, but Wendell silenced her with a quick, vicious look.
    Sedgwick waited for more.
    â€˜I’d have looked after her if she’d come to me.’
    â€˜She was pregnant,’ the deputy told him. ‘That’s why she was dismissed.’
    â€˜I’ll look for her,’ Wendell said with a sharp nod.
    â€˜That’s our job . . .’ Sedgwick let the words trail away.
    â€˜I said I’ll do it. You’re not family,’ the man said firmly, his jaw set, his gaze hard. ‘It’s different.’
    There should have been no business done on a Sunday, no food or drink for sale on the Sabbath. But behind closed doors the alehouses and dram shops turned a pretty penny every night of the week. Where there was money to be made, God could easily be forgotten.
    Lister had to try three places before he found William Cates. He knew the man would be out rather than face the deathly stillness of an evening at home with his parents and his pious brother, the pair of them as different as stone and water. Robert lived for business and the church, treating both as holy and cherishing profit as a sacrament. Will preferred the noise and liveliness of a crowd, the distraction and pleasure it brought. But he was the one with the natural gift for the wool trade. He could spot a good cloth at ten paces, knew who’d buy it from him and for how much. Robert did the work but Will filled the coffers.
    Lister bought a mug of the alewife’s special brew and stood close to the fire. It was still chilly enough after dark to need heat even as each day grew a little warmer.
    â€˜Rob, over here.’
    He looked up and saw Cates wave. The men around him moved on their benches to make room.
    â€˜We don’t often see you out on a Sunday,’ Cates laughed as he settled. ‘I thought you’d maybe taken religion.’
    Lister smiled. ‘I don’t have the time any more. I’m working and I’m courting these days,’ he explained sheepishly.
    The men all laughed knowingly.
    â€˜You should never let that stop you having a good time,’ Cates advised him, signalling to the pot boy for another jug. ‘Still, I suppose when you’re a Constable’s man, eh? You enjoying it?’
    â€˜Best job I’ve ever had,’ Rob answered honestly.
    â€˜And you’ve had a few in your short time.’
    Lister grinned and took a long drink. He glanced at the others, chattering and joking, and leaned forward. ‘I wanted to see you, Will. Can you make a few minutes tomorrow?’
    â€˜Me?’ Cates looked puzzled. ‘I suppose I can. Is it important?’
    â€˜It’s probably nothing, but . . .’
    â€˜Work?’
    â€˜My work,’ Rob