Read Online Death and the Arrow by Chris Priestley - Free Book Online Page B

a grim look as if he were seeing it happen right there in front of him.
    “But you said ‘those that were there,’ ” continued the doctor. “Were not all the bodies found, then?”
    “Not all, no. Some had been taken by the savages for some devilish reason. Only their blood-soaked clothes were found.”
    “How many were taken?”
    “Five. Though what concern it can be of yours I cannot—”
    “And was Leech one of those taken?” said Dr. Harker.
    “Leech? Yes. I saw him fall and thought him dead. Somehow he must have lived. I can’t say how.”
    “And the silver. Was that gone too?”
    “The cart was gone when my men arrived. No doubt the Indians were working for their French masters.”
    “Maybe so,” said Dr. Harker. “And what action did the British army take over this incident?”
    “As soon as I was able, I showed one of our Indian scouts the arrow that had been pulled from me and asked him who had made it. To my surprise, he said it was the work of a nearby village, the work of natives who had never given us any trouble at all. Even so, they would have to be taught a lesson. It’s all these people understand, believe me.”
    “You attacked the village?”
    “You’ve seen the handiwork of those savages, sir. If we had let them go unpunished, it would have sent a message to their brethren that the British army was weak.”
    “So you killed them.”
    “Aye.”
    “Women and children as well?”
    “Aye, she-savages too, and their cubs. I don’t say it’s wholesome work, but it’s soldiering and that’s that. I sleep well enough. Or at least I did.”
    “Until you saw Bill Leech’s body?” said the doctor.
    “Until then, yes,” said the sergeant. “I had not been in London two days when I saw him. He was alive, then. At first I could not believe my eyes, and so I followed him. I was conspicuous in my uniform, so I was forced to hang well back. As it was, he looked twitchy and nervous. He kept pulling a card from his pocket and looking at it.
    “I thought I’d lost him when I turned a corner and found myself in an empty street. Then I heard a commotion coming from a courtyard nearby. I entered it and found two men standing over Leech’s body. One of the men was calling for a constable; the other was looking up—for the arrow seemed to have come from the clouds above—and saying, ‘It can’t be, it can’t be. I was right behind him when he fell.’ And you could see his point. There was only one exit and we stood blocking it. The courtyard was as empty as a preacher’s promise.” He took another drink. “One moment I’m following a man I thought to be arrow-shot in the Americas; the next moment he lies dead at my feet by the selfsame method, a Death and the Arrow card spilling out of his pocket.” He shook his head. “I told the constable what I knew, and the newspapers took up the tale.”
    “I think you may have known the other arrow victim,” said Dr. Harker. “He had a musket-ball wound below his right shoulder.”
    The sergeant stared at him and shook his head in disbelief. “Benjamin Cooper,” he said finally. “Strong as an ox, he was. They pulled a ball from his back, and he didn’t so much as squeak.” He shook his head again, trying to make sense of it.
    “But why did you take the arrow?” said Tom.
    “Ah, well, I don’t rightly know,” said the sergeant. “There’s devilry here and no mistake. That arrow was Indian workmanship. Lord knows, I seen enough of it in my time. I ask you, how can that be?” When no answer came back, the sergeant wiped some beads of sweat from his forehead and licked his dry lips. “And that ain’t all. I am being followed.”
    “Followed?” asked the doctor.
    “I have been followed by . . . by . . . by a
something
. I can’t say what.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Well,” said the sergeant, turning for another moment from the door to face them, “as you ask . . . I fear it to be some sort of magical creature let