Read Online Illegally Dead by David Wishart - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: David Wishart
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woke and left it on the table for when he got back. And the...and the medicine, sir, ready-mixed in the cup.’
‘So the length of time between when you left the tray and the medicine ready and your master coming back would be what?’
‘About fifteen minutes, sir, give or take.’
Yeah, right. Plenty of time, in other words, for someone - Cosmus - to nip into the empty room, do the business with the bottle, and nip out again. And if he’d been hiding in the spare bedroom a few yards along the corridor, like Veturina he’d’ve heard the footsteps coming and going and known the coast was clear. Easy-peasy. ‘The routine didn’t change?’ I said.
‘No, sir.’
‘And Cosmus would’ve known what it was?’
Scopas’s face hardened. ‘No reason why the –’ He stopped, and I heard his teeth click as he pressed them together hard. ‘No reason why he shouldn’t’ve, sir. It wasn’t a secret.’
‘Tell me about Cosmus. Had Hostilius had him long?’
‘About a year. The master bought him from Tuscius over in Bovillae.’
‘Tuscius?’
‘Marcus Tuscius, the slave-dealer.’
‘Where did he get him from?’
‘’Fraid I can’t tell you that, sir. Cosmus’ - Scopas looked like he wanted to spit when he said the name - ‘never mentioned where he’d been before, and no one felt inclined to ask. He wasn’t exactly popular with the other lads and lasses.’
‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘Yeah, so I gathered. What about with the family?’
‘He was a smarmy little bugger, sir, if you’ll forgive the language, in with every chance he could get. He’d a way with him, Cosmus, I’ll give him that, good-looking and well-spoken, and it was no secret he was angling for an above-stairs job. The master didn’t like him for’ - he hesitated - ‘reasons that we won’t go into but maybe you can imagine, sir, having talked to the mistress, but he could get round the two youngsters easy enough. Especially Miss Paulina.’
Uh-huh. And I could guess what Hostilius’s ‘reasons’ had been: sleeping with good-looking slaves, didn’t she say? The fact that according to Hyperion Cosmus’s natural proclivities lay in other directions was neither here nor there: it would’ve been business, not pleasure. ‘Where did he work, usually?’ I said.
‘Kitchens, sir. He was one of the kitchen skivvies. He wasn’t there more than he could help, though, every chance he got he bunked off down to the stables where he could be on his own. Not that anyone cried on that account.’
‘You, uh, reported him missing to the Lady Veturina the day your master died, didn’t you?’
‘Yes, sir, that’s right. Before the master died, actually, because he should’ve been on duty to wash up the breakfast dishes and scour the pans. I didn’t know nothing about the ring or so on then, mind, because the master kept them in the drawer of his desk and I didn’t notice they were gone until the next day.’
Well, that settled that; not that I was surprised. Still - ‘Uh, one last thing, Scopas. Castor. The mistress’s brother.’
I couldn’t’ve been mistaken this time. When I mentioned the name I could almost feel the guy tense. Interesting. ‘Yes, sir?’
‘He around at present?’
‘No. No, I...don’t think so.’
‘Know when he’ll be back?’
‘That I couldn’t say, sir.’
Straight into the one-liners, and to anyone who’s had anything to do with slaves that can only mean one thing.
‘Look, pal,’ I said wearily. ‘You’ve been really, really helpful so far. Don’t start giving me the run-around now, okay? Just tell me what you’re carefully not saying and we’ll call it a day. Bargain?’
He swallowed. ‘Sir, I’d really rather not –’
Screw that. ‘Listen, Scopas,’ I said. ‘I don’t like to remind you of this, but if it wasn’t for me you’d be answering any question anyone liked to put to you tied hand and foot to a couple of sliding boards. Answering it pretty damn quickly, too,
‘So the length of time between when you left the tray and the medicine ready and your master coming back would be what?’
‘About fifteen minutes, sir, give or take.’
Yeah, right. Plenty of time, in other words, for someone - Cosmus - to nip into the empty room, do the business with the bottle, and nip out again. And if he’d been hiding in the spare bedroom a few yards along the corridor, like Veturina he’d’ve heard the footsteps coming and going and known the coast was clear. Easy-peasy. ‘The routine didn’t change?’ I said.
‘No, sir.’
‘And Cosmus would’ve known what it was?’
Scopas’s face hardened. ‘No reason why the –’ He stopped, and I heard his teeth click as he pressed them together hard. ‘No reason why he shouldn’t’ve, sir. It wasn’t a secret.’
‘Tell me about Cosmus. Had Hostilius had him long?’
‘About a year. The master bought him from Tuscius over in Bovillae.’
‘Tuscius?’
‘Marcus Tuscius, the slave-dealer.’
‘Where did he get him from?’
‘’Fraid I can’t tell you that, sir. Cosmus’ - Scopas looked like he wanted to spit when he said the name - ‘never mentioned where he’d been before, and no one felt inclined to ask. He wasn’t exactly popular with the other lads and lasses.’
‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘Yeah, so I gathered. What about with the family?’
‘He was a smarmy little bugger, sir, if you’ll forgive the language, in with every chance he could get. He’d a way with him, Cosmus, I’ll give him that, good-looking and well-spoken, and it was no secret he was angling for an above-stairs job. The master didn’t like him for’ - he hesitated - ‘reasons that we won’t go into but maybe you can imagine, sir, having talked to the mistress, but he could get round the two youngsters easy enough. Especially Miss Paulina.’
Uh-huh. And I could guess what Hostilius’s ‘reasons’ had been: sleeping with good-looking slaves, didn’t she say? The fact that according to Hyperion Cosmus’s natural proclivities lay in other directions was neither here nor there: it would’ve been business, not pleasure. ‘Where did he work, usually?’ I said.
‘Kitchens, sir. He was one of the kitchen skivvies. He wasn’t there more than he could help, though, every chance he got he bunked off down to the stables where he could be on his own. Not that anyone cried on that account.’
‘You, uh, reported him missing to the Lady Veturina the day your master died, didn’t you?’
‘Yes, sir, that’s right. Before the master died, actually, because he should’ve been on duty to wash up the breakfast dishes and scour the pans. I didn’t know nothing about the ring or so on then, mind, because the master kept them in the drawer of his desk and I didn’t notice they were gone until the next day.’
Well, that settled that; not that I was surprised. Still - ‘Uh, one last thing, Scopas. Castor. The mistress’s brother.’
I couldn’t’ve been mistaken this time. When I mentioned the name I could almost feel the guy tense. Interesting. ‘Yes, sir?’
‘He around at present?’
‘No. No, I...don’t think so.’
‘Know when he’ll be back?’
‘That I couldn’t say, sir.’
Straight into the one-liners, and to anyone who’s had anything to do with slaves that can only mean one thing.
‘Look, pal,’ I said wearily. ‘You’ve been really, really helpful so far. Don’t start giving me the run-around now, okay? Just tell me what you’re carefully not saying and we’ll call it a day. Bargain?’
He swallowed. ‘Sir, I’d really rather not –’
Screw that. ‘Listen, Scopas,’ I said. ‘I don’t like to remind you of this, but if it wasn’t for me you’d be answering any question anyone liked to put to you tied hand and foot to a couple of sliding boards. Answering it pretty damn quickly, too,
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