Read Online The Gardens of the Dead by William Brodrick - Free Book Online Page B

she said, “I’m
implicated in a homicide.” And then she seemed to slip away, leaving her body
behind. I said, “I think you need a solicitor not a monk.” She replied, “It’s
not the law that has a claim upon me. It’s my “‘
    ‘Conscience,’
Anselm interjected. The Prior nodded.
    Kierkegaard
had called it ‘an affair of the heart’. Anselm’s rebelled. He’d been in the
same position as Elizabeth: they’d both defended guilty men before. And if
Riley were connected to the death of John Bradshaw, conscience could not hold
either Elizabeth or Anselm to be responsible. There was no link between
anything they had done and that outcome. So how had the discomfort become
anguish? Mechanically, Anselm surmised that this particular visit to Larkwood
must have occurred shortly after Elizabeth had received the letter from Mrs
Bradshaw.
    ‘We sat
in silence,’ continued the Prior, gazing into the fire. ‘Gradually, as it were,
she came back, and we talked of her work — of revenge and fair dealing, of
injury and restoration, of judges and juries: these ideas, and their
connections, seemed to fill her mind, and she sifted through them as if she
were doing a jigsaw whose picture it was desperately important to complete…
and keep out of view.’
    The
Prior leaned forward and threw another log on the fire. Flakes of orange ash
burst free and rose and turned instantly to grey.
    ‘The
last time I saw her was a month ago. She wanted to talk to you, but only after
a meeting with me — which was, however, to remain confidential. She was neither
angry, nor helpless, nor desolate. I found her composed; you might even say at
peace. He took off his glasses and fiddled with the paperclip. ‘Going back to
the jigsaw, I think the gathering of the pieces was over. She said, “I’ve
thought a great deal about our previous discussions and, as a result, I’ve
been tidying up my life.” I waited, expecting her to tell me what this had all
been about, but she confided nothing. So I said, “If ever I can help again, don’t
hesitate to ask.” She smiled, saying, ‘Actually, I’ve a small favour to ask.”
And at that strange moment, I felt like the first domino in a queue.’ The Prior
repositioned his glasses and looked to Anselm, as if inviting the next in line
to relate the fall.
    Anselm
said, ‘She wondered if I might be free to run an errand on her behalf.’
    ‘She
did,’ said the Prior. ‘And I agreed.’
    ‘She
then said, “May I give him a key to be used in the event of my death?”’
    ‘She
did. And I agreed.’ The Prior pursed his lips, thinking. ‘What you will not
know are the instructions she then gave me regarding what should happen after
you had opened the box. They were precise. As regards myself, I was to wait,
otherwise you would not understand what I was to say As regards yourself, she
said, “Firstly Anselm should visit a Mrs Bradshaw She wrote to both of us many
years ago. She deserves a reply” Does that mean anything to you?’
    ‘I’ve
just read it.’
    While
Anselm explained what had been written, the Prior went to his desk and opened a
drawer. ‘She then said, “Secondly please give him this letter. He should open
it when he has left Mrs Bradshaw After that, everything should fall into place.”
And she added, ‘A police officer called Inspector Cartwright will one day thank
you, as I do.” I’d have called a halt to this drama, if it hadn’t been for her
resolve and.., her pain.’
    Anselm
took the envelope. It bore his name in her small, painstaking hand. ‘And then,
to evoke the past, she sought me out with a box of chocolates.’
    The
Prior sat down with a sigh, rubbing the back of his head — a gesture possibly
from his younger days in Glasgow ‘Tell me all about it; from when you first met
her.’
    From
when you first met her. The Prior, like Anselm, was already looking further
back than appearances would warrant. Accordingly, Anselm began with a
conversation on a