The Inspection of a Curator
DISCLAIMER: All rights belong to Deborah Harkness. Just borrowing the characters for an alternate universe fan fiction story.
SUMMARY: A 1940's Police Inspector gets caught up in the world of rare books when a valuable manuscript is stolen and a murder occurs. Together, with a book curator, this Detective will face obstacles as they traverse the secret world of asylum's, wealth and mystery as well as their blossoming romance.
CREDIT: A huge thank you to Shawna and Lady Lazarus DeClermont! I wouldn't be the author I am without your editing help, suggestions and ideas!
Chapter FOURTEEN: "Memories, Players, and Conclusions?"
By: Goode Girl
~TIOAC~
Sarah and Emily urged Diana to spend the night at Matthew's after she'd called them at her apartment to say she was running late. They'd been going over the case evidence again, and had dozed off on his couch together.
After finally agreeing that Sarah and Emily would be fine at her apartment on their own, she and Matthew trudged to bed.
In the early AM, Diana tossed and turned in her sleep before waking with a start. The sudden jerk awakes Matthew, who lay next to her.
"Are you okay?" He questioned sleepily; loosening his arm that was wrapped around her shoulder.
"I just remembered something about the asylum." She stated, sitting up a bit. "When they'd kidnapped me." She added.
"What do you mean?" He prodded, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"I was drugged so things are a bit fuzzy, but I remember seeing this man." She started. "I was on a gurney but I could make out Knox, Gerbert and this other man, -" Matthew interjected.
"Hubbard?" He inquired.
"No, no someone else." She clarified. "They referred to him as something 'Max'." She finalized.
Something sparked in Matthew's memory and he jumped from the bed and dashed off to the dining room, retrieving his notes from the DeClermont's the night of the party.
He returned to the bedroom rather quickly. "I remember Philippe talking about someone at the New Year's party that night." He stated, flipping back through his pages.
"He was a party guest?" Diana questioned.
"Yes, and Philippe suspected him at first." Matthew confirmed. "Here it is," he added. "Rudolph Maximillian." Matthew concluded.
"That's the name. I remember it now." Diana stated unquestionably.
"Do you recall what they were talking about?" Matthew asked, as they sat on the edge of the bed.
"Not exactly. But I remember hearing something, possibly about 'monitoring' and 'listening'. But I don't know what that means." She added.
Matthew thought about it for a few moments.
"My God! Diana!" Matthew called, jumping from the bed suddenly. "What if Rudolph was the one who broke into your office?" He surmised. "Planted the bugs." He added.
"But why would he?" She posed. "There was no way he'd know that I would be approached by Satu." She offered.
"Maybe not, but Philippe knew how much Rudolph coveted that manuscript and even joked about wanting to see it." Matthew stated. "A man named John Dee said as much at the party." He added, referring to his notes once again. "Based on the evidence we've collected we've concluded that Knox and Gerbert were working with someone else." He began.
"Right, Hubbard." She interjected.
"Yes. But…." Matthew paused for a moment. "What if there are more players?" He posed. "There were a lot of people bidding on that manuscript but Philippe won out. Plus, Knox, Gerbert and Rudolph were all at his New Year's party."
"Do you think Rudolph was working with Knox and Gerbert or against them?" Diana questioned.
"Based on the letters of correspondence from Knox's office, we know that Hubbard hired Knox and Gerbert, but I'm not sure how Rudolph fits in other than being after the manuscript and the secret it hid." Matthew shared. "We don't know if all the players knew about the hidden portrait either." He added.
"Rudolph hasn't really popped up since I recall seeing him at the asylum." Diana stated. "At least that's how it seems." She added.
"There's something that doesn't make sense though if Rudolph was in fact the one to break into your office." Matthew began. "He would KNOW that he didn't steal the manuscript like we've led people to believe. We'd secreted it away by then." Matthew explained.
"That's likely why he ended up listening for a while and then removing the bugs after no talk of the manuscript." She surmised. "He must think someone else broke in before he did." Diana deduced. "And if he suspected another break in prior to his own, he had to have had someone in mind." She surmised. "Rudolph must have confronted them, just like he did Knox and Gerbert at the asylum." She added. "But who?"
"There seems to be five players in this." Matthew confirmed. "Knox and Gerbert were mere minions and used based on the fact that the asylum connected to the DeClermont manor's underground tunnel system." He began. "Hubbard seemingly hired them and kept tabs on their 'operation' through appointments with Gerbert at his private practice." He continued. ", and Rudolph had a stake in it somehow. But whether he was working with or against is still unclear. But I believe it's more likely he was working with but, at a distance. Their appearance at the DeClermont's party together is telling to me. But…" Matthew paused. "When Rudolph realized after breaking in that he didn't steal the manuscript and it was already gone. He had someone in mind as to who it could have been and I've no doubt that he confronted them. That person is the final mystery player in all of this." Matthew concluded.
~TIOAC~
Gallowglass was making his rounds at the asylum for the real patients that still required help. He was meeting with a new doctor assigned to help the patients until a new head could be appointed. Although he was led to believe that this newly appointed doctor may become the new head of the asylum.
Peter Knox was being held without bail for his crimes and Gerbert was still nowhere to be found. Satu and the other conspirators who had worked at the hospital, like Kit Marlowe, and were complicit in the women's forced captivity were arrested and charged with being an accessory. But 'William' was cleared after judge Rima Jaén cleared him due to his witness affidavit.
"Hello!?" Gallowglass heard a voice echo down the hall. He jogged back to the entry after leaving the breakfast cart near the elevator bank to greet who he suspected was the new doctor.
"Dr. Whitmore?" He posed, putting out a hand.
"Yes, Dr. Marcus Whitmore." He introduced, returning the hand shake with a polite smile.
"Glad to have ya hear. These patients really need lookin' after." Gallowglass explained.
"It's a travesty what Knox and D'Aurillac have done here." He responded. "I've already treated the women that were rescued and the best thing for them now is rest." He added.
"I can't believe they got away with so much for so long. I was glad to be able to make a formal witness statement on what I'd seen." Gallowglass stated.
"You should be proud of that. You saved lives." Dr. Whitmore praised.
"Thank you." He smiled. "I have the patient files ready for ya in Knox's old office. Would ya like to review them before rounds?" Gallowglass questioned. "I've just finished delivering breakfast." He added.
"Sounds like a plan. Thank you." Dr. Whitmore smiled as Gallowglass led him down the hall. "Can I ask, why have you stayed on?" Dr. Whitmore questioned as Gallowglass approached the office door.
"Because these are human beings that needed care. There is no one else. Yet anyway." Gallowglass replied as he unlocked the office door.
"I do have a staff that's being brought in tomorrow." Dr. Whitmore clarified. "You're welcome to stay on, but from what I understand you may wish to move on?" He prodded.
"This was a temporary position," He began. There was no way he was going to share that he was an undercover agent and that's why it was a temporary position. ", but I wanted to stay on until things were handled." Gallowglass relayed. "And it looks like you'll have things well in hand." He smiled. "Will you be taking over the asylum?" He queried as he gestured for Dr. Whitmore to enter ahead of him.
"Possibly, but it's very likely it will become my new permanent position." Dr. Whitmore confirmed.
~TIOAC~
Matthew and Diana relayed their new theory to Hamish about another possible player, and were locked away in his office to avoid being overheard.
"Ms. Durand's statement has put some things into perspective." Hamish stated. "I wonder if we question her some more, if she can shed some light on this other possible player." He declared.
"There's something that's been bothering me about all of this and the fifth player." Diana interjected.
"What exactly?" Matthew questioned.
"I feel like the person we're looking for is right in front of us." Diana began. "Just think about the proximity they would have had to have to get information. I mean Juliette worked here. She was targeted for what exactly?" She asked rhetorically. "An attempt was made on her life and for whatever reason, the players thought she was what? Some kind of liability to them? She knew too much?" Diana rattled off. "It feels like this other player knew more about Juliette than even she realized." Diana concluded.
"You mean that this fifth player could have been monitoring the other players?" Hamish queried. "Also, it might be prudent to question her again about Gerbert. Being that she was his patient, she may unknowingly have information about his possible whereabouts." He added.
Diana nodded her agreement. "Yes." She stated with assurance. "All those times I felt like I was being watched, but never saw anyone suspicious." She offered. "Someone who could blend right in." She added as an afterthought. "And you're right about Juliette. She could know something without knowing she does." She concluded.
"I hate to say it but what if it's someone within the police department?" Matthew interjected. "Many here would have access to things and could, as Diana just mentioned, blend in or not feel like a threat. I never thought Juliette would share information but Gerbert clearly had a hold over her." He explained. "I don't think we can rule anything or anyone out. The possibility that we've shared information with them…" He trailed off.
"I have to agree with you on that. The information leak is a problem." Hamish nodded. "I have a thought on that." He added.
"I think I know what you're thinking." Diana encouraged. "You want to feed information to a few people, and see where it ends up." She stated confidently.
"Exactly." Hamish agreed. "Only the people we tell would have that information but share different things. If that gets back to us, we know who the other player is." He finalized.
"So, what do we leak and to whom?" Matthew questioned.
The operation was underway. Matthew and Hamish fed information to two people. Hamish to Detective Inspector Baldwin Montclair and Matthew to Constable Benjamin Fuchs. The reason for choosing these two particular people was because of their close proximity to the case in general. Both had been a part of the case since the beginning. They may not have any knowledge of a leak or someone compromising the case, but they had to start somewhere.
Matthew led Constable Fuchs to believe that the previous employee from 'La Pierre' Asylum, Mathieu Beny, who was reported as 'missing', had been found and was alive and well but in safehouse for his protection as an attempt had been made on his life. While Hamish led Detective Inspector Montclair to believe that they have the possible known whereabouts for where Gerbert D'Aurillac may be hiding.
Now, all they could do was wait to see where this information funneled out at.
~TIOAC~
Sarah and Emily brought lunch to Fernando this time. They had to remember to not call out Juliette's name as she was still hiding out with him for her protection. Not knowing where Gerbert was, they had to be more cautious about her safety and how many knew of her whereabouts.
The only people that knew she was at Fernando's were Diana, Matthew, Hamish, Gallowglass, Sarah, and Emily.
"Welcome! It's so nice to see you again." Fernando greeted.
After a quiet lunch, they gathered in the living room and drew the curtains closed so Juliette could come down from the attic to join them.
"How are you holding up, honey?" Emily posed.
"As well as can be expected I guess." She replied solemnly.
"Well, while we did bring lunch, we smuggled some clothes in at the bottom of the bags. Figured you'd like something more your style." Sarah informed, gesturing to the oversized dress shirt of Fernando's she was wearing over a pair of men's trousers.
"Thank you." She smiled, sipping from the hot cup of tea Fernando had handed her.
Fernando prepared coffee for Emily and Sarah, their preference, and they all sat around the living room in comfortable silence for a few moments.
"Now, we are here in a sort of business capacity for Matthew." Sarah began. "Being that you had been a patient of Gerbert's, Matthew was hoping you might recall anything about his personal affairs, like other properties or homes or holiday spots you think he could have gone to in order to hide out." She posed.
Juliette thought about Gerbert, the things he told her, what she knew as truth and what she suspected as lies. "I don't know about other properties, but he had a propensity to visit St. Paul's Cathedral a lot. We even would meet on the grounds of the Cathedral for a session. Taking walks around the grounds. Touring the Cathedral itself." She informed.
"It has a personal meaning to him then." Emily stated.
"I believe so, yes." Juliette confirmed.
"We should let Matthew know. Anything else, honey?" Emily prodded.
"I don't know if they connect to the asylum, but that Cathedral does have underground tunnels." She shared. "You can access them through the crypt." She added.
~TIOAC~
Baldwin Montclair waited patiently outside Chief Inspector Hamish Osbourne's closed office door. He'd been waiting so long that he'd started to pace, but he had information that he needed to share. He stopped suddenly, mid-stride when the door opened, and Matthew was about to walk out with Diana close behind.
"I need to speak with you right away, all of you." Baldwin urged, ushering them all back into the office and closing the door.
"Montclair, what's going in?" Hamish questioned.
Matthew and Diana were nervous at his behaviour and preferred to stand as he lay out his information.
"Someone contacted me. Someone we have not come across in this case at all, he's like a ghost." Baldwin began.
"What do you mean?" Diana prompted.
"When I went to the auction house to get the records, I recalled seeing this person lingering about, but he didn't seem suspicious to me at all, but then I'd noticed him cropping up at different occasions." He continued.
"Was his cropping up at other places suspicious?" Matthew asked.
"Not really, no. He appeared to have simply been walking by, sometimes with groceries in hand, like he was returning home, but would stop to take in the scene." He clarified. "He happened to be walking past Gillian Chamberlain's apartment as we were investigating the scene. That's when I took more notice of him. I asked him if he knew of the woman who lived there, gave him my direct line here at the precinct to call if he had information." He paused. "Well, he called me last night." He concluded.
"And?" Hamish prodded.
Baldwin looked extremely anxious and they couldn't understand why. Diana urged him to sit down and take a deep breath before continuing.
"Did he give his name?" Matthew urged.
"Domenico Michele. He worked for Gerbert." Baldwin stated simply.
"Worked? As in he doesn't anymore?" Diana prodded.
"Precisely." Baldwin paused once more.
When he'd gathered himself some more, he relayed what Domenico had shared. Baldwin had been trying to process the information shared with him.
Domenico had relayed that he'd been tasked with 'taking out' Juliette Durand because she was becoming difficult to control. While she had been ordered to get close to Matthew to get information about the case and the manuscript, she also seemed to have feelings for him that were hindering her 'job'. He'd refused to perform this assignment and Gerbert outsourced. The victim in Juliette's apartment, Louisa and her cohort from the asylum, Kit Marlowe were the two involved but Kit fled the scene, leaving things in Louisa's hands.
"Domenico's main job was to keep watch on different players involved. All those times you felt like you were being watched." Baldwin began, directing his attention to Diana. "You were being watched, by him." He confirmed.
"Jesus." Matthew mumbled under his breath. Matthew shared a look with Hamish hoping this 'watcher' hadn't seen Gallowglass smuggling Juliette away from the scene. "Does he know where Gerbert is hiding?" He posed after seeing the understanding on Hamish's face over his own concern.
"Not for sure, no. But he did say that he doesn't know of any other hiding places Gerbert might have. If he does have another place, it's unknown to him." Baldwin answered. "But that's where it gets frustrating because the only person he was never tasked with watching was Gerbert himself." He concluded.
"Thank you for that, Montclair." Hamish stated.
"I need to get back to some other leads, but I'll let you know if I hear from my source again." Baldwin replied, exiting the office.
"This Domenico could have a lot of information about all the players. We need to see if he'll come in willingly and make a formal statement." Matthew posed.
"Let's see if he contacts Baldwin again, and then we can suggest that. We definitely don't want to scare off a potential witness that could literally break everything open." Hamish reasoned.
"Agreed." Matthew confirmed.
A loud resounding knock echoed through the office and startled everyone. The door opened and Sarah and Emily poked their heads in. They entered the office and closed the door behind them securely and spoke in quieter voices.
"I don't know if you're aware but you have a constable outside that's trying to listen in as to what's happening in here." Sarah stated.
Hamish stood from his office chair, strode to the door and opened it abruptly.
"What are you doing loitering around outside my office, don't you have a job to do?!" He asked rhetorically.
"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir." The constable replied, running off.
Hamish returned to his office and closed the door once more.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we have information about where Gerbert may be." Sarah stated.
"Juliette recalls that Gerbert would often visit St. Paul's Cathedral, and they'd even had a few sessions there as they'd walk the grounds." Emily relayed.
"But that's not all." Sarah smiled. "Juliette is pretty certain that there are underground tunnels that can be accessed through the cathedral's crypt." She added triumphantly.
"We've never looked at a full map of the underground tunnels. They could connect to the ones that lead to the DeClermont's and the asylum." Diana interjected.
"I think we have what we need to capture D'Aurillac." Hamish stated, standing from his chair. "We need to get a team together and go in smart."
"I think we should check the archives for the tunnel system." Matthew suggested. "If we go in there from ground level, he could escape through the tunnels. But if we go in from the tunnels and from ground level, we'll have him trapped." He finalized.
Everyone was in agreement. Matthew and Diana would head to the archives to gather the schematics for the tunnel systems, while Baldwin would keep his line of communication open with Domenico Michele. Sarah and Emily were going to head back to Matthew's after picking up some groceries to prepare dinner that evening.
They would all congregate at Matthew's to go over the tunnel system strategy and then Hamish would have a viable plan for Gerbert's capture.
As everyone departed, Baldwin went to his desk to look over the notes he'd made from his call the evening before with Domenico. His phone ringing startled him and he jerked the receiver from its cradle.
"Montclair," He announced.
"It's me." The voice stated.
"From last night?" Baldwin queried. He didn't want to use Domenico's name in case someone was listening in.
"Yes. I've been doing as you asked and have shadowed that constable. I think you're right to be concerned." He shared.
"What's he been up to?" Baldwin queried.
"He rushed out of the precinct like his ass was on fire about ten minutes ago, and I've followed him since." Domenico relayed. "He stopped at a flat, was in there for a few minutes and then left again. I went to the door of the building when he was gone to look at the tenant names. There are six in total." He stated.
Domenico started listing the names of the tenants when Baldwin stopped him in his tracks. "Wait, what was that fourth name again?" He prodded, his pen at the ready.
Baldwin saw Hamish exiting his office and waved him over.
"Thank you, call again if you have more." Baldwin finished.
"What's going on?" Hamish asked as he approached.
"My new informant just shared something with me, but I have a quick question for you first, if you don't mind." He began.
"Of course," Hamish agreed.
"Who was loitering outside your office earlier?" He prodded.
"Constable Fuchs. Why?" Hamish replied.
"Being that his specialty is observing, I asked my informant to tail that exact constable."
Baldwin relayed his phone conversation with Domenico before dropping the last bit of information in his lap.
"Guess who the apartment belonged to that he was visiting." Baldwin smiled knowingly.
"Baldwin," Hamish stated irritably. "Out with it."
"Matthieu Beny."
~TIOAC~