Cain His Brother - Anne Perry [154]
Rathbone glanced at Monk, and saw the same look of distress in his face, and also the knowledge that there was no retreat or evasion possible.
“Thank you,” Monk acknowledged Ravensbrook, then with Rathbone behind him, walked over and pushed the cell door wider and went inside. Caleb Stone was lying on the floor in a sheet of blood. It lay in a scarlet tide around his head and shoulders. The penknife, a beautiful silver engraved thing, was lying upside down against his neck, as if it had fallen out of the wound with its own weight. There was no question that he was dead. The beautiful green eyes were open, and quite blind. There was in his face a look of resignation, as if he had at last let go of something which was both a possession and a torture, and the ease of it had surprised him.
Monk looked for something to tell him some fact beyond that which Ravensbrook or the gaoler had said, and saw nothing. There were no contradictions, no suggestions of anything additional, anything unexplained by the account of a simple, stupid piece of violence. The only question was had he been impulsive, in a sudden overwhelming rage, perhaps like the rage that had killed Angus, or had it been a deliberately planned way of committing suicide before the hangman could take his life in the slow, exquisite mind-torture of conviction, sentence and hanging?
He turned to Rathbone, and saw an understanding of the same question in his face.
Before either of them could form it in words there was a noise behind them, the heavy clank of an iron bolt in a lock, and then Hester’s voice. Monk swung around and came out of the cell, almost pushing Rathbone forward into the outer room.
“Lord Ravensbrook!” Hester glanced once at the gaoler, still holding the blood-soaked handkerchief against Ravensbrook’s chest, then moved forward and dropped to her knees. “Where are you hurt?” she said, as if he had been a child—quite soothingly, but with the voice of authority.
He raised his head and stared at her.
“Where are you hurt?” she repeated, putting her hand gently over the gaoler’s and moving the kerchief away very slowly. No gush of blood followed it; in fact, it seemed to have clotted and dried already. “Please, allow me to take your coat off,” she asked. “I must see if you are still bleeding.” It seemed an unnecessary comment. There was so much blood he must still be losing it at a considerable rate.
“Should you, miss?” Jimson asked. He had returned with her and was staring at Ravensbrook dubiously. “Might make it worse. Better wait till the doctor gets ’ere. ’E’s bin sent fer.”
“Take it off!” Hester ignored Jimson, and started to pull on Ravensbrook’s shoulders to ease the jacket away from him. He did nothing, and she moved his arm aside from where he had been holding it across his chest. “Take the other one!” she ordered Monk. “It will slip away if you hold it properly.”
He did as he was bid, and gently she pulled the coat off, leaving it in Monk’s hands. The shirt beneath was surprisingly white and not nearly as badly stained as Monk had expected. Indeed, there were only four marks that he could see, one on the front of the left shoulder, one on the left forearm, and two on the right side of the chest. None of them were bright scarlet or puddled in blood. Only the one on the shoulder that he had been holding was still shining wet.
“Doesn’t look too bad,” Hester said dispassionately. She turned to the first gaoler. “I don’t suppose you have any bandages? No, I thought not. Have you cloths of any sort?”
The man hesitated.
“Right,” she nodded. “Then take off your shirt. It will have to do. I’ll use the tails.” She smiled very dryly. “And yours too, Mr. Rathbone, I think. I need a white one.” She ignored Monk, and his immaculate linen. Even in this contingency she was apparently aware of his finances.
Rathbone drew in a sharp breath, and thoughts of voluminous petticoats floated into his mind, and out again. He obeyed.
“Have you any spirits?” she asked the gaoler. “A little brandy for restorative purposes, perhaps?” She looked at Ravensbrook.