'He reminds me of one or two of my schoolmasters.'
'Schoolmasters do not drive their charges to collapse. Most parents would have something to say about the treatment he gave that boy. There is no separate novice master, apparently; there are not enough vocations. The novices are wholly under the prior's power.'
'The infirmarian tried to help. He seems a good man, for all he looks like he's been toasted on a spit.'
I nodded. 'And Brother Gabriel helped too. He threatened the prior with the abbot. I can't imagine Abbot Fabian being over-concerned with the novices' welfare, but if the prior's taste for brutality sometimes goes too far, he would have to keep it in check to avoid scandal. Well, we've met them all now; the five who knew why Singleton was here. Abbot Fabian, Prior Mortimus, Brother Gabriel, Brother Guy. And the bursar, of course—'
'B-b-brother Edwig.' Mark imitated his stutter.
I smiled. 'He's a man of power here for all he trips at his words.'
'He seemed a slimy toad to me.'
'Yes, I took a dislike to him, I must say. But one must not be deceived by impressions. The greatest fraudster I ever met had the most chivalrous demeanour a man could possess. And the bursar was away the night Singleton was killed.'
'But why would any of them kill Singleton? Surely it gives Lord Cromwell stronger grounds for closure?'
'What if the motive was more personal? What if Singleton had found something out? He had been here several days. What if he was about to expose someone for some serious crime?'
'Dr Goodhaps said he was investigating the accounts books the day he was killed.'
I nodded. 'Yes, that's why I want to see them. But I come back to the manner of his death. If someone wanted to silence him, a knife in the ribs would have been so much easier. And why desecrate the church?'
Mark shook his head. 'I wonder where the murderer hid the sword, if it was a sword. And the relic. And his clothes, they would have been bloody.'
'There must be a thousand hiding places in this great warren.' I thought a moment. 'On the other hand, most of the buildings are in constant use.'
'The outhouses we saw? The stonemason's and brewery and so on?'
'Them most of all. We must keep our eyes open as we get to know this place, look out for likely spots.'
Mark sighed. 'The killer might have buried his clothes and the sword. But we won't be able to go looking for mounds of fresh earth if this snow lasts.'
'No. Well, I shall start tomorrow by questioning the sacrist and the bursar, those two brotherly foes. And I would like you to talk to the girl Alice.'
'Brother Guy warned me from her.'
'I said talk to her. Do no more than talk, I don't want trouble with Brother Guy. You've a way with the women. She seems intelligent and probably knows as many secrets about this place as anybody.'
He stirred uneasily. 'I would not wish her to think I — liked her — if it was only to wring information from her.'
'Getting information is our duty here. There's no need to give her wrong ideas. If she reveals anything that helps us I'll see she's rewarded. She should be found another place. A woman like that shouldn't be mouldering away among these monks.'
Mark smiled at me. 'I think you like her too, sir. Did you note her bright eyes?'
'She is out of the common run of women,' I said non-committally.
'It still seems a shame to be cozening information from her.'
'You must get used to cozening things from people, Mark, if you are to work in the service of the law or the State.'
'Yes, sir.' He sounded unconvinced. 'It's just — I would not like to place her in any danger.'
'Nor would I. But we could all be in danger.'
He was silent a moment. 'Could the abbot be right about witchcraft? That would fit with the desecration of the church.'
I shook my head. 'The more I consider it, the more I think this killing was planned. The desecration may even have been carried out to throw enquirers off the scent. The abbot, of course, would much prefer for it to have been done by an outsider.'