Free Blood on the Line by Edward Marston

obliged by opening it.’
    ‘And she memorised the combination while he was doing it,’ guessed Colbeck. ‘She’s a calculating young lady, no doubt about that. I can see why you’re so anxious to see her caught.’
    ‘You can imagine the embarrassment this has caused me,’ said Holte, running a hand over his forehead. ‘It’s been a heavy cross to bear. The woman is a monster. She betrayed me, stole irreplaceable items of my wife’s jewellery, broke Alicia’s heart in two and relieved Lawrence – idiot that he was – of his virginity. I’d not only pay to see her executed, Inspector,’ he growled, ‘I’d even volunteer to act as the hangman.’

CHAPTER SIX
    Caleb Andrews had lost count of the number of times he’d brought a train safely into New Street station in Birmingham. As one set of passengers departed and another set converged on the carriages, he had time to wipe the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.
    ‘I won’t be doing this for much longer,’ he announced.
    ‘You keep saying that, Caleb,’ said his fireman, ‘but I don’t believe you. The only way you’ll quit the railway is in a coffin.’
    ‘That’s what you think, Dirk.’
    ‘It’s what we all think.’
    ‘Then perhaps you should have a word with Mr Pomeroy.’
    Dirk Sowerby shrugged. ‘Why?’
    ‘I handed in my resignation earlier on today. MrPomeroy accepted it with regret. The decision is made. I’m going to retire and put my feet up at last.’
    The fireman was amazed. No driver in the LNWR had the same enthusiasm for railways as Andrews. It was at once a job and a passion for him. Spending each day hurtling up and down the track helped him to defy age. He seemed indefatigable. How the company would manage without such a dedicated servant was an open question. Sowerby would miss him, both for his companionship and for his fund of knowledge about the operation of the railway system. Firemen who’d been taught their trade by Caleb Andrews were uniformly grateful for his expertise.
    ‘Did you talk it over with your daughter?’ asked Sowerby.
    ‘I told her what I was going to do, if that’s what you mean.’
    ‘And Maddy had no objections?’
    ‘None whatsoever, Dirk. She’s seen the early shifts and the long hours taking their toll on me.’
    ‘When is she getting married?’
    ‘Sooner rather than later,’ said Andrews with a smile. ‘It’s part of the reason I decided to retire. If I’m at home all day, it will annoy her like mad and make her set a date for the wedding at last. I’ve been waiting an eternity for that to happen.’
    ‘I thought that they only got engaged last year.’
    ‘They did – but it seems much longer to me. I don’t want Maddy hanging around for ever when I retire. Not when Inspector Colbeck has a much larger house than ours. She should move in with him.’
    Sowerby frowned. ‘Don’t you mind her marrying a detective?’
    ‘She can marry anyone she likes as long as she does it fairly soon.’ He cackled. ‘No, that’s not true,’ he said, seriously. ‘She’s found herself a good man and I couldn’t be happier with her choice.’
    ‘But he’s a policeman, Caleb.’
    ‘I don’t hold that against him.’
    ‘Have you forgotten what happened when we steamed into this station yesterday? Two policemen were left behind us on the track. They’d been murdered,’ said Sowerby, his frown deepening. ‘That tells you what a dangerous job it is.’
    ‘The inspector can take care of himself, Dirk.’
    ‘But he’s chasing the man who escaped from the policemen.’
    ‘I know and I mean to help him catch the fellow.’
    ‘This man who escaped – I think his name is Oxley – has no respect for the law or the people who try to uphold it. And there are far too many people just like him. I’d hate a daughter of mine to marry a policeman.’
    ‘You don’t have a daughter, you imbecile.’
    ‘I know,’ agreed Sowerby, ‘but if I did, I’d be afraid that she’d be a