Free Confession at Maddleskirk Abbey by Nicholas Rhea

suggest it to Prior Tuck or a monkstable? Or to Napier’s team?
    As he continued to kneel, he decided he must not initiate these enquiries. It would be an abuse of trust in this hallowed place; he was fully aware of the sanctity of the confessional. On the other hand as a former police officer and now securityadviser to the abbey, he could not ignore the fact that valuable images may be present in the security system. They may be highly important in establishing creditable witnesses to recent events – and could unmask a killer.
    The answer was to inform Detective Chief Superintendent Napier. This piece of information must be considered part of the murder investigation. It was not a task for the monkstables even though it might help to trace Father John. Nick left his pew, genuflected and made his way out of the south door and down the steps onto the road that would take him to St Alban’s Lecture Theatre. Three minutes later he was entering the murder room, which was now noisy and busy as more detectives had arrived and were being briefed by DI Lindsey.
    During a lull, he noticed Nick and called, ‘Anything I can do, Nick?’
    ‘I’d like a word with Mr Napier if that’s possible.’
    ‘Just knock on his door, the green one. That’s what he tells us to do.’
    ‘Thanks.’
    He did so and a voice called, ‘Don’t hang about out there, come in, I won’t bite,’ and so he walked in. Napier had managed to squeeze his desk and a computer into a tiny ante room that was full of stored easels, blackboards and other lecturing necessities.
    ‘So what brings you here, Nick? Sit down if you can find a seat.’
    He found a stool and began. ‘You might think what I’m going to say now is off limits, Mr Napier, but maybe you’re not familiar with churches, religion, monks and so forth?’
    ‘I’m not a God botherer, Nick, but doing my job among the great English public has taught me a little about the Catholic faith. Even so, I’m still puzzled that folks come to your church and voluntarily confess to all manner of things to a priest. I wish my job was so simple! I need to know something about everything otherwise I’d get no detecting done! So don’t hold back,tell me what’s troubling you.’
    ‘It centres upon the sacrament of confession,’ he began.
    ‘I was taught about that on my CID training course, Nick. I know that if chummy confesses something to a Catholic priest, the priest can never reveal it to anyone, never. But that is not English law, Nick. Our laws recognize that the priest is governed by his Church and in practice we and our legal friends would not demand that a priest broke the seal of confession. But in law, the priest cannot claim that legal privilege as a right – but it is a privilege that’s widely accepted. It is, and always will be, a difficult area within our laws of evidence. How’s that? See, I remembered my lectures from training school days.’
    ‘I’m impressed!’
    ‘So what’s all this got to do with what you want to tell me?’
    Nick explained his concerns about Father Will, relating the words he had used and trying to replicate his physical appearance of shock. ‘It was his reference to stabbing, Mr Napier. When I mentioned the body in the woods, he asked if the victim had been stabbed, then immediately withdrew his comments. It made me wonder if he knew something about it. It was one of the other monks who wondered if Will had heard a worrying sort of confession. Priests must be affected by what they hear. …’
    ‘Aye, lad, they must but if we try to extract that information, they will not reveal it. It’s happened before with other crimes, Nick, and there’s nothing we can do. I know. I’ve tried. Were you going to suggest something?’
    He explained about the security cameras in the south transept, and how that particular session of confession had occurred between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday, with Father Will standing in at short notice when Father Attwood