Free The Marshal and the Madwoman by Magdalen Nabb

man round here for something or other, and everyone knew right away.' He glanced at his wife and then back at the Marshal. 'You don't think the chap would come back?'
    'We're not safe in our beds, then!' cried Pina.
    'I'm sure you are,' the Marshal assured her. 'Don't worry.'
    'It gives me the creeps, I don't mind telling you,' Pina said. 'After all, Clementina wasn't safe in her bed—d'you think she was asleep when it happened?'
    'Quite probably.'
    'I'll bet she was,' Franco said, 'because if she'd had the chance to get one scream out she'd have woken the whole of Florence with that voice of hers.'
    'You know,' said Pina thoughtfully, 'it's a shock. I mean, nobody expects somebody they know to get murdered, but I think I'd have been more surprised to hear she'd done away with herself. Whatever her faults, she wasn't one to feel sorry for herself. She might crack you one with her brush, she might swear like a trooper and even criticize the food you gave her as if she were in a restaurant, but she never asked for pity or felt sorry for herself. From the minute she got out of bed in a morning to the minute we could persuade her to go home and get back into it, she was out there and doing; cleaning, quarrelling, playing cards, swearing, giving as good as she got. . . She'd never have committed suicide in a million years, no matter what troubles she had. Am I right, Franco?'
    'I think you are. And to my way of thinking it's just as well she was crazy. Given how poor she was and that miserable flat and not a soul in the world, she'd have had a miserable life if she'd been normal and kept herself to herself. It's just as well she was the way she was.'
    'You may well be right,' the Marshal said. 'Anyway, let your customers have their say, and if it turns out anybody noticed anything unusual or saw any stranger about lately, let me know.'
    'You'll be back, then?' Franco asked.
    'At some point. I'll phone you in a day or two if I don't get a chance to come round. And now I'll be on my way and leave you in peace.' He got to his feet.
    'You can rely on us,' Franco promised.
    Only about half the tables outside were still occupied.
    At one of them, Pippo's white shirt glowed yellow in the lamplight.
    He interrupted his deal to say, with a touch of self-importance, 'Good night, Marshal. Will we be seeing you again? I imagine there'll be an inquest.'
    The Marshal only gave a noncommittal grunt and then added, 'Good night to you all.'

CHAPTER 4
    The drawer was stiff and he had to give it quite a yank before it opened.
    'Salva! Is that you?'
    'Mm.'
    'I thought I heard you come in. What on earth are you up to out there?' She was already in bed and he hadn't meant to wake her but he couldn't resist taking a look in the drawer in the hall.
    'I'll be with you in a minute,' he called.
    There ... a box of buttons, another box with just his uniform buttons . . . the first aid kit that wouldn't fit in the bathroom cabinet, a sewing kit, the pliers . . . the pliers? He'd spent an hour looking for them the other day . . . Before long he unearthed what he was looking for, a shoe box full of old snapshots. They were the snaps that hadn't been considered worthy of the photograph album. Some were out of focus, some had been taken into the sun and some were even superimposed, showing two-headed monsters or background ghosts. He found one of the boys on the beach down at home and was amazed to see how small and plump and babyish they looked. He couldn't remember them being like that. Of course he'd seen very little of them at that age because of being posted here. He looked at the date scribbled on the back and dropped it back in the box. The photos right at the bottom were old and faded and had belonged to his mother. He had no idea how they came to be there, but there they were. Some things seemed to follow you about wherever you went without anyone thinking to take care of them, while other, more important things got lost when you moved. He was sure it