hard work, running an operation like this.’
‘Bloody hard work. Up at five every day. The horses have holidays but we don’t.’
‘Do you have much time left for the museum?’
Smith’s face becomes serious. ‘Not as much time as I’d like. I left all the day-to-day running to Neil. Poor chap.’ He looks up and meets Nelson’s eyes. ‘Have you discovered anything about how he died?’
‘Earliest indications suggest that death was the result of pulmonary haemorrhage,’ says Nelson cautiously. Is it his imagination or does Danforth Smith relax slightly?
‘How ghastly. Did he have weak lungs?’
‘We won’t know until we’ve looked at his medical records but it’s quite possible. But I wanted to talk to you about another matter.’
‘Yes?’ Smith leans forward across the acres of polished wood. His tone is one of polite interest but Nelson notices that one hand is clenched tightly around a fountain pen. As Nelson watches, Smith seems consciously to relax his grip, letting the pen roll across the desk.
‘Yes,’ says Nelson. ‘Were you aware of any letters sent to Neil Topham?’
‘Letters?’
‘Threatening letters.’
Nelson places a file on the desk. He takes out some loose papers and pushes them towards Danforth Smith, who puts on a pair of half-moon glasses and peers at thehand-written pages. Nelson watches him intently. At first Smith seems to show only polite interest then something makes him look harder. It’s almost a classic double take. What has Lord Smith seen in the letters that surprises him so much? Nelson continues to watch as, once again, Smith seems deliberately to calm himself. When he speaks, his voice is completely steady.
‘Where did you get these?’
‘From Neil Topham’s desk. Have you seen them before?’
There are three letters in total. The first is dated August 2009:
To whom it may concern
,
You have something that belongs to us, something that belongs to the spirit ancestors. If you do not return it, you are violating the harmony of the spirit world. Remember that the spirits are strong and can exact revenge. I advise you to think carefully about your actions. Every event leaves a record on the land and, if you continue to disrespect our dead, your life may well be in danger
.
In the brotherhood of the spirit
.
The second letter is dated September 2009:
You have chosen to disregard our first warning. In your arrogance you think you can ignore the wrong that you have done to us but the spirits are everywhere and they see all and know all. You cannot escape. The spirits cry
out for vengeance. If you persist in defying us, the wrath of the Great Spirit will destroy you. Consider carefully
.
The third letter is dated October and reads simply:
You have ignored our requests. Now you will suffer the consequences. You have violated our dead. Now the dead will be revenged on you. We will come for you. We will come for you in the Dreaming
.
Nelson looks at Smith, who has taken off his glasses and is rubbing his nose.
‘Lord Smith, have you any idea who sent these?’
Smith says nothing. Outside a horse neighs and a woman laughs. The silver cups glint in the autumn sun.
‘We have some heads,’ says Lord Smith at last. ‘At the museum.’
‘Heads?’
‘Aborigine skulls. They were originally acquired by my great-grandfather. We used to have them on display but now they’re kept locked up. About a year ago I got a letter from a group calling themselves the Elginists. They demanded the return of the skulls. Said they should go back to Australia and be buried in their ancestral ground … said they needed to enter Dreamtime, or some such rubbish. I gave them short shrift. Those heads belonged to my great-grandfather. They’re very rare. One’s been turned into a water carrier. I couldn’t just turn them over to some bunch of nutters. I mean, these artefacts are valuable, they need special care.’
‘Have you still got the letter?’
‘I don’t
‘Bloody hard work. Up at five every day. The horses have holidays but we don’t.’
‘Do you have much time left for the museum?’
Smith’s face becomes serious. ‘Not as much time as I’d like. I left all the day-to-day running to Neil. Poor chap.’ He looks up and meets Nelson’s eyes. ‘Have you discovered anything about how he died?’
‘Earliest indications suggest that death was the result of pulmonary haemorrhage,’ says Nelson cautiously. Is it his imagination or does Danforth Smith relax slightly?
‘How ghastly. Did he have weak lungs?’
‘We won’t know until we’ve looked at his medical records but it’s quite possible. But I wanted to talk to you about another matter.’
‘Yes?’ Smith leans forward across the acres of polished wood. His tone is one of polite interest but Nelson notices that one hand is clenched tightly around a fountain pen. As Nelson watches, Smith seems consciously to relax his grip, letting the pen roll across the desk.
‘Yes,’ says Nelson. ‘Were you aware of any letters sent to Neil Topham?’
‘Letters?’
‘Threatening letters.’
Nelson places a file on the desk. He takes out some loose papers and pushes them towards Danforth Smith, who puts on a pair of half-moon glasses and peers at thehand-written pages. Nelson watches him intently. At first Smith seems to show only polite interest then something makes him look harder. It’s almost a classic double take. What has Lord Smith seen in the letters that surprises him so much? Nelson continues to watch as, once again, Smith seems deliberately to calm himself. When he speaks, his voice is completely steady.
‘Where did you get these?’
‘From Neil Topham’s desk. Have you seen them before?’
There are three letters in total. The first is dated August 2009:
To whom it may concern
,
You have something that belongs to us, something that belongs to the spirit ancestors. If you do not return it, you are violating the harmony of the spirit world. Remember that the spirits are strong and can exact revenge. I advise you to think carefully about your actions. Every event leaves a record on the land and, if you continue to disrespect our dead, your life may well be in danger
.
In the brotherhood of the spirit
.
The second letter is dated September 2009:
You have chosen to disregard our first warning. In your arrogance you think you can ignore the wrong that you have done to us but the spirits are everywhere and they see all and know all. You cannot escape. The spirits cry
out for vengeance. If you persist in defying us, the wrath of the Great Spirit will destroy you. Consider carefully
.
The third letter is dated October and reads simply:
You have ignored our requests. Now you will suffer the consequences. You have violated our dead. Now the dead will be revenged on you. We will come for you. We will come for you in the Dreaming
.
Nelson looks at Smith, who has taken off his glasses and is rubbing his nose.
‘Lord Smith, have you any idea who sent these?’
Smith says nothing. Outside a horse neighs and a woman laughs. The silver cups glint in the autumn sun.
‘We have some heads,’ says Lord Smith at last. ‘At the museum.’
‘Heads?’
‘Aborigine skulls. They were originally acquired by my great-grandfather. We used to have them on display but now they’re kept locked up. About a year ago I got a letter from a group calling themselves the Elginists. They demanded the return of the skulls. Said they should go back to Australia and be buried in their ancestral ground … said they needed to enter Dreamtime, or some such rubbish. I gave them short shrift. Those heads belonged to my great-grandfather. They’re very rare. One’s been turned into a water carrier. I couldn’t just turn them over to some bunch of nutters. I mean, these artefacts are valuable, they need special care.’
‘Have you still got the letter?’
‘I don’t
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