that they were in agreement unless they had already discussed the matter. She gave him no more than the slightest of answering smiles and he said, “Precious little, really. We learned that his housekeeper genuinely liked him, that she thought he was a good parish priest. That he worked hard, was good with the sick and the bereaved. Not much else. Nothing that seems likely to be of much use to us, if you want me to be honest, Your Grace. It’s a sad thing perhaps, but in these circumstances, we have to be more interested in the enemies people had than their friends, more interested in their vices than their virtues. If they have given people reasons to hate them, whether real or imaginary, we need to know about that side of their lives. Every mother thinks her son is a saint, and Martha Hargreaves was a little too much like a mother in that respect to be much use to us. It may be your job to see the good in people, especially when you’re speaking to the relatives of the dead; I’m afraid in this job we spend a lot of our time looking for dead people’s vices.”
Bishop Hogan smiled. “Of course you do. And we’re not as blinkered to wickedness as you might think. I’ve spent a lot of my life trying to resolve how God can be infinitely just and infinitely merciful at the same time. Fortunately, you don’t have to wrestle with such things. But perhaps we’re not so far apart. We both have to give attention to the way people behave and the reasons why they do things.” He set his empty cup down firmly on the low table between them and watched approvingly as Lucy Blake did the same. She pulled out her notebook and the small gold pen which was her gesture to femininity. “There are things about Father Bickerstaffe which you need to know, which I hope you will treat with as much discretion as possible.”
Percy bridled a little at that. “We shall treat whatever you tell us as confidential, as long as that remains within our control. If it affects the outcome of our investigation, it may not be possible to keep information confidential. If we are successful, there will no doubt be a court case in due course, and things may have to emerge in evidence. You will realise that we cannot control what use lawyers may make of material which we may see as only background to our enquiries.”
It was a little too stiff, a little too long. Lucy was amused to see that Percy, who so delighted in discomforting interviewees himself, should suddenly become awkward and circumspect in front of this urbane figure in purple. Perhaps the Bishop felt it too. He nodded a little absently, steepled his long fingers, said quietly, “As John Bickerstaffe’s spiritual director, I have been drawn into the events which dominated the last months of his life. It is a wretched business, though unfortunately by no means a unique one. In this case, it has ended in tragedy, and the nature of this death means that I must tell you everything I know which might be of relevance to your enquiries.” He sighed. “Did Miss Hargreaves mention the youth club at St Hugh’s?”
Peach nodded, anticipating by now some of what was to come. ‘Never presume too much. Never jump ahead of the evidence, or you’ll jump to the wrong conclusions,’ his first guv ‘nor, a man as different from Tucker as anthracite is from balsa wood, had told him. For a naturally impatient man, it was good advice, and Percy reminded himself of it still whenever he was tempted towards short cuts. But there was nothing wrong with pushing people forward a bit. “Martha Hargreaves mentioned the club all right. She spoke of the little Sacred Heart primary school beside the church as well; she seemed happier with that. She didn’t seem to want to say much about the youth club.”
Bishop Hogan smiled. “Miss Hargreaves is a loyal supporter of Father Bickerstaffe. And I’ve no doubt that he was very kind to her. But like all of us, he had his weaknesses, Inspector.”
“And
Bishop Hogan smiled. “Of course you do. And we’re not as blinkered to wickedness as you might think. I’ve spent a lot of my life trying to resolve how God can be infinitely just and infinitely merciful at the same time. Fortunately, you don’t have to wrestle with such things. But perhaps we’re not so far apart. We both have to give attention to the way people behave and the reasons why they do things.” He set his empty cup down firmly on the low table between them and watched approvingly as Lucy Blake did the same. She pulled out her notebook and the small gold pen which was her gesture to femininity. “There are things about Father Bickerstaffe which you need to know, which I hope you will treat with as much discretion as possible.”
Percy bridled a little at that. “We shall treat whatever you tell us as confidential, as long as that remains within our control. If it affects the outcome of our investigation, it may not be possible to keep information confidential. If we are successful, there will no doubt be a court case in due course, and things may have to emerge in evidence. You will realise that we cannot control what use lawyers may make of material which we may see as only background to our enquiries.”
It was a little too stiff, a little too long. Lucy was amused to see that Percy, who so delighted in discomforting interviewees himself, should suddenly become awkward and circumspect in front of this urbane figure in purple. Perhaps the Bishop felt it too. He nodded a little absently, steepled his long fingers, said quietly, “As John Bickerstaffe’s spiritual director, I have been drawn into the events which dominated the last months of his life. It is a wretched business, though unfortunately by no means a unique one. In this case, it has ended in tragedy, and the nature of this death means that I must tell you everything I know which might be of relevance to your enquiries.” He sighed. “Did Miss Hargreaves mention the youth club at St Hugh’s?”
Peach nodded, anticipating by now some of what was to come. ‘Never presume too much. Never jump ahead of the evidence, or you’ll jump to the wrong conclusions,’ his first guv ‘nor, a man as different from Tucker as anthracite is from balsa wood, had told him. For a naturally impatient man, it was good advice, and Percy reminded himself of it still whenever he was tempted towards short cuts. But there was nothing wrong with pushing people forward a bit. “Martha Hargreaves mentioned the club all right. She spoke of the little Sacred Heart primary school beside the church as well; she seemed happier with that. She didn’t seem to want to say much about the youth club.”
Bishop Hogan smiled. “Miss Hargreaves is a loyal supporter of Father Bickerstaffe. And I’ve no doubt that he was very kind to her. But like all of us, he had his weaknesses, Inspector.”
“And
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