Decisively, he picked up the bag, and placed it on the floor beside the chair. ‘You are aware of course that many people come to the Baths not because they are unwell, but to restore and refresh themselves and therefore they cannot be regarded as patients but clients. We offer a service. It is not in any way a medical consultation.’
‘I do appreciate that,’ said Mina.
‘If we can proceed with that understanding —?’
‘We can.’
‘Very well, I have examined all our records, and can confirm that Mr Jasper Holt, the missing man we have spoken of, was never a patient of mine. Neither did he ever ask me informally for medical advice. In fact, I don’t believe that I have ever met him. However . .’ He gestured uncertainly.
Mina smiled. ‘Now that we have dealt with the question of patient confidentiality I would very much like to know about the ‘“however”.’
‘Yes. The thing is, Mr Holt did visit the Baths. He had an account and he used our services. This was not in the year before his disappearance, but prior to that, when I assume that his business was not in difficulties and he was more prosperous. It must have been his later financial situation that resulted in his giving up the account. But when he came, he took vapour baths and he also used the services of a masseur.’
‘Is the masseur still employed by you?’
‘He is, and I have spoken to him.’
‘Since Mr Holt is legally dead, I don’t think you need trouble about what either you or the masseur might have to say,’ Mina hinted. ‘Or do you think he may still be alive?’
‘No, I think that he is dead. Although he did not consult me, he confided to the masseur that he had been having symptoms which had troubled him, and the masseur very sensibly advised him to see his doctor. Holt however replied that he did not want to see his family doctor — that would have been Dr McClelland — in case his wife was to learn of it and become anxious. The masseur then suggested that he consult another doctor, but of course he did not know whether Holt actually did so.’
‘Could you discover anything about Mr Holt’s state of health from what he told the masseur?’
‘Never having examined Mr Holt, I can only judge by the symptoms he reported, but based on those, I think it is very possible that there was a weakness in the functioning of his heart, something for which there is no cure and would have shortened his life.’
‘Ah,’ said Mina, ‘that is interesting, and I have learned something recently which strengthens that conclusion. I have spoken to Mrs Vardy again, and raised with her the question of Mr Holt’s health. She knew nothing of any visit to a doctor, and although she noticed that her husband was tired, she assumed it was simple weariness from long hours of work, something that he claimed was a temporary situation. But she did mention to me that Mr Holt’s father had died of a failure in the action of the heart at the age of fifty-two. Naturally she expressed concern about this to her husband, but he reassured her that he did not suffer in the same way as his father. But he could have been lying in order not to worry her.’
‘He would not be the first man to do so,’ said Dr Hamid, wryly.
‘If we assume that Mr Sutherland’s account of Mr Holt falling overboard is true, then Mr Holt might have died from the sudden fall into the water, creating a strain on his heart, whether or not he struck his head. In fact, now that I think about it, we don’t even know for certain that he did strike his head, that was Mr Sutherland’s assumption, which he based on the fact that he saw Mr Holt unconscious and then sinking very quickly. Under the circumstances is there any possibility at all that Mr Holt could have survived?’
Dr Hamid gave Mina’s query some thought. ‘That is not an easy question to answer. In such cases there are so many things to consider. Much depends on how good a swimmer he was, and how encumbered by clothing. There are also the weather and the tides to take into account, and how far from shore he was when he fell, whether or not he was injured by the fall, and how weak his heart was at the time. If he was unconscious, then probably not. If he was conscious, then panicked and struggled, I think not.’
‘I understand that he was a good swimmer, and on that day the weather was good and the sea calm and the yacht not far from shore.’
‘Then there was a slight chance. And in view of the attempted fraud the insurance company was quite right not to pay out on the policy, especially as there was no witness to the events other than the boatman whose account must be regarded with caution. Who knows, Mr Holt might never have fallen into the water at all, and was simply put ashore? But even if he had fallen and survived, his years of life were more limited than those of another man, and he was aware of it.’
‘But do you think he had years, rather than weeks or months to live?’
‘His general bodily health, according to the masseur, was otherwise robust, so yes, if he took good care of himself, he would have had several years.’
‘Then is it possible that he is still alive?’
‘I wouldn’t rule it out. If I am pressed, I would say that there is a chance, just a very slight chance that he is still alive, but if so, I would be prepared to find him a very unwell man.’
Phipps and Co
Solicitors
Middle Street
Brighton
March 1872
Dear Miss Scarletti
Further to my recent letter I have been discussing your enquiries with one of the senior partners here who recalls the disappearance of Mr Holt and had some dealings with the estate. I do not know if this is of any interest to you, but the name of Mr Sutherland also came up in connection with a court case following events that took place in the previous year. It relates to charges of conspiracy to commit fraud levelled against the directors and officers of the Maritime Queen Insurance Company Ltd. Mr Sutherland was initially suspected of being involved in the conspiracy but after being questioned by the police it was accepted that he had only provided professional advice to the company in the usual way of business, and he was never charged with any offence. I don’t believe his name ever appeared in the press in connection with the case.
Yours faithfully,
R Phipps
Dear Mr Phipps
Thank you for your letter. I was wondering if you could tell me more about the fraud case you mentioned. How did the charges come about? Who were the other defendants? Was there any mention of Mr Holt in connection with the case?
Yours faithfully,
M Scarletti
Dear Miss Scarletti
Thank you for your letter.
The Maritime Queen Insurance Company Ltd was formed in 1863 with its administrative offices at an address in Old Steine. The board of directors included a distinguished retired naval officer, Captain Horace Bulstrode, a highly regarded gentleman of impeccable reputation, who had served for many years as a Sussex magistrate. It was later established that Captain Bulstrode had had nothing at all to do with the conduct of the company and was a mere figurehead intended by the managers to provide an impression of respectability to their enterprise in order to attract wealthy investors. Two friends of Captain Bulstrode, retired military gentlemen who were not resident in Brighton were also, through him, drawn into the net, to the great embarrassment of all three. The other directors who were suspects in the fraud, included a Mr John Taylor, the secretary of a friendly society, Mr Walter Randall, a payroll clerk, and a Mr William Cobbe, bank manager.