‘My first impulse was to go to the Golden Crown to see what I could learn but I’d be a fish out of water there. You, on the other hand, could easily pass for an actor and are familiar with their world. If there’s anything of value that could be gleaned from the Golden Crown, you are much more likely to find it.’

‘I’ll go there at once,’ said Paul. ‘There is a glimmer of hope, I believe, but I’m also braced for disappointment.’

‘What about the Runners?’

‘I don’t follow.’

‘Well, won’t they make the same connection that I did? They, after all, will have seen the victim. Surely, they’ll guess that he might have been an actor and reach the same conclusion that I did.’

‘There’s no danger of that happening,’ said Paul, grinning. ‘Micah Yeomans and his men will be far too busy chasing shadows to make any sensible deductions. Besides, they’ll have their hands full dealing with all the fraudulent claims from people with one eye on that reward money.’

Eldon Kirkwood had been the chief magistrate for enough years to develop a keen insight into the criminal mind. His proudest boast was that he could always tell when someone was lying to him. Even the most plausible confidence tricksters were soon exposed when they appeared in court before him, and they went off to serve their sentences with his acerbic comments ringing in their ears. Now he had finally met his match in the person of Harry Scattergood. Still hiding behind the alias of Giles Clearwater, he’d gone straight to the chief magistrate to tell his tale. As always, Kirkwood was highly suspicious at first, but his doubts were gradually dismantled one by one. Scattergood’s account of what happened on the night in question was so convincing that Kirkwood believed that he had to have been a part of the throng outside the stage door. The clinching factor for the chief magistrate was that Scattergood didn’t ask for money.

‘I’m a man of means,’ said Scattergood with an expansive wave of the hand. ‘I’m happy to fund my search for the killer. When he is in custody, I’ll take a share of the reward money but only so that I can dispose of it to a worthy charity.’

‘That’s very noble of you, Mr Clearwater.’

‘I’ll take up no more of your time, sir. I have a villain to find.’

Getting to his feet, Scattergood took his leave and went briskly out of the office. Kirkwood was relieved that a sign of progress had finally appeared in a case that had so far completely perplexed the Bow Street Runners. He sent someone to track down Yeomans and Hale. Less than twenty minutes later, the two of them were standing before him. Sensing the chief magistrate’s mood, they quailed.