Murder in the Monastery (Libby Sarjeant Murder Mystery series) Read Online Free PDF Page A

news on our reliquary?’
    ‘That’s why I came by.’ Ian took a grateful sip of his beer. ‘After a good deal of negotiating, an officer from the Arts and Antiquities Unit at the Met was able to get in to see the antiquarian site offering the item. There is actually a proper little gallery, not just a website, although it’s hidden away down one of those London alleyways and has no shop front.’
    ‘Well,’ said Fran, ‘I suppose you wouldn’t want to advertise all that priceless stuff, would you?’
    ‘They definitely don’t, and they were extremely put out by any suggestion that they were handling stolen goods.’
    ‘I bet they were.’ Ben looked amused. ‘What happened?’
    ‘Eventually, the owner of the gallery, or whatever it’s called, gave in, probably because he could see himself up on a charge. He produced all the documentation on the object and Arts and Antiquities are looking into it.’
    ‘What about us and the Abbey?’ said Libby indignantly.
    ‘He’s copying me in on everything, don’t worry, but it’s easier for them to look into it. They’re on the spot, they’re experts and they’ve got the contacts.’
    ‘I suppose so,’ said Libby grudgingly.
    ‘He’s right, Libby,’ said Patti. ‘After all when the Abbey tried to look into it they got nowhere, and you would have thought that their credentials were enough to get them in.’
    ‘So what’s the latest?’ asked Dominic Butcher, on the outskirts of the group, from where he’d been listening.
    ‘Mark, my Arts and Antiquities contact, is looking up the solicitor who’s handling the sale. Apparently, it’s a probate sale.’
    ‘Someone’s died?’ Libby wrinkled her brow.
    ‘But we don’t know who. Normally the solicitor would handle it on behalf of the estate of the deceased, which would be stated, but this time it isn’t.’
    ‘Isn’t that suspicious?’ said Dominic.
    Ian shrugged. ‘Not necessarily. Anyway, in this case, because of its history the solicitor will be forced to tell Mark who owned it and show what provenance they have.’
    ‘Good,’ said Libby with satisfaction. ‘Have you told Sister Catherine?’
    ‘I’ve left a message. I expect they were all at prayers, or something. I’ve suggested she get in touch with one of you.’
    ‘Excellent,’ said Patti. ‘So once we know who the person was, we can try and find out how he got it.’
    ‘That’s what I meant when I said they’d have to show provenance.’ He smiled slightly. ‘But I don’t suppose there’s any harm in you doing a little digging once we’ve got a name.’
    Libby, Fran and Patti looked at each other and grinned.
    ‘Blimey,’ said Libby. ‘Permission.’
    Patti called Libby the following afternoon to say Sister Catherine had been on the phone very excited.
    ‘It’s the thrill of the chase,’ said Patti. ‘She doesn’t get much excitement.’
    ‘Well, we’ll keep her in the loop. She might find out things better than we could because of her status.’
    Finally, Ian called Fran on Friday and asked her to pass on the news that the solicitor had divulged the name of his dead client.
    ‘A collector called Marshall,’ Fran reported to Libby, ‘who bought it way back in the seventies from someone who claimed to be a descendant of the original owner.’
    ‘St Eldreda? Wouldn’t have thought she’d had any descendants.’
    ‘No, there was some tale about it being held in trust by the monks.’
    ‘Ah!’ said Libby. ‘The monks who spirited it away during the dissolution.’
    ‘Anyway there was enough to convince Marshall that it was genuine, and the solicitor apparently had the whole story of St Eldreda down pat.’
    ‘Hmm,’ said Libby thoughtfully. ‘Seventies. That’s when that bloke was murdered in the monastery and the reliquary was stolen.’
    ‘And then,’ said Fran slowly, ‘it was sold on.’
    ‘And the murdered man – Bernard Evans, I suppose – had offered it to the order. He obviously thought it