Robin Hood Yard
London, 1938. With a world war on the horizon, a shocking crime begins to unfold – and one reporter knows too much to be allowed to survive. An absorbing and gripping mystery from the critically acclaimed author of SNOW HILL.November, 1938. Europe is teetering on the edge of war…Anti-Semitism is on the rise in Britain, and a serial killer is at work in London.Johnny Steadman, investigative journalist, is called to the scene of a gruesome murder – a man has been tied to his bed, mutilated and left to bleed to death. This is the second time the killer has struck, and it won’t be the last. Together with DC Matt Turner, Johnny tries desperately to find a link between the victims.When the next Mayor of London is subjected to a vicious Anti-Semitic attack, Johnny begins to wonder if the two cases are connected. Against a backdrop of escalating violence in Nazi Germany, he uncovers a shocking conspiracy that could bring the United Kingdom to its knees. But will Johnny live to tell the tale?
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MARK SANDERSON
Robin Hood Yard
Harper
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
A paperback original 2015
Copyright © Mark Sanderson 2015
Mark Sanderson asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2015. Cover design by Mavrodesign.com
Cover photographs © Bert Hardy/Getty Images (main image); H. Armstrong Roberts/Classic Stock/Corbis (woman); Mary Evans/Classic Stock/H. Armstrong Roberts (man); Thinkstockphotos.co.uk (hat)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
This is entirely a work of fiction. Any references to real people, living or dead, real events, businesses, organizations and localities are intended only to give the fiction a sense of reality and authenticity. All names, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and their resemblance, if any, to real-life counterparts is entirely coincidental.
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Source ISBN: 9780007296842
Ebook Edition © APRIL 2015 ISBN: 9780007325283
Version 2015-03-18
To Curtis, Lucy and Jack
Table of Contents
The bomb was in place. For the umpteenth time he checked his pocket watch. Two more minutes …
The Lord Mayor’s coach – a fantasia in red and gold – emerged from Prince’s Street by the Bank of England and turned, groaning on its leather straps, towards Poultry. The Lord Mayor, leaning out of the window, doffed his cocked hat to the dignitaries assembled under the portico of his new home, the Mansion House. The ostrich feathers on his hat rippled in the chilly breeze.
The cheering crowds that packed the pavements did nothing to scare the horses. Pairs of mounted policemen protected the coach at the front and rear. The floats that followed were also mainly drawn by horses, whereas others relied on another form of horsepower. It was one of these that stalled. The actors portraying Sir Francis Drake and his fellow bowlers staggered as the truck coughed then lurched to a stop.
The theme of this year’s show was physical health. Everywhere banners proclaimed FITNESS WINS! Dancers, boxers, golfers and rowers continued to demonstrate their moves.
The plaster of Paris mountain being climbed by the alpinists started to emit smoke. Johnny watched in disbelief. No one climbed an active volcano.
The army jeeps and wagons of the auxiliary fire brigade rolled on. They were on parade, not on duty.
As soon as a gap appeared in the procession, Johnny pushed through the crowd lining the route and crossed Cheapside.
He weaved his way through a maze of penny-farthings, unseating a couple of the riders. Their companions, cursing loudly, wobbled precariously but somehow remained upright and continued to pedal. Some of the spectators started to boo.
A few members of a marching band, distracted, fell out of step. The loss of rhythm was accompanied by an unscored clash of cymbals. The catcalls got louder.
One of the police outriders craned his neck to see the cause of the commotion. Calling to his colleagues, he turned his mount around and headed towards Johnny.
The Lord Mayor, arm aching from waving to his devoted citizens, stuck his head out of the left side of the coach. Below him, on a painted panel, Mars, god of the City of London – and not, as many assumed, Mammon – pointed to a scroll held by Truth. What was going on?
A ginger-haired man was being dragged to his feet by two policemen. He seemed to be unconscious.
Beyond them, outside St Mary-le-Bow, a float was engulfed in flames …
Friday, 28 October 1938, 9.05 a.m.
The call came as he flung down The Times in disgust. The Tories had won the Oxford by-election, albeit with a halved majority. Quintin Hogg, the triumphant candidate, claimed the result was a victory for Mr Chamberlain and a vindication of the Munich Agreement.
