“The Ghost of Miss Pendergast ” : An Inspector Kelly Mystery

“You’ve got to help me inspector”, said Mr Philbert, sitting down in front of Detective Inspector Kelly in an interview room at Scotland Yard and putting his head in his hands, “She’s haunting me. I’m being haunted by her ghost”.

 

“Please, Mr Philbert”, said the inspector, “I am a patient man but if you’ve come to tell me a ghost story then I suggest you’ve come to the wrong place. I am a police inspector not an exorcist”.

 

The man hammered his fists upon the table,

 

“I’m not going anywhere inspector”, he said, “Until you’ve heard me out”.

 

The inspector sighed,

 

“Very well. I am all ears, Mr Philbert. Pray continue”, he said.

 

The man became calmer but also more distant, his eyes drifting off to some remembered scene.

 

“Yesterday afternoon”, he said, “As I was leaving my house; number 32 Carswell Avenue; that is when I saw her. On the other side of the road; standing and looking at me; smiling. At first, I could not believe it was her. I was sure it must be some other woman but then I screwed up my eyes and took a good look at her face; her long auburn hair and her bright green eyes and then I was certain it couldn’t be anyone else”.

 

“Anyone else but who? Mr Philbert”, asked Inspector Kelly.

 

“Jemima Pendergast ”, he said, “The girl I…um…a girl I knew but who died; was murdered”.

 

“I see”, said the Inspector, “And what did you do then, when you were certain that this woman across the street was the ghost of Miss Pendergast ”.

 

“I tried to cross the street”, the man replied, “I wanted to get a closer look to be really sure and to talk to her if I could”.

 

“And what did she say when you spoke to her?”, asked Kelly.

 

“I didn’t. I wasn’t able to cross the road in time”, he said, “Just as I was about to step into the road a large Omnibus, I remember, turned into the road and passed in front of me…almost knocked me down in fact and then, when the omnibus had passed by she was not there anymore”.

 

“I see”, said the Inspector, “And is that the only time you’ve seen this…apparition?”.

 

“No”, said Philbert, looking distraught, “If only it were but then, last night, I was in my room when I heard someone; a woman; calling from the street outside; calling my name.  ‘Derek’ she was saying, “I’m back Derek, I’ve come for you”.

 

“Let me guess”, said Kelly, “The woman calling from outside was your Ghost?”.

 

“Yes”, said the Man, “And when I went out onto my balcony and looked down then I saw her, standing on the street; half in the shadows at first but then she moved forward under the light of a street lamp and I could see her face and her auburn hair clearly as well as those green eyes; those green eyes filled with…with hatred towards me”.

 

“Hatred?”, asked the Inspector, “Why would the Ghost of Miss Pendergast  hate you, Mr Philbert?”.

 

The man put his head in his hands again, trembling.

 

“I don’t know”, he said, “I don’t know. She just hates me for some reason. I can’t explain”.

 

“Odd”, said the Inspector, “Not that I’m an expert on the matter, Mr Philbert but it isn’t often that one hears about a ghost haunting someone unless it’s for a very serious reason. Can you think of anything you might have done to upset this Miss Pendergast  that would make her want to haunt you?”.

 

Philbert shook his head,

 

“No, I swear”, he said, “I don’t know why she’s haunting me”.

 

Just then however, the man thought he heard a voice; yes, a woman’s voice; coming from somewhere nearby although it was not like a human voice for it seemed to drift eerily upon the air.

 

“Derek”, it said, “Tell him the truth. Tell him how you killed me”.

 

“Did you hear that?”, asked Philips, becoming panic stricken as he looked round about the interview room but saw no one else but he and the inspector, “Did you hear that voice? That was her”.

 

“No”, said the inspector, “I heard no one and, perhaps, if I may be really blunt with you, Mr Philbert, perhaps you ought to think of seeking the assistance of some doctor of psychiatry”.

 

The man became angry,

 

“I am not mad, detective”, he said, “I swear that I heard her just then; Jemima Pendergast  and she was calling to me”.

 

“Very well”, said the Detective, “What did she say this time?”.

 

“Uh?”, said the man, starting to stammer, “She…she…she…just called out my name, that’s all”.

 

“Don’t lie, Derek”, said the voice, again seeming to come out of the air or perhaps inside his thoughts, “Tell them the truth. Tell them that you murdered me. Tell them”.

 

The man covered his ears.

 

“Please, make her stop. Make her go away”, he said, starting to become choked up by tears.

 

“Well, I’m no expert in Ghosts as I’ve said”, said the inspector, “But perhaps if you knew what exactly you had done to make Miss Pendergast  so angry with you then you could make amends with her in some way or maybe you have something you’d like to confess to me”.

 

“No”, said the man, “That’s just what she wants. She wants me to tell you but I won’t tell you, no”.

 

“Tell me what?”, asked the Inspector, “I’m sure if you did tell me then perhaps your Ghost might go away. Perhaps the guilty deed, whatever it is, is what’s keeping her here”.

 

“That’s right, Derek”, said the voice again, this time seeming to come completely from between his ears, “Tell him. Confess your crime and then I can rest in peace”.

 

“Alright”, said Philbert, sighing and then laughing to himself, “I suppose there’s no other way. She’ll never leave me be, not till I confess”.

 

“Confess to what exactly, Mr Philbert?”, asked the inspector.

 

“That I killed her. That I killed Jemima Pendergast ”, said the man, smiling now as if a weight had been lifted from him, “I strangled her and then I threw her body in the Thames”.

 

“I see”, said the Detective, “Well, that is all I needed to know”.

 

Rising from his chair, the inspector turned towards the door of the interview room.

 

“Come in constable Briggs and bring Miss Pendergast  in with you, will you”, he said.

 

The face of Philbert became pale as the door slowly opened and, followed by a uniformed police constable, he saw a young woman enter; a woman with auburn hair and green eyes who he immediately recognized.

 

“But that’s her”, said the man, confused and startled.

 

“No, Mr Philbert”, said the inspector, “Sadly that is not Jemima Pendergast . That is Miss June Pendergast , Jemima’s twin sister. Although you were our chief suspect, we had no evidence to arrest you. Fortunately, after you murdered Jemima Pendergast , June, out of sisterly love, agreed to help us by impersonating her dead sister in the hope that we could convince you into confessing to your crime and, thanks to her brave effort, it seems to have worked”.

 

“But…but”, asked Philbert, “What about the voice? I could hear it inside my head”.

 

“Who knows?”, said the detective, “The mind is a funny thing; especially the mind of a murderer. Perhaps it was your guilty conscience, if you have one or perhaps there really is a ghost haunting you”.

 

And perhaps the detective was right for, inside his head Philbert could still hear Jemima; the real Jemima, he thought, laughing at him, mocking him, “They’ve got you now Derek, they’ve got you now”, she said.