The Red Rabbit Inquiry Agency - Book One

By Lucidus Smith

Thirty six year old MacDonald Smith (Mac to his friends) and his wife Deborah, who was a year his junior, emigrated from England to New Zealand in August 1950, just a few months after their wedding in Spain.

Deborah had spent six months in Auckland soon after leaving school and had such happy memories of her time there, that she had persuaded Mac that New Zealand was the place for them to start their married life together.

Whilst Deborah had been able to simply change jobs, with the big London Insurance Company she had worked for, Mac, who had been a draughtsman in England, working in the planning department of a local council, had to start job hunting all over again.

During one of the periods that Mac was un-employed, he had undertaken a short investigation for his cousin Arnold, who worked for a bank in Australia. During this investigation, he had met a twenty five year old young lady named Carice van Offstrop, who was also now in the throes of moving to Auckland and looking for a new job.

When Carice telephoned Mac three days before Christmas, to find out how his search for a new job was going, she had no idea that her call would lead to such an unusual and interesting proposition.

This book does not contain bad language, gratuitous violence or sex scenes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 26, 2013
• ISBN: 9781456782467

Lucidus Smith

Lucidus Smith is British and was born in South London at the end of the Second World War. He is the youngest of four children, his father working as a wagon maker on the railways and his mother a housewife. He gave his heart to the Lord when he was eleven and was baptised with the Holy Spirit when he was thirty. He qualified as a Methodist lay-preacher in 1991 and during his years as a Christian has attended a range of churches which include Baptist, Methodist, Church of Scotland, Church of England, Christian Outreach Centre and various other evangelical house churches and fellowships. He left school at sixteen and first worked for a London Stockbroker's as a junior clerk and then joined a City financial group where he qualified as a Company Secretary. He next worked for IBM in a variety of roles for twenty years before going back to being a Company Secretary in 1991 with Lexmark International UK Ltd. He retired in 2001. He married Elizabeth in 1969 and they have three sons, all of whom are married and have children. Lucidus first started writing in 2005 on the premise that 'everyone has a book in them' and his first book, 'Blossom in Winter - Frost in Spring', was eventually published in 2010 and this book is now the twelfth that he has written and published.

Book preview

The Red Rabbit Inquiry Agency—

Book One

Lucidus Smith

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Also by Lucidus Smith

The ‘Blossom’ Trilogy

Oh for a Ha’porth of Tar

Blossom in Winter—Frost in Spring

Blossom by the Billabong

© 2013 by Lucidus Smith Ltd. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any institution or organization mentioned in this book is either fictitious or if real, used fictitiously without any intent to portray actual events or situations.

Any medical information contained in this book only reflects the author's opinion and, in no circumstance whatsoever, should be considered as medical advice. If you have any healthcare related questions or problems, please call or see your doctor or other qualified health care provider.

Published by AuthorHouse 01/23/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4567-8245-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4567-8246-7 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Dedication

Introduction

Chapter 1

What’s In A Name?

Chapter 2

The White Rabbit

Chapter 3

Is That You—Brutus?

Chapter 4

Funny Business

Chapter 5

Spruce—Like The Tree!

Chapter 6

Patience

Chapter 7

Samuel Laver??

Chapter 8

Good For You!

Chapter 9

Holborn And A Boy

Chapter 10

A Good Recovery

Chapter 11

Who’s A Clever Bunny?

Chapter 12

The Briefcase

Chapter 13

Goodbye Ludo

Chapter 14

The Code Is Broken

DEDICATION

To Mrs. Nettie Wilson—

A truly remarkable lady

INTRODUCTION

Thirty six year old MacDonald Smith and his wife Deborah, who was a year his junior, emigrated from England to New Zealand in August 1950, just four months after their wedding in Spain. Deborah had spent six months in Auckland soon after leaving school and had such happy memories of her time there, that she had persuaded Mac (as he was known to his friends), that New Zealand was the place for them to start their married life together.

Whilst Deborah had been able to simply change jobs, with the big London Insurance Company she had worked for, Mac, who had been a draughtsman in England, working in the planning department of a local council, had to start all over again, searching for a job which he considered to be appropriate, for his age and experience.

During one of the periods that Mac was un-employed, he had undertaken an investigation for his cousin Arnold, who worked for a bank in Australia. During this investigation, he had met a twenty five year old young lady named Carice van Offstrop, who was also now in the throes of moving to Auckland and looking for a new job.

When Carice telephoned Mac three days before Christmas, to find out how his job-hunting was going, she had no idea that her call would lead to such an interesting proposition.

CHAPTER 1

What’s in a Name?

Are you deaf or something Mac, for goodness sake turn the wireless off and answer the telephone, Deborah shouted through the sitting room door at her husband, who was happily reading the sports page of the local Auckland newspaper.

Sorry Debs, thought you were getting it, as virtually all the telephone calls are for you anyway, he replied, putting the paper down and walking into the hall, where the telephone was located on a small table just inside the front door.

The Smith household, MacDonald Smith speaking, who is it please?

Hello Mac, it’s me, Carice van Offstrop, you said to give you a call when I arrived in Auckland, remember?

I most certainly do Carice, what can I do for you this sunny Friday evening, have you just arrived from Dunedin; do you need picking up from the station or something?

No thanks Mac, I arrived earlier in the week and have been staying at a small Guest House I have used before, not too far from where you live in fact and I was wondering how the job hunting was going and if you could give me the addresses of any agencies that I might try, as I have had no luck whatsoever so far and am feeling pretty fed up about it?

I know exactly how you feel Carice, three days from Christmas and I am not feeling at all merry. I really thought that nineteen fifty would be a great year for me, but although it started with a bang, what with getting married and emigrating to New Zealand, it seems to be ending with a bit of a whimper I’m afraid. I had another job interview this morning, complete waste of time, the sort of work I was doing before the War, let alone before I left England a few months back.

Perhaps we could meet up some time and discuss our disappointments over a drink somewhere, Carice suggested.

Actually Carice, I did mention to my wife that you might be telephoning me sometime soon and she said to invite you round for dinner when you did and there is no time like the present, so what are you doing tonight?

Are you sure about this, won’t she be tired after a busy week at work?

Hold on and I will just check, he replied, putting the phone down and going through to the bedroom, where his wife was changing out of her business suit. Hey Debs, Carice is on the phone and is free tonight, do you fancy company for dinner or do you need to be on your own?

And what is that comment supposed to mean, ‘do I need to be on my own’?

It means exactly what it says! Are you tired after a busy week at work and would you prefer to be on our own tonight, or do you fancy having some company?

Company would be fine thank you. Is that lamb joint you bought big enough for three people?

It most certainly is!

Good, well invite her round then, the quicker we see if she is interested, the better, as far as I am concerned.

Mac went back into the hallway and picked up the telephone, Deborah is fine about tonight and is looking forward to meeting you. You and I can go over the agency information I have looked out for you, but I should warn you that Deborah and I do have a business proposition we want to discuss with you.

A business proposition eh, that sounds intriguing, what time shall I arrive?

Somewhere between six thirty and seven would be good, we normally sit down to eat around ten past. Is there anything you cannot eat? asked Mac.

I am not too keen on shellfish, but apart from that, I can eat anything. See you later, she said and putting the telephone back on the stand, returned to her room to think about what a ‘business proposition’ might involve her in.

At six fifty p.m., there was a knock on the door and Deborah went to answer it.

Hello Deborah, I am Carice van Offstrop, it’s nice to meet you at last.

Hello Carice, it’s good to meet you too, do come in.

The two ladies shook hands and Carice was shown into the lounge where Mac got up from his chair to meet his guest.

Good to see you again, let me take your coat, do sit down and make yourself comfortable.

She took her jacket off and passed it to Mac who left the room to hang it up and then made his way into the kitchen where he checked how the meal was progressing. Meanwhile Carice took a small parcel from her handbag and gave it to Deborah.

Well thank you Carice, how exciting, she said, as she unwrapped her present.

Mac said that you liked my perfume Deborah, so this one is very similar and by the same company, but slightly different from mine, I do hope you like it.

Deborah took the cap off the bottle and put a dab of perfume on the back of her wrist and inhaled the aroma.

Oh, how lovely Carice, thank you so much, would you like a glass of wine?

A glass of dry white, if you have it please, Carice replied.

Mac, two glasses of Chardonnay please and there are some beers in the fridge for you. How is the dinner doing?

The roast lamb is almost there, he said, another ten minutes or so, but we could sit down at the table and start with the melon, if you like. Here are your glasses of wine ladies, he announced, as he brought the drinks through to the lounge.

Deborah noticed the surprised look on Carice’s face and explained, Mac learnt to cook while he was in France during the War and is much better at it than me, so while I am bringing in the bacon, he is cooking it, so to speak, she joked; shall we go through to the dining room?

They swapped small talk during the Melon Course and Carice was interested to know how Deborah had found settling into Auckland after having lived in London for the last five years. Carice, herself, had now moved from Dunedin to Auckland to start a new life in the big city and to be near her fiancée, who was also in the process of moving to a new job in Auckland. They finally got down to the mysterious ‘business proposition’ while eating their main course.

So what is this business proposition about then Mac that you were so mysterious about on the telephone? Carice asked.

Well to be honest, it is really Deborah’s idea, which I wholeheartedly support of course, so I will let her explain it to you, said Mac.

It might be helpful if I give you the background of how we two first met, said Deborah. It was in Spain during the Second World War, when we were both working for the British Secret Service. Mac working behind the lines in France with the Resistance and me assisting my father in gathering intelligence about enemy naval movements in and around the Mediterranean Sea.

Wow, I was not expecting that, said Carice.

We were both young and wild and the danger and excitement were intoxicating, but we lost touch with each other when Mac was picked up by the German’s and was presumed to have been killed during an Allied bombing raid on the Gestapo Headquarters, where he was being held. We met up again in August of last year in a most amazing encounter, when Mac turned out to be the cousin of one of my father’s neighbours, Arnold Smith.

Oh I see, said Carice, not really seeing at all or understanding where the conversation was leading to.

We got married last April in Spain and after a wonderful honeymoon exploring Spain and France, we returned to England but could not settle so decided to emigrate to New Zealand and arrived here a few months ago. More wine please Mac, my throat is going dry, said Deborah.

Do you want me to take over with the story for a bit Debs or your dinner will get cold?

She nodded and Mac continued, As you already know Carice, I was a draughtsman in England, but I was looking forward to doing something different with my life when I came out here, so when Arnold, my cousin, asked me to do a bit of detective work for the bank he worked for, I jumped at the chance and really enjoyed myself, working with him on the investigation he was involved with.

All right Mac, I will continue, said Deborah, I noticed that Mac was his old self again while working for the bank, the Mac I had fallen in love with during the War and suggested to him that maybe he should give up being a draughtsman and start being a private investigator. I work for a big Insurance Company and we need someone to investigate spurious claims from time to time and we could definitely put that sort of work, his way. Mac’s immediate response to my suggestion, was that in any sort of an investigation there can be danger and that you should never work on your own in that sort of situation, you should have a partner to watch your back. When he told me that you were also looking for work in Auckland and he had already mentioned how well you had played your role in protecting your parents’ interests, I suggested that the two of you should team up and form your own firm of Private Investigators; so tell me, what do you think of the idea?

Hey, what a wonderful idea Deborah, would you be involved with the firm yourself, or would you remain working for your Insurance Company?

Certainly to start with I would stay with my current employer, to make sure we still had an income each month, but who knows, if the business picked up and there was an obvious role for me to play, maybe I would join the two of you as well, at a later stage.

Sounds a wise decision, said Carice, the more I think of it, the more it excites me, I am just not sure what Desmond is going to say about it though, he tends to be a bit on the cautious side.

Sorry Carice, but who is Desmond? asked Mac.

Desmond Newn, the manager of my parent’s hotel in Dunedin, which is up for sale. We have been engaged to be married for several years now, but Papa did not approve of my marrying one of the staff, as he called him; but now he is dead, mother has given her blessing, so as soon as the hotel is sold and he can move to a new job in Auckland, we will definitely get married.

Is he likely to object to the venture then? asked Deborah.

I don’t really think so, but I owe it to him to discuss the matter with him, before giving you an answer. He is arriving in Auckland tomorrow morning and we planned to have dinner tomorrow night at his brother’s restaurant in town, why don’t you two come and join us and we can finish this discussion then.

We wouldn’t want to spoil your plans for spending time with your fiancée, said Deborah, but not very convincingly.

We are spending the whole of Christmas together with his elder brother Stephen and his family; so do please say you will join us.

In that case we would love to come and thank you for the invitation, said Deborah.

Have you thought of any names yet, for our new enterprise? asked Carice.

I rather like Smith and Offstrop Investigations Limited, said Mac.

Oh no! said Carice, How about Offstrop and Smith Detective Agency, she suggested.

I do not think we should use our own names, said Deborah, my suggestion is The Red Rabbit Inquiry Agency; now that is a name people will remember.

I like it, said Carice.

I hate it Debbie, said Mac, ducking as she threw her napkin at him.

Is this some sort of private joke between you two then? asked Carice.

It goes back to when we first met and Deborah here, made fun of a poor wounded serviceman, who had slight problems saying his ‘R’s’. Because she laughed when I said ‘Wed Wabbit Wuns Wiot’ I got to call her Debs, a privilege no one else in the whole wide world has.

Oh I see, but it is a good name Mac and I have a sneaky suspicion that the office above my future brother-in-laws restaurant is empty, so we would have somewhere to set up shop, where people regularly come and go and would easily see any sign we put up in the window.

Two against one Mac, said Deborah.

I can see I am not going to win this, so The Red Rabbit Inquiry Agency, it is, said Mac, assuming Desmond agrees.

The next day they joined Carice and Desmond at The Moray Restaurant for dinner and were pleased to discover that Desmond had come round to the idea of his future wife being a partner in an Inquiry Agency, albeit with some reservations.

The restaurant owner Stephen confirmed that the office above the restaurant was available and mostly furnished, as the previous occupants had done a moonlight flit half way through November, still owing two months’ rent and that Carice and Mac could move in as soon as they wanted to.

Mac and Deborah spent Christmas Day with her boss Neil and his family and Boxing Day with Carice, Desmond and his brother’s family. The following day Deborah and Mac left on Deborah’s big Red Indian Motorcycle for a ten day tour of North Island starting off with Hamilton and then going down to Rotorua and Lake Taupo before spending a few days in Wellington and coming home via Wanganui and New Plymouth.

On the first of January 1951 Carice’s fiancée Desmond Newn, took up the position of Assistant Manager with a new hotel overlooking the harbour, the job also providing a small flat for himself, while Carice was able to secure a room with some old friends of Deborah’s, Rosie and Brock Lewes, who were finding things a bit difficult and were glad of the extra income that their paying guest would provide.

While Mac and Deborah were enjoying the sights of Wellington and the beautiful scenery of North Island, Carice, assisted by Rosie and Brock cleaned out the office above the restaurant and gave the whole area a good wash down and a fresh lick of paint, which Stephen was more than happy to pay for.

Where does that other door lead to, at the top of the stairs? Rosie asked Carice one day, as they were enjoying a cup of coffee and a pastry, provided by Stephen.

"I am not really sure Rosie; I think Stephen said it was a small room in the loft which is little more than a junk room. He told me that he was storing some stuff for