The email from the Stone Federation might be simply a coincidence. After all, the murder of two prominent businessmen would have set tongues wagging. There were plenty of people within the organisation who’d happily have dug deep in search for common ground. Jim Cody’s death may not have caused a big furore when it happened but there was sure to be a reference to it somewhere in archived files.
Maybe the Federation authorities had decided that if someone was looking for revenge, it was time to give them justice and right the wrongs of the past. It would be the kind of thing she could imagine that prick Simon Nicholl saying.
A meeting with Tom Radstock was the first step to getting the suspension overturned. After all, her heart twisted as she considered using the argument, Nathan and Sylvester, the two men who could in any way be found culpable, were dead.
Keri looked through the glass walls. Luke was on the phone to someone. Otherwise, the reception was empty. She stood and went out, crossing to the glass frontage to look outside.
It would be faster to take a Tube to Victoria Station but as she watched the steady wave of passers-by on the footpath she imagined being among them and one of them creeping up behind to pull a knife across her throat. Suddenly, she realised how very much she wanted to live, because she wouldn’t stretch her neck to make it easier for her attacker. She’d fight.
Back in her office, she called an Uber and twenty minutes later, crossed to the reception desk. ‘I won’t be back today, Luke. You can get me on my mobile if anyone needs me.’
‘Have you a meeting?’
Keri hadn’t realised how on edge she was until that moment, certainly hadn’t realised she was staring at Luke wondering if, somehow, he were involved. ‘Why are you asking me?’ Her voice was sharp enough to bring colour to his cheeks.
‘I’m sorry. It’s only that I don’t have a record of any meeting and I was worried I’d missed something.’
Did he look a bit shifty? Keri stared at him a moment longer. ‘It was a spur-of-the-moment meeting,’ she said and turned away. She waited until the taxi pulled up outside before moving closer to the door, waiting until it had fully opened before going outside and hurrying down the steps and across the footpath to pull open the taxi door and clamber inside. Maybe there was nothing to her idea that whoever wanted vengeance for Jim Cody hadn’t finished. Maybe, but she couldn’t shake the idea that she was right.
The taxi stopped immediately outside Lester’s. The old-fashioned, decidedly untrendy pub was popular with people like her who wanted to have a drink and a chat without being bombarded with music. It had booths, too, where you could be almost guaranteed privacy.
Mid-afternoon, it was relatively quiet. There were a few empty seats including a booth separated from the others by a chimney breast on one side and a doorway on the other. It was also well positioned to give her a view of the rest of the pub, her eyes flitting from group to group. No woman bore any resemblance to Tracy Wirick, no man any likeness to Barry Morgan either.
What a tangle Keri’s life had become. Leaving her jacket on the seat, she headed to the bar. She’d have liked a glass of wine but on a nearly empty stomach it might skew her judgement. Instead, she ordered a mineral water and a coffee.
Tucked into the corner of the booth, she sipped her cappuccino. She couldn’t relax. Every time the door opened, she tensed and her heart thumped until the person came into view, then she slumped down again, until the next time.
By the time Tom Radstock arrived she was exhausted. She’d only met him that once, the year before, but she recognised him instantly. He was a tall, thin man with a thick mop of blond curly hair that like the year before, needed a cut. The shaggy hair was at odds with his conservative neat suit, white shirt, and dark tie. Strangely, it put Keri in mind of Roy’s waistcoats and she liked Tom more for the reminder that it was good to be a little different.
He saw her immediately and crossed the room with an apologetic smile. ‘So sorry I’m late, it’s been one of those days.’ He pointed to her empty cup. ‘Would you like another coffee or something stronger perhaps?’
‘Another coffee would be good, thank you. An espresso, please.’ It would make her jittery but might help her focus.
‘Here you go,’ he said, returning with a tiny cup that looked lost in his big hands. He put it down in front of her, slid into the seat opposite and took a mouthful of his pint. ‘I needed that.’
‘That email from the Stone Federation causing you grief, is it?’
‘That and other things.’ He put his pint down, sat back and crossed his arms. ‘I don’t know how well you knew Dexter Sylvester.’ He stared at her waiting for her answer.
‘Not at all. I’ve seen him at the odd function but never spoken to him.’
‘Would I be right in guessing you know the kind of person he was?’ He smiled when she nodded agreement. ‘He had his sticky fingers in all kinds of things, some of which were exceedingly dodgy.’
‘There have always been rumours,’ Keri admitted. ‘But I thought he’d cleaned up his act, it’s harder to get away with anything these days, regulations have become almost unbearably stringent.’
‘People like Sylvester will always find a way.’ He picked up his pint again and took a drink. ‘I don’t know if you’re aware but there was some trouble last year. The company would have gone under if he hadn’t managed to get some investors. It was they who persuaded me to take the reins when he was killed–’
‘Murdered.’
‘What?’ Radstock looked confused.
‘Sylvester, like my husband, was murdered. There was intention behind their deaths, it wasn’t simply an accident.’ Keri heard her voice rising as she got her point across but she was irritated at his casual mention of Sylvester’s death.
Radstock held up a hand. ‘It seems to be my day for apologies. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be making light of his death, or your husband’s. I’m very good at what I do, but I’d be the first to admit I’m the most socially awkward person you could hope to meet, and not knowing what to say about your husband’s death I’ve chickened out by saying as little as possible.’
‘That’s okay,’ Keri said with a faint smile. ‘To be honest, I’m relieved not to have to listen to more commiserations. It’s just–’ She reached for her espresso and finished it in one mouthful. ‘–fucking hard at times.’
‘I can’t begin to understand what you’re going through. This situation with the Stone Federation can’t be helping.’
‘It’s better to have something to think about than my loss.’ She waited a second before continuing. ‘What did you manage to find out?’
‘Nothing. The email referred to the death of a sixteen-year-old apprentice during the renovation of Stevenage Manor House twenty-three years ago. I’ve looked through all the paperwork we have pertaining to that job and there isn’t one mention of an accident on-site resulting in death, or injury for that matter.’
Keri looked at him. He seemed trustworthy. Maybe it would be better to work together. ‘Let me tell you what happened.’
50
Tom Radstock was a good listener. He didn’t interrupt, didn’t even add the usual encouraging mms and hmms that most people used. His only reaction to the story that Keri told him was a slight widening of his eyes.
‘And that’s it.’ She reached for her water, wishing she’d ordered a glass of wine after all. ‘Sylvester and Nathan were murdered in revenge for what happened. And probably Roy Sheppard too.’
‘Roy Sheppard?’
‘Our administrator, he was killed in the same way as the others almost a week before. The police aren’t sure why, but I think he must have found out something damning about Tracy Wirick.’ This time, Keri smiled at his confusion. ‘The short version of that story is, she came into the office, asked to do work experience and started the following day. The next day, Roy was dead and she was missing. Turns out she wasn’t who she said she was.’
Radstock picked up his pint and dr
ained it. ‘I definitely need another. Can I get you something?’
‘A small white wine, please.’ She deserved it at this stage.
But when he returned it was with a large glass of wine and a pint for himself. ‘I’ve taken the liberty of ordering some food as well. You look like you haven’t eaten–’ He heaved a noisy sigh. ‘–since your husband was murdered.’
‘I have, but not very much.’ She lifted her glass. ‘Thank you.’
He sipped his pint, keeping the glass to his lips, lost in thought. Finally, he looked at her. ‘That is one hell of a story. It’s hard to believe that someone would wait so long to take revenge.’
‘Sylvester and my husband got messages sent to them saying remember JC plus the wreath and the dead animal or animal entrails.’ She picked up the wine, then put it down again when the waiter arrived with the food.
‘Here you go.’ He placed the two plates on the table, dropped cutlery wrapped in paper serviettes beside them. ‘Anything else?’
‘No, that’s fine, thanks.’ Radstock turned to Keri. ‘I guessed you’d say no if I asked, so I ordered steak and chicken hoping one of the two would appeal.’ He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. ‘Unless of course, you’re vegetarian.’
‘No, but I would prefer the chicken, if that’s okay?’
‘Of course.’ He pushed it towards her.
Keri ate a few chips and a piece of the chicken then picked up her wine and took a sip. ‘It is one hell of a story, as you say.’ She looked at him. ‘Tell me, why do you think the Stone Federation decided to investigate Jim Cody’s death after all these years?’
‘It might be that someone was suspicious of two members murdered in the same way within such a short time and decided to dig for some connection between them. Despite Sylvester sanitising DS Construction’s files, there would have to be a report about the boy’s death somewhere in the Federation’s archives.’
‘That’s exactly what I was thinking.’
Radstock cut into the steak and speared a piece but held it on the fork without eating, looking at it meditatively. ‘Simon Nicholl has a very astute brain. As president, he’d want to ensure that the Federation is seen to be taking the matter seriously.’
It all sounded so logical. Perhaps it was simple paranoia that was making Keri think her ordeal wasn’t over, that there was more horror yet to come. She looked up from the chip she’d been nibbling and caught Radstock staring at her.
He smiled slightly. ‘You’ve been gnawing on that one chip for a long time. Obviously, you’ve something else on your mind. Why don’t you tell me what it is, I’m a good listener.’
She’d nothing left to lose, and she needed someone to talk to. ‘What you said all sounds so logical, and it’s much what I’d been thinking, but what if it was something more than someone putting two and two together. What if whoever killed Sylvester, Nathan and Roy isn’t finished and it was they who sent the information to Simon Nicoll about Jim Cody’s death. Both of our companies might come through this investigation okay, but we also might be destroyed. What if that’s the plan? Not only death, but death and destruction.’ She wanted to add her worry that she, Abbie, and Daniel might also be in danger, but she sounded paranoid enough.
Radstock frowned. ‘Okay, no wonder you look concerned. Our first step then is to find out why they’ve suddenly decided to investigate.’
Keri felt inordinately grateful for the ‘our’. ‘How do we do that?’
He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out his phone. ‘Shouldn’t be too difficult. Simon Nicholl and I are old friends. I was going to ring him this morning and ask him what was going on but then you rang so I left it. But I can call him now and ask.’
Keri picked up a chip and ate it while she listened to Radstock’s side of the conversation. Since after the initial query this consisted of a series of yes, no, and um, it didn’t tell her much. ‘Well?’ she said when he eventually put the mobile down on the table, tension tightening to see his grim expression.
Radstock picked up his pint and drank, then put it down and wiped his mouth with a hand. He was obviously finding it difficult to tell Keri whatever it was he’d heard.
‘Not good news then?’ she said, feeling sorry for him.
‘I’m afraid not. It is, unfortunately, much as you’d feared. Simon had a letter yesterday accusing the Federation of a cover-up in the death of Jim Cody. It was signed simply, a relative, and it gave names, dates, the work involved and was accompanied by a copy of the death certificate of the apprentice listing acute silicosis as cause of death.’
‘It didn’t leave Simon much choice then, did it?’
‘Didn’t leave him any. The letter also stated that they’d go to the papers and the police if an investigation wasn’t done.’
Keri picked up another chip and bit into it. It was cold. She dropped it on the plate. ‘How bad is this going to be, do you think?’
Radstock shrugged. ‘It would be impossible to prove, at this stage, where the boy was exposed. There’s no paperwork in DS Construction to support their claim, and I assume there’s none in Metcalfe Conservation either.’
He seemed to be waiting for her response so she shook her head slowly. ‘The boy’s name isn’t on any of our paperwork.’ There was no point in telling him that Nathan had admitted that Jim Cody had worked with him. Without the proper equipment on high-risk sandstone. No point in damaging Nathan’s memory.
Radstock hadn’t finished. ‘My guess is they’ll investigate, decide that errors had been made but that since more stringent rules are now in place, and since–’ He held a hand up in apology. ‘–Sylvester and your husband are dead, there’d be no point in pursuing the case further.’ He reached for his pint. ‘There will be talk though, damaging talk that the two companies colluded to cover up the death of a sixteen-year-old. Our competitors will make sure the story grows wings. We’ll lose contracts.’
‘And our suppliers will start shouting for money owed and be wary about supplying in case they get caught in the crossfire.’ She reached for her wine and gulped a large mouthful. ‘We could go under, couldn’t we?’
He lifted a hand and see-sawed it. ‘It’s certainly going to be bumpy for a while.’
Bumpy? Keri’s fingers tightened on the stem of her glass. The man had no idea how bumpy it might get for her. Because it looked like she’d been right. Whoever was seeking vengeance for Jim Cody’s death was far from finished.
Nathan, Sylvester, and Roy. The two companies.
Would that satisfy their need for vengeance?
Or were they going to continue until everything she and Nathan had accomplished was destroyed?
51
Keri pushed away her barely touched plate of food. There didn’t seem to be any point in sitting mulling over what might or might not happen and with a final sip of the wine she gave an apologetic shake of her head. ‘I’m sorry, I’m not feeling much like eating or drinking these days.’ She gathered her jacket and bag. ‘I’ll leave you to finish your lunch in peace, thank you for meeting me.’
‘You were obviously hoping the Federation’s decision to investigate the apprentice’s death had nothing to do with your husband’s murder. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to give you better news.’ Radstock stretched a hand across the table. ‘If there’s anything I can do to help, please shout.’
His hand was big, bony and dry. Keri’s was lost in it and for a moment it gave her comfort. ‘You’re very kind. I hope our companies survive this intact.’ Withdrawing her hand, she shuffled along the seat and got to her feet.
Outside, a tiny finger of panic poked her. She should have rung for an Uber when she was inside. Now, it would necessitate taking her eyes from their continuous search of every passing face… looking for what? She didn’t know. Maybe that woman Tracy Wirick… maybe someone she’d never met… a knife-wielding monster who could blend in with the crowd.
It made sense to retreat inside but then Radstock woul
d see her fear. Regardless of how nice a guy he appeared to be, in the business world showing fear wasn’t an option.
Keri swallowed hard and edged to the inside of the footpath. There was a taxi rank outside Victoria Station. It wasn’t far. Five minutes’ walk, no more.
It felt like an eternity.
She hogged the inside of the pathway as much as possible, forcing oncoming pedestrians to swerve around her. The notion that her leather handbag might deflect a knife attack made her slip the handles over her head as she walked and carry it under her chin like a horse’s nosebag. It garnered her strange looks but she didn’t care.
There was a queue at the taxi rank. Keri assessed every face as she walked to join the end. Anxiously, she shifted her weight from foot to foot and looked over her shoulder. Once she spun around when she thought she saw someone familiar causing the elderly couple who were standing behind her to take a step backwards in alarm.
‘Sorry,’ she muttered, turning back. When she looked over her shoulder again seconds later, she noticed they’d taken a further step away as if fearful of her. She looked straight ahead with hot tears building. Falling apart. Maybe they were right to be afraid of her.
The queue moved quickly and five minutes later there was only one person ahead of her. A young woman with long hair in dreadlocks, multiple piercings to her lips, eyebrows, and ears. It was warm where they stood and she dragged off the heavy jacket she was wearing to expose bare arms.
Keri was immediately fixated by the striking tattoo of an eye on the woman’s upper arm. It was staring at Keri, peering straight into her soul. Panic flooded her and she wanted to run. Away from the weird eye, from Victoria Station, her life, the appalling tragedy that it had become. All the sadness and guilt. Her overwhelming, catastrophic loss.
The Couple in the Photograph Page 18
