The Dinner Party

by R. J. Parker

  Hey, Ted! Remember you from Cactus Jake days. Long-time no see. Help you?

  Cactus Jake’s was their old haunt, a Mexican restaurant and late-night bar. Grant had always been very generous with the shots, but Ted had quickly realized he was buttering them all up as clients. Was he still dealing? From his message it sounded like he might be. Ted had suggested a quick drink in The Mason Arms and knew that couldn’t have been more convenient for Tulley.

  Ten minutes later a very tanned Tulley came in with a pasty girl young enough to be his daughter. He was carrying even more extra pounds and wearing less hair than his most recent Facebook profile pic. Despite the weather, he sported a short-sleeved orange polo shirt, faded jeans and flip-flops. He raised a hand at Ted and then made a drink gesture.

  Ted shook his head and waited while Tulley got a pint of lager for himself and a Red Bull for his companion, before telling her that he’d be back soon. He crossed the floor of the pub and extended his hand.

  Ted got up and squeezed it. Tulley’s fingers were cold. ‘Good to see you.’ Tulley looked like an overinflated version of the handsome surfer guy he used to be and there was definitely more salt than pepper in the shaved hair on his head.

  ‘You’re a blast from the past.’ Tulley seated himself on the chair opposite.

  Ted sat. ‘How long’s it been?’ But he knew exactly.

  ‘How’s the old crew?’ Tulley beamed.

  Tulley had never been part of the group. When he realized Evie had moved on, they rarely saw him. When they did, he was always with different people he never introduced them to.

  ‘You’re still with Juliette?’

  ‘Yes,’ Ted replied, slightly surprised. Maybe his memory wasn’t as addled as he expected.

  ‘Thought you guys were for keeps.’ His smile remained but he knew reminiscing wasn’t the purpose of the visit. ‘You’re lucky to catch me. Just back from PortAventura.’

  ‘All right for some.’ Ted knew the niceties wouldn’t sustain long.

  ‘So, what can I do for you?’ Tulley tried to look mystified.

  ‘I’m having a bash for Juliette. A big one. Wanted to get the old gang back together.’

  He nodded. ‘Sounds good.’

  ‘Obviously, you’re on the guest list as well as some other old faces.’

  ‘None as well-worn as mine,’ Tulley joked.

  Ted forced a brief chuckle. ‘And I just wondered if you could help us out with something to kick the doors off the party.’

  Tulley’s grin broadened. He clearly relished predicting what Ted really wanted. ‘I’ll be honest with you, Ted. Nowadays, bar private use, I’m pretty low-key on that front.’

  Wait for it.

  ‘Times have changed. Everything’s so territorial now. It’s not the old days anymore.’

  Here it comes.

  ‘But I still keep my ear to the ground, especially for old friends.’ He mustered a faux twinkle in his eye.

  ‘You’d be our preferred supplier,’ Ted jested.

  ‘I’ll see what I can do but if I do go out on a limb for you then your budget’ll have to reflect it.’

  ‘Budget isn’t an issue.’

  Tulley took a sip of his beer, as if celebrating the hardest part of the conversation being over. ‘Excellent.’

  ‘We just want some of the entry-level stuff you used to score for Evie.’

  ‘Is Evie afraid to come to me herself now?’ He smirked.

  Ted considered how to respond. ‘She’s in a respectable job.’

  Tulley snorted. ‘Doesn’t normally bother her.’

  Ted was puzzled. ‘Have you seen Evie recently then?’

  ‘Only a couple of weeks ago,’ Tulley answered, as if Ted should know. He clocked Ted’s expression. ‘She not tell you?’ He gulped some lager.

  ‘No, think we’ve had crossed wires.’ Ted improvised. ‘I thought I was sorting out the party entertainment.’

  Tulley shrugged. ‘That’s between you two. Although I don’t want an invite if Evie’s making the cocktails.’

  ‘What d’you mean by that?’

  ‘Nothing,’ Tulley said archly.

  ‘She been hitting you up for Rohypnol?’ Ted asked casually.

  Tully remained silent but playfully raised an eyebrow.

  Ted attempted not to react then shook his head, as if she were incorrigible. ‘She’s got a seriously warped sense of humour.’

  ‘They both have.’

  Ted tried to guess who he could be referring to. How could he extract more details?

  ‘Don’t usually get many women buying it. Hope she hasn’t been slipping you any.’

  ‘I wouldn’t put it past Evie.’

  Tulley frowned.

  Ted didn’t like his expression. ‘What is it?’

  ‘Maybe I’ve said enough.’

  Ted wanted to grab Tulley by the scruff of the neck and shake the answer out of him.

  ‘Not lost any time recently? Thought you’d been kidnapped by extra-terrestrials?’ Tulley hid his amusement by taking another large swig of lager.

  Ted tried to remain calm. ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘Your Mrs, Juliette, she was with Evie when she bought it.’

  CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE

  Ted attempted to remain focused during his remaining exchanges with Tulley, but he obviously couldn’t disguise his reaction to the revelation.

  ‘You OK?’ Tulley asked suspiciously.

  ‘Just remembered I’ve got to be somewhere.’ He glanced at his watch and it wasn’t a bluff. He was due at his interview with Renton soon.

  Tulley didn’t seem convinced. ‘Sure?’

  Ted nodded. ‘So, I can contact you via Messenger?’

  Tulley slanted his head. ‘You tell me exactly what you need, and I’ll make some enquiries.’

  Ted fought the reflex to stand. ‘Cool, I’ll send you my wish list.’ He extended his hand and Tulley shook it. His grip was tight and palm warm now. ‘Was great catching up.’

  ‘We didn’t, really.’

  Don’t walk out too fast.

  ‘Say hi to Juliette and Evie for me.’ Tulley showed him his teeth.

  ‘Will do. Be in touch soon.’ Ted rose and strolled out as leisurely as he could. Too leisurely? He was meant to be late for an appointment. He picked up his pace and grinned at Tulley’s girlfriend. Her face was impassive as she followed him with her eyes.

  Had Tulley guessed that he’d just been fishing for who had been buying drugs off him? Ted got into his car and closed the door. What about Kathryn? Did she have anything to do with spiking Jakob? Tulley hadn’t mentioned her. He had to speak to Juliette now. He took out his phone and dialled. What else was she hiding from him? And how could he possibly conceal this from Renton? He’d ignored his instincts, allowed her to placate him and she’d carried on lying.

  Answer service. He called the landline, but nobody picked up. Perhaps she and Zoe were busy with Georgie.

  He tried her number again. ‘It’s Ted. I need to speak to you urgently. Please call back as soon as you get this. We must talk before I see Renton.’ He hung up.

  But Juliette didn’t call him back. When he reached the station, he waited in the car with the phone in his hand, willing her name to appear in the display. Six o’clock. Ted couldn’t delay. He got out of the car and ambled to the entrance doors.

  He switched the phone off as he went inside. Didn’t want to have the conversation he foresaw anywhere near the police station. But what was he going to say to Renton? Would he have to lie for her?

  ‘How are you feeling?’ Renton gestured to the seat in front of the small desk in the poky interview room.

  First question and Ted didn’t know how to answer.

  His tall male colleague with dyed black hair, Detective Sergeant Patterson, was already seated opposite, iPhone notebook in his hand, attention on the little screen.

  ‘Bewildered.’ Ted dropped into the padded chair. He eyed some papers and the interview r
ecorder on the desk.

  ‘Coffee?’

  Ted shook his head.

  Renton sat and interlinked his stubby fingers. ‘I’m so sorry to hear about your friends.’

  Ted vaguely nodded. ‘I never suspected it of Orla. That she was capable of that.’

  ‘There’s been no indicators in the past?’

  ‘No. It was always—’ he cut himself off, but then continued. ‘If it had been Connor it would have been less of a surprise.’

  ‘Has Mr Connor exhibited suicidal ambition then?’

  ‘In the way he talked recently. I did get concerned enough to mention it to Juliette.’

  Patterson started typing on his screen. The sound was turned up and each letter clicked loudly.

  Renton didn’t seem bothered by it. ‘He threatened suicide?’

  ‘Not explicitly. I met him for a drink recently though and he alluded to it. He and Orla have … had issues.’

  ‘What sort of issues?’

  ‘Passive aggressive stuff. Before they were married even.’

  ‘Anything more than that?’

  ‘Not that I know of. Connor always had a good sense of humour about their bickering, but that changed.’

  ‘You don’t know the reason?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘My colleague tells me his condition has stabilized now.’

  Why was Renton happy to conduct the interview about what had happened at the railway station without Juliette? But Ted didn’t want to ask. Didn’t want to precipitate her involvement until he’d had an opportunity to talk to her.

  ‘My colleague said that you’d spoken to Mr Lowney.’

  ‘Very briefly,’ Ted confirmed. ‘He was on morphine, so he was very drowsy.’

  ‘He didn’t say anything to you that you thought significant?’

  ‘Only that Orla apologized to him when she was on the bridge.’

  ‘For what?’

  ‘Something about getting even.’

  ‘Mean anything to you?’

  ‘No. That was it. The nurse told me to leave soon after.’

  ‘I heard he asked only to speak to you.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Don’t you think that was odd, that he should demand exactly what Mr Eriksson did when he called you from a payphone after his wife had been murdered and wanted to leave your wife out of the conversation?’

  ‘I assumed it was because Connor didn’t want Juliette to see the state he was in.’ But Ted could feel anger at his wife bubbling inside him.

  Patterson briefly stopped typing.

  Renton leaned back in his chair. ‘I’ve still got Kathryn Driscoll in interview room 8. Thought I’d give her a break. She’s been very helpful.’

  Ted didn’t like the silence that followed the statement. ‘She OK?’

  ‘Fine. She told me that the Erikssons and the Lowneys were your wife’s friends first.’

  ‘That’s right.’ And he knew exactly where he was going with it.

  The typing started again.

  ‘So it’s not strange that they would preclude your wife over you?’

  ‘I know them well too. Jakob became a friend. Perhaps he wanted a male ear, perhaps Connor did too.’

  ‘Or because they wanted to talk to you about something they didn’t want your wife to hear.’

  ‘What are you saying?’

  ‘Just thinking out loud. Or it could be something you and the other men want to hide.’

  Ted fought to retain his composure. ‘It’s not.’

  ‘It was your wife that Connor first summoned to the railway station though.’

  ‘Yes.’ It was a valid point.

  ‘So that scotches that theory then, doesn’t it?’

  Ted shrugged. ‘Connor wanted my wife there to talk Orla down.’ He shivered inwardly again as he recalled her fall from the bridge.

  ‘And Mrs Lowney said nothing to you or your wife before she fell?’ Renton examined a piece of paper in front of him.

  Ted assumed it was their statement. ‘Nothing.’

  ‘No suicide note has been found at the scene or in their house. Why do you think she jumped?’

  ‘I really don’t know. She looked … medicated. Like she’d taken a handful of pills.’

  ‘Is that a regular thing?’

  ‘I know she has problems sleeping. I suppose that could have been a contributing factor.’

  Renton grimaced, as if he’d tasted the term and it was sour. ‘She wasn’t anxious about anything?’

  ‘Other than Evie and Jakob’s deaths?’ Ted said sharply.

  ‘Before that.’

  ‘I hadn’t seen Orla for a good few months.’

  ‘You met up with Connor though.’

  ‘Yes, but he didn’t mention that Orla was having problems.’

  ‘What about your wife?’

  ‘What about her?’ He tried to maintain his patience.

  ‘Was there something on her mind before you all met up this Friday?’

  Ted was about to rebuff him but couldn’t. Juliette had been withdrawn the few weeks leading up to the dinner party.

  CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO

  ‘Not that I remember.’

  But Renton had picked up on Ted’s hesitation. ‘Something you want to tell me?’

  But Ted wasn’t about to pre-empt the conversation he was going to have with Juliette. ‘Juliette is anxious …’

  Renton opened his eyes wide, prompting him to continue.

  ‘Probably unjustifiably so …’ He had to give Renton something. ‘At the dinner party we all played a game …’

  ‘The trust game?’

  ‘Yes.’ Had Kathryn told him during her lengthy interview?

  ‘Mrs Driscoll filled me in on it this afternoon.’ Renton seemed to know what he was thinking. ‘I’m just wondering why it took so long for any of you to mention it to me.’

  Should he say he wanted to all along, that the others had persuaded him not to, that Juliette had been the most vocal about him not talking about it and had gone with Evie to buy the Rohypnol from Tulley? ‘It was just a game.’ But Ted didn’t believe that, had never believed that, even when Evie had first suggested it.

  ‘You didn’t think a game about hidden secrets might have had a bearing on what led to Mr Eriksson murdering Mrs Eriksson?’

  ‘It was stupid but …’

  ‘But?’ Renton barked loudly and waited for him to continue.

  ‘Nobody thought that it was responsible for what happened.’ He was still lying. For Juliette. What if she was much more involved than he thought and what would happen to their family if she had to be punished for it?

  ‘So why withhold it from me? Because you’ve all colluded to do so, I have to consider that it’s significant.’

  ‘But when Evie and Jakob left, they were drunk but OK.’

  ‘And how were things between you and your wife at the end of the evening?’

  ‘Fine.’

  ‘I’ve been married. I know what a loaded word “fine” is. You’ve just played a game of forgiveness. Were you not both wondering what you’d forgiven each other for?’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘So how were things when you went to bed?’

  ‘We were both exhausted.’

  ‘That isn’t an answer.’

  Ted inhaled. If it weren’t for Juliette, he would have had this conversation the night they’d first met Detective Inspector Renton outside Evie and Jakob’s house. ‘It was awkward.’

  ‘I should say so. What was discussed?’

  ‘Nothing.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘There was an atmosphere, but we’ve talked about it since.’

  ‘You told her what you wrote, and she burnt?’

  ‘Yes.’

  That caused Renton to pause. ‘And what was that?’

  ‘It was nothing really.’

  Detective Patterson looked up from his screen and his sceptical expression matched Renton’s.

  ‘I kisse
d a work colleague of Juliette’s. That was all.’

  Detective Patterson’s clicking began in earnest again.

  ‘And this colleague, a female?’

  Ted nodded.

  ‘Would corroborate your story?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘If that is what you wrote on your piece of paper. We only have your word for that.’

  But Ted knew what was coming next.

  ‘And your wife told you her secret, the one you burnt?’

  ‘We didn’t … there wasn’t the opportunity. It was in the hospital …’ But he was aware of how lame that sounded.

  ‘And you can’t see how the sort of exchanges you two had could have led to similar heated words between Mr and Mrs Eriksson?’ Renton was barely controlling his temper. ‘A couple who’d had therapy because of their inability to have a family. And between Mr and Mrs Lowney, a couple who already had problems in their marriage?’

  But it was his fault. He’d chosen to remain silent despite his instincts.

  ‘It filled ten minutes, though, when the dinner conversation had waned after dessert,’ Renton said acerbically. ‘I have a suspect on CCTV, but now the Erikssons and Mrs Lowney are dead. I think the answers lie within your game and more than one of you knows what happened.’

  ‘I’ve told you everything.’

  ‘I thought you had before.’ Renton folded his arms across his broad chest. ‘Now I want every detail.’

  CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE

  Ted went back over what had happened around the dinner table. Twenty minutes later a uniformed officer knocked on the interview room door and Renton ducked out leaving Ted with Detective Sergeant Patterson. His fingers continued clicking on his screen.

  Ted acknowledged that he still hadn’t heard him speak.

  Renton re-entered and appeared flustered. ‘Patterson will take the rest of the details.’

  His colleague glanced up and frowned.

  ‘A word first.’ Renton beckoned the other officer out.

  Ted listened to their feet echo off down the corridor and then a door slam. He regarded the unused recorder. He wasn’t under arrest. Was he still just helping with inquiries? He took out his phone, switched it back on and checked his screen. No message. Besides needing to speak to Juliette he wanted to make sure she was OK. Was he allowed to make a call? It was unlike her not to return his.