The Dead Wife

by Sue Fortin

  Harry eventually managed to persuade her to go back to their lodge a couple of hours later. She had partied even harder since Owen was deposited home. She wanted to make the most of it and to make a point to Harry that she wasn’t ready to hang up her party shoes any time soon. If he remembered the fun they used to have, he might revert back to his more carefree ways.

  Elizabeth flopped into bed and, closing her eyes, turned on her side. Harry was in the bathroom, brushing his teeth. If he had any notion they were going to have sex, he could think again. She was far too tired for that. She knew she’d be asleep before he climbed into bed beside her.

  Two Years Earlier,

  Conmere, 24 September, 9.00 a.m.

  Although Elizabeth felt she had only been asleep for a short time, she was surprised to see it was nine o’clock in the morning. She rolled over and saw the bed was empty. Harry was probably organising the post-party tidy-up. She yawned and her thoughts migrated back to last night. Her stomach pitched and she had a sudden and very clear recollection of her moment with Dominic. Oops. She had tried to kiss him right there at the party. And he had groped her arse. She smiled at the thought. And he had told her to call him when she was sober.

  Elizabeth tentatively got up from the bed and slipped on her dressing gown. Was this too early to call him? Would he be sleeping off a hangover or would he be helping Harry tidy up? She made herself a cup of tea and, going back up to the bedroom, glanced out of the window. She couldn’t have timed it better. There, walking along the path through the trees, were Harry and Dominic.

  Elizabeth picked up her phone from the bedside table and dialled Dominic’s mobile.

  She watched Dominic take his phone from his pocket and after a slight hesitation answer it.

  ‘Hello, Dominic Sinclair.’

  ‘Hello, Dominic Sinclair,’ purred Elizabeth. ‘This is Elizabeth Sinclair. I’m just phoning to let you know that I’m sober and following up on our conversation from last night.’

  ‘I’m a bit busy at the moment. I’m in the middle of a meeting with my brother,’ he replied.

  ‘When do you think you’ll be free? I’m off out to do some shopping in a couple of hours. On my own.’

  ‘OK. That sounds doable. I’ll meet you in town at eleven clock. I’ll text you when I’m there. I shall look forward to it.’

  ‘And so shall I.’ And then, just for the fun of it, she added, ‘Oh, by the way, I do love the colour shirt you’re wearing. The blue really suits you.’ She hung up and giggled as she watched Dominic look up towards the house.

  Elizabeth continued to watch the two men as they neared and then said their goodbyes. At the sound of the front door opening, Elizabeth hopped back into bed, making sure she cleared her phone history.

  ‘Hiya – you’re awake now,’ said Harry, coming into the room. He smiled at her and gave her a kiss on the lips. ‘How’s the head?’

  ‘Surprisingly clear,’ replied Elizabeth. ‘In fact, I was just about to jump in the shower. I’ve got to go out in a little while.’

  ‘Where are you going?’

  ‘I’ve got a massage booked. I thought I’d treat myself to one.’

  ‘In town? I’ll drive you in, if you like, and we can get some lunch afterwards.’

  Elizabeth balked at the suggestion but quickly regained her composure. ‘Oh, normally I’d say yes, but I’m also planning on a bit of shopping for a certain someone’s birthday.’ She tapped the side of her nose, the lie slipping off her tongue with ease.

  ‘OK, I can take the hint,’ said Harry.

  Chapter Thirty

  Conmere, Tuesday, 14 May, 5.45 p.m.

  Steph eventually made her excuses and left Eileen and Hazel in the kitchen, having gleaned quite a lot of background info on the Sinclairs. She wasn’t yet sure if it was going to be of any use, but she committed it to memory all the same. The abridged version was that Elizabeth had been a flirt. Dominic was a ladies’ man. Dominic also felt entitled because he was the eldest and liked to remind his brothers of this regularly, while Harry was more passive-aggressive and the peacemaker of the family. He was also the one who’d had enough and flown the nest after what happened to his wife.

  Steph changed her clothes and decided to go to the lake to call Camilla. She liked it there; it felt peaceful, and the water was comforting. She did a quick scan of the area to make sure she was alone, then took out the business card and tapped in the number.

  It was answered after the third ring. ‘Hello,’ came the voice of a woman.

  ‘Hello, can I speak to Camilla, please?’

  ‘Speaking. Who is this?’

  ‘Hi, my name’s Steph Durham. I’m a friend of Elizabeth Sinclair’s mother.’

  ‘Elizabeth Sinclair? I’m sorry, I don’t know anyone by that name.’

  Steph could now hear the very crisp and upper-class accent of the woman and it was hard to place her age, as she sounded neither old nor young. Steph also didn’t miss the slightly guarded tone to the woman’s voice.

  ‘You gave her your business card. She mentioned you to her mother.’ It wasn’t quite the truth, but Steph couldn’t think of another way to get Camilla to talk to her. ‘It’s really important that I speak to you.’ There was a silence. ‘Camilla? Are you still there?’

  ‘Yes, I’m still here,’ said Camilla after a moment. ‘Thinking about it, I do vaguely remember her. I’m not sure why she’d have my business card though.’

  Steph was sure Camilla knew exactly who they were talking about and decided to plough ahead on that basis. ‘I take it you know Elizabeth Sinclair died two years ago?’

  ‘Yes, I heard, but then everyone in the area did.’

  If Camilla had heard of Elizabeth’s death, the chances were she was local too, and Steph jotted that down in her notebook. ‘Her mother doesn’t believe Elizabeth’s death was an accident. I’m trying to help her.’

  ‘Are you a reporter?’

  ‘Not in the way you probably think. Please don’t hang up,’ said Steph quickly, sensing that Camilla might be of a mind to end the call. ‘I didn’t know anything about this until last week when Elizabeth’s mother contacted me after she found out I was coming up here to cover the opening of Conmere Resort Centre. I’m not even sure there is a story but I’m making discreet enquires.’

  ‘I can’t help you.’

  ‘Please, Camilla, could we just meet for a chat over a coffee? You may not realise you know anything, but if we can just talk I might be able to find something out. It’s just that no one other than the family seem to know anything about Elizabeth and I’m trying to build up a picture of what sort of life she had here.’

  ‘I really don’t think I’m the one to ask.’

  ‘Then who?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  The line went dead. ‘Damn it!’ cursed Steph. She redialled the number, unperturbed. ‘Please don’t hang up,’ she said as soon as Camilla answered it.

  ‘I have nothing to say,’ she snapped.

  ‘Elizabeth kept your card. There must be a reason she did that. Her mother mentioned your name. You may not know it, but you could be important to finding out the truth.’

  ‘I’m sorry …’

  Steph cut in. ‘I don’t believe the police know about your card in Elizabeth’s coat pocket. I can keep it that way.’

  There was a pause. ‘Are you blackmailing me?’

  ‘I’d sooner not,’ said Steph, injecting a softer tone into her voice. ‘Please, Camilla, I just want to ask you a few questions, face to face.’

  There was another pause. ‘I don’t like being blackmailed but you sound somewhere between determined and desperate, and if it will make you happy I’ll meet you, but I think you’ll be wasting your time.’

  ‘Let me be the judge of that. When and where can we meet?’

  ‘How about this evening? Kendalton Green Hotel. Eight o’clock.’

  Steph hesitated momentarily. She was supposed to be meeting Harry tonight. Damn it. She
hoped she wouldn’t regret her decision. ‘OK. I’ll be there.’

  ‘Meet me in the bar. I’ll be the blonde sitting at the corner table with a pink gin.’

  ‘Great. I’ll see you there.’

  ‘Oh, before you go, do the Sinclairs know you’re asking questions?’

  ‘No. Like I said, I’m being discreet.’

  ‘If I was you, I’d keep it that way. Have you mentioned to anyone that you were going to call me?’

  ‘No. Not a soul.’ Steph was glad the other woman couldn’t see her wince at the lie.

  ‘Again, keep it that way. I don’t want to end up like Elizabeth Sinclair.’

  The line went dead and Steph replayed the conversation over in her mind. It was the only hint in the whole of the conversation that gave Steph any notion Camilla might actually know something worthwhile.

  She quickly tapped out a message to Harry.

  Really sorry, but I can’t make tonight for a drink. Something’s come up. Can we meet tomorrow? Xx

  She hoped he wouldn’t mind and would at least acknowledge her text. While she waited for a reply, she called up the maps on her phone and tapped in Kendalton Green Hotel to double-check the directions. It wasn’t exactly on the doorstep and was a twenty-five-minute drive away. Steph closed the app and put the phone back in her pocket, picking up her pace to get back to the house as quickly as possible but without drawing attention to herself. She didn’t have much time if she was going to freshen herself up, get changed and drive over to Kendalton.

  Cutting across the rear lawn towards the staff quarters, she cursed as she saw Dominic standing at the corner, having a cigarette.

  ‘Hello, Steph,’ he said, as she neared him. ‘Everything OK?’

  ‘Yes, fine,’ she said. ‘Just been for a walk.’

  ‘You look to be in a hurry.’

  ‘Not especially. Well, just a bit,’ she corrected herself, suddenly wondering if he was going to engage her in conversation if he thought she had nothing better to do. ‘I promised my mum I’d give her a call. She hates it if I’m late. You know what mums are like.’ God, she was waffling now.

  Dominic eyed her appraisingly. ‘Yes, I know what mums are like,’ he said after a moment. ‘They like to chat, eh? Must be something about older women. A bit like Eileen and Hazel. They like to chat, or should I say gossip? Most of the time about stuff they don’t know about. I shouldn’t pay them any attention.’

  ‘No. I won’t,’ said Steph. ‘Sorry, I really must go.’ She gulped as she went past him.

  As she got to her room, her phone pinged and she read the text message from Harry.

  That’s a shame. Tomorrow will be good. Speak soon.

  She felt slightly relieved that he seemed to have taken her standing him up relatively well and was happy to meet tomorrow.

  Within half an hour, Steph had freshened up, changed and was driving away out of Conmere Resort Centre, and she had to admit the feeling of relief was discernible. She hadn’t noticed it while she was there, but a sense of disquiet had grown daily.

  Kendalton, Tuesday, 14 May, 7.50 p.m.

  Steph took a steady drive over to Kendalton. She parked in the car park alongside the river that ran through the town and, crossing the pedestrian bridge, found herself coming out on the main drag. Kendalton Green Hotel was just down the road on the right.

  She could see the flags fluttering in the evening breeze, local county flags and a Union Jack. The hotel stood proudly in the centre of the street, staking its position as the elder statesman of the town. Inside the hotel was very modern-looking, with polished marble flooring and lots of glass and mirrors, giving the illusion of a much bigger building. The bar wasn’t too busy and Steph easily spotted Camilla sitting at the table as promised.

  Camilla gave a nod and indicated to Steph to join her where two glasses of pink gin were sitting on the table.

  ‘Thank you for meeting me,’ said Steph, once they had formally identified each other. ‘I do appreciate it.’

  ‘I wasn’t initially sure if it was a good idea, but I have been expecting this day to come,’ replied Camilla.

  ‘Why’s that?’

  ‘After meeting with Elizabeth, I did a bit of digging and found out that she hadn’t been entirely truthful with me. However, we had a business agreement and, whatever her reasons for lying, I assumed they were valid enough.’

  ‘Can you tell me from the start what happened, please? How did you come to know Elizabeth?’ Steph took a large sip of the gin, which wouldn’t have been her normal choice of drink, but she had to admit, tasted rather pleasant.

  Steph listened while Camilla explained the circumstances surrounding her meeting with Elizabeth Sinclair. She wasn’t entirely surprised, given what she had learned earlier that day from Eileen and Hazel, but all the same, she hadn’t quite been expecting what she was hearing.

  ‘So, let me get this straight,’ she said once Camilla had finished. ‘She hired you to set Owen up, telling you he was her husband, and you were happy to do so for what I presume was a lucrative pay day.’

  ‘That’s the long and short of it,’ replied Camilla. She looked steadily at Steph. ‘You do know what my profession is, don’t you?’

  ‘I do now,’ replied Steph as all the pieces of information lined up neatly in a row.

  ‘And don’t judge me on it,’ said Camilla.

  ‘I wasn’t. Not at all. I’m not in the business of judging other women.’

  ‘I’m glad to hear it.’

  ‘Do you know if Elizabeth actually did anything with the recording? Did she blackmail Owen? Although I can’t think why she’d want to.’

  ‘There are usually two reasons why a woman blackmails a man. One is money and the other is sex. Either Elizabeth wanted some money from Owen in exchange for her silence or she wanted him to leave his wife for her.’

  ‘You think it’s that simple?’

  ‘I know it.’

  Steph contemplated the scenarios before speaking again. ‘Do you think Owen had anything to do with Elizabeth’s death?’

  ‘Hooray! The penny is finally dropping. For a reporter you’re slow on the uptake.’ Camilla smiled and then signalled to the waiter for some more drinks.

  ‘I’ll pay for these,’ said Steph as a few minutes later two more pink gins were placed in front of them.

  ‘No, these are on me. You’re going to need to save your money.’

  Steph looked at Camilla with interest. ‘Am I?’ It was true her finances were pretty dire, but she had a feeling Camilla wasn’t referring to that.

  ‘All in good time,’ replied Camilla. She checked her watch. ‘I need to go soon. I have a meeting with a client in half an hour.’

  ‘If you think Owen had something to do with Elizabeth’s death, why didn’t you go to the police and tell them what happened?’

  ‘It wasn’t any of my business,’ said Camilla simply. ‘It wouldn’t be good for my own business to be associated with the police or for my clients to think I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. Not only that, but if Elizabeth was murdered, intentionally or otherwise, I might be putting myself in danger.’

  ‘But if she was murdered, as her mum seems to think she was, surely that’s worth more than just protecting yourself?’

  ‘I did say don’t judge me.’ Camilla’s tone took a dip. ‘And besides, I’m protecting lots of people, not just me. All my clients expect and receive confidentiality.’

  ‘Apologies. I wasn’t intending to sound judgy,’ conceded Steph. ‘This recording that Elizabeth made, you don’t happen to know what she did with it, do you? I know it’s a bit of a long shot, but without any hard evidence, all this is just hearsay.’

  ‘The original I assumed she kept somewhere and showed it to Owen at some point.’

  ‘And you think that’s what led to her death?’

  ‘It’s a possibility.’

  Steph pondered this for a moment, but the thought that Owen was a murderer just didn’t sit right with
her. From what she’d seen of him, she couldn’t imagine him having the balls to kill anyone. Then again, what did she know? She needed to keep an open mind about it and Owen’s involvement was, at present, just a hypothesis.

  ‘Do you have a copy of the recording?’

  Camilla took a long sip of her drink. ‘Look, I don’t want to get involved with what happened. I don’t want to put myself in any danger but … there was an incident recently which got me thinking and now, well, I’d like to help if I can. If it means putting away one, some, or all of those Sinclairs, then I’m happy to help.’

  ‘What happened to change your mind after all this time?’

  ‘I had the misfortune of bumping into Owen Sinclair recently, at an event I was attending. I was working, accompanying a businessman, and Owen recognised me. When I went to the toilets, Owen followed me. He attacked me. Said he was getting his own back for setting him up.’

  ‘He attacked you?’

  ‘Attempted rape.’

  ‘Oh, my God! Did you report it?’

  ‘No. I didn’t. Like I said, it was attempted. I managed to fight him off but not before he’d ripped my underwear and touched me.’

  ‘Bastard.’

  ‘His brother Dominic came from nowhere and pulled him off me. Offered me money to keep my mouth shut.’ Camilla spoke matter-of-factly. ‘He wasn’t interested if I was hurt or anything, he was just interested in protecting his brother. He assumed Owen had randomly tried it on with me – it didn’t occur to him it might be something more sinister to do with Elizabeth, and I wasn’t going to tell him otherwise. I did, however, tell him to keep his money. I was angry and upset. I should have taken the money, in hindsight. However, you coming along, it’s almost like fate. It’s karma. I can get my own back on him without being involved.’