As she pondered the various options, the sound of an emergency vehicle siren penetrated the otherwise quiet countryside. She hurried back towards her car and caught sight of the flashing blue lights coming down the narrow lane towards her. The two-vehicle convoy speeding down East Street was headed by a police Vauxhall Vectra and behind it was an ambulance. Gabrielle checked that her car was sufficiently off the road to let the emergency vehicles pass, then stood as far back as she could.
To her surprise the leading police car slowed. A uniformed officer was driving, a man in civilian clothes by his side. In the back was another man in uniform. They all looked at her as they passed. The car stopped at the gates to the lodge. The gates squeaked as they opened and then there was a spray of gravel as the car sped towards the house.
The ambulance slowed down and drew up next to her.
The paramedic in the passenger seat, a man in his mid-forties with a bushy moustache, looked at her. ‘You here for the same reason we are?’ he asked.
‘Er, I’m here to see the Yongs in Forestgreen Lodge, yes,’ Gabrielle told him.
A female paramedic was driving. ‘You’d better follow us in,’ she shouted.
‘Yes, right, I’ll follow.’
Gabrielle watched the ambulance squeeze through the open gates and for the first time noticed the CCTV camera mounted on a pole a few yards down the driveway. She went to her car and did as the paramedic had suggested. When she reached the house the police were just being admitted and the paramedics were at the back of the ambulance unloading some equipment.
Gabrielle got out of her car, still wondering what on earth could have happened to warrant the emergency services. Something serious, she was sure. She had been in a bit of a daze after watching the police car slow down before turning into the driveway.
‘You coming in with us, love?’ the male paramedic asked. His use of the word love did not have the approval of his partner but Gabrielle could not have cared less.
‘Er, yes, I’ll follow you,’ she said.
She went through the entrance into a majestic hall. There was a chandelier and oil paintings and even a suit of armour. In front of her the wide staircase swept upwards before it split into two and went up either side to the next floor. One of the policemen was standing at the bottom of the staircase, his hands behind him. His eyes darted from the paramedics to Gabrielle and back again. It seemed he didn’t really know what to do.
‘Are they up there?’ the female paramedic asked.
‘Yes, but -’
The two paramedics leapt up the stairs two at a time.
Gabrielle hung back.
‘Can you tell me what has happened?’ she asked.
The policeman eyed her, unsure of what to do or say. He was young, very young and fresh-faced. ‘Er, there’s been a shooting and then a possible suicide,’ he said warily.
‘Mr and Mrs Yong?’
‘As I understand it, yes ma’am. Are you -?’
‘I’m here to see them, yes.’ Gabrielle was trying to take on board what she had just been told.
‘You’d better go up,’ the young policeman suggested. ‘I think you’re too late but …’ His voice trailed off as a woman coming into the hall from the back of the house distracted him.
Gabrielle hesitated.
She was looking at a small, slim oriental woman possibly somewhere in her thirties. It was obvious from the redness around her eyes and the tissues she was clutching in her hands that she’d been crying.
She looked at the policeman and then at Gabrielle. ‘Mrs Yong, she-?’
Gabrielle walked in front of the policeman and took the woman’s hands in hers. ‘I don’t know,’ she said, ‘I haven’t been up there yet. May I ask who you are?’
‘Me? My name Lolita, Lolita Lonzanes, I amah.’
‘You work for the Yongs?’
‘Yes.’
‘And you reported what has happened?’
‘Yes. I heard loud bang, go upstairs and Mr Yong, he dead but Mrs Yong, maybe, I don’ know.’
‘All right, Lolita,’ Gabrielle told her, gripping her hands tightly. ‘I’ll go and find out.’
At the top of the stairs Gabrielle wasn’t sure which way to turn until she saw the male paramedic come out of a room at the end of the corridor. He stopped when he saw Gabrielle.
‘You’d better go in there, Miss. She’s not dead but it’ll be a miracle if she survives. I’ve alerted the medical staff at the hospital.’ He walked past Gabrielle and then down the stairs.
Gabrielle tentatively approached the doorway. The female paramedic was bending over a woman lying on the bed and the other policemen was standing by the window.
‘Who are you?’ the man asked abruptly, then did a double-take when he noticed Gabrielle’s clerical collar. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, Ma’am, didn’t see -’
‘That’s all right,’ Gabrielle told him, moving further into the room.
The paramedic looked over her shoulder and Gabrielle caught sight of the stricken woman’s face. Her eyes were closed and she looked at complete peace. This had to be Christina Yong, Gabrielle concluded. Her skin colour, her features and the silk sari she was wearing, left little doubt. The paramedic was holding a pad over a chest wound and there was a lot of blood.
‘She’s not dead,’ the paramedic told her, ‘but she’s lost lots of blood. The bullet must have missed her heart but not by much. Jack’s gone to get the stretcher.’
Gabrielle knelt down and picked up Christina’s hand. ‘What happened?’ she asked, glancing up at the policeman.
‘Looks like she was shot and then her husband shot himself. Pretty clear-cut I would say.’
‘And is Mr Yong dead?’
‘As a dodo,’ the policeman said without feeling. ‘I wouldn’t go over there if I was you.’ He moved a couple of paces nearer. ‘May I ask who called you? It’s unusual a priest turns up at all but to get here before us is unheard of.’
‘Nobody called me,’ Gabrielle told him, still holding Christina’s hand. ‘I was on my way to see them. I’m a friend of their son’s.’
‘Oh, right, I’ll tell the sergeant. He’ll want a few details. Do you know how many sons and daughters there are?’
The paramedic arrived back and Gabrielle moved out of the way. She went over to the policeman. ‘Yes, there are two sons. And there was a daughter. And two grandchildren,’ she added.
‘You said was?’ The policeman reached for his notebook.
Gabrielle looked round and saw the male paramedic carefully lifting Christina onto the stretcher while his partner held a drip in place. ‘Yes,’ she said turning back to the policeman. ‘Do you think I could have a word with your sergeant now. I’d like to go to the hospital with Mrs Yong.’
‘You’ll have to hurry, Miss,’ the male paramedic told her.
‘I will.’
Gabrielle went out of the room and waited on the landing. She wasn’t sure what she should do but going to the hospital seemed the best option. She desperately needed to talk to Christina, if it was possible.
While waiting, she noticed that the landing was carpeted in an almost white deep pile and the walls had a flecked light blue paper. The oil paintings looked expensive as did the silver standing on numerous small tables.
‘Yes?’ said the detective sergeant who had peered at her from the car. ‘I’m very busy.’
‘I assumed you were that’s why I suggested we speak now.’
‘You’re going to the hospital, Banks tells me.’
The sergeant was about forty and looked as though he was suffering from a hangover. His dark blue tie was hanging loose, his white shirt marked with what looked like food stains, and his suit was also marked and creased.
‘Yes, I am. Are you aware of Mr and Mrs Yong’s background?’ Gabrielle asked.
‘I didn’t know they existed until an hour go.’
‘All right, but very quickly.’ Gabrielle looked over her shoulder at the paramedics’ progress with the str
etcher. ‘Two sons, Adam Harrison and Patrick Yong. Both are in Hong Kong at the moment as far as I know and -’
‘Why Harrison?’ the sergeant asked, screwing up his face.
‘Adopted,’ Gabrielle said quickly. ‘Kept his biological parents’ name.’
‘Oh,’ said the sergeant vaguely.
‘There was a daughter, Lucinda, but she and her two children were murdered six months ago. You -’
‘Murdered?’
‘Yes, murdered, Sergeant. You should speak to the Derbyshire police. Lucinda Harrison and the children lived in Ashbourne.’ Gabrielle reached into her shoulder bag and extracted a business card case. She gave a card to the sergeant. ‘We’ll no doubt meet at the hospital later but if you need to contact me afterwards, those are my details. But I must tell you it’s likely I’ll be out of the country within a couple of days.’
The sergeant, who had not introduced himself, took the card. ‘Did you say one of the son’s name was Harrison?’
‘Yes. Adam Harrison was adopted by the Yongs and he married his sister, Lucinda.’
‘Married his sister? Isn’t that -’
‘No, it isn’t, or should I say wasn’t. As I said, he was adopted.’
‘Is this Adam Harrison white then?’
‘Yes.’
‘And he married -’
‘Be careful, Sergeant. Because he was adopted their relationship was legal, their marriage was legal and their children were legal. The one thing that was not legal was their murder.’
‘Murder,’ the sergeant repeated.
‘Yes, murder. She and the children had their throats cut.’
The sergeant screwed up his face. ‘What, the kids? They had their throats cut?’
‘Yes, the Harrison children were murdered, Sergeant, and their throats were cut. Look, I have to go. You have my card but as I said we’ll no doubt meet in the hospital.’
‘You said you were going abroad.’
‘I did,’ she confirmed, hoping her exasperation was evident.
‘Going on holiday, Miss?’
‘Something like that. Now, I really must go.’
Gabrielle reached the back of the ambulance just as the male paramedic was closing the doors. ‘I’m here,’ she shouted.
The male medic nodded and reopened the doors. ‘I’ll go in the front. There’s not room for you and me in there. Will you be all right?’
‘I’ll be fine, thanks.’
She climbed into the ambulance, squatted down and once again took hold of Christina’s hand. ‘Fight,’ she said forcefully, ‘fight with all your strength.’
* * *
‘Well,’ Adam said, ‘nobody can say you are anything but honest. Would you have been so open if we actually knew each other?’
Leila smiled. ‘I think you’re making fun of me.’ She had used the same story over and over again and never ceased to be amazed just how gullible men were. Nobody understood her, she wanted a deep meaningful relationship not one that was simply superficial. She was more than a pretty face and an equally appealing body; she had a mind and it was her mind that none of the relationships she’d had and lost had tried to reach. They had all fallen for it and it appeared as though this Adam Harrison was not going to be any different.
‘No, Leila, I’m not making fun of you. It’s just that I’m not used to relative strangers being so candid with me.’
‘Perhaps I’m no longer a stranger.’
‘In some ways, no, you certainly aren’t.’
Adam sat back as their plates were cleared away. His mind flashed back to Loch Lomond and the way he had opened up to Gabrielle Brooks. Had she thought the same? Had she wondered why this complete stranger had been so forthright, so honest and so emotional in front of her? Gabrielle had an advantage: she’d been wearing a clerical collar and that’s what you did with priests, vicars, ministers - whatever they called themselves - you opened up to them. You told them your life story whether they wanted to hear it or not.
‘Well as you now know so much about me, what about you?’ Leila asked. ‘What secrets do you have?’
He couldn’t help noticing that she had slipped her feet out of her shoes and was now moving her leg slightly and resting her toes on his shoe. He felt the slight pressure. He wondered whether to push her foot away, the way he had taken her hand from his thigh in the taxi.
‘Me, secrets? What makes you think I have any secrets?’ He watched the waiter put the third course in front of them. Saffron and Basmati rice, and dishes containing fish, squid, prawns and vegetables. The different smells wafted into his nostrils and brought back memories.
‘Because we all have secrets,’ Leila commented. ‘You said you were married so why not start by telling me why you’re no longer married.’
Your secrets, Leila thought, are the reasons why I am here. Why else would the Master want you investigated? You have your secrets and by the time dawn rises tomorrow morning you will have told me what I need to know.
‘I think it might be for the best if we don’t go there,’ Adam suggested innocently. ‘Can I help you to some rice?’
* * *
The ambulance’s progress towards Bournemouth General Hospital was spasmodic. It was approaching rush hour and there were times when the public’s best intentions were transformed into hindrance rather than help. Gabrielle could hear the male paramedic swearing. The siren was incessant but progress was slow.
She felt the pressure from Christina’s fingers before she realised her eyes were open. The irises were almost black and the pupils dilated. At first there was no movement other than a slight flicker at the edge of her eyelids.
But suddenly she spoke. Her voice was very weak. ‘Who are you?’ she asked.
‘Please don’t try to speak,’ Gabrielle implored, tightening her hold on Christina’s hand. ‘You need to rest.’
‘I think I will be resting for a very long time, my dear,’ Christina said. ‘Is my husband dead?’
Gabrielle closed her eyes and nodded. ‘Yes, I’m very sorry.’
‘There’s no need to feel sorry,’ Christina said. ‘It is for the best.’ She turned her head slightly. ‘If only I was with him. I should be with him. He will be wondering where I am.’ Narrowing her eyes, she asked: ‘Why are you here? I have never met a female priest before. It is good of you to hold my hand.’
Gabrielle tried to smile. ‘I’m here because I was on my way to see you when all of this must have happened.’
Christina winced as she reacted to a sudden pain. ‘Why were you coming to see me?
‘There’s no need to talk now. I will answer your questions later.’
‘There might not be the opportunity later. If my husband had been a better shot there wouldn’t have been an opportunity at all.’ Christina’s eyes were asking Gabrielle to understand.
‘Are you saying that you -?’
‘Yes, my dear, we agreed how it should be done. Poor Joseph, he will be wondering where I am.’
Gabrielle looked towards the front of the ambulance as she heard more swearing. ‘My name is Gabrielle Brooks,’ she told Christina. ‘I’m a friend of Adam’s.’
‘Adam?’ Christina looked confused and in pain. ‘You are a friend of Adam’s?’
‘Yes, we met for the first time a short while ago.’
‘But you are a priest and -’
This time Gabrielle did smile. ‘Being a minister doesn’t make me any less human,’ she said. ‘Adam and I met in Scotland and … and he told me what had happened to his family.’
Christina closed her eyes in an attempt to hold back the tears. ‘So … so you know about Lucinda and the children?’
‘Yes, and that’s the reason I’m here.’
‘And they are the reason I am here in this ambulance.’ Christina said, the tears rolling down her cheeks.
* * *
‘I’m sorry, Adam, that was very rude of me,’ Leila said as she picked up her chopsticks and started playing with her food. ‘And
yes, thank you. I would love some more rice. Such things, Adam, can be very personal and it was bad-mannered of me to intrude.’
‘We’re trying to find common ground,’ he said, smiling, ‘and it was the obvious question to ask after you have been so open with me. All I’m willing to say is that my wife is dead and …’
‘Dead? Oh, Adam, I’m so very sorry. If I’d known -’
‘How could you have known?’ He reached across the table and put his hand on Leila’s. ‘But can we leave it there?’
‘Yes, of course, but I am still sorry.’
‘So, why not tell me how Hong Kong has changed since the British pulled out seven years ago?’
* * *
‘Forgive me,’ Gabrielle said. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘And there’s no reason why you should,’ Christina told her.
They both stopped talking as the ambulance came to a halt and the back doors opened. Against a backdrop of bright lights, strange faces peered in and hands began to reach forward.
Christina grabbed at Gabrielle’s hand. ‘Stay with me,’ she pleaded. ‘Come into the hospital with me.’
‘I will,’ Gabrielle told her.
* * *
‘On the surface very little has changed,’ Leila said. ‘The army and navy are still here but the faces are now Chinese and not British. But the numbers are far less, or appear to be. I have to say that the communists are adopting a very low profile. While legally part of China, Hong Kong is isolated from mainland China as a dependency and to a great extent is self-governing. Within the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong has its own constitution which lays out our own laws. We have separate immigration controls, separate financial systems and we are officially bi-lingual - Cantonese and English. We also enjoy western-style freedoms unheard of on the Chinese mainland. The democratic system, left by the British colonists, coupled with our own ideals of a free and open society are firmly rooted here.’
In Denial Page 22
