Secrets of the Dead

by A L Fraine

  “But if they killed Spencer, might it not stand to reason that they killed Lizzy too?”

  “I can see why you’d think that,” Jon admitted to him. “But honestly, no, it doesn’t, and right now, with everything that we know, there’s no reason to suspect that the two deaths are linked. They happened close together and within the same family, but that’s all.”

  Howard sighed. “Okay. I’m sorry. I just thought… Well, I don’t know what I thought.”

  “That’s okay,” Jon replied.

  “No, it’s not. I shouldn’t be putting pressure on you like that. I know you’re doing the best you can.”

  Jon nodded.

  “We knew he was involved with some shady people,” Veronica stated. “We tried to help him, to talk him out of it, but he just kept going back to it, no matter what we did.”

  “It’s okay, it’s over now,” Howard said, his voice calm.

  Veronica nodded. “I know. That’s one good thing to come out of it, I guess. He’s out of it now, for good.”

  “He is,” Jon replied.

  “Did you want to speak to someone?” Veronica asked.

  Jon considered his next move, reaching the conclusion that Ingrid might be their best choice. She was diverting money for some reason, and as an in-law, she was one step away from Spencer and the rawness of his death.

  Similar to the previous days, they were given the use of the morning room, and waited for Ingrid in there.

  “How did they seem to you?” Jon asked Kate as they waited.

  “Veronica and Howard?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Run ragged. They’ve given their all to this, used up all their emotions, leaving just a shell.”

  “I think you’re right,” Jon replied. “I don’t know what I was expecting. Maybe some tears? Emotions running high?”

  “Not everyone reacts like that,” Kate replied.

  “No, they don’t. I guess I was just expecting more. I don’t know. Maybe I’m chasing shadows and seeing guilt where there is none. Ugh, right, time to get my head back in the game.”

  Moments later, Ingrid knocked on the door and walked in.

  “You wanted to see me?” she asked. Like Veronica and Howard, she looked just as broken and fragile. More so, in fact, Jon thought. She was clearly suffering following the death of her daughter.

  Jon felt a keen duty to do what he could to find Lizzy’s killer and bring him or her to justice, even if that was another family member.

  “We did. Thank you for coming,” Jon replied.

  “How are you?” Kate asked. “Are you holding up okay?”

  “I’m fine,” she replied and then sighed, seeming to deflate. “Well, I’m getting through the day.”

  “I think we can call that a win,” Jon replied.

  She smiled. “Thanks. How can I help you, Detectives?”

  “Well, first off, we’re still making progress on the case and have several leads to follow up.”

  “Do you think you know who killed her yet?”

  “We don’t have anything concrete yet, no.”

  “It’s someone in this house, isn’t it?”

  Jon came up short for a moment at her comment but guessed it wasn’t such a big surprise that she knew this. He’d shown Piers the missing knife from the kitchen, and they’d spent almost their whole time here, talking to people. “I can’t say for sure,” Jon replied, trying to be diplomatic.

  “I know. But it is, I’m sure of it. Piers told me about the knife and the side driveway with the tyre tracks. I’m not stupid. Someone in this house killed her.”

  “I’m sorry we’ve kept you here.”

  She shrugged. “I’ve not left my room much. I don’t like the thought of walking these corridors, knowing the murderer is watching me.”

  Jon nodded, understanding her point of view and suddenly feeling bad about making her and Piers stay here. He resolved to send them home later today. There was no reason for them to stay any longer other than to torture them. “I’ll see about getting you home.”

  “That would be nice, thank you.”

  “No problem. In the meantime, I did want to talk to you about something.”

  “Please, go ahead.”

  “During investigations like this, we often pull financial records. Money can be a huge motivator and can sometimes point to lines of enquiry that we hadn’t thought of before.”

  Ingrid shifted in her seat and seemed like she didn’t know what to do with her hands. “I see.”

  “We noticed that money seemed to be moving from your husband's account to yours, and then to your parents’ account. Quite a lot of money. I was just curious why that might be?”

  She sighed, looking defeated and in no mood for a fight. “It’s because they need it,” she replied. “My family is in dire straits, and they need help. I’m hoping it’s just a short term thing, but I have to help them.”

  “Does Piers know?”

  Ingrid shook her head. “No. No, he doesn’t. Look, I’m the one in control of the family finances. I can access Piers’ account and move the money however I want. He’s not interested, never has been. As long as he’s got enough to spend on drink and whores, he doesn’t care.”

  Jon felt his eyebrows crawl up his forehead at her last comment. “Excuse me?”

  Ingrid shrugged. “You’d find out soon enough if you looked into him, so I might as well save you the resources and manpower. We’re married, but he fucks around. He hires hookers all the time, gets pissed. I suppose he’s enjoying himself. I’ve known about it for years.”

  “So, why do you put up with it?” Kate asked, bemused.

  “For the money,” she replied. “I signed a pretty restrictive prenup when we married. I was young and didn’t realise what I was doing. If I leave him, I don’t get much. Not enough to live on and help my family, anyway. So I ignore it. I let him do whatever he wants, while I do what I need to do.”

  “I see,” Jon replied. He wasn’t sure he fully understood that point of view, but he guessed it took all sorts.

  “Don’t judge me, Detective. I know it’s not ideal, but he leaves me alone. I get to do whatever I like, see whoever I like, help my family, and live comfortably.”

  “I’m not judging you, Mrs Lockwood, but I do have to consider all angles and look for motives, I’m sure you understand.”

  “I do. Lizzy was a part-time private investigator who seemed to be looking into Spencer’s life… according to him. I understand that she very well might have made herself a target. I wonder who else she was looking into. What else did she discover? I’m sure you’re wondering the same thing.”

  “We are,” Jon admitted.

  “Good. That’s why I thought I should be honest with you.”

  “Thank you, we appreciate it.”

  Ingrid smiled, as Jon’s phone buzzed in his pocket.

  24

  “I won’t be a moment,” Jon said as he pulled the phone out of his pocket and checked the caller ID. It was the station. He answered. “One moment,” he said and moved to the door. “I just need to take this.”

  “I think we’re done anyway, right?” Kate asked.

  “Unless you can think of anything else,” he replied. “I’ll let you finish up.”

  Jon walked out of the room and crossed the hallway. There was no one about, so he pressed the phone to his ear. “Okay, I’m here.”

  “It’s Nathan.”

  “Hey man, sorry about that, you caught me in an interview.”

  “How’s it going?” Nathan asked as Jon crossed the hall, making for the front doors.

  “As well as can be expected,” Jon replied, glancing around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. “Kate’s just finishing up with Ingrid.”

  “Okay, good.”

  “What can I do for you?” Jon replied, reaching the front door and gripping the handle to open it.

  “Well, I’m sending over the DNA test results we got from the Lockwoods. But toxic
ology turned up something interesting that I think you should know about. It’s all in the report, but basically—”

  “Detective! Detective Pilgrim, can we talk?”

  Jon turned to see Portia striding up to him with Chester in tow, looking sullen. Behind them, Kate was walking out the room, having finished up with Ingrid.

  Jon missed what Nathan said next. “Aaah, wait, hold on a moment, I’m on the phone,” he said to Portia.

  “But this can’t wait. We need to talk to you.”

  “Now?” Jon asked.

  “Yes, now.”

  Jon grunted in frustration. “Okay, one second,” he said and focused on the phone. “Sorry Nathan, I’ve got to deal with something here.”

  “No problem. Everything’s in the report anyway. I suggest you read it.”

  “Will do, thanks,” he replied and hung up before turning back to Portia and closing the front door again. “Now, what’s so urgent?” he asked as Kate joined them.

  Portia turned to Chester. “Well, go on.”

  “Ugh, do I have to?” he protested.

  “Tell them what you told me.”

  “I… I don’t think I should,” Chester replied, looking nervous.

  “If you don’t, I will,” she replied, standing firm. “I won’t tell anyone else. It’ll be between us, the police, and Pan.”

  Chester grunted as Jon frowned at the bizarre statement. There was that name again. Pan. What on earth was she talking about?

  “Okay, fine,” Chester replied, looking up as Jon frowned at them. “That night, when Lizzy came to see Portia with Harold, to say good night, I went for a walk.”

  “I remember,” Jon replied, wondering where this was going.

  “Well, I went inside and wandered about, eventually stopping outside the room where Uncle Spencer, Grandmother, Grandfather, and my mother were. I could hear them talking, but they didn’t know I was there.”

  “What were you doing?” Kate asked. Jon wondered if she’d picked up on the Pan comment too but didn’t want to ruin Chester’s flow. He got the feeling that if he did, the boy would get frustrated and walk off.

  He couldn’t have that. He needed to know what Chester had to say.

  “I don’t know. I was on my phone, I think.”

  “So, what did you hear?”

  “Spencer. I heard Spencer. He said, ‘She’s got dirt on all of you.’”

  “He said that?” Jon asked.

  “Yeah and that wasn’t all. Said that Lizzy knows everything. She knows all their dirty little secrets that they’ve all done. She knows everything. He said she’s been looking into his business dealings too, then went on a rant about her.”

  “I see,” Jon remarked. So that was what had been said. Everyone had been so vague. They’d said it was just one of Spencer’s rants, that he’d insulted her as he usually did, but they’d all danced around what he’d actually said, and now he knew why. They’d been protecting themselves. They didn’t want the police to know how self-serving they were. It was fascinating, but it also didn’t narrow it down enough. Any one of them could have killed Lizzy.

  Jon nodded to Chester and Portia. “Thank you. That was really helpful.”

  Chester grunted.

  “Aaaand,” Portia urged him.

  “Okay, fine. I also heard Lizzy before she left Harold’s room. He kept asking her to tell him what she knew, but she refused. Said she didn’t want to ruin his day or something. Said she’d tell him tomorrow.”

  “Aaaah, okay. So, did you overhear Lizzy talking to Roza earlier in the day about the same thing?”

  Chester shook his head. “No.”

  So it turned out that Jon had come to the wrong conclusion when he thought Chester had heard Lizzy talking to Roza. It led to the same effect, but the circumstances were different.

  “Thank you,” Jon said.

  Chester sighed, turned, and walked off.

  “Sorry about him,” Portia said. “But I had to come and tell you.”

  “He just told you all this?”

  She nodded. “We were just talking, and he came out with it. I don’t think he expected me to march him over here, though.”

  “I noticed,” Jon replied with a smile. “Was that it?”

  “Yeah, that’s it, thanks,” she said and made to walk off.

  “Hold on a moment,” Jon said.

  “Hmm?”

  “I have a question.”

  “Sure, what’s up?” Portia asked.

  “You said that this is between you, us, and Pan.”

  Portia nodded.

  “Who’s Pan?”

  “Oh,” Portia said and smiled. She turned and pointed to the wall and the stone carving of a large face with leaves growing out of it. The face leered at them, its mouth gaping and dark. “That’s Pan.”

  “That’s Pan?”

  “Well, he’s a Green Man, really. I think they’re pagan carvings or something, but Lizzy always called him Pan and the name stuck. I don’t know why.”

  Jon peered at the stone face and frowned as he recalled the note in the diary.

  Pan speaks the truth, even today.

  He found his eyes drawn to the gaping hole of Pan’s mouth, and on instinct, reached his hand into it. The space inside was big. There was a sizable chamber in there and what felt like a plastic bag with things inside it. Jon gripped it and pulled it out.

  He held up a large Ziploc sandwich bag, and inside, Jon could make out a wedge of folded paper and a small, portable microphone recorder.

  “Who else knew about this?” Jon asked, pointing to the carving.

  “Just me, Lizzy, and Chester, really. It was our thing. But Lizzy talked about him most. She was always hiding stuff in there.”

  Jon looked up at Kate, who nodded to him, her face serious.

  He turned back to Portia. “Say nothing about this to anyone, okay?”

  “Sure,” she replied.

  “Good, off you go.” Once she was gone, he looked over at Kate and held up the bag. “Let’s see what Lizzy has to tell us, shall we?”

  25

  Jon stood by the morning room door, holding his hands behind his back as he watched the family settle in. Veronica and Howard sat closest to him, side by side. Beyond, Cecelia sat with Chester, while Roza sat with Maxwell on the other side of the room. Piers and Ingrid were on a sofa, but there was no affection there now. Vivian sat alone while her daughter, Portia, stood leaning against a wall, watching proceedings.

  “Thank you all for indulging me. I really appreciate it. I promise I won’t keep you long, but you all need to hear this.”

  “What’s this about?” Veronica asked.

  “Have you found out who killed Spencer?” Cecelia added.

  “And Lizzy?” Ingrid said, sounding offended that no one else said it.

  “Please, calm down. I have a lot to get through,” Jon replied and glanced over at Kate, who bobbed her eyebrows at him, and gave him an encouraging nod.

  “I’m going to go over everything, and I think there might be a few home truths in this that you need to hear. Okay?”

  “What are you talking about?” Howard asked.

  “Please, sir, if you’ll just bear with me.”

  Howard sighed and sat back, crossing his arms. “This better not be a waste of my time.”

  “I’m quite sure it won’t be,” Jon remarked, as he organised his thoughts, going over what he needed to say once more before he took a deep breath and looked back up at them. Their expectant faces were fixed on him.

  “Firstly, what you might or might not be aware of is that Lizzy was indeed investigating you. All of you.”

  “I knew it,” Vivian blurted out. “I knew that little cow was—”

  “Mother! Please, just shut up for once in your life,” Portia yelled.

  “Portia,” Vivian exclaimed. “I…”

  “No one’s interested, Mother. Just be quiet.”

  “Thank you,” Jon said, as both women finished ta
lking. “As I was saying, Lizzy was investigating you. But she wasn’t doing it for herself. She’d been hired… by Harold.”

  Jon heard several gasps around the room as the reality of that sank in.

  “Are you sure?” Veronica asked.

  “Harold told us himself. He hired Lizzy. He wanted to know more about his family and he knew she’d be able to find out what he needed to know. Namely, family secrets. And he invited Lizzy here, to the celebration, to find out what she’d discovered. But, you know this. Or you should, because Spencer told you that night. Harold wanted to know what Lizzy had found out, but they hadn’t spoken all day. There hadn’t been time. So he got Lizzy to take him up to bed so he could talk to her.

  “That’s when Spencer had his little chat with you that you all tried so hard to keep from us. What were his words again? Aaah, yes. ‘She’s got dirt on all of you,’ is what he said, isn’t it? And he was right. She did. She knew it all, and that was a threat.”

  “What are you talking about?” Veronica asked.

  “Well, let’s go through the events of that night, shall we? They’re interesting. Lizzy took Harold upstairs, which was when Spencer had his little outburst. And while that was going on, Lizzy helped Harold. He asked her what she’d found out, but she refused to tell him. She didn’t want to ruin his night and resolved to tell him the day after. But Harold was insistent and kept asking, even as she backed out of the room, leaving him for the night.

  “Chester overheard this exchange and told Spencer the next day, which led to Spencer going and talking to Harold and upsetting him.”

  “What?” Veronica exclaimed.

  “You’re saying Spencer caused it?” Howard said.

  “You don’t know that,” Cecelia added.

  “Actually, we do. Harold confirmed that Spencer had come to him and accused him, wanting to know what Lizzy had told him, and Spencer admitted he heard it from Chester.”

  “But…” Chester muttered, “I didn’t know… I didn’t mean to hurt Grandfather.”

  “It’s okay, we know,” Cecelia said, hugging him close.

  “Unintended consequences,” Jon said. “No one blames you. So let’s continue, shall we? We know that Veronica and Lizzy spoke after Lizzy left Harold because part of that was overheard.” Jon noticed Veronica’s gaze become hard as he mentioned it. “Howard came up as Lizzy was leaving Veronica’s room, having finished their discussion. At about twelve-thirty, Lizzy told Portia that she was going for a drive to clear her head. We then have security camera footage of a car leaving the house via the side exit after Lizzy had already left through the front. Later, after one am, Portia heard someone moving through the house. Spencer investigated and found Piers, who’d come down for water having been woken up by something, presumably the killer returning to the house. Roza also came down, crossing paths with Piers, who went back upstairs.