Murder for Good

by Veronica Heley

  ‘So where did she get those sleeping tablets from?’

  ‘No idea. They aren’t mine, nor Thomas’s.’

  ‘I won’t be long.’ He caught Susan’s eye, and some message seemed to pass between them for Susan said, ‘Take care,’ and blew him a kiss.

  He left and Ellie transferred to her own comfortable, high-backed chair while Susan swept the supper things on to the hostess trolley.

  Ellie said, ‘So what was that nod and a wink about, Susan? Rafael wants you to do something for him?’

  Susan clattered knives and forks. She was frowning. ‘Maybe now is not the right time to talk about it.’

  ‘We have three-quarters of an hour and anything that takes my mind off Thomas would be a good thing.’

  Susan let herself down on to a chair and stroked her bump. ‘All right, I’ll tell you. You may think it’s a terrible idea. If so, we won’t mention it again. Way back in the beginning, when we first met and he came to the house, Rafael’s business mind told him that right here in this house there was an opportunity to make a lot of money.’

  Ellie started. ‘Oh! He wants to pull down this house and develop the site? No, my dear. No.’

  ‘No, not that. Yes, he did see the potential but I soon put him right on the subject. It’s your house, you and Thomas love it and fit into it like two peas in a pod. Right?’

  ‘Yes, we do,’ said Ellie.

  Susan cleared her throat. She was nervous about this. ‘He’s noticed, and I have, too, that you’re not keeping up with the maintenance, and that a lot of the rooms aren’t used at all. We wondered if perhaps the house were becoming a burden rather than a blessing.’

  ‘Well, yes,’ said Ellie. ‘We did plan to do this and that by way of maintenance, but then things happened. It’s true I do feel guilty about the two of us rattling around in such a big place, but we love it and I can’t imagine us moving into a small shoebox somewhere or having no garden.’

  ‘We absolutely understand that,’ said Susan, ‘but I thought it might be a good idea to let you know what Rafael was thinking about for the future. Do you want me to go on?’

  Ellie’s heart beat went into overdrive. She wasn’t at all sure that she wanted to hear what their idea might be. She sensed it was going to mean a big change in their circumstances. What would Thomas feel about this?

  Oh, Thomas! Don’t die on me!

  Ellie said, ‘I know this house is too big for us, I know it needs money spending on it, but—’

  ‘But it’s your home,’ said Susan. ‘We both understand that. His idea was that, perhaps in a few years’ time, you might think, eventually, not straight away …’

  Ellie said, ‘I’m listening.’

  ‘Dividing the house in two, each having its own front door and stairs.’

  Ellie began to be angry. She had taken Susan in because the girl had needed somewhere to live while she was going through college. Susan had suffered from being bullied and laughed at because she had an outstandingly beautiful bosom. Ellie had got the girl to realize what an asset her boobs were, Susan had gradually gained in confidence, had become a sort of daughter to Ellie and Thomas and landed Rafael as a husband. Now Susan wanted to turn Ellie out of her own house? Ellie wondered if she might faint. As in a dream, she heard her own voice saying, ‘How could we do that?’

  ‘Downstairs you keep this side, with the exception of the library and the Quiet Room. You only use the dining room one morning a week, so that becomes Thomas’s study and Quiet Room. You can have your weekly meetings in the sitting room or hold them at the offices of the trust. The kitchen quarters could do with some upgrading, but the rest of this side stays as it is: that is, the hall, conservatory, sitting room, and your study on the ground floor.

  ‘Upstairs you keep your own en suite and the guest en suite next to it. You already have a second spare bedroom en suite over the kitchen quarters, which you can refurnish for use by visiting grandchildren. And you keep half the garden.’

  Ellie followed that with painful interest. And incredulity. ‘We’d end up with a three-bedroom house, all bedrooms en suite, while Thomas spreads himself out in the current dining room? But …’ She didn’t know what to say.

  Susan looked anxious. ‘I thought we might just talk about it, toss the idea around, consider the best and the worst sides of it.’

  Ellie put her hand to her throat. ‘I can’t think straight!’

  ‘We’ll say no more. I’ll just dump everything in the kitchen for now, shall I?’ Off she went, leaving Ellie wondering if she were on her head or her heels.

  What a stupid idea! How dare Susan suggest …! It was ridiculous.

  I wouldn’t have to worry about all the rooms I never go into.

  No, you couldn’t possibly divide up a big old house like that. For one thing, Thomas loves his Quiet Room. It’s the place he retires to several times a day to talk to God and to think about things.

  Come on! I’ve heard him say that any place in which prayers are said soon becomes a Quiet Room.

  Rafael appeared in the doorway, looking bothered. ‘I found a pack of Ibuprofen tablets under the chair in the kitchen where Hetty was lying. I suppose they may have fallen out of her pocket or her handbag and she hadn’t noticed. They’re strong stuff. Neither you nor Thomas suffer from rheumatism or arthritis, do you?’

  Ellie shook her head. ‘Ibuprofen upsets my stomach. I tried it once, but never again. Thomas is the same.’

  ‘I use it occasionally with no ill effects and so does Susan, but I know it can be murder to a few unlucky people. Did Hetty take it?’

  ‘I’ve never heard her complain of aches and pains, so why would she? You think that’s what’s upset Thomas’s stomach? He wouldn’t have taken them of his own accord, which means …’ She took a deep breath. ‘There’s only one thing which Thomas eats or drinks and I don’t, and that’s a brand of instant coffee which he buys from a specialist shop. It’s far too strong for me. I have one of the milder ones from the supermarket. If Hetty had ground up some Ibuprofen tablets and put them in his jar of coffee he wouldn’t have known he was taking them, would he?’

  ‘He wouldn’t.’

  ‘You think we should take the coffee jar into the hospital with us?’

  ‘The packet, certainly. Now, I went upstairs intending to look around Hetty’s flat for any other medication, but I couldn’t get in. You didn’t tell me you’d put a lock on the door at the bottom of the stairs that leads up to her place. If you’ll let me have the key, I’ll—’

  ‘What! There’s never been a lock on that door.’

  ‘Well, there is now. A new one. So what do you want me to do about it?’

  FOURTEEN

  Friday evening

  Ellie was bewildered. ‘I don’t understand. Hetty didn’t ask me if she could put a lock on that door.’

  Susan appeared in the doorway. ‘I suppose she got it done while you were out one day?’

  Rafael said, ‘If she’d paid rent she’d have a right to privacy and a lock on the door to her quarters, but she would have had to ask your permission and given you a spare key for emergency access. If she didn’t pay rent then she’s a guest in your house and has no right to put in a lock.’

  Ellie threw up her hands. ‘She never asked. Horrors! Suppose we’d needed to attend to a leak up there! That’s where the big tank for our water is, and the feeder tank for the central heating. We need access.’

  Rafael rubbed his chin. ‘New locks are usually supplied with several keys, so she must have at least one spare. The thing is we can’t get in tonight unless we break down the door. Presumably she’s got her own keys with her?’

  Ellie thought back to the moment when the paramedics had wheeled Hetty out through the hall and into the ambulance. Hetty had been clutching her handbag on her lap.

  Susan got there ahead of Ellie. ‘She had her handbag with her, so yes.’

  Ellie wondered what other medication Hetty might have been hoarding. Was it pos
sible that there was a link between Hetty and the deaths which had been following Thomas around? No, surely not. The idea was absurd. But, once lodged in her mind, it refused to disappear.

  Rafael said, ‘It’s a nuisance. I’d like us to have packed up her things and put them out for her to collect tomorrow. I suppose they’ll keep her overnight at the hospital, so there’s no immediate hurry to get into her rooms. Tomorrow I’ll get a locksmith to open up for you.’

  Susan said, ‘This isn’t a tragedy. It’s a hiccup. Of course, Hetty shouldn’t have put a lock on her door without asking permission and giving you a spare key, but some people have a thing about privacy.’

  Ellie said, ‘You never thought of asking for one when you lived here.’

  ‘It never occurred to me, but she’s older and values the security of having her own front door.’

  ‘Yes,’ said Rafael, ‘I suppose that’s it. There’s nothing sinister about it, is there?’ But he still looked troubled.

  It occurred to Ellie that Hetty could move in and out of the house as she pleased, but that she, Ellie, couldn’t prevent her doing so. It was not a comforting thought. She twitched her lips into what might pass for a smile if you were losing your sight or wearing dark glasses.

  ‘No need for a locksmith. I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding. I’ll have to have words with Hetty about it tomorrow when she gets back from the hospital. Now, you two have done more than enough for me today so off you go home. I’m taking a cab to the hospital.’

  ‘No,’ said Rafael, checking with Susan that she agreed with him. ‘We’re not leaving you alone. Susan and I will give you a lift to the hospital. Then, while you’re seeing Thomas, we’ll collect some overnight things from our flat and get back to the hospital in time to fetch you when visiting hours are over. We’re going to cadge a loan of your sofa and Thomas’s La-Z-boy, so that we can sleep here tonight.’

  Ellie felt tears were on the way. ‘Oh, I’m sure there’s no need for that, though I must admit I could do with the company, which is totally stupid of me, but there it is. I mean, suppose Hetty were to … No, I’m sure they’ll keep her in tonight, and there’s no reason to worry about her, or anything else.’

  Ellie shivered, thinking of that locked door and the possibility of prescription medicines popping up here and there.

  Susan put her hand on her tall husband’s arm and smiled up at him. ‘Bags I the settee. The baby makes me toss and turn so much at night that you’d be better off on the chair.’

  Ellie said, ‘Now, now. There’s no need for either of you to doss down in the sitting room. The guest room bed is already made up and Susan knows where the clean towels are kept. Just in case, though I’m sure there’s absolutely no need and it’s totally overreacting, we’ll bolt the front door and the kitchen door before we go up for the night.’

  ‘Let’s go,’ said Rafael. ‘Hospital first …’

  Friday evening

  Thomas had been moved to a four-bed ward high up in the hospital. He was looking pale and there was a drip still going into his arm, but his eyes were brighter and he struggled to sit more upright when Ellie arrived.

  She sat beside him and took his hand. ‘You’re feeling better?’

  ‘Much. They say it was an ulcer. It’s responding to treatment and they’ll probably let me go home tomorrow.’

  ‘Good. I’ve missed you. Nothing’s the same without you.’

  ‘Believe me, the moment they let me get back on my feet, I’m out of here. I said I’d take any pills they’d like to give me if they’d let me out this evening, but they refused. They’re really busy, too. They could do with the bed.’

  Ellie didn’t think he was well enough to leave yet and she was glad that they were keeping him in, while being more anxious than ever about his health. Thomas didn’t know there was a query about the source of his problem, either. Would it make him more or less anxious to know about the Ibuprofen?

  She produced the pack of Ibuprofen. ‘We found these in the kitchen. They’re not yours, are they?’

  ‘No. I tried them once. Gave me the most horrendous tummy ache.’

  Ellie said, ‘I thought not,’ and put them away in her bag. So they must be Hetty’s. But Hetty hadn’t suffered from back or muscle pain, had she? It looked as if the ulcer had been caused by Thomas’s heavy workload and Hetty’s pastry, which he had treated with indigestion tablets. So far, so good. But his recent collapse was due to something more than an ulcer, wasn’t it? She patted his hand. ‘I’m just going to see the nurse. Back in a minute.’

  She found the ward sister at her station in the corridor and managed to attract her attention. After identifying herself, she handed over the almost empty packet of Ibuprofen, explaining that the nurse had asked earlier if Thomas might have taken something to upset his stomach.

  The ward sister gave her a needle of a look. ‘You fed him these?’

  ‘No. I never take them and neither does Thomas. They don’t agree with us. However, it is possible that our lodger … Long story short, but he’s not in her best books at the moment. We found the packet where she’d been sitting.’

  ‘Has she admitted—?’

  ‘No. She’s taken some sleeping pills and they brought her into this very hospital a short time ago. We didn’t find the Ibuprofen till after she’d gone.’

  The nurse’s eyes narrowed. ‘She made a suicide attempt?’

  ‘Not a very serious one, in my opinion. It was more like a cry for help. We found her very soon after she’d taken the pills and called the paramedics.’

  ‘What’s her name?’

  Ellie gave it. She glanced around. ‘I suppose she might have ended up on this floor.’

  The nurse consulted a whiteboard. ‘No, she’s not been admitted up here. I’ll show the packet to the doctor when he comes on his rounds in the morning.’

  ‘Can my husband be discharged tomorrow?’

  ‘Perhaps. We’ll see. Now we know what he’s taken … This stuff can strip the lining of your stomach. We’ll have to see how he gets on.’

  Ellie looked into the other bays as she returned to Thomas’s side. All the beds were filled, and visitors were pouring in to sit with the patients. Ellie didn’t see any sign of Hetty. Well, that was a relief.

  Even more of a relief to see that Thomas was sitting more upright when she returned.

  ‘What’s the news?’ he asked. ‘I’ve only been here a few hours and I’m beginning to feel I’m in an alternative world.’

  ‘You’re feeling better.’

  ‘Don’t avoid the subject. What’s happening? Has Lesley been round? What is she going to do about the money? How did Monique’s funeral go? Did Evan make a scene? Tell me all.’

  So much had been happening that he didn’t know about. She hesitated. Should she tell him about Hetty’s suicide attempt now, when he still looked like death warmed up? She thought not. Sufficient to the day is the evil thereof, et cetera. He needed reassurance, not more worry.

  ‘The funeral went off like clockwork. Monique had a good send-off. She was respected and held in affection. Evan did try to make a scene in the church but was duly squashed. His daughter, Freya … Do you remember her? The best of the bunch. Anyway, Monique has left Freya enough to buy a place for herself when she’s a bit older. I’m so pleased for her. Monique has also left some money to the trust fund, with strings attached. We’ll be able to do some good with that.’

  He smiled and pressed her hand. ‘Good, good.’ He was tiring, his eyelids at half-mast. He would soon be asleep. She wouldn’t bother him with any of the bad news.

  He said, ‘Usually I can pray anywhere. I found it difficult to concentrate in here at first. My mind kept going round and round, worrying about all those deaths. Then I settled and I could pray again. It’s not the same as being in my Quiet Room, but—’

  She must have jumped, for he said, ‘What is it?’

  She shifted in her chair. She didn’t know what to tell him. Nothing, pro
bably. He didn’t need to be worried about the house, or anything. She said, ‘Oh, nothing really. Just a stupid idea that Rafael and Susan had about the house.’

  He stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. ‘They are an unusually intelligent young couple. I’d listen with interest to any ideas they might have.’

  ‘Well, not if it affects your Quiet Room.’

  ‘My Quiet Room? It’s not mine. You use it, too, and Little Evan likes to take a nap in it. What do they want to do with it?’

  ‘They are thinking it might be possible to divide the house in two, with you having the dining room as your study and Quiet Room. I told them it was a ridiculous idea.’

  ‘What?’ He frowned, still stroking her hand. ‘Say that again. I don’t quite see how …?’

  She told him what they’d suggested.

  For a long time he said nothing. Then he nodded. ‘Well, well. It’s an idea which has some merit. What do you think of it?’

  ‘I’ve had three homes in my life. The one I was brought up in, the one I lived in during my first marriage, and now this one. I’ve loved all of them but this one is the best. I love the big rooms and high ceilings and the garden, and the … I don’t know how to put it, but I love the solid feel of it. Of course I could move again if I had to, and I’m sure I could get to love that house, too. My home is where we live together, you and me.’

  ‘I feel like that, too.’ He thought for a moment, and then he smiled. It was a feeble echo of his usual grin, but it did indicate that he found something amusing about the situation. ‘Did you ask them what they planned for the other half of the house?’

  ‘Well, no. Of course not.’

  He laughed. Really laughed. ‘Ellie, my love, when you took young Susan in, little did you think you were harbouring an angel unawares.’

  ‘I don’t get it. You can’t like the idea?’

  A bell rang. The end of visiting hours.

  He flopped back on his pillows. ‘Ask her. Tell them from me that anywhere I pray becomes a Quiet Room, even in this noisy hospital. You must go now. I have my phone with me. I’ll ring you tomorrow morning to let you know if I’m going to be released and when.’