Tom was escorted to a small room and left there.
Verity murdered and they wanted to check his prints? Check them against what…?
A few minutes later, he found out. Two men in plain clothes came in with recording equipment and shut the door.
'I'm Detective Sergeant Mulholland and this is Detective Constable Marsh. We'd like to go over a couple of things with you, sir.'
'OK,' said Tom, holding his temper in check.
Marsh deftly set up the equipment, tested it, then they all identified themselves.
Mulholland opened the questioning. 'Did you interview Miss Verity Blane at the Transfusion Centre yesterday, sir?'
'I did.'
Had she assaulted him there, necessitating a visit to X-ray? – She had.
‘That must have annoyed you, sir …’
‘It shocked me rather than annoyed me.’
'Did you meet with Miss Blane subsequent to that incident?'
'I did not.'
'Are you sure about that, sir? Not at any time or at any place yesterday evening?'
'Yes, I am sure.'
'Then perhaps you'd like to tell us where you were yesterday evening, sir?'
He told them about Warm Welcome Farm, how he'd driven back to Sticklepath and later gone to the local pub.
'So you were in the White Hart public house from about nine till ten?'
'That's what I said.'
'Did anybody see you?'
'Of course they did. I expect they'd remember me, too.'
'We'll be checking on that, sir – '
'Sergeant, what's going on here? Are you seriously trying to suggest I'm a suspect? I am supposed to be working here myself – with Inspector Bennett.'
Mulholland looked at him a moment before replying.
'I'll tell you what's going on, sir. We've found your fingerprints in Miss Blane's house.'
'That's impossible,' Tom said, trying to speak calmly as a prickle ran over the top of his head. 'I've never been there. Exactly where did you find these prints?'
Mulholland pursed his lips, then said, 'On a rubber penis that had been pushed into Miss Blane's mouth… You find that amusing, do you, sir?'
'No, I don't find it amusing sergeant, it's just that I can explain now how they got there.' He told him what had happened before Verity had pushed the desk on to him.
After another pause Mulholland said, 'Were there any witnesses to this, sir?'
'Not as such, no, although Dr Medlar came in shortly afterwards.' He explained how Medlar had thrown the phallus into the bin.
'So who else would have known that, sir?'
'The only person I told was Ashley Miles, although he'll probably tell you that he told plenty of others.'
Mulholland made a couple of notes on his pad. 'But nobody actually witnessed the incident?'
'No, sergeant,' Tom said. Then, 'How much longer do you intend holding me here?'
Mulholland considered him a moment before saying, 'We'll need to take your photo and check your story with the landlord – '
'No,' Tom said, his patience evaporated. 'I've given you an explanation and enough's enough. I want a phone – now, please.'
'Just as soon as we've – '
'I want a phone – now, please.'
They found him one. In a few succinct sentences, he told Marcus what had happened. Twenty minutes later, he was taken up to Bennett's office.
'I'm sorry about the misunderstanding, Mr Jones,' Bennett said carefully. He was red in the face and uncomfortable. 'But what with your ID card and the fingerprints, you'll understand that we had to thoroughly check it out.'
Tom looked at him without replying. He'd been over-zealous, maybe even a little vindictive, and they both knew it, but perhaps the blow torch he'd undoubtedly just applied to him was sufficient unto the day…
Bennett wriggled slightly and continued, 'So now we're left with the problem of who did kill Miss Blane, and why.'
'And also whether the two killings are connected, inspector.'
'D'you think they are?'
'I'd say so, wouldn't you?'
Bennett said, 'Well, Miss N'Kanu has confessed to killing Dr Goring, as you said she would.'
'D'you believe her?'
'I see no reason not to. We're checking out her story, having Forensic go over the van. Are you suggesting that she killed Miss Blane as well?'
'I'm not convinced she killed either of them.'
Bennett hesitated. 'Shall we stick with Miss Blane's killing for the moment? If it were an isolated case, I'd have said it had the hallmarks of a sex crime. Wouldn't you?'
'The penis, you mean?'
'Yes.' He grimaced with distaste. 'The fact that it had been put into her mouth.'
'But this isn't an isolated case, is it, inspector? The penis was put there with the sole purpose of incriminating me.' And you fell for it… he didn't add.
Bennett said, 'I believe you told Sergeant Mulholland that it was Miss Blane who – er – presented it to you.'
'That's right.
'And that Dr Medlar deposited it in the rubbish bin?'
'Yes.'
'So what we have to work out now is how it got from there to Miss Blane's house. The only person you told was Ashley Miles?'
'Yes, but I'm sure he'd have told some of the others. The story was doing the rounds anyway.'
'One person he'd have certainly told would have been his friend Mr Tudor,' Bennett mused.
'Ye-es,' said Tom. 'There's something you should know about Dominic Tudor, inspector…' He told him about the anonymous note he'd found and how Dominic had admitted to being Goring's earpiece and betraying Jessie.
'I can't say I'm altogether surprised,' said Bennett. 'Any ideas who wrote it?'
'I'd say Verity, although it's only a gut feeling. But it does mean that Dominic had no motive for killing Goring, since he was more use to him alive.'
Bennett thought about this, then said, 'That may be so in Dr Goring's case, but not in Blane's.'
'How d'you mean?'
'Well, you just said that you think Blane left the note about Tudor betraying Pengellis – what if he knew she suspected him and killed her to keep her quiet?'
'Is that really a strong enough motive for murder?'
'Didn't you tell me that if it came out, it would destroy his prospects for getting another job? Isn't that motive enough?'
'I suppose it could be,' Tom said doubtfully. 'But surely, a much more likely motive for someone would be if she'd known they killed Goring.'
'Also true,' agreed Bennett. 'But you're presupposing a link between the killings, and I'm not yet convinced there is one.'
'You really fancy Dominic for it, then?'
Bennett sighed. 'Probably just wishful thinking.' He looked away for a moment, then back at Tom. 'There is another possibility we haven't considered, and that is that Blane herself might have taken your ID card and the – er – object back to her house.'
'But why would she do that?'
'Bear with me a moment. If she was the one who put the note on your desk, then she could well have found your ID then and taken it and the – er… home.'
'But why?'
'Well, we know she'd didn't like you, maybe she thought she could do you some harm with them. But the point I'm making is that whoever killed her might have found the – er – penis – ' he'd said it at last – 'and your ID already there.'
Tom thought about this, then said, 'That would certainly throw the field open, wouldn't it?'
'I'd say so. And we were talking of a sex crime…'
Tom grinned at him. 'It's a neat theory, inspector. We'll keep it in mind, shall we?' He paused. 'I have an alternative if you're interested, although no proof.'
'I'm listening.'
Tom told him.
Chapter Twenty-One
The tape was running and the occupants of the room had identified themselves. Maria had refused a solicitor, although a WPC was present.
'Miss N'Kanu,' Bennett said, 'you told us in your statement how you shut Dr Goring in the freezer and later removed his body. I'd like to touch on one or two points again…'
Touching on one or two points meant Maria reiterating everything at length while Bennett probed for inconsistencies. There weren't any, she simply repeated the story as though by heart in a flat, almost bored voice.
'What were you doing last night?' Bennett said, changing direction.
'Last night?' For the first time, she looked surprised.
'Yes, say from about seven.'
'I was at home in my flat…' She'd had a meal, tidied the place up, phoned her parents, read for a while and then gone to bed.
‘Did you go out at all?’
‘No.’
'You see Miss N'Kanu, sometime yesterday evening, Verity Blane was strangled in her home.'
Maria went very still, her face a mask.
'You've just told us you were in all night, so it couldn't have been you. And yet we're sure she was murdered by the same person who murdered Dr Goring.' Bennett wasn't sure yet, although he carried it off convincingly enough.
Still Maria didn't say anything, she just stared over his shoulder at the wall behind him, her lips slightly apart.
'Do you still maintain that you murdered Dr Goring?'
No answer.
'You see, Miss N'Kanu, we don't think you did murder Dr Goring. We think you're trying to protect someone.'
'What I've told you is the truth.'
'I know it is, in part. I believe you moved Dr Goring's body, all our checks bear that out, but you did that to protect the same person, didn't you?'
No response.
'You found the body when you went to the freezer for something, and it was the shock of that that caused you to misgroup the patient's blood, wasn't it?'
No response.
'Now, are you going to claim Miss Blane's murder as well, or are you going to consider whether or not it's wise to go on protecting a murderer who may kill again?'
'I… I need time to think.'
And that was all they could get out of her.
Mulholland and Marsh, meanwhile, drove Tom back to the centre, then commandeered his room and started questioning staff. Verity's death hadn't been announced.
Adrian confirmed he'd seen Maria leaving the centre, but had no idea whether she might have returned. He also confirmed that he knew about Tom, Verity and the phallus – he'd overheard Ashley telling Dominic and asked about it.
Ashley confirmed that he'd told several people about Tom's version of events.
'Why did you find it necessary to tell so many people, sir?'
'Because I thought it was funny and wanted to share it. God knows, we've little enough to laugh about here at the moment…'
So who had he told? Well… there was Mark, his deputy, Dominic, Paul, Adrian… maybe others, he couldn't remember.
'Did you come into this room at all after Mr Jones left, sir?'
'What, this room? No.'
'Not at all during the afternoon or evening?'
'No.'
'Are you telling us you didn't remove the rubber penis from the rubbish bin, sir?'
Ashley stared at him. 'Why on earth should I do that?'
'Answer the question, please, sir.'
'No, I didn't.'
'Did you see anyone else come into this room?'
'No.'
He told them how he'd been called back to the centre and how Dominic and Dr Medlar had joined him… Yes, he'd been the last to leave, at around ten… Dr Medlar had left at around eight-fifteen and Dominic at around nine.
Yes, he'd gone straight home – his wife could confirm the approximate time… Yes, Verity's house was on his way, and no, he hadn't stopped there.
Dominic told a similar story. He'd known about the phallus – from Dr Medlar, from Verity herself, and then from Ashley… No, he hadn't told anyone else.
'Did you come into this room yesterday afternoon or evening, sir?'
Dominic thought, then said, 'Not yesterday, no. Mr Jones did ask me some questions, but that was in the manager's room.'
'Did you see anyone else coming in here?'
'No. Although…' He hesitated.
'Yes, sir?'
'I think I may have seen someone coming out.'
'How d'you mean, sir, think?'
I came round the corner from the corridor and saw Verity walking away.'
The two detectives looked at each other, then Mulholland said, 'What time would this have been, sir?'
'About half-past three.'
'Did she see you?'
'I don't think so.'
Marsh noted it down, then Mulholland asked him about the previous evening. He told them how he'd been called by Ashley and how in turn he'd informed Dr Medlar, who'd also come in. 'I was a bit surprised about that, to tell you the truth.'
'Why was that, sir?'
'He usually only comes in if there's a specific medical problem.'
He, Domonic, had left the centre at about a quarter past nine, he thought… Yes, his route home went near to Verity's house but not past it, and no, he hadn't stopped there. His wife would confirm that he was home at about nine thirty.
After he'd gone, Mulholland turned to March. 'Well, what d'you think, Dave?'
Marsh took a breath. 'Either of them could have been lying, but I think they were telling the truth.'
Mulholland nodded slowly. 'I think so too. Best tell the guv'nor, I suppose.'
The tape was running and the occupants of the room had identified themselves. Mulholland had replaced the WPC.
'Dr Medlar,' Bennett began, 'I'd like to go through with you again the events of Friday evening, Friday the seventh of January, that is.'
'We've already been through that in great detail,' Medlar observed. 'More than once.'
'And now I'd like to go through it again, doctor.'
'If I didn't know otherwise, inspector, I'd suspect you of prurience.'
Bennett didn't reply, partly because he wasn't sure what prurience was.
'Very well,' Medlar said. 'But before I do, there's an inaccuracy in my previous statement that I should perhaps put right.' Bennett still didn't say anything, so he went on, 'I stated earlier that Miss N'Kanu left me at eight o'clock that evening, just before. The truth is that it was nearer seven than eight.'
'So what you said in your earlier statement was a lie?'
Medlar flinched slightly at the word lie. 'I suppose I panicked. I thought it would look bad if I said I stayed there alone.'
'Look bad? How do you mean, look bad?'
Medlar drew a breath. 'Just that. In the circumstances of Adam's death, I felt it would seem… tidier if we'd left at the same time.'
'That's very candid of you, if I may say so, doctor. So you lied because you thought it would otherwise look bad in the circumstances of Dr Goring's death?' Medlar didn't reply, so Bennett said, 'Is that what you mean, doctor?' He'd been irritated by Medlar's avoidance of his trap and wanted to inflict some damage for the tape. 'Well, doctor?'
'In essence, yes,' Medlar said at last.
'So now we come to the question of what you were doing after Miss N'Kanu left you.'
After another pause, Medlar said, 'I sat in my office for a while smoking my pipe.' As though reminded of it, he pulled it out of his pocket and lit it now. 'I wasn't proud of what had happened and wanted to think things over.'
'How long would you say this thinking took you?'
'Not very long, ten or fifteen minutes perhaps.'
'What did you do then?'
'I had a shower.'
'A shower?'
'Yes, inspector, a shower.'
'Why?'
Medlar answered as though to a backward child. 'Because I didn't want my wife to detect any lingering traces of my lovemaking, inspector, that's why.'
'Whereabouts did you take this shower?'
Medlar sighed and told him there was a loo with a shower room jus
t along the corridor from his office… How long had it taken? About twenty minutes, he thought – the clock in his car had said ten to eight when he left.
Bennett said, 'You're obviously concerned to keep your affair with Miss N'Kanu from your wife?'
Medlar looked guarded. 'Yes. She has enough to put up with as it is.'
'So you'd go to considerable lengths to avoid hurting your wife?'
'I'd certainly go to the lengths of having a shower, inspector.' He tapped out the dottle from his pipe and began refilling it.
'And also of lying about what you were doing, doctor.' Statement, not question.
'Lying is unavoidable in an illicit relationship.'
'What about yesterday evening? What were you doing from about seven, let's say?'
Medlar explained how he'd been called into the centre by Dominic.
Mulholland said, 'According to Mr Tudor, he phoned you just to let you know what was going on. Why was it necessary for you to go in, sir?'
Medlar turned to answer him. 'Involving a prisoner as it did, it was an unusual situation which might call for a medical judgement.'
'Couldn't you have delivered that from home, sir?'
Medlar hesitated, then said, 'Yes, I suppose I could have.'
'Then why didn't you?'
'Have you ever lived with a chronically sick person, sergeant?'
'No, sir.'
'It's emotionally draining and there are times when, no matter how much you love them, you have to get out for a while. That's why I went to the centre when Dominic called.'
'I see, sir,' said Mulholland sceptically.
So what time had he left the centre? – About eight thirty.
What time had he got home? – Around nine, the nine o'clock news had been on.
Bennett said, 'I believe you pass Verity Blane's house on your way home?'
'I believe I do.'
'Did you stop there?'
A faint smile. 'Are you accusing me of having an affair with her as well, inspector? I assure you I haven't the stamina.'
Too bloody glib by far… 'Answer the question, would you, doctor.'
'No, I didn't stop there.'
'Yesterday, when you complained to me about Mr Jones and told me about the scene with Miss Blane, you didn't tell me she'd presented him with a rubber penis.'
'I didn't see the relevance of that particular morsel, inspector.'
Chilling Out Page 16
