The House on Downshire Hill

by Guy Fraser-Sampson

  “So you didn’t get on well with your mother?”

  “Hardly, no. We had regular shouting matches. But then I don’t think she’d have been able to live with anybody. Our aunt in Canada sure regretted having agreed to letting us live there. But she was stuck with it, I guess.”

  “So what happened that day?”

  “Hasn’t my sister told you already? Mum just started running around saying that we had to leave, and straightaway. I thought it was just another of her spells – you know imagining something and getting upset about it – but there was something different about it somehow. Something that made me think she was really serious. Straightaway I thought that maybe dad had died during the night. I don’t know why, I just did. It was about the only thing that would make sense of mum being so upset. She was very protective of us, you know – or at least, she tried to be – and she certainly wouldn’t have wanted us to see him dead in the house.”

  He tried his coffee again but it was still too hot.

  “So I guessed that she wanted to get us all out of the house for a day or two while she arranged everything to be sorted out. It wasn’t until she told us we were going off to Canada that I realised we wouldn’t be going straight home again.”

  “And did that confuse you?”

  “Sure it did. But I was sort of excited too. You know, the idea of going to Canada. Again, I thought it would just be for a short while, just a visit to my aunt. It wasn’t until we got there that mum sprang the news that we wouldn’t be coming back. Then we just sort of gradually got used to life there. We both got into local schools. I didn’t like it very much, but then I never liked school anyway.”

  “Talking of school, tell us a little bit about Susan Barnard. Was she your girlfriend?”

  “Sure she was. I was crazy about her. All the other boys had the hots for her, but I made sure none of them touched her. I guess I was sort of her protector.”

  “Did she need one?”

  He scowled, and it was as if a cloud had suddenly crossed his face.

  “Course she did. She was a girl, wasn’t she? A pretty hot girl too, in a school full of boys.”

  “We heard that she didn’t mind the attention of boys,” Willis said innocently. “Not at all, in fact. Didn’t she like being found attractive?”

  “Maybe. But nobody touched her at school, that’s for sure. They knew they’d have to reckon with me.”

  “Yes, we know. Didn’t you once break somebody’s nose?”

  “Yeah, but he had it coming.”

  “Why’s that, John?”

  “We were behind the shops one day. We used to mess around there after school. Have a cigarette before we went home, that sort of thing. Sue started making up to one of my mates, telling him he had nice eyes, that sort of thing. I told him to leave her alone, but he wouldn’t listen. So I hit him. Just once, but hard like.”

  “But you say that Sue was flirting with him, not the other way round. So why didn’t you tell her to stop?”

  “I did, but she wouldn’t. Maybe she thought I wasn’t serious. Well, she soon saw I was when I hit him. He went flying, and there was blood all over the place. When he got up he was crying like a baby. Gave her a nasty turn, I’ll bet.”

  “What happened then?”

  “I dunno. He went off with some of his mates. To the hospital, I reckon. I heard later he’d broken his nose. The police came to see him, but he wouldn’t tell them anything. Scared of me, I guess. Sue was really pissed with me. She went off without saying anything, but I could tell she was mad as hell. Spoiled her fun, I did, see?”

  “Did you know that she was reported missing the same day you left home?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Did you make any effort to contact her after you went to Canada? Write to her, perhaps?”

  “No, not me. Why should I? There were plenty of girls in Canada.”

  He tried his coffee again, and this time managed a few sips. Willis and Desai gazed at him thoughtfully, and then at each other.

  CHAPTER 25

  “So when did you last see Susan Barnard?” Desai asked, after taking a measured sip of coffee.

  “I can’t remember exactly. I saw her most days, most school days that is, so I guess maybe the day before we left.”

  “We may be able to help you there. We’ve found a record of the three of you leaving the country, and counting backwards from there according to what both you and your sister remember, we think your last day in the house would have been 26th October. That was the day before Sue was reported missing.”

  “OK, if you say so.”

  “Well, 26 October was a Saturday that year so it wasn’t a school day, but the Friday would have been. Now I don’t want to put words into your mouth, but maybe the last day you saw her was Friday the 25th?”

  “Yeah, that would be right. Like I said, we used to see each other most days after school in that little road behind the shops.”

  “Did you ever walk her home at all? And, if so, can you remember whether you did that evening?”

  “No, I’m pretty certain I didn’t. It was starting to get dark and she said she was meeting one of her friends. I think they were going somewhere the next day, and they needed to talk about it.”

  “Can you remember where they were supposed to be going the next day? And can you remember the name of this friend of hers?”

  “No, but it probably involved shopping. Very keen on shopping, Sue was. Always buying new clothes, new bags, new shoes, that sort of thing.”

  “Really? Were her parents very wealthy then?”

  “I don’t know. I never asked. They lived in quite a big house though, so I suppose so.”

  “And what about the name of the friend?”

  “Well her best friend was a girl in her class called Jill. Wait a minute … yeah, Jill East it was. She wasn’t as tasty as Sue, but she wasn’t bad. Great legs, she had.” “

  That’s useful, thank you. Do you have any idea what happened to her, whether she got married, moved away, that sort of thing?”

  “No, I don’t.”

  “And that last time you saw her, Sue I mean, she didn’t mention the name of anyone else she was due to meet – maybe a man? Or anything specific that she was planning to do over the weekend?”

  “No, not that I can remember.”

  “John, I’m sorry to have to ask you this, but we have a witness who says that he saw a girl we believe to have been Sue hanging around in the street a few times and calling out to men. Do you know anything about that?”

  “What you mean: ‘calling out’?”

  “Well, you know, he got the impression that it was sort of leading up to her offering them sex, presumably for money. Do you think that’s where she might have got the money for all that shopping she did?”

  “You saying she was a tart or something?”

  “I’m not saying she was anything. I’m just passing on something we’ve been told and asking for your reaction to it. If you don’t know anything about it, then fine.”

  The man glared at Desai.

  “For your information, not that it’s any of your business, Sue wouldn’t even have sex with me and I was her boyfriend. So she’s hardly likely to have been having it with anyone else.”

  “Let’s move on, shall we?” Willis suggested. “Why don’t you tell us what happened when you and your sister here came back to England?”

  “Hasn’t she told you that already?”

  “She explained that you were looking to confront your father about what your mother told you,” Willis replied glancing at Elizabeth, “and that’s understandable. But what actually happened? You went to the house, presumably?”

  “Yeah, I went to the house. There was no answer. The house looked in a really shitty condition, so I thought maybe it was empty and nobody was living there. I went round to the house next door. I didn’t recognise the guy there, didn’t remember him. I asked if my father still lived at Wentworth House and he
said yes. So I decided to come back another day. But then I … I got sick. I have these bad spells, you know.”

  “Yes, I know. I’m sorry. Just to be clear, John, did you use those exact words when you spoke to the neighbour?”

  “Which words?”

  “My father.”

  “I think I asked if Conrad Schneider still lived next door. I didn’t know then that he’d changed his name to Taylor. The guy looked a bit shifty and asked me why I wanted to know. Maybe he thought I was a burglar or something. So I said I was Conrad’s son.”

  “Are you sure about that?”

  “Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

  “No reason I suppose. Look, John, I really appreciate you talking to us like this but we need to get a formal statement from you. We need to get it down on tape, then we need to get it typed up and signed by you. Will you help us do that?”

  “I don’t like police stations. They don’t bring back good memories for me.”

  “I don’t know what happened to you before, but you’d just be a visitor. We won’t go anywhere near the cells. The interview rooms are on a different side of the building.”

  He shook his head stubbornly. Desai and Willis looked at each other, uncertain how best to proceed.

  “John dear,” Elizabeth interjected, laying her hand on his arm, “it would just be for an hour or two and then it will all be over and we can get on with our lives. Please won’t you do it? For me?”

  There was a silence while the three women all gazed at

  him.

  “You won’t be under arrest,” Willis explained. “You’ll be free to leave whenever you want. You just have to say the word.”

  He gazed at the table and said nothing, but then he nodded.

  “Maybe tomorrow,” he said.

  “Tomorrow would be fine,” Willis replied. Then, taking a deep breath, “look, I really hate to ask you this, but I’d like you to leave your passport with us. You too, Elizabeth. You can have them back when you come to the police station tomorrow.”

  John Schneider started to stand up angrily. Out of the corner of her eye Willis saw Evans slip off his stool and take a few steps towards them.

  “John! Please!” Elizabeth said urgently.

  He paused, uncomfortably bent over the table in the act of standing up. Then he swore under his breath and sat down again. Evans halted uncertainly, almost in mid-stride.

  “Go ahead if you want,” Schneider muttered.

  Elizabeth fished inside her bag and handed over two Canadian passports.

  “Thank you,” Willis said in relief.

  She glanced across at Evans and gave a small but definite shake of the head.

  •

  At much the same time, Simon Collison was fielding a phone call from Special Branch.

  “Simon? It’s Philip Newby. Listen, it’s not looking good with Sophie Ho. I think we’re going to have to pull her in for a formal interview. I’d like to ask her for a DNA sample as well, just in case it matches anything turned up at the murder scene.”

  “Have there been any developments that I don’t know about, sir?”

  “Yes, our friends in Singapore have been doing a little more digging and they’ve turned up two things which concern both them and us quite a lot. First, there’s no evidence at all of her ever having had a relationship with a woman before. That raises the obvious possibility that she may just be using your officer to gain information about the enquiry.”

  “I’ve warned DS Desai about that, so I think we can be confident it won’t happen.”

  “Nonetheless, it doesn’t mean she hasn’t tried. Perhaps if you have an opportunity you might try to ask your Sergeant about that, discreetly of course.”

  “I’ll do that. But you said there were two areas of concern. What’s the other one?”

  “Ah, yes, distinctly worrying this one. I said there was no evidence of Sophie Ho having had a relationship with another woman before. There is however a strong suspicion that she was having an affair with one of the officers now implicated in the fake passport business.”

  “That’s all very circumstantial though, isn’t it, sir?”

  Newby chuckled at the other end of the line.

  “We treat evidence a little differently here at the Branch, Simon, as I hope you’ll soon be learning for yourself. We have to operate on the basis of intelligence, just as the boys in the security services do. There’s none of that “beyond reasonable doubt” stuff here. If something looks likely on the basis of the available intelligence, then we assume it to be the case until the opposite can be proved. So far as Sophie Ho is concerned, the pieces are falling into place. I’m sure you can see that for yourself.”

  “Yes, I can. You know that the bad guys in Singapore had decided to send somebody to the UK to deal with Raj. The Ho woman must be a prime suspect, partly because it looks like she may have had links to one of the people making that decision, and partly because she has at least some of the skills necessary for the mission. And I agree that it does seem very opportune that she should suddenly launch into a relationship with one of the officers on the investigation, particularly if she has no history of that sort of thing. No, if I was in your position I’m sure I would be thinking along exactly the same lines.”

  “Well, there you are then.”

  “But I’m not in your position, sir. Not yet, anyway. I’m in charge of the team here, and a damn good team they are too. I have a professional responsibility for Priya Desai’s welfare, yes and for her privacy as well. It so happens that I also like her very much as a person, and I don’t want her to get hurt.”

  “Neither do I, Simon, but in a situation like this we just do what we have to do and let the pieces fall where they may. Isn’t there some sort of saying in Shakespeare about an innocent person who gets into something out of their depth and ends up having to pay the price?”

  “The fell incensèd points of mighty opposites, perhaps?”

  “Something like that, yes. Look, Simon, we’ll handle this as gently as we can – and very discreetly too – but at the end of the day the private life of one of your offices comes a very poor second to national security. And anyway, if there’s a professional killer loose on your patch then I’m sure we have a common interest in catching them, don’t we?”

  “Yes, of course we do. But what happens if she simply denies ever having been to the house and we can’t make a DNA match? After all, if she really is a hit woman then she may well have put on a forensics suit before she went in. I remember going on a course a little while ago when they explained how the IRA worked this out in Northern Ireland during the troubles. I know that DNA technology has moved on a long way since then, but they reckoned they could get in and out of the house without leaving any trace.”

  “Well, let’s cross that bridge when we come to it shall we? We’re going to pull her in this afternoon. I’ll keep you posted of course.”

  “Thank you, sir. And I’ll try to have that word with Desai. If there’s anything I think you should know then I’ll pass it on at once.”

  “Thanks. By the way, Simon, just as one friend to another, I happen to know that the Met is not about to give up trying to transfer you over here. Don’t be surprised if you get a call from the ACC very shortly. I think he’s about to up the ante as it were.”

  “How do you mean, sir?”

  “You remember that job that’s about to open up over here? The Chief Super’s job?”

  “Yes, I do. Look, I’m fully aware that the ACC wants me to come across to the Branch as an acting Chief Super. So what? What’s changed?”

  “I think you’ll find he’s going to suggest that you get the promotion straightaway. That you get posted to the branch as a substantive Chief Superintendent, not acting up.”

  “But that’s absurd. I’ve only just been made Superintendent.”

  “Count the months, Simon. I think you’ll find that it’s coming up for 2 years. That’s the minimum you need to serve in th
e rank.”

  “Oh.”

  “Don’t sound so down about it, Simon. This would be a great opportunity for you. You’d be the youngest ever Chief Superintendent in the history of the Met; I’ve checked. There’s something else you might like to consider as well.”

  “Yes?”

  “I’ve only got about a year left in this job. After that it’s onwards and upwards for yours truly. I don’t mind admitting that I shall be sorry to leave this job behind. It’s interesting, challenging, and it makes a difference. My next job is likely to be something much more boring and bureaucratic. But the reason I’m mentioning this is that if you take the posting when it’s offered then you’ll be reporting directly to me for a year or so and I’ll have a chance to show you the ropes, and watch your back. This job will come vacant again about two years after that and I’m pretty sure they have it in mind for you as your next career move.”

  “I see.”

  “Yes, but if you don’t take it this time then they may more or less force you to take something similar next year, and I may be gone by then, or on the way out anyway. And whoever has the job then may not see you, as I do, as a friend to be helped along his career path. They may see you as some jumped-up, over-educated teacher’s pet of the top brass who’s riding for a fall. Get my drift?”

  “Do you know who’s going to be the next Commander?”

  “Unofficially and strictly between us, yes I do.”

  “Who is it?”

  “I can’t tell you that, but let’s just say that he didn’t go to either boarding school or university, and that he doesn’t have a lot of time for anyone who did. I’d bear that in mind when the ACC calls if I were you.”

  CHAPTER 26

  “Let’s review where we are, Bob,” Collison said rather tiredly the next morning. “I’m getting a bit concerned that we have hares running in all directions and we’re just chasing whichever one we see next rather than having an overall plan. By the way, how are we getting on with John Schneider?”