‘I understand that her ladyship is coming back to Beaumont for the reading of the will next Tuesday.’
‘Ray, you’ll recall that we spoke to you when somebody made an anonymous phone call about your relationship with Sister Margaret and your frequent visits to the Roding House in Bedford Square. The caller also implied that you have a close relationship with Lady Fanny. Is that correct?’
‘We get on well. She’s from the East End, like me, and she has a lively sense of humour. She’s nice to work for.’
‘We believe that you have a closer relationship with Lady Fanny than just that of employee. Why don’t you tell us about it?’
‘Well, I suppose we have quite a close relationship. I give her support and act as a confidante, if she needs help.’
‘Come on, Raymond. It’s a bit more than that, isn’t it?’ said Cooper.
‘No, it isn’t. What are you suggesting?’
Cooper opened an envelope, took out the contents and laid the Tatler photographs on the table in front of Jenkins.
‘Raymond, I would like you to look at these photographs. They are of you and Lady Fanny on a night out together.’
Jenkins examined them. Cooper could almost see the blood drain from his face.
‘These show you in a number of intimate embraces with Lady Fanny. They were taken at a reunion function at the Windmill Theatre on the day that Lord Roding died.’
Jenkin’s jaw dropped. He instantly realised that, in the wrong hands, the photographs would be compromising. Furthermore, given the significance of the day that they were taken, they could be extremely damaging for both he and her ladyship.
‘These photos were taken by a society magazine. The irony is that, were it not for Lord Roding’s death, they would have been published and your relationship would have been aired in public. It’s all about timing and luck, really. We saw them just before they went to press, and we were able to prevent that from happening. We’ve saved your bacon, Raymond, so I think that a bit of honesty is required. Don’t you?’
Jenkins said nothing. He was shaken to the core.
‘Now, let’s just try again, shall we? What is the nature of your relationship with Lady Fanny?’
Jenkins realised that anything less than total frankness would not do. He sat in silence for a few seconds before giving his response.
‘I am her employee; yes, we do have a close sexual relationship; and, with all due respect to my late lord and master, I am hoping that now he has gone we can have a future together.’
‘And your wife?’
‘What about her?’
‘It goes without saying, doesn’t it? She’s not going to be happy with you going off with Lady Fanny.’
‘Of course not, but, now everything on the estate is going to change, that may not even happen. I’m not sure what the future holds.’
‘What does Lady Fanny say about the possibility of you being together?’
‘She blows hot and cold, to be honest.’
‘So, the situation is very uncertain, then?’
‘I suppose it is. Tell me, what will happen to these photographs?’
‘We’ll keep them locked away. For now.’
‘What about the magazine who took them? Are they going to publish them?’
‘We have asked them not to, for the present. But we might have to get a court order further down the line.’
‘And the negatives?’
‘We are not in possession of the negatives, but I think we could get them, if necessary. What is your relationship with your wife, Adina, like?’
‘Not very good. I think our marriage is coming to an end. I don’t really want to be with her anymore, and I suspect that she feels the same way about me.’
‘Why? What’s wrong with her?’
‘She can be very moody and even violent, at times.’
‘Violent? Towards whom?’
‘Me. I think she has suspected for some time that I’m seeing someone else. She keeps probing and when she gets frustrated she goes into a rage.’
‘What was her relationship with Sister Margaret like?’
‘Adina wouldn’t speak to her.’
‘Why not?’
‘I can’t tell you.’
‘You can’t tell us, or you won’t tell us?’
‘I won’t. She’s my wife. You’ll have to ask her.’
‘OK, Raymond. I am arresting you for the murder of Sister Margaret.’
Cooper cautioned him.
Jenkins slumped in the chair with his head bowed. He looked utterly defeated. They sat in silence for a few seconds.
‘Do you need time to think?’
‘Yes.’
Jenkins was taken before the station sergeant and Cooper related the facts of the arrest. The sergeant noted his details on the detention sheet. Jenkins’ property was taken from him along with his belt and shoe laces, after which he was placed in a cell.
A couple of hours had elapsed when Cooper was passed a message that Jenkins wanted to speak to him. He was collected by the gaoler from the cell and taken back to the interview room, where he was seen by the detectives, who were brimming with anticipation.
‘I understand you want to speak to me, Ray,’ said Cooper.
‘Yes. I’ve thought long and hard about this, and now I realise that I’ve got to tell you what happened. Whatever the state of our relationship, Adina only has herself to blame. She’s brought it all on herself.’
‘OK then. Fire away.’
‘Sister Margaret.’
‘Yes. What about her?’
‘Adina was convinced that she knew her from the time she spent in the concentration camp. In fact, it became an obsession with her.’
‘Did Adina name her?’ asked Pratt.
‘She called her Irma Kurz. She said that she was a corporal in the SS and that she was a guard at the camp.’
‘Which camp was Adina in?’
‘I can remember the exact name of it, as, coincidentally, I had the unfortunate pleasure of visiting it at the end of the war. It was Mauthausen, near Linz in Austria.’
‘Why did you have to visit the camp?’
‘I was posted to the British Mission, which was operating from Vienna. We were sent there as part of the humanitarian effort to try to save and rehabilitate the inmates. We were also tasked to check whether there were any British or Americans in the camp.’
‘Did you meet Adina there?’
‘No, that came later in Vienna.’
‘Tell us about Adina. What nationality is she?’
‘Adina is of Romanian extraction, although her mother is Hungarian. She is Jewish, but she doesn’t go to the synagogue much these days; what with all the things she witnessed during the war, she’s lost her faith.’
‘Where did you first meet her?’
‘She is a qualified nurse and I first met her when she was working as a nurse in Vienna at the end of the war. She was working for the International Red Cross caring for survivors of the Holocaust.’
‘So how did she come to be in a concentration camp?’ asked Cooper.
‘It was towards the end of the war when she was arrested by the Germans in Linz. She was caught with others forging and handing out ration cards, and then somebody denounced her for being Jewish.’
‘And how did she manage to get out?’
‘She was lucky because within a month the camp was liberated by the American army and she was moved to a hospital in Vienna. She has told me that, over time, many of her family were killed in the camps. She’s got a lot of pent-up hatred and she has terrible nightmares; she has arguments in her sleep, and kicks and thrashes about.’
‘What did she tell you about Sister Margaret?’
‘She said that she would beat people with a club, including children. Sometimes be
at them to death. She hated her, but, at the same time, she was scared to death. She felt that, somehow, she still had power over her.’
‘A bit of a coincidence, wasn’t it?’
‘Yes, it was. I refused to believe it at first. I thought she must have it wrong; for a concentration-camp guard to turn up in the same village as one of her victims in Essex was, for me, just too much of a coincidence to accept. But Adina insisted that she knew who she was, and she made a very compelling argument.’
‘Did Adina ever go to her room?’
‘I don’t think she would have dared. I did. I had to make sure it was cleaned for her before she moved in. Then, when she realised she was here, Adina wanted me to use the key to have a look around to see if there was anything with her name on it, a passport or some clue as to who she really was. She was obsessed and very afraid. She kept on about it. In the end, to try to set her mind at rest, I went in and had a quick look around, when she was out in the garden with Lord Roding. I didn’t find anything, though.’
‘Do you think your wife killed Sister Margaret?’
‘I have fought against it in my mind. I didn’t want to believe it, but now I know that she must have done.’
‘What makes you so sure?’ asked Cooper.
‘On the afternoon that she was murdered, when I returned to the Hall, I entered through the main door. This was about 5.20pm. I went up to the apartment and I saw Adina. She was just coming out of the bathroom. She was wearing a blouse, and I noticed that she had specks of blood on her chest and down the front of her uniform. I asked her about it and she told me she’d had one of her nose bleeds.’
‘Nose bleeds?’
‘She does tend to suffer from those due to high blood pressure. Anyway, I left her to tidy herself up, and I went to make a cup of tea and a sandwich in the kitchen. After that, I went back downstairs to the dining room to carry on working. Then all hell broke loose.’
‘You saw the body and all of the blood. Didn’t it occur to you the death had been caused by your wife?’
‘Not immediately. There was too much going on. When it had quietened down and I’d had time to think about it, I sort of knew. But I was in shock and I didn’t want to believe it.’
‘Did you ask her about it?’
‘Yes. When I finally went back to the apartment, I saw she had cleaned the place from top to bottom, then she had taken to her bed. She pretended that she was asleep, but I shook her awake and told her about Sister Margaret.’
‘What did she say to that?’
‘She told me she had confronted Kurz and told her that she knew who she was. Kurz had just laughed in her face and said that nobody would believe her.’
‘And how did she react to that?’
‘She said what came next seemed to be like it was a dream and was happening in slow motion. She lost control. She said she found the spade outside, and then went back and hit her around the head with it. Several times.’
‘Did Adina say anything else?’
‘She said there was nobody else about. She didn’t think anybody had seen her and the sister arguing, so she ran back to the apartment.’
‘Did she say anything about taking something from her?’
‘Yes. She said that during the struggle between them, she grabbed her crucifix and pulled it off. Then, on the way back indoors, she was in a bit of a daze. She realised she still had it in her hand, so she threw it away.’
‘Did she say where she threw it?’
‘She threw it down the well.’
‘Is that in the garden?’
‘Yes. You have to walk past it, along the path, to get back to the house and the apartment.’
‘So, what happened to Adina’s uniform and the rest of her clothing?’
‘I don’t know. I didn’t see it when I went back into the apartment. I suppose she must have washed it.’
‘To be fair, I think that I should caution you at this point, Raymond. You are not obliged to say anything unless you wish to do so, but whatever you say will be taken down in writing and may be given in evidence.’
‘You could have told us all about this at the time that you made your witness statement. Why didn’t you?’
‘Well, I didn’t lie. I just didn’t say anything. What could I do? She’s my wife and she went through hell during her time in the concentration camp. I felt so sorry for her. I mean, it was so sudden. It’s not every day that you get faced with a situation like this, is it? I needed time to think. How can you inform on your own wife?’
‘You still need to think about your position, Ray. So, in fairness to you, we’re going to arrange for you to have a solicitor. My colleague, Brian, will stay with you for now. If there is anything else that you remember, tell Brian or your solicitor.’
Cooper left the room. He needed to get some officers together and go to the Hall to find Adina.
*
Beryl Aldis answered the door to find Cooper on the doorstep with Linda Collins and Jane Stewart. Apart from the plain CID Wolseley, which was parked on the gravel drive, there were two marked police vehicles containing uniformed officers and a van from the Scenes of Crime Department. She viewed the whole spectacle with some amusement.
‘Good morning Inspector. Mr Jenkins is not here at present, but, since I saw you take him away this morning, I assume that you already know that.’
‘Yes, Mrs Aldis. Mr Jenkins is helping us with our enquiries at the police station.’
‘Oh dear. So, you have him in custody, then?’
‘Yes, but we’re here to see Mrs Jenkins and he has given us the key to their apartment. Have you seen her today, at all?’
‘The last I saw of her was when she left our party about 9.00pm last night. She had a few too many vodkas and wasn’t feeling well. Although she can’t have been that bad because young James told me that he saw her leave the house this morning with some men in a black car.’
‘Is that right? What time was that?’
‘Not long after 6.00am. We both saw the car come up the drive. I thought it was her ladyship at first, come home early.’
‘I need to speak to James. Is he here?’
‘Yes. He’s working in the kitchen. If you’d like to come with me, I’ll take you through.’
Cooper and his two colleagues followed Beryl into the house. She led them through the hallway to the kitchen at the rear of the building, where they came across James who was busy banking up the fire. He straightened up as they came into the room.
Beryl opened the conversation, ‘James, tell the inspector what you saw when that car came up the drive this morning.’
‘Yes. It was just after six o’clock. There was a black Buick. Mrs Aldis and I saw it through the kitchen window coming up the drive. It parked on the forecourt. We thought it might be her ladyship home early, so I went through to the front hall to open the main door. Mr Jenkins would normally do it, but he wasn’t about at the time. I opened the door, but nobody came, so I went out onto the steps to see what was happening. I saw Mrs Jenkins get into the car with a couple of men.’
‘Did you recognise them?’ asked Cooper.
‘No, sir. I’ve never seen them before.’
‘What did they look like?’
‘A bit foreign looking. They were dressed smartly in suits and they had on trilby hats. They were a bit like the American gangsters out of the films you see at the pictures.’
‘Did you hear them say anything?’
‘They did speak, but I couldn’t really hear what they were saying. But before she got in the back of the car one of the men kissed her on the cheek, and then he took her suitcase and put it in the boot.’
‘A suitcase, you say?’
‘Yes, sir.’
‘So, did she get into the car willingly?’
‘Yes, sir. She seemed quite hap
py to go along with them and she was all dressed up as if she was going somewhere important.’
‘Did you get the number of the car?’
‘No, sir. I’m sorry, I didn’t. But Mr Savage did, and he held on to it for safe keeping. He gave me the number as well. They nearly ran him over, you know.’
James put his hand in a trouser pocket, produced a scrap of paper and handed it to Cooper.
‘Thank you, James. Was Mr Savage injured?’
‘No, sir. He wasn’t hurt.’
‘And they drove straight off along the drive, did they?’
‘Yes, sir. Mr Savage came up to the house after the car went off and he told us that he’d tried to stop it on the drive. But the driver wouldn’t stop for him, and just drove around him, up on the grass verge and away. He was quite shaken up about it.’
‘Thank you, James,’ said Cooper, who turned his attention back to Beryl. ‘Mrs Aldis, may I take it that there are only yourself and James here in the house at present?’
‘Yes, Inspector. The twins aren’t at work today, and Mr Savage is probably back at the cottage or out in the grounds somewhere.’
‘What about her ladyship? Is she not back from London yet?’
‘No. She’s up there till tomorrow.’
‘Linda, will you get one of the constables from outside to come and speak to me? I want him to go and find Mr Savage, and ask him to come up to the house. I want to ask him if he saw anything of the people in the car, and we need that original piece of paper with the car number on it.’
‘Yes, sir.’
‘We’re also going to have to search the well. So, Linda, while you’re out there, will you get another one of the lads and show him where the well is.’
Linda Collins went to the uniformed officers who were waiting outside and gave them the necessary instructions. One officer went away with Linda towards the well, the other marched off to speak to Cooper, who pointed him in the direction of Savage’s house.
After they had finished with James and Mrs Aldis, Cooper made his way to the south wing with Linda and Jane. On their arrival at the Jenkins’ apartment, Cooper knocked on the front door several times with ever-increasing vigour, just in case Adina Jenkins had made it back home, unseen. There was no reply. Finally, Linda took the bunch of keys from her handbag and she opened the front door.
Devotion to Murder Page 27
