Ralph’s temper, justified at the reading of their father’s last will and testament, was not needed now. Now, it was time for reasoned argument, a breaking down of the barriers that Leonard Dundas, and now his daughter, had put up.
‘It’s just you now. What are you going to do?’ Caroline said. She was not in a mood to be conciliatory.
‘Ralph is in trouble, isn’t he?’
‘That’s Ralph, but what’s it to you? You’re not the bleeding-heart type, and I doubt if you care what happens to him, to us. To you, Ralph and I are like something the cat dragged into the house.’
‘Honest words, Caroline,’ Jill said. ‘Neither of you deserve any of your father’s money. The man was a genius, my father’s friend. What are you and Ralph, the spawn of a great man? Your only skill was to be born his child. I worked hard for what I’ve got, so did my father, so did yours.’
At least the woman is honest, Caroline thought. ‘You’ve opened up, but why and now?’
‘Ralph’s just a pawn, a charming nonsensical pawn. It’s me that’s the target. I’m the one with all the information, and I’m willing to admit that I’m afraid, more so than ever before.’
They were sitting in the Thames Foyer. Jill ordered afternoon tea, a favoured pastime of the hotel’s guests and tourists to the city of London. She helped herself to a cake, Caroline chose a homemade scone with clotted cream and jam.
‘What are you suggesting? That we make some kind of a deal?’
‘We need to protect ourselves, and at this time, you’d quite happily see me go to the devil,’ Jill said.
‘You and your father have stolen our legacy. I don’t know how, maybe I never will, but your father had managed to control my father and to take his money.’
‘Your father was eccentric, maybe even slightly crazy with your mother upstairs, but he still knew what he was doing. Your father had amassed a fortune, and he put in safeguards to ensure it was not squandered. And yes, my father helped himself to plenty, but he wasn’t going to throw it away, and nor am I. Work with me, Caroline, to protect ourselves, and I’ll make it worth your while.’
‘Pretty words, purely because you’re frightened, but what do they mean? The police are out looking for who put Ralph in the hospital. What happens when they catch them? Will you renege on what we decide here today? And what about Ralph? He may be all that you say, but he’s still my own flesh and blood. I can’t cast him off just because of something you say.’
‘They could come for you as well, you know that,’ Jill said.
‘I know. What do you suggest?’
‘Ralph’s owing money?’
‘He is, and I know how much.’
‘We pay his debt, make a deal with him, and then get him out of the country.’
‘And leave me high and dry? How can I deal with you? Jill, you may sit there with your mouth full of cake, a cup of tea in your hand, looking pretty, but you’re still a devious woman. You’re no better than those who dealt with Ralph. I’d be putty in your hands.’
‘Not if I pay you out, as well.’
‘How much?’
‘Fifty million pounds.’
‘How much is my father worth, and the truth?’
‘Six hundred and twenty-five million, but you can’t realise on it all, only a fraction.’
‘Why?’
‘It’s tied up in real estate, bonds, investments. It would take years to liquidate.’
‘Fifty million, when?’
‘As soon as Ralph is dealt with.’
‘You’re still exposed.’
‘I need protection, but I need to know, are you interested? It’s a generous offer, and I’ll make sure that I keep you informed, ensure another two million a year for the next ten.’
‘We can deal,’ Caroline said. She had no interest in attending meetings, pretending to understand finance when she didn’t, and Ralph was always going to be unreliable; it was in his DNA.
***
Yolanda was back in town and attempting to nurse Ralph back to health. With Michael and his girlfriend, an attractive tattooed young woman, monopolising the flat, Ralph had moved in with Yolanda for a few days, not that either was committed to the other. Even on the drive over in a taxi, the two of them had argued. Yolanda was concerned that the man she was transferring her affections to wasn’t worth the effort, and he’d never have the money to look after her as well as her man in Antigua, who was keen and exceedingly generous, did. Ralph didn’t want a nursemaid, and Yolanda was high-maintenance, and if he scored big time with his father’s money, then he’d get himself into shape and play the field. A man with a fortune could have as many young and willing partners as he wanted; no need to be with a woman who complained and was starting to show her age, even if she was the mother of his son. Not that he could profess to any strong emotion for him, and now a bottle of alcohol had snuck its way into the flat. Michael, he knew, was on the downward spiral, aided and abetted by the girlfriend, vacuous and well-meaning, who was not helping at all. As the doctor at the rehabilitation centre had warned, a lot don’t make it.
Yolanda had raised objections when Ralph had insisted that the 6 p.m. get-together at his sister’s house was necessary and she wasn’t invited. The police were to be there, and there was to be an update on his father’s murderer. If his father was proven to be insane, then the man’s will could be challenged, and if Leonard Dundas had been involved in the murder, it would be another plus for his and Caroline’s case.
Chapter 24
At Caroline’s, the front door was open. Inside, the assembled cast. On one chair, Molly Dempster sat. Wendy had brought her along and was seated nearby. Isaac could see that Wendy was the mother duck and she wasn’t going to let anyone upset her duckling. Isaac preferred raw emotions to be the order of the night, and his sergeant close to one of those assembled could be a problem.
Caroline sat with her husband, Desmond. On the table in the centre of the room, a bottle of red wine, sandwiches, sausage rolls. Larry was hungry. He had had a busy day with Inspector Matson out at Greenwich, going through the case against Gary Frost, checking CCTV to see if Ralph had been in the area, also the man with only one functional kneecap, but it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Too many people in the area, too many cars, and no clear idea of dates and times. Emily Matson had been interested when told about the gambling club owner, and she was making enquiries overseas. Larry had been more interested in recent cases pertaining to Ralph Lawrence, possibly Gilbert, but drawing blanks.
Ralph sat on another chair. Isaac could see that his condition had improved. Apart from slight bruising on his face, and the fact that he was squirming to get comfortable, he looked almost back to normal.
‘Thanks for coming tonight,’ Isaac said.
‘It wasn’t far for us,’ Desmond said.
‘It was either here or at Challis Street,’ Isaac reminded him.
Isaac felt trepidation about what he was doing, realising that the emotions of those in the room would be challenged, but it was a murder enquiry, and those closest to the dead man had skeletons, and skeletons cause conflict, subterfuge, concealment. Someone in the room may know something hitherto unrevealed. He needed the raised and raw emotions, he needed people to open up.
‘This is what we have,’ Isaac said. ‘Ralph is involved with a villain by the name of Gary Frost. Neither will admit to it, but it was Frost who put Ralph in hospital. He would have used two thugs named Ainsley Caxton and Hector O’Grady. We’ve been to see Frost, and we and the local police where Frost lives are following up on a few cases of violence meted out to those who get on the man’s wrong side. We’ve found no connection between Frost and Gilbert Lawrence’s death, and we don’t think we will. Lawrence was killed with a degree of finesse. Frost’s thugs are slash and burn, and none too subtle. Ralph has got off lightly, just a savage beating, although the marks on his wrist indicated that he was bound, and we don’t believe his story that he fell off a roof.’ Ralph
sat quietly and said nothing, not even making eye contact with Isaac.
***
Molly Dempster sat in her chair; she was not looking up, not drinking from the cup of tea placed in front of her. Wendy could only imagine what was going through her mind, the reality of what she was about to tell the people in the room. Isaac and Wendy knew, had checked DNA with Forensics. What Molly had said was true, she was Ralph’s mother, and now her son was sitting on one side of the room, she on the other. The young boy that she had raised with Dorothy, spent more time with than the woman who had disappeared all those years ago – tonight the grown man would find out the truth.
‘Caroline is in contact with Jill Dundas, a woman she doesn’t trust, neither do we totally,’ Isaac said. ‘Now, we’re not accusing her of murder, but the bequeathment by Gilbert is not usual. Whatever Jill Dundas and her father came up with, they’ve certainly done best out of the man’s death. It may be what Gilbert wanted, it may not, but neither Caroline nor Ralph has the full picture. We’ve had people checking, and it’s not that easy to know exactly what Gilbert Lawrence’s wealth is, only that it is appreciable. We’ve also called on our overseas colleagues to do some checking. Caroline’s received five million, her two children a million each. Not bad for most people, but Caroline and Ralph were expecting hundreds of millions. Am I correct?’ Ralph and Caroline nodded in the affirmative.
‘I’d have stayed in Spain if I’d known that I was going to be cheated,’ Ralph said, the first words of any consequence he had uttered since entering his sister’s house.
‘Not likely,’ Isaac said. ‘You were deported, lucky that we were in contact with the authorities down there.’
‘I would have come to an arrangement. A few pesetas here and there, problems disappear quickly.’
‘It’s euros now,’ Isaac said. Wendy was keeping quiet, so was Larry. Their DCI was on a roll, he wouldn’t appreciate their chipping in with a few comments, not that they had any. Wendy felt sorry for Molly, knowing that Ralph, her son, was a man of little worth, but then the old woman had admitted that Ralph’s behaviour was only like her father and her grandfather, decent men but dreamers, always taking a chance when the odds were against them.
‘Euros, pesetas, I’d still be back there.’
‘You would still have had Frost to deal with.’
‘I could have paid him off.’
‘You’ve heard about Samuels and Dubai, the two Russian women?’
‘Who hasn’t? It’s folklore out on the street. And besides, it was Belgium, a couple of streetwalkers, and it wasn’t a Mercedes, it was an old Peugeot. Doesn’t sound so romantic, though, that’s why Frost embellished the truth, made him sound more important, more dangerous.’
‘Are you admitting to your involvement with Frost?’
‘Okay, I borrowed some money, but it was a roof that I fell off. With my father’s money, I was hoping to buy somewhere in England, settle down with Yolanda, even find a place for Michael.’
Isaac had an admission that Ralph had borrowed money from Frost, the first time the man had spoken the truth. ‘We’ll bring Frost in at some stage. We’ll not linger on your denials for now. Caroline, you met with Jill Dundas in the West End, correct?’
‘There’s no harm in that,’ Caroline, on the defensive, said.
‘Unusual, considering that you’ve been disparaging of her in the past.’
‘You’ve not heard me say anything, have you?’
‘We keep our ears to the ground. Jill Dundas controls all of your fortunes. She’s one woman, what if anything happens to her?’
‘We’re lost. We need her alive, even if we don’t trust her. Nobody in her office knows where everything is.’
‘You’ve tried bribing some of them?’
‘No. One of them came to us, offered to help for a cost.’
‘And what did you do?’
‘Nothing at this time, and besides, what would a junior know? Leonard Dundas was a smart man, the same as our father. He’d not leave loose pieces of paper around. Even if this junior could help, it would be limited. Jill Dundas is the key. That’s why I was at the Savoy, afternoon tea, very expensive, but she was paying.’
‘What was said?’
‘She’s frightened, interested in making a deal.’
‘Frightened?’
‘You’d better talk to her.’
‘We’re here talking to you. What’s she frightened of?’
‘What do you think? Ralph’s half-killed, and he only owes a million and a bit. Jill’s controlling hundreds of millions, and she can lay her hands on twenty, maybe thirty without any difficulty, and she’s not a brave woman. She admitted to me that she’s scared, and I don’t blame her. If Ralph weren’t such a fool, we’d all feel a lot safer, even Desmond and I.’
‘You’re right to be scared,’ Isaac said.
‘Can’t you arrest them?’ Desmond said.
‘No proof. No one’s talking, not even Ralph, not even the man they kneecapped. Caroline, you’ve fared well enough with your father’s death. Could you have killed your father?’
‘Not me. I still loved him, even though we hadn’t spoken for many years, and I didn’t need the money.’
‘But what if you had known about your mother?’
‘I don’t think I would have done anything, other to have taken down that door that was always bolted with a sledgehammer, and to make my father tell me the truth. Did he kill her? It could have been one of her episodes. She could have slipped, fallen down the stairs. He could have been frightened of what would be said, confidence could have fallen in his empire, his line of credit could have dried up. Even if it was an accident, mud sticks, you must know that.’
Isaac knew, but he wasn’t about to elaborate on his involvement with a Swedish au pair when he was younger who turned out to be a serial killer, or how, when DCI Caddick had temporarily occupied Isaac’s seat in Homicide, the man had laid all the department’s ills on the previous incumbent. It took the best part of a year after the man had left for Isaac to overcome the negativity and the aspersions made by Caddick. Even now there were still some who believed that Caddick was a competent police officer, and Isaac was just smoke and mirrors, a good-looking charmer with a mild Jamaican lilt in his voice.
‘Let’s recap,’ Isaac said. ‘Ralph was beaten half to death by Caxton and O’Grady on Frost’s orders, a warning to pay up, deal us in on your father’s fortune, or else. Caroline’s talking to Jill Dundas, finds her more willing, probably willing to deal Ralph out. And that’s because she’s scared that those who beat Ralph may come for her, string her up, apply lighted cigarettes to her, and God knows what else until she opens the safe, hands over the account numbers, gives the passwords. Frost would only need a laptop and an internet connection, and he could bleed her for millions, maybe even arrange an accident in the River Thames afterwards, swimming lessons with weights. Caroline, Desmond, he could even go for you. If I were you two, and Jill Dundas, I’d be working on Ralph, get him to talk. He’s scared enough, and if we go near Frost, bring him into the station and charge him, we can’t make it stick, and he’ll grab Ralph wherever he is. Quite frankly, I don’t have much hope for him. He’s a weak specimen of manhood, and I can’t blame his father for being critical.’
‘You can’t talk to me like that,’ Ralph said.
‘Why not? You’ve not got long to live. How are you with swimming? Or maybe they’ll string you up, take your manhood with a sharp knife. Not a pretty sight, and we’ve seen it before. What will Yolanda say, how about Michael? I’m not sure your sister will care much.’
Wendy could see that Isaac was pushing, probably harder than he should. The line between police questioning and harassment was clouded in grey, and Isaac was feeding the man, wanting him to agree, rather than let him volunteer it.
‘Stop,’ Molly said. The first word that she had said all evening. ‘I need to tell the truth.’
Caroline looked over at Molly, expecting her
to say that she had killed her father, not wanting to believe it was possible. After all, this was Molly, the one constant in her and her brother’s lives, the one person they could always turn to, never to receive an admonishment, only a willing ear and sound advice. It had been Molly she had gone to when her first boyfriend had dumped her, on her birthday even, and the first person she had told when she had met Desmond, and how they had made love on their first date, and now the woman was on her feet and wanting to confess. Caroline couldn’t believe it, didn’t want to.
‘Are you sure, Miss Dempster? I could do it for you,’ Isaac said.
‘It’s my responsibility. It’s been a secret for too long, but with Gilbert’s death and Ralph’s condition, I must speak now. It is not something I want to take to the grave. I want to go with a clear conscience and to be judged with respect, not derision. Caroline,’ Molly said, looking over at the woman, ‘I have loved you as if you were my daughter, you must know that.’
‘I do, and we have always loved you,’ Caroline replied, not sure what was coming next.
‘When you were young, your father and mother were desperate for a son. Of course, you were too young to realise this. Your mother had had a difficult birth with you. She couldn’t have any more children.’
‘But she had Ralph.’
‘She did not. Her name is on his birth certificate, as is his father’s, but Dorothy, your mother, did not carry him for nine months and give birth to him in a private hospital in the north of England. Your mother was there, she was the first to see him.’
Murder of a Silent Man Page 17