She folded her arms. ‘It’s a simple question, Joe. Why was that?’
‘I didn’t come here to be interrogated,’ he said, sharply.
‘There are certain things I deserve to know.’
‘I wish I hadn’t even mentioned Odele now.’
‘Is that her name – Odele?’
‘Calm down, Alice. You’re getting this out of proportion.’
‘I’ve spent all that time, telling Iris what a lovely, honest, reliable man I have in my life and you go off with this Odele person.’
‘I didn’t “go off”. I had to get an address from her.’
‘And you gave her the wrong signals in the process.’
‘No,’ he said in exasperation. ‘I didn’t give her any kind of signal.’
‘I always trusted you, Joe Keedy.’
‘And you were right to do so.’
‘I wonder …’
They were both throbbing with anger. Alice couldn’t quite understand how they’d reached that position and she was unable to stop herself from making it worse.
‘I’m beginning to think that Paul may be right about you.’
‘What the hell has your brother got to do with it?’
‘He said that you were too old for me and too fond of other women.’
Keedy spluttered. ‘Then he can mind his own bloody business.’
‘Joe!’
‘I’m sorry to swear but I’m not having Paul saying things like that.’
‘But there’s a grain of truth in them. Before me, there were—’
‘That’s all in my past, Alice. Once I’d committed myself to you, no other women interested me.’
‘Until you met Odele, that is.’
Keedy had to rein in his temper. Conscious that they were being watched by Iris Goodliffe from a short distance yards away, he wanted to bring the argument to an end. In his desire to see Alice, he’d foolishly managed to give her a reason to be jealous. They both needed time apart to cool off.
‘I shouldn’t have come,’ he said, bluntly.
‘It would have been better if you hadn’t.’
‘I didn’t mean to upset you, Alice.’
‘Iris is waiting. I’ll have to go.’
‘Let’s not part on a sour note.’
‘You were the one who introduced it.’
‘That’s not true at all,’ he said, hissing the words at her. ‘I came here because I wanted to see you. I thought you’d be pleased. Obviously, I was wrong. And as for your brother,’ he added, eyes flashing, ‘you can tell him that I want a word with him. Just because he’s suffering from shell shock, it doesn’t mean that he can spread lies like that about me.’
Hurt and inflamed, Keedy marched off.
Paul Marmion had enjoyed his day with her. Mavis Tandy was a good listener and an interesting person in her own right. When it was time to part, he didn’t have to ask her if he could see her again because she put that question to him. She suggested that they might meet halfway between London and Gillingham so that neither had such a long journey. As she waited to wave him off at the bus stop, he reviewed the visit and decided that she really liked him now. It was only a matter of time, he hoped, before he’d replace Colin Fryatt in her affections and become her boyfriend with all the licensed pleasures that would mean. Meeting her had made such a difference to him. Paul had someone completely outside the family in whom he could confide. He’d told Mavis things that he’d never mention at home and she’d been both supportive and understanding. His only regret was that he couldn’t see her more clearly. Mavis was still very largely a fuzzy outline to him.
When the bus eventually came, he was sorry that he had to leave. There was, however, an unexpected thrill. At the very moment when he was about to step onto the vehicle, Mavis grabbed him by the shoulders and planted a kiss on his lips. The warm glow inside him lasted all the way home.
Before he even met him, Marmion was ready to dislike Godfrey Noonan intensely. Everything he’d heard about the agent was to his discredit. When he finally confronted the man, however, his aversion was tempered by curiosity. There was something oddly engaging about Noonan. He was a fleshy individual of middle years in a striking houndstooth check suit and a red, spotted tie that matched a florid complexion. His large, mobile eyes looked out from beneath a wholly unconvincing ginger wig. Seated in a swivel chair that creaked ominously every time he moved, he seemed to occupy over half of the office. Marmion was glad that his secretary had stepped into the adjoining room to give them privacy. Three people in the limited space would have produced serious overcrowding.
‘I gather that you went to Chingford today, sir,’ began Marmion.
‘That’s right, Inspector. Had I known that you wanted me, I could have presented myself to you there.’
‘What took you there, Mr Noonan?’
‘I had to visit a friend.’
‘May I know who it was?’
‘Is that absolutely necessary?’ asked Noonan.
‘I can’t force you to tell me.’
‘Then I certainly won’t do so. You’ve come about this wretched murder, haven’t you? Simon was a good friend.’
‘That’s not what I heard, sir.’
Noonan gave a hearty laugh. ‘Ah,’ he said, ‘you’re talking about the court case. I have no regrets about that. Simon was quite right to sue me. It was all the fault of my accountant, actually. I’m pleased to say that he’s no longer in my employ.’
‘You and Mr Wilder had an acrimonious parting, I gather.’
‘Balderdash!’ he exclaimed, slapping a thigh. ‘I’m never acrimonious.’
‘He ceased to be a client of yours.’
‘That was unfortunate but, in the circumstances, it was inevitable. I helped Simon through some very lean years, you know. It would have been nice to get a slice of his increasing fame.’
‘I believe that you represent Tom Atterbury.’
‘I represent lots of talented artistes,’ said Noonan, expansively, ‘and I have a long list of clients waiting for the chance to be one of God’s Chosen People. That’s what they call me, you see – I’m God.’
‘How did Mr Atterbury and Mr Wilder get along?’
‘They were friendly rivals, Inspector.’
‘As it happens, I met Mr Atterbury and he was far from friendly. When we asked him where he was on the night of the murder, he deliberately misled both my sergeant and me.’
Noonan eyes protruded. ‘You think that dear Tom is a suspect?’
‘Everyone who stands to gain from Mr Wilder’s death needs to be looked at, sir. That’s part of the reason that I came to see you.’
‘Well, you can take my name off the list immediately. I was not even in London. I was watching a play in Manchester. I can give you the name of the hotel where I spent that night, if you wish. In any case,’ he went on, jabbing his spotted tie, ‘what do I stand to gain from Simon’s death?’
‘You might get satisfaction – to put it no higher than that.’
‘I mourn the loss of any genius, Inspector, and that’s what he was,’
‘So why did you attempt to defraud him?’
‘I can’t be blamed for the errors of my accountant.’
‘You can be blamed for employing an incompetent in the first place.’
Noonan laughed. ‘How right you are, Inspector,’ he said, ‘but we all make mistakes when we try to judge someone’s character. For instance, you might be making one right now.’
‘Why do you think Mr Atterbury should not be suspected of murder?’
‘I know him too well.’
‘The neighbours used to say the same thing about Dr Crippen.’
‘Are you telling me that Tom Atterbury is about to poison his wife and run off with another woman?’ Noonan’s laugh was a guffaw this time. ‘Clearly, you haven’t met Naomi. She’s Beauty Incarnate. Tom and Naomi are destined to win the British Dance Championship this year.’
‘That’s a feat made easier
by the withdrawal of the favourite.’
‘Tom and Naomi were the real favourites, Inspector. Take my word.’
‘I was told that the strongest challenge would come from Mr Redmond and his partner.’ Noonan wrinkled his nose. ‘The gentleman is not a client of yours, I fancy.’
‘He’s neither client nor friend. I detest the man. But he should definitely be listed as a suspect. Allan really did stand to gain from Simon’s murder.’
‘Yet, according to you, the champions who’ll definitely be crowned at the event are Mr and Mrs Atterbury. If Redmond wanted to improve his chances of success, surely he should have killed them instead.’
The comment was enough to silence Noonan and to wipe the flabby smile from his face. Marmion suddenly felt very unwelcome. He pressed the agent on the subject of Tom Atterbury but got very little new information out of him. When he shifted his attention to someone else, however, Marmion had more success.
‘I understand that you know Mrs Wilder very well,’ he said.
‘That was years ago, Inspector. We’ve drifted apart since then.’
‘Do you regret that?’
‘Deeply – Catherine is a lovely woman.’
‘Did you fall out when her husband took you to court?’
‘No,’ said Noonan, ‘it was before that. We had … differences of opinion.’
He went on to confirm some of the things that Marmion had gleaned from his visit to Gillian Hogg. As well as representing actors and dancers, Noonan had been a shrewd investor in productions at West End theatres. He could sense the winners and detect the stink of potential losers. Before she married Wilder, Catherine was another enthusiastic investor in forthcoming shows and actually appeared in some of them as a result. Between them, she and the agent had turned a sizeable profit.
‘Catherine felt that she was better off without me,’ said Noonan, tolerantly. ‘I had no quarrel with that. We’ve both made sound investments since, though I did warn her against buying that hall in Chingford.’
‘It’s been a Mecca for ballroom dancers.’
Noonan sniggered. ‘You won’t find much ballroom dancing in Mecca, I’m afraid. In the Middle East, they’re more likely to be doing war dances.’
‘You take my meaning, sir.’
‘I do, Inspector, and they did make the place pay well, I grant you that. But there were ways they should have taken of increasing their profits.’ He scratched his double chin. ‘Who put you on to me?’
‘It was my superintendent who first mentioned your name, sir.’
‘You’ve also had help from one of my enemies. That’s why you’re asking me these questions. Who was it – some useless actor I refused to handle? Or was it some rancorous little darling who claims that I put a hand on her thigh?’
‘I came here because of your link to Mr and Mrs Wilder.’
‘You’ve heard all there is to hear on the topic.’
‘Not quite, sir – you haven’t solved one irritating little mystery.’
‘And what’s that?’
‘I’ve spoken to Mrs Wilder more than once and we’ve talked about various people in the dance world. Given the fact that you and she were once commercial partners, isn’t it remarkable that she never once spoke your name? I don’t claim that she still worships God,’ said Marmion, pointedly, ‘but you’d think she’d remember someone as unforgettable as you.’
While she could not hear what was being said, Iris Goodliffe had seen that Alice and Keedy were having a heated row. She knew better than to ask what it had been about. For the best part of twenty minutes, they walked on in silence. There were a few incidents to deal with and that spared them the awkwardness of talking together. It was Alice who finally spoke up.
‘Thank you, Iris.’
‘I’m saying nothing.’
‘I’m sorry you had to see that.’
‘You don’t have to apologise,’ said Iris. ‘And you don’t have to tell me anything. But you were right about Sergeant Keedy. He is tall and good-looking.’
Alice winced. ‘We had a silly disagreement, that’s all.’
‘I have those all the time with my sister.’
‘It was my fault.’
‘I’d never admit that. I always blame Evelyn.’
‘Do you mind if we talk about something else?’
‘No,’ said Iris. ‘We haven’t decided what film to see tonight.’
‘You choose.’
‘We want something we both like, Alice.’
‘What’s on at the moment?’
Iris laughed. ‘Oh, I can tell you that.’
She reeled off a list of films they might see and they discussed their respective appeal. Fortunately, they seemed to have similar tastes. Iris was in her element, offering all kinds of suggestions and recalling favourite films from her mental scrapbook. Alice threw in the occasional comment but she was not really listening to her friend. The argument with Keedy had worried her, creating a rift that went alarmingly deep. It had all happened so quickly and she was partly responsible. They’d never spoken to each other like that before. When they did have disagreements, they made sure that they took place in private. Alice was desperate to repair the damage but she had no idea whatsoever how she should go about it.
‘I loved him in his last film,’ said Iris. ‘I’ve always wanted a man who could sweep me off my feet like that.’
‘So did I,’ murmured Alice. ‘And I thought I’d found him.’
Having been given the allotted car at Scotland Yard, Keedy asked the driver to take him to the address in the Hertfordshire countryside. The long journey gave him time to reflect on the abrasive meeting with Alice. Though he blamed himself for raising the subject of Odele Thompson, he was still shocked by the sudden jealousy he’d unwittingly provoked. She’d accused him of things he hadn’t done – or even thought of doing – and it was hurtful. As for the remark made by her brother, it made Keedy livid, all the more so because she had used it as a weapon to stab at him. He’d seen very little of Paul since the latter had come out of hospital but always asked Marmion about him. His only concern now was to meet him face to face and demand to know why he’d made such a comment to his sister.
Keedy was back in a situation he’d known before. Whenever he’d fallen out with one girlfriend, he’d immediately begun to search for a new one on the principle that that was the best possible way to get over his loss. He found himself doing that now, thinking about various attractive women who’d crossed his path recently and wondering what would have happened if he’d struck up a friendship with one of them. It was only a matter of time before Odele Thompson came to mind and he had to admit that she’d aroused flickers of temptation in him. If he was a free man, he decided, he wouldn’t have ignored her innuendoes and rejected her advances. Odele had the vitality of a professional dancer and a lack of inhibition that was exciting.
The car reached a junction and came to an abrupt halt as another vehicle shot across its path. Keedy was, literally, catapulted out of his reverie. He was shocked that he’d even thought about other women. Alice knew and accepted that he had had a past littered with romances. They’d agreed to put it behind them and made a series of promises to each other. Keedy began to feel remorse. At the same time, he couldn’t easily forgive the way that she’d attacked him. What had happened between them was more than a lovers’ tiff. It had shown that, for all her protestations, Alice still didn’t trust him. Since he was likely to meet a number of women in the course of his work, there would always be grounds for suspicion on her part. It made him feel shackled.
Meanwhile, he had a job to do so he began to chat to the driver.
‘How much longer will it take us?’
‘I don’t know, sir,’ said the man. ‘It’s the other side of St Albans.’
‘Can you go any faster?’
‘I’ll do my best.’
The car surged forward and Keedy settled into the back seat. In making the journey, he was relying on pure instin
ct. When he’d seen Allan Redmond leaving the Wimbledon house in a rush, he knew that he’d frightened the man into precipitate action. That was often indicative of guilt. Yet there was no guarantee that he’d fled to his country cottage. The drive across Hertfordshire could turn out to be a waste of time. Redmond might equally well have gone to ground elsewhere or even, it now occurred to Keedy, have decided to leave the country altogether. In that event, the dancer would instantly become the prime suspect and an angry Claude Chatfield would demand to know why the sergeant hadn’t arrested the man when he had the opportunity. Keedy could already hear the superintendent’s rasping voice.
‘Come on, man,’ said Chatfield, rapping his desk with his knuckles, ‘you’ve been in this job long enough to develop your instincts. Is he or is he not our killer?’
‘No, sir,’ replied Marmion. ‘Mr Noonan is not.’
‘Are you certain of that?’
‘I’m certain that he didn’t commit the murder. You only have to look at him to see that. He’s too fat, slow and short of breath. Noonan is also too fond of quality tailoring to risk getting a spot of blood on his clothing. On the other hand,’ Marmion went on, ‘he might well have incited someone else to kill Wilder.’
‘So it was worth interviewing him?’
‘Yes, sir, and I’m grateful to you for bringing him to our notice.’
‘Mrs Wilder should have done that.’
‘I mean to ask her why she didn’t do so, Superintendent. When he told me that he hadn’t had anything to do with her for years, I didn’t believe Noonan for a second. I think he’d spoken to her earlier today.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Why else would he go to Chingford?’
‘One of his clients might live there.’
Marmion smiled. ‘Godfrey Noonan would be highly unlikely to drive ten miles to see clients, sir. They come to him. He’d save on expenses that way and he’d also maintain his image as their God. When they need his services, they have to worship him.’
‘Yet you say that he operates from some shoddy premises.’
‘Don’t be misled by that. He’s clearly a wealthy man.’
‘So he could afford to hire a killer.’
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