Inspector Zhang nodded sympathetically. “That being the case, why did you not leave?”
“Because me lawyer told me that if I left the marital home voluntarily that could be considered desertion.”
“And your husband did not consider moving out to be with the mother of his child?”
Mrs. Kwan shook her head. “He was more concerned that he kept the house. He had already moved most of our money into offshore trusts and he was making it difficult for me to get a lawyer.”
“And how exactly was he doing that?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. All I know is that every time I went to see a lawyer they would agree to take my case, but within a week they would come up with some excuse for not taking me on as a client. I’m sure my husband was behind it, but I could never prove it. The only lawyer I could get is frankly not up to the job.”
Inspector Zhang nodded thoughtfully. “It appears that nothing was stolen. Is it possible that your husband had enemies? Someone who would want to hurt him?”
“Other than me, you mean?” She smiled tightly. “If my husband treated others the way he treated me then yes, I’m sure he had a lot of enemies.”
“Inspector, I really think you are being a tad insensitive with Mrs. Kwan,” said Dr. Mayang. “Her husband has been brutally murdered. And she was sitting next to me on this very sofa when it happened.”
“I do understand your concerns,” said the inspector. “I would like to suggest that Mrs. Kwan speaks with Sergeant Lee in the kitchen while I speak with you.”
“Is that really necessary?” asked Mrs. Kwan, archly.
It was, very much so, thought Inspector Zhang, but he simply smiled and nodded. “It will make things easier and we will take up less of your time,” he said. In fact it was important to get the two witnesses apart when they told their stories so that their individual versions could be compared.
Mrs. Kwan stood up, clearly unhappily. “Very well then,” she said. “It will at least give me the chance to prepare some jasmine tea. Would you like some?”
“That would be lovely,” said Inspector Zhang.
“I was talking to Dr. Mayang,” said Mrs. Kwan. “I do not expect that you will be here long enough to be drinking tea.”
“I would love some tea, thank you,” said Dr. Mayang.
Mrs. Kwan walked out of the room, followed by Sergeant Lee.
Sergeant Wu nodded at Inspector Zhang. “I shall be outside, Inspector. No doubt the media will be here soon.” She left the room. The forensic investigator went to join his colleague in the study.
Inspector Zhang sat down on the sofa next to Dr. Mayang. “So what time did you arrive at the house, Dr. Mayang?”
“At six o’clock.”
“Precisely six o’clock?”
The doctor smiled. “I am always on time, Inspector. I am a very punctual person.”
“And Mrs. Kwan was expecting you?”
“We had arranged for me to call around at six. She had wanted to see me earlier but I had a patient to see in my surgery so six o’clock was the earliest I could get here.”
“And was it raining?”
Dr. Mayang frowned. “It stopped while I was driving, I think.” She narrowed her eyes and then nodded. “Yes, it stopped before I got here. I know because I had an umbrella and I didn’t need it when I got out of the car.”
“And what was the purpose of your visit?”
“The purpose?”
“Was it a professional visit, or a social one? I see you have your medical bag with you.”
The doctor smiled. “Ah, I see what you mean. Mrs. Kwan has been my patient for many years. But she is also a friend. And before that, many years ago, she worked for me. She had just qualified as a nurse and I gave her her first job.”
“But your visit today?”
“A social visit, Inspector. A chance to chat and drink some wine.”
“On those occasions that your visits are professional, what is the nature of your consultations?”
The doctor smiled. “I’m afraid I can’t tell you that, Inspector. Doctor-patient privilege. I’m sure you understand.”
Inspector Zhang removed his glasses and carefully polished them with a large blue handkerchief. “Of course,” he said. “So please tell me what happened this evening.”
“I arrived here at about six o’clock,” she said. “Mrs. Kwan opened a bottle of wine and we drank and chatted. She is having a difficult time, with the divorce and everything. Then we heard the sound of the window breaking. It was followed a few seconds later by a loud scream. Mrs. Kwan rushed across the hallway but the door to the study was locked. She banged on the door but nobody answered.”
“You were with Mrs. Kwan in the hallway?”
“Yes. She was very distraught. She rushed to the kitchen and shouted for the maid.”
“For what reason?”
“For what reason? I don’t understand.”
“Did she want the maid to do anything?”
Dr. Mayang shook her head. “I don’t think so. I think perhaps she just wanted people around her when she went outside. She took us out of the kitchen door and around the back of the house. As soon as we got near the study we could see that the window had been broken. Mrs. Kwan rushed inside and began screaming that her husband was dead.”
“Was the door open when you first approached it?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Please try to remember, Dr. Mayang. It is important.”
The doctor nodded slowly. “It was ajar, I think.” She frowned and then put up a hand to her face. “No,” she said. “It was closed. I remember that Mrs. Kwan had to turn the handle to open it.” She nodded, more confidently this time. “Yes, I’m sure, it was shut.”
“And where were you and the maid at the point that Mrs. Kwan went inside?”
“We were on the terrace.”
“You didn’t go inside?”
“We did, yes. But she rushed ahead. She was quite frantic.”
“Who followed Mrs. Kwan inside first? You or the maid?”
“The maid first. Then I followed.”
“And what did you see?”
“Mrs. Kwan was bent over her husband. I couldn’t see that at first, of course. The chair was facing away from us so I just saw the chair and her. Then she stood up and looked at me and said that he was dead. I hurried over and took a look for myself.”
“And was he dead?”
“He was dying,” said Dr. Mayang. “I felt a very faint pulse initially and there was a slight movement of his chest, but he was covered in blood.”
“You didn’t touch the knife?”
“Of course not,” she said. “Removing the knife would have only hastened the blood loss.”
“What was Mrs. Kwan doing at this point?”
“She was shouting at the maid to call for an ambulance. But I could see that was a waste of time. Mr. Kwan took his last breath and then there was no pulse.”
“He died while you were there?”
The doctor nodded. “Most definitely.”
“And did you see anyone else, while you were on the terrace? Anyone running away, for instance? Or anyone who shouldn’t have been there?”
“I don’t think so,” she said. “But to be honest I wasn’t looking. Once we saw the broken window, that was all we were looking at.”
Sergeant Lee appeared at the doorway. “Mrs. Kwan has tea for Dr. Mayang,” she said.
“That is fine, I have finished my interview with Dr. Mayang,” said Inspector Zhang.
Sergeant Lee stepped to the side and Mrs. Kwan walked into the room, carrying a tray of tea things. She put the tray on a side table and Inspector Zhang stood up so that she could sit down next to her friend.
“Are we finished?” asked Mrs. Kwan as she sat down.
“Soon,” said Inspector Zhang. He smiled at Sergeant Lee. “Sergeant, I need you to do something for me as a matter of urgency. Would you contact Meteorological S
ervices and obtain from them the times of today’s rainfall?”
“It rained for about half an hour, not long before we left the station.”
The inspector flashed her a kindly smile. “I need the precise times, please.”
“Of course, Inspector,” said Sergeant Lee. She fished her mobile phone from her handbag as she left the room.
“Is this going to be much longer?” asked Mrs. Kwan.
“I just have a few more questions,” said Inspector Zhang.
Mrs. Kwan looked at her wristwatch. “I really cannot spare you more than a few minutes,” she said.
“I’m sure that will be more than enough,” he said. “Now, Dr. Mayang has quite rightly not given me any information about her professional relationship with you.”
“Doctor patient privilege,” said the doctor, nodding.
“The Singapore Medical Council, if I remember correctly, states in its Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines that information obtained in confidence or in the course of attending to the patient should not be disclosed without a patient’s consent.”
“That is quite correct, Inspector,” said the doctor.
“That being said, I would like to ask you, Mrs. Kwan, if the medical problems you have had have been associated with your divorce.”
“My divorce?” repeated Mrs. Kwan.
“I understand that you wished to obtain a divorce from your husband but that he was making it difficult.”
“He was being impossible,” said Mrs. Kwan tersely. “He had cut off all my money and had been moving his assets offshore. My husband has quite a lot of influence and he managed to get three legal firms to drop me, one by one.” She threw up her hands. “It has been a nightmare, Inspector Zhang. A living hell.”
“One that Dr. Mayang has been able to offer you some help, I suppose?”
“My nerves are in a tangle,” said Mrs. Kwan. “I barely sleep these days. My blood pressure has been through the roof. I think that was always his plan, to put me under such stress that I would simply die.”
Inspector Zhang nodded sympathetically. “So Dr. Mayang prescribed you tablets for your blood pressure?”
Mrs. Kwan nodded.
“And for your nerves? An anti-depressant, perhaps?”
“They have been a life-saver,” said Mrs. Kwan.
“And for those sleepless nights? No doubt she prescribed you sleeping tablets?”
“They are the only way that I can get a good night’s sleep,” said Mrs. Kwan. “Without them I just lie in my bed, my mind in a turmoil.”
“It can’t have been easy, living under the same roof with a man you wanted to divorce.”
“I had no choice, I knew that if I ever left I would never see my house again,” said Mrs. Kwan. “But this has been my home for almost twenty years? Why should I leave?”
“You had separate bedrooms?”
Mrs. Kwan nodded. “We did. And during the day I confined myself to this room and he stayed in the study.”
“You rarely spoke?”
“There was no need,” said Mrs. Kwan. “If I needed to tell him anything I passed a letter to our maid.”
“Chanel?”
“Yes, Chanel. If my husband wanted to say something to me then he would give a note to Chanel. But mainly he communicated through his lawyers and they would write to me. But really, Inspector Zhang, he never had anything of importance to say to me on a daily basis. He hated me. I had never wronged him yet he hated me with a vengeance.”
“Why did he hate you, do you think?”
“I don’t think I know. Because I wanted what was rightfully mine. I wanted the house, and I wanted half the business. He wasn’t prepared to give me either.”
“So Chanel, the maid, she served you both?”
Mrs. Kwan nodded. “She is our maid and also our cook. She prepared meals for both of us.”
“But you never ate together?”
Mrs. Kwan laughed but here was a hard edge to her voice. “Of course not. He could not bear to be in the same room as me.”
“She prepared your meals at the same time?”
Mrs. Kwan frowned. “I don’t understand the question.”
“Did Chanel cook one meal and serve it to you separately? Or did she make individual meals?”
“Individual meals. We each told her what we wanted and when we wanted it.”
“And Chanel. Where is she now?”
Mrs. Kwan nodded at the door. “She has a room off the kitchen. She stays there when she is not working.”
“If you don’t mind, I would like a word with her.”
“She didn’t see the burglar, I’m sure of that,” said Mrs. Kwan. “She was in the kitchen when we heard the break in.” She looked across at Dr. Mayang. “That’s right, isn’t it?”
The doctor nodded in agreement.
“Who exactly was the last person to see your husband alive?” asked Inspector Zhang.
“That would have been Chanel. She took him in his cup of tea. He always drank a cup of hot Japanese green tea in the evening. She took him his tea at about five o’clock, I think.”
“And what about his evening meal?”
“My husband always ate early. He would have eaten at about four-thirty. You would have to ask Chanel. I really take no interest in my husband’s eating habits.” She looked at her watch again and made a tutting sound.
“I need to have a conversation with her,” said Inspector Zhang. “I would be grateful if you and Dr. Mayang would remain here for a while longer.”
“I really must protest,” said Mrs. Kwan tersely. “It is most improper that I am being kept a prisoner in my own home.”
“I won’t keep you for much longer,” said the inspector. He found the maid sitting in a small windowless room at the back of the kitchen. She was in her mid-thirties with nut-brown skin and glossy black hair tied back in a ponytail. There was a small wooden cross on the wall above her tiny bed and below it were taped half a dozen photographs of two small children, a boy aged nine or ten and a girl a couple of years younger.
She had left the door open. Inspector Zhang could understand why; the room was hardly much bigger than the kitchen table, certainly smaller than any prison cell he’d ever seen. She looked up as he appeared at the door and began to get to her feet. She was wearing a white apron over a simple print dress and flat shoes that appeared to be made of plastic. She started to stand up but Inspector Zhang smiled and waved for her to remain sitting. He showed her his police identification. “My name is Inspector Zhang and I just need to ask you a few questions,” he said.
“Am I in trouble?” she said. “I cannot lose this job, Inspector. My children need the money I send home every month.” Her lower lip was trembling and she pulled a handkerchief from her apron and dabbed at her eyes.
Inspector Zhang smiled and shook his head. “Of course you’re not in trouble,” he said. “I just have some questions, that’s all. Can you tell me what happened earlier today?”
“About Sir, you mean?”
Inspector Zhang nodded. “Dr. Kwan, yes,” he said. “I understand you were the last person to see Dr. Kwan alive?”
She nodded and dabbed at her eyes again. “I served him beef noodles in the study at half past four. Then at five o’clock I took him his tea. He always drank tea in the evening as he listened to his music.”
“So you went into the study?”
She nodded tearfully.
“The door was locked, was it?”
“No, he always waited until I took Sir his tea before he began listening to his music. I would give him his tea and then he would lock the door.”
“So Mrs. Kwan never made tea for her husband?”
Chanel shook her head. “Ma’am didn’t do anything for him. And Sir didn’t do anything for her. They never even spoke to each other.”
“And where was Mrs. Kwan while you were making Dr. Kwan’s tea?”
The maid frowned as she struggled to remember. “I think Ma’am was
in the kitchen.” She nodded. “Yes, she was getting the glasses and wine ready for her visitor. It was red wine and she opened the bottle. She always opened red wine at least an hour before she drank it. Ma’am said red wine needs to breathe. Is that true, do you know?”
Inspector Zhang smiled. “I think it is,” he said. “Allowing air to come into contact with the wine makes it taste better.”
“That’s what Ma’am said.”
“So she was here with you in the kitchen?”
“Yes. Ma’am said she was expecting Dr. Mayang and asked that I prepare some snacks once I had given Sir his tea.”
“What sort of snacks?”
“Cheese, crackers. Some spring rolls. Dr. Mayang loves my spring rolls.”
“And you prepared the snacks after you had served Dr. Kwan his tea?”
The maid nodded.
“What happened when you gave Dr. Kwan his tea?” asked Inspector Zhang.
“I knocked on the door. Sir said to come in. I put the tea down on the table by his chair.”
“So you served him his tea and went back to the kitchen?”
“Yes, Inspector.”
“And where was Mrs. Kwan at this point?”
“She had gone to the sitting room.”
“And what did you do next?”
“I prepared the snacks as Ma’am had asked.”
“How long did that take you?”
“About half an hour.”
“And during that time, Mrs. Kwan was in the sitting room?”
“I think so,” said the maid.
“And what time did Dr. Mayang arrive?”
“At just after six o’clock,” she said. “I’m really not sure exactly.”
“You let Dr. Mayang in?”
The maid nodded. “Yes. And I served the wine and the snacks and then came back here, to my room.”
“Your room is quite some distance from the sitting room,” said the inspector. “How does Mrs. Kwan summon you if you are needed?”
The maid smiled and pointed at a small metal box above the door. “That is a bell, sir. Ma’am presses a button and it rings.”
“The button is in the sitting room?”
“It’s a wireless system, Inspector. Sir and Ma’am carry small beepers and when they press them the bell rings. Ma’am’s bell is like a real bell and Sir’s is like a buzzer so I know who is ringing me and I go looking for them.”
The Eight Curious Cases of Inspector Zhang Page 22