The Scent of Death--A Sukey Reyholds British police procedural

by Betty Rowlands

  ‘So both of you have a key to his flat?’

  ‘No, he gave her just the one. She daren’t take it home in case her husband notices a strange key on her bunch and asks questions, so she leaves it with me.’

  ‘How long has the affair been going on?’

  ‘It started about three – no, I think it was four years ago. She told me the first things she noticed about him were his smile and his voice and she was attracted right away. She said he was a strange character, didn’t talk much; in fact, she told me the only other person he felt really at ease with was a man in his office. Have you spoken to him? I think his name is Ashman; perhaps he could help you. I really don’t want Petunia involved.’

  ‘We have spoken to Mr Ashman, but I’m afraid we really need to speak to your sister.’

  ‘And if I refuse to tell you where she lives?’

  ‘I’m sure you are aware that withholding vital information from the police is a serious offence and can result in prosecution.’

  Mrs Denny got up and went to the door. ‘I need a drink,’ she said. ‘Can I get you anything?’

  ‘A glass of fruit juice would be nice, thank you.’

  ‘Right, I’ll be back in a moment.’ She returned shortly after with a glass of orange juice for Sukey and what looked like a gin or vodka and tonic for herself. She sat down, took a mouthful of the drink and sat for a moment turning the glass in her hands. ‘Pet’s isn’t a bad marriage,’ she began, ‘but it isn’t ideal either. She was just twenty-one; I was a couple of years older, we were both pretty hard up and on our own.’

  ‘Your parents were both dead?’ asked Sukey.

  ‘Yes. Our mother died of cancer when we were still in our early teens. Dad struggled on for a couple of years – he used to call us his little flowers. That’s why he named us after some of his favourites; I’m Pansy Rose and my sister is Petunia L …’ She broke off and took another mouthful of her drink. ‘Anyway, Dad seemed to fade away after Mum died. There wasn’t much money left after all the expenses were paid, just enough with what we earned from not very well paid jobs to keep the house. And then this man turned up at the recruitment agency where Pet worked, looking for a job and he obviously fancied her from the word go. He invited her out a few times; then he was interviewed for a job, got it, asked her to marry him and she accepted.’

  ‘Was she in love with him?’

  ‘Not madly; she liked him a lot, but she wasn’t happy about leaving me on my own. I told her not to let that stand in her way so she went ahead. It was never an ideal relationship; he really loves her in his own way, which doesn’t include much in the way of, well, the thing is my sister has a pretty healthy libido and Morry hardly ever …’ Evidently embarrassed, she took refuge once again in her drink.

  ‘I get the picture,’ said Sukey. ‘The chemistry between her and Lance was pretty lively from the time they met. It happens,’ she added as thoughts of Harry flitted through her mind. She sternly dismissed them and said, ‘I do understand why you’re so anxious to protect not only your sister but her husband, but I’m afraid we have to speak to her. So will you please give me her name and address?’

  ‘I suppose I’ll have to, but I can’t believe Morry would hurt anyone.’

  ‘You’d be surprised at the number of times I’ve heard that about someone who’s turned out to have a violent streak,’ said Sukey.

  ‘I think you’ll be surprised at what I’m about to tell you,’ said Mrs Denny.

  As Sukey told Vicky when they spoke a short time later, ‘surprised’ was an understatement.

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  Sukey called Vicky as soon as she was out of sight of Mrs Denny’s house. Vicky answered immediately.

  ‘I was about to call you,’ she said. ‘I’ve just left the Pearsons. Hugh Pearson was there with his wife and to start with he gave me a bit of a hard time, said it was an intrusion and there was no need for a personal call, he’d had to leave his assistant in charge of the shop – he’s a pharmacist with his own business – because he wasn’t going to let his wife be bullied and so on. I managed to calm him down by explaining that it was a rather delicate matter and we felt a face-to-face interview would be more appropriate, so in the end he agreed, but he insisted on staying with her throughout the interview. Anyway, I think I’m on to something. The handkerchief doesn’t belong to Julie Pearson but she recognized the perfume and she’s pretty sure one of the office staff at Dallington Manor uses it as well. How did you get on anyway?’

  ‘The address book belongs to a lady called Petunia, and Pansy, whose name is Mrs Denny, is her elder sister. Pansy was equally reluctant to talk because Petunia had sworn her to secrecy. Incidentally it was Pansy who checked Rainbird’s flat after Harry and I went there because she was the one with the key. She explained that her sister was afraid to take it home in case her husband spotted it and started asking questions. In the end, I had to dangle the threat of being charged with refusing to divulge vital evidence in a murder enquiry before she agreed to talk.’

  ‘So Petunia is our mystery lady?’

  ‘She’s no longer a mystery. You aren’t going to believe this.’

  ‘You’re kidding!’ Vicky exclaimed on hearing the name.

  ‘I have to admit it knocked me sideways,’ said Sukey. ‘You said you’d left the Pearsons so I take it there’s nothing more we can do in Richmond.’

  ‘I can’t think of anything else. I’ll come and pick you up and we’ll head for home. Will you give the DI a call and tell him what you’ve discovered? I’ve already told him about the handkerchief but he didn’t seem to think it was much to go on. Perhaps he’ll be more impressed with your stick of dynamite.’

  ‘Let’s hope so.’

  To Sukey’s surprise, Rathbone received her news with some reservation. ‘I admit it does look pretty conclusive on the face of it,’ he said, ‘but I’ve had my fingers burned twice through jumping to conclusions without hard and fast evidence. All right, there’s a pretty strong motive and opportunity for Rainbird’s murder, but we’ll need more than that to pin Reg Law’s murder on him – unless of course we get a confession out of him. In fact I’m almost beginning to ask myself whether the two killings are related after all.’

  ‘I understand why you feel you have to treat carefully, Guv. I guess you want time to think.’

  ‘I want more than time – I want the results of the DNA test on those gloves you found in the rubbish bin. I’ll have a word with DCI Leach and see if he can get top priority for them. Anyway, well done both of you.’

  ‘Thanks, Guv. Vicky is on her way to pick me up and she’ll bring me back to HQ to pick up my car. We should be there around seven thirty or eight o’clock, depending on the traffic.’

  ‘I’ll be leaving at eight, so if you’re not back by then I’ll see you in the morning. Goodbye.’

  The motorway traffic was heavy and it was nearly half-past eight when Vicky dropped Sukey in the car park and they both headed for home. Having had nothing to eat since the canteen lunch and a bag of crisps picked up at the Membury service area, Sukey went straight to the freezer and took out a ready meal before responding to the message Harry had left with her answering service.

  ‘I’ve just got back from a trip to Richmond,’ she told him when he answered.

  ‘Richmond? What on earth were you doing there?’

  ‘Interviewing two witnesses. At least, I went to see one and Vicky saw the other. They both lived quite close together, which was handy. Mine was one of the people whose names were listed in the address book we found in Rainbird’s flat.’

  ‘I presume they were able to tell you who the book belonged to?’

  ‘It was a woman, and she was.’

  ‘I detect a note of excitement in your voice. Have you struck oil?’

  ‘I think we have, although Rathbone is playing it cool. He was convinced twice that we’d found our man, but we couldn’t make it stick so he’s scared stiff of making another mistake and he’s mad
e up his mind not to get too carried away without more evidence. He’s right; there’s still more to be collected but personally I’m pretty sure we’re on the right track this time.’

  ‘I don’t suppose there’s any chance of lifting the corner of the curtain so I can have a quick peek inside?’

  ‘Not for the moment, but you could make sure your pencil’s sharpened in the hope that there’ll be a statement before the end of the week. Is there any news your end, by the way?’

  ‘Yes, great stuff. The evidence against the cannabis farmers was so overwhelming that they threw in the towel and pleaded guilty, so they’ve been remanded to await trial. I’ll be home tomorrow.’

  ‘That’s wonderful, Harry. See you then. Good night, love you.’

  As a result of pressure from Superintendent Bradley, the results of the DNA on the gloves were waiting for DCI Leach the following morning. He immediately called DI Rathbone and said, ‘That’s all the evidence we need. Go and pick him up.’

  Half an hour later, Rathbone, Vicky and Sukey were on their way to Dallington Manor. When they arrived, Maxine was at the reception desk and Rathbone sent Sukey to speak to her.

  ‘Good morning,’ she said, ‘could I have a word with Mrs Chapman, please?’

  ‘Certainly; she’s in the office. Would you like to go through?’

  ‘Thank you.’

  Lily Chapman was seated in front of her computer. She looked up in surprise as Sukey entered, carefully closing the door behind her. ‘Is there something you want?’ she said, a little uneasily.

  ‘That’s a nice perfume you’re wearing,’ said Sukey. There was no reply. She took out of her pocket the transparent evidence bag containing the handkerchief. ‘It’s the same as the perfume on this. Do you recognize it?’

  Lily Chapman gasped and put a hand to her mouth. After a moment she said in a barely audible whisper, ‘Where did you find it?’

  ‘It was under the pillow in Lance Rainbird’s bed.’

  Lily Chapman wept for several minutes, mopping her tears with the handkerchief. It was as if the pent-up grief at her lover’s death had been released. Sukey waited patiently until she was calmer before saying. ‘So you admit this belongs to you?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Does your husband know about the affair?’

  Lily nodded. ‘He’d been watching us and he’d noticed the number of times he made excuses to ask for me at reception over something about his room or whatever. Then he started wondering why I had to visit my sister so often and he just put two and two together and one day he tackled me about it. We had a terrible row – the first since we were married – and then he broke down and started to cry and say it was his fault because he couldn’t … that is … oh, it was dreadful, I felt sad for him too. Then he calmed down and begged me to forgive him, and of course I did.’ Her look of distress changed to one of apprehension. ‘Is that the only reason you’re here, just to return my handkerchief?’

  ‘I’m afraid not,’ said Sukey gently. ‘This is going to …’

  Before she could finish, Maxine burst into the room. ‘Lily, I can’t believe this. Maurice has been arrested!’

  ‘Arrested!’ Lily appeared stunned. ‘What is he accused of?’ she asked Sukey. ‘He didn’t mean … I mean … that is, he hasn’t done anything.’

  ‘We need to ask him some questions,’ said Sukey.

  ‘What about? If it’s about Lance … he didn’t kill him … all he did was … it must be a dreadful mistake.’

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t tell you any more for the moment,’ said Sukey. Every vestige of colour had drained from Lily’s face and she collapsed into her chair. ‘Will you take care of her, Maxine? I have to leave now, but if necessary I’ll arrange for one of our people to look after her while her husband’s in custody.’

  Maurice Chapman sat in the interview room staring fixedly at Rathbone. Sukey, seated on Rathbone’s right with Vicky on his left, noticed that his normally florid features seemed to have lost much of their colour. For the first time she looked closely at his hands, which he kept spread out on the table; like Freeman’s, they had long, powerful-looking fingers. He was solidly built and she estimated that he was tall and strong enough to raise a baulk of timber and bring it down on Rainbird’s head with sufficient force, if not to kill him, at least to render him unconscious. Her imagination moved on to imagine those hands gripping Law’s throat.

  Rathbone switched on the video recorder and warned Chapman that he was being interviewed under caution. Apart from confirming his name, he said nothing but waited for the first question.

  ‘Were you aware that your wife was having an affair with Lance Rainbird?’ asked Rathbone.

  Chapman nodded. ‘Yes.’

  ‘How did you find out?’

  ‘I’d suspected it for some time. He’d been coming regularly to Justin Freeman’s music events and at other times as well. After a while I noticed something about the way they looked at each other when he checked in or came to the desk for any reason. I don’t think any of the staff noticed it – certainly I never caught the slightest hint of gossip – but I sensed there was some sort of chemistry between them. And I got suspicious when she kept finding excuses to go and spend a couple of days with her sister, so one day I tackled her about it. She denied it at first, but I knew she was lying; in the end she broke down and admitted it and I forgave her. I love her very much.’ For a moment he was overcome with emotion and Rathbone waited for him to control himself. ‘But I couldn’t forgive him.’ He spat out the word as if it tasted rancid. ‘I made up my mind that the next time he came I’d have it out with him.’

  ‘By “having it out with him” you mean you hit him on the head with a baulk of timber that happened to be handy and then stood by and watched him fall in the lake and drown.’

  ‘No!’ Chapman half rose in his seat and PC Bond, who was standing behind him, laid a hand on his shoulder. He sank back into his chair and said in a firm voice, ‘I wouldn’t do that to Lily. I admit I attacked him but he was still alive when I left him.’

  ‘So tell us exactly what happened.’

  ‘I saw him go out into the grounds immediately after dinner and I followed him. He was down by the lake talking to Justin Freeman for five, maybe ten minutes and I sat down under the cypress tree and waited. When Freeman went back into the hotel I tackled Rainbird. I told him I knew about his affair with Lily and said it had to end. He looked at me as if … as if I was nothing … he sneered at me and said something … very insulting.’ He broke off and stared at the table for several moments and Sukey guessed that pride prevented him from putting the insult into words. ‘Anyway,’ he said, ‘I lost my rag and gave him a punch in the stomach. I was quite a handy middleweight boxer when I was young,’ he added with an unexpected touch of pride.

  ‘Did he fight back?’ asked Rathbone.

  ‘No, he staggered backwards and fell over, banging his head on one of the big lumps of timber lying by the edge of the lake. He didn’t move for a minute and I was terrified I’d seriously injured him, but after a minute or two he managed to stand up. He was a bit unsteady on his feet but otherwise all right, so I just said something like “stay away from Lily unless you want more of the same” and came back into the hotel.’

  ‘You came back to the hotel,’ Rathbone repeated as if he wanted to make sure he had heard correctly, ‘and presumably went about your normal business.’

  ‘That’s right.’

  ‘And what happened next?’

  ‘I was in my office when I heard a woman screaming and came out just as Rosie came rushing in. She was hysterical and kept saying there was a man in the lake. I and a member of my staff, who has had some first-aid training, hurried to the scene and pulled the man out of the water; Ben tried artificial respiration but that didn’t work so we called an ambulance. When it arrived the paramedics said he was dead and called a doctor.’

  ‘Did you recognize the man?’

  ‘Of course I did.
It was Lance Rainbird.’

  ‘And what were your feelings at that moment?’

  ‘How do you think I felt? Shock, horror … disbelief, you name it. It seemed obvious at the time that it was just a dreadful accident, but you’re now saying it was murder; well, all I can say is that he was conscious and on his feet the last time I saw him so someone else must have killed him after I left him. My chief concern after we learned that he was dead was for Lily. It was natural for her to appear upset, but she made heroic efforts to conceal the fact that she was affected personally. I’m really proud of her for that.’

  ‘I’m sure you are. How did you feel when the police began interviewing everyone in an attempt to find out exactly how Rainbird came to be in the water?’

  ‘It was disturbing for everyone, of course, but we all did our best to cooperate with the investigating officers.’

  ‘It didn’t occur to you to tell us at the time exactly what had happened?’

  ‘I know I should have done, but I didn’t want Lily to know I’d hit the man she obviously loved.’

  ‘But she knew – or guessed – what happened and later she accused you of killing him?’ Chapman nodded.

  ‘When was that?’

  Chapman hesitated before saying, ‘I can’t remember exactly – maybe a day or two later.’

  ‘What was your reaction to her accusation?’

  ‘We had a rather heated argument and I’m afraid I lost my temper and not only admitted that I’d hit Rainbird but I was glad he was dead.’

  ‘Where did this “rather heated” argument take place?’

  ‘In our private sitting room.’

  ‘Where presumably no one is likely to have overheard – unless of course your voices were raised so that anyone happening to pass your room might have been tempted to stop for a moment and listen to what was being said.’