Dark Room

by Minette Walters

  Cheever held out his hand to her as he stood up. "It's hardly appropriate to say this, Miss Kingsley, but I've enjoyed crossing swords with you. I'm only sorry we had to meet in such tragic circumstances. You may be required to appear at the inquest, but if you give your evidence there as clearly as you've just given it to us, there shouldn't be a problem. In my experience, a little generosity goes a long way. Suicide is always easier to accept if there's a good reason for it."

  "I know," she said, shaking his hand. "If Simon had made my car crash look like an accident, then I'd have been a little more worried. You see, I could always accept I might have killed Meg and Leo. They really did behave like bastards. I just couldn't accept I'd kill myself."

  His eyes twinkled. "So you weren't quite as indifferent as you led us to believe?"

  She smiled suddenly. "I have my pride, Superintendent. After all, I am Adam Kingsley's daughter."

  Fraser turned the car into the main road. "So what's the verdict, sir?" he asked. "Do you still reckon she got her old man to take Harris out?"

  "I do," said the Superintendent mildly. "She was afraid it would be her word against his, didn't trust us to believe her, so turned to her father to sort something out."

  "Well, I'm not so sure. She strikes me as being dead straight, sir."

  "But as she said herself, Sean, she's Adam Kingsley's daugher."

  "With respect, sir, I don't see what difference that makes."

  "You would, if you'd ever met the breed." Frank looked out of the window onto sunlit countryside. "They're effective. They get things done."

  "They weren't too effective when Landy was murdered."

  "People rarely are when they're at cross-purposes."

  "How come?"

  "I suspect he became convinced that she killed Russell, and she became convinced that he did. If they both learned about the affair afterwards, then they knew there was a motive for the other one to commit the murder. Divided they fell, united they stand."

  "It seems odd that Miss Kingsley didn't tell the police, though, You'd think she'd want her husband's murderer punished, and let's face it, it's not as though she's very fond of her father."

  "You think so, do you?"

  "She certainly doesn't go out of her way to express affection for him."

  Cheever smiled but kept his thoughts to himself.

  "So are you going to charge Adam Kingsley with Simon's murder, sir?"

  The Superintendent closed his eyes and let the sun warm his face. "I don't think I heard you right, Sergeant. Did you say something about a murder?"

  "Isn't that what you reckon-" Fraser broke off.

  "Yes?"

  "Nothing, sir."

  THE NIGHTINGALE CLINIC-12:45 P.M.

  Matthew Cornell opened his eyes to find Alan Protheroe looming over him where he lay sprawled on a bench in the clinic gardens. "Hi, Doc." He shielded the sun's glare with a raised hand, then swung his legs off the seat and sat up, lighting a cigarette.

  Alan lowered himself onto the vacant piece of bench. "The police have come up with a bizarre theory about Simon Harris' suicide," he said in a conversational tone. "They seem to think Jinx might have given his name to her father in order to have him dealt with once and for all." He glanced sideways. "However, she's persuaded them that she didn't remember anything until yesterday morning, which means neither she nor any of her friends here could have passed the information on."

  Matthew looked straight ahead. "Why are you telling me?"

  "Because I know how you like to keep abreast of the facts."

  The young man turned to grin at him. "Plus, you don't want my cred as the clinic networker destroyed by getting the story wrong. Isn't that right. Doc?"

  "I couldn't have put it better myself, Matthew."

  "Well, I reckon good faith is all about justice." Matthew turned the cigarette between his fingers. "Have you ever wondered what a murderer's victims would demand if their voices hadn't been silenced? At the very least they would ask to be heard as loudly as their killers, wouldn't they?"

  "There's a difference between justice and revenge, Matthew."

  "Is there? The only difference I see is that justice comes damned expensive. If it didn't my father couldn't afford to keep me here."

  Half an hour later, Alan stood with Jinx at her window and watched a tall, well-built man in an immaculate suit emerge from the back seat of a Rolls Royce. "Your father?"

  "Yes."

  "You've never explained why you call him Adam."

  "What makes you think there is an explanation?"

  He smiled. "Your expression every time the subject comes up."

  She watched the tall figure disappear from view into the build-ins. "I wanted to punish him, so I did what God did and cursed Adam for allowing his wife to seduce him." She turned to Alan. "I was seven years old. I've called him Adam ever since."

  "You were jealous of Betty."

  "Of course. I didn't want to share my father with anyone. I adored him."

  Alan nodded. "In spite of everything, I suspect you still do."

  "No," she said, "I'm long past adoration. But I do admire him. I always have. He achieves while the rest of us get by."

  "Well, I hope you recognize that he's making the first move," said Alan casually. "Will you be generous to him?"

  "If I'm not, the clinic won't get paid." She smiled slightly at his expression. "Don't go sentimental on me, Dr. Protheroe. The one thing you can be sure of is that my father will never change. He'd sue if he thought you'd deliberately poisoned my mind against him."

  "So what happens now?"

  "I'm discharging myself. I'm not your patient anymore. I think we say good-bye."

  "Where will you go?"

  "Back to Richmond."

  "Does your father know Miles and Fergus are there?"

  "Not unless they've told him."

  "If they need a good barrister, then don't forget Matthew's father. I'm told he's one of the best."

  Jinx smiled and tapped her pocket. "Matthew's given me his card. I thought I'd use the gains I've made on the Franchise Holdings shares to pay his fees. Matthew says they'll be exorbitant." She shrugged. "Then with luck and a little emotional blackmail, I may persuade Adam to acknowledge Betty and the boys again once it's all over."

  "You don't think it might be better to let Miles and Fergus fight this battle alone?"

  "Probably."

  "Then why don't you?"

  "Because they're my brothers," she said, "and their mother's the only one I've ever known. It's worth another try, don't you think?"

  "It depends whether you believe in the triumph of hope over experience."

  "I do. Look at me. Look at Matthew."

  He nodded. "Matthew's very fond of you, Jinx."

  "Yes." She listened for footsteps approaching down the corridor. "But only because I have the same black eyes as his dying fox. He wants to train as a vet when he leaves here. Has he told you that?"

  Alan shook his head.

  "He's a sucker for wounded animals. People, he can take or leave."

  "He's not so different from you then."

  She gave a little jump as Adam's footsteps sounded at the top of the stairs. "On the whole," she said in a rush, "I'm not quite so prepared to leave them as I used to be. Perhaps my judgment's improving."

  "That's good." He smiled down at her. "The Nightingale's achieved something then."

  "Except that I don't think it was the Nightingale." She crossed to the door and stood with her back to it. "I don't always look like a dog, you know. You'd be amazed what a little hair does for me." She hesitated. "I-er-I suppose you wouldn't like to look me up in a month or two when I'm presentable?"

  He shook his head. "Not really."

  She blushed with embarrassment. "It was just a thought, Dr. Protheroe. Rather a stupid one. Sorry."

  There was a loud knock on the door. "Jane, are you in there? It's your father."

  Alan lowered his voice. "The name
is Alan, Jinx, and who the hell needs hair? I only ever fantasize about bald women."

  Another knock. "Jane? It's your father."

  Her eyes gleamed. "I'll be with you in ten minutes, Adam," she called. "There's something I have to do first. Can you wait in the foyer for me?"

  "Why can't I wait in there?" Adam Kingsley demanded.

  The Nightingale's administrator lifted an eyebrow. "I'll be psychotic in two months," he murmured. "It does a man no good no keep his feelings zipped up as tightly as this. I'm in considerable pain here."

  Jinx was shaking with laughter as she quietly locked the door. "It's a woman's thing, Adam," she called to him in a quivering voice. "You'd only be embarrassed."

  "Oh, I see. Well, no rush," said her father gruffly. "I passed Dr. Protheroe's office on my way in. I'll have a word with him while I'm waiting."

  "You do that," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes. "You'll like him, Adam. He's your sort of man. Straight as a die and larger than life."

  -=*@*=-

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  Document creation date: 24.7.2011

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  Document authors :

  Minette Walters

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