by Val Collins
‘I’d assumed the money was Martin’s and Ruth was a stay-at-home mum. What does Martin do?’
‘Different things. He had some business that went bankrupt and Ruth had to bail him out. When they divorced, he poured his settlement into a property company. Then the property market crashed and he lost everything. I used to think he deserved it. Now I think maybe he was due some compensation for putting up with Ruth all those years.’
Aoife was tiring of the bitching, and it was obvious Bronagh would happily rant about Ruth’s perceived betrayal for hours.
‘Did you know Shane and Fiona well?’
‘Not really. I spoke to Fiona a few times. Shane didn’t come to the book club very often, but it was obvious they were happily married. I told Ruth that, but of course she wouldn’t listen to me.’
‘After the murder, you mean?’
‘What?’
‘You told Ruth that Shane wouldn’t murder his wife because they were happily married?’
‘No. I told her to stop chasing after Shane.’
*
‘Ruth was having an affair with Shane?’
‘I don’t know if it got that far, but she was always making up some excuse to have him around to her house.’
‘Was this while she was married to Martin?’
‘She definitely didn’t have an affair with him while she was married. I’m sure of that. But she often talked about how great Shane was and how Fiona didn’t deserve him. She told me she asked Shane around to give her advice about one of the salesmen she claimed to be having problems with. He came over several times after that. Of course, once she threw Martin out, Ruth didn’t have to make up excuses any more. Shane felt so guilty he visited her two or three times a week to make sure she was alright.’
‘Shane felt guilty about Ruth’s divorce? Why?’
‘He was the one who told Ruth about Martin’s affair with Triona.’
‘How did Shane know Martin was having an affair with Ruth’s sister?’
‘Martin and Shane used to be friends. I know because my husband and Martin went to school together. There’s a gang of them used to play for the school rugby team. They meet up every rugby season and go to all the games. When they coached together, Shane used to go with them. He knew about Martin’s affairs. We all did. Even Ruth. My husband knew about Triona but he didn’t tell me. He was afraid I’d tell Ruth. I’m not sure I would have but, in any case, I didn’t get the chance because Shane told her. Martin was furious. Ed—that’s my husband—said he had to pull him off Shane. He said Martin would have killed him if he’d had the chance.’
SEVENTEEN
Lisa
‘Then it wasn’t Keith after all?’ Lisa’s mother shut her eyes. ‘Thank God! About the only thing that could make this worse is discovering my own family killed my son.’
‘Aoife didn’t say Keith was innocent. All she said was she had discovered another suspect.’
‘Shane shouldn’t have gotten involved in that man’s marriage. If he’d minded his own business, they’d all be alive now.’
‘You know what Shane was like, Mum. He got friendly with this woman and it was probably killing him watching her being treated so badly. Ruth’s husband having an affair with her sister was probably the last straw.’
‘And this woman—what’s her name?’
‘Ruth.’
‘This Ruth liked Shane?’
‘According to Aoife, Ruth thought Fiona didn’t appreciate Shane. Presumably Ruth felt Shane would be happier with her.’
‘Did this Ruth’s husband know she liked Shane?’
‘I don’t know. Aoife’s going to look into that.’
Lisa’s mother nodded. ‘Because if he thought Shane was going to get together with his wife, he’d believe Shane would get all the wife’s money too.’
‘True.’
‘I don’t know if that would cause anybody to murder an entire family, but it’s certainly a motive for murdering Shane.’
EIGHTEEN
A very excited Amy waved at Aoife as the car pulled away. Now that kindergarten was closed for the summer holidays, Conor and Blaine were including her in their activities at least once a week. Having to arrange their day around a three-year-old would put a damper on their plans. Aoife knew Conor was trying to give her the space to work on her investigation and she was very grateful.
Her gratitude dissipated when she returned to the house to discover her shoes had disappeared from the shoe rack in the hall. Blaine couldn’t have taken them with him. Even if Conor hadn’t noticed, Amy certainly would. Amy had been so excited she’d been glued to Blaine’s side from the moment he entered the house. The only time he’d been alone was when he used the bathroom. A quick search of the bathroom and Aoife found her shoes in the clothes hamper. This was getting ridiculous. What could she do about it, though? Conor would never believe her and if she mentioned it, they’d fall out again.
She checked her watch. Time to leave. A quick Internet search and Aoife had discovered Martin owned a company called Martin’s Way. It employed sixteen people and provided an ‘elite service’, focusing on property that was snapped up before it ever reached the local property websites.
Aoife arrived at Martin’s office without an appointment. The office was off Stephen’s Green. If the intention had been to design a reception area that was memorable and unique, it had been a huge success. The ceiling-to-floor-length windows overlooking the park were certainly impressive. The attempt to bring the park into the office, a little less so. Withering and overgrown plants were everywhere. An empty aquarium ran almost the length of one wall, and the white-tiled floor looked slightly grotty. At one end of the room was a large receptionist desk with four chairs. Only one was occupied. The girl behind the desk couldn’t have been more than seventeen. She wore a black cropped T-shirt that displayed her belly ring. When a few seconds standing in front of her elicited no reaction, Aoife waved. The movement caught the girl’s attention and she looked up from her mobile and removed her earplugs.
‘Hi.’ A tongue piercing caught the light as she spoke.
‘Hi, I’m here to see Martin. I’m a friend of Ruth’s.’
‘Sure.’ The girl picked up the phone and pressed a button, waited a few seconds and pressed another. ‘This stupid machine is driving me crazy.’ She came out from behind the reception desk and Aoife saw she was wearing ripped jeans and orange trainers. ‘Come on,’ she said, beckoning to Aoife.
They went down a long, wide corridor. The receptionist gave a perfunctory knock on the door and opened it. ‘A friend of Ruth’s,’ she said, holding the door open to allow Aoife to enter.
‘What?’ Martin looked up from his computer, but the receptionist was gone. ‘Aoife, what are you doing here? Why did she say you were a friend of Ruth’s?’
‘Oh, Ruth and I are old friends now. Didn’t she tell you we had lunch together in Powerscourt a few days ago?’
‘You and Ruth had lunch?’
‘Yes, we had a great chat. I realised I’d completely misunderstood your relationship. Somehow I got the impression you were still married.’
‘Really? I can’t imagine how.’
‘Neither can I, now that I’ve heard the whole saga about you and Ruth’s sister.’
‘Ruth told you about Triona?’
‘I’m sorry. Was I not supposed to mention it?’
‘Why are you here, Aoife?’
‘Well, I realised I had forgotten to ask you some pertinent questions.’
‘I really don’t have time to talk to you today. Why don’t you make an appointment with my receptionist on your way out?’
‘Oh, there’s no need for that,’ Aoife said, taking a seat. ‘I won’t keep you long. What I wanted to ask you was this. Did it bother you that Shane and Ruth were in a relationship?’
‘What relationship?’
‘You didn’t know?’
Martin was silent for a moment. Aoife watched as his neck turned a light red
that spread to his cheeks. As the colour darkened, he burst out, ‘That bastard! So that’s why he told Ruth about my affair. I should have guessed. He’d known about my affairs for years and he’d never felt the need to mention them before. He was after Ruth’s money, wasn’t he?’
‘When you’re a rich woman, you never can trust the men around you.’
‘If you knew how many times I’ve told Ruth that. She should have stuck with me. I married her when she had nothing. And if I hadn’t helped her, she never would have built up that empire of hers. The woman had never set foot in an office in her life. I was the one who kept that business going until she could afford to hire staff. And what thanks do I get?’
‘It must be hard trying to manage without money when you were used to it for so long.’
‘You have no idea. I helped her choose that house and I suffered through the years of builders and architects just to find myself living in a two-bedroom apartment in the middle of nowhere. I told her it isn’t a suitable place for the boys to visit but she doesn’t care. She’d rather the boys were miserable than see me live with a modicum of comfort.’
‘It doesn’t bother her that your business is suffering either?’
‘Not a bit. I used to employ sixteen staff. Now there’s me and that moronic young one out there. If she wasn’t on work experience, I wouldn’t even have someone to answer the phone. Thank God I got Ruth to put the premises in my name years ago. At least I don’t have to pay rent.’
‘I can imagine! The rents around here must be extortionate.’
‘When you deal with the wealthiest people in the country, you need impressive offices. Of course, now that cretin is in reception, I can only have clients here if they want out-of-office-hours appointments. Most of the time I take public transport to their homes or offices and pretend I came by cab. If anybody saw me in that bloody Fiesta, I’d be ruined.’
‘And you never guessed that Shane and Ruth were an item?’
‘She used to flirt with him, but that’s Ruth’s natural way of communicating with men. Except me, of course. Normally it doesn’t mean anything.’
‘Did Shane flirt with her?’
‘Not that I noticed, but I suppose the bastard was too clever to give me any warning. If I’d known what he was up to, I might have been able to do something before he blabbed to Ruth about Triona.’
‘How could you have stopped him?’
‘I don’t know. Smash his head in? Believe me, I wanted to.’ He removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. ‘You know, I’ve been a complete and utter idiot. When Ruth convinced me to pretend we were a happy couple, she said it was so I wouldn’t come under suspicion. If the police saw we were reconciled, she said they would be less likely to believe I wanted revenge on Shane for breaking up our marriage. I was happy to go along with her plan. I thought it was a sign she still cared about me. Of course, now I can see her real aim was to protect herself. As that bastard’s bit on the side, she’d be an immediate suspect.’
NINETEEN
Aoife went straight from her interview with Martin to Orla’s office. Orla didn’t have time to go to lunch, so she brought Aoife down to the company canteen. It was a lot more modern than any office Aoife had ever worked in. It was too early for lunch but, as she waited for Orla to get coffee, Aoife heard the manager explain the courses to the servers. It was like a posh restaurant except for the fact that it didn’t deal in cash. Orla picked up a plate of cakes and swiped her ID card.
‘So, Shane and Ruth were having an affair?’ Orla said, tucking into an éclair.
‘I don’t know, the idea had obviously never occurred to Martin. But he definitely had an affair, and he definitely blamed Shane for his divorce. That gives him a motive for murder.’
‘Mmm. Maybe. It might give him a motive to kill Shane, but why butcher Fiona and the kids?’
‘Because Martin lost Ruth and the kids through the divorce, so he wanted Shane to feel the pain of losing his family too?’
‘From what you said, I didn’t get the impression that Martin was that bothered about the loss of his family. It’s the loss of Ruth’s money that’s killing him.’
‘He wouldn’t be the first person to value money above people, and he wouldn’t be the first to kill because he was denied money either.’
*
Aoife knew she wouldn’t need to chase after Ruth. Ruth had her phone number. It was only a matter of time before she called. Aoife was still talking to Orla when her phone rang. ‘Sorry,’ she muttered to Orla as she took the call.
‘Hi, Ruth.’ She deliberately kept her voice light and airy.
‘Why the hell did you tell my husband I was having an affair? How dare you! I never cheated on that lying scum. Not once.’
‘Martin must have misunderstood me. I wondered if he suspected you and Shane of having an affair. I didn’t say you actually had one.’
‘What business is it of yours who I do or do not have an affair with? And why would you think Shane and I were an item anyway?’
‘It came up during my investigation.’
Ruth took a second to reply, then said, ‘That lying bitch, Bronagh. I give one interview to raise awareness of our book club and she holds a lifetime vendetta. There was nothing stopping her coming on the radio too. But could you blame me for not wanting her there? She dresses like she’s in a competition to display as much of her body as possible. Who would look at her and think “intellectual willing to discuss serious literature”? Anyway, how was I supposed to know she expected me to mention her name every five seconds? Don’t listen to that cow. Shane and I were friends. That’s all.’
‘But you wanted more.’
‘Yes, I wanted more. And I’m sure I would have got more if…’ Ruth’s voice broke.
‘You loved him, didn’t you?’
‘Of course I loved him. He was everything that husband of mine isn’t. Kind, generous, faithful.’ Her voice grew stronger. ‘He stuck with that cow, Fiona, just because he’d been stupid enough to marry her. I know people think Shane was a monster, and I’m not defending what he did. Obviously he had some sort of a nervous breakdown. But the person who led him to that breakdown was that shrew.’
‘Fiona?’
‘Yes, Fiona. His bitch of a wife. She’s the real reason that entire family is dead.’
TWENTY
‘You’re saying Fiona caused Shane to murder his family?’
‘I know she did.’
‘How do you know?’
‘I saw the way she treated him. He was one in a million and she didn’t appreciate him at all. Shortly after Martin and I separated, Fiona hosted the book club. I followed her into the kitchen and I overheard her saying to Shane, “How many times do I have to tell you to buy the coffee with the gold top, not the brown one? Nobody is going to drink this.”’
‘Was she shouting?’
‘No. Well, she wouldn’t in front of us, would she? But she wasn’t hiding her contempt.’
‘What did Shane say?’
‘He said, “I think we have some of the old stuff left.” You see what I’m saying? He was so used to being spoken to disrespectfully that it didn’t even register with him that her behaviour was appalling.’
‘If you disliked Fiona so much, why did you let her join the book club?’
‘Shane asked me to. He was in the house one day when I got a phone call about the book club. He mentioned that Fiona was on the waiting list for two book clubs and could she join mine. I couldn’t say no to him.’
‘Were there other times when you felt Fiona treated Shane disrespectfully?’
‘She told one of the girls in book club that she managed all their finances. According to Fiona’—Ruth sniffed—‘Shane was incapable of managing his own salary, so Fiona controlled all the expenditure. She treated him like a kid.’
‘If there was nothing between you and Shane, why did you want me to think you and Martin were still together?’
Silence.
&n
bsp; Had she hung up?
‘Ruth?’
‘I—I sent Shane some emails that were of a—personal nature. I’m sure the police have found them by now, and I figured they must be trying to work out who sent them. They’re not the kind of emails you’d want strangers to see. What if they ended up in the papers and my friends, neighbours or, God forbid, my kids, saw them? I didn’t want anybody guessing they were connected to me.’
‘The police must know where the emails came from. They could easily trace the computer IP address.’
‘I know, but I don’t think they could connect the IP address to me. I regularly have meetings with purchasing managers in hotels. The receptionists all know me. They don’t mind me using the visitors’ computer while I’m waiting.’
‘Aren’t those computers passworded?’
‘Yes, but everybody is given the same password and they never bother to change them.’
‘You don’t think you were picked up on CCTV?’
‘Maybe, but if anyone checked, I’ve been going in and out of most Dublin hotels fairly regularly for the last five years. And I only used the computers in the smaller hotels. The larger ones tend to have a business suite, and you need a room key to enter.’
‘Why didn’t you use your own computer?’
‘I work from home. My computer is part of the company network. I don’t know enough about IT to understand how that works, but I’ve heard of managing directors who were fired because the IT department caught them sending out porn. I didn’t want anyone from my company reading the emails I sent Shane.’
‘But you must have used a fake name too. Why did you do that?’