The Untimely Death Box Set

by James Kipling

  Tim held out his hand. “Thank you, young man. You have been most helpful.”

  Alan beamed. He enjoyed being important. When Geoffrey and Tim went outside, Geoffrey said, “the tall man may or may not be the man we’re looking for. It’s a pity that we got such a vague description. Carla also described a tall man with a stoop approaching the bench. There may be something to it.”

  Chapter 10

  1

  Gladys, Jane’s friend, was a chirpy woman in her late thirties. She met Tim and Geoffrey in a café over coffee.

  Once they were all sitting down, Gladys said, “you must understand that I knew Jane quite well. I really loved her and though quite some time has passed since her death, I still haven’t gotten over it. I agreed to meet you because her killer deserves to be punished.”

  “What sort of girl was Jane?”

  “Jane was a good friend, but the girl was unhappy when she died. She was a stickler for rules, even at work, and she hated going off the beaten track. She liked to stick to routine. She always went straight home from work, freshened up, and then went out or watched television. Perhaps that's what got her in the end. Jane came from a broken home and that, I guess, affected her. She would sometimes withdraw into a shell. Jane was rather insecure, and she was unfortunate in her love life. I think she had high hopes for Eric but Jane felt he was getting tired of her. When he called off the date, she suspected the worse. She told me, ‘Gladys, I don’t know why men tire of me so easily. Each time I hope for something, it comes crashing down. It will be the same with Eric. I feel it in my bones.’

  “I scolded her. ‘Why do you always think of the worst? After all, he only called off a date. It happens all the time.’

  “But Jane said, ‘You don’t know Eric the way I do. He’s tired of me; he’ll break up with me soon. Why do things always go wrong? It's so difficult to build up a relationship.’

  “Well, I said, ‘don’t worry. Things are never as bad as they seem.’ I always tried to cheer her up when she was down in the dumps. I succeeded in doing so a lot of times.”

  “Did you meet her on Friday as well?”

  “Yes, and I’m feeling bad about it. I met her during our lunch break; we always had our lunch together, as it was one of the few times that we could talk. The moment she arrived for lunch, I knew that there was something wrong with her. She seemed on the verge of tears, and when I asked her about it, she said, ‘Oh Gladys, I’ve had such a horrible day. Keith seems to become more unbearable every day. He’s always ticking me off. He finds fault where there is none. Sometimes I feel like just leaving everything and finding a new job.’

  “She was upset about Eric, too. She kept saying, ‘he’s bored, I know it. The last time we went out, he seemed peeved with me. All this had to happen just when I was beginning to care about him. I thought he was the one for me and that at last, I would get a bit of happiness in my life, but everything seems to be slipping out of my hands. For all I know, Eric has broken our date to see someone else. Yesterday, it was me, but today it’s someone else. You know another thing, he’s never told me about his background. He never talks about his family.’ Jane seemed very upset. I tried to buck her up and told her that things were never as bad as they seemed.”

  Tim asked, “did she have many boyfriends before she met Eric?”

  Gladys nodded. “Yeah. I met her three years back, when she was working somewhere else. She dated three guys and went steady with each of them for some time. The first was Henry. He was a pleasant-faced young man who worked in a cigarette factory. He was happy-go-lucky, without a care in the world. He used to come to the office to meet her and Jane introduced him to me. At that time, I liked him; he was easy to talk with. They went out for six months but then Henry fell for someone else. He told her frankly that he didn’t care about her anymore. Jane was heartbroken and cried buckets.

  “Her next entanglement was with George, a rather serious guy. He seemed to be too serious, though, rarely smiling. I don’t know why she considered him at all; he was as dull as ditch water, rarely opening his mouth. The affair lasted for six months. Jane continued to see him and even kept praising him, but I knew from what I heard from her that he was the wrong man. They went out for a holiday in the seaside, but something went wrong there, and after that, they simply drifted apart. George found Jane too domineering and Jane began to think that he was no fun to be with. Anyway, they split.

  “The third man, Roger, was a real estate agent. He had charm and I guess Jane was drawn to him. They seemed to get along fine and Jane was seriously thinking about settling down. Unfortunately, she later discovered that Roger, along with his oodles of charm, also had a nasty temper. He began to get annoyed with Jane and soon started losing his cool. Things came to such a pass that he even slapped Jane one day, over a disagreement. That was the last time they ever saw each other. Jane was sad, as she had set her heart on him. Then Eric came along and you know the rest.”

  Tim said in a slow measured voice, “Gladys, you have seen and met Eric. What do you think about him? Do you think that he was the right person for Jane?”

  Gladys answered slowly. “He seemed to be. I met him a couple of times at her place and another time at a party. He was polite and considerate and seemed caring towards Jane. He was a talented and successful guy. I believe he had been a good basketball player in his college days, but he also looked like a guy who would like girls to pamper his ego. He was polished but I guess he was used to women who toed the line with him. The problem with Jane was that she was, at times, too independent-minded and didn’t hesitate to voice her opinion. She could be domineering, in a subtle way, which rubbed a guy like Eric the wrong way. He may have minded, God only knows, but I didn’t think he was a mean kind of guy. He certainly never looked like a dangerous man or a potential murderer to me.”

  “Thank you for your time, Gladys,” Tim said as he got up. “We’ll be on our way.”

  2

  Geoffrey met Keith after office hours in a pub. They sat in a quiet corner talking softly. Tim didn’t accompany Geoffrey this time.

  Keith spread out his hands. “How I can help you?”

  “Oh, I just want to ask you a few things. I understand you were Jane’s boss.”

  Keith nodded. “I felt very bad hearing about Jane. She was so young and alive that I just can’t imagine her dead. It was most tragic.” He shook his head and continued. “I saw her the day she died and never knew that she wouldn’t report for work the next day. The thought that she would become a victim of a serial killer is just too terrible for words.”

  “How well did you know Jane?”

  “On a personal level, I didn’t know her at all. Ours was a strictly professional relationship. We hardly talked about anything except work. She was, of course, junior to me, so there was no question of our being close. Jane was a conscientious worker. She worked hard and was fairly good at her job. She always walked into the office with a bright smile, but lately I noticed that she was preoccupied with something else. She was unable to concentrate on her work.”

  “I heard you had annoyed her repeatedly on the day she died. She was apparently very upset with your behaviour.”

  Keith flushed. There were two spots of red on his cheek. “Yes, I ticked her off. Any boss would. She was making too many mistakes. I tell you, it was obvious that her mind was not on her work. Being a manager, I have a position of responsibility. I have certain duties to carry out. If my subordinates are making mistakes, then I have to correct them and see that they do their work properly. I was only doing my duty.”

  Geoffrey nodded. “I never implied that you were to blame. When you last saw Jane, did you notice anything strange or different about her? Think back carefully.”

  Keith replied, “as I’ve already told you, Jane was not her usual self. She was upset over something other than work, and her mind was somewhere else. She was also less self-assured. I felt that her confidence must have ta
ken a battering, and maybe I imagined it, but I felt that she was scared of something. God only knows what it could have been, maybe she had a premonition about her death. She was also making mistakes. Another thing that was unusual about Jane was her workplace was not as orderly. Usually Jane cleaned up her desk before leaving. She was a woman of fixed habits but on that day, there was a sheaf of paper left behind on her desk. It could be that she left in a hurry. Of course, what I observed could be of no importance whatsoever.”

  Geoffrey replied, “every little thing helps. Thank you for sparing your time.”

  Keith mumbled rather uncomfortably, “glad to be of help.”

  3

  Jane’s mother, Grace Ferrier, opened the door to Geoffrey and Tim. She looked dispirited. Her movements were slow, there were dark shadows under her eyes, and her face was haggard. She looked older than her years.

  “Why have you come now? What is the use of investigating her death? She is dead and gone and nothing you do will bring my child back to life. You couldn’t prevent her murder. What is the use of asking questions?”

  Geoffrey said, “Madam, don’t you want justice for your daughter? Don’t you want her murderer caught?”

  Grace shook her head. “What use will that be to me? She was so young – only 25 when she was struck down, her whole life ahead of her. It was the worst experience of my life. The only thing I console myself with is that my daughter’s death was sudden. She didn’t suffer much. I’m afraid I will not be able to help you. Talking to you will only rake up old memories and I don’t want that.”

  Geoffrey spoke earnestly. “Madam, it’s true that we cannot bring your daughter back to life, but if you cooperate, we may be able to prevent another girl from getting murdered. You must understand that the murderer must be apprehended or he will go on killing. The murderer has already struck thrice and will not hesitate to strike again. Therefore, I demand that for the sake of justice, you help us.”

  Grace wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and then seemed to steel herself. After a moment’s hesitation, she agreed. “All right. What do you want from me?”

  “All we want are the answers to a few questions.”

  Grace nodded and then said, “fire away.”

  “Tell us about Jane. After all, a mother knows her daughter best.”’

  “Jane was a good daughter. She took care of me. We got along fine. There were some issues, I’ll admit. She was a lovely child, bright and obedient, but she was hit hard when her father and I separated. She was only twelve at the time. She kept shuttling between her parents and somehow that affected her sense of security. My older daughter, Mary, was different. She was eight years older. When we separated, she was already married and well settled in the United States. Mary took life lightly, she wasn’t a deep one. She didn’t let anything affect her. Jane, on the other hand, felt things deeply. She was a loving girl but rather set in her ways. Even as a child, she felt very insecure. When we divorced, I was shattered. Life seemed to have gone to pieces. Jane was there by my side. Later on, we had certain differences. I don’t mind telling you that I was rather fond of drinking, which Jane didn’t like, but a woman needs to find solace somewhere. When she was young, Jane would spend holidays with both her father and me. My husband remarried and started a new family and afterwards, Jane more or less began to stay with me. She took care of me, I must say. Later, I guess she wanted her own life and moved out. But she did visit me at times and we kept in touch.”

  Tim asked, “did you speak to Jane on the day she died?”

  “I guess you checked her mobile phone. Yes, I did ring her up at 11:00 a.m. She was in her office. I can’t help worrying about her; after all, she is my daughter. At that time, Jane sounded fine. She told me she was OK and I shouldn’t bother her. She was rather rude.” Grace hesitated then added, “I guess she thought I was drinking, though I was perfectly fine.”

  Geoffrey asked, “that’s all you talked about?”

  Grace again hesitated and ran her tongue along her lips. “I’ll tell you the truth – you’ll find it out anyway. I wanted to borrow some money from Jane. I ran out of cash and there was nothing in the house. A woman needs money to survive.”

  “Did Jane offer you help?”

  “No. In fact, she was rather curt. I guess she felt that I would squander away the money she gave me on drinks.”

  Tim said, “excuse me for asking you an uncomfortable question, but was your relationship with Jane strained?”

  Grace almost screamed, “no! Definitely not.” After a brief hesitation, she carried on, more quietly this time. “True, there were issues. I guess I was selfish; I wanted my daughter to stay with me but she didn’t like my habits. I admit that she tried to help me. She even coaxed me to go to a rehab centre but I didn’t want that. I’m too old and tired to try anything like that. I was a happy woman once and I am a depressed woman now. The men in my life let me down and the same was the case with poor Jane. I admit I didn’t like it when she moved out. We had a major fight but such things take place in everybody’s life.”

  “Gladys, a friend of hers, has described Jane as an unhappy woman.”

  Grace said, “she was unhappy, but not because of her family or even me. It was the men who let her down. Maybe she was a poor judge of character and trusted people too easily.”

  Tim sat forwards, staring at Grace. “When you heard her voice on Friday, did she sound scared or perturbed in anyway?”

  Grace thought for a while and then said, “she seemed a little irritated but no, not scared or perturbed.”

  Geoffrey stood up, smiling. “thank you, madam. We will be leaving now. “

  Chapter 11

  1

  Sarah’s mother, Celia Parker, sat in her wheelchair in her flat while Tim and Geoffrey faced her. It was a sparsely furnished place without any frills. The walls were bare and the pieces of furniture were bought with comfort in mind.

  Celia asked, “what do you want from me now? Almost two months have passed since Sarah’s death. I’ve already been questioned by the police and it’s very distressing.”

  Geoffrey said, “we don’t want to distress you further. We understand your pain but the killer has to be caught. We’re trying to gather as much information as we can about the victims. We’re asking for your help.”

  Celia gritted her teeth. Her fists were tightly clenched and her knuckles were completely white. “I want justice for my daughter. She met a bad end. I want him caught and hanged. I’ll be glad to help. My daughter’s death has left a void in my life which can never be filled. I’m a lonely woman now.”

  Geoffrey nodded sympathetically. “I understand that Sarah lived here.”

  Celia sighed. “Yes, this was her home. She was a caring daughter. You can see that I’m an invalid, and Sarah took care of me. You can see the state I’m in. I’ve had a very difficult life; I lost my husband when Sarah was still a child and have since struggled, all alone. Sarah was my only child, so you can imagine my loss. I have no one in the world now, save for my sister who is staying with me. She’s a divorcee and has a huge circle of friends who are feminists. Though I’m not one, they sometimes meet here and discuss women’s issues. I would have gone insane without my sister. Sarah was a good daughter. The only thing that I didn’t like about her was her choice of men – the last man she went about with was most disagreeable. You see, Sarah was very gullible, and she fell in love easily. The man she went out with when she was killed, Jeremy, had a shifty look about him. I didn’t trust him.”

  “Tell us about Tony. Did Sarah love him?”

  “He was a most untrustworthy young man, but Sarah fell for him hook, line, and sinker. I don’t know how he managed to wield such influence over her. True, he had a sort of rakish charm which girls like Sarah liked, and that made others laugh, I guess. The moment I caught sight of him I could guess he was a wrong one; I don’t know what he was after but it was nothing good. He said he was in b
usiness, but he was very vague about what it was. I’m sure he did some fishy business. Anyway, I saw soon that Sarah had lost her heart to him. She just wouldn’t listen to reason. I tried my best to get her off that guy, but it was no good. She lost her cool and said that I didn’t want to see her settle down in life for my own selfish reasons. She said that I didn’t care for her happiness and that Tony was the best man in the whole world, and she was confident that she could be happy with only him. It was always Tony this and Tony that. He seemed like a man who could do no wrong, that’s love for you. I cried tons that day. Sarah was still with Tony when she met Jeremy but their relationship was about to break up. She at last saw that he was deceiving her and carrying on with another girl. It broke her heart. She was low for days. Though she took up with Jeremy, I felt that she hadn’t fully gotten over Tony. He was there in her mind.”

  “Celia, you must have known Sarah inside out. Think carefully. Did she carry a photograph of Tony in her purse?”

  Celia paused. “She certainly did so when they were going steady. It was, I think, a passport-sized photograph. It was rather old fashioned of her, as these days no one does that. After all, people’s mobiles are always loaded with images.”

  Geoffrey leaned forwards excitedly. “The police must have given you back Sarah’s things after going through them. Do you have Sarah’s purse, the one that she carried to the motel when she died?”

  Celia said, “I have it. The police gave it back to me but I didn’t have the heart to go through it.”

  “If it’s not too much trouble, can I see it?”

  “I can show you the purse. Though I’m confined to a wheelchair, I’m not helpless. I can move about. All of Sarah’s things are kept in the cupboard in my bedroom.” Celia wheeled herself to the bedroom and opened a cupboard. She bent down and took out a pink, glossy handbag from one of the shelves. The handbag, though shiny, was made cheap.