‘You wouldn’t have wanted to stop him, would you?’ he said coldly. ‘I know you’ve never liked Caroline.’
‘Don’t you want to know?’ she cried. ‘She’s betrayed you with another man. Why are you making me the villain here?’
‘I hate schemers and back-stabbers. I hate spying and every kind of subterfuge,’ he said. ‘And blackmail is the lowest vice of all. I was beginning to think better of you, but that you should stoop to this method to expose a woman who’s never done you any harm—’
‘She’s done you harm!’
‘That’s between her and me. It’s none of your damn business,’ he said, and he was on his feet and walking away down the terrace even before the dogs could move.
She watched him go, miserably. She wanted to call out to him, but she couldn’t think of a single thing to say.
Twenty-Four
At last she looked at her watch, and realized it wasn’t actually that late. Not too late to phone Harry. He ought to be warned that Xander now knew most of the story, and might well be gunning for him as principle blackmailer. She rang his mobile number.
Harry answered at once, and from the background noise she guessed he was in a pub.
‘Hey, it’s you!’ he said when she spoke. ‘I was just going to ring you. I’ve got things to tell you.’
‘I can’t hear you properly. Too much noise there.’
‘It’s OK, I’m going outside. Listen, where are you? At home? Can you come and meet me?’
‘Where?’
‘I’m at the Blue Posts in Belminster.’ His voice was jerky with his steps, but then the noise faded a little. ‘That’s better. I’m out in the street now. I’ve just had an interview with you-know-who. I got it all out of her. But then I thought I’d better go to a public place, in case she tried to murder me before I could pass it on.’
Jenna jumped at the words. ‘You don’t really think—?’
‘Not really, but just in case she couldn’t help herself. She’s a ruthless girl. And I needed a drink anyway. I was a bit shaken up.’
‘And you’ve only just spoken to her?’
‘Hey, I couldn’t find her earlier. I’ve been looking all day, and I only just ran her down—’
‘Don’t use that expression,’ Jenna said. But the car incident had been this morning, before Harry had got to her. It must have just been a bad driver.
‘But I have to talk to you about what we do next. And I don’t want to come out there for obvious reasons. So can you come here?’
‘All right. You’d better stay put, anyway. I’ve just seen Xander, and he might come looking for you, so don’t go home yet.’
‘Oh my God, what did you tell him?’
‘It was what he told me. Look, I can’t tell you over the phone. Where’s this pub?’
‘In Catton Street, just off Market Street.’
‘I’ll be there as soon as I can,’ Jenna said.
Jenna sat with a lemonade and lime, thinking she had better not drink any more after the malt whisky, though her leg was hollering after the drive over. Harry, who was within walking distance of home, made inroads into his third pint.
‘Well, she’s in it up to her dainty eyeballs, my illustrious stepsister,’ he said. ‘She was so furious about my having the CCTV pictures, I thought I’d better tell her about the film right away, in case she strangled me there and then. I told her I’d lodged a copy with a solicitor. I don’t know if she believed me – I hope so. But it slowed her down a bit – I could see her replaying the film in her mind and realizing what must be on it. That was food for thought all right! And of course she knew about my dad’s pals filming themselves so it made sense to her that there was another, secret system, because she knows my dad and how he operates. Sullivan had made sure first thing that the obvious system wasn’t running, so they’d thought they were safe. I told her enough about where it was hidden and what I’d seen to convince her there was a film, and then she called me a dirty little skunk and asked me what I wanted. I told her I’d no desire to blackmail anybody, but I wanted in. Convinced her I was a shady lowlife like her and my dad and just wanted my share of their ill-gotten gains.’ He took another draught. ‘What did Xander tell you?’
She told him in synopsis what Xander had found out in London.
Harry nodded. ‘Yes, that’s pretty much what I got from Caro, except for this Culver character. I don’t know whether she knows about him. She knew about Purcell. Apparently my dad’s already got the local planning officer, Puddephat, under his thumb, but Purcell was what Sullivan brought to the party. And Xander’s not wrong about extending the planning permission once it’s granted.’ He looked at Jenna gravely. ‘It’s not just chalets they want to build on Benson’s land, it’s a whole holiday park – something like Center Parcs, I gathered, complete with artificial lake, woodland walks, petting zoo and fairground. The whole tombola.’
‘Oh no!’ Jenna said. ‘In that lovely place? It would be ghastly! We can’t let it happen.’
‘Well, not everyone would hate it,’ he said reasonably. ‘It would create a lot of employment for locals, and generate a lot of taxes, and Sullivan would be able to claim all sorts of government spending for the area on the back of it, assuming he got elected.’
‘But poor Holtby! And poor Kitty!’
‘Yes, that’s where the real tragedy lies. Because the scheme doesn’t end with the holiday park. Once the building starts, they’re sure that Kitty won’t be able to bear staying on. She’ll want to sell up and get out, and the value of the house will have gone through the floor, so they’ll be able to snap it up as a bargain.’ He grinned. ‘You can see why you were such a thorn in Caroline’s side. First of all you turn up and she doesn’t know what your game is – thinks maybe you’re getting ready to bleed Kitty yourself. Then this scheme to open the house to the public looks like stymieing them. No wonder she hated you. I did her an injustice thinking it was jealousy of Xander: it was pure business on her part.’
‘But why do they want Holtby House?’
‘To turn it into an expensive country-house hotel. With their own tame planning officer they can get round the listing – and it’s only Grade Two.’
‘But the view will be ruined.’
‘Doesn’t matter for a hotel. Anyway, they plan to put tennis courts down the bottom where it’s noisiest. And a swimming pool inside the walls of Kitty’s flower garden.’
‘Oh no! That’s horrible!’
‘The worse it is for Kitty, the better for them.’ He looked sombre. ‘Caroline was quite cold about it. Not only would Kitty be driven out, but she thought the shock of it all might even kill her, which she liked the idea of even more.’
‘Oh my God, what a bitch!’
‘Yes, she is that.’ Harry nodded thoughtfully. ‘That’s why she latched on to Xander. She assumed Kitty would have left the house to him in her will, so if she did die, Caro would be married to Xander and have all the bases covered. And if Kitty didn’t die, she might give it to them as a wedding present, or at least she’d probably be happier selling to them rather than selling on the open market. That way Kitty would never get an unbiased view of what the place was really worth.’
‘I don’t think she realizes that (a) Kitty isn’t frail and (b) she isn’t daft,’ said Jenna. ‘And what if Xander didn’t want to go along with it? What if he didn’t want the place once it had a theme park on its doorstep?’
‘She’s quite confident she can manipulate him. You should hear her talk about him! You’d think he was a tailor’s dummy. And besides, if Xander did object to buying the place, she could always say it was for Kitty’s sake, because she’d get a better price from them than on the open market.’
‘So she doesn’t really love Xander at all?’
‘I’m not sure. She obviously thinks he’s handsome and a credit to be seen with. Except that he doesn’t like being seen at the sort of things she hoping to be seen at. I think she definitely fancied him at one
time, but it’s plain to me that it’s Derek Sullivan she wants now.’
‘Even though he’s already married?’
‘She sees herself as a big business mogul, like my dad. Her, Dad and Sullivan working this big scam. Because of course a Purcell isn’t just for Christmas, a Purcell is for life. There’s no limit to how often they can work this wheeze – especially if, as you say, the Environment Minister is onside. A string of developments on land bought for peanuts. And once Sullivan’s in Parliament, the sky’s the limit. And who knows – maybe one day Mrs Sullivan will turn out to be surplus to requirements, and Caro can step in. I think she reckons he might be prime minister one day, and then she’ll be the Cherie Blair de nos jours.’ He shook his head in wonder. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t ask my dad for a copy of the film, in case she wants to blackmail old Derek one day into divorcing the missus and marrying her. I wouldn’t put it past her.’
Jenna shook her head. ‘But what do we do with this?’
He looked glum. ‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘That’s what’s been worrying me ever since. I reckon the first thing Caro’ll do is go to my dad, and I don’t think he’ll like the idea that I’ve tried to beat him at his own game – out-videoed him for my own ends. He’s going to be angry.’ The prospect clearly alarmed him. ‘And I don’t know whether he’ll believe I’m just trying to get my share – or whether he’ll want me in on his schemes if he does believe it.’
‘So, what then?’ Jenna asked. ‘Tell Kitty? Go to the newspapers? What do we do?’
‘You do nothing.’
The new voice startled Jenna so much she bit her tongue, and swung her head round so fast she ricked her neck. Xander was standing behind them.
‘A fine pair of conspirators you make,’ he said witheringly, ‘sitting with your backs to the door.’
‘How long have you been there?’ Jenna asked, colouring at the thought of the awful things they had said about Caroline, the awful things she had done.
‘How did you find me?’ Harry asked at the same moment.
‘When you weren’t at home, I knew you’d be in a pub,’ Xander said. ‘It was just a matter of trying them.’ He looked at Jenna. ‘I’ve been here quite long enough. And I think I know everything. Except—’ He pulled out a spare chair at the table and sat down facing them. ‘Do you really have a film of – what went on in the bedroom?’
Harry nodded unhappily. Xander held out a hand, and Harry dug reluctantly into his pocket and brought out a DVD case.
‘Thank God you had the sense not to leave it at home,’ Xander said. ‘You should have lodged it with a solicitor. I will do that myself, along with a notarized statement of what I know so far. Then I will go and see Derek Sullivan and make sure he understands that the game is up, and leave it to him to convince your father likewise. You’ve got your car here?’ he said to Jenna.
She nodded.
‘Go straight home, and take Harry with you, and both of you, don’t leave Holtby House until you hear from me.’
Jenna paled. ‘You don’t think – they wouldn’t—?’
Xander looked grim. ‘This isn’t a child’s game you’re playing. There are huge sums of money at stake. And this film is dynamite. Until I know they understand that it remains in a safe place as surety for their good behaviour, it’s best not to take chances.’
Harry stared. ‘You don’t think they’d try and bump us off?’
‘Accidents can be arranged if you’re ruthless enough and have enough money. A fatal fall from your roof terrace – a hit and run driver—’
Jenna must have made some sound, though she was not aware of having done so, because Xander looked at her, and now he paled too, reading her face. ‘You said – a car came too close?’
She shook her head frantically, still wanting to save him. ‘It was before Harry talked to Caroline. It was just coincidence.’
His mouth set into a grim line. ‘Go home,’ he said. ‘And don’t say anything to Kitty.’
‘How do I explain bringing Harry home?’ Jenna asked.
Xander looked bitter. ‘I dare say you’ll think of something.’
Jenna slept like the dead, and woke late with a sense of doom hanging over her. It was a moment before she remembered the events of the day before, and remembering did nothing to lighten the gloom. She remembered the way Xander had looked at her before he swung on his heel and went out. He hated her. Or despised her, which was worse. She would be for ever besmirched in his mind with the taint of conspiracy, even if she had helped save Kitty’s house, exposed villains and saved him from marrying an evil woman.
Oh my God, unless he still means to marry her? she thought, feeling sick. Maybe he loved her so much that, whatever she had done, he would stick by her. Try to save her from herself – a noble work. Maybe he didn’t believe she was really in on it. But he had the DVD. He only had to watch it – another swooping of her stomach at the thought. Oh poor, poor Xander! Well, maybe he wouldn’t watch it, just lodge it with a solicitor? But he had to know what was on it to make Sullivan and Beale do his bidding. And – excuse me, but wasn’t that a form of blackmail, even if for the best of reasons? How come he was OK to do it, but not her and Harry?
Oh my God, Harry! How was she going to explain him away to Kitty?
She imagined Xander interviewing Derek Sullivan. She wasn’t much afraid of the Silver Fox, whatever his connections, but the thought of Roger Beale made her shiver. She guessed he was the real brains behind the business, and the really ruthless one as well. Suppose he just decided to have Xander killed? She sat up in bed clutching her arms around her in dread. But no, that’s what the DVD was for, to make sure nothing happened to him, as well as to apply leverage for the scheme to be dropped.
She hauled herself out of bed, stood under the shower for ten minutes, then dressed and limped downstairs. Her thigh looked like a Jackson Pollock, and ached like a broken heart, but that was nothing to the pain of her broken heart, which ached worse than a broken leg. She had done everything for the right reasons, and still Xander hated her. Maybe it was better if Roger Beale did get her. At least it would be quick.
She was too late for Mrs Phillips’s breakfast, so she sneaked along to the kitchen to put the kettle on and rummage for a slice of bread. The pop of the gas lighting sounded too loud in the silence of the house, and as if she had been summoned by it like a genie, Kitty appeared in the kitchen door. Jenna smiled at her, and for the first time in their acquaintance Kitty didn’t smile back. She folded her arms grimly and said, ‘Awake at last? Now you are going to tell me what’s going on.’
‘Why should anything be going on?’ Jenna said feebly.
‘Xander came here late last night and talked to you for ages on the terrace.’
‘How did you—?’
‘I was awake. I’d finished reading and I remembered it was a full moon so I went to one of the back bedrooms to look at it. I always wish on a full moon.’ She waved away any comment. ‘Old habit, from childhood. Anyway, I saw you down there. Then he walked off, not looking happy. You phoned someone and then you went off. I heard your car start, so I know you drove somewhere. You came back later, and now there’s someone sleeping in one of my spare rooms. Not Xander, I suppose?’
She shook her head. ‘Harry Beale.’
‘Harry Beale. He’s up to no good, if I know him! Now, are you going to tell me what’s happening?’
‘I can’t. I’m not supposed to say anything,’ Jenna said unhappily.
‘Does it concern me?’ Kitty said sharply.
‘Well – yes, but—’
‘Then you tell me, right now! When I want protection from the truth I’ll let you know, but it won’t be until I really am old, frail and senile. Until then, I won’t be patronized. So out with it.’
So Jenna told her everything.
Kitty took it very well, better than Jenna would have thought. She seemed, in fact, almost braced by it. ‘If they think they’re getting Holtby that eas
ily, they have another think coming,’ she said. ‘Why did you bring Harry here?’
‘Xander thought he might be in danger.’
‘In danger?’ It was derisive rather than nervous.
‘Just until he’d let them know the DVD was with a solicitor.’
Kitty snorted. ‘I’ve known Roger Beale for years, and I can tell you he’s not that big a man. He’s a vulgar blowhard and a bully, but he’d never risk murder. Besides, Harry’s his own son! Whatever he thinks of him, he’d never hurt him. What can Xander have been thinking?’
‘I think he was upset. We all were, but—’
‘Yes, it must have been hard for him to learn what Caroline is really like. Oh dear!’ It came home to her. ‘First Stephanie, and now Caroline. And he sets such store by loyalty and honour and so on. This will be a terrible blow to him.’
‘I’m afraid he blames me,’ Jenna said in a small voice.
‘A case of shooting the messenger?’
‘Partly that. And he doesn’t like the underhand way Harry and I went about it.’
‘Well, I don’t see how else you could have found things out. And he went and found out about this Purcell chap, didn’t he?’
‘All the same—’
‘Yes. But I expect he’ll get over it, in time,’ Kitty said. ‘He’ll see it wasn’t your fault. He’s a just man, and he’ll treat you justly. But it’s going to be hell for him, breaking his engagement with Caroline. It’s bound to get out – some of it, at least – and whatever she’s done, he’ll want to defend her purely from chivalry.’
‘Do you think he really will break his engagement?’
‘My dear, he can’t marry a girl who was trying to force me from my home. And who was involved in bribing public officials for monetary gain.’
‘I suppose not,’ Jenna said. It ought to have made her happy to think that at least he wasn’t going to be Caroline’s dupe any more, but it didn’t.
Harry appeared at last, bleary eyed, and Jenna made him coffee while Kitty sat with him on the terrace and questioned him some more about the whole sorry business. He seemed relieved that she knew, and babbled away to her for ages. They were all still sitting there when, in the middle of the afternoon, Alexander arrived, looking as if he hadn’t slept for a week.
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