Dead Man's Wharf dah-4

by Pauline Rowson

  'Still at the scene,' Trueman answered.

  Horton's mind conjured up Dennings facing Oldham; an exchange he wouldn't have minded witnessing. Two bull mastiffs squaring up to each other flitted into his head and made him secretly smile before knocking on Uckfield's door.

  Horton quickly relayed his telephone conversation with Cantelli. 'We're off to interview Jackson. As far as I'm aware he doesn't yet know the news about his buddy.'

  'If you get anything before three o'clock call me. I'm giving a press conference.'

  Horton couldn't resist asking Uckfield if his latest sexual conquest would be present: their PR lady, Madeleine Dewbury.

  'She will, and you can wipe that smirk off your face. It's over between us,' Uckfield hissed, his eyes flicking beyond Horton to the door. 'Only she doesn't know it yet. I haven't had a chance to tell her, so keep it shut.'

  'Anything you say.'

  Uckfield picked up his phone, clearly indicating their conference was over and Horton headed to the rear exit to find Cantelli waiting for him.

  'Like the gear,' Cantelli said, eyeing Horton's clothes.

  'We can't all be snazzy dressers like you.'

  Cantelli grinned. As the sergeant drove to Fort Cumberland, Horton ate his sandwiches and considered the meagre facts surrounding Farnsworth's death. It didn't get him very far. It was still too early to speculate, even if he had more to speculate with. He wondered how Daisy Pemberton would take the news.

  He asked Cantelli if Corinna Denton had mentioned her, but was told she hadn't talked about any other woman in Farnsworth's life except his ex-wife. Cantelli brought the car to a halt at a set of tall iron gates. Beyond them Horton could see the grassy expanse and scattered brick buildings of the eighteenth-century bastioned Fort Cumberland.

  Cantelli spoke into the intercom and as they threaded their way through the grounds Horton was transported back to the hot August day two years ago when he'd brought Emma here on one of the Fort's open days. He could smell the dry grass and taste the salt in a gentle sea breeze. He felt her small hand in his as they followed the guide around the buildings and into those dank tunnels where he had tried so desperately hard to hide his fear of being closed in. Then they'd gone for an ice cream along the seafront and a swim. Catherine had been working. He wondered, sadly, if he would ever be allowed to spend such blissful days with his daughter again.

  Cantelli drew up in front of a red-brick building that was a much later addition to the original Fort built in 1740. It had guarded the entrance to Langstone Harbour and had been used by the Royal Marines until about twenty-five years ago.

  Inside Horton asked to see Nathan Lester and was directed to an office not far from the entrance. He wondered how they could have missed it until he saw that it was actually built into the grassy banks of the fortifications.

  There was a bicycle propped up against the bank and a saloon car tucked away almost out of sight of the main road. Horton peered inside the car, grateful that the rain had finally stopped, though the wind wrapped damp fingers around his face. There was nothing inside it to tell him it was Jackson's, but he couldn't see Jackson riding a bicycle.

  Cantelli noted the registration number, as was his habit, and Horton pushed open the door and stepped inside a small, narrow office crammed with books and paper, but devoid of human beings. The room smelt unused and damp. He could hear the murmur of voices and made for their direction, pausing to listen at the door before thrusting it open.

  The two men inside started in surprise. Perry Jackson swivelled round in his seat, frowning, while the other man, whose wiry frame was dwarfed by the desk at which he was sitting, widened timid eyes in a face that reminded Horton of a squirrel. Horton guessed he was in his mid-forties. His limp brown hair was flecked with grey and his complexion oily and tinged with an almost bluish hue, as though he hadn't properly shaved himself.

  Jackson snapped, 'What is it now, Inspector? Can't you see I'm in a meeting?'

  The wiry man's nervous expression deepened. Horton waited for Jackson to introduce his companion, but he made no move to do so. 'Mr Nathan Lester?' he enquired.

  'Yes. Why? What's wrong?' Lester started like a frightened rabbit.

  Irritably, Jackson exclaimed, 'It's not those wretched phone calls again?'

  Horton eyed him coldly. Jackson didn't flinch. OK, he'd asked for it. Brusquely Horton said, 'Mr Farnsworth's body was found this morning at Oldham's Wharf. We're treating his death as suspicious.'

  There was a stunned silence. Nathan Lester opened his mouth to say something but no sound emerged. He had gone deathly pale, his eyes were wide with astonishment, his face rigid with alarm, whereas Jackson was still frowning. He recovered first.

  'Is this a joke? Because if it is-'

  'I don't joke about such serious matters, Mr Jackson,' Horton said sternly.

  The penny finally dropped. 'Nick's dead?' Jackson repeated, as though trying to take it in.

  Lester looked as though he wanted to slide under the desk.

  After a short pause, Horton said, 'When was the last time you saw Mr Farnsworth?'

  Jackson hesitated before answering, but Horton thought it was more a case of recovering from the shock of the news rather than thinking up a lie. 'About eight o'clock last night. He said he was going to the sub-aqua club.'

  'And after that?'

  'Back to the hotel, or so I assumed.'

  'He said nothing about going to Oldham's Wharf?'

  'No. I've no idea what he was doing there.'

  'And you, sir?' Horton swivelled his gaze on Lester, who flushed and shook his head. 'When did you last seen Mr Farnsworth?' Horton watched Lester's Adam's apple rise and fall as he gulped.

  'Not since before Christmas.'

  Horton knew it was a lie. Lester wouldn't look at him. His pale eyes dropped to the file open on his desk and when they lifted they flitted between him and Cantelli and back to Jackson. There was a thin line of perspiration on his upper lip.

  'When exactly?' Horton pressed.

  'The twenty-second of December. We had a drink in the sub-aqua club.'

  Horton could check that. He guessed though that that much was true. But what was Lester not saying? Studying the frightened man, Horton could see there was a lot more. It had been rather fortunate to find Jackson here, he thought, but he reckoned he'd get more out of Lester away from Jackson.

  He asked him to wait outside and Lester seemed only too glad to escape. A few moments later Horton could hear Lester moving about in the next office. He'd liked to have sent Cantelli out there to see what he was doing, but he wanted him here observing Jackson and taking notes.

  Horton eased his way through the narrow gap between the desk and wall and managed to squeeze his body into the space that Lester had vacated. Cantelli positioned himself to the right of Horton in the corner and took out his notebook.

  'Why do you think Mr Farnsworth was killed when those threatening calls were directed at you?' asked Horton.

  Jackson's eyes narrowed. 'You can't think Nick's death has anything to do with them?'

  'What else are we supposed to think?' Horton replied steadily, thinking come on, time for the truth.

  Jackson shifted and sucked in his breath. Horton could see that he'd finally got the point.

  'We didn't think you'd take them so seriously. We thought they'd just send a bobby on the beat and we could milk it in the papers.'

  'Are you saying that you made those calls?' He'd been right all along, but that didn't minimize the fury he felt.

  Jackson had the decency to blush, though his eyes were shining with defiance. 'Nick made the first two, but he swore to me that he didn't make the third or fourth. I didn't believe him.'

  And that must have been why they were arguing when he and Cantelli had shown up on Monday.

  'The whole thing was Nick's idea,' Jackson said hastily and with distaste. 'He was always coming up with stunts. He said it would make the programme more exciting, and raise our publ
ic profile.'

  'Oh, I think he's done that all right.'

  'I call that remark bad taste and totally out of keeping,' shouted Jackson, springing up. But there was no room for him to do much more.

  Horton leaned forward across the desk and gave him an icy stare. 'And I call wasting police time by using schoolboy pranks irresponsible, childish and extremely dangerous. How do we know that his killer didn't read about them in the newspaper and think he'd have a go at fulfilling the prophecy, but he got the wrong diver?'

  Jackson went white. Fear hovered in the silence. Horton could hear the wind whistling round the building. After a moment Jackson eased himself back in the chair. When he spoke the belligerent superior tone had vanished and in its place was anxiety. 'You think someone might want to kill me?'

  'If the third and fourth calls weren't made by Farnsworth then it's possible. It's also possible that you were the intended victim and not Farnsworth.' Or was Jackson the murderer and using the threatening phone calls to throw the scent off himself? His reactions seemed genuine enough, but that could be play-acting. 'Is there anyone you can think of who would want to kill you?' asked Horton bluntly.

  'Of course not, and neither can I think of anyone who would want to kill Nick. Surely there's been some mistake. Couldn't it have been an accident?' he asked with the air of a desperate man.

  Horton's answer was in his expression.

  'I must speak to Corinna.' Jackson reached for his mobile.

  'In a moment. We understand that she and Nick were lovers.'

  'Yes. Have you spoken to Jason? Not that he'd care about Nick. He's probably glad he's dead. He never did like Farnsworth especially since Corinna…' Jackson halted, then shrugged, 'No doubt you'll find out soon enough. Corinna was Jason's girl before Farnsworth grabbed her from under his nose.'

  That was news. Jason Kirkwood had an alibi until just after ten when he had retired to his room. Was there enough time for him to have met Farnsworth and killed him after then? He would have just managed to catch the tide, so yes, Horton guessed it could be possible. Even more so if he had arranged to meet Farnsworth by car at or near Oldham's Wharf. But that still didn't answer the questions why had Farnsworth been wearing diving gear and why kill him at Oldham's Wharf?

  And what about Jackson's alibi? thought Horton. He seemed very keen to push Kirkwood at them.

  'Can you tell us your movements last night, sir?' he asked briskly.

  'For God's sake! This is ridiculous. You can't suspect me!'

  'Just tell us where you were between eight p.m. and ten this morning.'

  'In the hotel,' Jackson replied stiffly.

  'Can anyone vouch for you?'

  'Do they have to?' he said in a withering tone. When neither Horton nor Cantelli replied, he was forced to continue. 'I was alone in my room. The staff will tell you they saw me at breakfast this morning with Corinna.'

  No alibi then. Farnsworth had trusted his killer enough to meet him and Jackson fitted that bill. Then Horton had another thought. Perhaps it had been another of Farnsworth's stunts, which had backfired. He'd ended up falling into that pit and Jackson had hastily made it look like murder by hacking off his colleague's fingers. It would be interesting to see what the post-mortem revealed.

  'Do you own a boat, Mr Jackson?'

  'Yes, but what has-?'

  'Where do you keep it?'

  'I have my own berth adjoining the house.'

  'Which is where?

  'Hythe Marina, Southampton, if you must know. Look, just what are you driving at?'

  Jackson could have brought his boat to one of the nearby marinas or moored it on a buoy. He could have used it to take Farnsworth either dead or alive to Oldham's Wharf. Horton would ask Sergeant Elkins of the Marine Support Unit to check if it was still in the marina. And if it was, could Jackson have had enough time to dump the body, then pilot the boat home to Southampton this morning before returning to Portsmouth by car? It was perfectly feasible. Another thing that Elkins could check up on.

  Horton said nothing of this to Jackson, instead he said, 'Southampton's less than thirty miles away. Why are you staying in the Queen's Hotel when you could have driven here daily?'

  'I hardly think that's your business,' Jackson sniped. 'If you really must know,' he added tersely, 'there is a considerable amount to do in preparation for the series. It made perfect sense to get as much done as we could in a week. And have you seen the traffic on that motorway every morning? Well, then you know that commuting is a nightmare. I chose to use my time productively not stuck in a car on the M27.'

  Jackson was now clearly annoyed and exasperated at the line of questioning. Fear had touched him when he thought he might be the next victim or the intended one, but what Horton hadn't seen was any kind of sorrow over his partner's death. And there was a great deal that Jackson should be asking him, which he wasn't, such as how had Nick Farnsworth died? Who could have killed him? But then perhaps he already knew the answers.

  'Did Mr Farnsworth own a boat?'

  'He preferred to use other people's. Cars were more his taste. Now, if you don't mind, Inspector, I have a great deal to do. There are calls I need to make.'

  Horton held Jackson's hostile stare, looking again for a small glimmer of grief. He didn't find it. There was a lot more that Horton wanted to know about Jackson and his relationship with Farnsworth, but he judged that now was not the right time to discover it.

  He rose. 'We'll need to talk to you again. Please let us know if you intend checking out of the hotel.'

  Jackson was already reaching for his mobile phone before Horton had extricated himself from the desk, but at the door Horton paused, and in true police fashion said, 'Oh, just one more thing. Who inherits Mr Farnsworth's estate?'

  'I haven't the faintest idea.'

  Horton contrived to look surprised. 'Wouldn't he have made a will, diving being a dangerous pastime?' He saw, with satisfaction, Jackson flush at the word 'pastime'.

  Clearly restraining himself with difficulty from rising to the insult, Jackson said, 'He might have done, but that doesn't mean to say he told me about it.'

  No, thought Horton, perhaps he hadn't. He heard Jackson address Corinna, as he closed the door and turned to find Nathan Lester hovering nervously in the outer office. Leaving Cantelli taking an obsessive interest in a wall chart next to the door of the office, Horton asked, 'Where is everyone?'

  'Oh, no one works here. This is just a resource centre for the divers registered on the Marine Archaeological Project.'

  'And you're one of those divers?'

  'Yes, so are Perry and Nick. How did Nick die, Inspector?'

  Looking anxious and pale, Lester had asked the question that Jackson should have done. Horton wasn't yet prepared to divulge any information surrounding Farnsworth's death.

  'How well did you know him?' he asked.

  Lester sat down heavily. 'We've been diving together a few times. I can't believe he's dead.' He withdrew a handkerchief from the pocket of his casual trousers and blew his nose noisily.

  'What is the Marine Archaeological Project?' Horton asked. He could still hear Jackson's voice rumbling in the background.

  'There's a group of us that dive in and around the Solent area. We register what we find on a central database.' He pointed to the computer. 'We're making a map of the underwater heritage in order to help preserve it. Nick was our patron. He'd managed to get some funding for it and get all this equipment donated. He was due to speak at an international conference in June about the project.'

  He ran a hand through his hair. Horton thought his face seemed to have grown thinner in the last twenty minutes.

  'Perhaps Mr Jackson will step in?'

  Lester looked anxiously towards the door and dropped his voice. 'Perhaps he will, but it won't be the same.'

  Horton thought there was something strangely akin to hero worship in Lester's voice. And, seeing how distressed he was over Farnsworth's death, Horton was beginning to wond
er if it was more than that. On Lester's part at least. Horton had no doubts as to where Farnsworth's sexual proclivities lay.

  He also wondered how Jackson felt about Nick being chosen to speak at such a prestigious conference. Horton had a couple more questions, but not about Farnsworth. He said, 'Did you know Daniel Collins?'

  'Yes.' Lester looked surprised. 'He died in a car accident on Christmas Eve.'

  'When was the last time you saw Daniel?'

  'Just before Christmas. The twenty-first.'

  'Did Mr Farnsworth know him?'

  'I don't think so. Nick never said.'

  'He didn't go diving with him?'

  'No. If you want to know who Daniel went diving with, then you can check the sub aqua club's record book.'

  Manners hadn't mentioned that. Horton looked blank and Lester elaborated. 'Every diver has to check his equipment, sign to say he or she has checked it and then log the time they leave, state their intended dive location and sign in again on their return. It's good diving practice.'

  Cantelli was indicating that Jackson was coming off the phone. Horton thanked Mr Lester and took his leave.

  Outside Cantelli said, 'Jackson didn't sound like he was comforting Corinna Denton from what I overheard. He was more worried about where this left him and the programme.'

  And was Jackson glad to rid himself of Farnsworth? Horton's phone rang. It was Trueman.

  'We've found Farnsworth's car. It's in the car park at Southsea Marina. The recovery unit's on its way.'

  Horton stared north across the grass of Fort Cumberland. He could just see the masts of the boats in the marina. Had Farnsworth's killer dumped the car there or had Farnsworth driven it to the marina after being released? He could have met his killer and together they could have travelled by boat to Oldham's Wharf, even in the appalling weather of last night.