by A L Fraine
“Sounds wonderful,” Nathan replied with a smile.
“Come on, lover boys, break it up,” Kate said, stepping closer. “Let’s keep our hormones under control, okay?”
Nathan stepped back. “She’s just jealous of our bromance.”
“Isn’t everyone?” Jon replied with an exaggerated wink and nodded to Nathan. “Catch you later.”
“Going off me already?” Kate said, leaning in.
“Of course not,” Jon replied, smiling. “I could never go off you. You’re the light of my life.”
“Well, obviously. I was just checking. And before you ask, no, I’m not interested in a threesome with you both, got it?”
“What! I wasn’t… Where the hell did that come from, young lady?”
“I’m a lady now, am I? Oooh, laa-di-daa.”
“You’ve gone mad, haven’t you? The stresses of the job have finally got to you and cracked your mind. So sad.”
“Just giving as good as I get. So, what do you think the matriarch of the family wants?”
“Veronica? Hmm, no idea. But we’d better not keep her waiting.”
“Damn right,” Kate replied as Jon made for the now-familiar morning room to find Howard pacing, and Veronica sitting on the sofa.
“Sorry to keep you,” Jon said as he walked in, and Kate closed the doors behind them. “So you wanted to talk?”
“We did, yes, and thank you for your hard work today. I hope we can reach a conclusion before too long.”
“Our pleasure,” Jon replied, wondering where she was going with this.
“How’s it going? Any promising leads?”
Jon gave her a thin smile. Was that what this was all about? Was she just wanting to know what they’d found? “You know I can’t discuss the case, Mrs Lockwood.”
“Sorry, I know. I hope you find the killer, though. I really do.”
“I’m sure we will,” Jon replied, wondering when Veronica would get to the point. Or was she just being nosey about the investigation?
After a moment’s thought, he figured they might as well ask them a few questions while they had them here and moved towards a seat.
“Tell me,” Jon said, “what did you think of Lizzy? Did you like her? Did you get on with her?”
Veronica glanced over at Howard, looking a little surprised by the question.
“She’s alright,” Howard answered. “I’ve not seen her much over the years. She keeps to herself these days. She was quiet all day yesterday.”
“So, no hard feelings towards her, then?”
“No, I wouldn’t say so,” he answered, sounding very relaxed about the whole thing. Jon got the impression that Howard was a very level-headed person, and there wasn’t much in this world that could fluster him.
“Okay, good. Veronica?”
Now it was her turn to look somewhat troubled as she took a moment to consider her answer. “She’s caused the family a few problems over the years, so I suppose I’m not quite so indifferent to her as Howard is.”
“I’m not indifferent to her,” he protested, but Veronica ignored him.
“She’s been an irritation for a while, and it’s led to some strained relationships here and there, mainly between Lizzy and certain members of the family.”
“I understand,” Jon replied.
“I suppose the main people she’s caused issues with are her parents, as they’ve had to deal with her antics, and I suppose they feel a little embarrassed by her at family gatherings.”
“In what way has she been troublesome?” Jon asked.
“In all kinds of ways,” Veronica answered. “She’s openly defied the family several times, going against her parents’ wishes and the wishes of the family. She’s also taken a very anti-rich stance, politically.”
“Anti-rich?” Jon remarked.
“That’s right. And yeah, I know that it’s all the rage these days, with people bashing the billionaires for apparently hoarding all the money. But that’s not how this works. We create jobs, we help people all over the country pay their bills and have a better life. And let’s not even get into the fact that she’s come from money and isn’t short of it herself. She’s such a hypocrite. Her actions have upset several members of the family, and I just won’t stand for it. It’s dangerous, especially to the older generation.”
“She seems to have a good relationship with her great-grandfather,” Jon pointed out.
“So it might seem, but how do we know for sure? Harold has a weak heart and is quite frail. He shouldn’t be spending time with someone like her. I mean, look at this past night. He’s in hospital, and who’s to say that it wasn’t her that caused it? Hmm? I tell you, some of the things she’s done…
“And I know what people say, diversity is important, and promiscuity isn’t as taboo as it used to be. But there needs to be a line, and Lizzy frequently stepped right over it when she brought other girls to family events and was kissing them and stuff in front of us! It’s disgusting, I tell you.”
She seemed somewhat worked up over this, and while such casual bigotry wasn’t really against the law, and certainly didn’t make her or Howard a murderer, he didn’t like to hear it and did his best to keep himself from saying something he might regret later.
“She seemed to enjoy tormenting us,” Veronica continued. “Telling us how backward we were, or whatever it was. How’s that for gratitude, hmm?” Veronica shook her head and sighed. “I did my best to be accommodating to her, she’s family, after all. But she’d always go a step too far, and I hated seeing what it did to Piers and Ingrid, as well as my other children.”
“I see,” Jon replied, feeling troubled by her rant.
She sighed again. “You see? I know that look. You think I’m a mean person for saying that, don’t you? You think I’m the bigot, or whatever. I can see it in your eyes. But I’m just being honest with you. Telling you how things are in our family and how she’s upset several members of it.”
“I understand that, and I appreciate your honesty. Thank you.”
“Good, I’m glad you can see things from my point of view.”
Jon did his best not to pull a face. He wasn’t sure he could really see things from her point of view, but he didn’t want to say that to her and break the illusion. Instead, he just listened and made notes as he asked his questions.
“So, last night,” Jon began, “I hear that Spencer had a few harsh words to say about Lizzy.”
“Oh, that? You heard about that, did you? Heh, well, it was nothing really. He’s not got along with Lizzy for a while, so it’s not exactly news, and it wouldn’t be the first time he’s expressed his views about her.”
“He’s done this before?” Kate asked.
“I think so, yes.”
“And he has a criminal record,” Jon added.
“I know. Oh, so you think he was the killer? Well, I’m not sure about that. He’s kept some dodgy friends in his time, I suppose, but... No, I can’t see it, really. I don’t think anyone in this family is capable of that. I think you should be looking into Lizzy’s life up in London. I can’t imagine that she’s friends with some very nice people.”
“We’ll be looking at that,” Jon remarked.
“Good.”
“So, run me through the events of last night,” Jon pressed.
“Of course. Okay, so Spencer had his little rant thing, I think that was at about, ooh, just after ten?
“Ten-fifteen?” Jon asked, referring to his notes.
“That’s about right. He did it after Lizzy took Harold upstairs. I don’t know why he wanted her to help him, but he asked her to give him a hand, and she went.”
“So, he asked her to help him upstairs?” Jon asked, curious.
“That’s right,” Veronica replied. “I wasn’t really listening to Spencer and his little outburst. I was worried about my father-in-law, and rightly so, as it turned out this morning.”
Jon nodded, wondering if Lizzy had really somehow ca
used the complications that had resulted in Harold being taken into hospital.
“Okay, so what happened next?”
“Well, you’d had enough of Spencer’s rant, right?” she said to her husband, who was watching and listening to the conversation.
“It wasn’t anything I’d not heard before, I suppose, and it was upsetting a few people, so I called an end to the evening and asked Spencer to leave it. People made their way upstairs over the next maybe, ten minutes?”
“That’s about right,” Veronica replied. “I followed them up and went to check on Harold.”
“That’s right, and I went to get a nightcap.” Howard smiled cheekily as he related that little moment. “I find a little port can really help me get to sleep on an evening. I have trouble sleeping, sometimes you see.”
Jon nodded, linking that with what Portia had told him. “Do you take sleeping pills sometimes?”
Howard nodded, confirming Portia’s comments. “Occasionally. But I don’t always need them.”
“And you didn’t need them last night?”
“No, not at all. The port worked very nicely, thank you. I’ve got them with me, just in case, though.” He winked as if it was morphine or hard drugs he was taking.
“So, how did you find your father-in-law?” Jon asked Veronica.
“He was getting ready for bed by then, so I didn’t disturb him, but I did see Lizzy. I stopped to talk to her, and we had a little chat.”
“Oh?” Jon remarked.
“She’d been quiet all day, and I wanted to make sure she was alright. We had a nice little chat about that and about Harold. She assured me he was fine and that she was okay too. We finished the talk in my room before Howard appeared, and Lizzy left.”
“That’s right,” Howard replied. “She left just as I walked in.”
“Do you know where she went?” Jon asked.
“To her room, I think, judging from the direction she walked. She seemed happy when I saw her walk out of our room.”
“Happy?”
“She was smiling,” Howard replied.
“Was she?” Veronica asked, frowning.
“Oh yes. So whatever you said must have done the trick.”
Veronica nodded. “Okay, that’s good.”
“Was there anything else that happened?” Jon asked.
“No, I don’t think so,” Howard answered. “We got ready for bed and went straight to sleep. I think my nightcap worked because I was out for the count.”
“It had been a busy day,” Veronica replied.
“Yeah, that too. I was shattered after the day's activities.”
“You and me, both,” Veronica replied. “I slept well last night.”
“And you didn’t see or hear anything for the rest of the night?” Kate asked.
“No, nothing. I slept like a log,” Howard replied.
“Me too,” Veronica added.
Jon nodded. “Okay, thank you. I think that’s all for now, unless you have anything else you want to discuss?”
“No, thank you. You’ve been most helpful,” Veronica answered. “What will you be doing next?”
Jon regarded her for a moment and then answered. “We’re going to go and speak with Harold at the hospital,” he replied, making a mental note to call Stingray on the way over to keep him in the loop.
9
“Is the entire Lockwood family homophobic?” Jon asked, as they made their way through the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, where Harold was being treated.
“It’s starting to seem that way, isn’t it? It could be a generational thing, though. I’ve seen it before.”
“Yeah, maybe. But she really didn’t like the idea that Lizzy was dating women.”
“I know. You see, I just don’t get that at all. What does it matter who she loves, really? Lots of us have experimented a little, you know?”
“Have you?”
Kate shrugged. “I guess.”
“You’ve experimented with other women?” Jon replied, turning to look at her, surprised.
She glanced back up at him. “What?”
“I’m just surprised, that’s all.”
“Why? It’s nothing, really. I was a teen and still finding my way, and, well, I kissed a girl or two. It doesn’t mean anything, Jon. Are you saying you’ve never kissed a man?”
“Err, no. Not in that way,” Jon replied and wondered if he’d not answered a little too quickly.
“Oh, well, your loss, I suppose.”
“If you say so. I’ve just never been interested in men like that,” he replied, examining his own feelings.
“Good for you, but not everyone is so sure about who or what they like, especially at an early age, and it sounds like Lizzy was fairly open in her experimentations.”
“It does, I don’t think she cared who knew, and it seems like she relished making her family uncomfortable. Do you think she did it on purpose? Because it sounds like that to me. I think she knew that her family was quite conservative in their views and did it to provoke a reaction.”
“I get the same feeling. She was a provocateur, for sure. But if her family’s been cruel to her, maybe this was her way of getting back at them.”
“This family seems quite polarised in their views.”
“I’ve noticed,” Kate replied. “I’d better keep my teenage history private.”
“Ha. Yeah, it might be a good idea. Don’t worry, I’ll keep your secret.”
“Ha! Thank you,” Kate replied, as Jon smiled at the thought of Kate’s past. It tickled him a bit that she would open up about something like that, but he guessed she trusted him, which was a nice feeling.
“You’re thinking about it, aren’t you? You dirty bugger.”
“What?”
“You know what. It was years ago, and I’m much more sure of who I am now, not that it matters.”
“Glad to hear it… and yes, I was thinking about it.”
“I knew it, you git.”
“What? It’s a thought I will treasure.”
“I bet, you dirty northerner.”
Jon smiled back at her. “Yeah, but I’m your dirty northerner.”
“I’m so blessed,” she replied sarcastically.
“I know. The entire SIU is jealous of you.”
“Even Stingray?”
“Oh, especially Stingray. He might sound like he hates my guts with every fibre of his being, but he loves me really.”
“Riiight,” Kate replied with an incredulous grin as they finally entered the ward where Harold was being cared for. They were soon shown in and over to his bed, with a warning not to stress him out.
Feeling suitably chastised by the nurses, John smiled at Harold where he lay in his bed and introduced himself and Kate.
“How can I help you, Detectives?” Harold answered. “I take it this is about Lizzy?”
“You know?” Jon asked.
“Someone called Vivian on her phone while she was here, saying you’d arrived and broken the news. It was probably Veronica.”
“I see. Well, I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you,” he replied, his voice cracking. “She was such a lovely girl. She was always good to me. I’ll miss her dearly.”
“Of course,” Jon replied, feeling sorry for him.
“I’ve not got long myself, you know,” Harold said, his voice weak. If Jon had to guess, he’d place him in his eighties, with this thinning grey hair and lined face. Despite his age and frailty, though, his eyes were keen and sharp. “It’s terminal cancer. They say I only have a few weeks left, you know. That’s why they threw that party for me, back at the house. It was a lovely gesture.”
“Did you have fun?” Kate asked.
“Of course, my dear,” he replied and smiled at her. With a struggle, he reached his hand out, and Kate took it. “You’re a pretty one. Are you a detective too?”
Kate grinned. “I am, yes.”
“I bet you keep this one in lin
e, don’t you?” Harold pointed to Jon.
“I do my best, but he keeps finding ways to get around me,” she answered, looking back at Jon.
“She keeps me firmly under her thumb,” Jon added.
“I’ll bet. That’s some lovely red hair you have there,” he said to Kate. “My first wife had red hair, you know. She was quite something.”
“Thank you, it matches my fiery temper.”
“She’s kidding,” Jon added. “She’s a gentle pussy cat, really.”
Harold chuckled. “I bet.”
“So, how did the party go?”
“It was lovely. They do know how to throw a party, I’ll give them that. It was so nice to see everyone back together. I’ve missed it, you know. I only get to see them occasionally these days, especially the great-grandkids. They’re all off doing their own thing, at school or working. It’s lovely to see. But I know that’s not what you’re really after, is it? You want to know what happened, and if I can shed some light on Lizzy’s death, correct?”
“That would be helpful,” Jon admitted.
“It all comes back to Lizzy, I think. And I think I might be ultimately responsible for her murder.”
Jon narrowed his eyes, curious and incredulous. Surely he wasn’t admitting to murder? “What do you mean? You didn’t kill her.”
“Not directly, no. Of course not. I could never. I can’t get out of the house alone, for a start. But, I think that maybe, what I asked her to do, might have caused it.”
“Oh, I see.” Jon nodded, listening intently.
Harold sighed and looked up at the ceiling. “Knowing your end is coming, that your death is close, it’s a hell of a thing, you know? But, I can’t complain. I’ve led a privileged life that many would be jealous of, even with the occasional tragedy I’ve suffered. But knowing things are coming to an end, it makes you think about life and legacy, and put plans in place. I’ve felt the vultures circling for a while now, desperate for whatever scraps they can scavenge. But, I know my family, or, at least, I’ve heard things. People tell me things, and it doesn’t take much to get a general impression of who some of these people are. It paints a picture, and unfortunately, it’s not a picture I like. When I go, I’m going to be leaving a sizable estate behind, you see, and I need to be sure it’s going to go to the right people. You know?”