The Deadline Series Boxset

by Wendy Soliman

  ‘Any idea what they were arguing about?’

  ‘Nope. Didn’t hear what was actually said and only saw them for a moment. I got distracted by a problem with one of the other feeds and didn’t think much about it. Juliette was always at loggerheads with someone.’ Another negligent shrug. ‘Still, all I know is that I didn’t kill Juliette and I dare say the police will find out who did.’

  ‘Let’s hope so.’

  ‘And the show goes on.’ Guy rolled his eyes. ‘Viewer numbers guaranteed to go through the stratosphere now this has happened and sponsors will be queuing up to back the next series.’ He flashed a wry smile. ‘Perhaps Evan Southgate did it.’

  ‘Don’t tell me Juliette was sleeping with him, too?’

  ‘He’s the producer. The man with the ultimate power to make anything happen. Of course she would have tried it on with him. But he wasn’t here the night she was killed.’ Guy rolled his shoulders. ‘Anyway, the others have got over the shock and are focused on the contest again. R.I.P. Ms Hammond, and the show goes on.’

  ‘Did you tell the police what you just told me about her using sex to influence the outcome of the vote and about the cameras sometimes being disconnected?’

  ‘Sure. I wasn’t having them suspect me, which is what they seemed to be doing for a while. Anyway, I talked it through with Grenville Scott first and he agreed that I should tell the complete truth.’ He snorted. ‘Truth and lawyers aren’t two words that sit well in the same sentence, if you ask me. Anyway, Grenville sat beside me all the time in his poncey suit, making sure I didn’t spill any more of Far Reach’s grubby little secrets.’

  Alexi shuddered. ‘I hardly dare ask.’

  Guy grinned. ‘Probably best.’ He checked his watch, drained his coffee mug and stood up. ‘Ah well, I best be getting back to work. There’s no peace for the wicked.’

  ‘Nice chatting with you,’ Alexi said, absently.

  ‘You too.’

  Guy snagged another biscuit and disappeared out the back door. She saw him stop to light up the moment he closed it behind him.

  Alexi remained at the table, pondering on Guy’s revelations. It wasn’t looking good for Marcel, she conceded. If he knew that the cameras going down wouldn’t induce immediate panic, it was a game-changer. If he had killed Juliette and wanted, for some reason, to pose her in her room then he could easily have sneaked in and disconnected the feed, aware that no one would come running for at least half an hour. Thank God he still didn’t have an obvious motive. Besides, if he’d been careful enough to disconnect the cameras it beggared belief that he would thrust his own knife into her surgically-enhanced breast and leave it there to be found. Besides, it was true what Guy had just said about chefs and their knives. They were all pretty anal in that respect.

  ‘Hey, you were quick,’ Alexi said, looking up when the door opened. A spontaneous smile sprang to her lips when she saw Ty standing there. ‘How did it go?’

  ‘Not so good.’

  Alexi noticed his harried expression and felt anxious. ‘What’s happened?’

  ‘Vickery’s on his way over here,’ he replied tersely. ‘They’re gonna haul Marcel in for another grilling.’

  Alexi gasped. ‘Why? What reason do they have?’

  ‘He told me as a courtesy, but I can’t warn Marcel and neither can you.’ Ty ran a hand distractedly through his hair. ‘The fingerprint evidence from Juliette’s room came back while I was talking with Vickery, so he couldn’t avoid sharing with me that Marcel’s prints were found on a glass on her bedside table—’

  ‘That doesn’t mean a thing,’ Alexi protested hotly. ‘Anyone could have put that there.’

  ‘Yeah, but his print was also found on the underside of the table itself.’

  Chapter Thirteen

  ‘Shit!’ Alexi gaped at Ty. ‘So he lied to us.’

  ‘That was my first reaction.’ Ty shed his leather jacket and threw it over the back of a chair. He turned another chair around and straddled it, leaning his arms on its back. ‘But I’ve had time to think about it on the way back and it seems too clumsy to be believable.’

  ‘Because we don’t want to believe it?’

  Ty shrugged. ‘Perhaps.’

  ‘Leaving that aside for a moment, let me tell you what Guy Salter just told me about the camera feeds.’

  ‘Ah,’ Ty said, when she’d finished. ‘That changes everything.’

  ‘That’s what I thought. But we don’t know that Marcel was aware the contestants could switch them off. They’d been told to keep it to themselves on pain of disqualification. I don’t think Cheryl and Drew had any idea.’

  ‘But Dakin would have known?’

  ‘Probably.’ Alexi scowled. ‘Ty, it’s the worst fit-up in the history of crime.’ She stood up and paced the length of the kitchen, almost tripping over when Cosmo wound himself between her legs. She picked the big cat up and threw him over her shoulder. Cosmo purred loudly in her ear. ‘Think about it for a moment. For Marcel to have done it, he would have had to follow Juliette for some reason after she left his apartment and after she’d argued with Dakin. But why?’

  ‘Perhaps the police will say he saw her with Dakin and called her on it,’ Ty said. ‘Or they will suggest that it wasn’t Dakin and Juliette arguing but Marcel and Juliette.’

  ‘They can’t say that if Dakin has admitted to being here and arguing with her.’

  Ty waved a hand. ‘I’m just playing devil’s advocate. However they paint the picture, they will find a way to put Marcel in that courtyard with Juliette, either instead of Dakin or after he left. They’ll say his famous temper got the better of him when he realised she’d been shagging Dakin as well as him. He pushed Juliette and…I don’t know, she hit her head on the water feature and died. It was all a terrible accident.’

  ‘And he then tried to disguise what he’d done. In a state of advanced panic when it could reasonably be assumed he wasn’t thinking straight, he calmly let himself into her room, even though he knew the cameras would still be running. In spite of that, without leaving a single print or scrap of trace evidence, he managed to disconnect the camera feed.’

  ‘The police will probably say Juliette had told him about disconnecting the cameras. Pillow talk.’

  Alexi frowned. ‘Hmm.’

  ‘Anyway, let’s go back to our mythical situation. Marcel’s in Juliette’s room and has disconnected the camera feed. Without knowing how long he had before someone came to investigate, he calmly went back outside, threw Juliette’s dead body over his shoulder and, for some reason known only to him, arranged her on her bed. Then, he went back to the restaurant’s kitchen, took one of his own precious knives and stabbed her with it. Having done that, he took a drink from the glass beside the bed because, obviously, pointing the finger of blame in your own direction is thirsty work. He left no prints anywhere because he was wearing gloves; not unreasonable given the frigid temperatures. Juliette’s prints were all over the place so the killer definitely wore gloves.’

  ‘So how could Marcel have left a print on the bedside table?’

  ‘No idea,’ Ty responded, ‘but I dare say Vickery will have theories. Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, Marcel wore gloves but left his knife and a glass with his prints on it, but didn’t leave prints anywhere else. Come on!’

  ‘You’ve made me feel a whole lot better,’ Alexi said. ‘A decent defence barrister will drive a horse and cart through that theory. Especially since Marcel has no motive.’

  ‘The killer created a spur-of-the-moment decoy and Marcel just happened to be it.’

  ‘That implies it could have been a crime of passion, or Juliette saw or heard something that made her a liability. It doesn’t have to be premeditated murder. The killer had to think on his feet.’ Alexi resumed her seat at the table and leaned her elbows on it. ‘Other cases will come along, this one will get less attention and gradually get shoved onto the back burner. In the meantime memories fade, no one really remembers for sure what
they saw and no longer cares. In other words, life goes on, provided the killer can buy himself some time.’

  ‘Cynical, but true,’ Ty conceded.

  ‘Will they arrest Marcel? That would be devastating for the show, to say nothing of Marcel personally. I can’t see him remaining passive if he’s unjustly accused. He really does have a short fuse, you know.’

  ‘Vickery will have to talk to him about this latest development but I hope he will see reason and not jump the gun. The fact that he doesn’t plan to actually arrest him is a good sign. We need to talk to Grenville Scott, lay out the theory we just came up with to show how ridiculous it would be to accuse Marcel. Where is he, by the way?’

  ‘Marcel? They resumed filming today. He’ll be in the restaurant kitchen for another hour at least.’ Alexi scowled. ‘Vickery won’t go and haul him out of there in front of the cameras, will he? I suspect Marcel really would lose it if he was humiliated in that way.’

  ‘I doubt that he will.’ Ty sighed. ‘We’re lucky that we drew him as senior investigating officer. He’s fair-minded and even though he’s under pressure to get a result, he won’t be bullied into making an arrest unless he has solid evidence to back it up.’

  ‘Well, that’s something, I suppose.’

  ‘Of course, you’re partly responsible for that.’

  ‘Me!’ Alexi widened her eyes. ‘What did I do?’

  ‘Your reputation precedes you,’ he said with a broad smile. ‘Journalists are not always a copper’s best friend; trust me on this. You have a reputation for being firm but fair and are usually on the side of the angels. But, you’re also known for going in all guns blazing if you think there’s been a miscarriage of justice. Vickery’s bosses are very media savvy and won’t want a Rottweiler of an investigative journalist giving them grief if they can help it.’

  ‘Glad to be of service. Woof, woof!’

  Ty laughed. ‘They’ll need a watertight case or the CPS won’t proceed with it and I’m pretty sure, as things stand, that they can’t pin it on Marcel. They’d be laughed out of court.’

  ‘Is Grenville Scott still around?’ Alexi asked. ‘Patrick went back to London this morning and I got the impression that Grenville was going with him.’

  ‘One way to find out.’

  Ty pulled his mobile from his pocket and dialled the lawyer’s number.

  ‘Mr Maddox,’ a cultured voice answered. ‘What can I do for you?’

  There was a deafening silence after Ty explained Marcel’s predicament.

  ‘Are you still there?’ Ty asked.

  ‘I am, but unfortunately I’m on my way back to London. I have to be in court this afternoon.’

  ‘Can you send someone else to look after Marcel until you’re free?’

  ‘Well, that’s not likely to be possible. Marcel Gasquet isn’t actually a client of Far Reach Productions, you see, so isn’t my responsibility.’

  Ty shouldn’t have been surprised. ‘So you intend to hang him out to dry?’ His voice vibrated with barely controlled anger. ‘A convenient scapegoat upon whom Far Reach can turn their collective backs?’

  ‘It would be a conflict of interest, dear boy,’ Scott said calmly. ‘If, as you contest, Gasquet is innocent, then in all probability someone connected to my client’s organisation is guilty. It would be my job to represent that person if and when charges were brought. In defending Gasquet it might be necessary to point the finger of suspicion at someone connected to my client’s company. I wouldn’t be doing my job effectively if I didn’t take that into consideration and they know it.’

  ‘Yes, but Marcel isn’t—’

  ‘They have given me my instructions and I am duty bound to follow them. I’m sorry. I like Gasquet and, for what it’s worth, I don’t think he killed the poor girl. Anyway, there are plenty of other good solicitors available. Would you like me to recommend one?’

  ‘I wouldn’t accept a tip from you on a fifty-to-one odds-on favourite.’ Ty quietly seethed, his breathing shallow and erratic. ‘You’ll regret this, Scott. Ms Ellis, you remember her, I’m sure. She’s an investigative journalist with the ability to make or break careers and is sitting beside me listening to every word.’

  Ty hung up and flung his phone across the table. It skidded to a halt on the other side where Alexi caught it before it crashed onto the tiled floor and fell apart.

  ‘Bastards!’ he muttered.

  ‘Calm down, Ty.’ Alexi touched his arm. ‘You can’t be surprised by that, surely?’

  ‘No, I guess I saw it coming but the way these big organisations cover their own backs no matter what and…well, it gets my own back up.’

  ‘He must know that Dakin is the most likely suspect and they’re closing ranks to protect him. He’s still presenting the show, you know.’

  ‘Yeah, it stinks,’ Ty said disgustedly.

  ‘What annoys me is that Scott was probably in Patrick’s car. That would be the same Patrick who assured me that he would do anything and everything to protect this hotel and everyone who works here.’ Alexi blew air through her lips. ‘So much for I’ll-do-anything-to-prove-to-you-how-much-you-mean-to-me. Ha, and he was so convincing he almost had me fooled.’

  ‘If you’ve seen your ex in his true colours then something good has come out of this.’ Ty squeezed her hand, feeling a little calmer as he tried to figure out their next move. ‘And it just so happens I know exactly the right person to represent Marcel. An old friend of mine; a one man band working out of Newbury. He used to be with a big organisation but got fed up with office politics.’

  Alexi nodded emphatically. ‘I know the feeling.’

  Ty reached for his phone and scrolled through his numbers. ‘Ben Avery has worked with Cassie and me on a few cases and I know he’ll bite our hands off to get involved with this one. Anyone local would.’

  He called, was put through to Ben, and they exchanged a few pleasantries. Ty explained the situation. A short time later he hung up again with a smile on his face.

  ‘By the time Marcel comes out of the kitchen, Ben will be here. I feel better already because Ben’s loyalties definitely won’t be in question.’

  ‘What did Vickery make of Hammond’s notes on the all main players?’ Alexi asked.

  ‘He thought it was weird. The work of an overzealous parent. He’s met Hammond, don’t forget, and has got the measure of him, so wasn’t that surprised.’

  ‘And your client? Cash Out. What did Mike Bailey have to say when you told him you’d cracked the case?’

  ‘He was horrified about Melody Davis’s summary dismissal. He remembered her being on reception, even though he’d only exchanged a word or two with her in passing.’

  ‘It’s hardly surprising that she stuck in his memory. She’s a striking woman. Once seen not easily forgotten. Ask Hammond if you doubt it.’

  ‘Yeah well, Bailey knew nothing about her getting the push. He doesn’t get involved with the day to day hiring and firing and plans to have a few choice words with the person who does. He also understands why the son did what he did and won’t be pressing charges or looking for restitution of the cash.’

  ‘I should think not!’

  ‘I spoke to Dean after I saw Bailey and told him the good news. He took the day off today, not sure if he would have a job to go to if Bailey pressed charges so was mightily relieved. But he was more concerned about his mother. He’s told her about Juliette but said she didn’t seem to absorb the enormity of what he was saying. She was, in his words, way too calm about it.’

  ‘It will hit her later.’

  ‘Most likely. D.C. Hogan was going round to talk to them both, which is another reason why Dean wanted to be there.’

  ‘Did you mention to Dean what Hammond said about taking care of them both?’

  ‘No, that’s a matter between them. I don’t want to get involved.’

  ‘That’s probably wise.’ Alexi sighed. ‘God, what a day.’

  ‘What did you make of Guy Salter?’ T
y asked. ‘Did you believe him?’

  ‘I didn’t see any reason not to. I’m not as good as you are at judging when someone’s lying to me, but I do have a lot of experience of evasiveness from all the interviews I’ve done over the years. Guy answered my questions without hesitation and didn’t give off any vibes that made me suspicious.’ Alexi propped one elbow on the table and rested her cheek in her splayed hand as she relived their conversation in her mind. ‘He also has no motive, other than that Juliette didn’t come on to him like she did with what he described as the men who could make a difference for her.’

  ‘Do you think that bothered him?’

  Alexi took a moment to consider the question. ‘Actually, I don’t. His ego might have taken a bashing but not to the extent that he’d commit murder over it.’

  ‘No, most likely not,’ Ty agreed.

  ‘He’s a local man, you know, Reading born and bred.’

  ‘No, I didn’t know that.’

  ‘According to him, he has a good reputation and gets plenty of work. It finds him as a rule but he had his agent put out feelers for him because he wanted to work on this show.’

  ‘Why was Salter so keen to work on this production?’

  She shrugged. ‘Says the inside word was that it would be big.’

  Ty frowned. ‘How could anyone be sure of that before an episode had even aired?’

  ‘No idea, but he says the grapevine seldom gets it wrong. Don’t they do audience surveys and stuff?’

  ‘You tell me. That’s more your area than mine.’ Ty stood up and poured himself some coffee. ‘The thing is, unless we find out who did kill Juliette, there’s always going to be a question mark hanging over Marcel’s head.’

  ‘And the reputation of this establishment.’

  ‘Right.’ Ty waved the coffee pot in Alexi’s direction but she shook her head. ‘So, we need to find out who did it and why.’

  ‘We haven’t spoken with Anton again yet, or John either. I was hoping we could get to them both this afternoon.’

  ‘We’ll try.’ Ty leaned against the wall, sipping his coffee as he thought about it. ‘What we really need is a plausible reason for Marcel’s print being on that bedside table. That is the one sticking point that worries me. It puts Marcel in that room when he’s maintained all along that he never set foot in it. That, in turn, casts doubt over his entire statement.’