Murder in Time (15 page)

‘I tell you, he didn't!'

‘We can always ask Dick Prentice. Or Abdi.'

Gail shifted on her seat. ‘Well, they might lie. Simon doesn't deserve to lose his career for the sake of this … this tart!'

Vera reddened and looked away.

‘Gail, be careful who you call names,' warned Dan. ‘You and your brother and his friends between you destroyed Vera's reputation and her hopes of a university education. You left her, pregnant and homeless, to fend for herself. You started the chain of events by giving her a spiked drink, and your brother took his turn in raping her. In law—'

‘In law! It's never going to come to that.'

‘I hope not, for Vera's sake,' said Ellie. ‘But if Abdi persists in saying that Vera killed the doctor—'

‘He wouldn't take it to the police, because if he did, he'd have to admit that he himself took part in the rape.'

‘That,' said Ellie, trying to be patient, ‘is exactly what I've been saying. We've got to have just enough to stop Abdi, and we don't have to take it any further.'

‘From what I remember of him,' said Dan, frowning, ‘Abdi hasn't much regard for the law. He might well throw Vera to the wolves if he can't get his own way by other means.'

Silence.

‘I've had enough of this,' said Ellie. ‘If nobody else will act, I will. I have contacts at the police station, and I'll go to see them tomorrow morning. I'll give them what names I have, and they can start questioning the rest of you till they get at the truth. First on the list: Simon. What's his surname? Trubody? Really?'

‘No,' said Vera. ‘I can't bear it!'

‘Mrs Quicke, you mustn't,' said Gail. ‘You'd be ruining so many lives. Simon wouldn't be able to stand for Parliament, and I … I'd have to move to a practice somewhere else.'

‘I suppose,' said Dan, ‘that that would be tit for tat. Between you, you destroyed Vera's future, so now she can destroy yours.'

Vera complained, ‘You're not listening to me. How many times do I have to say that I don't want this to go any further?'

‘You've heard her,' said Gail. ‘This goes no further. Vera wasn't conscious, so she can't name names. As for naming other people, that's hearsay and has no value in court. Also, it's slander. If you try to involve us, Mrs Quicke, we'll have
your
guts for garters, as well as Vera's.'

Ellie stood up. ‘I'll take that as a threat, shall I? It seems to me that it's you who doesn't understand the possible consequences of Abdi's actions. He wants Mikey and is prepared to blackmail Vera to get him. If she rejects his demand, he goes to the police with his accusation. Unless you help us to fend him off, her defence will have to be that she was gang-raped and in no position to kill anyone. I don't see any other way in which she can protect herself from a murder charge. Can you?'

‘She can say that Abdi alone … After all, he is the father of her child. She should have
him
arrested for rape.'

‘Yes, she could do that. And what will his defence be? That he was drunk and invited to join in a gang rape. If he tries that, he'll have to name the other members of the group. And he will do so, won't he? He won't worry about your brother's reputation. Why should he?'

Gail worried at her lower lip, her eyes switching to and fro.

Without seeming to look at the boy, Dan held out his hand and said, ‘No, Mikey. Bad idea.'

Mikey removed his hand from his school bag and placed his mobile phone on the table. Dan picked it up and switched it off.

Ellie gaped. Had Mikey been recording the conversation? If so, and Dan had noticed, then it must be true that good teachers have eyes in the back of their heads.

Gail reared up. ‘Was that boy recording …? How dare he! You're going to confiscate his phone, right?'

‘Certainly not,' said Dan. ‘It's his phone. He will decide what to do with it. But I'm advising him to think carefully about recording anything while your position is still … fluid.'

‘Fluid?' Gail thought about that. ‘You mean that there's another way to get my brother off the hook?'

Ellie said, ‘I suppose there might be. Someone helped Vera home. Who was it, and will they speak up for her? If so, we might not need to approach Simon at all.'

Gail considered that. ‘I suppose that's worth trying. It was Sylvia, wasn't it?'

Ellie wrote down the name. ‘Surname? And, how do you know it was Sylvia, if you'd left before Vera?'

‘We met in the town centre one day, shortly after, and I asked if she'd had to give a statement to the police. She said she hadn't, that she'd managed to escape while the gang were rampaging through the house. She'd been in one of the bedrooms with … someone.'

‘Who?'

Gail grimaced. ‘Someone who was further into drugs than any of us. He's still around, but the drugs have destroyed him. He's nothing but a zombie, nowadays.'

‘So he's not going to be any help. What about this Sylvia person?'

‘I don't know, do I? All she said was that she'd found Vera flat out in the garden and helped her to get away. Not that we discussed that part of the evening in detail. We talked about the murder, mostly.'

‘Surname?' insisted Ellie. ‘Where can we find her?'

‘I have no idea. She left to go to uni. So did I. Haven't seen her since.'

Dan said, ‘I looked her up on Facebook once. She emigrated to Australia.'

Ellie said, ‘Gail, we have to start somewhere. Can you tell us your movements that evening?'

A gesture of helplessness. ‘We were dancing in the hall when all hell broke loose. Vera tangled with the Hulk and got knocked for six, almost brought me down, too. Dan yelled at us to get out, so I helped her through the kitchen and into the garden. We all went off in different directions, trying to get away. Raff caught up with us, said there was somewhere we could hide down by the pool. I suppose half a dozen of us landed up in the hut. We were all somewhat hysterical. We could hear the gang hallooing for us for a while, blundering around in the dark, but they didn't find us, and after a while they went back to the house and everything went quiet. Someone said there was a way out to the road further on, and a couple of the boys went to see if they could get out that way. They didn't come back. I didn't want to walk home by myself, so I waited for Simon. Dick gave me a drink, which I didn't want, so I passed it to Vera. She collapsed. Dick dragged her out on to the grass, with … with someone.'

‘Raff?' said Ellie.

‘You know about Raff? Yes, Raff helped him. They were well away; laughing, staggering about, saying it was their birthday or some such nonsense. Dick pounced on Vera first. Raff and Abdi were egging him on.' She wet her lips. ‘I was the only one left in the hut by then. I couldn't believe it was happening. Was afraid they might start on me. They were so hyped up … Raff was such a big lad, and Abdi … No one got in Abdi's way if they knew what was good for them.'

‘Didn't your brother make any effort to stop them?'

‘I told you; he wasn't there. But someone else tried. Jack … Jack the Lad, you remember? … loomed up out of nowhere with his girl, what was her name? Carol? He could hardly stand up straight, I suppose he was drunk, but he did try to stop them, stood there trying to fight them, windmilling, you know, enough to make a cat laugh, with Carol trying to pull him away. Raff gave him a push, and he landed in the shrubbery. After that he got the message and went off down the path with Carol.'

It wasn't Carol. It was … Caroline? With Jack. This confirms what Jack said.

Dan said, ‘Was Simon second or third?'

‘I told you, Simon wasn't there. I waited till they were all concentrating on Vera, and I slipped away. I found the gate, got out through the back alley and went home.'

Dan said, ‘So your brother Simon was still on top of Vera when …?'

‘No. Certainly not. He wasn't there. And no, I've never spoken of it to anyone since. Ever.'

She'd protested too much. Ellie didn't believe her. Gail had said she'd been waiting for Simon to walk home with her, so he
had
been there. Hadn't he?

Vera was ashen. ‘Dick, Abdi, Raff. And maybe Simon. Anyone else?'

Gail shrugged. ‘I have no idea. I left.'

Vera ran her fingers back through her hair. ‘It
was
Sylvia who rescued me. I remember her coming down the garden from the house. There was a blue light flashing somewhere in the sky. A police car. She helped to clean me up in the hut, but she didn't see me home. You say she went to Australia?'

Gail said, ‘She's well out of it. As is Simon. He didn't do anything. It's wrong to talk about him just because he was there. It could ruin him.'

‘I don't want to ruin anyone,' said Vera.

‘Doesn't he deserve to be ruined?' said Dan. ‘Or, at least, to pay for what he did?'

‘I keep telling you,' said Gail. ‘He didn't do anything. Anyway, others do far worse things.'

‘Serial killers? Child abusers? Rapists?'

Silence.

Gail said, ‘I think this has all got out of hand.' She managed a rueful smile. ‘I mean, what has Vera really got to worry about? Abdi is a bully, and she has to call his bluff. She tells him to get lost or she'll sue him for rape and, as he's already admitted that Mikey is his child, he won't have a leg to stand on. He won't dare go to the police. He'll have to pay her a hefty cheque for looking after the boy all these years. Then, if he still wants the boy, he can negotiate access. Vera will get a golden handshake, Mikey will get a prince's upbringing. Abdi has a son to show off to the world, and everything turns out for the best. I'll put you in touch with a good solicitor, if you like, Vera.' She turned her smile on Dan. ‘Don't you agree, Dan?'

‘Some of what you say makes sense. But it doesn't answer the question of who killed my father.'

‘Oh, that. It was one of the drug dealers, of course. You're never going to get at the truth of that, now. I agree, this has all been very upsetting, but we must get over rough territory as lightly as we can. You and I should keep out of Vera's hair and let her make the best arrangement she can for her future.'

‘Not so fast,' said Dan. ‘I've asked her to marry me.'

‘What!' Gail's complexion went from a blushing pink to a sickly white. It seemed she'd invested more than time in her friendship with Dan.

Vera snapped back: ‘And I refused him. What do I want with a husband? I'm busy all hours of the day and night as it is, what with Mikey to keep on the straight and narrow, my work at college, helping Rose out with the housekeeping and looking after my flat upstairs. I need a hole in my head as much as I need taking on a man to look after, to feed and wash and clean for, to have to account for the housekeeping and consider all his little ways.'

Dan said, ‘State your terms.'

‘Can you promise not to drop dirty socks and pants all over the bedroom floor, or leave the cap off the toothpaste, or forget your keys, or expect me to pick up your cleaning from the shops, or find the files you've left at school or under your desk, or locate your games kit? You don't really think I'd take on someone else who needs looking after, do you?'

Mikey stared at his mother, open-mouthed.

Dan began to laugh, but quickly sobered. ‘You're right. I'd be a demanding husband. And you'd hate the rented house I'm in at the moment. I didn't think about how it would look from your point of view. You've forgotten my cycling. Perhaps you didn't know about that? I joined a club and spend a couple of hours a week doing events. Or rather, I did, but that's … We can discuss that later. The thing is, you've always been so practical, I thought you'd be able to organize me and still have time for your own career.'

‘Yes, my career is important to me.' Angry tears were in her eyes. ‘I want to stand on my own two feet.'

‘As I said, state your terms, and I'll agree to them.'

Vera swiped tears from her cheeks. ‘Soft talk. It'll get you nowhere.'

Gail said, ‘Dan …? Really …? You and Vera?'

‘Yes,' said Dan. ‘Whatever happens. Sorry and all that, Gail. We've had some good times together, haven't we? But you always expected more of me than I could give.'

Gail recovered, clutching and releasing the catch on her handbag. ‘And
you
expected more of me than
I
could give. I have a demanding job. You can't expect me to drop everything to provide clean underpants or look for lost keys.'

‘Indeed,' said Dan, shaking his head in sorrow. ‘I'm afraid I need a lot of looking after.'

Mikey's mouth remained open, his eyes switching from one to the other. Was he working out that Dan was manipulating both Vera and Gail?

Vera snorted. With laughter, or outrage? But had the wit to hold her tongue.

Gail stood up and smoothed down her coat. ‘Well, I'm glad we've had this little chat. Cleared the air. We part good friends, right?'

‘You're a great girl, Gail,' said Dan, with a mournful smile. ‘I'm not worthy of you.'

He'd overdone it. Vera hiccuped, hand over mouth. Mikey lowered his head till it was almost on his worksheet, while Ellie shot a sharp glance at Gail, to see if she'd cottoned on. But she hadn't. Too self-absorbed?

Ellie said, ‘I'll see you out, Gail, shall I?'

Gail left, without a backward glance. As Ellie was in the act of shutting the front door, Vera pushed Dan before her into the hall. ‘He's leaving, too.'

Dan was laughing. ‘Till tomorrow?'

‘I'm otherwise engaged!' At least, that's what Vera's mouth said. Her eyes said that she was looking forward to it.