He's my collaborator in this e-book and I've seen enough of him to satisfy myself he's not the arsonist. He was the only person to get unqualified encouragement from Blacker —
9. The Chair
He was in custody when Fires 2 and 3 happened, so it's not him.
8. Greenfingers
My husband doesn't have the guts, and aside from that he had no quarrel with Blacker. He's not a serious writer.
7. Blondie
Though present at Blacker's talk, she submitted no work, and so received no criticism. Reveals almost nothing about herself except that she was commissioned to do a strip cartoon for the local rag. She doesn't hack it as a writer, or a possible killer.
6. Parcel Force
As a newcomer, he has to be regarded with suspicion, but wasn't present at Blacker's talk and apparently never met the man. Unlikely to have caused the fire at the boat house unless his version of events is a lie and a distraction. Brash, opportunistic and doesn't have the makings of a writer or an arsonist.
5. Archdeacon's Lady
A dark horse, obsessed by status, ready to faint from shock if anyone uses a four-letter word, but secretly lusting for the Chair. Nose put out of joint by Blacker rejecting her book of tips as old-fashioned. Capable of starting fires.
4. Nitpicker
Weird — and thinks he's wonderful. Treats the circle as a shooting party, picking off cliches like game birds. I've heard he does strange things on his computer. He'd be top of this list if he had a more obvious motive. But he offered no manuscript, so didn't get the rebuff from Blacker.
3. Passionella
Another of the Chair's groupies, and a tireless writer of steamy romances. No stranger to rejections, she had her hopes raised this time, then dashed when she revealed how many of her scripts have landed back on her doormat. Was Blacker's 'I'll have to consult a colleague' the last straw? All those years of disappointment have to find an outlet.
2. Schoolmistress
Does her damnedest to be loved by one and all, so was the first to reel in Parcel Force the evening he turned up, and that's always been the pattern. Wears her faults on her sleeve, drinks too much and smokes too many, and delights in parading her libido in her poems. Men fall for it every time. And now she visits us in our homes, trying to solve the mystery. Methinks she doth protest too much.
1. Welshman
An attention-seeker with a vindictive streak. Had the biggest putdown of all by Blacker, not even getting his self-serving trash discussed in front of us. For a man of Welshman's self-importance, that was below the belt. We don't know what was said when he finally got his script back, but it wasn't complimentary for sure. When the Chair was pulled in by the police, Welshman was all too eager to cast him as the arsonist. Then there's this insurance connection. It may amount to nothing, but I intend to find out.
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17
What is Charity? A monk's cloak. Why f Because it covers a multitude of sins.
Hen took DC Shilling with her to the women's refuge instead of Stella. 'Poor souls don't get the chance to look at a man from one week to another,' she told Stella. 'One this size should do them a power of good. Let them know we're not a shrinking police force.'
The place was on the east side of the city on the Oving Road. They could have walked it in fifteen minutes, but Hen never walked anywhere when a car was available. On the drive out, she chatted to Shilling about nothing in particular and realised he was more than just a hunk. She liked his quirky humour. When she rang the doorbell and there was no immediate answer, he said, 'Do you want me to hoof the door in, guv?'
'It's a refuge.'
'Make 'em feel at home, won't it?'
A window opened above them and a woman leaned out and said, 'Who are you?'
Hen called up, 'Police,' and flashed her ID, even though it would be hard to see from upstairs. 'Show them yours,' she told her towering assistant. 'It's not me they're scared of.'
'Oh, dear,' the woman said, 'are we in trouble again? Just a minute.'
The door was opened by the public spirit of Chichester personified, dressed in a pink suit and white blouse with a ruff. She was Mrs Courtney-Andrews, she said, and they had to be careful about visitors. She gave Shilling a wary look.
When she'd shown them into the office she explained that it was policy to open their doors to anyone in trouble — anyone female and grown-up — and this was always leading to difficulties with the authorities. 'We used to get more visits from you — the police, I mean — when our intake was only battered wives. These days it's the immigration people asking about asylum seekers.'
'Illegals,' DC Shilling said.
'Not in every case.'
'They're the ones who interest immigration.'
'Plenty about,' Hen said.
'Well, yes, and most of them are desperate, poor souls. It's a double bind, isn't it? They can't ask for asylum unless they're in the country and the only way most of them can get in is illegally. They arrive in lorries and containers — well, I don't have to tell you, inspector. We don't turn them away.'
'And you don't turn them in,' Shilling said.
'Not when they've got this far, but we make it clear that they can't stay for long. We feed them up and give them any urgent medical treatment they need and send them on their way.'
'And do they leave willingly?'
'I wouldn't say willingly in every case but we try and persuade them that they must make room for the next ones knocking on the door.'
'Who does the persuading?'
'Basically, whoever is here. We're all volunteers.'
'The reason I'm asking is that Miss Snow was a volunteer.'
'Oh, it's about her, is it, poor darling? We were all so shocked at what happened to her.' Actually Mrs Courtney-Andrews looked as if the sun had come out again.
'I'm wondering if she had the job of moving someone on, and maybe they felt it was unjust and bore a grudge against her.'
The logic of this got home to Mrs Courtney-Andrews at once. Her eyes widened in horror. 'What a ghastly thought! But you can't be right. Miss Snow hasn't done any counselling lately. She's generous with her time, but most of it is spent in our shop in town. She wouldn't make enemies there.'
'But she does come in here?'
'Yes, she was an accountant, you know, so once a week she comes into the office here — silly, I'm speaking in the present tense, but I still can't believe this — comes into the office and deals with the bills and puts everything in order. I don't know who'll take over. We're going to need someone with business experience.'
'She looked after the chequebook?'
