Her phone rang.
‘Sorry. This could be Gemma.’ She put it to her ear.
It was, and she sounded in good heart. ‘Jo darling, is this a good time?’
‘Sure.’ Considerately, Jake had turned away and stepped down the beach towards the sea. She wouldn’t have minded if he’d stayed.
‘Sorry to miss Starbucks,’ Gemma was saying, requiring a shift in thought of half a million years. ‘Rick told you about my problem.’
‘How did it go?’
‘Well, after much thought, they didn’t bang me up in jail.’
‘I should think not.’
‘It wasn’t so hairy as I expected at first. Would you believe they called me at seven-thirty in the morning on a Saturday, when I’m trying to get a proper lie-in? What they wanted was to be let into the office and shown where Fiona worked. They asked me all about her, and the boss.’
‘Did they know she had something going with him?’
‘They did when I’d finished with them. They spent a long time in his office and took his computer away. Asked me loads of questions about his attitude to women and where he takes his holidays and if he drinks and stuff like that. He’s the prime suspect, for sure.’
‘Are they treating it as a crime, then?’
‘You bet they are. These were CID, not plain old cops in uniform.’
‘Who was in charge? A woman detective called Mallin?’
‘No. Have you got friends in the police?’
‘Far from it. She’s the tough cookie who interviewed me about the dead woman I found at Selsey.’
‘She’d be West Sussex, then. Emsworth is Hampshire. Another county. Different set of cops. Didn’t fancy either of mine, if you want to know.’
Something to be thankful for, Jo thought. ‘I don’t see why the CID have to be involved. It could have been an accident, or suicide.’
‘Get with it, Jo. We’ve been through that already.’
‘But the police haven’t. They should be keeping an open mind.’
She gave a hoot. ‘You think?’
‘Was she injured, then-besides being drowned, I mean?’
‘They didn’t say. I was in no doubt they were serious.’
‘Was anything said about why you called at Fiona’s house?’
‘I did the right thing, apparently. They praised me up. I’m a star, a copybook executive who cares for the staff she manages. An absolute credit to Kleentext Print Solutions.’
‘Gemma, be honest. Did they really say all that?’
‘Not word for word, but that was the gist of it.’
‘And you didn’t let on that we saw the body in the water?’
‘What do you take me for, dumbellina? No way. That’s a closed book. We agreed.’
Jo was tempted to say it wasn’t a closed book to Rick, but why waste her breath?
‘Are you sure you kept me out of it?’
‘No chance. I said I was with this dangerous woman called Jo who drives a Panda and works at the garden centre and shits a brick every time I mention the word “police.”’
‘You said what?’
Gemma’s laugh rattled the phone. ‘Give me a break, sweetie. I wouldn’t rat on my best mate.’
‘Piss off, Gem.’
‘As a matter of fact, they showed a lot of interest in Francisco.’
‘The neighbour? I told you he could have done it.’
‘They seemed to think I was his chick. I should be so lucky.’
‘You were at his side when that police car arrived.’
‘They’re sure to question him. I hope they treat him well.’
‘I hope they get the truth out of him,’ Jo said. ‘It wouldn’t surprise me at all if he’s the killer.’
‘He’s a bunny rabbit.’
‘I’m not convinced of that. He was overplaying the part when I was watching.’
‘What part?’
‘The helpful neighbour.’
‘He’s a Latino. You’ve got to make allowances. You didn’t get up close like me. I could tell he was legit.’
‘We’re obviously not going to agree about Francisco. I thought it was Rick you fancy. He told me he’s going out with you tonight.’
‘Yes, he’s got lucky. But if Francisco makes a move, Rick is history. Don’t tell him, will you?’
Jo ended the call and walked down the steep bank of shingle to where Jake was standing, still with the hood up. ‘Can we get a coffee somewhere?’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t think we should. People know me here. It’s only a small place.’
He was being protective, not wanting to draw her into the suspicion he felt was still attached to him. Concern like this was a new experience for Jo. ‘Somewhere else, then?’
They returned to the car and she drove back to Chichester without telling him she was heading for her flat. In his present state of mind he might think it was entrapment. All she said was she knew of a place where they could get coffee. It was a calculated risk that could backfire, but she was going to have to make the first move. Any other guy invited back would think he’d hit the jackpot, but Jake was the exception.
NINE
The visit to the mortuary hadn’t put Austen Sentinel off food. He went through a round of egg and cress sandwiches and two cups of black coffee while Hen was agreeing to the text of the press release. When she joined him in a side room he looked and sounded much recovered.
‘You’re about to break the news, then?’ he asked. ‘Those jackals will soon be after me, no doubt. I’ve watched grieving spouses forced to appear on television. Is that being suggested yet?’
The subtext, Hen suspected, was that the poor bereaved guy wanted his five minutes of fame.
‘Not unless it becomes necessary.’
Disappointment spread over his face like a maiden’s blush. ‘I thought it was standard procedure.’
‘It could still happen.’
‘I’ll do anything to help catch the monster who murdered my wife. I’m willing to face it today.’
‘Thanks, but that would be too soon. We’ve got all the publicity we need at this stage.’
‘What if they call me at home and ask for a statement?’
‘You say “no comment” and refer them to our press office. You’ve got enough to cope with. You’ll be wanting to contact her family and friends, I expect. Are her parents alive?’
He clapped his hand to his forehead. ‘God, the old couple. They’ll be devastated by this. I ought to speak to them before they hear it from someone else. They live in Kentucky. What time is it now?’ He looked at his watch. ‘They’ll be up and about.’
‘Do you have a mobile?’
His hand went to his pocket, but not inside. ‘Oh, hell. I doubt if there’s enough credit for a call to America. It needs topping-up.’
‘So you’d like to use one of ours?’ Making a mental note that he was a tightwad as well as a self-admirer, she took him into the CAD room and found him a seat.
She sought out Stella in the incident room. ‘Check the St Petersburg flight arrangements both ways with the British Council and compare them with the airline passenger lists. Let’s be sure he was on the flights he said he was. And see what you can find out about this conference and his part in it. I’ve no doubt he was there, but I want to know where he stayed and for how long and if he attended all the sessions.’
