'Yes.'
'He bought the entire property eight years ago for two hundred and eighty thousand pounds, Lady Wallader. Perhaps you misunderstood what he meant by rented accommodation.'
'No,' she said. 'He led us both to believe he was finding it difficult to make ends meet, but I knew he was lying. If I hadn't, I might have done what he asked and lent him some money.' She stared at him with red-rimmed eyes. 'Was it Jinx who gave you Mr. Bloom's name?'
'Yes,' he told her.
'Does that mean she's better? I spoke to her stepmother on the telephone and she told me Jinx had lost her memory. I was very sorry to hear that.'
'I understand it's only partial amnesia, Lady Wallader. Two of my detectives spoke to her on Sunday, and most of what she can't recall relates to events in the two weeks preceding her accident.'
'How bloody convenient for her,' said Sir Anthony furiously. 'You realize she's probably lying.'
Frank ignored him. 'Did you like her, Lady Wallader?'
'Yes, I did,' she said quietly, 'but she was angry the last time we saw her and I guessed Leo was up to his tricks again. It's difficult to be objective about your children, Superintendent. For all their sins you go on loving them, and however much you wish they
Her husband's hand descended on her arm in an iron grip. 'You're being disloyal,' he said angrily.
There was a short silence.
'I'm telling the truth, Anthony,' she said quietly. 'It doesn't mean I loved Leo any less. You know that.' She ignored his hard fingers digging into the flesh of her arm.
'The only truth that matters now is that your son was murdered,' he grunted. 'Do you want his murderer to get away with it?'
She looked at him. 'No,' she said, 'which is why it's important that the Superintendent knows the truth.'
'You're hurting your wife, Sir Anthony,' said Frank calmly.
The haggard face turned blankly towards him.
'Your hand, sir. I think you should remove it.'
Obediently, he unclenched his fist.
'Tell me why Jinx was angry the last time you saw her.'
'Oh, because she'd had enough of his lies and deceits,' said Lady Wallader matter-of-factly. 'Like every other girlfriend Leo ever had. In the end they all discovered that the charm and the good looks disguised a very selfish personality.' She glanced briefly at her husband. 'He couldn't share, you see, even as a child. He became quite violent whenever another child borrowed something of his, so in the end we took him to a psychologist, who diagnosed a personality disorder. She told us there was nothing we could do about it, but that he would probably learn to control his aggression better as he got older.'
'And did he?'
'I suppose so. He stopped using his fists, but I can't say hand on heart that he felt any less angry inside about having to share what he had. He was very immature.'
'Miss Kingsley described him as excessively secretive. Is that how he solved the problem, do you think? By refusing to divulge what he was worth?'
'Yes.' She gestured towards the fax. 'Well, clearly, that's true. We had no idea he owned so many properties. I did recognize that he was much better off than he said he was, but not to this extent. I'm sure we must seem very gullible, Superintendent, but life with Leo was so much calmer when he was allowed to keep his secrets.'
Frank waited a moment. 'You said Jinx had had enough, Lady Wallader. Does that mean it was she who called off the wedding?'
It was her husband who answered. 'No,' he said firmly. 'She was very abusive to us all, though to what purpose remains a mystery. At no point did she say she wouldn't go through with it. It was Leo who told her there wasn't going to be a wedding, when she finally stopped shouting.'
'Did he explain why?'
'He said he'd been having an affair with Meg Harris and was going to marry her.'
'And what was Jinx's reaction?'
'Shock,' he said. 'It was the last thing she'd expected and she stared at him in complete shock.'
'Would you agree, Lady Wallader?'
She looked up. 'Yes,' she admitted, 'I would. She didn't say anything, but she clearly hadn't expected a response like that. I got the impression she was very angry, but I think she was more angry with Meg than Leo. It's difficult now to say for certain. We were all very distressed, and frankly, Anthony and I were relieved when they left.'
'When was this?'
'It was the bank holiday weekend at the end of May.'
Cheever frowned. 'Yet, according to the evidence we have, the last thing Miss Kingsley remembers is saying good-bye to Leo on June the fourth when she set off to stay with her parents. Why was he still in her house a week after he said he was planning to marry her best friend?'
'We don't know,' said Sir Anthony. 'They left our house furious with each other, then Leo telephoned later that evening to ask us not to say anything to anyone until he gave us permission. But he didn't explain why and he didn't call until nearly two weeks later. It was the Saturday, June the eleventh, and he said he and Meg were making
