matched to the cricket bat found at the scene. The first blow was to the back of the head, the left side, so he was moving away from his killer at the time.”
“That would make sense,” Banks said. “Silbert was supposed to be pretty fit, and he might have been able to put up more of a fight if he’d seen it coming.”
“But does it fit with the idea of a lover’s tiff ?” Gervaise asked.
“I don’t see why not,” said Banks. “People turn away from one another in rows sometimes. Silbert must have misjudged the depth of Hardcastle’s rage. And the cricket bat was in its stand right by his side.
But it could also fit other possible scenarios.”
1 2 0
P E T E R R O B I N S O N
“We’ll leave those for the moment,” said Gervaise. She turned to Nowak. “Go on, Stefan.”
“At that point we think Mr. Silbert turned as he fell to his knees, and his assailant hit him on the right temple and in the throat, breaking the hyoid bone, crushing the larynx and knocking him backward into the position we found him in. It was one, or a combination, of those blows that killed him. After that . . . well, there was a series of other blows. Postmortem.”
“And Mark Hardcastle was left-handed,” said Annie.
“Yes,” said Nowak, glancing at her. “Given that the only fingerprints we found on the cricket bat belonged to him, I’d hazard a guess that he’s your man. As I told you after blood-typing earlier this week, the odds were very good that the only blood at the Silbert crime scene belonged to Silbert himself. DNA analysis has now verified that beyond a doubt. The same with the blood we found on Hardcastle’s clothes and person. All Silbert’s, according to the DNA, with a small amount of Hardcastle’s own, most likely caused by scratches as he climbed the tree.”
“Well,” said Superintendent Gervaise, glancing from one to the other, “I’d say we’ve got our answer, haven’t we? You can’t argue with DNA. What about toxicology?”
“Nothing but alcohol in Hardcastle’s blood,” said Nowak. “Neither Hardcastle nor Silbert was drugged.”
“Was there evidence of anyone else at the scene?” Banks asked Nowak.
“Not at the scene specifically, no. Just the usual traces. You know as well as I do that there’s always evidence of whoever’s been in the room—friends, cleaners, dinner guests, relatives, what have you—and strangers a victim may have been in contact with, brushed up against.
Trace evidence is all over the place—and don’t forget both victims had recently been in big cities—London and Amsterdam. Silbert had also been at Durham Tees Valley and Schiphol airports, too.”
“I think it’s time you put your curiosity to bed,” said Gervaise to Banks. “Other people had obviously been in the room at one time or another, like they’ve been in my room and yours. Silbert and Hardcastle had brushed against people in the street or in a pub or at an A L L T H E C O L O R S O F D A R K N E S S
1 2 1
airport. That makes sense. You’ve heard DS Nowak. There was no evidence of any blood at the scene other than Silbert’s.”
“Begging your pardon, ma’am,” Annie said, “but that really doesn’t prove anything, does it? I mean, we know that Silbert was beaten to death with a cricket bat, so we’d expect to find
“—then another killer might not have shed any. Yes, I can see where you’re going with this, DI Cabbot,” said Gervaise. “But it won’t wash. While we do have a lot of evidence to suggest that Mark Hardcastle killed Laurence Silbert and then hanged himself, we have none whatsoever to suggest that someone else did it. No one was seen entering or leaving the house, and no other suspects have suggested themselves. I’m sorry, but it sounds very much like case closed to me.”
“But someone from the theater might have had a motive,” Annie said. “I’ve already reported on the conversation I had with Maria Wolsey. She reckons—”
“Yes, we know all about that,” said Gervaise. “Vernon Ross or Derek Wyman might have had a motive if Hardcastle and Silbert got their new players’ group together. I read your report.”
“And?” said Annie.
“I just don’t believe that either Ross or Wyman would have had the ability to kill Silbert and make it look as if Hardcastle had done it.”
“Why not?” Annie protested. “They’re both theatrical types.
They’re used to manufacturing illusions.”
“Very clever, but I’m sorry, I don’t believe it. Surely someone would have seen them coming or going? And then they’d have had to get rid of their bloody clothing. I just don’t see it, that’s all. What about the CCTV cameras?” Gervaise looked toward Nowak.
“We’ve checked all the footage, and there’s nothing out of the ordinary,” he said. “Too many blind spots, for a start, and number fifteen wasn’t covered directly.”
“It’s a very insular neighborhood,” said Banks, “so it doesn’t necessarily mean anything that no one was seen entering or leaving. I’ll bet you the secret intelligence services are very good at moving about un-noticed, even under surveillance cameras. Maybe the locals would 1 2 2
P E T E R R O B I N S O N
notice a yob or a tramp, or some kid in a hoodie, but not someone who fit in with the neighborhood, drove the right car, blended in. I agree with DI Cabbot. Hardcastle could have gone out, and while he was gone, someone else—Ross, Wyman, some spook—could have entered and killed Silbert. When Hardcastle returned and found the body he became distraught and committed suicide. He could have picked up the cricket bat then, after the murder, after the real killer had wiped it clean. Hardcastle would have been in shock. Given that we have a photograph from an unknown source of Laurence Silbert in London with an unknown man, that Silbert was known to be an MI6
