‘Only in the grounds. That’s different.’
When they entered, it was apparent what the problem was. The grounds had been trimmed, clipped and weeded for the open day. The interior of the house, a spacious entrance hall with a curved, cantilevered staircase, was like a tip, cluttered with bulging carrier bags, piles of books and junk mail, all covered in dust.
‘As you see, I don’t employ staff in the house,’ Melmot said, opening a door. ‘You’d better come in here.’
They entered a large, high-ceilinged room almost empty of furniture and with patches on the wallpaper showing where pictures had hung.
‘Find yourselves a pew.’
The only possibilities were dining chairs heaped with cardboard boxes containing crockery.
‘These things are waiting for a valuation,’ Melmot said.
‘Selling up?’ Diamond asked, gesturing to DC Gilbert to clear some space for them all. The prospect of coffee and lemon drizzle cake had all but vanished.
‘Not the house. Just some of the contents. You wouldn’t believe the upkeep of a place this size. It’s death by a thousand cuts. Most of my ancestors’ portraits have gone, including, I may say, two Knellers and a Gainsborough. Each time I sell something I have to justify it to my mother, who thinks I’m a wastrel. By the way, she won’t interrupt us if you’re brief. She remains in her room until eleven. After that, she’ll be on the warpath.’
‘Let’s go for it, then. I was told you were phoned some time yesterday by Clarion wanting to see the evening performance.’
‘That’s correct.’
‘You knew already that she’d dropped the lawsuit. You heard from her lawyers, you told me.’
Melmot nodded, wary of what he might be asked.
‘So you were well disposed to the lady?’
‘We’ve been over this before. I told you I was a fan.’
‘But your admiration must have been tested by the lawsuit hanging over you.’
‘A temporary difficulty. Others took it more seriously than I.’
‘Denise, for one.’
‘That’s a matter of conjecture, isn’t it?’
‘Not since we found the suicide note.’ Diamond watched the reaction before adding, ‘Didn’t you hear?’
Melmot blinked several times and turned a shade more pink. Plainly, the Theatre Royal’s bush telegraph had malfunctioned. But then Diamond remembered that the discovery had been known only to Ingeborg, Fred Dawkins and himself. If three members of CID can’t keep quiet, who can?
No point now in keeping back the news.
‘How desperately sad,’ Melmot said after he’d been told, but it was lip service. Anyone could tell he wasn’t either desperate or sad.
‘Yes, if Clarion had withdrawn her threat earlier, Denise might not have taken the action she did.’ Diamond gave a shrug that would not have disgraced a Frenchman. ‘But then a lot of unpleasantness would never happen if we had the gift of hindsight. Getting back to Clarion, can you recall her exact words when she phoned you yesterday?’
‘That’s asking too much.’
‘Near enough to exact, then.’
‘I’ll try. She had my mobile number from a couple of weeks ago when I made arrangements for her to stay here. She phoned me about three in the afternoon. I was surprised and rather relieved to hear her voice.’
‘But you already knew she wasn’t going to sue.’
‘Yes, but not from Clarion herself. There was no hint of reproach. She used my first name and asked if I’d heard she was out of hospital. She said she was staying at the Cedar of Lebanon in Bristol and was wondering if there was some way she could get to see the play she’d had so much to do with. I took it as an olive branch.’
‘Was anything said about the lawsuit?’
‘No, we avoided that. I said we’d be delighted to welcome her and she said immediately that she didn’t want to make an occasion of it. She wanted to come unannounced and in secret. She wasn’t ready yet to meet the cast or any of her fans.’
‘Because of the scarring?’
‘I suppose. We didn’t go into that. I had what I thought was the rather good idea of letting her see the show from a private box. It’s not the best sight-line in the house, but it has the great advantage of being discreet. If you sit well back you’re invisible to the audience.’
‘You suggested this over the phone?’
‘Yes, and she liked it immediately.’
‘So you made plans?’
‘Certainly. I didn’t order her car, but she told me to look out for a black Mercedes limo. I laid on everything at my end of things, getting Binns, the security man, to meet her and escort her upstairs.’
‘Did you tell anyone else?’
