Don't get ideas. I'm armed.'
The relief was exquisite. His hands were still bound, but blood returning to the veins was bliss.
'On your feet, both of you. I'm prepared to use this gun.'
With difficulty, they obeyed, and a sorry sight they made. Stormy's nose was streaming blood and Diamond's face was heavily smeared with mud. And they were staring into the barrel of an automatic. She was using the two-hand grip recommended on all the weapons training courses.
'Who exactly are you?'
Diamond darted a glance at Stormy, trying to convey that the truth was the best option now. 'Police officers investigating a crime.'
She almost snorted at that.
'If you look in the back pocket of my trousers, you'll find my warrant card,' he told her. 'I'm Detective Superintendent Diamond, and I work out of Bath.'
'DCI Weather,' Stormy chimed in. 'Mine's in my inside jacket pocket.'
She stepped forward, still holding the gun in her left hand, took the ID from Stormy's pocket and clearly decided it was genuine. 'This beats everything. What sort of police work is this, breaking into a private house?'
Playing it straight, Diamond explained that they'd gone to the cottage at Puttenham looking for Fiona Appleby, seeking information about her ex-partner, Edward Dixon-Bligh, who was wanted for questioning in connection with two murders.
'
'Right.'
'My God, you've got some explaining to do.'
'Do you want to hear about that, or shall I carry on telling you how we got here?'
'All right. You saw me go into the cottage and thought I was Fiona?'
'No. You're the one who collects the mail.'
'You knew this?'
'We found out.'
'Who from?'
'The neighbour.'
She clicked her tongue at her own carelessness.
Quick to follow up, Diamond asked, 'So do you know what's happened to Fiona?'
She ignored that. 'Let's get back to this peculiar mission of yours - how two senior detectives come all this way to interview a minor witness. A DCI and a super? What am I missing here?'
One thing was clear: this young woman was well-briefed on police procedure.
'Before I answer that, who do you work for?' Diamond asked.
'That's not for discussion. I asked you to explain yourselves.'
'You act as if you're on the side of law and order. Are you?'
She hesitated, then nodded.
'Okay,' Diamond went on. 'Did you read in the paper about the woman's body found recently beside the railway embankment near Woking?'
She had. 'The ex-policewoman?'
'Right. She was Dave's wife, Mrs Patricia Weather. My own wife was murdered in a public park in Bath last February.'
Plainly she was unprepared for this. She said nothing, but her eyes widened.
Diamond explained more, trying to sound reasonable. 'Before you ask, we're acting on our own initiative. Unofficial, in other words. We have a common cause, as husbands of the victims. The main inquiry is going its own way, and Dave and I are not involved. More to the point, we're not satisfied, so we're following an independent line.'
'I've heard of these cases, both of them,' she admitted, softening her tone. She actually lowered the gun a fraction. 'You're taking a lot on yourselves, aren't you - going out on a limb?'
'Yes. We're out of order. But that's the answer to your question - why two senior detectives are out here trying to see a minor witness.'
'And tailing me?'
'Right.'
She took time to absorb what she had heard. 'You obviously believe Dixon-Bligh is a serious suspect? On what evidence -just that he's lying low?'
Diamond explained that Dixon-Bligh had been Steph's first husband and how they were linking him to the diary entries.
'Why? What's his motive?'
