“Only what, Betsy?”
“Only he wasn’t there when I went for my first session alone with him. He’d said four o’clock right enough, but he wasn’t there. Well, sir, I was a little upset because I’d been looking forward to it. I just went home and I didn’t think no more about it. But when I got to work in the morning, I found the whole place in a tizzy. It seems nobody had seen Mr. Wunderlich since I’d taken him his coffee after lunch the day before.”
“So you took him his coffee, did you?” Hughes scribbled in his notebook. “And what did you think of Mr. Wunderlich, Betsy.”
“If you’ll pardon the expression, sir, I thought he was ever so sexy. Like a film star, just.”
“Did any flirting go on between you and Mr. Wunderlich? Did he come on to you at all?”
“Oh, no, sir. He’s a married man, sir. And anyway, Emmy was in the room with us, helping with the testing.”
“So you liked him, did you?”
“I didn’t know him well enough to like him, sir. He was nice enough to me when we met—and he did give me a job at the center so that I could be there when I was needed. That was kind of him.”
“So let’s move on to the dream,” Hughes said. “Tell us about this dream you had, Betsy.”
“The dream, sir? Well, it was like this—I went to bed that night and suddenly I dreamed I was standing outside this cave. I went in and it was all dark and it smelled wet and seaweedy, if you know what I mean. I could see something white lying there at the back of the cave. As I got closer, I saw it was Randy. I thought he was asleep and I went to touch him, but then I woke up. I ran to find Emmy and she said, ‘You’ve had a pyschic dream, Betsy. We’ll have to go and wake Constable Evans and get straight down to the Sacred Grove.’ Betsy glanced up at Evan for confirmation. “It was about four in the morning, wasn’t it, Evan?”
Evan nodded.
“When we got to the center, Lady Annabel said she knew where there were caves on the property, so Michael led us down to the beach and we found Randy’s body in the cave, just like I’d dreamed it. It was horrible, sir.”
“I’m sure it was, Betsy,” the chief inspector said. “Tell me, do you often have dreams like this?”
“Oh, no, sir. This was the first one. Leastways, it was the first one I knew about. Maybe I’d been dreaming about things that had really happened before, but I never realized it until Emmy told me about my powers. I’ve always had vivid dreams, sir. But I thought they were just dreams … .”
“Look, why don’t you go and get yourself a cup of tea and wait for us in the foyer,” Chief Inspector Hughes said. “I have to talk to a lot of people and then Constable Evans can take you home again.”
“Thank you, sir,” Betsy said. “Glad to have been of help.”
“Well, what do you think?” Hughes looked up at Evan.
“About what?” Evan asked.
“Did she do it?”
Evan stared at Chief Inspector Hughes. “Kill Randy Wunderlich, you mean?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time that a murderer has claimed to have dreamed where the body could be found— and she admits bringing him the cup of coffee, which could easily have contained the sleeping draught.” The chief inspector was looking rather pleased with himself, Evan thought.
“With all respect, sir. That’s bloody stupid,” Evan said. “I’ve known Betsy for a couple of years now. Not the brightest girl in the world, a bit naive, easily impressed, but …”
“She could have been working with someone else then. ‘Easily impressed,’ you say. Maybe someone else put her up to it.”
“I can’t think who,” Evan said. “She only met these people a few days ago. And I said she wasn’t the brightest girl in the world, but she’s not stupid either. She’s got enough common sense not to go poisoning someone or claiming she’d had a dream. I saw her that night—she was shaking with fright. It wasn’t put on.”
“I don’t believe in powers myself, Constable. If you say Randy Wunderlich didn’t kill himself, then someone had a good reason for wanting him dead. Let’s see which of them, shall we?” He glanced at his list. “I think we should start with Lady Annabel. Always look nearest to home when it comes to murder—that’s my number-one rule. Ten to one the spouse or next of kin did it! Tell Lady Annabel I’m ready to see her now.” He raised his hand in an imperious gesture that somehow looked right as it came from Lady Annabel’s chair.
Evan was tempted to bow. “I’ll tell her, sir,” he said.
Lady Annabel had dressed for the occasion. No warm-up suits today. She was wearing an expensive navy dress with a Hermes scarf at her throat and a large diamond on her finger. Her hair was lacquered into a perfect twist and her face was a serene mask of makeup. Even Hughes was a little taken aback as she swept in. He got to his feet. “Of course, you must have this chair, Lady Annabel.”
“Thank you.” She took it without protest. Hughes perched himself on the wooden upright.
“Now just a few questions about your husband’s death, if you don’t mind.”
“Must we? This has been very painful for me, as I’m sure you understand, Inspector. All I want is his body returned to me for burial, and to be left alone in my grief.”
“We’ll do all we can to return the remains to you, Lady Annabel, but I’m afraid your husband’s death can no longer be ruled accidental.”
A little gasp came from Lady Annabel and she put her hand to her throat in a dramatic gesture. “Are you saying that somebody killed him?”
“Or that he killed himself.”
