The Judas Pair

'Not just yet.'

After that I got a dose of the thick silence they give you as corrective when you've transgressed. Nothing short of a miracle would make her smile on me again.

There was a small blue motorized bike to one side of the Field drive, no surprise. We rolled to a stop.

'Lovejoy?'

I paused, already at the door.

'Is there no… jealousy in this?'

'Jealousy?'

'You. Of him.'

'No.' Nothing had ever seemed so true. She accepted it and came with me.

'Good heavens!' Muriel, open-mouthed, was in the doorway. Her reaction was a disappointment to me. They are supposed to faint or at least go white, but then she hadn't felt quite so gone over me when I was alive, so I couldn't really expect too much.

'You remember me, Muriel?' I'd planned a much cuter entrance line and forgotten it like a fool.

'Why of course, Lovejoy!' She drew me in. 'We heard the most dreadful things about you. The papers said you'd had a frightful accident! Do come in.'

'I'm Margaret.'

'I'm Muriel Field— Oh, you telephoned. I remember. Please come in. What a perfect nuisance the newspapers are!'

'Aren't they!' The bastard would be in the study glugging tea from the Spode. Hearing my name would have made him slurp.

'What's happened to your face?'

'The odd crossbolt,' I said airily. 'Nothing much.'

'Look, Mrs. Field,' Margaret started to say, but I cut in sharply.

'Where's Lagrange?'

Muriel looked blank. 'How did you know he was here?'

'His scooter, and a good guess.'

'Hello, Lovejoy.'

He was standing in the doorway to the study, pale but polite as ever. For some strange reason he was actually glad to see me.

'You bastard,' I said. 'You killed Sheila.'

'Have you brought the police?'

'No. They'll have to wait their turn.'

'Just one witness.' He nodded at Margaret.

'Don't fret,' I snapped.

'This is the man, Lovejoy,' Margaret said to me quietly.

'Eh? What man?'

'He came to the arcade asking about you some time ago. I tried to tell you but didn't see you for days.' The phone message to ring Margaret I'd not followed up.

'Darling what is this?' Muriel went to stand by Lagrange.

He shook her from his arm impatiently. 'Nothing of any importance, my dear.' He was even beginning to talk like a squire.

'He killed your husband, Muriel,' I said. 'He used the Judas guns your Eric had found. Some 'accident' while Eric was showing them to him, probably. Then he stole them for himself, only he couldn't quite make up the set. The turnkey was missing. I got it from the auctioneers. He saw me and Sheila. You remember coming out of the car park and seeing us by the war memorial. Then he killed her and tried to do the same for me.'

'That set of sharks—incompetent sharks!'

I understood his anguish and rejoiced. 'You'll never get it now, Lagrange.'

His eyes blazed. 'Won't I?'

'Lovejoy, what did you mean?' Muriel glanced from me to Lagrange. 'What does he mean?'

'He killed Eric,' I explained. 'Then he realized your brother-in-law had asked me to find the Judas pair. He assumed Sheila'd kept the turnkey in her handbag for safety when his burglary at my cottage proved fruitless. So he snatched it and he pushed her under the train.'

'No!' Muriel stood facing me practically spitting defiance. No compassion for Sheila now, I observed.

'Yes,' I said calmly.

The pig was smiling. 'Well, yes,' he admitted, shrugging.