forward. He said softly, 'Look here, Richard, I know you've been lying to me this evening, and I know you're more involved in all this than you've pretended to be, deeply involved, up to the neck. You know why Radeechy committed suicide and before you leave this house you're going to tell me. You took something off Radeechy's body and I know what it was that you took. I may not have found out very much about you, but I've found out quite enough to get you into trouble if I choose to do so.' Biranne, sitting upright now, his hands in golden light, gripping either arm of the chair, the long cylinder of his head averted and shadowed, said, 'Sorry, Ducane, I've nothing more to say to you except good night.' But he did not move. Ducane realized that he had used Biranne's Christian name. With this came at last a sense of having the man cornered. He thought, I've got him. He said urgently leaning forward, 'Don't be a fool. Why did you say I was getting on your nerves? You didn't just come here to find out what I knew, you came here to tell me things. I'm not bluffing you, Biranne. This damned inquiry is coming to a finale, and you're in the finale whether you like it or not. The point for you to consider is this. Up to now the thing hasn't been a police matter. It's been entirely secret and I have discretion to keep it secret and to hold back completely anything which I find which I think is irrelevant. Well, you know what my briefing was. If you tell me the whole truth I may be able to keep it dark, so far as it concerns you. Obviously I can't promise this, but I could consider it. If you won't talk I shall have to hand the whole thing over, suspicions and all, to the police. If you'd rather be interrogated by them than by me, it's up to you. And don't expect any loyalty from a man like McGrath.' Biranne drew in a very long breath. His head was bowed forward now and Ducane could see one long slit of blue eye. The stiff crest of hair glowed golden in the light of the lamp. Biranne said, half under his breath, 'Let me think, let me think.' Then, still not looking up, he said, 'If anything I were to tell you was not strictly germane to answering the question: was Radeechy a spy? you would have discretion to withhold it?' 'If I were to tell you precisely why Radeechy died could you report the explanation in general terms without further naming of persons?' 'I don't know. Your question is too vague. I can't promise you silence. For instance if you tell me that you killed Radeechy.' 'I didn't kill Radeechy. At least not in any sense that could bring me into a law court. Just wait a minute, will you, wait a Biranne got up. He turned his back on Ducane and looked away into the darkened corner of the room. Ducane ran his hands up over his forehead and found that his hair was limp and damp with perspiration. He kept his eyes and his will intently fixed upon Biranne, focusing upon the nape of his neck, where the wiry fuzz diminished into curly blond fur. Ducane kept silent but filled the silence with will. But he knew now that Biranne wanted to talk and would talk. Perhaps he had intended to do so from the start and had just wanted, needed, to be coerced. Biranne turned back, and his face was a good deal calmer. His thin mouth smiled faintly with an air of sardonic resolution. He said, 'All right. I trust you as far as you say you can be trusted and I put myself into your power. This document, on which I'd like to make one or two comments after you've read it, will tell you everything you want to know.' He held out a piece of folded paper towards Ducane and then once more turned his back. Ducane unfolded the paper. He saw at once that it was written in Radeechy's familiar compressed hand. It read as follows: This is to state to the police, the public, and before God if He exists, that in September of last year I murdered my wife Claudia by pushing her out of a window. I acted impetuously and without premeditated intent to kill her. My motive was jealousy of her liaison with Richard Biranne. Biranne witnessed my act and has since attempted to blackmail me. I die now by my own hand. Biranne has my dying curse. Joseph Radeechy I loved my wife. Ducane was so extremely surprised and in an odd way so moved by this document that he simply wanted to crush it against his brow and close his eyes. But he had too an immediate and cautious instinct of himself as an actor, an instinct which took him back to his days in the law courts. To calm himself he got up, went to his desk, took out a magnifying glass, and examined the letter carefully under the lamp. The writing was strong and fluent and certainly Radeechy's. Biranne was still standing with his back turned. Ducane said, 'Sit down, please, Biranne.' They both sat down, Biranne breathing deeply and stretching himself out as if very tired. Ducane said, 'Perhaps you could answer a few questions.' 'Anything you like.' 'I am prepared to assume that Radeechy wrote this. Is it all true?' Biranne sat up again. He said, 'It's true that he killed Claudia and that I saw it happen. It's also true that he was jealous of me and Claudia. It's not true that I tried to blackmail him, at least not exactly true.' 'What do you mean by «not exactly»?' 'I'm afraid I don't come very well out of this.' 'Never mind how you come out of it. Tell me the truth.' 'You see, I wanted Judy McGrath.' 'And since you had this hold over Radeechy –?' 'I never intended to use the hold, I never even hinted at it. It was a matter of what Radeechy decided to think. I wanted to get Judy away from him, right away, and I must have made this pretty clear, and he chose to imagine he was being threatened.' 'And you let him imagine?' 'I suppose so ' 'And when was this happening?' 'My take-over bid? Two or three months ago. Not just after ' 'Quite. And is what is given here in your view the whole explanation of his suicide?' 'Yes. At least, what is a whole explanation? There's no other secret, no other particular key. But he was a weird man who lived in a perpetual condition of fear and anxiety. I think he did half believe he was communing with spirits and he was afraid of them.' 'Did he love his wife? T 'Yes, I think so. But please believe me that I didn't realize this at the start.' 'Did you go to bed with Mrs Radeechy?' 'Yes.' 'Was she a very unhappy woman? T 'No, not really, not till the end anyway. I didn't understand this to begin with either. I took a conventional view of the thing. Claudia looked like a deserted wife. Radeechy had quite a harem of necromantic girl friends, at least he had until Judy turned up and made him sack the rest. I think Radeechy fell properly for Judy – and this did hurt Claudia. She'd tolerated the others, safety in numbers and so on, but this was serious. I think this was what made her ready to flirt with me, and then I just rather took her by storm. It was unexpected. I didn't do it in cold blood. I was amazed by the degree of Radeechy's jealousy. I didn't think he'd care that much.' 'How did you first meet Claudia, anyway?' 'Through one of Judy's predecessors. Claudia came to this girl's place to see if she could find out something about Judy, that is after she'd started to fret about her. And I, well, happened to be there.' 'I see. So Radeechy was jealous and he told you to clear out? ff 'Yes. And perhaps I ought to have done. But I somehow felt I had to stand up to him for Claudia's sake. I liked Claudia, she was somebody. And it was all getting pretty muddled by this time. I told him he didn't deserve her. And he didn't. Those other girls, you know, he didn't fuck them, not even Judy, he didn't beat them either. He was a weirdie all right.' 'And you – saw him – kill his wife? T 'Yes. It was – ' Biranne stared into the empty fireplace. He reached out to touch the mantelpiece with his finger, tracing a pattern in the marble. 'I was rather drunk that night. I think we all three were. Claudia was in a funny state of mind. I think in a ~, iKdr4';5y't'x Pf p't SAd, 7 ~,,., I' } ' 'I 3,,~,, way she liked to be with both of us together. I think she'd have been pleased if we'd actually fought each other. You see she really did care for her husband, though she'd certainly fallen for me too. We'd had this sort of hysterical trio once before.
