meets a violent end, the wife or the husband is usually the most likely suspect. Katherine could have good reasons for wanting her husband dead. Blackstone might have overlooked his wife's infidelity in the past rather than risk damaging his political career with a scandal, but if the affair got too blatant he'd have to divorce her, or lose all respect. You heard what Dorimant said. Katherine was fond of her husband, but she loved the money and prestige of being a Councilor's wife. As his widow, she could have the money and the prestige, and her lover as well.'
'Right,' said Hawk. 'And there's a few holes in her story, as well. According to her, she went upstairs, went to the bathroom, came back and found the door locked, and then came down to us. And as you said, between her going up and coming down again there had to be a gap of about twenty minutes. That's a long time in the bathroom; And;if she did bang on the locked door and call out to her husband;how is it that no one else heard her? No one else has mentioned hearing her call out. You'd have thought someone would come out to see what was happening;'
'Yeah,' said Fisher. 'Mind you, if you're looking for another front-runner, the one thing that practically everyone agrees on is that Blackstone had a big row with Adam Stalker not long ago.'
'Now that is pushing it,' said Hawk. 'Adam Stalker; ?'
The library door suddenly flew open, and Lord and Lady Hightower strode in. Lord Roderik slammed the door shut, and he and his wife stood together facing Hawk and Fisher. Their expressions were openly defiant.
'I asked to see you alone, my Lord,' said Hawk.
'I don't give a damn what you asked for,' said High-tower. 'There's nothing you could possibly have to say to me that can't be said in front of my wife.'
'Very well,' said Hawk. 'Where were you at the time of the murder, my Lord?'
'In my room. With my wife.'
'Is that right, my Lady?' asked Fisher.
'Of course,' said the Lady Elaine, disdainfully.
'Thank you,' said Hawk. 'That will be all for the moment, my Lord and Lady.'
Hightower looked startled for a moment, and then his face was hard and unyielding again. 'I demand to know why I was prevented from examining the body. What are you trying to hide from us?'
'I said that will be all, my Lord,' said Hawk politely. 'You may rejoin the others in the parlor. And ask Adam Stalker to come in, if you please.'
Hightower glared at him. Hawk met his gaze calmly, and after a moment Hightower turned away. He took his wife by the arm, opened the door for her and led her out. He slammed the door shut behind him, and the sound echoed loudly in the small room. Fisher looked at Hawk.
'That's all? What about all the other questions we should have asked them?'
'What was the point?' said Hawk. 'They've got each other as an alibi, and Hightower isn't going to volunteer any information to the likes of us. Whatever we ask, he'll just say it's none of our business. If he has anything to say, he'll save it for our superiors tomorrow. He wants us to fail, lass. That way he can prove to himself that his son's death was my fault after all.'
'He'd actually risk his friend's murderer getting away?'
'He knows there'll be a full forensic team in here tomorrow, once the isolation spell is down and we can file our report. He'll talk to them if he's got anything to say, which I doubt.'
Fisher frowned. 'The law is on our side. We could compel him to talk.'
'I don't think so. Hightower's an important man in this city. He may no longer be Chief Commander, but he still has influential friends. No, Isobel, anything we learn about Hightower will have to come from other people. He wouldn't give us the time of day if we held a sword to his throat.'
Fisher shrugged unhappily. 'I suppose you're right. The Lady Elaine might not be such a tough nut, though. I'll see if I can get her on her own, later. I might get some information out of her, woman to woman.'
'Worth a try,' said Hawk. 'But don't raise your hopes too high.'
The door swung open, and Stalker stood framed in the doorway. He held the pose a moment, and then entered the library, ducking his head slightly to avoid banging it on the doorframe. He sat down facing Hawk and Fisher, and the chair creaked loudly under his weight. Even sitting down, Stalker was still a head taller than Hawk or Fisher.
'All right,' said Stalker grimly. 'You've talked to everyone else and heard their stories. Who killed William?'
'It's too early to say, yet,' said Hawk.
'You must have learned something!'
'Yes,' said Hawk. 'Most of it contradictory. Where were you at the time of the murder, sir Stalker?'
'In my room. Alone. I don't have any witnesses, or an alibi. But I didn't kill William.'
'Is there any reason why we should think you did?' asked Fisher.
Stalker smiled briefly. 'Someone must have told you by now that William and I hadn't been getting on too well of late.'
'There was some talk that the two of you had argued about something,' said Hawk.
'We'd decided to go our separate ways,' said Stalker. 'William was always too slow, too cautious, for me. I wanted to get out there and do things, change things. William and I were always arguing, right from the start. We both wanted the same things, more or less, but we could never agree on the best way to achieve them. Looking back, it's a wonder we stayed together as long as we did. Anyway, I finally decided to go off on my own, and see what my reputation could do for me at the next election. I think I'll make a pretty good Councilor, myself. Haven could do a lot worse. It often has, in the past. But that's all there was to our quarrel;just a parting of the ways. I had nothing against the man; I admired him, always have. Straightest man I ever met.'
'So who do you think killed Councilor Blackstone?' said Fisher.
Stalker looked at her pityingly. 'Isn't it obvious? William died alone, in a room locked from the inside. Sorcery. Has to be.'
'Gaunt doesn't think so,' said Hawk.
Stalker shrugged. 'I wouldn't trust him further than I could throw him. Never trust a sorcerer.'
'How long have you known Blackstone?' asked Fisher.
Stalker stirred restlessly in his chair and glanced irritably at Fisher. 'Not long. Two years, maybe.'
'Apart from the sorcerer,' said Hawk, 'can you think of anyone with a reason for wanting Blackstone dead?'
Stalker smiled sourly. 'I suppose you've heard about Katherine and Edward?'
'Yes,' said Fisher. 'Is it true?'
'I don't know. Maybe. Women are fickle creatures. No offence intended.'
'What about political enemies?' said Hawk quickly.
'He had his share. No one in particular, though.'
'I see,' said Hawk. 'Thank you, sir Stalker. That will be all for now. If you'd care to wait with the others in the parlor, my partner and I will join you in a while. By the way, I gave orders that no one was to go near the body. Perhaps you could remind the others, and make it clear to them that I meant it;'
'Of course,' said Stalker. 'Glad to be of help, Captain Hawk.' He nodded briefly to Fisher, got up and left the library. Hawk and Fisher sat in silence a while, staring at nothing and thinking furiously.
'You know,' said Fisher. 'I think things were less complicated before we started asking questions.'
Hawk laughed briefly. 'You could be right, lass. Let's try and sort out the wheat from the chaff. What actual suspects have we got? It seems to me that Katherine Blackstone heads the list, with Bowman a close second. Either separately or together, they had good reason to want Blackstone dead. Assuming they were having an affair. Unfortunately, we don't have any real evidence that they were. Gossip isn't evidence.'
'Dorimant said he saw Katherine going into Bowman's room,' said Fisher. 'But Dorimant could have his own reasons for lying. Which leaves us right back where we started. So, who else can we point the finger at? I think Gaunt has to be a suspect, if only because at the moment he's the only one who could have committed the murder.'
'On the other hand,' said Hawk, 'he couldn't have used sorcery to get into the room without Visage knowing.'
'She did say she was nowhere near as powerful as Gaunt.'
'True. And just maybe they were working together.'
