He wiped at his eyes and sank into his seat, exhaustion sweeping his features.
‘What makes you think Diane killed your daughter?’
‘She must’ve found out she was sleeping with Peter, and that she was pregnant.’
‘Yet, she seemed as surprised as you to find out about Sophie’s pregnancy,’ said Sharp.
Whittaker snorted. ‘She’s a great actress, Diane. Very convincing. I’ve already told your colleague here,’ he said waving a hand in Kay’s direction, ‘Diane went to drama school in London. Trust me, I’ve seen how she can convince people.’
Sharp sighed, and leaned towards the recording equipment. ‘Interview suspended at three-fifteen,’ he said.
Fifty-One
‘What the hell is going on, Sharp?’
Larch’s voice echoed off the walls of the corridor as he strode towards the team gathered outside the interview rooms.
Kay paused, her hand against the doorframe of the observation suite where Barnes and Gavin sat, having watched the interview with Matthew Whittaker in order to provide feedback.
Carys hovered at the threshold, her eyes wide.
‘We’ve reasonable suspicion to bring Diane Whittaker in for formal questioning,’ said Sharp, his voice calm as the DCI glared at him. ‘Her husband has suggested she killed Sophie.’
‘Why on earth would Lady Griffith kill her own daughter?’ said Larch.
‘We don’t know that she did,’ said Kay. ‘But she’s certainly been a busy woman, that much is for sure.’
‘Explain yourself, Hunter,’ said Larch. ‘And make it quick.’ He glared at Kay before turning his attention back to the interview room monitors, his hands thrust into his pockets and his jaw clenched.
Kay took a deep breath. ‘Okay, well this is how I see it. Somehow, Diane comes to an arrangement with Blake Hamilton that he’ll help her out with the ongoing upkeep of Crossways Hall, if she agrees to make Sophie marry Josh. That way, she gets to keep her family home, and Blake gets his son the aristocratic kudos he’s so desperate to cultivate.’
‘And everyone lives happily ever after.’
‘Yeah, but Sophie gets pregnant. She panics – suddenly she’s faced with the reality that she’s in way over her head. She’s due to take a purity pledge to remain chaste until she marries, she’s making that pledge on the same day she’s getting engaged to Josh Hamilton, and she can’t talk to anyone about it.’ Kay paused in an attempt to fight down the adrenalin enough so she could explain herself to her senior officer. ‘What if Sophie wasn’t the one blackmailing Duncan Saddleworth?’
‘But we already know it was – we found the cash in her possession in the safe deposit box.’
Kay rubbed at her eye. ‘Sophie was the blackmailer to start off with,’ she said patiently, ‘but after she was killed, Saddleworth received another letter, but Blake Hamilton and Felix Ashgrove didn’t. Someone else knew Sophie was blackmailing him, and decided to do the same to make some money, but didn’t know about the others – that’s why they haven’t received any.’
‘Has it occurred to you Sophie could’ve arranged for the letters to be delivered before she died?’
‘It was hand-delivered. That means there was someone else involved. Peter Evans denies all knowledge of the safe deposit box, and he seemed genuinely surprised when I told him. Seems to me Sophie found a way to make some money in anticipation of them leaving the country.’
‘Hunter, there wasn’t enough money in that safe deposit box to warrant killing someone – there was only a few thousand pounds.’
‘But what if Sophie’s killer found out about it, and figured they needed the money more?’
‘What’s that got to do with the Whittakers?’
‘Matthew Whittaker has admitted their house is falling down around their ears, and his business is about to go into voluntary administration within weeks – you’ve seen the state of the financial records.’
Larch sighed and turned away from the monitor. ‘Still too tenuous, Hunter.’
‘Wait, let me finish. Sir.’
‘Go on,’ said Sharp, and held up a hand to stop Larch interrupting again.
‘When Barnes and I first spoke to the Whittakers, Diane told us that they overheard Sophie talking to Eva about Peter Evans – that’s when Barnes had Diane show him where she was standing on the terrace. It got me thinking while we were interviewing Matthew Whittaker – if Diane knew she could eavesdrop underneath Sophie’s bedroom window, what else did she hear?’
‘You think Diane found out Sophie was pregnant and killed her because she’d spoiled her plans to marry her off?’ said Barnes.
‘That’s what Matthew alleges. In the circumstances, we’ve got no choice but to interview Diane Whittaker.’
‘Bloody hell, Hunter. You’d better be right about this,’ said Sharp.
‘I agree,’ said Larch. ‘The political ramifications if we’re wrong could end our careers.’
Kay caught Sharp’s eye, but he shook his head. The only one worrying about his career being ruined by Diane Whittaker’s links to local people of influence was the DCI.
Sharp cleared his throat and followed Larch’s gaze to the interview room monitors, then sighed. ‘It’s a long shot. However, I agree we should question her under caution – to eliminate her, at least.’
‘I’ll head over there now,’ said Kay and headed towards the door. ‘Come on, Barnes. House visit.’
Fifty-Two
Kay yanked the handbrake and released her seatbelt.
‘This place looks more rundown every time I come here,’ said Barnes, straining his neck to view the house through the passenger window. ‘I don’t know why people insist on living in houses like this if they can’t afford to keep it looking nice. I mean, what’s the point?’
‘I guess it’s partly to do with keeping up appearances.’
‘That’s not going to last long,’ said Barnes. ‘You heard they dismissed the gardener the other week as well?’
‘Finances must have been bad for a long time.’ Kay stared out the window, a frown creasing her brow at Barnes’s comment, and a thought crossed her mind. It would mean changing her tactics slightly, but she knew Sharp would support her, if it came to that.
The question was, would Larch?
‘Come on,’ said Barnes. ‘Let’s do this. The sooner we get her down the station, the closer we are
