Inside the room where the two women sat, a hush, neither wanting to speak. Eventually, Christine broke the silence. ‘How are you?’
‘And now you ask? How long has it been? Four, five years?’
‘Longer. You look well.’
‘I can’t say the same for you. What is it this time? I thought you would have learnt your lesson. Is Tony involved in this mess? They gave me a case file on the way in.’
‘Tony’s beastly to me, won’t let me out. I’m no more than a drudge to him, a slave to his every whim.’
‘Can you blame him after the last time? Do the police here know about your last escapade?’
‘It wasn’t in this country, you know that. It’s best if they don’t find out.’
‘And what happened to the man? Dead in the desert, died of thirst. And you in jail for three months before they could get you out.’
‘We were in Dubai, you know that. They’re strict about those sorts of things.’
‘They're not too keen on adultery here, either.’
‘I didn’t kill him in Dubai, you know that.’
‘And now, what are we going to do? Defend the indefensible?’
‘You’re my sister. I need you to get me out of here.’
A pregnant pause while the two warring sisters considered their respective positions.
‘Very well, the full story,’ Gwen Hislop said. ‘And don’t give me any of that poor little me, no drooping eyes, no crocodile tears.’
‘I loved him.’
‘Stop it! The facts, not the platitudes. Don’t throw your guilt trip on me. It was you who walked out of the family house at sixteen, pregnant.’
‘I lost the baby.’
‘Screwing anyone you could get your hands on, including my boyfriend. What did you expect?’
‘But you married him.’
‘At nineteen, in a church, white dress. Naive back then, and I believed him when he told me he hadn’t been with you. I kicked him out after three years. Did you see him again?’
‘Never, but he seduced me. I couldn’t help myself.’
‘Rubbish. Nobody ever seduced you. No doubt the police think of you as Little Miss Perfect.’
‘I was seen in Hyde Park the day before Colin died. I can’t deny it forever, but what can I say?’
‘If I’m to help, you’d better start giving me the facts. The police will find out eventually, even about your past history.’
‘It was hushed up.’
‘Nothing’s hushed up, you know that. Tony’s up to God knows what, his wife’s having an adulterous relationship with a man young enough to be her son, another relationship overseas that ended up in the man’s death, you in jail. I’ll get you out of this mess for now, but I can’t guarantee that I can clear you of everything. Now, give me the answer straight. Did you kill Colin Young?’
‘No, I swear it.’
‘Don’t put your hand on a Bible for me. If you do that, then I know you’re lying.’
Gwen Hislop pushed her chair back and walked to the door. She knocked on it, a uniform opening it. ‘We’ll need something to drink, and any chance of some food?’
‘Pizza, sandwiches?’ the uniform replied.
‘A pizza and two cappuccinos, not the type that comes out of a vending machine.’
‘We have a standing order with a place next door. Cappuccinos, large or small?’
‘Large, and a pizza, Hawaiian will do. Thank you.’
Gwen sat down again, taking her laptop out from her bag. ‘Now, the facts, and don’t give me the sanitised version. You’re a tart, always were.’
Chapter 8
Wendy checked on Constables Taylor and Mortimer. Isaac and Larry would conduct the interview with Christine Mason and her sister when they were ready. The day was coming to a close, and the sky was darkening outside. Not that it concerned the Homicide team, as they were used to very long hours, with a minimum of sleep in between. But Christine Mason had a husband who was known to be difficult, and the woman wasn’t leaving until she had answered all the questions.
Mortimer had a reputation at Challis Street for leering, sidling up to the young women in the station; the printer room was ideal, just room enough for two to squeeze past each other. But there they were, Katrina Taylor and Mortimer, working alongside each other, laughing.
‘Sorry, Sergeant,’ Katrina said as Wendy walked in. ‘He told me why his parents named him after Elvis Presley.’
‘I’ve no problem with humour,’ Wendy said. ‘Any luck?’
‘We’ve reduced the search area. We’ve excluded south of the park. Knightsbridge and Kensington are no longer part of the search,’ Mortimer said.
‘Are you sure?’
‘As sure as we can be. We went out to a few hotels ourselves that looked promising, pulled in favours from some of the other uniforms.’
‘Favours? You’ve not been here that long in the station.’
‘Everyone likes a drink of a night. We’ve offered to pay.’
‘Good initiative, but not finding the man after so long is a worry. Are you sure you’ve been approaching this the right way?’
‘I’m sure we have,’ Katrina said. ‘Constable Mortimer set up a grid pattern for us, and we’ve been charting and then checking off the hotels one by one. We thought we had a promising lead in Kensington, but it wasn’t our man. Apart from that, nothing.’
‘Inspector Hill reckons that the man was in the area of Bayswater, Notting Hill, possibly Paddington. I’m not so sure, too close to the Fitzroy Hotel, the possibility that Christine Mason might have seen him.’
‘If you can narrow the search area, it will help,’ Mortimer said. ‘Katrina’s doing a great job.’
‘So’s Elvis,’ Katrina said.
Wendy wasn’t sure what to say. The two of them appeared to be very cosy. Maybe she was misreading the signals, but whatever it was, they were working as a capable team, although coming up
