‘We need to find out who this man is. If I have any more, the two of you will be the first to know.’
***
Finally, Christine Mason was ready. Isaac and Larry had taken the opportunity while waiting to pop out for a meal at a Chinese restaurant nearby. Wendy was in the office with Bridget, Larry taking her place, a fresh face to throw Christine Mason off balance.
The two women entered the interview room. Neither looked pleased to be there.
‘I hope this won’t take long,’ Gwen Hislop said.
‘We’ve a lot of unanswered questions,’ Isaac said.
The four sat down at the table. Isaac dealt with the formalities, noting the time and the names of those present.
‘Christine, you said before that you were not in Hyde Park. Do you still hold to that?’ Isaac asked.
The woman shifted uneasily in her seat, placing her hand on her sister’s arm. She did not speak.
‘I’ll answer for my client,’ Gwen Hislop said. ‘She wishes to change her previous statement.’
Larry sat forward on his chair, anxious to hear what was said. The woman’s sister, the lawyer, was easier to read: studious, sensibly dressed, obviously intelligent. Christine had the looks, not Gwen, although he wouldn’t have described her as unattractive, more a person who did not care whether a hair was out of place, or her lipstick was not applied to perfection.
‘Do you wish to make a statement on your client’s behalf?’ Isaac said.
‘Yes. My client is also my sister, as you know.’
‘The statement?’
‘Very well,’ Gwen said through gritted teeth. The chemistry between the two women was not good, both Isaac and Larry could see that. Maybe there was bad blood, a past history.
‘In your own time,’ Isaac said, the delay in the statement noticeable.
‘I don’t need instructions on how to conduct my business. Any coercion or attempt at railroading these proceedings will be noted. If you decide to use false evidence, circumstantial or otherwise, against my client, then how you and your inspector conduct this interview will be noted. A judge will take exception to anything other than the correct procedure being followed.’
Sister or no sister, Isaac thought, the woman was skilled, a worthy person to have on her sister’s side.
‘I need to make a phone call.’
‘Your prerogative.’
Isaac paused the interview; Gwen Hislop took out her mobile and dialled. ‘Tony, Christine’s staying with me for the night. Nothing to worry about. It’s just that I’ve got the flu, and she’s acting as a nursemaid.’
‘Will he believe that?’ Isaac asked. ‘How many years since you and Christine have seen each other?’
‘What he believes or does not is not your concern, is it?’
‘It is if it has a bearing on this investigation. We are led to believe that the relationship between Mrs Mason and her husband is strained, and you two don’t seem to be close.’
‘It’s not relevant.’
A hard woman, Isaac thought, whereas according to Wendy, Christine Mason was a mellow, friendly, easily-led woman. What secrets lurked behind locked doors? Was Gwen Hislop involved? And if so, then how?
The interview resumed, Isaac once again asking Gwen Hislop to read the statement. Once again, a delay.
‘I was there. I was in Hyde Park, it’s all true,’ Christine said. Her sister looked at her in disgust.
‘Leave it to me,’ Gwen said.
‘I loved him, and he was cheating on me. I know he was.’
‘How?’ Larry asked.
‘My sister is emotional. I will answer for her,’ Gwen said. ‘Please, Christine, let me tell them,’ she said, looking at her sister.
‘I’m sorry,’ Christine replied. Her eyes were moist, and she was shaking.
‘As you can see, my sister is a fragile person.’
‘The statement,’ Isaac reiterated.
‘I, Christine Mason, am innocent of the murder of Colin Young. I was in Hyde Park on the day mentioned, and I was there hoping to see him. But he never came. I knew that he ran around the park whenever he was in London, and I knew the route, having walked around it once with him. I was sure that he loved me, and he treated me well. And then I saw him in London, not far from the Fitzroy Hotel. I knew then that if he wasn’t with me, he was with someone else. I was frantic, unable to contain myself, and Tony was at home, and I had a job at the hotel. Somehow, I managed to continue, to pretend that nothing troubled me when it did. I did not kill him in Hyde Park, although I was angry and hurt that day that I was seen. I couldn’t have killed him, it wasn’t possible. He was my sanity, and now he’s gone.’
‘We’ll enter it into the record,’ Isaac said. ‘Now, Christine, we need to know two things. What was his real name, and where was he staying in London? You must know both of these.’
‘My sister does not. She is innocent, and unless you have further evidence, we will wish you goodnight.’
‘It’s not that easy, Miss Hislop. Your client has consistently lied, altering her story as it suits her. Firstly, she denied any knowledge of the man, and then we find out that he was her adulterous lover. And now, another revelation. What next? That she was in the park, determined to confront him and kill him? We’ll accept that when she was seen in the park, she did not see Young and that he was somewhere else. Where he was is critical, but first, we have to understand what we have here. Colin Young would not have been in the park on the day of his murder if he had been confronted by Christine on a previous occasion. A logical assumption, not cast iron, of course.’
‘Why not?’ Gwen asked.
‘Christine had an unhealthy relationship with this man. Maybe, to her, it was sweet and innocent,
