‘Thank you for coming,’ Gwen said. She was dressed casually, a tee-shirt that had seen better days, a pair of blue jeans. She wore no shoes, and her hair was uncombed.
‘Apologies for the look, but I’m not in court today, working from home.’
‘That’s fine,’ Isaac said as he sat down in a chair that looked old and worn, but was surprisingly comfortable. ‘You said it was important.’
‘Terry, my former husband, phoned.’
‘You still use his surname.’
‘I qualified when we were married. It was just easier to continue using it, although I’ve not heard from him for a long time.’
‘Sergeant Gladstone went up to Liverpool to interview him. Did he mention it?’
‘He didn’t phone for a social chat.’
‘Angry?’
‘Drunk more than angry, but he wasn’t friendly. On the contrary, he resented the suggestion that my sister and I had put him forward as a person of concern.’
‘His words?’
‘His contained some expletives. I’ve no intention of repeating them to you.’
‘You’re a lawyer. You’re used to difficult, argumentative, and violent people. Why do you need me here?’
‘Off the record, that’s why.’
‘I’m a police officer, nothing’s totally off the record.’
‘I can understand that, but I needed to talk to you without others listening in. No recording what we’re talking about, okay?’
‘Okay.’
‘Terry was never violent towards Christine or me, that’s a fact.’
‘But?’
‘After I broke up with him, and before we were divorced, he took out a friend of mine. Spite on his part, stupidity on hers.’
‘It didn’t go well?’
‘She’s no longer a friend, obviously. It didn’t last long, up until he started bringing Christine and me into the relationship. Telling her that I was a bitch, and that Christine was a better lay, a better person, and he should have chosen her, not me.’
‘He told Sergeant Gladstone that it was always you.’
‘He had a notion of the virgin wife, I suppose. I was the virgin, Christine was the substitute. Not that I knew when I married him, not about Christine, but you know this already. Anyway, he started to become paranoid, constantly on about the bitch I was with my airs and graces, my education and then becoming qualified, aspirations of becoming a judge, a QC.’
‘Was he right?’
‘I never shoved it down his throat, and I certainly didn’t have airs and graces. Yes, I was ambitious, but for the two of us.’
‘He saw himself as the provider?’
‘He was fine with me working. It was when I started bringing more money home than him of a week that he felt it. To him, it was a castration, not to me. The money went into our joint account, and he had access to it.’
‘An educated man, Terry?’
‘Enough to get by in life, not enough to obtain professional qualifications. He wasn’t stupid, on the contrary, but he didn’t have the interest in completing a degree.’
‘Whereas you did.’
‘I worked hard, damn hard, another problem with him. He felt neglected; I felt tired.’
‘The man’s ego has taken a hammering, the marriage falters, and so on. It’s not a unique situation.’
‘Exactly. We all move on, that’s how the world works. I’ve got my career, he’s got my friend.’
‘You’ve still not told me the reason why I’m here,’ Isaac said. He enjoyed being in the woman’s company, her manner of speaking, her education, both alluring characteristics.
‘After this friend of mine has heard him going on about Christine and me for one too many times, she finally snaps, tells him the relationship’s off.’
‘His reaction?’
‘He hits her, and hard.’
‘Did she report it to the police?’
‘No. She came around to me, asked for my advice, looking for a shoulder to cry on.’
‘Were you the shoulder?’
‘I was upset with her, but she hadn’t done anything wrong, not really. Terry and I were separated, and he was a free agent, so was I.’
‘Have you remarried, formed any relationships?’
‘Not that it’s important, but no. I busied myself with my career, and there has been the occasional fling, nothing serious, and certainly not love. I love my sister, but we’re not cast from the same die. She craves love and attention, I don’t.’
‘Are you worried that Terry has become violent again?’
‘I’m concerned. I’ve no reason to take it any further, and besides, for what? He’s abusive on the phone, but that’s not a crime.’
‘Unnecessary, though.’
‘That’s not the point. If he can phone me up, give me a piece of his mind, then he can phone Christine, find out where she lives. He could cause trouble.’
‘According to Sergeant Gladstone, the man is still bitter about your sister. He’s struggling with his business, and he’s gone to seed. Old animosities, emotional conflicts could be coming to the forefront again. Could he attack Christine?’
‘I don’t know. And Christine is a foolish woman around men.’
‘We know that. What else do you know about your sister’s recent history?’
‘I only know what was said at the police station. As I said, she’s my sister. We don’t always see eye to eye, and I don’t approve of her frivolous affairs.’
‘Do you know about them all?’
‘No, and I don’t want to. Such behaviour always leads to trouble.’
‘Terry Hislop is still a suspect for the murder of Colin Young, now known to be Barry Montgomery,’ Isaac said.
‘It seems unlikely though. He would have killed Christine, not her lover.’
‘Who knows what the state of his mind is.’
‘You’re correct. Please don’t aggravate Terry, don’t let him hurt Christine.’
‘And you. He knows your phone number, he must know your address.’
Chapter 21
Janice Montgomery’s autopsy revealed nothing unusual,
