Behind the wall, Duncan Gillingham too watched in growing horror. What the hell was Trudy thinking off? Surely she didn’t think she could take on an armed man? Was she crazy? She’d get herself killed!
And he didn’t want her to get killed. He couldn’t just crouch here, like a coward, whilst she was killed.
But what could he do, damn it? What could he do?
‘Do you understand now why I really and truly did hate Iris?’ Ronnie said, turning to look at Janet. ‘She had her claws into my best friend and into my father. She was trying to cheat me out of my inheritance, and …’ He faltered to a stop, then took a deep breath. ‘At one point, I even wondered if I might hang, like David did. If the police found out that I hated her and had a motive for killing her, I thought they might arrest me. And if I was found guilty …’
‘Enough!’ Ray said, turning to his son, his face finally twisting into a grimacing, angry mask. ‘You think I didn’t hate her too, boy?’ he shouted. ‘You think I didn’t hate myself for wanting her? Needing her?’
Everyone froze. Trudy a few steps forward, Duncan behind the wall, Janet and Ronnie facing off to each other, and Clement, still balancing on the balls of his feet and praying his limbs didn’t get an attack of the jitters now.
‘You think I didn’t know what a fool I was?’ Ray continued, his voice still loud, but at least not shouting anymore. ‘You think I didn’t want to be free of her? But she was like bloody bindweed, twining around me, tightening, tightening, with her beautiful face and her beautiful body, making me go out of my mind …’
He went silent and shook his head.
‘And so you killed her,’ Janet whispered, tears coming into her eyes. ‘But why did you leave her tied to the maypole like that?’
Ray shrugged. ‘What else was I supposed to do with her?’ he asked harshly. ‘I found out, you see, about those disgusting parties at that London parasite’s place. I knew some other men in the village had been bragging about having her too, but I always thought that was lies. Just men bragging, like they do. Iris swore I was the only one. But then, one night, when I was coming back from the fields, I saw two fancy cars parked up in the lane and some men laughing and joking about how they were going to enjoy the party that night. And what Iris had promised to do for them …’
Ray shook his head. ‘It turned my stomach. I saw myself then, as I knew she really saw me – as just one more gullible, middle-aged, pathetic man with money. Money that she wanted to get off me. She never cared tuppence for me. Probably even laughed about me, as those men were now laughing about her. I couldn’t sleep for thinking of it. Couldn’t eat. It drove me mad. And still I wanted her – that was the bloody rub of it! The next day, when I saw her I thought that I’d feel disgusted, but I didn’t. I just wanted her all the more … And you were right boy; I had approached a land agent about selling off some land. And I knew I would too, if I couldn’t get myself free. But I knew I’d never be free of her. Not as long as she lived, anyway.’
For a moment nobody spoke. Nobody knew what to say. But it didn’t matter, because Ray Dewberry had only paused to take a breath. ‘So I decided to kill her. That evening, before May Day, I wrote her a note asking her to dress up in her May Queen outfit, just for me, and meet me by the oak tree on the green just before it started to get light. I promised her a present – something that sparkled, that she could wear that day. Something special. I knew she wouldn’t be able to resist that.’ His lips twisted bitterly. ‘And she didn’t. She came, looking as lovely and fresh as something out of a painting … and inside, she was as black and rotten as flyblown fruit.’ He spat on the ground.
‘I didn’t wait. I didn’t even let her say anything – I was scared she’d be able to talk me around if I did. I just put my hands around her throat and squeezed. She looked so surprised. And then scared. She probably fought and kicked and things, but I didn’t notice. There was this loud buzzing sound in my head … And then she started to turn this funny colour and her eyes bulged and she began to look ugly. I couldn’t take that, my beautiful Iris looking anything less than lovely, so I closed my eyes so that I couldn’t see it happening. I didn’t open them for a long time.’
Ray sighed softly.
‘And when I did, she was hanging there in my hands, limp as a rag doll. The first blackbirds were beginning to sing, and the horizon was beginning to glow, and I knew I hadn’t got much time before the farm hands were up and about. Where could I take her? What could I do?’
He paused, looking from one of them to the other, as if expecting them to tell him. But of course, none of them could.
He shook his head and shrugged. ‘Then I saw the maypole, all set up for the dancing later on, with pretty ribbons and such. And I thought … well, why not? She’d always wanted to be Queen of the May, after all, making such a fuss of it, pleased as punch and preening about it, looking forward to making all her subjects bow before her,’ he choked bitterly. ‘So why not let her have her last wish? So I took her to the maypole and
