Hmm… could she be responsible for his death in order to gain financially? “And you say you were at a friend’s last night?”
Mrs Simmonds nodded.
“We’ll need to speak to your friend to verify your account.”
The woman’s gaze darted between Katy and Charlie. She gasped and shouted, “No! You don’t think I could be capable of doing this?”
“No, that’s not what I said, Mrs Simmonds. As with any facts, such as an alibi, that surface during an investigation, we need to check them, ensure their accuracy.”
“Okay, but why am I getting the impression that I’m a suspect here?”
Guilty conscience perhaps? Katy offered a smile. “I don’t know, is there any reason for us to believe you had anything to do with your soon to be ex-husband’s accident?”
“No, absolutely not. I can’t believe you would think such a thing. Bloody hell, I had nothing to do with this.” Her voice became high-pitched as she protested her innocence.
“Okay, let’s leave that there for now. We’ll still need your friend’s name and address.”
Mrs Simmonds surveyed the room and then rose from her seat to collect her handbag from the corner. She returned, withdrew her phone and scrolled through her contacts. “Jenna Brown, fifty-eight Cheshire Drive. Will that do?” She also gave them Jenna’s phone number as well.
“Thanks. We’ll get in touch with Jenna later. Going back to Bobby, were you still speaking to each other?”
“Off and on. That doesn’t mean that I would set out to hurt him. I’m horrified you should suggest I would.”
“I don’t recall ever suggesting that, Mrs Simmonds. What I’m trying to ascertain is whether your husb… Bobby mentioned that he’d fallen out with anyone recently.”
She contemplated this for a second or two. “No, not that he told me about. Look, what are you saying? This wasn’t an accident? Is that why it sounds like you’re accusing me of something I wouldn’t do? Is that what you’re getting at, if I didn’t do it, which I didn’t, then someone else is responsible?”
“I’m going to lay it on the line for you. The pathologist believes your husband died in suspicious circumstances, and I’m inclined to think along the same lines. Therefore, it’s imperative for us to find out what was going on in Bobby’s life in the past few weeks and that if something he’d been involved in might have led to him losing his life. That’s not to say I’m accusing you of anything, I’m not.”
“Well, it bloody sounds like you are to me. And no, Bobby didn’t confide in me, not recently. Not ever, really. He was a very secretive individual. Drove me to distraction most of the time. Our marriage had always been a one-sided affair, in my eyes anyway. We rarely shared what we wanted out of life. Initially, I thought he was just shy and a bit reserved and hoped he would come out of his shell once he got to know me better, that never happened.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. You hinted at him possibly having a secret, any idea about what?”
“If I knew that, it wouldn’t be a secret, would it? I didn’t actually say that, I told you he was secretive, in general. Not really about one thing in particular. I know I’m not making any sense, I’m sorry. I know what I want to say, but I don’t think I’m expressing myself very well.”
“It’s a tough situation to get your head around, I completely understand.”
“I’m glad you’re being reasonable. Take my word for it, as much as I hated Bobby, come the end, I would never dream of hurting him physically. Blimey, have you seen the size of me compared to him?”
“Okay, I think we’re done here. I’m going to leave you my card, if you should think of anything you might wish to add, call me.”
“And that’s it? You’re going? What about his parents, are you going to visit them now?”
“If you’ll be kind enough to give us their details, yes, we’ll go and visit them next. Maybe you can tell me if they’ve got any underlying health problems we should be aware of?”
“His father has a heart problem and diabetes, other than that, they’re both in good health.”
“Thanks, that helps a lot.” Katy and Charlie stood and Mrs Simmonds showed them to the front door.
“I’m sorry he’s dead. You have to believe me. I would never set out to hurt him, not when we’d agreed to go our separate ways.”
“We’ll be in touch soon, if we find anything out.”
She closed the door behind them, and Katy and Charlie walked back to the car.
“What did you make of her?” Katy asked. She wanted to compare Charlie’s idea of the woman to her own.
“I’m not sure. To me, her reactions seemed a little false, or was that me reading something into it that simply wasn’t there?”
“No, I agree with you. Putting myself in her shoes, I totally get her reaction. Maybe I came across too aggressive back there.”
They got in the car and Charlie continued the conversation. “That’s nuts! You did not. If you didn’t probe, then you wouldn’t receive the answers needed to crack the case, would you?”
“There is that. Okay, I’ll drive to the parents’ house, can’t say I’m looking forward to sharing the news with them. Can you call Jenna for me, see if Mrs Simmonds’ story is true?”
“We didn’t get her first name, did we? Makes it a little awkward.”
“Yeah, do your best.”
Katy listened to Charlie’s end of the conversation. Her partner handled the enquiry well and Jenna furnished her with the facts that Anne Simmonds stayed at Jenna’s house and didn’t return home until nine that morning.
Katy drummed her fingers on the steering wheel as she drove. “If she didn’t do it, then who did? We need to visit the parents first and then head over to B&Q. Maybe someone there can tell us something of use.”
The Simmonds’ seniors lived in a large bungalow at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac,
