The detective sergeant stepped out from behind us. ‘Stand down, chaps,’ he ordered.
Confusion shot through both constables. They had orders to arrest me on sight no doubt.
‘We’re to arrest Mrs Philips and her accomplice on sight, Sarge,’ the one coming towards us said, confirming my expectations.
‘They are already in my custody,’ DS Atwell replied. ‘Don’t they look like they are in my custody?’
The lead constable made an uncertain face. ‘Well, they could do with being a bit more in cuffs, if you know what I mean, Sarge.’
DS Atwell acted as if it were an amusing suggestion. ‘There hardly seems a need for that, Coruthers. I’m taking them to see the alleged victim.’
Constable Coruthers’ eyes flared in shock at the announcement. ‘But, Sarge, that’s who we’re here to stop her getting to. She already tried to kill him once.’
‘No, I didn’t,’ I replied calmly. I felt oddly serene and in control. This was my party now.
The young man’s eyes flitted between mine and DS Atwell’s. He had orders but his chain of command was not here and a senior detective was. ‘I need to check with the chief inspector,’ he announced, probably being wise in covering his backside.
DS Atwell continued walking, steering me between the officers with a hand on my shoulder. ‘If you must. I’ll be inside sorting this mess out in the meantime.’
It was clear the two young men in uniform did not feel comfortable letting us into Derek’s room, but the detective gave them no choice. He pushed on the door and stood aside to let Mindy and me go in.
Derek was sitting up in bed, the pillow end of it tilted up to support his back. He shot me an apologetic smile. Joanne was on the far side of the bed, looking our way with a surprised expression. She was holding Derek’s hand, doing a good job of maintaining the façade of the loyal wife. Tamara was sitting on a chair in the corner, fiddling with her phone but got to her feet when she saw us coming in.
She was the first to speak. ‘Mrs Philips. The police seem to think you pushed dad off the balcony.’
Derek chuckled. ‘I already told them I jumped.’
Theory in Pieces
Like the needle jumping off the record, all the triumphant music in my head stopped in an instant.
Showing my great intellect, I said, ‘Huh?’
‘I jumped,’ Derek repeated. ‘I just couldn’t take the pain anymore. It was tearing me apart. I know it was cowardly. Honestly, I think I was so delirious from the pain, I never really questioned my decision to jump. It would seem I have caused some drama.’
Shaking my head in disbelief as my well-constructed theory fell apart, I asked, ‘Who else knows this?’
Derek and Joanne both nodded their heads toward Detective Sergeant Atwell. ‘He does,’ they replied in unison.
That Derek had attempted to take his own life was throwing me but that didn’t change the fact that Joanne was having an affair and was the one rubbing the deadly cream onto her husband’s skin every day.
Feeling my face stretch into an ugly leer, I aimed it at Joanne. ‘Does the detective also know that you are the one who created Derek’s pain?’
Joanne reacted as if slapped. ‘What?’
Derek glanced up at his wife and then back at me. ‘What?’
Tamara’s jaw fell open. ‘What?’
I shook my head and held my chin high. ‘I’m sorry, Derek. Sorry that I must burden you with such terrible news. Your wife has been trying to kill you.’ The blood drained from Joanne’s face. ‘The cream she had been applying to your body is what has made you so sick.’
‘Yeah,’ chipped in Mindy, striding across the room to dump the cream on the bed. ‘This stuff is eating your skin.’
Joanne looked like she wanted to back away, but the wall was right behind her and the only way out of the room was through all of us.
‘No,’ she denied my accusation. ‘No, I just did as the doctor told me.’
‘The doctor?’ I scoffed. ‘You mean your lover!’
Derek could not believe what he was hearing. Still holding his wife’s hand as he stared up at her, he seemed unable to form a coherent sentence.
Tamara did it for him. ‘Mum what is she talking about?’
‘You almost got away with it,’ I stated firmly. ‘Almost, but I saw your scarf in his surgery today.’
‘Is that where I left it?’ she questioned.
‘And I saw the parking permit for the golf club, Joanne. The same club that Derek’s physician, Dr Kimble is a member of. Is that where you meet each other? We all know you can’t play golf. Not with your injury.’
It was clear from his expression that this was all news to Derek; he had no idea.
Not letting anyone else get a word in, I barrelled on. ‘The two of you wanted rid of Derek and his chronic condition gave you the perfect opportunity. He was going to waste away, unable to move because of his terrible joint pain. Death would be a welcome release when it came. Daily, you applied a cream that you knew was killing him, all so you and the doctor could be together.’ I was almost shouting now. ‘Were you going to leave and move to the Caribbean? I saw the brochures, you know. You should have hidden them better.’
Joanne was shaking her head with horrified disbelief; I had her and she knew it. ‘No. No, this is all wrong. I’m not having an affair. I don’t have any idea what you are
