Martyn nodded.
“We want to ask you a few questions, Martyn,” said Gus. “We’d like you to answer them as best you can. You might not know the answers, but that’s okay. Just remember as much as you can and tell the truth.”
“I should always tell the truth,” said Martyn.
“Your parents raised you well, Martyn,” said Gus, “Mr Jackson tells us you do a good job here, working on the grounds. What do you enjoy best about what you do?”
“I keep the lawns and the shrubs tidy, so the visitors say how pretty the gardens are. I can’t climb the trees like Ralph, but I clear away the branches he removes with the chainsaw. I enjoy that.”
“Ralph Tucker is the tree surgeon we employ,” explained Arthur, “He’s worked on the estate since before Martyn started working here.”
Gus saw the look Arthur gave Luke. There must be something Arthur wanted to add. Perhaps it was best to wait until later.
“What can you remember of the time when you and Mum lived in Salisbury?” asked Gus.
Martyn looked confused.
“Do you remember living in another house before you moved to Oakley Road?”
“Mum didn’t want me to talk about that,” said Martyn. “I tried to forget like she told me, but I couldn’t.”
“You lived with your Mum and Dad in a big house, didn’t you? You were only young, and perhaps you don’t remember your Dad?”
“He hurt Mum,” said Martyn. “I didn’t like him. We stayed with Serena after he hit Mum again, then Mum married my other Dad, and the hitting stopped.”
“Theo Reeves, yes, we spoke to him yesterday. Theo raised you and Stephanie as brother and sister, didn’t he? I expect you were happy living with Mum, Dad, and Stephanie?”
“I was happy when I was at home, but I didn’t enjoy going to school. The other children were nasty because I wasn’t clever like them. I was glad when I left school and came here to work. I could be alone, and only a few people make fun of me. If I do what I get asked the best I can, then nobody will bother me. That’s what Mum said.”
“A wise woman, your mother,” said Gus. “You must miss her.”
“Mum told me I mustn’t do bad things. I mustn’t hurt women like my Dad did. She always told me people shouldn’t say one thing and do another.”
Gus knew he was on dangerous ground. His open-ended questions might get a verbal response from Martyn, but if he pressed too hard on details surrounding Marion’s death, Martyn would revert to nods and a shake of the head or shut down altogether.
“How did you feel after Mum died, Martyn?” he asked, knowing it was a risk.
“I was angry and sad,” said Martyn, more animated now. “People asked questions about where I worked that day, and I couldn’t remember. Mr Jackson told them I was mowing the grass between the fruit trees that morning. It takes a long time, especially the first time you do it in the spring. Loads of rubbish gathers on the ground over the winter. If you’re not careful, you hit it with the mower. Mum said if you have a problem, it’s up to you to fix it. It takes time to clear the ground before you start mowing.”
“That it does,” said Arthur Jackson. “Martyn is only one of a team of people we need to work on the fifteen thousand acres we have to handle here. He’s the most conscientious worker I’ve got. Martyn spends as long as it takes to prepare the ground. He was working on the eastern side of the estate for over two days, getting everything ready for the first cut.”
“Did you go out to see him during the morning to check he was okay?” asked Luke. “Isn’t it more usual to work in pairs for health and safety?”
“Rubber duck, rubber duck,” said Martyn.
Arthur grinned. “We keep in touch via walkie-talkie because of the distances involved. All our ground staff carry them. I contact them regularly throughout the day to check their progress or ask them to move to another job if required.”
“Do you bring a packed lunch to work each day, Martyn?” asked Gus.
“No,” he replied.
“I suppose you would have to make it yourself,” said Gus. “But you used to bring a packed lunch to work when you still lived at home, didn’t you? Mum made one for herself every day, didn’t she?”
“Sometimes I was so busy I forgot to eat it. Mum would tell me off when I took it home again. She said people in Africa were dying of starvation. We mustn’t waste food, she said. I always tried to do what she said.”
“Do you miss not living in Oakley Road?” asked Luke.
“It wasn’t the same,” said Martyn. “Mum wasn’t there, and Dad was always sad. Stephanie got drunk every day. Ralph and his friends got me drunk once. I didn’t like how it made me feel. I worried Stephanie felt that way every morning.”
“You remembered when Stephanie stood up to the bullies, didn’t you, Martyn?” said Luke. “So, you helped Stephanie when she needed someone to make sure she got home safely.”
“I wanted to help her. Mum said I should treat women with respect, but one time I got into trouble when I got Stephanie home. Dad said I was disgusting. I had done nothing bad. I couldn’t understand what I did wrong. He wanted me to leave. That was when Mr Jackson helped me find my new place.”
“Do you own a mobile phone, Martyn?” asked Gus.
“I don’t need one at work,” Martyn replied. “I’ve got my rubber duck.”
Martyn pointed to the unit attached to his trouser belt.
“I need the toilet,” he said.
“Off you
