comes in this evening.’
‘I’d be grateful if you’d leave that to me. Just let us know as soon as she’s back.’
‘Fine, but please be gentle with her. These letters haven’t made any financial demands on their recipients, so I really don’t see what Marjorie and Lucy would stand to gain by sending them. I still believe your answer lies with the Sach family—in which case Lucy will have lost a good friend on top of everything else she’s been through.’ Penrose looked questioningly at her. ‘Lucy got herself into trouble in more ways than one before she went to prison,’ she explained. ‘She had a child while she was in Holloway, and had to give it up—and it affected her very badly. She still hasn’t quite got over it—if you ever do, that is.’
‘Please don’t worry—we’re not in the habit of bullying witnesses,’ Penrose said pleasantly, and was satisfied to see that his own condescension had not gone unnoticed. ‘I appreciate what you’re saying, but there’s no reason why the answer shouldn’t lie with the Sach family
‘Mary’s been at Holloway for about eight years,’ she said doubtfully, ‘so apart from being deputy governor at the prison which hanged her, I can’t see any connection.’ She was about to dismiss Miriam Sharpe out of hand, then seemed to change her mind. ‘Come to think of it, Amelia once told me that she had met Walters at St Thomas’s Hospital—you knew they were both nurses?’ Penrose nodded. ‘Miriam was matron at St Thomas’s for many years, and she worked her way up before that. You’d have to check the dates with her, but it’s possible that they might have been there at the same time.’
Penrose shut his notebook and stood up. ‘Thank you, Miss Bannerman, you’ve been very helpful. Either I or my officers will need to speak to the members who knew Miss Baker, and to some of your staff—Miss Peters and Miss Timpson in particular. We’ll be as discreet as possible.’
‘Thank you, Inspector—I appreciate that. You already know, I’m sure, that Motley will be moving into the club for a few days to get ready for the gala?’
He nodded. ‘I knew they intended to ask you if that would be possible.’
‘Yes. I didn’t know at the time what had led to the request—Lettice said she would explain later—but, under the circumstances, I’m even more glad to be able to help. It’s very good of them to go ahead with the gala at all. I assume you have no objections to the arrangement?’
‘None whatsoever.’
‘Good. And I’ll make sure that you and your officers have the Cowdray Club’s full co-operation with your investigation.’
It was an uneasy truce, but Penrose was more than satisfied with what he had learned from Celia Bannerman. The interview had taken longer than anticipated, and Fallowfield was waiting for him at reception when he went back downstairs. His sergeant listened calmly to what he had to say, but Penrose could tell that Fallowfield was as excited as he was. ‘Back to the Bunk, then, Sir.’
‘We certainly need to talk to Maria Baker again right away, but I’d like to do it more formally this time—she doesn’t strike me as someone who’ll be easily unsettled, but an interview at the station might give us the advantage. You might as well get Waddingham and Merrifield off the telephones and send them round to Campbell Road to pick her up. For God’s sake tell them to be gentle, though—the woman’s just lost a daughter and a husband, and we don’t know that she had anything to do with it. She’s not under arrest—not yet, anyway. We just need some answers. In the meantime, I’ve got a couple more questions here. Has Lady Ashby calmed down yet?’
‘Yes, Sir. I’ve had a chat with her, and she seems genuinely shocked by Miss Baker’s death—shocked, and upset. She’s confirmed everything that Mrs Reader told you about last night, even down to asking the girl out, and it
‘Not too freely, though? You believed her?’
‘Yes, Sir. As far as I can see, she says what she means and does as she likes. You know how it is with the aristocracy. She’s a bit worse for wear, though—I think that explains what we walked in on.’
‘Probably,’ Penrose said, although it was his private opinion that the temptation to slap Celia Bannerman might prove hard to overcome whether you were drunk or sober. ‘What about an alibi?’
‘She was at the Ham Bone Club until after midnight. I’ve checked it out, and both the owner and the barman confirm that she was there all night. She’s also given me the names of some friends she left with, if we want to take it any further.’
‘Good, although if she’s a regular there, I imagine they’ll confirm anything she wants them to. Is she still here?’
‘Yes, Sir—in the bar. There’s a room next door we can use if you want somewhere more private, though.’
‘The bar’s fine—I want her to be happy to talk. What else?’
‘Lucy Peters is off duty. She left the building just after one and no one’s seen her since. Sylvia Timpson doesn’t work Saturdays.’
‘So I gather. We’ll have to try her at home.’
‘Mary Size is at the prison. I’ve made an appointment for you at three-thirty.’
‘Good.’ Penrose looked at his watch. ‘You told her what it was about?’
‘Yes. She’ll have all the records ready for you. She was upset, as well—you get the feeling that Marjorie was popular everywhere but at home, don’t you?’ Penrose remembered the expression on Ronnie’s face, and nodded. ‘She asked about Peters right away, Sir. She’s worried about her—the two of them were close, apparently. I’ve asked reception to let us know immediately if they see her.’
‘Excellent. I’ve asked Miss Bannerman to do the same. I’ll have a quick word with Lady Ashby, then I’ll go to Holloway and you can take Timpson.’
‘What about her husband?’
‘I don’t think he’s got anything to do with it, but it won’t hurt him to wait a bit longer, will it?’ Fallowfield smiled. ‘At least until I’ve spoken to his wife. Can’t say I blame her for not wanting to take his name, though.’
He found Geraldine Ashby keeping company with a bottle of cognac. ‘Is the bitch pressing charges, then?’ she asked as he walked in.
Penrose sat down opposite her. ‘If you mean Miss Bannerman, I seem to have forgotten to give her the opportunity.’
He smiled, and she looked surprised. ‘Good God—two understanding policemen in one day. In that case, I’ll forgive you for preventing me from finishing what I started. Bannerman got off lightly, which is more than Marjorie did, by the sound of it.’
She nodded towards the bottle, but Penrose shook his head. ‘Not just now, thanks. Do you mind if I ask you some questions?’
‘Be my guest. As you can see, I’m not going anywhere.’
She spoke evenly, and he would never have guessed the level of the bottle from her voice, but the intoxication which Fallowfield had spoken of was obvious in her eyes and in the way her hand shook when she lit a cigarette. ‘Did Marjorie ever tell you anything about her family when you saw her at Motley?’
‘No,’ she said instantly, but Penrose’s initial disappointment was short-lived. ‘She didn’t know anything about them herself.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Just that. The first time I met her, she asked me what it felt like to be able to trace your family back for generations, because she only knew her parents and her brothers and sisters. I know she didn’t get on with either her mother or her father these days, but she said even when she was younger they wouldn’t tell her anything about the rest of her family.’
‘So she was curious about her own history?’
‘Yes—or rather about its absence. She asked me how she might find out more about it, but I told her I wasn’t the best person to give that sort of advice—if I want to know anything about my family, I just go and look at a portrait on a wall. I suggested that she was better off not knowing, but she just pointed out that it was easy for me
