Christopher Fowler - The Water Room

‘The boy is taken into care-’ added May.

‘Exactly. He’s in and out of foster homes, but he never forgets what happened to his father. He holds down a job at the Tate Gallery for a while, just to be near one of Gilbert’s two paintings, then loses his position after causing a fuss when the paintings are sold. He has no money, and therefore no voice in the world. He is seen by all, but becomes invisible.’

‘What a sad life.’ Kallie pulled the coat tighter around herself, settling into her seat as Bryant rose and stalked the room, relishing his chance to marshal the facts.

‘Now we move on. Time passes. The area changes. The yuppies arrive. Among them is Heather Allen, the original material girl. She thinks she’s going to get everything she wants from life, but life lets her down. First her husband’s business collapses, then he leaves her for someone younger. Terrified by the thought of her failure, and concerned with outward appearances, she covers up the fact that she is now broke and alone. She does this by denying her divorce, and pretending against hope that everything is fine. I think you’ll find that the man who came to her house-the one Kallie saw from her window-wasn’t her husband at all. He’s probably an old family friend from whom she’s trying to borrow money, or her finance manager coming for a not-so-friendly chat. Heather Allen has a good brain, but even she can’t put her life right. She’s eaten up with bitterness over the way things have turned out, but she’ll make the best of it.’

‘She told me all she had left was the house, which she really hated,’ said Kallie.

‘Because it reminds her of her failed marriage.’ Bryant stabbed a forefinger in Kallie’s direction. ‘So she decides to sell it for as much as she can get. To do this, she first needs to decorate-but there’s hardly any money. So she uses the local bodger, Elliot Copeland, who comes in and starts stripping the basement. And that’s when he finds the wall.’ He paused before the misted window, looking down into the night street.

‘This is the moment when Heather makes the mistake that will destroy her life. She knows how to look the part-she’s a woman of surfaces. She knows a little about a lot of things, but not much about art, even though she’s worked in a gallery and has helped to curate an exhibition of Stanley Spencer’s work. Wrinkling her petite nose, she tells him to tear off the disgusting plaster and repaint, and poor drunk Elliot is happy to oblige his client. Bad timing, as it turns out, because just as the mural is destroyed, Heather finds the book belonging to Kingdom’s son. How does she find it? Well, of course, it’s been left out for her by the street’s guardian, Kingdom’s powerless, protective, penniless boy-Tate-who wants recognition for his father and is going about it all the wrong way. Flicking through the book that has been posted through her letterbox, she sees four illustrations, mythic, epic subjects supposedly painted by an artist of great merit, now sadly presumed lost. And, of course, she recognizes her own house, number 6 Balaklava Street, the Air House, which she has just finished renovating, thereby nullifying its value. Tate doesn’t allow her to keep the book, of course-he breaks in and takes it back, because it’s all he has left. What can Heather do? The only money she has is tied up in the property. It’s not a home to her, just bricks and mortar. She’s destroyed her only escape route, and has only herself to blame. But with a little smart thinking she can work out which are the other three houses. Could it be that their basements are still intact, and-please God-that their new occupants have no knowledge of the fortune hidden within their walls? Tate expects her to save his father’s work. Instead, he accidentally creates a monster.’

‘There’s a bit of guesswork going on here,’ said Longbright, draining her beer.

‘I think you’ll find I’m right when you confront her with this, Janice.’ Bryant hated interruptions. ‘Where was I? So, Heather borrows a map from a member of the local historical society. She asks around, even makes an effort to talk to the neighbours. And what does she find out? That the Fire House, number 43, belonging to newcomers Tamsin and Oliver Wilton, was gutted in the sixties. That the Earth House, number 41, now in the hands of another newcomer, Jake Avery, was similarly renovated a few years later. Which just leaves number 5, the Water House.

‘But this, she discovers, is the key to all four houses. It is the reason why Kingdom chose elements and elementals as the channel for his beliefs, because it is built right on top of the river Fleet. It is the original site of the House Curs’d By All Water, and he can exorcise it or, more likely, celebrate the fact in his art. According to the book, this house contains the most elaborate mural of them all, the one upon which Kingdom lavished the most time, the one that caused his patron to finally lose faith. And it belongs to an old lady who has lived there since 1949, so she is the house’s only owner since the mural has been completed.

‘Heather is a worrier, an aggressor, but also a natural planner. She suddenly becomes Ruth Singh’s new best friend. She can’t do enough for her-fetches her shopping, cuts her toenails, fixes her hair, but is careful not to let anyone else know. While she’s doing chores, she discreetly checks out the basement. Imagine her excitement when she discovers that the mural is still there, completely intact. Ruth has painted over it several times-but it’s undamaged. It will be the wonder of London, on a par with Leighton House or Debenham Hall. London is filled with extraordinary properties that become national treasures. She’ll have wealth and respect, everything she had expected from her marriage. The old dear can’t have much longer to last-how difficult can it be for Heather to worm her way into the will?’

‘Quite difficult, as it turns out,’ said May, ‘because Ruth has a brother.’

‘True, he doesn’t bother much with her, but he’s still a blood relative. Heather’s not about to give in easily, though. Soon she’s been invited to meet Benjamin Singh, who confides in her that he wishes to move to Australia, which would mean he’d sell the house when he inherits it. But not to her-he takes an instant dislike to this grabby, hysterical woman asking personal questions about his family’s property, acting like she’s Ruth’s best friend. And the old lady seems as strong as an ox. She may live to be a hundred. So Heather tries a little debilitation.’

‘You mean she leaves the racist messages.’ May topped up everyone’s drinks. ‘Dan may be able to prove it’s her voice on the tape.’

‘Still, the old lady is unfazed,’ Bryant continued. ‘Then fate takes a highly appropriate hand, in the form of a stuck tap. Heather has told Ruth, “If you’re ever in difficulty, just bang on the wall and I’ll come running.” Ruth goes to take a bath, but can’t turn the tap off. Frightened, she hammers on the wall, and Heather, ever cautious about her appearance, puts on the coat Garrett has left at her place. What was it doing there? The likeliest answer is that he had come round to give her property advice.

‘So, Ruth Singh, in her dressing-gown, lets Heather in-where she is seen by Jake Avery-and Heather goes down to the bathroom to give the tap a clout. When she sees the running water, everything suddenly becomes clear. She’s been given a sign. “Why don’t I wait here while you have your bath?” she suggests. “Then I can turn the tap on if you need more hot water.”

‘She waits, and talks, and waits, until the old lady is drowsy. Then, with a grimace of disgust, she reaches into the soapy water, picks up Ruth’s ankles and pulls. She’s as light as a feather and barely makes a sound, her heart stopping in an instant, although she gets a small contusion from the tap. But instead of leaving her in the bath and making the whole thing look like an accident, Heather is forced to drain out the water, because the police will realize that Ruth couldn’t have turned the tap off by herself. What if she’s not dead? How can you tell these things? Ruth is naked in the drained bath, her head beneath the taps, so Heather turns on the cold water and forces open her mouth, just to make sure.