Pauline Rowson - Footsteps on the Shore

Horton thought he’d sneak in a question or two about Natalie Raymonds. ‘Did Luke ever mention Natalie Raymonds to you?’

He sensed Cantelli’s surprise.

Ashley said, ‘No. I’m sure he didn’t know her.’

‘Did you or your sister know Natalie, or her husband, Julian Raymonds?’

But Ashley was shaking his head.

That seemed to be that. Horton rose and Cantelli followed suit. Putting his notebook away, Cantelli said, ‘If you hear from Luke again, please let us know. Perhaps we could have your telephone number, so we can contact you the moment we have any news.’

Ashley reached for his suit jacket, which was draped over the back of one of the dining chairs, and fishing out a business card he handed it to Cantelli. Eyeing Horton nervously he said, ‘This woman who’s been found dead at Portchester. .’ His eyes flicked to the television screen but Uckfield was no longer on it. ‘Could it. . no, forget it.’

Horton knew exactly what he was thinking: the same as he and Neil Danbury had thought. He asked, ‘Did Luke ever mention a Venetia Trotman?’

‘Is that her name? No.’ He showed them to the door. ‘You’ll let me know the moment you identify the body found in the harbour.’

Horton promised they would. Outside Cantelli said, ‘Why the question about Natalie Raymonds?’

‘Just curious.’

Cantelli rolled his eyes and sighed. ‘I hate it when you say that.’

‘I just want to know what Luke Felton was doing on that coastal path in 1997.’

‘If and when we find him we’ll ask him.’

‘And I guess he still won’t remember.’

‘Then you’ll probably have to learn to live with this huge gap in your knowledge.’ Cantelli unlocked the car.

Horton smiled. ‘It won’t be the only one.’

‘Ashley Felton seems to be in a bit of a state. If you ask me I’d say he’s on the verge of a mental breakdown.’

Yes, and caused by what? Guilt over his rejection of his brother? Business worries? Or perhaps he had health or marital problems? Horton knew all about the latter. With a glance at his watch he thought it was time enough for Dr Clayton to have something on their body from the harbour. He told Cantelli to head for the mortuary.

‘What happened to you?’ Dr Clayton asked, echoing Walters’ words earlier that morning.

‘I fell in a lock.’

‘Fell?’ she cried incredulously, ‘From your boat! I don’t believe it.’

‘It’s a long story.’

‘And one I haven’t got time to hear at the moment because you, or rather I should say the criminal classes, seem to be keeping me rather busy — that is, if your body in the harbour was killed, and I don’t know that yet. But this poor lady certainly was. You can tell me about your adventure over a drink one day.’

Horton thought that was something worth looking forward to; not so the body on the mortuary slab in front of him. As his eyes fell on Venetia Trotman he tried not to think of her alive on Thursday evening, but he didn’t succeed. His anger was just as raw as on first seeing her lying battered on the grass. Brian, the mortuary attendant, hadn’t undressed her and neither had she been cleaned. ‘Do you have an estimated time of the death?’ he asked.

‘For her or your unknown man?’ asked Gaye.

‘Both, but start with Venetia Trotman.’

‘I didn’t think you were on her case. You weren’t at the scene last night.’

‘I’m not, but go on.’

Shrugging, she said, ‘Last night I put her death some time between one and four on Friday morning.’

Cantelli said, ‘A strange time to be in her garden, and fully clothed.’

‘Agreed, unless she was suffering from some kind of mental illness. She could have been confused and wandered out there.’

‘I don’t think so,’ Horton said firmly, causing Gaye to raise her eyebrows.

‘Why so sure?’

‘I met her.’

‘Ah.’

Obviously Uckfield hadn’t told Dr Clayton that, but then there was no need for him to have done so. Dr Clayton’s estimated time of death coincided with the high tide. Given that, and the fact that the victim’s sailing jacket was missing, along with the yacht, it seemed highly probable that she had been on board. Had she been intending to sail it? Had she stowed some of her clothes on the boat ready for travelling — the clothes that were missing from the house?

He said, ‘What about cause of death?’

‘I’ll reserve judgement on that until I’ve conducted the autopsy. Now, your unknown man,’ Gaye said briskly, moving off.

Horton gave Venetia Trotman’s corpse a final glance before following Gaye’s petite green-gowned figure across the mortuary to a room just beyond it where she slid open the drawer. He stared down at the blackened, sea-life chewed corpse, trying not to breathe for fear of what the smell would do to the breakfast he’d eaten earlier. It hadn’t been a pretty sight first time around and it certainly hadn’t improved with age. Even Cantelli stopped chewing his gum.

Gaye said, ‘The questions are, was the victim alive or dead when he entered the water, and is the cause of death drowning? Well, I found no evidence of water and sea debris in the stomach and only a small amount of the microscopic algae called diatoms in his throat, which indicates he was already dead when he entered the water. As we don’t yet know who the victim is we have no evidence of the circumstances arising before his death, therefore no idea what he was doing in, on or near the water. However, because he was wearing clothes and he was dead when entering the water, you can rule out homicide by drowning, and suicide.’

Horton knew that suicides usually piled their clothes up and left them on the shore. He’d already mentally discounted that anyway. And Cantelli’s theory that a drugged Luke Felton could have walked into the sea and drowned was now also out.

Gaye Clayton was saying, ‘There are no bullets embedded in what is left of the body or any bullet entry or exit wounds, but there are signs of a considerable trauma to his skull.’

Cantelli said, ‘He was bludgeoned to death.’

‘Not necessarily. The trauma could have come from his body being dashed against an object under or on the water.’

‘But something must have killed him if he was dead when he hit the water.’

‘Quite. There are a wide range of injuries on his body, consistent with floating in the water, but one more prominent than the others — where, as I thought earlier, he could have become lodged up against something, hence the rapid putrefaction. Have you seen enough?’

‘Plenty.’

She slid the drawer shut. Cantelli let out a slow breath and resumed chewing.

Gaye said, ‘There was also severe coronary artery atherosclerosis, so it’s possible he could have suffered a fatal cardiac arrest with a collapse dead into the water.’

And surely Luke Felton was too young for that, thought Horton, though a cocaine overdose could certainly cause a heart attack. Or if this wasn’t Felton then it could have been a natural death. Perhaps the man was out walking by the sea, suffered a heart attack and fell into the water.

Horton said, ‘Any indication of where this might have happened?’

‘None at all,’ she replied brightly. ‘Everything’s been sent to the lab for analysis, including clothes — what is left of them — skin, organs, fragments of sea life, grit, gravel, sand and anything else I could find in and on him. You might get more from that. There’s not a lot more I can tell you at present.’

‘What about fingerprints?’ asked Cantelli.

‘Not enough skin left to lift any complete ones. We’ll have to rely on DNA. It’s being run through the database, but I doubt you’ll get an answer, if there’s a match of course, until sometime next week.’