Martin Edwards - The Frozen Shroud

Oz stiffened. ‘What has Shenagh’s death got to do with anything?’

‘Three women have been battered to death in Ravenbank.’

‘Over a period of a hundred years!’

‘Two of them in the past five. You don’t have to be a conspiracy theorist to suspect there’s a connection.’

Oz strode out into the drive, and Daniel followed to where his car was parked.

‘Far-fetched, if you ask me. Copycat killings are commonplace. Craig Meek hated Shenagh because she’d dumped him, and killed her because of it. End of.’

‘If the obvious suspect has been released from custody, the police are bound to cast their net wider. When you talk to them, I’m sure they will be asking questions about Shenagh. What was she like, did anyone else hate her?’

‘Hate her?’ Oz exhaled, and Daniel smelt the alcohol on his breath. ‘Listen, I’ll tell you something about Shenagh. You’ll have heard that she and I were close? It wasn’t exactly a clandestine affair. She was funny, clever, a vibrant personality. Fabulous to look at, and even better in bed, I don’t mind saying it. It was a miracle old Palladino never had a heart attack. But she had a hell of an appetite, there was no way the old feller could keep her satisfied.’

‘But your relationship with her didn’t last long?’

‘Melody and I — we’ve had an understanding from day one. She knows what I’m like. When she finally agreed to marry me, we both signed up to the deal. We’re a good team, she’s a sweet lady, and utterly gorgeous into the bargain. But she’s had a hard life … look, we’re both men of the world. She’s a lady to look at rather than touch, if you get my meaning.’

‘She said your flings never last for long. And she did seem pretty relaxed about them. But — was Shenagh different?’

Oz bent his head, and Daniel noticed a bald patch on the crown. Until today, he’d always combed his hair with such care that you couldn’t see it.

‘Shenagh had a low boredom threshold. Once she’d reeled Palladino in, she didn’t need me. An ongoing affair with a married man was a complication too far. She wanted fresh fields to conquer.’

‘Did she find them?’

‘You bet.’ Oz chewed his lower lip. ‘It was insane, but …’

A gust of wind smacked the trees; soon there would be no leaves left on the branches. A crow yelped and flew out from its hiding place in a copper beech. Daniel watched it circle overhead for a few seconds before it headed for the lake.

‘Did she become involved with Quin?’

Oz Knight stared at him. ‘Jesus Christ. How did you know?’

Robin Park’s fingers drummed on the varnished pine table top. ‘I’ve heard so much about you, Hannah.’

It always induced paranoia in her when someone said that. She tried to suppress her curiosity by taking a sip of her latte. The game plan was to listen, not talk.

‘Sorry, I can’t say the same.’

He’d asked her to meet him here in the Jazz Lounge at Pooley Bridge. They were sharing a discreet corner with a piano and stool. Not that there was any need for discretion, with no other customers. When she’d arrived, Robin had been killing time at the piano, playing a few bars over and over. A sixties jazz waltz, a maddeningly familiar lounge lizard’s song. She couldn’t remember what it was called, but a couple of lines echoed in her mind. Day after day, there are girls in the office / And men will always be men.

He gave a fractional bow, as if encouraging her to break into applause. When she offered her hand, his long fingers clasped it for a moment longer than necessary. She must call him Robin, he said, adding that they’d both lost someone so very special. He fancied himself, for sure, but he was also needy; she recognised the type, having lived with one for years. You indulged men like that at your peril.

The ground floor was spacious but draughty; a pair of sliding glass doors weren’t properly closed, so the cold from outside seeped in. She kept on her lined jacket, and watched him sashay over to the counter for coffee and millionaire shortbread, a slinky mover in skintight Levi’s and thin blue T-shirt. She could just picture Terri ogling the bloke’s backside. Her second husband had been a part-time underpants model, and Robin was in very good shape. Yet waiting to be served, he seemed twitchy and ill at ease. Unless it was just the lack of a warm top that made him shiver.

‘This place is pretty special to me,’ he said. ‘Believe it or not, I sat at the back of this very room as a boy, and listened to my dad playing the trumpet in his band. Of course, it was all so different then. Spit and sawdust, no polished floorboards or fancy lighting, but he and I both loved the place. I may not have inherited the family sports gene, but music’s always been special to me.’ He paused, as if expecting a response, but Hannah wasn’t in the mood for nostalgia. ‘A brilliant trumpeter, Dad, wonderful ear for a tune. Mum swears he would have made it big, if he’d kept his feet on the ground. But no, he was seduced by the idea of owning a bar. Big mistake — he was a much better musician than he was a businessman.’

He swivelled in his chair to gaze into her eyes, and then, as if disappointed with what he saw, looked away through the glass doors. She followed his gaze. Outside, a paved terrace overlooked the river and wooded lower reaches of Dunmallard Hill. Years ago, she and Marc had walked up there, and picnicked by the remains of the Iron Age hill fort at the summit. The Jazz Lounge’s patio must be idyllic when the sun shone, but all the parasols had been dismantled for winter, and the tables and chairs were cocooned in waterproof sheets. Not even the hardiest local would fancy al fresco snacking on a day so misty, cold and damp.

‘You mustn’t be cross with Terri for not telling you about us.’

‘I’m not cross.’ Was that true? Didn’t she feel somehow let down, as well as puzzled? ‘Just surprised.’

‘She was about to break the news to you. The day after the party.’

‘I’m not sure what difference the party made?’ She shrugged. ‘Anyway, doesn’t matter.’

‘She was worried …’ He fiddled with his napkin, folding it again and again before squashing it in his palm. ‘I think she was worried how you would react. To her starting a serious relationship again, so soon after breaking up with Stefan.’

‘All I wanted was for her to be happy and safe.’ Shit, why did she sound so defensive, like an overprotective parent mithering about an unreliable offspring? And was he right about Terri? ‘Her love life was her own business.’

‘Terri was the first to admit she’d made a lot of wrong choices. Especially when it came to men. She assumed you’d think I was just one more good-for-nothing.’

‘She used to say I was bossy. Meddling with her life, wanting her to play everything by the book. Getting in the way of her indulging her instinct for having a good time.’ Hannah hadn’t meant to say what was in her mind, but the words just spilt out. She’d been wrestling with this ever since learning of Robin Park’s existence. ‘That’s why she kept schtum, isn’t it?’

‘Don’t punish yourself, it’s not your fault.’ Reassurance so swift and so slick that she was sure he’d used that line before. True or not, it was the sort of thing people liked to hear. ‘She looked up to you, put you on a pedestal. It was always Hannah this, Hannah that. To be honest, I was in awe of meeting you. The paragon.’

She waved away the bullshit. ‘I simply didn’t want her to be hurt again. So many of her Prince Charmings turned into frogs.’

Robin’s grin made him look like a cheesy TV presenter. Very white teeth, tanned skin. Easy not to notice his anxiety. But those pianist’s fingers kept tapping the table top.