Peter Lovesey - The Vault

"Why did you bother with him, then?"

"Checking back on Joe Dougan-who was the man most likely to be chased across a field by Wigfull. There's no question Wigfull had him top of the list. But everything the little rogue has told us is true."

"Sounds as if you like him."

"That means nothing, but, yes, I do. In spite of everything, he's chirpy."

"And the others?"

"Not so lovable." He returned to the fridge for that lager. "But I haven't caught them seriously lying. Somerset is the bloke in a bow-tie you don't see out of doors, let alone wielding a bludgeon in a Wiltshire field. Pennycook is a junkie without a car. And Sturr doesn't have any reason to bash Wigfull. He wasn't even seen by Wigfull. What's more, he has an alibi."

"There's no one else?"

"No one I would call a suspect. I tried to see a character known as Uncle Evan who Wigfull may conceivably have gone to interview, but he's proving elusive."

"Where does he fit in?"

"He was one of the people Joe Dougan visited the day Peg Redbird was killed. At one time he owned the book that started Joe on this trail-Mary Shelley's copy of Milton."

"Uncle Evan?" The microwave pinged and she opened it and peeled the clingfilm off the plate. "I'm sure I've heard of him."

"Puppet shows. He tours the fetes and fairs all summer."

"That's it, then. I've seen his advert in the paper. Do you want to eat here?"

"Fine."

"Brown sauce?"

"Please."

"Better take the picture off the table, then. You know what happened last time you shook the bottle."

She moved it to the safety of the front room. While Diamond ate, Steph gave some thought to the problem of Wigfull's attacker. "This all happened out Stowford way, didn't it?"

"A field between Westwood and Stowford."

"Where did they start-Westwood?"

"Must have. We found his car there."

"John Wigfull's?"

"Yes."

"Presumably he was following someone-or someone followed him. Have you worked out where he was going?" She doggedly thought through the logic of events, as she liked to do, but this time she appeared to have come full circle.

"Stowford, like I said."

"Why Stowford?" Steph persisted. "Not for a cream tea, surely?"

He thought about that, frowning. Then he smiled.

"THE MURDEROUS MARK OF the fiend's grasp was on her neck, and the breath had ceased to issue from her lips."

Strangulation was the monster's method. How inconvenient that his victims didn't shed blood.

MONDAY MORNING, AND WHATEVER happened to the weekend? Feeling blue, Diamond drove into his space at Manvers Street nick, switched off the ignition, sighed, felt for the door handle, heaved himself out and slammed the door. Then he heard a shout of, "Hi," from the far side of the car park. He stared across the car tops. She was blonde, a blonde to make Monday morning feel like Friday afternoon. What was even better, she waved and started running towards him.

He no longer felt blue. There was a definite tinge of rose.

"Mr D," she called out, and he recognized the voice as Ingeborg Smith's. The rose turned purple. It was time he had his eyes tested.

She stopped in front of him, breathless. "I won't keep you a moment."

"That's for sure."

"I just wanted to ask how John Sturr took it last night."

"You mean your dramatic exit? He didn't say much at all. Stunned, I expect."

"He didn't mention anything about my chances?"

"Your chances?"

"Of joining the police."

"Forget it, Ingeborg. He's a big wheel. He's not bothered with recruiting. You're pushing at an open door. You've done enough to get noticed."

Her face relaxed into a confident smile. "You've heard then."

"Heard what? Don't ask me, I only work here."

"Didn't they tell you? My recruitment interview." She let that sink in, and then said, "I got my application in just in time. They phoned me specially. They're seeing some applicants today and could I come in at short notice? Could I, man, oh man!"

"I'll cross my fingers."

"For me?"

"For Bath Police-if you get taken on."

She laughed and said, "Fat chance really. All bets are off after last night. John Sturr can pull the plug on me even if they like me."

"Did you tell him about the interview?"

"Yes. I thought it would help me. Didn't know I was going to blow a fuse and foul up everything."

"You spoke for all of us. But I thought you two were friends."

"Just because he took me to Georgina's party?"

"I saw you leave with him. You did stay the night?"

She said, level-eyed, "I did."

"You don't mind me asking? Did you go straight from the party to his house?"

"Yes."

"And then…?"

She laughed. "Oh, come on."

He wanted to know. "You spent the entire night with him?"

"You know I did."

"You'd had a few drinks by that time. Maybe your memory-"

She said with scorn, "I may have looked pie-eyed, but I know exactly what happened… or didn't."

"Didn't?"

Now she clicked her tongue and looked away across the car park. "Forget it. This is too personal."

"Yesterday you made some remark about business calls to America."

She nodded. "You don't miss much, do you? When we got in, there were messages on his answerphone. He said he needed to phone New York. Over there it was still business hours. He opened a bottle of bubbly, poured me one and took me into another room and put on some rock and roll video while he went off to make his call. I was too loaded to the gills to make an issue of it. When he finally got off the phone, a good forty minutes later, he was all apologies." She looked away again. "The story of the night."

"Yet you made another date for Sunday."

"Right. I met him by chance at the Forum Saturday night."

"The Elgar concert?" he said with interest. This could be crucial.

"Yes. I was sitting two rows behind him. He suggested this meal on Sunday. By then I knew about this interview. I'm not stupid."

John Sturr's movements on the afternoon and evening Wigfull was beaten unconscious had become central to the investigation. "Tell me, was he there from the beginning of the concert?"

"That's when we spoke-before it started, I mean."

He nodded, but wistfully. This piece of information clinched Sturr's alibi for that afternoon. He was at Castle Cary until six. It was impossible for him to have attacked Wigfull and made the start of the concert.

"What time are the interviews?"

"Seven o'clock?"

"You're about ten hours too early."

She laughed again. "Right now I'm wearing my other hat. Inspector Halliwell's press conference."

"Busy day for both of us, then." He took a step away, but Ingeborg still wanted to say something.

"I wasn't going to stay another night at John Sturr's. You don't think I'm that desperate?"

"Ingeborg, at the moment I just want to get to work."

"Why were you there?" she asked, becoming the journalist again. "What was it about? Is he up to naughties?"

"I reckon he thought he was," said Diamond, "even if you didn't."

"That isn't what I meant."

Buoyed up just a little, Diamond ambled into work.

INSIDE, HE asked Keith Halliwell how the press briefing had gone.

Some of the crime reporters, it seemed, had been touchy about Ingeborg's exclusive on the bones found in the River Wylye until they heard it confirmed by Halliwell that it really had been her digging in back numbers of the Wiltshire Times that had made the breakthrough. But there was real satisfaction over the appeal for information about the two men known as Banger and Mash. Papers can make something of names like that.

"We're back in the news," Halliwell claimed, not without pride. He'd handled a large press conference smoothly.