Faith Martin - A Fatal Truth

Clement knew when to take a hint. He smiled slightly.

‘Are you saying the blow might more likely have been caused by the victim hitting his head on such an object?’

‘It’s certainly possible,’ the pathologist said, ‘and in my opinion, rather more probable. If the deceased had heard a fizzing sound and seen a firework explode, he would very likely rear back or duck instinctively, and thus could have hit his head on something wooden inside the shed. But that is pure speculation on my part.’

‘I see.’ Clement glanced at the jury and saw one or two of them nodding their heads. The pathologist finished giving his medical report, but nothing of any further sensational nature was forthcoming, and Clement dismissed him with a word or two of thanks.

Next, he called the local police officer, a sergeant at the Headington Police Station, to give his evidence. But since he spoke of little more than the routine aspects of any investigation following an unexpected death, there was now a distinct sense of anticlimax settling over the court.

The officer reported on the removal of the body by ambulance and touched on the witness statements. However, as none of the dead man’s family had taken particular notice of the dead man’s movements, they could add little to the proceedings.

By the end of the day, all that was left was for Clement to sum up by giving the usual warnings that people should take sensible precautions with fireworks, and encourage people to store such dangerous objects in fire-proof tins, before asking the jury to retire to give their verdict.

It didn’t take them more than five minutes to return a verdict of death by misadventure. The police looked satisfied, the family looked relieved and the usher looked happy to be able to bring the proceedings to a halt well in time for him to get home for his tea.

Clement gave his brief but sincere commiserations to the Hughes family for their misfortune, and there the matter ended.

Or so he thought at the time.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.