Chris Curran - Her Deadly Secret

Marion shook her head. ‘It was all such a mess. In his first interview, he wanted to keep her name out of it. Didn’t think it mattered because he never imagined he could be a suspect. When he realized it was getting more serious he called her and asked her to back him up, but she was married and, of course, she didn’t want to get involved in a murder case. His defence counsel told him then that it would do more harm than good if he changed his story without anyone to corroborate it.’

‘Why didn’t you tell the police about her?’

‘Like I said, he had denied it and I had no idea he was going to see her that day. Anyway, when I first spoke to the police, before they convinced me he must have done it, I thought it was best if I said our marriage and family life were fine. Didn’t want them to know how difficult things were for all of us.’

‘So what you’re saying is that you don’t actually know if this woman is real. And that, even if she is, you only have his word for it that he was with her on the day Alice was killed.’

With a jerk that made Rosie start, her mother headed back up the beach. ‘I’m cold. Let’s go home.’

Rosie scrambled after her, and by the time they reached the car park, they were both breathless.

Marion drove through the gate so fiercely she almost hit a cyclist. She pulled the car to one side and dragged on the handbrake then sat, still breathing hard, hands flat on the wheel. ‘Look, Rosemary, you have to talk to him: talk to your dad. He still is your dad, you know.’ It was clear she was struggling to keep her voice steady, and Rosie bit back what she was tempted to say. It wasn’t worth it.

But her mother took another wavering breath and carried on. ‘I’ve been trying to tell you: he explained everything to me and I believe him. He didn’t do it. On the day it happened he had been with her, his woman, for the forty minutes when he claimed he was at the first supermarket. That’s why he only had time to buy a few things. Just enough to make you girls think he’d been shopping.’

She gave a smile that was more like a wince. ‘Instead of cooking, he tells me, he was planning to take you and Alice out for lunch on Sunday, to tell you we were breaking up. And if I’d spoken up for him about those ridiculous rumours that he had been abusing Alice, they wouldn’t have got any traction. That was what that TV programme said, wasn’t it? And they were right.’

‘So you never believed he abused Alice?’

Her mother shook her head. ‘No. I was just so angry with him. He couldn’t help his illness, but he hadn’t even tried to find work that would use his talents properly and bring in some decent money. If he had you could have gone back to your old school and we wouldn’t have been in danger of losing our home.

‘Then I guessed he was being unfaithful. Getting ready to ruin all our lives and that brought me close to hating him. And, Rosemary, although I knew he wouldn’t have abused Alice, I did think he could have killed her. Not deliberately, but he had a temper and she could be really difficult. You know how she was with him sometimes. Just like she was with you. Pushing and pushing to get a reaction.’

This time, Rosie couldn’t stop herself from sighing, and Marion’s hands clenched.

‘I know he’s innocent and if you talked to him, just once, you’d understand.’

Rosie met her mother’s eyes and held her gaze for a long moment. She could feel, and hear, the deep, deep, beat of her own heart and found herself saying, ‘All right, let’s go there now. I’ll talk to him.’

As Marion negotiated the sharp bends on the country roads from Rye, Rosie looked out of the car window, trying to calm down.

After the trial, Marion and Rosie had moved from the village to a flat in Bexhill, wanting to put a bit of distance between themselves and the whole business. Her mother suggested going much further, maybe to London or even to Leeds, where she’d worked for a while and had some friends, but Rosie insisted on staying at the same school. She’d had to move once and she didn’t see why she should do it again. And wherever she went, people were bound to find out about Alice and her dad in the end.

What impulse had made her agree to see him, she couldn’t understand, but maybe it was better this way. Get it all out in the open.

They were coming away from the countryside, passing a garden centre, a tatty looking pub and rows of semi-detached houses and Rosie closed her eyes and let herself remember again.

* * *

She is sitting with Dad on the sofa in the kitchen. Alice is dead. Yesterday, someone beat her over the head and now she’s dead. It’s impossible, but it must be true because there’s police all over the house and a detective wants to talk to her.

Dad is holding her hand. It’s a bit sticky and warm, but his is cold. He looks awful. Hasn’t shaved this morning and he always shaves. But his voice is the same. ‘Just answer the detective’s questions, Rosemary, don’t be scared.’

The man is big and friendly looking with a nice smile. He grabs one of the chairs from next to the table and puts it down in front of her. When he sits on it he’s too close, but he smells nice and his voice is gentle. ‘My name is Detective Sergeant Miller,’ his smile widens, ‘Paul Miller. And you’re Rosemary. Or do you prefer Rosie?’

‘I don’t mind.’ She coughs and Dad smiles at her and gives her hand a squeeze. ‘Rosie’s OK,’ she says.

‘Fine. So, Rosie, your Dad took you for your tennis lesson, is that right?’ She nods. ‘But you came back by bus. Why was that?’

‘Dad said he had to go shopping and might not be finished in time.’ She leans back on the cushions, her heart beating a little slower.

‘Right. Now I noticed there was a shopping list attached to the fridge door. Do you know who wrote that?’

‘Mum did it on Friday before she left. It was the things she wanted Dad to get for the weekend.’ She is finding it easier to breathe now. This will soon be over.

But her dad sits forward, his voice hard. ‘I can’t see what this has to do with anything.’

Detective Miller puts up his hand to stop Dad, but keeps his eyes on Rosie. Still with that encouraging smile. ‘So, your mum told your dad that she’d made a list and he should take it with him to the shops on Saturday?’

‘Yes.’ A movement from Dad. ‘I mean, I think so. She wrote the list and I saw her put it on the fridge, but I can’t remember if she told Dad.’ Rosie’s heart is beating faster again. She’s said something wrong.

Dad sits back, his breath loud, and the detective says, ‘Not much longer now, Rosie. Just take me through what happened when you arrived home.’ She looks at Dad and he gives her a smile, but he’s worried. She can see that.

Detective Miller says, ‘Rosie?’ and when she turns back to him he nods. ‘Go on, just take me through it step by step and we’re done.’

A deep breath. ‘Well, when I got to the front door I rang the bell because I knew Alice was at home. I could hear her music playing really loud in the front room, but she didn’t open the door so I let myself in. I didn’t want to talk to her because I knew she’d be in a mood, and Dad wasn’t back, so I went straight upstairs.’

She knows that’s the wrong thing again when Dad’s hand clenches on hers, remembers what he said last night and turns towards him her heart thumping. He’s looking straight ahead. He won’t look back. The detective smiles at her. She swallows, but her voice croaks anyway. ‘It was only a few minutes before Dad got in, though. Wasn’t it, Dad?’

The detective says, ‘Your dad can talk to us later. I’d like your estimate of how long it was before he arrived.’