Chapter 18

Andrea McMillan threw down her pen and sat back in her chair. It was no good; she couldn’t concentrate. She looked at her watch for perhaps the fifth time in the past ten minutes. Neil had said he’d try to get there by two, and it was ten past already. This was silly. She placed the tips of her fingers against her abdomen and took a deep breath; held it, then let it slowly out again. She did it several times. It was supposed to help.

It didn’t.

There was a light tap on the door and Paget entered the small office hesitantly, as if not quite sure of his welcome.

‘Sorry I’m late,’ he apologized. ‘It seems something always comes up at the last moment. I hope I haven’t kept you waiting.’

‘No. Not at all. I was just catching up on some paperwork. Please sit down.’

He sat down. ‘It never ends, does it?’ he said, indicating the files on her desk. ‘The paperwork.’

‘Endless,’ she agreed and tried to remember all the things she’d planned to say. But all she could think of was that he looked exhausted. Probably working much too hard; not eating properly, and not getting enough sleep. She knew the symptoms all too well, having been guilty of the very same faults herself.

‘I suppose it’s much the same in your job?’ That was not what she’d intended to say. Andrea busied herself gathering up papers and putting them in a folder.

‘Yes.’

The silence between them lengthened.

Now that he was here, Paget wished he’d found an excuse not to come. He should have sent Tregalles in his place. And yet, perversely, he had wanted to come. Seeing Andrea again had made him realize just how much he’d missed the company of this woman these past few months.

Andrea had demanded nothing from him. She had just been there; a friend at a time when he needed a friend; someone to talk to; someone who had eased the pain of loneliness. Until suddenly one evening he’d realized that she had become more than just a friend, and he’d felt ashamed. Ashamed that he could so easily allow himself to be unfaithful to the memory of Jill.

There could never be another Jill. He could never love anyone the way he had loved Jill. It was just … What? Loneliness? Desire? The need to take a woman in his arms again? The whole idea was ludicrous, he told himself angrily.

But ludicrous or not, it refused to go away.

Not that Andrea had encouraged him. In fact, if anything, she’d become withdrawn. It was as if she’d sensed the change and was making it clear that she did not share his feelings.

He sighed inwardly. It had been a mistake to come here, today. On this day of all days he should be thinking of Jill, not another woman.

‘I must get on,’ he said briskly. ‘Can we see Lenny Smallwood now?’

Andrea caught her breath. His tone was sharp and brittle, almost demanding, and the words she had rehearsed so carefully vanished from her mind. She’d thought about Neil a lot while she was away, and she had hoped today that they might talk. Hoped, too, that he might feel the same.

Obviously she’d been mistaken. Andrea closed the folder on her desk and rose swiftly to her feet. ‘Of course,’ she said stiffly. ‘I know you must be busy.’

‘How is Lenny coming along?’ Paget asked as they left the office.

This was safer ground. Professional. ‘He’s had a very rough time of it,’ Andrea told him, ‘and he still has a long way to go. Did you know he’s addicted to cocaine?’

‘No, but I can’t say I’m surprised. How is he coping?’

‘About as well as can be expected, under the circumstances. Between his addiction and his injuries, he’s been in a lot of pain. We’re keeping him partly sedated, which means that he may find it difficult to concentrate, so you might bear that in mind.’

They walked in silence down the corridor.

Lenny’s eyes were closed and he appeared to be asleep when they entered the room. His face was bruised and swollen, and dark stubble made it look even worse. Despite what he knew about the boy, Paget couldn’t help but feel some pity for him. One wrist was taped; his jaw was wired, and there was a bandage on his head. A pouch dripped clear liquid into his arm through a tube, while a second tube snaked out from beneath the covers to a heavy plastic bag.

The WPC, who had been reading a magazine, jumped to her feet.

‘Has he said anything about how this happened?’ Paget asked quietly. ‘Or about his mother?’

‘No, sir. Nothing.’

‘Right. Perhaps you’d like to go and have a cup of tea while we talk to him. I don’t want him to feel we’re ganging up on him.’

Liscombe didn’t need to be told twice to take a break from what was surely one of the most boring jobs she’d ever had.

‘He still insists he had an accident,’ said Andrea. ‘But it’s quite obvious he’s been beaten.’

‘Right. Then let’s have him awake.’

Andrea spoke softly to Lenny and shook his arm, gently coaxing him awake. Drowsily, Lenny opened his eyes and looked around. His eyes focused on Andrea and then on Paget. He blinked rapidly and became more alert. Andrea looked at Paget and nodded for him to go ahead.

‘Leonard Smallwood,’ he said, ‘my name is Paget, Detective Chief Inspector Paget, and I’d like to ask you a few questions. Do you understand?’

Lenny was suddenly alert. He nodded cautiously.

‘First, can you tell me how you came by these injuries?’

Lenny blinked rapidly and cleared his throat. ‘I came off the bike,’ he said. His lips moved, but his teeth remained closed due to his wired jaw.

‘Where was that, exactly?’

Lenny raised a hand to touch the bandage on his head. ‘Don’t remember,’ he said.

‘I see. We didn’t find your bike at the scene,’ said Paget. ‘Do you know what might have happened to it?’

Lenny stared at him blankly. ‘Some thieving bugger must have pinched it,’ he said flatly.

‘According to the doctors who examined you when you were brought in, your injuries were caused by a savage beating,’ Paget said. ‘In fact, I’m told there is no way these injuries could have been caused by a fall from a motorbike. What do you say to that, Mr Smallwood?’

Lenny tried to shrug and winced. ‘They got it wrong,’ he said. His nose began to run. ‘Like I said, I skidded and came off the bike.’

Paget tried another tack. ‘What are you going to do when you leave here?’ he asked. ‘Whoever beat you up will still be out there unless you give me a name.’

Lenny rolled his eyes. ‘I told you, nobody beat me up. I came off the bike!’

‘Tell me where you went after you left your mother in the house on Monday evening.’

‘Monday?’ Lenny frowned in concentration and looked at Andrea. ‘What day did I come in here?’ he asked.

‘Wednesday,’ she said, ‘and today is Friday.’

‘I went to Tan’s place. She’s the girlfriend. Why?’

‘How long were you there?’

‘All night. You can ask her.’

‘We have. She says you left earlier.’

‘She made a mistake, then, didn’t she?’

‘I saw you myself just after midnight,’ Paget said quietly. ‘Outside your house. You took off when I called out to you.’

So that’s where he’d seen this bloke before. Lenny thought he looked familiar. He’d only caught a glimpse of him in the headlight of the bike, but it was the same bloke all right.

‘Yeah. Well, I thought you were someone else, didn’t I? Someone I didn’t want to meet just then.’

‘The same person who beat you up?’

Lenny rolled his head to one side. ‘I told you…’ he began, but Paget brushed his words aside.

‘Never mind,’ he said. ‘Just tell me this: when was the last time you saw your mother?’

Lenny turned back to look at him. Beads of sweat stood out upon his brow, and his nose was running freely. Andrea handed him a paper tissue.

‘That night when she came home from work,’ he said. ‘Monday. Why? What’s this all about? Fat lot she cares anyway. She hasn’t even been in to see me. Neither has Tan. You keeping them away?’

Paget ignored the question. ‘You had an argument with your mother that night,’ he said.

Lenny sniffed and wiped his nose. He could feel the shakes coming on again, and he had cramps in his stomach. ‘So?’ he said belligerently.

‘You had a shouting match and you hit her,’ said Paget. ‘Then you left the house. When did you see your mother again, Mr Smallwood?’

‘I haven’t. And who says I hit her? I never touched her.’

‘We have a witness who says you did.’

Lenny’s face gave him away. Bloody Tania! She was the only one there; it must have been her. ‘So I got a bit carried away,’ he mumbled. ‘I didn’t mean it. Mam knows I didn’t mean it.’

‘Did she say that when you met again in the church?’

Lenny looked puzzled. ‘Church? I don’t know what you mean. I told you, I haven’t seen her since that night.’

‘Why did you hit her? What was the argument about?’

‘That’s none of your business. It’s private.’

‘Was it money? Did it have something to do with the money your mother embezzled from the bank where she worked?’

Oh, Christ! They knew about that. Lenny closed his eyes tightly. The cramps were getting worse and he was sweating hard.

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ he ground out.

‘I’m afraid your mother is dead, Lenny,’ said Paget softly. ‘Killed by someone who attacked her in the church. Did you kill your mother, Lenny?’

The words were spoken quietly, but there couldn’t have been a greater reaction if Paget had shouted them. The boy sucked in his breath; his eyes flew open to stare at Paget. He began to shake and tears ran down his face. ‘Dead?’ he gasped. ‘She’s not dead. Ask Tan. She was with me at the house. Ask Ta…’ He choked on the word. His body arched, and Andrea grabbed him by the shoulders, straining to hold him as he tried to throw himself from side to side.

‘That’s enough!’ she told Paget sharply. ‘Ring the bell for the nurse. Four short.’

‘Can I help?’ Paget asked as he pressed the bell.

‘Just – just leave!’ she told him sharply. ‘A nurse will be along in a minute. Now go! There will be no more questions today.’

Paget hesitated, but a nurse arrived on the dead run, and he was forced to move aside. Andrea began issuing instructions, and it was obvious that he would only be in the way if he remained. He thought of waiting in the corridor, but what would be the point?

What was there left to say?