Twenty-Eight

Tim called Giash Chakrabati as soon as he reached his office.

“I want to carry out a further search at Laurieston House, now that Ms Gardner’s finished there. I’ll contact Kevan de Vries again, as a courtesy, but I can’t see any reason for him to disagree to it. Assuming there aren’t any hitches, will you be able to meet me there at 11 a.m?”

“Yes, sir. And PC Tandy, too?”

“I was assuming that you’d bring her. She’s detailed to accompany you everywhere at the moment, isn’t she?”

“Yes, for the next month. If you don’t want her to come, though, I’m sure she can spend the afternoon on desk work.”

Tim hesitated. He’d taken a dislike to the new female PC, which he knew to be unfair. He didn’t want her to pick up on it, as he knew that would cause problems later if he had a legitimate reason to get rid of her and she could claim that she’d been discriminated against.

“Er . . . no, no, that’s OK. There’ll be some heavy lifting to do and quite a lot of stuff to move, so we’ll need her help as well. You’d better both bring overalls. Get some for me, too, if you can, will you?”

“Of course,” said Giash. “We’ll see you there.”

“Don’t attempt to go in until I get there. I’m wary of putting a foot wrong where Kevan de Vries is concerned. I don’t want that solicitor of his coming down on me. I’ve had dealings with her before.”

“OK. We’ll park near the green in Sutterton, if you’d like to give us a call when you arrive.”

Tim’s next task was to phone Kevan de Vries. He tried the landline of Laurieston House. A female voice answered. He knew immediately that it wasn’t Jean Rook.

“Could I speak to Mr de Vries, please?”

“I’m afraid he’s not here at the moment,” said the woman, her voice fluttery. She had a slight Lincolnshire accent. “Can I take a message?”

“Is that Mrs Briggs? It’s DI Yates speaking.”

“Oh, hello. I think Mr Kevan’s gone to the airport, to meet his wife. I’m not sure when he’ll be back.”

“His wife? I thought that she’d decided to stay in St Lucia.”

“I think she’s changed her mind.”

“I see.” It was on the tip of Tim’s tongue to ask her for more details, but he realised that this would be unprofessional of him. Jackie Briggs probably didn’t know the reasons for her employers’ actions, and if she did she would consider it disloyal to discuss them. “Shall I call Mr de Vries on his mobile?”

“That would be best,” she said. She put the phone down precipitately. Tim cursed. He would have to search through his notebook for the number now. He knew that if it had been Juliet, she would already have programmed it into her own mobile.

He found the number without too much trouble. His call was answered immediately.

“Yes?”

“Mr de Vries? It’s DI Yates. I’m still investigating the skeletons that were found in your cellar. I’d like your permission to carry out a further search, if that’s OK with you? It’s a forlorn hope, I know, but there may be something else down there that can throw more light on who those women were and how they died. I’m not suggesting that you or your family are implicated in any way, as you know.”

There was a sigh at the other end of the phone, followed by some seconds of silence before Kevan de Vries replied.

“Have you talked to Miss Rook about this?”

“No, sir. Technically speaking, we don’t need to, as we already have a warrant. This is a courtesy call, more than anything.”

“I see. When do you want to do it?”

“From eleven o’clock today, if convenient.”

“Of course it’s not convenient,” Kevan de Vries shot back, “but, as it happens, if you must go poking about in there again, I’d prefer it if you were to do it now. My wife has returned from St Lucia. I’ve just picked her up at the airport – you’re lucky she isn’t with me at this moment. I certainly don’t want her peace of mind to be disturbed any more than it is already by having you and your men clodhopping around the house.”

“I understand. Thank you, sir.” Tim congratulated himself on the pragmatic politeness of his reply. Not so long ago, he would have retaliated to such rudeness in kind. He felt Juliet’s invisible presence, standing like a guardian angel at his elbow. He hesitated about whether to enquire after Joanna de Vries and decided that he should. “I hope that Mrs de Vries is no worse?” he ventured.

“Who knows the real answer to that? Physically, she’s slipping away inch by inch. Mentally, she’s much more agitated than when I left her. You may not be surprised to hear that your investigation is a contributing factor.”

“I’m sorry about that, sir. When will you arrive home with her?”

“Probably early this evening. I’m taking her straight to see our son. You’ve caught me just as I was returning to the airport terminal for something. She’s waiting for me in the car. I don’t want her upset by your calls.”

“I understand, sir. Thank you for agreeing to the search. How shall I gain entry to your house?”

“Jackie Briggs should be there at the moment. She can let you in. Where are you? Are you in Sutterton now?”

“No, I’m in Spalding. I can be there in twenty minutes. There’ll be some colleagues helping me: the same officers who assisted DC MacFadyen earlier in the week.”

“Jackie should still be there when you arrive, but just to make sure I’ll give her a call. I know that she has several jobs in the village. I’ll ask her to leave the key with Harry Briggs if she’s finished her work at Laurieston and plans on going out again. You know where their house is, I take it?”

“Yes, sir, thank you.” Inwardly, Tim cursed again. He didn’t want Harry Briggs clinging to him like a leech while they were carrying out the search. He suspected that Harry might alert Tony Sentance to their presence, as well. Still, it was unlikely that Jackie would keep the visit to herself, even if she was able to wait until he arrived.

“And DI Yates?” Kevan de Vries’ tone was suddenly devoid of its former hauteur. He sounded almost supplicatory.

“Yes, Mr de Vries?”

“Could you do me an immense favour, and make sure that you and your colleagues have left for the day by the time that I come home with Joanna? It shouldn’t be before six this evening, but if it’s earlier I’ll call you while we’re en route. It’s essential that I try to keep her as calm and tranquil as possible. I hope that you’ll be able to complete whatever it is you’re doing by the end of the afternoon, but if not and you have to return tomorrow, so be it. At least it will give me a little time to explain to her. She doesn’t know about the skeletons yet, you see.”

“Of course,” said Tim. “We’ll try to make it as easy as we can. Thank you again for co-operating with us.”

As Tim pressed the red button to finish the call, he reflected that, unpleasant and difficult though it might be, it would be interesting to meet Joanna de Vries. He was sure that the miasma of tension and unhappiness that seemed to descend upon Kevan de Vries every time he mentioned his wife could not be explained solely by her illness. De Vries was also unique among the parents of Tim’s acquaintance in never seeming to express anything but irritation and anxiety when he talked about his son. Were they just a dysfunctional family, or was there a more tangible reason for the tangle of misery that had swamped their household?