Dark Rooms

Chapter Twenty-Four

Eddie left early to go back to his flat and change into his work clothes. He also did a clean-up of his van, taking out the bag of weed and the rollup papers and stashing them under a floorboard in his flat.

When Jane arrived at the station at a quarter past eight, she dealt with the paperwork on her desk and completed filing the report from Australia. She then placed a call to the Sussex police and asked to speak to a DS Simpson, explaining to him that she had spoken to Helena Lanark at her care home in Hove before she died.

‘There’s a pearl necklace that missing from Miss Lanark’s suite... I’m just calling for an update to see if you have any further information about that?’

‘I don’t I’m afraid, Detective Tennison. I did pay a visit, and I spoke to a couple of staff members, but nobody could give me any further details and Miss Thompson denied that any impropriety had occurred. She said it was quite possible that the deceased’s nephew had taken it.’

‘Well, Sergeant Simpson, a window was left open in Miss Lanark’s suite, and some of the drawers looked as if they had been opened and searched.’

Jane hesitated before continuing.

‘I think you should perhaps re-interview the staff. The pearl necklace is exceedingly valuable. It might be worth as much as £20,0000.’

Simpson whistled. ‘Jesus Christ! Nobody mentioned that to me. In that case, there has to be a formal crime report.’

‘I’ll let you know as soon as I have a confirmed value,’ Jane told him. ‘If you wish to contact me in the meantime, I am working out of Stockwell police station, and I’ll also give you my home number.’

Jane could sense the sergeant’s anxiety as she gave him her contact details, and he said he would definitely return to the care home to make further inquiries.

Jane replaced the receiver and took out her notebook to check for Arnold Hadley’s phone number. She had already noted that it was a Brighton dialling code and thought again about his close proximity to Helena Lanark’s care home.

The phone rang three times before he answered.

‘Mr Hadley, it’s Jane Tennison. I know we spoke yesterday, but I have a few more questions I wanted to ask you. It’s all a little sensitive so I’d prefer not to talk about it over the phone, but I am happy to come to Brighton.’

Hadley hesitated. ‘Um...’

‘Today, if possible, Mr Hadley.’

She heard him sigh. ‘Would four o’clock suit you, Detective Tennison?’

‘Yes, thank you, that would be fine. Could you give me your address?’

She could hear him coughing nervously, as if hesitant to give her his home address. After thanking him Jane hung up, tapping her notepad with her pen. Although she didn’t know Brighton well, she was aware that Royal Crescent was one of the most affluent areas.

DS Hunt knocked on her door and popped his head in. ‘There’s a briefing going on about that hit and run.’

Jane glanced at her watch. ‘Is it absolutely necessary for me to be there? I have a couple of pressing matters that I need to deal with on the Stockwell case.’

He raised his eyebrows. ‘I thought that was all done and dusted after your trip to Australia?’

‘Not quite. Tell the duty sergeant that I’ll be out of the station. I’m due a couple of days’ leave, and I’m still suffering from jet lag from that terrible long-haul flight back... but I should be back at my desk on Friday morning. Can you make sure it’s put in the diary as well?’

‘Will do, ma’am. And talking of Australia, poor old Taylor is being called Rudolph on account of his sunburned nose!’

Jane did her best to smile. ‘Thank you, sarge.’

She fetched her coat and dialled her home number. It seemed to ring forever before one of Eddie’s team answered.

‘Hi, it’s Jane. Is Eddie there?’

‘Yeah... hang on a minute...’ Jane heard him bellowing for Eddie to come to the phone and tapped her foot impatiently. She wanted to escape from the station before she was caught by Carter.

‘Something wrong?’ Eddie asked.

‘No... on the contrary. I was wondering if you could get your MG out of storage sooner than the weekend?’

‘What d’you mean?’

‘It’s just that I struck lucky and they’ve given me a couple of days leave, starting from today. I thought we might go to Brighton — and, in case you’d forgotten, we’ve got dinner with my parents on Friday.’

Eddie told Jane to hang on, and she heard him having a conversation with one of his team before he came back on the line.

‘What time d’you want to leave?’

‘How about lunchtime?’ she answered. ‘That way we’ll miss the commuter traffic. I’ll book the hotel.’

‘OK. I’ll be back here around one. I just need to go home and pack a bag before I pick up the MG but leave it to me to organise the hotel.’

‘Fine, see you in a bit. I’m taking your advice, by the way,’ Jane said.

‘What advice?’

‘Never mind... I’ll tell you later.’

Jane was impressed when she saw Eddie’s highly polished racing green MG, which certainly made a change from his van. She started packing excitedly, and Eddie told her not to forget a swimsuit.

‘Are you crazy? The sea will be freezing!’

‘Who said anything about going into the sea? There’s a spa and pool at the hotel, with a jacuzzi and a hot tub. You can even have a massage if you want.’

Jane grinned, wondering where on earth he had booked for them to stay.

By the time they got to Brighton, it was almost half past two. They decided to stop on the seafront for fish and chips and Jane tentatively mentioned her visit to Hadley.

‘I should have guessed you had an ulterior motive,’ Eddie said, smiling.

‘You were the one who suggested it!’ Jane replied. ‘I’ll only be gone for an hour or so. I said I’d see him at four, then we’ll have the entire evening together and the whole of tomorrow.’

They got back in the car, and after a few minutes. Jane was taken aback when Eddie pulled up in front of The Grand hotel.

She laughed. ‘Eddie! Are we really staying here?’

He grinned. ‘We have an amazing suite with a dining room, bathroom and a canopy bed. I got a good price because it’s mid-week. We can order room service tonight and really make the most of it, if you like.’

When she saw their room, with its spectacular sea view, Jane was even more impressed. And Eddie’s obvious desire to make their visit special made it even nicer.

They unpacked a few things and Jane said she would take a taxi to meet with Mr Hadley, then come straight back to the hotel. Eddie pulled out his swimming trunks and said he would go for a swim and sauna in the spa.

‘We can have a walk on the beach and then a really nice dinner in the suite when you get back,’ he said.

When the taxi dropped her off at Hadley’s address, Jane was just as impressed at the size of the double-fronted terraced house, situated on the end of the famous crescent. It was facing the sea, with flowering tubs on the porch and neat, well-kept window boxes placed on the ledges. Iron railings led down the basement area which seemed to be part of the same house, unlike many of the houses in that area that had been converted into flats.

When Arnold Hadley opened the door, wearing a fair isle sweater with dark brown cords and a pair of leather slippers, he seemed quite different from the stooping, aged figure she remembered. He still had a greyish pallor to his face, but otherwise he seemed younger and more relaxed.

‘Detective Tennison,’ he said, affably, gesturing for her to come in as he closed the door behind her.

He gestured down the hallway towards an open double door.

‘Please, do make yourself comfortable.’

Jane went into a large, sun-lit room. It was extremely tastefully furnished, albeit rather old-fashioned. On a table was a tray of tea and biscuits, the teapot covered in a knitted tea cosy.

‘It’s Darjeeling,’ he said, gesturing to the teapot. ‘But if you prefer Tetley or something like that, I have that in the kitchen.’

Jane smiled. ‘No, this will be fine... thank you.’

She watched as he deftly poured tea into a gold-rimmed porcelain cup.

‘Do you take sugar?’ he asked.

‘No, thank you... just a splash of milk, please.’

‘He walked over to the large wing-back chair where Jane was sitting and put her tea down on a small side table. He then returned to pour one for himself, choosing to sit on a Chesterfield sofa opposite her.

Jane glanced at the numerous silver-framed photographs on the mantelpiece, as well as on the various shelves of a floor-to-ceiling bookcase. Jane had no idea if Hadley was married or had children and was about to ask when he got to his feet. Apologising for not offering her a biscuit he proffered the plate.

‘Digestive, bourbon or custard cream,’ he said. ‘Nothing very interesting, I’m afraid.’

She chose a digestive and Hadley returned to the sofa, taking a bourbon for himself.

‘Thank you so much for agreeing to see me, Mr Hadley. I just need to ask a few questions that I think might help me fill in some important gaps. When I spoke to you on the phone, I asked how well you had known Miss Lanark. I think you mentioned to me that she was a neighbour of your mother. Did you know her purely on a professional level, or as a personal friend?’

Hadley placed his cup and saucer down on the coffee table in front of him and leaned back into the Chesterfield.

‘As I told you, I met Helena many years ago, not in London but in Totnes, where I was brought up. I had left home to study law at Bristol, and had just qualified. I was hoping to find a practice in London, but I was concerned because my mother was becoming exceedingly frail. Helena, who worked in the local library, looked after her when she had a bad fall and they became friends.’

He closed his eyes.

‘Helena and I became friends. When I went home, sometimes I clipped Helena’s hedges or mowed her lawn. She lived very frugally, although she was always exceedingly well dressed. I found her shyness touching, but I was quite concerned about how cold her house was. It wasn’t my place to inquire, but I assumed she had no money apart from her meagre salary as a librarian. Anyway, to cut a long story short, my poor dear mother died. Helena was a great help, because by this time I had moved to London. I wrote a letter to her, thanking her for her kindness, and we began to write regularly to each other over a number of years. I then received a request from her asking for my help and she made an appointment to come in to see me at my London office. As I said, she was always beautifully dressed, and she had the most wonderful blue eyes... but I digress. Helena said she had a family situation which she needed my advice about. She was receiving demands for financial help from her sister in Australia.’

Jane had taken out her notebook and was writing as fast as she could. She looked up. ‘That would be Beatrice?’

Hadley nodded. ‘Yes, Beatrice. Helena wanted me to forward money to her sister as she had been left a widow with two young sons.’

There was a long pause as Hadley sat with his head resting back on the Chesterfield sofa. Jane coughed gently and he opened his eyes.

‘It was rather a surprise to discover that Helena Lanark was an exceedingly wealthy woman. She had substantial shares in a variety of companies and numerous bank accounts. She owned her small cottage in Totnes, as well as the substantial property in Stockwell. And yet she lived so frugally. I couldn’t understand it.’

Jane raised her hand to interrupt him. ‘Could you give me an estimate of her wealth?’

He pursed his lips. ‘Oh, it ran into many millions, if you include the property in Stockwell, which she eventually told me had been her family home. She made it clear to me that she did not want to sell it, and it was to remain uninhabited. When I pointed out that this was rather illogical, given the size of the house and the extensive gardens which were all being left unattended, she simply said that was what she wanted.’

Jane took some more notes, then looked back up at Hadley. ‘So, these payments to her family in Australia, were they frequent?’

He nodded. ‘I have to admit, Detective Tennison, I became concerned because she had apparently been parting with very large amounts of money over a lengthy period, even before she came to see me. Then her nephew, Jason Thorpe, began calling me personally. I had sent them a letter, without Helena’s knowledge, saying that I was concerned about the amount of money being forwarded to them. I also informed him that Helena’s health was deteriorating. Jason then suggested that he should be given power of attorney. He also had the audacity to suggest that Helena’s legal representation should be reviewed.’

There was another long pause before Hadley shrugged his shoulders. ‘He had a meeting with Helena and myself and she agreed he should have power of attorney, although there were some legal provisions attached. So there you have it.’

‘Mr Hadley, do you believe that there may have been blackmail involved?’

Hadley’s response was startling because he gave a rather loud, barking laugh.

‘Of course, there was! But Helena never told me what it was about. I suspected something was not right because she always seemed tense and angry when dealing with her family, but I could do nothing. She was adamant they should continue to get the money and, although you saw her in a very frail state, she was an astute businesswoman. She gave large sums of money to her sister and her nephew, but she attached a caveat which gave her the right to oversee her nephew’s wine import business. She asked me to take care of her other financial investments and I hoped the payments to Australia were ultimately loans that would be paid back when his business became successful.’

He smiled wryly.

‘She found Jason to be very much a showman when it came to his business. The company addresses on his business cards were Wall Street, Mayfair and Hong Kong, even though the only office he actually had was a small rented room above a garage in Queen’s Gate Mews.’

‘Did you have any inkling at all why she was being blackmailed?’

Hadley shook his head. ‘Helena refused to talk about it, saying that it was a family matter and none of my concern. But she clearly felt it necessary to keep her sister happy, and preferably on the other side of the world.’

‘How did Helena react when she discovered Jason Thorpe wanted to sell the Stockwell property?’

‘Initially he didn’t want to sell it; dividing it into four different apartments and renting them out would be more lucrative in the long term. At first Helena said that couldn’t happen, but with his persistence, and maybe even my encouragement, she eventually agreed — as long as the basement was not to be occupied and the rear garden never to be used by the tenants.’

‘Do you know if Helena ever went to the property?’

He shook his head sadly. ‘That would’ve been rather difficult.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘By this time Helena was suffering from severe osteoarthritis in both legs and was virtually confined to a wheelchair. Her nephew hired the company that did the renovations, but years later, due to mismanagement and poor maintenance, he had no option but to sell the house to developers who were proposing to demolish it and build a large block of flats in its place.’

‘And Helena knew about this?’ Jane asked.

‘I did inform her of Jason’s intentions but I’m afraid that by this time Helena had early onset dementia and often could not recall owning the property, or ever having lived there. At times she didn’t even know who I was. I contacted Jason some time later and suggested that Helena needed to go into a care home. Anyway, as you know, there were extensive and costly delays to the demolition work and the development company began to hesitate about the deal going through. Jason was very concerned.’

‘That could explain why he eventually sold the property below market value,’ Jane surmised.

‘Yes, I suppose so... he’s a sly one, is Jason. He’s always got an answer when you challenge his actions. I still find it odd that he never told me about the company shares he acquired.’

‘He’d probably say he bought them for Helena’s benefit, in an effort to recoup financial losses from the sale, which as her representative with power of attorney is his prerogative.’

Hadley sighed as he nodded in agreement. Jane didn’t feel the need to pursue the matter any further and closed her notebook.

‘I can’t thank you enough, Mr Hadley. You really have been very helpful. As you know, it was the events in the shelter that led me to go and see Helena. Whilst I was in Australia, Beatrice told me that the baby whose body we uncovered had been born to her other sister Marjorie.’

‘Yes, I knew Marjorie had taken her own life, but Helena never spoke of it.’

‘I believe Marjorie was terrified their father would find out she was pregnant. Helena buried the baby in the shelter, which is probably the reason she would never go back to the house.’

Hadley shrugged his shoulders. ‘Surely this is all supposition? Marjorie committed suicide, Helena can’t confirm any of these accusations, and Beatrice is clearly untrustworthy. Helena used to say that Beatrice took after their mother. I don’t believe that Helena could ever have done such a terrible thing.’

Jane stood up. ‘Well, we may never know the whole truth, but there’s no doubt Helena was her father’s sole heir after Marjorie killed herself. Helena and her father must have been close.’

Hadley nodded. ‘I know that she cared for him during his last years, when he was very ill. She adored him, I think. Why she chose to move from London to Devon and live such a frugal life, she never discussed with me, but it was fortunate for me, because that was how we met.’

‘And then, it seems, Jason and his mother started blackmailing her. I have to say, I found Jason an extremely unpleasant man.’

‘He is an obnoxious creature,’ Hadley agreed. ‘And Beatrice at times is no better. But I also felt very sympathetic towards her because of her son Matthew’s illness.’

Hadley picked up Jane’s cup and saucer and put them back on the tray.

‘Well, I think I must have answered all your questions now,’ he said, suddenly seeming eager for her to leave.

Jane headed towards the double doors, then paused. On a bureau which she had not seen when she had entered the room was a row of silver-framed photographs. In one of them was the same photograph she had seen in Helena’s album of the three sisters standing by the swing. She stopped so suddenly that Hadley almost bumped into the back of her.

‘I’ve seen this photograph, and several similar, in Helena’s family album.’

Hadley tensed as Jane picked up one photograph after another. She then saw one photograph lying face down and turned it over.

It was a picture of a younger Helena standing beside Arnold Hadley, holding a small bouquet.

Jane looked up. ‘Who owns this house, Mr Hadley?’

‘Well, as a matter of fact, I do.’

‘Is this where Helena lived after she left Devon?’

He shrugged, reaching to take the photograph, but Jane held onto it.

‘So, Helena lived here with you, in Brighton?’

Hadley hesitated, then sighed.

‘Helena was my wife.’ He took the photograph from Jane, carefully putting it back upright.

Jane had not been expecting his revelation.

‘May I ask why you never told me you were married until now?’

‘She wanted our marriage to be a private affair so, as always, I respected her wishes and we kept it to ourselves. In the end, we only had few years together here in Brighton before she became ill.’

‘So did Helena buy this property?’

Hadley seemed slightly embarrassed. ‘I also had a substantial legacy from my mother, so we simply bought it together.’

‘But the house is in your name?’ Jane asked, flatly.

‘Yes, it was her wedding gift to me.’

Jane looked at the shelves above the bureau and saw the photograph album belonging to Helena.

‘You have the album?’ Jane said, moving closer.

‘Yes, I brought it back with me from the care home, along with her belongings.’

Jane opened the album and turned to the number of empty spaces.

‘I noticed there were missing photographs... perhaps they were of you?’

‘No, no... this album was only for her family. She was obsessive about it. The missing photographs are here.’

Hadley eased open one of the small drawers in the bureau, taking out a creased manila envelope.

Jane watched as he withdrew a number of photographs, browned and tinged with age. He laid them out along the bureau. They were of Helena’s mother in a ball gown, standing beside a handsome, young, dark-eyed man. There were two more photographs of the same young man standing next to a grand piano, with Muriel Lanark leaning coquettishly against it.

‘Is that the Russian music teacher, Mikhail?’ Jane asked.

‘I believe so. Helena told me very little about him, just that there was some gossip and unpleasant rumours and he was sent away. Their mother Muriel was so beautiful, and so young when she married. Marjorie inherited her looks. But Beatrice was scathing about her mother... she even admitted stealing some of her mother’s jewellery when she ran away to Australia.’

Jane nodded. ‘Yes, I know about that. I believe Beatrice did try to reclaim some of the items from the pawnbrokers, but it was all so many years ago it was a rather fruitless endeavour.’

Jane turned one page after another in the album before she found a picture of Muriel Lanark wearing not only the three strings of pearls but a high-necked choker of smaller ones with what looked like a sumptuous emerald-and-diamond brooch.

‘The pearl necklace... Mr Hadley, I was told by Beatrice that each of the Lanark girls was given a strand. Helena received the longest strand, then Beatrice the next longest, and the smallest one went to Marjorie.’

‘I am unsure of the details,’ Hadley said. ‘But I know Helena wore her pearls frequently. I think she did ask Beatrice about the second strand, but I was never told if she had sold them.’

‘Do you have any idea of their value?’ Jane asked.

Hadley shook his head. Jane went to her bag and took out the photograph of the Russian empress wearing the three strands of pearls. She did not show Hadley any of the other images.

‘This photograph is a possible provenance to establish the value. Beatrice mentioned to me that the pearls had been given to her grandmother, the countess, by a Russian aristocrat.’

Hadley peered at the photograph. ‘I have never seen this before.’

‘Mr Hadley, as you know, Helena’s pearls went missing from the care home. I have spoken to the Sussex police who are looking into it and making a formal theft report.’

Hadley frowned. ‘Do you really think that’s necessary? I mean, they were so caring to Helena for so many years...’

‘I don’t believe any of Helena’s carers took them. And Jason Thorpe was the last visitor to see her.’

Hadley pursed his lips and nodded. ‘I will search through the insurance, but I had no notion they could be of great value.’

Jane was about to close the album, but then turned to the last page.

‘Mr Hadley, you see these small cardboard grips? I found some loose photographs, and pages of what looked like a family tree.’

‘Oh yes, that was another obsession of Helena’s. Her father had begun to map out the family tree, but I think after Marjorie’s tragic death...’

He paused, before continuing.

‘Helena used to spend hours communicating with births, deaths and marriages, but she told me that after the war so many dates were missing or didn’t match up. I think she found it difficult to get the exact date of her sister’s death, then her mother died and shortly afterwards Beatrice went running off to Australia. She also inferred that her father was adept at altering documents due to his experience running a printing company, so it was very difficult for her to establish exact dates of births, deaths, marriages, etcetera. Subsequently her father fell ill with cancer, and she looked after him, as I mentioned earlier, until he too died. She also discovered certain discrepancies concerning Beatrice’s marriage, as well as the births of her sons.’

He sighed, shaking his head.

‘But when the dementia made it impossible for her to concentrate, nothing interested her. I cared for her as best I could, and I believe I was able to make her final years more bearable. Dementia is a wicked illness. She was such a literate woman, but she became so silent. I recall one afternoon I had been for my usual walk along the beach, and she was sitting in here. The radio was turned on and she gave me this extraordinary smile. Her wonderful blue eyes were often vacant but that afternoon they were so expressive. She said, “I think I am dying as Daddy came to see me. He asked if his boy was thinking of him. He always said that I was like the son he had always wanted.”’

Hadley blinked.

‘She adored her father and would never hear a word against him. She spent years alone with him in that house, tending to his every whim, and in all honesty, although we were content, it sometimes felt as if she had given all the love she had to her father. But that afternoon, she was happy. I knelt down beside her wheelchair, she traced my face with her fingers and then whispered to me that she had completed the puzzle. It was over. Later that evening, after she had retired, I noticed that the phone receiver was placed the wrong way round. I knew it must have been Helena. I was surprised, as she very rarely called anyone.’

He closed the album and replaced it on top of the bureau, slipping the photographs back into their creased envelope. Jane made no mention of the fact that she still had the family tree.

‘Mr Hadley, had Helena made a will?’

He hesitated and then nodded.

‘Do you have a copy of it, that I could see?’

‘The will, Detective Tennison, is kept at my old firm. It required two witnesses and obviously, as her husband, I was unable to be one of the signatories.’

‘But even if you could not be a signatory, you must have been privy to the contents, surely?’ Jane said.

He shook his head. ‘Helena had insisted she should be alone with my partners in the firm.’

Jane had no further questions and thanked Mr Hadley for his time.

On her way out, she noticed an expensive-looking woman’s tweed coat hanging on the rack in the hall, with a pair of female walking shoes beneath it. Hadley saw her looking at them as he ushered her towards the front door.

‘They belonged to Helena. She wore them when we went for walks along the beach. I was going to take them to a charity shop ages ago, but they are a constant reminder of the happy times we had together when she was well.’

‘You must miss her terribly, Mr Hadley, but happy memories hopefully ease the pain.’

After closing the front door he took the tweed coat off its hook, placing it over one arm as he picked up the walking shoes. He remembered he used to love the way she rested against him as she slipped her feet into her brogues, and when he bent down to tie the laces and flip the fringed leather tongue over, she would gently pat his head.

But he had been so very lonely for so long, now it was perhaps time to move forward.

Back at the hotel, Jane found Eddie freshly showered, saying that he had done a terrific workout. There was an endearing boyishness to him as he excitedly read out the dishes on the room service menu, and Jane found herself more attracted to him than ever. She chose the steak with Béarnaise sauce, chips and a side salad, and Eddie opted for the same. As he called room service to place their order, he covered the mouthpiece and asked if they could make do with what was in the mini-bar, or whether they should order some wine. Jane quickly glanced at the wine list and pointed to a bottle of Merlot.

Whilst Eddie finished ordering their dinner, Jane undressed and wrapped herself in the large white fluffy towelling bathrobe provided by the hotel. On seeing her about to take a shower, Eddie quickly started stripping off.

‘Room for two in there?’ He grinned.

Jane sensed that this was going to be a positive break away, in more than one way.

At eight o’clock Jane and Eddie sat perched on the edge of their bed, both wrapped in the hotel towelling robes, patiently watching the waiter wheel in their dinner. He pulled open the leaves of the trolley to transform it into a table. Two large silver domes covered their plates and, after pouring their wine — which Eddie tasted and declared perfect — the waiter pulled off the covers with a flourish before departing.

Eddie frowned, asking Jane if he should have tipped him, but Jane dismissed it, saying that if they had the same waiter for breakfast, they could tip him then. She was now desperate to update Eddie on her visit to Arnold Hadley, and he listened attentively while he ate his steak and dipped his chips into the little bowl of tomato ketchup. Jane waved her knife in the air expressively, telling Eddie that as soon as she got back to the station, she was going to find out when Helena had made her will. She also wanted to look into her marriage to Arnold Hadley, as well as looking into Hadley’s finances. She told Eddie that if they took a walk later, she could show him the big house on the crescent.

Eddie poured himself another glass of wine, trying hard to show genuine interest. He was struggling to grasp all the facts as Jane went into more and more detail, explaining her suspicion that Hadley married Helena Lanark for her money. She was certain he’d been lying about being unaware of the extent of her wealth or the contents of her will.

‘I want to nail down all these dates because I have a gut feeling that Helena Lanark was being blackmailed over the death of the child. I also want to find out the exact dates when Jason Thorpe gained power of attorney, because surely it would have made more sense if Helena had given it to Hadley before they even married—’

Eddie interrupted. ‘Helena’s dead! She was probably being blackmailed because she committed a terrible crime. But you told me before she wouldn’t have stood trial for the child’s murder due to her dementia... so, what’s the point spending so much time finding out all these details? I thought your boss at the station told you it was “case closed” anyway?’

Irritated, Jane poured herself another glass of wine. ‘It’s my job, Eddie, and all I’m doing is trying to find the truth.’

‘But it’s not your business, is it?’ Eddie said.

‘Yes, of course it is!’ she snapped.

There was a moment of tense silence, then Eddie picked up the room service menu and asked if she would like to order a dessert, or they could take a walk on the pier and have an ice cream.

Jane begrudgingly agreed to the latter. It was beginning to feel as though she was repeating a relationship pattern and was incapable of finding a partner who was as interested in her work as she was. But at least Eddie hadn’t said that discussing her work was boring.

Any awkwardness had dispersed by the time they were walking hand in hand down the sea front, heading towards the pier. There was something very carefree about eating an ice cream under the stars at ten o’clock at night, Jane thought. They had just sat down on a bench to look at the lights when Eddie patted his pocket and turned to her.

‘I’ve got a spliff, just cannabis nothing else.’

‘What?’

‘I mean, I know how you feel about it and I have given my guy a good ticking off about smoking it in your house.’

‘So why have you got a spliff, as you call it?’

‘Well, I am being honest with you because I do, very occasionally, have one with him.’

‘But why bring it with you?’

‘Well, you know, sometimes I get a bit wound up when you start going on about this case of yours, and I don’t want to get on the wrong side of you.’

She looked incredulous. ‘You are joking?’

Jane shook her head, sighing as he removed from his pocket the small, thin, wrapped spliff, holding it between his thumb and forefinger.

‘Are you going to light it up now?’

‘I was thinking that you might like to try it with me,’ Eddie said.

‘Eddie, you must be crazy. I can’t believe you are even asking me to. For God’s sake, it’s illegal and I am a police officer. Someone could walk past, smell it and then the next minute we’d be arrested.’

‘Fine, if that’s how you feel, but we’re out in the open, fresh sea air and there’s hardly a soul around. I just thought if you’ve never done it...’

‘All right.’

‘What?’

‘I said, all right.’

Eddie lit up the joint, instructing Jane to take a big lungful, then slowly exhale.

‘Like this.’ He took a deep drag and handed it to Jane

She gave a cautious look around.

‘I can’t believe I’m doing this.’

Jane took a drag, then passed it back. Between them they finished the spliff and he carefully stubbed out the end with the toe of his boot.

‘Well, I can’t feel anything at all,’ she said. ‘It just tastes worse than a cigarette.’

‘Lots of people use this for pain relief, you know. I’ve been told in the US they get it on prescription.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, it’s illegal,’ Jane said, then suddenly started to giggle.

Then Eddie bent down to pick up the remnant he’d stubbed out, and toppled over.

‘Jusht collecting the evidence, shir, to put into the bin.’

They walked back to the hotel arm in arm, both laughing uncontrollably.

The following morning, after a lazy breakfast in bed, they strolled on the beach for a couple of hours, then had lunch in the hotel restaurant before returning to London. Jane was feeling so relaxed that she actually laughed when he pointed out that they had almost spent an entire day together without her mentioning her case!

When they arrived back at her house, Eddie said he would go and put his beloved MG back under wraps in his garage and that he would see her in the morning before she went to work.

‘Don’t forget we’re having dinner with my parents tomorrow,’ Jane said. ‘You know, it would be nice to go in the MG.’

‘I haven’t forgotten. I’ll be in my best suit, but I’ll need the van tomorrow.’

She waved him off and let herself in, going straight up to her bedroom. The sea air had exhausted her, so she had a long, relaxing bath and was just about to get into bed when her phone rang.

‘Inspector Tennison?’

‘Speaking...’ She didn’t recognise the voice.

‘It’s DS Alan Simpson, Sussex police. I just wanted to give you an update. I spent the afternoon at the care home questioning the staff about the missing pearls. I also I had a chat with Miss Thompson and she told me that one of the young carers had broken down in tears and admitted she had taken the necklace. She said it was on the table by the bed, and she made out that she’d just taken it to give to Miss Thompson.’

Simpson explained that the girl was going to be sacked and there were no plans to take the matter any further.

Before finishing the call, Jane gave DC Simpson Arnold Hadley’s contact number so that he could arrange to return the necklace to him.

Jane’s good mood had gone. She was now annoyed at herself for wasting so much time on her theory that Jason Thorpe took the necklace. She flopped back onto her pillow and closed her eyes, but her mind wouldn’t stop spinning. Beatrice had said that the strand which had been given to Marjorie had been buried with her, but Marjorie had been cremated, so had that all been a lie? Jane tossed and turned, thinking about Beatrice’s repeated stories of how cruel Helena had been to her, ignoring her letters begging for financial help. Yet according to Hadley, Jane had been paying Beatrice considerable sums for years, enough to enable her to purchase a substantial waterfront property in a sought-after area of Sydney. None of it added up!

Unable to sleep, Jane went down to the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea. Her mind kept going over and over the facts again. Why had Jason come to her house and demanded the photograph album, lying about his mother being frail and needing it, and lying that he was just about to depart for Australia when he had actually visited Helena in the care home? Why did Jason then leave the album there with Helena? Did he leave the window open so he could return later that night, but changed his mind? But if he had intended to steal the pearls, why hadn’t he just taken them? Was it Jason who had been searching through Helena’s desk and bedroom?

One thing she was certain of was that Jason did not know the truth about the sisters’ complicity in burying the baby. And he had clearly been shocked when Beatrice had mentioned her father’s abuse.

Back in her bedroom, Jane searched through her dressing table drawers for a packet of cigarettes, smoking one as she finished her tea. She thought about smoking the joint the previous night, and what a stupid risk it had been on her part. She would certainly never do it again.

She could not stop wondering why Jason Thorpe had spun so many lies about the photo album and why he had really been so keen to get hold of it. Jane had found the family tree — could that be what he was searching for? Or was it a copy of Helena’s will?

Jane sighed and turned off her bedside light. She would contact Hadley’s legal firm in the morning.