Sisters of Mercy (7 page)

‘
You keep outa this!’ His eyes flicked over to her, although he kept hold of my wrist.

‘
Let her go, or I’ll —’

Then
two security guards burst in and grabbed him — he released me and tried to hit one of them … Fortunately, the other spoilt his aim … Then, realizing he couldn’t win, he relaxed and allowed himself to be led away. He turned and gave me a look just before the air-lock door swung shut behind him.

An
arm went round my shoulder — Gail. Deborah ran over to me.

‘
Are you all right, Jo? You’re bleeding, let me have a look …’

‘’
S nothing,’ I mumbled. ‘Cut lip.’

‘
I’m so sorry I left you with him … I didn’t think for a moment he’d …’

‘’
S all right. You did the right thing …’

She
took over from Gail, saying to her, ‘Coffee, with plenty of sugar. I’ll take her to the rest room.’

She
led me through, sat me down. I found my bag, took out a cigarette and guided it to my lips. ‘Sorry, Debbie, but I must.’

She
gave the ghost of a smile. ‘Well, under the circumstances, I suppose … let me have a look at your lip first.’

She
gently pulled it up. ‘Hmm. Fairly superficial. Try washing your mouth with Listerine.’ She put a hand under my chin. ‘Move your jaw around … does that hurt?’

‘
No,’ I mumbled.

‘
Good — nothing broken, then.’

Gail
came in with the coffee. ‘I put plenty of milk in so you could drink it straight away,’ she said.

I
took a mouthful and lit the cigarette. ‘Is everything all right in there?’

‘
Don’t worry about it. A couple of patients woke up, that’s all. Nicky and Jane are calming them down. I’ll go and check them now.’

‘
D’you want me to call the police?’ Deborah asked as Gail left.

‘
No,’ I said. ‘There’s no point. I’d only make a very bad enemy.’

She
looked at me curiously. ‘How d’you mean? I’d have said you already had one.’

I
told her what Viv had told me about Len Sutton.

‘
It’s my own fault,’ I said as I finished. ‘It should have occurred to me he’d do something like that. I didn’t take her seriously enough.’

‘
It sounds to me as though we should get the police,’ Deborah said.

‘
I’ll think about it. Please — can we leave it at that for the moment?’

‘
All right,’ she said doubtfully. ‘If you’re sure that’s what you want …’

I
had another coffee, another smoke, then washed my mouth with Listerine and felt almost back to normal. Except for the fact that Mrs Sutton made the eighth.

*

That thought nagged away at me all through the long hours of the shift, and as soon as I’d handed over to Viv at eight, I rang Stephen at his flat.

‘
It’s Jo. I’ve got to speak to you. I’m coming over now.’

‘
Can it wait till I get in? I’m on duty in half an hour.’

‘
No. Honestly, Stephen, I must see you now.’

‘
Ahh … all right.’

About
five minutes later, he opened the door and his eyes widened as he saw me.

‘
My God, Jo! What’s happened?’ My lip had ballooned after the attack and I had a livid bruise over one cheekbone.

‘
Let me come in and I’ll tell you.’

He
sat me down on his sofa and took the armchair opposite. I gave him all the facts, excepting what I’d let slip to Sutton.

‘
How absolutely appalling,’ he said when I finished. ‘I think you were probably right to be cautious about involving the police, though,’ he continued slowly, ‘if Sutton’s as dangerous as you say.’

‘
Stephen, the reason I was cautious is that I think Mrs Sutton was murdered. Like the others.’

His
eyes opened wide for a moment, then closed as he said tiredly, ‘Oh, my God, I thought we’d sorted all that out. All right. You’d better tell me.’

My
tongue touched my lips — lip, rather.

‘
She was getting better. She was over the worst. It was what … thirty-six? Forty hours since she’d taken the amitriptyline. She was young, healthy. There’s just no earthly reason why she should have had a heart attack then. We must get a post-mortem on this one, Stephen …’

‘
But you know as well as I do, Jo, that amitriptyline O/Ds can still be at risk of cardiac effects up to six days later … D’you know how much she took?’

‘
Er … 1500 milligrams, I think.’

‘
A hell of a lot, then. She could still …’

‘
But Stephen, a post-mortem would show us once and for all …’

He
let out a breath. ‘OK, OK. I’ll speak to Debbie, see what she thinks —’

‘
You’re not going to tell her about —?’

‘
I’ll only ask her about the medical aspects — OK? Now you get home and try to get some rest.’

‘
But Stephen …’

‘
Look, Jo, I’m on duty in ten minutes and I daren’t be late. Go home and I’ll either come round or ring you later today. I promise. OK?’

He
squeezed my hand before gently pulling me to my feet and seeing me out.

I
suppose he couldn’t really have done any more, I thought as I drove slowly back.

He
could have put you to bed at his place … a small voice answered.

I
was trembling with exhaustion when I got home, and pausing just to brush my teeth and rub some cream into my bruised face, went straight to bed.

But
not to sleep — every nerve in my body seemed to be jangling and jostling at once …

I
got up, made some tea and had a cigarette. Then, after some hesitation, I poured myself a strong whisky. As its warmth spread from my stomach to the rest of my body, I began to relax.

I
glanced at my watch. Josephine Farewell, I thought, drinking whisky at ten in the morning. Whatever next?

But
it did make me feel better and as I settled back into bed, the worst of the trembling and jangling seemed to have gone, and after a while, I slipped into an uneasy sleep.

About
four or five hours later, I surfaced with great difficulty, reaching for the phone before I realized it was the doorbell. Stephen!

‘
All right, all right, I’m coming!’ I shouted as I ran down the stairs, tying the sash of my dressing gown.

If
I hadn’t been so muzzy, maybe I’d have checked who it was, but it probably wouldn’t have made any difference …

Anyway,
as soon as I slipped the chain, the door was thrown in my face and two creatures: one black, one white, not long evolved from apes, pushed their way in. Len Sutton strolled in after them.

7

As the white ape shut the door, I said, ‘If you touch me, I’ll scream.’

Sutton
looked at the black ape, who put his hand in his pocket and brought something out. There was a snick and a blade sprang from his hand. It flashed in the light from the window.

‘
You won’t scream, Sister,’ Sutton said flatly.

My
eyes were hypnotized by the blade. Sutton said, ‘All I want from you is answers. What did you mean last night about I should go after the one that really killed Sharon?’

‘
I didn’t mean anything. I was overwrought. It was a mistake.’

He
nodded to the black ape with the knife, who took a quick step forwards … the blade became a glinting arc and the sleeve of my dressing gown fell loose, slashed halfway up the arm. I had neither heard nor felt anything. My skin was untouched.

‘
What did you mean?’

My
back pressed into the wall and I realized I’d been walking backwards. ‘I — I suppose I meant you. Because …’

‘
No you didn’t, Sister. You meant somethin’ else. What was it?’ He didn’t raise his voice and his very calmness was as frightening as the knife.

‘
I don’t
know
.’ I heard my own voice rise to a squeak. ‘I swear I —’

But
he’d nodded again, and once more the blade flickered … and the sash fell softly round my feet as the dressing gown gaped open.

‘
I’ll ask you once more. What did you mean?’

They
were all staring at me. The black knifeape was staring at the material of my nightdress over my breasts, but there was nothing lascivious in his gaze, only professionalism.

My
tongue touched my lip. ‘All right. Please, can I sit down?’

‘
No. Jus’ talk.’

‘
All right.’ I swallowed. ‘It has seemed to me, over the last two months, that … more people have died in that ward than should have died. It seemed to me that your wife may have been another.’

‘
It seemed to you … is that all?’

‘
I did a statistical analysis. Statistically, the deaths shouldn’t have happened.’

His
eyes stared back at me.

‘
Have you told anyone?’

‘
My nursing officer.’

‘
What did she say?’

‘
She didn’t believe me.’

‘
D’you tell anyone else? The police?’

‘
Yes. A detective-inspector, but —’

‘
What did he say?’

‘
He said he’d pass it to his superiors, but …’

‘
How long ago?’

‘
I — about two weeks.’

‘
Two weeks? They done anything?’

‘
No. I was trying to tell you, I told him later it was a false alarm.’

‘
Why? Why d’you do that?’

‘
Because I also told my … my boyfriend — a doctor — and he persuaded me I was wrong.’

He
stared at me. ‘So now you’re sayin’ you were wrong after all?’

‘
No
! No. I was never really convinced, and your wife’s death made me realize I was right …’ It occurred to me, too late, that I should have let him think I
had
been wrong — neurotic, in fact.

‘
How long was this after you first told them? The police?’

‘
A few days — a week.’

‘
D’you tell anyone else?’

I
shook my head. ‘No.’

He
thought for a moment, still staring at my face.

‘
How many of these … killings?’

‘
Your wife was the eighth I thought was sus —’

‘
Eighth
? Eight killings and no one does a fuck about it? What kinda fucken hospital is this?’

‘
I didn’t suspect anything myself’ — I gabbled — ‘until the fifth or sixth … each one seemed like an ordinary death until you took them all together.’

His
mouth was still working. ‘Sounds more like
in
-
fucken
-competence to me …’

His
outline became fuzzy, his voice indistinct …

‘
If I don’t sit down, I’m going to faint.’

‘
Aw right, aw right.’ He waved me to the sofa. I sank on to it and closed my eyes.

He
was talking to his apes …

‘
Sounds like some kinda sicko, like the one in Thatchbury …’

‘
Maybe it’s just in her mind, boss …’

‘
Naw. I don’t think so …’

‘
Me neither …’

‘
Think the filth’re doin’ anythin’ about it?’

‘
Naw. Not if she told them not to.’

‘
But they might. Y’ can never tell with the filth. Why not make her ring an’ ask?’

‘’
Cos it might get them sniffin’ round again, that’s why not.’

I
felt his shadow loom over me.

‘
Listen, Sister. You told the police to forget it and you heard nothin’ since, right?’