Unnatural Wastage (18 page)

‘The primary cause was loss of blood from severe head and chest injuries caused as the car rolled over,' said Handley. ‘Unfortunately, the position of the driver in the wrecked car was such that it was impossible for the paramedics to reach her in time to stem the flow of blood. By the time the fire service had cut the door open it was too late.'

‘You have heard that in Sergeant Killick's opinion the probable cause of the accident was that the driver was taking a bend in the road at excessive speed. Did your examination reveal any factor that might have caused a loss of concentration?'

‘I found a trace of alcohol in her blood, but in my opinion the level was insufficient to have such an effect unless she had a particular medical condition which made it advisable to avoid alcohol altogether.'

‘Did you find anything else in her system that might have affected her competence to drive?'

‘I found evidence that she had recently ingested six-hundred milligrams of quinine.' At this statement, Sukey saw the GP in the front row stiffen slightly, as if in surprise. ‘The drug is sometimes taken to relieve night cramps, but I would be surprised to hear that such a large dose had been prescribed.'

‘Thank you, Doctor Handley. You may stand down. I now call Doctor Mavis Sullivan.' The slim, grey-haired woman whom Sukey had already recognized stood up and confirmed her identity ‘I understand that you are the late Jennifer Freeman's doctor. How long has she been your patient?'

‘Ever since she and her family moved to the area – about fifteen years.'

‘What was her general state of health?'

‘She was a very fit young woman who came to the surgery very rarely.'

‘When was the last time you saw her?'

‘In June last year, when she had an infection for which I prescribed an antibiotic. I have not seen her since.'

‘Did you ever advise her to avoid drinking alcohol?'

‘No. I never saw any reason to do so.'

‘Did she ever complain of night cramps?'

‘No, never.'

‘Have you at any time prescribed quinine for her?'

‘Certainly not. It used to be prescribed, as Doctor Handley stated, to relieve night cramps, but recent advice is that it has not proved effective except in a few cases, and because of possible side effects we are advised not to prescribe it except in cases of malaria – which of course are comparatively rare in this country.'

‘What, in your opinion, are typical side effects of quinine?'

‘Among other things it has been variously thought to have caused confusion, nervousness and in some cases difficulty in hearing.'

‘If Miss Freeman had suffered from night cramps, had heard that they could be relieved by quinine and decided to treat herself without consulting you, could she have bought it over the counter at a pharmacy?'

‘The drug is normally available in three-hundred-milligram capsules, for which a prescription is required. I understand that small, single doses in an injectable form may be bought from some pharmacies over the counter, but I have never prescribed them or advised any of my patients to use them.'

‘Thank you Doctor Sullivan. You may stand down. Doctor Handley, would you kindly return to the witness stand? I have one further question,' he continued after Handley complied. ‘During your examination of Miss Freeman's body, did you observe any sign of injections?'

‘No, sir. It is something I look for as a matter of routine in such cases and I found none whatsoever.'

After a few minutes' consultation with an official, the coroner announced that the inquest would be adjourned until a later date. Among the people making their way to the exit, Sukey spotted Jennifer's assistant, Hazel. She appeared to be alone; Sukey wondered what would become of Décor for You after the death of its proprietor.

Harry was waiting for her outside. ‘So you managed to get clearance,' he said. ‘Is there something I don't know?'

‘I merely put forward the suggestion that Fenella's killer might have been a woman, and that Jennifer was the only woman known to have had access to Ellerman's dagger.'

‘You don't seriously think Jennifer was the killer?'

‘No, of course not.'

‘Any theories about the quinine?'

‘Maybe. I need time to think.' And despite Harry's most beguiling efforts, Sukey would say nothing further either then or later that evening.

W
hen Sukey reported for duty the following morning she found DS Rathbone in pessimistic mood. ‘Another week gone without a breakthrough,' he grumbled. ‘I take it no one has anything significant to report?' he added, casting his eye over the team with a visible lack of optimism.

Everyone but Sukey shook their heads. ‘I attended the inquest on Jennifer Freeman, Sarge, as instructed by the CIO,' she said.

‘I suppose we have to clutch at any straw,' said Rathbone. ‘Don't tell me some dramatic revelation supported your suspicion that she might have killed Fenella. That'd be too much to hope for.'

‘Not exactly, Sarge, but the inquest was adjourned and I have a feeling the coroner may be asking for further enquiries to be made.'

‘For what reason?'

‘On account of certain medical evidence, Sarge.'

‘Can't you be more specific?'

‘I've done my report, Sarge. I've emailed it to you, DCI Leach and the rest of the team.'

Computers were hastily checked. Rathbone scanned the report, picked up the phone and called DCI Leach. ‘May Sukey and I see you right away, sir? She sent a report . . . it should be in your in-box . . . good . . . thank you, sir.' He put down the phone. ‘He's reading Sukey's report and we're all to go to his office in fifteen minutes.'

‘It so happens I had a call from the coroner shortly after speaking to you, Greg,' said Leach when the team assembled in his office. ‘He wants us to find out how Jennifer Freeman came to ingest such a large dose of quinine. I think he suspects that some person deliberately introduced it into either food or drink without her being aware of it . . . someone who not only had access to the drug but knew the possible side effects.'

‘That would suggest someone with medical knowledge who had a grudge against her, wouldn't it, sir?' said Penny Osborne.

‘I suppose you're thinking of the woman who runs the care home, Carla Seaton?' said Leach. ‘We suspect that she knew her husband was having an affair with Fenella Tremaine, but it appears not only unlikely but virtually impossible that she had access to Ellerman's knife or even knew of its existence, so we can rule her out as a suspect in that case. If, as Sukey and Vicky suggest, Seaton was either having or intending to have an affair with Jennifer, that's a different matter altogether. It's possible that quinine is prescribed for one of the residents at the care home; Carla Seaton is a qualified nurse and is no doubt in charge of all medication.'

‘So she had a motive for causing her death and access to the means of bringing it about, sir,' said Penny eagerly. ‘It occurred to me—'

‘Let's not get too carried away,' Leach admonished. ‘Even if we assume that Carla, as the most likely person to have had access to quinine, was the person who administered it to Jennifer, there's no proof that she intended to cause her death. And besides, although we know Jennifer had arranged to visit Holmwood on the day she had that fatal accident, we don't know how long she stayed or whether she had anything to eat or drink while she was there. Yes, Sukey?' he added as she raised a hand.

‘According to traffic division, the accident happened shortly before three o'clock and the direction she was travelling in suggested she was heading from Holmwood back to base, sir.'

‘And your point is?'

‘It would be the normal time for her to be on that part of the road if she had been invited to lunch there. And there's the anonymous call from a man who said she'd been at a business meeting. I think it's more than likely that Brian Seaton made that call.'

‘What makes you think that?'

‘The day I interviewed Jennifer she was about to leave for a meeting with him because she had a contract to renew the décor in the main lounge and she said the Seatons were having second thoughts about their choice. She had arranged to call in with some fabric samples; her assistant offered to take them as she had another errand in the same direction, but Jennifer insisted on going herself.'

‘Which suggests a personal as well as a business reason for the call,' said Leach thoughtfully. ‘I wonder if it was Seaton or his wife who asked to see more samples. If he was hoping to get Jennifer into bed it was hardly likely he'd plan to do it in his own home with his wife around. You're suggesting that it was Carla Seaton who persuaded her to stay for lunch with the express purpose of doping her with quinine?'

‘She might have been keeping an eye on him for some time and suspected him and Jennifer of being more than business associates. Vicky and I learned from the nurses we interviewed at Holmwood that it wouldn't have been the first time he'd strayed. They weren't prepared to say whether Carla knew about Fenella although we think she probably did.'

‘So she'd have been keeping a close eye for signs that he was up to his old tricks,' said Rathbone. ‘Just the same, sir, if she was planning to kill Jennifer, she could hardly have chosen a more unlikely way of doing it.'

‘Maybe murder wasn't what she had in mind,' said Leach. ‘Maybe the intention was simply to make her feel ill. If it was Seaton who issued the invitation to lunch I don't suppose Carla was best pleased, but if she was going to administer quinine she'd have had to think pretty fast. Sukey, is there any means of checking whether Jennifer did actually have lunch with the Seatons?'

‘I could ask Hazel, her assistant, whether she knew about it. She was at the inquest but wasn't called as a witness.'

‘Do that. Yes, Mike?'

‘It's difficult to see how anyone could get Jennifer to swallow anything containing that amount of quinine,' said Haskins. ‘The capsules would have to be opened and the powder extracted. I believe it tastes very bitter; she'd have been bound to notice it.'

‘True,' Leach agreed. ‘It's obvious we have to look into this more deeply. Sukey and Vicky, you've got a foot in the door at Holmwood Care Home. Go and kick it wide open.'

‘Décor for You. Hazel Norton speaking.'

‘Ms Norton, this is DC Sukey Reynolds, Avon and Somerset CID.'

‘I remember you. You came to interview Jennifer on the morning of the day she died.' The voice was staccato, tinged with suspicion. ‘What do you want?'

‘I noticed you at the inquest so you are aware that it was adjourned and for what reason. We have been asked to make some enquiries. May I ask you a few questions?'

‘What questions?'

‘When Jennifer left the showroom after I interviewed her on the day of her death she was, I understand, on her way to the Holmwood Care Home. What time was her appointment there?'

‘Eleven o'clock. She said the Seatons were having second thoughts about their choice of fabrics and she took some fresh swatches to show them.'

‘Did she mean both of them were having doubts, or just Brian Seaton?'

‘I understand he made the call but said it was his wife who was having a rethink.'

‘Did Jennifer have a further appointment that morning, or were you expecting her to come straight back after the business was concluded?'

‘There was no other appointment in her diary and I expected her back, but she rang me about twelve o'clock to say she'd been invited to stay for lunch. She said Carla Seaton had apologized for being . . . “a bit unpleasant” I think were the words she used, and by way of making amends issued an invitation for lunch.'

‘What was your reaction to that?'

‘I was surprised, to say the least. After her first visit, Jennifer told me that Carla Seaton was a miserable sour-faced cow who didn't deserve such a nice husband and I said, “Perhaps she was just having a bad hair day,” but I don't think Jennie was prepared to make excuses for her.'

‘She found Brian Seaton easier to get on with then?' said Sukey, who found herself mentally endorsing her own first impression.

‘To be honest, I think she fancied him and from one or two things she let drop she believed it was mutual.'

‘Do you think they were having an affair?'

There was a pause before Hazel said, ‘She came back from her first visit to Holmwood full of enthusiasm; she said it was going to be a pretty lucrative contract if we got it. When Seaton rang to say they accepted our estimate she went to Holmwood to take detailed measurements. After that visit she was on a bit of a high; I thought the order was in the bag and then she announced out of the blue that the Seatons had changed their minds and wanted to look at some different fabrics so she had to go back to Holmwood again.'

‘I was there when she told you,' said Sukey. ‘I remember you offered to do it as you were going to be in the area.'

‘And she insisted on going herself,' said Hazel. ‘It was then that I had the feeling there was something going on between her and Seaton and I got worried. The fact is, she had a relationship that was serious and lasted quite a long time, but it ended about a year ago. I don't know what went wrong; she was pretty cut up about it at the time because I think she hoped it was going to turn into something permanent, but it seemed like she was getting over it. I didn't want her to be hurt again.'

‘You've obviously known her for quite a while. Did she confide in you?'

‘Not a great deal.'

‘Did you ever hear her say anything about taking quinine for night cramps?'

‘On the contrary, she didn't like taking any sort of drug if she could help it, not even an aspirin for a headache. When she had an infection and her doctor prescribed an antibiotic she was in two minds whether to take it. And if it was the quinine that caused Jennie to lose her concentration,' Hazel continued in a sudden blaze of anger, ‘then that woman somehow managed to get it into her with the deliberate intention of causing her death!'