Read Online A Fatal Verdict by Tim Vicary - Free Book Online

clear, and chimed with what he had found in the flat: Shelley had left a message on David’s answerphone, she had come over to see him, he had let her in, they had talked, he had been preparing a meal, she had taken her clothes off and got into the bath, and he had gone out to the local shop to buy flowers and olive oil. And someone - either Shelley herself or David, surely - had cut her wrists so she bled to death in the bath.
    But the order these things happened in, and the meaning behind them, was less clear. As were David’s real emotions about his girlfriend’s death. At times he showed tears, then anger, irritation and even boredom - how could he be bored, Terry wondered, in a situation like this? Insistently, Terry probed at the parts of the story that puzzled him.
    ‘We found a bag in your bedroom, David, a black holdall. With women’s clothes in it, and books and magazines. Was that her bag, or yours?’
    ‘Oh yeah, I forgot.’ David glared across the table. ‘You’ve been in there snooping, haven’t you, without my permission.  Like a bunch of burglars, you are. Isn’t that against the law?’
    ‘Not when we’re investigating a suspicious death, son. We have a duty to find out what happened. Now, tell me about this bag. Is it hers, or not?’
    David turned away, staring irritably at the wall. ‘Yeah, yeah, course it’s hers. She always used it.’
    ‘Did she bring that stuff with her, or was she packing it up to take it away?’
    ‘What?’ He shook his head, as if the question were irrelevant.
    ‘You heard. Shelley’s bag was full of clothes and books. So what was she planning to do? Spend the night with you, or go back to her room on campus?’
    ‘Spend the night with me, of course. That was the whole idea. I was going to make her a meal, and we’d spend the night together. That’s what we always did. Anyhow, it was a celebration.’
    ‘A celebration? What were you celebrating?’
    ‘Nothing much.’ David scowled, as if he’d been caught out somehow. ‘I hadn’t seen her for a few days, that’s all. I’d missed her.’
    ‘All right, so she brought the bag with her and took it into the bedroom, then you sat and talked, and had a glass of wine while you were preparing the meal. At what point did she decide to have a bath?’
    David drew a deep breath, trying to calm himself. ‘Well, I said the meal would be half an hour, and she said ... she needed to relax, chill some more, so she’d have a bath while I did the cooking. That was it, really.’ He glared at Terry resentfully. ‘Okay?’
    ‘And so she got undressed in the living room.’
    ‘What?’
    ‘Well, that’s where her clothes were, anyway. On the floor by the sofa. So where were you exactly, while she was doing this?’
    ‘In the kitchen, I suppose. I don’t remember.’ There was a look on his face of anxiety mixed with contempt.
    ‘Is that all that happened?’
    ‘What do you mean, all?’ David’s eyes met his, then slithered away.
    ‘You didn’t feel tempted to watch her undressing? Have sex with her, perhaps?’
    ‘No. I was cooking a meal.’
    ‘I see. So she just got into the bath on her own. Taking off her clothes in the living room where people could see her from the city wall?’
    ‘What?’ David smirked. ‘Only a perv like you could think of that. You should get out more, copper.’
    ‘And before you went out shopping, Shelley was in the bath, is that right?’
    ‘Yeah, I suppose, yeah.’ David flexed his right hand so that the joints cracked.
    ‘Did you say anything to her?’
    ‘Say anything? Like what?’
    ‘I don’t know. Did you shout at her perhaps?’
    ‘No, of course I didn’t. Why would I?’
    ‘Well, did you tell her you were going out? Leaving her alone for a bit?’
    ‘Oh.’ He frowned. ‘Yeah, well I did, yes.’
    ‘What did you say?’
    ‘I dunno, something like ... I’m going out for a mo, Shelley, down to the shop. Something like that.’
    ‘And did she