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Authors: Ruth Rendell
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have put the blame on her, not if she said he’d been going to rape her.”
“I never knew quite why,” Liza said, “but it might have been something like this. Later on someone told me a story about a child being attacked by dogs and I put two and two together. It was Bruno, as a matter of fact, he told me. You see, the man would have told them at the hospital and they’d have told the police. About the dogs, I mean. And the dogs would have been killed.”
“Destroyed.”
“Yes, I expect that’s the word. The dogs would have been destroyed like the ones in Bruno’s story. Mr. Tobias loved his dogs and he’d have blamed Eve and given her the sack and turned us out of the gatehouse. Or that’s what she thought. Maybe he would and maybe he wouldn’t, but she thought he would and that was the important thing. She couldn’t leave Shrove, you see, she couldn’t, that was the most important thing in the world to her, Shrove, more important even than me. Well, Mr. Tobias was important to her too but only in a special sort of way.”
Sean was looking bewildered. “You’ve lost me.”
“Never mind. That’s really all there was to it. If the dogs had killed the man she wouldn’t have had to kill him. I expect that’s the way she thought. But they hadn’t killed him, so she had to, or else he’d have told the police. She shut the dogs up and went into the house and got the gun and shot him.”
“Just for that? Just so Tobias wouldn’t get mad at her?”
Liza looked at him doubtfully. “I don’t know. Now you put it like that, I really don’t know. Perhaps there was more to it. Perhaps she had some other reason, something to make her hate him, but we’re never going to know that, are we?”
She watched Sean as he got up and washed at the sink. He put his jeans back on again and found himself a clean T-shirt. It occurred to her that she hadn’t any clothes except the ones lying in a heap on the floor. She’d have to wear his, or those of his that would fit her, and when she’d made some money picking apples … The hundred pounds, she had forgotten the hundred pounds.
“I want to drive into town, wherever that is,” she said, “and go and eat in a real restaurant. Can we?”
“’Course we can. Why not? We can go and have a Chinese.”
Liza washed her knickers and her socks at the sink. She had to put her jeans on over nothing but that didn’t much matter. Her jeans were a cause of great pride, not least because it had been such a struggle getting Eve to let her have them. She’d managed to get two pairs, these and a pair she’d left behind. Eve hated trousers and had never worn jeans in all her life. Liza borrowed a long-sleeved check shirt with a collar from Sean and thought a little about Eve, wondering where she was now and what was happening to her.
Sean had been thinking the same thing. “We ought to get a paper tomorrow. You haven’t never seen a paper, I suppose? A newspaper, I mean.”
“Oh, yes, I have.” She was a bit huffy. Once, in a magazine rack at Shrove, she had found a newspaper called The Times and the date on it was the year before she was born. Eve had taken it away before she could read much of it. “What we ought to get is television.”
“Now there’s something you’ve never seen, telly, I bet.”
She answered him in quite a lofty way. “I used to watch it at Shrove every single day. Eve never knew, she’d have stopped it but I didn’t tell her. It was a secret thing I did.”
“Like me,” said Sean.
“Not really like you. You’re much better. But I didn’t know you then. I watched it for years till the set broke and Jonathan wouldn’t have it mended.” The expression on his face made her laugh. “Could we have one in here? Would your generator work it?”
“Hopefully,” he said. “’Course it would.”
“Then I’m going to buy one.” A thought struck her. “Only, I don’t know—is a hundred pounds a lot of money, Sean?”
He said
“I never knew quite why,” Liza said, “but it might have been something like this. Later on someone told me a story about a child being attacked by dogs and I put two and two together. It was Bruno, as a matter of fact, he told me. You see, the man would have told them at the hospital and they’d have told the police. About the dogs, I mean. And the dogs would have been killed.”
“Destroyed.”
“Yes, I expect that’s the word. The dogs would have been destroyed like the ones in Bruno’s story. Mr. Tobias loved his dogs and he’d have blamed Eve and given her the sack and turned us out of the gatehouse. Or that’s what she thought. Maybe he would and maybe he wouldn’t, but she thought he would and that was the important thing. She couldn’t leave Shrove, you see, she couldn’t, that was the most important thing in the world to her, Shrove, more important even than me. Well, Mr. Tobias was important to her too but only in a special sort of way.”
Sean was looking bewildered. “You’ve lost me.”
“Never mind. That’s really all there was to it. If the dogs had killed the man she wouldn’t have had to kill him. I expect that’s the way she thought. But they hadn’t killed him, so she had to, or else he’d have told the police. She shut the dogs up and went into the house and got the gun and shot him.”
“Just for that? Just so Tobias wouldn’t get mad at her?”
Liza looked at him doubtfully. “I don’t know. Now you put it like that, I really don’t know. Perhaps there was more to it. Perhaps she had some other reason, something to make her hate him, but we’re never going to know that, are we?”
She watched Sean as he got up and washed at the sink. He put his jeans back on again and found himself a clean T-shirt. It occurred to her that she hadn’t any clothes except the ones lying in a heap on the floor. She’d have to wear his, or those of his that would fit her, and when she’d made some money picking apples … The hundred pounds, she had forgotten the hundred pounds.
“I want to drive into town, wherever that is,” she said, “and go and eat in a real restaurant. Can we?”
“’Course we can. Why not? We can go and have a Chinese.”
Liza washed her knickers and her socks at the sink. She had to put her jeans on over nothing but that didn’t much matter. Her jeans were a cause of great pride, not least because it had been such a struggle getting Eve to let her have them. She’d managed to get two pairs, these and a pair she’d left behind. Eve hated trousers and had never worn jeans in all her life. Liza borrowed a long-sleeved check shirt with a collar from Sean and thought a little about Eve, wondering where she was now and what was happening to her.
Sean had been thinking the same thing. “We ought to get a paper tomorrow. You haven’t never seen a paper, I suppose? A newspaper, I mean.”
“Oh, yes, I have.” She was a bit huffy. Once, in a magazine rack at Shrove, she had found a newspaper called The Times and the date on it was the year before she was born. Eve had taken it away before she could read much of it. “What we ought to get is television.”
“Now there’s something you’ve never seen, telly, I bet.”
She answered him in quite a lofty way. “I used to watch it at Shrove every single day. Eve never knew, she’d have stopped it but I didn’t tell her. It was a secret thing I did.”
“Like me,” said Sean.
“Not really like you. You’re much better. But I didn’t know you then. I watched it for years till the set broke and Jonathan wouldn’t have it mended.” The expression on his face made her laugh. “Could we have one in here? Would your generator work it?”
“Hopefully,” he said. “’Course it would.”
“Then I’m going to buy one.” A thought struck her. “Only, I don’t know—is a hundred pounds a lot of money, Sean?”
He said
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