glow on her cheeks. She looked athletic, Annie thought, and it was easy to visualize her tall, rangy frame on horseback. Even the clothes she wore, white shorts and a green rugby-styleshirt, looked sporty. “What’s going on?” she asked. “It’s not good news, is it?”
“I’m afraid not.” Annie sat down opposite her. “Drink?”
“Not for me. Tell me what it is. It’s not Daddy, is it? It can’t be. I was just there.”
“You were visiting your parents?”
“In Richmond, yes. I go every Saturday when I’m not working.”
“No,” said Annie. “It’s not your father. Look, this might be a bit of a shock, but I need you to look at it.” She opened her briefcase and slipped out the photograph of Jennifer Clewes that Peter Darby had taken at the mortuary. It wasn’t a bad one – she looked peaceful enough and there were no signs of violence, no blood – but there was no doubt that it was a photograph of a dead person. “Is this Jennifer Clewes, your flatmate?”
Kate put her hand to her mouth. “Oh, my God,” she said, tears in her eyes. “It’s Jenn. What happened to her? Did she have an accident?”
“In a way. Look, do you have any idea why she was driving up to Yorkshire late last night?”
“I didn’t know that she was.”
“Did you know she’d gone out?”
“Yes. We were home last night. I mean, we don’t live in one another’s pockets, we have our own rooms, but…My God, I don’t believe this.” She put her hands to her face. Annie could see that her whole body was shaking.
“What happened, Kate?” Annie said. “Please, try and focus for me.”
Kate took a deep breath. It seemed to help a little. “There was nothing we wanted to watch on telly, so we were just watching a DVD. Bend It Like Beckham . Jenn’s mobile went off and she swore. We were enjoying the film. Anyway, she wentinto her bedroom to answer it and when she came back she said there was an emergency and she had to go out, to just carry on watching the film without her. She said she wasn’t sure when she would be back. Now you’re telling me she’ll never come back.”
“What time was this?”
“I don’t know. I suppose it’d be about half past ten, a quarter to eleven.”
That was consistent with the timing, Annie thought. It would take about four hours to drive from Kennington to Eastvale, depending on traffic, and Jennifer Clewes had been killed between one and four o’clock in the morning about three miles shy of her destination. “Did she give you any idea about where she might be going?”
“None at all. Just that she had to go. Right then. But that’s just like her.”
“Oh?”
“What I mean is that she wasn’t very forthcoming about what she was doing, where she was going. Even if I needed to know when she’d be back, for meals and such. She could be very inconsiderate.” Kate put her hand to her mouth. “Oh, listen to me. How terrible.” She started crying.
“It’s all right,” said Annie, trying to comfort her. “Try to stay calm. Did Jennifer seem worried, frightened?”
“No, not exactly frightened. But she was pale, as if she’d had a shock or something.”
“Have you any idea who made the call?”
“No. I’m sorry.”
“What did you do after she left?”
“Watched the rest of the film and went to bed. Look, what’s happened? Did she have a car crash? Was that it? It can’t havebeen her fault. She was always a careful driver and she never drank over the limit.”
“It’s nothing like that,” said Annie.
“Then what? Please tell me.”
She’d have to find out sooner or later, Annie thought. She got up, took a couple of tumblers from the glass-fronted cupboard and filled them with tap water. She passed one to Kate and sat down again. She could hardly bear Kate’s imploring expression, the wide, fearful eyes and furrowed brow, the tumbler shaking in her hands. When Kate heard what Annie had to tell her, her life would never be the same again;
“I’m afraid not.” Annie sat down opposite her. “Drink?”
“Not for me. Tell me what it is. It’s not Daddy, is it? It can’t be. I was just there.”
“You were visiting your parents?”
“In Richmond, yes. I go every Saturday when I’m not working.”
“No,” said Annie. “It’s not your father. Look, this might be a bit of a shock, but I need you to look at it.” She opened her briefcase and slipped out the photograph of Jennifer Clewes that Peter Darby had taken at the mortuary. It wasn’t a bad one – she looked peaceful enough and there were no signs of violence, no blood – but there was no doubt that it was a photograph of a dead person. “Is this Jennifer Clewes, your flatmate?”
Kate put her hand to her mouth. “Oh, my God,” she said, tears in her eyes. “It’s Jenn. What happened to her? Did she have an accident?”
“In a way. Look, do you have any idea why she was driving up to Yorkshire late last night?”
“I didn’t know that she was.”
“Did you know she’d gone out?”
“Yes. We were home last night. I mean, we don’t live in one another’s pockets, we have our own rooms, but…My God, I don’t believe this.” She put her hands to her face. Annie could see that her whole body was shaking.
“What happened, Kate?” Annie said. “Please, try and focus for me.”
Kate took a deep breath. It seemed to help a little. “There was nothing we wanted to watch on telly, so we were just watching a DVD. Bend It Like Beckham . Jenn’s mobile went off and she swore. We were enjoying the film. Anyway, she wentinto her bedroom to answer it and when she came back she said there was an emergency and she had to go out, to just carry on watching the film without her. She said she wasn’t sure when she would be back. Now you’re telling me she’ll never come back.”
“What time was this?”
“I don’t know. I suppose it’d be about half past ten, a quarter to eleven.”
That was consistent with the timing, Annie thought. It would take about four hours to drive from Kennington to Eastvale, depending on traffic, and Jennifer Clewes had been killed between one and four o’clock in the morning about three miles shy of her destination. “Did she give you any idea about where she might be going?”
“None at all. Just that she had to go. Right then. But that’s just like her.”
“Oh?”
“What I mean is that she wasn’t very forthcoming about what she was doing, where she was going. Even if I needed to know when she’d be back, for meals and such. She could be very inconsiderate.” Kate put her hand to her mouth. “Oh, listen to me. How terrible.” She started crying.
“It’s all right,” said Annie, trying to comfort her. “Try to stay calm. Did Jennifer seem worried, frightened?”
“No, not exactly frightened. But she was pale, as if she’d had a shock or something.”
“Have you any idea who made the call?”
“No. I’m sorry.”
“What did you do after she left?”
“Watched the rest of the film and went to bed. Look, what’s happened? Did she have a car crash? Was that it? It can’t havebeen her fault. She was always a careful driver and she never drank over the limit.”
“It’s nothing like that,” said Annie.
“Then what? Please tell me.”
She’d have to find out sooner or later, Annie thought. She got up, took a couple of tumblers from the glass-fronted cupboard and filled them with tap water. She passed one to Kate and sat down again. She could hardly bear Kate’s imploring expression, the wide, fearful eyes and furrowed brow, the tumbler shaking in her hands. When Kate heard what Annie had to tell her, her life would never be the same again;
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