The Dead Hand of History by Sally Spencer

‘But thank you for reminding me of it, anyway.’
    The phone rang, and Shastri picked it up.
    â€˜Yes? Yes, she is.’ She handed the phone to Paniatowski. ‘It’s for you.’
    â€˜Who is it?’
    â€˜I did not ask and he did not say, but I suspect that it is probably one of your handsome young policemen, who, I have no doubt, looks upon you as almost as he might look upon a goddess.’
    Monika took the phone from the doctor.
    â€˜DCI Paniatowski,’ she said.
    â€˜Go to Brunskill’s Bakery,’ said a man’s voice.
    The voice didn’t sound at all natural, Paniatowski decided. Either the man was talking through a handkerchief, or else he was finding some other way to distort it.
    â€˜Who am I talking to?’ she asked.
    â€˜Go now !’ the man said.
    â€˜I shall need a name before I can . . .’ Paniatowski said.
    But the man had hung up.
    There were only two of them in Jenny Brunskill’s office now – Jenny herself and DS Walker.
    â€˜This is the way we’re going to play it, Miss Brunskill,’ Walker was explaining. ‘I’ll ask you a few questions, and you’ll give me a few answers. It shouldn’t take long at all. Once we’ve got that out of the way, I’d like you to vacate the office if you don’t mind, so that I can use it to question your staff, starting, I think, with that Polack who was with you when I arrived.’
    â€˜Are you referring, by any chance, to my brother-in-law, Stanislaw?’ Jenny Brunskill asked.
    â€˜Yes, if that’s his name,’ Walker agreed easily. ‘But I think I’d find it easier just to call him Stan, like you do.’
    â€˜No doubt you would find it easier,’ Jenny said icily. ‘But it would be more appropriate for you to call him Mr Szymborska , especially considering the fact that he is not merely one of my staff, as you so readily seem to assume, but is a part-owner of this business.’
    â€˜Szym . . .’ Walker said experimentally. ‘Szym . . .’ He grinned. ‘No, I think I’ll just stick to Stan.’
    â€˜You said you’d use my office to question the staff if I didn’t mind ?’ Jenny said.
    â€˜Yes?’
    â€˜Suppose I do mind? Suppose I don’t want you questioning my staff in my office? Suppose, for that matter, that I don’t want to answer any of your questions myself?’
    â€˜You’d be well within your rights,’ Walker said. ‘But you have to ask yourself one question. And it’s this – if you refuse to cooperate, what conclusions am I likely to draw from that?’
    â€˜Why should I care what conclusions you draw?’
    â€˜Because I’m the police, madam,’ Walker said, his voice suddenly hardening. ‘And though I can be through this place like a dose of salts if I choose to, I think you’ll find that if you force me to take a roundabout route – which will include getting warrants issued – then it might take two or three days to complete the job, during which time no work will get done in the bakery at all. Besides,’ he added, ‘I’d have thought you’d be willing to do anything you could to help us catch the man who cut off Tom Whittington’s hand.’
    â€˜You’re right, of course,’ Jenny admitted. ‘Catching this terrible man is what really matters. So what would you like to know?’
    â€˜Let’s start with the obvious question,’ Walker suggested. ‘Have you got any other jailbirds working here?’
    â€˜Tom never went to jail,’ Jenny said. ‘He was given a suspended sentence and three years’ probation.’
    Walker sighed heavily. ‘All right, if you prefer it that way, have you any other employees with criminal records ?’
    â€˜Two or three.’
    â€˜Which is it?’
    â€˜Three.’
    â€˜So you’ve actually