‘You didn’t tell her you were going to the funeral?’

‘No. Well, she never liked Eddie. She wouldn’t understand.’ Sadie gave him a thin smile. ‘And she certainly wouldn’t have approved.’ She took off her gloves and hung up her coat on a peg in the hall.

‘What happened to your hand?’ Joel asked.

Sadie glanced at the plaster that was covering the knife wound. ‘It’s nothing, a scratch. I just caught it on something.’ And then before he could ask any more awkward questions she took the holdall through to the bedroom. She dumped it in the bottom of the wardrobe, took a moment to steady her breathing and then went into the living room. Trying to act normal. As if everything was as it should be. ‘Anyway, what have you been doing with yourself? Did you go out last night?’

‘I was finishing off that cabinet for the Finlays.’

‘You work too hard,’ she said.

Joel inclined his head to one side and gazed at her. ‘You’re the one who looks exhausted. Sit down and I’ll put the kettle on. Are you hungry? I’ve made a stew so all we need to do is heat it up.’

‘You’re an angel,’ she said, even though she wasn’t hungry. She had a sour, sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. He went through to the kitchen and she watched him moving around, fixing his image in her mind as if she might never see him again.

It was another two hours before the front doorbell rang.

40

Sadie visibly jumped as the sound cut through the living room. Her hand gave a jolt and some red wine spilt out from the glass she was holding. A few drops fell on to the carpet, tiny spots of scarlet as bright and distinctive as blood. ‘Damn,’ she murmured. She put down the glass and looked at Joel, who was already standing up and heading for the door.

‘Who can that be?’ he said, glancing at his watch.

Leave it! she wanted to shout. Don’t go down there. Don’t let them in. Because she knew who it was, who it had to be. And she also knew that it was too late now to tell Joel the truth about anything. She had meant to talk to him, to try and explain, but as usual she had bottled it. Her last chance and it was gone for ever.

As Joel disappeared, she jumped up, dashed over to the window, pulled back the curtain and gazed down on the street. Her knees were shaking, her whole body trembling. The panda car was parked by the curb and two officers were standing on the path. Inspector Frayne stared up at the lighted window and, although he must have been able to see her quite clearly, he gave no indication of having done so. Instead, he lowered his head and said something to his companion.

Sadie retreated, letting the curtain fall back into place. She didn’t sit down but stood and waited, bracing herself for what was to come. So this was it. Finally, it had all caught up with her. They would take her down to the station and charge her with… with what? Attempted murder perhaps. Or would she be able to persuade them that she’d shot Wayne Gissing in self-defence? Either way, they’d put her behind bars.

Sadie waited, her heart in her mouth, as the three men climbed the stairs and entered the flat. She heard the click as the door closed. Aware that her hands had clenched into two tight fists, she quickly uncurled them. But what was the point of pretending that she wasn’t afraid? It must be written all over her face.

Inspector Gerald Frayne was the first to enter the living room. He gave her a genial nod. ‘Sorry to disturb you like this,’ he said. ‘I hope it’s not too inconvenient.’

‘That’s okay,’ Sadie said, giving a nervous laugh. ‘Is everything… How can we help? Sorry, would you like to sit down?’

Frayne sat in the armchair. The other officer, the constable whose name she couldn’t remember, pulled out a chair from beside the dining table and immediately got out his notebook.

‘Would you like a drink?’ Joel asked. ‘Tea or coffee?’

‘Not for me,’ Frayne said.

The constable shook his head. ‘No thanks.’

Sadie sank down on to the sofa and Joel sat beside her. They were all, she noticed, sitting in exactly the same position as the first time the police had visited with the news of Eddie’s death. She had one of those odd déjà vu feelings, a tingling down her spine, as if all of this had happened before.

‘Do you have some news?’ Joel asked. ‘About the murder?’

‘I’m afraid not,’ Frayne said. He looked at Sadie. ‘I understand you attended Mr Wise’s funeral today?’

‘That’s right,’ she said. Her voice had got a croak in it again. ‘What’s this about?’

‘We’re here regarding an incident that happened at the cemetery this morning.’

‘An incident?’ she repeated. ‘What sort of incident?’

Frayne watched her closely. ‘A man was shot in the leg. Wayne Gissing. Do you know him?’

Sadie tried to look shocked. ‘Shot? What? Is he all right?’ She paused for a moment and then added, ‘No, not really. I mean, I know who he is. Kelly’s brother, right? I’ve never spoken to him though.’ She puckered her forehead into a frown. ‘I saw him at the church. Why would anyone want to…’

‘That’s what we’re trying to find out.’

‘I’m not sure how I can help.’

‘The police are talking to everyone who attended the funeral, trying to piece together a picture, see if anyone saw or heard anything.’

Sadie held on to his words like a drowning woman clinging to a lifebelt. Would he be saying these things if he knew she was responsible? But maybe it was a trick, a ruse to try and make her relax and let down her guard. ‘I see. Well, of course.’

Frayne left one of his short unsettling silences before he continued. ‘So when was the last time you saw Wayne Gissing?’

‘It must have been at the burial.’ Sadie gave a light shrug. ‘He was standing with Kelly near the grave.’

‘And how did he seem?’

‘Seem?’ Sadie repeated.

‘Agitated, upset, angry?’

‘I-I don’t know. I wasn’t really looking at him. I don’t think so. I mean, I didn’t notice anything in particular. I wasn’t standing that close.’

‘You weren’t at the graveside then?’

Sadie shook her head. Recalling the presence of the two London detectives, she knew better than to lie about this. They would have already written their reports, detailing where all the mourners were positioned. ‘I was standing back, on one of the paths. I was with Sharon Gissing.’

Frayne’s eyebrows shot up as if he was surprised. ‘Sharon Gissing?’

‘Yes, we got talking as we left the church. We walked to the cemetery together. I suppose it was a bit awkward for both of us. I was the wife Eddie was separated from and she was the girlfriend’s stepmother. I think Kelly’s real mum was there so… anyway, we hung back a bit. We didn’t want to intrude.’

‘And when the service was over?’

‘I left.’

‘Alone?’

‘Yes. Sharon was waiting for the others.’

‘So you didn’t go over and talk to Eddie’s parents?’

‘No. I meant to but… I don’t know, it didn’t seem like the right time.’ Out of the corner of her eye she could see the constable scribbling in his notebook, taking down everything she said. ‘I picked up my stuff from Oaklands, went to the station and got on a train.’

Frayne took out a large tissue and blew his nose noisily. ‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘I can’t get rid of this cold.’ He shoved the tissue back in his pocket. ‘Going back to the cemetery,’ he said. ‘Did you happen to notice a red Ford Capri parked at the far end of the thoroughfare?’

Sadie shook her head. ‘No.’ Keep it simple, she warned herself. Don’t embellish. Don’t say anything you don’t need to.

‘So you left straight after the burial. Was that by the main gates?’

‘Shortly after, yes.’ Had anyone seen her leave? Not Eddie’s family – they’d had had their backs to her. And she didn’t have to worry about the Gissings; they weren’t about to admit that she’d been lured to the far side of the graveyard. No, she was pretty sure that Sharon would be telling much the same story as she was.