False Impression Read online

  ‘Thank you. You heard that the lady was put on a train back to London? We’re bringing her back here for the night. I expect Leon will be in touch with you first thing tomorrow.’

  ‘Sure. Tell him I’m dossing down in the college for the night to make sure there’s no more gas leaks. He can ring me any time. Right?’

  As Bea clicked off the phone, someone rang the doorbell. Dilys and Keith, supporting Anna, who looked very unlike her usual polished self. There was a bruise coming up on one side of her face, her hair was all over the place, and her jacket and skirt were mudstained. Shoes ditto.

  She was saying in a bright, brittle voice, ‘I’m perfectly all right! Honestly, you’d think I was a child, the way you’re treating me! Mrs Abbot, tell them I’m perfectly capable of … And it was entirely unnecessary for you to send someone to meet me. I’ll be …’

  Her eyes closed, and she went limp. Keith and Bea caught her between them.

  ‘Shock,’ said Keith. ‘Far too bright. Tears before nightfall.’

  Dilys said, ‘Do you think we should take her to hospital?’

  They’d obviously argued about this in the taxi, for Keith said, ‘Her breathing’s fine. Apparently, she knocked herself out wrestling with a heavy door, and that’s why her face is bruised. If we take her to hospital, we’ll be there for hours, and then they’ll send her home with some painkillers.’

  Anna was coming round. ‘Where …? Oh …!’ Tears. ‘I’m so sorry. How stupid of me. I’ll be perfectly all right after a good night’s rest.’

  Possibly.

  Anna struggled to her feet, helped by Keith.

  Bea said, ‘Keith, would you help her up to the guest room? First landing, door on the right.’

  Keith nodded and started up the stairs with Anna protesting feebly in his arms.

  ‘I’ve got her handbag,’ said Dilys, following them. ‘She kept dropping it. She was sort of all right on the train, people were very kind apparently, but I’ll get her undressed and into bed, shall I? She can borrow one of your nightdresses.’ She followed the others upstairs.

  Bea considered waking Leon up. Decided against it. Heated up some hot milk in the kitchen, refused to feed Winston again, and carried the hot drink upstairs to find that Anna had been efficiently washed, brushed and was now being inserted into bed by Dilys.

  As Bea entered, Anna stretched out a hand to her. ‘I’m so sorry. What a fuss about nothing. It’s good of you to give me a bed. I’ll be perfectly all right in the morning.’

  Probably. Anna was tough. Dilys said she’d be upstairs if Anna needed anything, and disappeared.

  ‘Want to tell me about it?’ Bea set the drink down on the bedside table. ‘Or would you like to go straight to sleep?’

  ‘I’m too wound up to sleep yet. It sounds so stupid. I was working late. Everyone else had gone. I locked up—’

  ‘Chain and padlock?’

  ‘No, why would I do that? There’s a mortise lock on the front door.’

  ‘Security light? Alarm system?’

  ‘What do you think I am? Of course I set the alarm and made sure the security light was on. It was dark outside and raining. My car was round the corner in the car park, but it wouldn’t start. I tried waiting, thinking I might have flooded it, but it was no go. I was going to ring for a taxi but hadn’t the number on me, so I went back to the college—’

  ‘Was the security light still on over the front door when you went back?’ Bea handed Anna the mug of hot milk. ‘Drink up.’

  ‘Come to think of it, probably not. I was in such a state. It was getting late, it was raining and cold, and dark. I got inside, turned off the alarm, put the lights on, and smelled gas. That’s when I rang the gas people, and they said to get out of the building, so I tried, and couldn’t. Then I rang you and you said to smash the window, which I did. I did it with the big stone that we use to prop open the door to the corridor. I was going to shut that door when I suddenly felt so dizzy … That’s when I passed out. Luckily, some of the security men from the big house were just passing by. They had heard me smash the glass and came to my rescue. I don’t know what would have happened if they hadn’t.’

  ‘You recognized them, of course?’

  ‘Oh yes. Nice men. Both very concerned for me. They gave me a hot drink and said they’d take me to hospital to be checked out, but I didn’t want that. I could just imagine the fuss, and the questions about who had left the gas on. At first they wanted to take me up to the big house to get checked over, but I could see they were in two minds about it because they didn’t think Mrs Evans would have made me welcome, and I agreed with them. All I wanted to do was to go home, but I wasn’t fit to drive so they put me on the train. So good of them. They even paid my train fare for me. Is the building all right? What happened when the British Gas people came?’

  ‘Everything’s fine. Leon’s got someone sleeping there tonight.’

  ‘Oh, good.’ Anna slid down the pillows. ‘I’m going to give that kitchen helper the third degree tomorrow.’

  ‘You think it was a member of staff?’

  ‘A slovenly, sloppy kitchen helper, on her third warning. Leon won’t be pleased, I’m afraid, but I’ve put up with enough cheek from her to—’

  ‘It wasn’t one of the tutors you sacked?’

  ‘It might have been, I suppose.’ Anna was so relaxed now that her eyelids were dropping. ‘I’ll sort it, in the morning.’

  Bea patted her hand. ‘We’ll both give them hell, tomorrow. We’ll get Leon to devise a particularly nasty punishment for them. And reward the security men. Do they still have your phone, by the way?’

  ‘I’m not sure. I looked for it when I got on the train, but I suppose I must have left it on the floor at the college. I was so surprised when another phone rang in my handbag, because it wasn’t the usual tone … and then I remembered Leon had given it to me for emergencies. You say the college is safe?’

  ‘Absolutely.’

  Bea turned the light off and sat at the side of the bed. Maybe Anna would still be too wound up to sleep? But no, her breathing was getting deeper … and, yes, she slept.

  Bea left the room, leaving the door a crack ajar and the landing light on. If Anna woke in the night, she wouldn’t be totally in the dark. Bea stood on the landing, thinking about each and every person under her roof that night.

  Dear Lord, keep my friends safe. You know everything. You know the secrets of our hearts, our fears and our hopes for the future. Give them a good night’s sleep. Each of them is grieving … or in distress … or in pain. We seem to be involved in a fight for our lives. You’ve kept us safe so far. Well, comparatively safe. Anna is a tough one, but she could easily have died tonight.

  I don’t understand what’s going on. I listen to what people say and can’t decide who’s lying, or at least who’s not telling the whole truth. Is Hari Silva – what a name! – right in thinking the security men at the big house were responsible for trying to blow up the college? Or was Anna right in thinking someone at the college has got it in for her?

  Mind you, I think Hari’s right. That trick with the car sounds more like the temper tantrum of a sacked member of staff than part of a well-thought-out plan to destroy the college. But probably not a woman. Those batteries weigh a ton.

  Something furry wound around her legs. Winston, who’d given up all hope of another meal and was indicating he’d like to go to bed, please.

  She picked him up, checked that the light in the hall had been left on to reassure Leon if he woke, and made it to her own bed. At last.

  Winston lay on the bed, waiting for her to stroke his tummy before he went to sleep.

  Dear Lord, I’m dumping the whole lot in your lap for tonight. Perhaps in the morning you’ll tell me what to do next.

  TWELVE

  Friday breakfast

  Bea was up early. She reached for her bible, and her phone rang. No, not her phone. Leon’s, which she seemed to have taken up to bed with her.
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  ‘Hari reporting. Who am I speaking to?’

  ‘Twenty-nine eleven.’

  ‘Good. Is himself up yet?’

  ‘It’s half past six, Hari. Do you want me to wake him?’

  ‘No need. All quiet here. Birds singing. Rain pattering on the leaves. Quite poetic, if you like that sort of thing.’

  ‘You slept well?’

  ‘On the couch in the lady’s office. One eye and one ear open. Nothing to report. Gas all cleared away. I’ve closed the windows that were open at the back and confiscated the padlocks and chains that were on the doors. Thought they might have fingerprints on them, though probably they wore gloves. I mean, I would, wouldn’t you? Don’t answer that, Mrs Abbot. I understand you’re the law-abiding sort.’

  ‘Just so. I expect British Gas will be out at some point to check for the leak.’

  ‘I cancelled that. Rang and said I was a private contractor who’d been called in because they couldn’t get here quickly enough. Said I’d located the leak and dealt with it. How about the lady?’

  ‘Slept soundly. She hopes to come in today, though I’m not sure she’ll be fit enough to do so. What about her car?’

  ‘I’ll wait till some of the staff arrive to take charge, then pop over to the nearest garage and get another battery. An amateur did that, don’t you think?’

  ‘Yes, I do. Maybe the gas leak as well. They’ve one or two disgruntled members of staff who might have wanted to strike back at the college.’

  ‘The lady is partly at fault. She should have changed the alarm code and the locks when she took over.’

  ‘You’re right. I’ll remind her to deal with it when she gets back to work.’

  Hari killed the call. Bea threw back her curtains and opened a window.

  Blenched. Shut the window again. The birdsong was far too loud for her frayed nerves. The sun was breaking through. Ugh. Another fine day.

  Another fine mess you’ve got me into, Lord.

  He seemed to laugh. ‘Put on the armour of God …’

  A cream coloured blouse, conservatively cut. A dark-grey skirt. High heeled court shoes. Make-up. She let the events of the past few days slither through her mind one by one. She was missing something. She knew it.

  Dear Lord. I think you put me on earth to help other people who are not as well off as I am. I don’t mean ‘well off’ in the money sense, but … You know perfectly well what I mean.

  Not that I’m trying to teach you your business. That would be silly.

  Oh, dear. I’m getting in a muddle. As if I could teach God his business!

  All right. Will you sort this out, please? You know what’s best.

  But, if you want me to act in this matter, please give me clear guidance. Amen.

  Winston was no longer on her bed but had gone looking for something to eat. Sometimes he visited the kitchens of other houses and begged for a taste of this and that.

  She shuddered. It might have been him in the box yesterday. It might be him next time.

  She firmed her shoulders. Let battle commence.

  She checked on Anna, who stirred when Bea called her name and then went back to sleep. Good. Sleep was the best thing for her.

  She checked on Leon; still asleep. She put his mobile on to the table beside him.

  Kitchen. How many for breakfast?

  Dilys drifted in, smiling to herself. Colour in her cheeks. And who’s been sleeping in my bed? Bea didn’t enquire. Dilys said she’d had breakfast upstairs but had run out of milk so might she borrow some? She said she’d tried to wake Orlando, but apparently he was giving work a miss that morning so she’d left him to it, right? She drifted out again, humming to herself.

  Bea had the kitchen to herself, apart from Winston. Ah, peace and quiet. Breakfast with the papers. At seven, Leon appeared. He grunted, kissed her cheek, picked up her newspaper and hid behind it. She served him with orange juice, cereal, toast, and a couple of boiled eggs. She made him a cafetière of coffee. She reported what Anna and Hari had said the previous night and suggested Anna take some time off. Could Leon alert Anna’s second-in-command to take over? Bea wasn’t sure Leon had taken it all in, but he didn’t ask her to repeat herself.

  Folding the newspaper inside out, he managed to say, ‘No Financial Times?’

  She ignored that. ‘I’ll keep Anna here today, shall I? Do you want to inform the police about the attempt to blow up the college?’

  In other words, would he want to accuse his brother of trying to destroy him?

  ‘No police. I think I can see how to deal with this without involving them. I rang Hari. He says he’s spoken to you already. He’s fitted Anna’s car with a new battery and is going to leave it at the railway station. I’m going to make some more phone calls in the other room, all right?’ He didn’t wait for her assent but picked up the newspaper, poured himself a second cup of coffee and went out.

  Dilys returned, saying she’d done her best with Anna’s clothes and they wouldn’t look too bad once they’d been ironed and her shoes had been polished. Should she take a cup of tea in to Anna?

  ‘No,’ said Bea. ‘Let her have her sleep out.’

  ‘I offered to make breakfast for Keith, but he said I’d got enough to do without bothering with him, so I’ll get on with ironing Anna’s clothes, shall I?’

  Bea could hear the first of her staff arriving in the agency rooms below. And there she was, tied to the kitchen stove instead of attending to business. Grrr!

  Keith descended, fully dressed. He didn’t look as if he’d slept well. Had he slept alone … or with Dilys? Alone, definitely. ‘What day of the week is it? Thursday? Friday? I can’t remember where I’m supposed to be. Is Anna all right this morning?’ His voice was croaky.

  ‘Sleeping it off. Dilys is attending to her clothes.’

  A long, long sigh. He gazed out of the window. Birds chirruping. A fine rain moistening new leaves. Crocuses a-springing. Here comes the first of the good weather.

  He said, ‘I’d best get out of your way. Get back to earning my living. Customers depend on me, and it’ll be one less for you to feed.’

  ‘Could you manage breakfast? Bacon and tomato? Possibly with an egg?’

  ‘I usually avoid mirrors, but today I made myself look. I’d been thinking about shaving off my beard, having a haircut, getting some new clothes. Fantasy time. I’ve been kidding myself. I’m overweight, going bald on top. Far too old for Dilys.’

  ‘She doesn’t think so, and neither do I. Neither does Leon. There’s some orange juice in the fridge. Help yourself to some while I cook.’

  He obeyed as to orange juice, but refused to be comforted. ‘I’ll be off straight after breakfast.’

  ‘Leaving Dilys to the mercy of whoever it is who set out to kill Anna?’

  He groaned. ‘It was her father’s security guards, wasn’t it? She wouldn’t stand an earthly if they came after her. You don’t really think her father sent them out to blow up the college just because it’s passed from his control?’

  She dished him up a plateful of sausage, egg, bacon and tomato, and handed him a knife and fork. ‘That’s what it looks like.’

  ‘We can’t just sit still and let him get away with murder. I know the police didn’t find anything wrong last night, but—’

  ‘Evidence,’ said Bea. ‘Find me some. You can’t abandon her to her fate.’ That was a bit over the top.

  He nodded. ‘I see I’ll have to stick around for a bit. Maybe she’ll come out on my rounds with me today. She enjoyed that yesterday and was most helpful.’ He consulted his iPhone. ‘Now, where am I due this morning …?’

  Dilys dashed in. ‘Keith? There you are! Take off that sweater, at once! I told you, you really mustn’t go around like that with a hole at the neck. It won’t take a minute. And I suspect your socks have got holes in them, so you’ll have to buy some more. I can mend most things, but I don’t like darning socks.’

  Keith blushed crimson but pulled off his jump
er and handed it over. ‘I was thinking I ought to get back to work today—’

  ‘I wish I could come with you. It was fun yesterday, wasn’t it? I really enjoyed it. Can we meet for lunch? I’ll have to stay here this morning to look after Anna, because Mrs Abbot will have to get to work.’ She whisked herself away.

  Keith met Bea’s eye with a sheepish grin. ‘She’s quite something, isn’t she?’

  Bea nodded, trying not to laugh. ‘Could you check on that camera in the porch before you leave?’

  ‘Would you like me to disconnect it altogether? I could let it dangle loose, so that it looks as if it’s come adrift by accident, but doesn’t transmit?’

  ‘Excellent idea. Thank you, Keith.’

  Carrie toiled up the stairs from the agency. The kitchen door was open, but she knocked, nevertheless. ‘A word, Mrs Abbot? That Jennifer, who arranged for our phones to be bugged, she’s turned up bold as brass, saying she’s got something you’d like to hear, and that it’s urgent.’

  Bea poured herself a cup of coffee. ‘Which, being translated, means—’

  ‘She thought she’d earn a packet by spying on us, but we got rid of the bug so whoever hired her to do us a power of no good has refused to pay her and—’

  ‘She’s hoping we’ll recompense her, for informing on them in turn? Maybe she’ll even ask for her job back?’

  Carrie snorted. ‘Fat chance. I’ve made out a cheque for what we owe her, but I thought you might like to speak to her first.’

  ‘I would, indeed. Keith, I’m off downstairs. Don’t forget to disable the camera.’ And to Carrie, ‘He’s turned it so that it points to the agency steps which means—’

  Carrie laughed. ‘That the baddies will know by now that Jennifer has arrived to spill the beans to Mrs Abbot.’

  ‘We won’t tell Jennifer that, though,’ said Bea. ‘At least … not yet. Keep her waiting a while, Carrie. I want to tape our interview.’

  Down the stairs they went. Jennifer was sitting near the door to the stairs, looking meek and mild. Quietly dressed in shades of brown, flat shoes, neat hairdo. The other agency staff were busying themselves with work, but they all knew what Jennifer had done, and you could have cut the atmosphere with a blunt butter knife.