The Rotting Spot (A Bruce and Bennett Mystery) Page 19

  ‘We don’t know. She’s, er, gone off somewhere. She’s probably fine, but we felt something had upset her. We need to know what it is so we can help.’ She played her ace.

  ‘Little Toby’s missing his mummy terribly.’

  ‘Oh dear!’ Violet’s face crumpled. ‘I hope it isn’t my fault! I thought I was doing the right thing!’ Both her hands went to her face.

  ‘Can we get you anything?’ asked Steve.

  ‘There’s a bottle of whisky in the unit over there,’ Violet’s muffled voice informed him.

  Steve busied himself pouring out a slug of whisky, good whisky too, Erica noticed. Violet drank, her fingers shaking as she clutched the glass with both hands.

  ‘Well, you are Toby’s dad. You have a right to know. And if I’ve done wrong, maybe I can help put things right.’

  She stared down into her glass. The embroidery had fallen unnoticed to the floor. ‘Keeping secrets gets to be a habit. Don’t suppose it matters now, with Lily being like she is.

  ‘It was in the war. There were some young soldiers, stationed up the coast a bit. Lily and Frank had been courting since school, but he was away, in the RAF. My Jack was away too. We were young, we got lonely, we wanted some fun. Lily got on with a soldier called Tommy. He wanted to be a pilot but he was colour blind.

  ‘Well, next thing was, I found Lily crying. You can guess, she was in the family way. In 1940, ’41 by the baby arrived, that was scandalous, for a single girl. She told me, but she didn’t tell anyone else. She swore me to secrecy, I think she wished she hadn’t told me, but I just came upon her when she was that upset you know. So, Lily did the only thing she could do. Frank came home on leave just then, she gave him her all, as they say, and persuaded Frank to marry her there and then before he went off again. He’d wanted to marry her anyway, but he had scruples about doing it in the war. Wanted to wait. She talked him out of it. So they got married, and no-one was any the wiser. Nobody thought to add up a month or so out, in those days a lot of folks turned a lot of blind eyes. Everyone realised Lily’d been expecting when she got married, but they assumed Frank had jumped the gun. And as he’d done right by her, fought for his country, well … Frank went through hell, got wounded, he was just glad to get home in one piece. Happy to come home to his wife and daughter. We heard later that Tommy’d been killed. Lily just wiped the whole thing out of her mind. Like it had never happened. She really loved Frank, you know. Tommy was just a war romance. And after she’d nearly lost Frank and her good name, well…’

  Violet finished her whisky. ‘That’s the story I told Lucy. To explain why little Toby’s colour blind, you see. She asked me, really wanted to know. Even Peg and Liz don’t know about Tommy. Lily’s kept the secret all these years, she buried it like. That green rabbit painting brought Tommy back to her, see, I think that was how he first knew he was colour blind. He told Lily when he was at school the teacher shouted at him for getting the colour wrong. Tore up his painting and hit his hand with a ruler. Wouldn’t be allowed today!’

  ‘Fu- for god’s sake!’ Erica was trying to take in the barrage of information and what it meant.

  ‘You mustn’t think ill of Lily,’ Violet put in. ‘Things were different in the war. Folk did things they’d not normally do. You never knew if you’d live out the week. And when a young man who was about to go out to fight asked a girl, she felt she couldn’t say no to him. Ah, it was a time of risks, all right.’

  ‘Did Lucy seem upset by what you told her?’ Steve asked Violet.

  ‘No, she just said thank you, she was glad to know where the colour blind, gene is it, came from. Then her and Toby went off. I never thought anything at the time, like, but when I heard she’d gone for a rest cure, I wondered. I asked Julie Reed, she works here, nice woman but you can’t leave her alone with chocolate, she said no, Lucy hadn’t taken Toby with her, and then I thought, oh, I hope I didn’t do wrong, upset her or something. Only at the time she seemed alright. She was in a hurry, like, been visiting all over with Father’s Day, in fact she knocked over my tin of biscuits, she was picking them up and apologising, flustered like, what with one thing and another…’

  Erica had gone pale. But as Violet let her words trail off, she launched into reassurances. Her voice sounded like somebody else’s, booming hollowly in her ears.

  ‘You didn’t do wrong, Violet. Lucy had a right to know why her child is colour blind. Something else must have upset her, or maybe she is just tired out after her medic’s exams. Don’t worry. We’ll keep you in touch with anything that happens. And thank you so much for telling us all this.’ She sprang to her feet, and Steve followed suit. He toohad become strangely preoccupied. His hands were clenched into fists, his shoulders rigid. But he managed to say a polite goodbye and thank you to Violet. They practically ran out of Point View and scrambled into the car to subside, panting, in the small private space. They turned to look at each other.

  ‘Fucking hell!’ Steve said softly. ‘Poor Luce, she must have been devastated.’

  ‘Too right. Remember the email you sent me? ‘Something that changes everything.’ That’s the understatement of the year!’

  ‘I wish she’d told me, when she came to drop Toby off. My god, Erica, I can see now what a good actress she’d have been. Her whole world fallen apart, and she never said a word.’

  ‘The more you think about it, the more awful it gets. And Violet reckons the Seatons and Peg know nothing about it?’

  ‘We don’t know that for sure. Jesus, bloody respectable families, skeletons in the cupboard … lies, secrets, all that…’

  ‘I suppose we should tell the police,’ Erica said reluctantly.

  ‘I mean it explains why she drove back to Hex Tower from your place. Though not what happened there.’

  ‘Yeah, I suppose. D’you think we should tell Lucy’s family? I mean, it’s their private business, isn’t it?’

  ‘No. Not yet anyway. Lucy didn’t tell them about Tommy and Lily as far as we know. She must have had her reasons. Couldn’t face them, probably.’

  ‘Poor Lucy, poor sweetheart,’ Steve said, gazing in front of him unseeingly. ‘And poor old Violet, I hope she didn’t realise what Lucy realised.’

  ‘She’s a bright woman, but I’d guess without much education. It was enough for her that there was colour blindness in the family; I don’t think she saw the implications.’

  ‘You’re not a bad actress yourself Erica. Waffling on, reassuring Violet, you were white as a sheet.’

  ‘How can we get in touch with Lucy now though? What she found out was enough to make anyone just run off, distressed, maybe that’s what happened after all. We could help her deal with it.’ Secrets, though, might be motives for silencing someone, even a member of the family. Erica didn’t add this aloud. She and Steve had an unspoken policy of denial when it came to Lucy’s possible murder.

  ‘I’m going to do some thinking and phoning and texting about that.’ Steve started the car. ‘I’m still not sure … yeah, what she was told was devastating, but she’d not have just gone without wanting to find out more. Luce is a scientist. She’d want to be sure. It’s just possible Toby’s colour blindness did come from some unknown ancestor and the Tommy thing is a coincidence. Or just plain untrue.’

  ‘What, you think Violet made it up? And Lily? Surely there’s no other explanation is there?’ Erica frowned, trying to trace the family progress of the gene. Who knew, who didn’t know … there was a lot to take on board, but she’d felt empathy with Violet. ‘Violet didn’t seem the type to make up scandalous rumours.’

  ‘You’re a mathematician, aren’t you? Don’t you expect more from a mathematical proof than ‘it’s likely to be true?’ I’m not dissing the two old dears, but look at the facts. Lily’s words about somebody called Tommy could be something about a childhood friend, a cousin, something she saw on TV, she’s demented after all. Then Violet tells a good tale, but we don’t know her, Erica. Bored, under-stimulated, maybe romancing
with the bare bones Lily gave us. Whatever you think of Violet, and even bearing in mind Lucy was stressed out and exhausted from work and exams, would you just accept a story like that if it meant abandoning everything you’d been sure of?’

  Erica said nothing. She couldn’t know how Lucy felt. And she had to accept, Steve knew Lucy better than she did.

  ‘Anyway,’ Steve went on, ‘I’ll give it some thought. Leave that with me a couple of days. I’ll get back to you. And tell me how you get on with Will Bennett. I’ll leave him to you.’

  22

  Evening, Sunday 6th July

  Outside The Fat Cow

  Erica sat opposite Will Bennett, sipping her elderflower diet fruit drink. She observed sardonically that he was drinking orange and lemonade in a pint glass. Non-alcoholic, but outwardly manly. Will’s hair was vertical, like he’d had his finger stuck down an electric socket.

  Will was on tenterhooks to hear what Erica had to say. If it was worth anything. Could be just some hunch or maybe crystalmancy or something witchy and weird. And who’s we? Will asked inwardly, containing himself with an effort, unwilling to let Erica enjoy having the upper hand.

  ‘Ok,’ he said, ‘what have you found out?’

  ‘Well, we started by reconstructing Lucy’s last day at Stonehead.’

  ‘Who’s we?’ Will almost looked round to see who’d asked the question. It was himself. Erica was immediately on the defensive.

  ‘Steve and me, if you must know. He’s been a great help,’ Erica said pointedly. ‘He’s a very nice guy.’

  ‘Steve as in Toby’s dad?’

  ‘Give the man a coconut.’

  Will’s face went stiff. He was suddenly feeling suspicious of Steve, who before he’d had no strong feelings about either way. What was the matter with him? He should just be interested in what they’d found out. Steve, good looking bloke, medic, brainy …

  ‘How do you know you can trust Steve? For all you know, he might be covering up some involvement in Lucy’s disappearance.’

  ‘Well nobody else,’ she said, drilling him with her eyes, ‘seemed to care about Lucy. Funny you’re so ready to do the Seatons’ bidding, I’ve not heard you warning me about them. But Steve … it wouldn’t be a race thing would it? Institutional racism, and all that?’

  Will was furious, with himself for walking into this shit, and with her. If he had a prejudice right now, it was against small, blonde white girls.

  ‘I can take an interest in what you’ve got to say, or I can spend 24/7 trying to prove I’m not a racist. I really want to know about Lucy. Can’t we just stick to that?’

  ‘You started all this who’s we shit.’ Erica sipped her drink, calming herself down. Lucy was what mattered.

  ‘I needed Steve to get into the care home,’ she began. Then she told him as accurately as she could what Lily and then Violet had told them. She spoke eloquently, movingly, and fully, and then sat back, waiting for his incredulous reaction and admiration.

  ‘Very interesting,’ Will said. ‘But I don’t see why Lucy would run off because her grandmother had a fling with a soldier in World War Two.’ He was disappointed. The lack of progress in this complex case had been getting to him, and despite himself, he’d hoped Erica had come up with the goods. Her theory was even dafter than he could have expected.

  Erica slammed down her glass. ‘Didn’t you listen? Remember the email Steve sent to me? ‘It’s all because of Molly.’ It’s a matter of genetics.’

  ‘Well excuse me for not being a genetic scientist or a medical student,’ said Will. ‘We can’t all be Einstein.’

  Erica handed him the vinegar bottle that stood on the table between them with salt and pepper.

  ‘Here, for the chip on your shoulder. If a boy is colour blind, it’s come through his mother, and if you look back at her genetic line, you should be able to trace a colour blind male relative. With me so far?’

  ‘There’s no need to patronise me, Erica.’

  ‘Sorry. But it is a bit complicated, if you don’t realise … Look, Lily Travis had two daughters by two men. Tommy, and Frank. We know that Tommy was colour blind, whereas we know that Frank wasn’t, since he was a pilot. Lucy’s son Toby is colour blind. Where did it come from? From his mother Lucy. Where did she get the gene from? From Tommy, most probably. Who died, and was never acknowledged, and nobody knew about except Lily and Violet. Tommy, who was Peg’s secret father.’

  She paused. Will looked at her expectantly. He was starting to feel excited. This all sounded factual and provable.

  ‘Peg’s father!’ Erica repeated. ‘It’s easy to think of Liz as the eldest sister, but Peg is. Lily’s first child was Tommy’s and that child was Peg. Lucy must have realised almost immediately, that Toby shouldn’t have inherited anything from Peg; colour blindness came from Tommy, to his daughter Peg, who would be a carrier; there’s no way Liz could have the gene or pass it on to Lucy, as her father Frank wasn’t colour blind.’

  ‘But that doesn’t make sense,’ said Will. ‘Are you telling me that Peg is Lucy’s mother?’

  ‘Exactly, Will!’

  ‘Are you sure, I mean, could it have come from Lily … no, because, hang on a minute, if both she and Tommy had the gene, then Peg herself would be colour blind!’

  ‘Have two coconuts!’ Erica took a swig from her bottle of elderflower. ‘All her life, Lucy’s thought of Liz as her mother and Peg as her aunt. Suddenly her whole identity is in question. And her trust in her nearest and dearest as well. Her life has been based on a lie. Who wouldn’t be devastated?’

  ‘Bloody hell!’ Will wrestled with what he was hearing.

  ‘Peg … not Liz … no, wait, surely Peg must be colour blind herself, and it’s come from Lily to Liz to Lucy. I mean, look at those bizarre knitted toys Peg makes, all the wrong colours! And her clothes don’t match properly either!’

  ‘I know, but she isn’t. Just very lacking in colour awareness and aesthetic taste. When Lucy and Steve realised Toby was colour blind, they looked at the immediate family, and couldn’t find anybody at all.’

  Will was frowning. ‘But why would they pretend Liz was the mother if she wasn’t? Why would Peg give her baby up to her sister?’ He answered himself. ‘Is that what Lucy meant … ‘It’s all because of Molly!’. Peg must have been so distraught at Molly running away she couldn’t deal with an unexpected baby and Liz brought her up instead. And George had a stroke too, didn’t he? Peg had him to care for. But are you sure it has to be this way? Couldn’t Toby’s colour blindness come some other way we don’t know? Someone in Steve’s family? Oh no, he’d be colour blind himself.’ He clawed his hair flat. ‘And it can’t be from Lily … are you sure Peg’s not colour blind?’

  ‘Test her, if you like. Steve said Lucy tested her mother and Peg, while they were together, sort of playfully. The only conclusion they’d come to was that Lily must be a carrier, inheriting the gene from one of her parents. Then, remember, none of the family, not Liz, Peg, Lucy, anybody, knew about Tommy’s existence. As soon as Lucy heard Violet’s story about Peg’s real father, she’d have realised that Lily couldn’t be the carrier, or Peg would be colour blind herself. Poor Lucy. Violet said some biscuits got spilled … probably Lucy fussed about picking them up to cover up her shock as best she could. Then she just had to get away from them all.’

  ‘Mm, it wouldn’t be an easy thing to ask her family about…’ Will mused. ‘Mind, in the past aunts and uncles often brought up children.’

  Erica shifted restlessly on her wooden bench. ‘Do you still not see it? The worst thing about the whole affair? Come on Will, you’ve seen pictures of Lucy. Who does she look like? Everyone has always remarked on it.’

  ‘Like her father … Seymour … Oh no, it’s not possible! It can’t be! Are you trying to tell me Peg was Lucy’s mother and Seymour her father? That Seymour got Peg pregnant? His wife’s sister? And Peg Westfield! A committed Christian! Sodding bloody hell!’

  ‘As you so eloq
uently put it, Will. Peg her god-fearing aunt. Had been shagging Seymour. Her brother in law.’

  ‘But how could that happen?’

  ‘Either Peg’s a total hypocrite, or…’ Erica paused, thinking of Violet. How people behaved differently in times of great stress, like war, or … ‘Molly ran off after a row with Peg, who’d found her pills. Peg must have been distraught … her husband equally so, maybe they were unable to comfort each other, Seymour offered a sympathetic ear, then he offered the rest … Peg became much more religious after Molly went, remember. She must have been wracked with guilt all these years. I’d feel inclined to blame Seymour. Taking advantage of a distressed woman who trusted him …he must be a walking gonad, the bastard.’

  ‘But how could he? Go for Peg Westfield, when he’d got Liz Seaton?’

  Will blurted it out, his guard down.

  ‘Oh I see! How like a man to see it that way. Peg not pretty enough, eh? I would have thought as a police officer you’d have got past the ‘only attractive women get raped’ idea. And it might have been rape for all we know! All the easier for Peg to hand over the baby if it was.’

  ‘I didn’t mean…’

  ‘Peg wasn’t bad looking then, if I can put things in your language. And just because Seymour’s married to the gorgeous classy Liz doesn’t stop him shafting other women too. Even Halle Berry’s husband has strayed, and what about Hugh Grant and Liz Hurley and Divine Brown? What a pig Seymour is, no wonder Lucy’s traumatised. Every time she looks in the mirror she sees his eyes, the eyes of a man who got her aunt pregnant while she was vulnerable.’

  ‘Look, why would Lucy drive back to Stonehead when she heard the news about her real mother? Assuming this is all true. If she wanted to run away, she’d have just gone, maybe with Toby, not driven back to Hex Tower.’