Murder at the Rocks (8 page)

‘I don’t think he saw it that way.’

Julia sighed.  ‘No, I don’t suppose he would.  In truth, he would have made your life hell until he got what he wanted.  That’s the sort of person he was.’

She handed Nicholas a cup of coffee from the tray and gestured to the cream and sugar.  ‘I take it the police have spoken to you,’ she said.

Nicholas decided not to mention his predicament involving his attack on Laurence.  ‘Yes, they came early this morning.’

‘Then I hope you didn’t mention Laurence’s threat.  They might jump to conclusions.’

‘I didn’t have to.  For some reason they know all about his intentions.’

‘Oh, that’s unfortunate.’  Julia paused.  ‘In that case, I hope you have a good alibi.’  She took a sip of her coffee.  ‘You do, don’t you?’

‘No, not really.  I did have a caller, but only for a few minutes.’

‘Well, I suppose that’s something.’

They sat in silence before Julia said, ‘It makes you wonder doesn’t it.  Your father and Laurence’s angst with one another for all those years and now, suddenly, they’re both gone.  It’s such a shame it took that to end it.’  Nicholas agreed, but as his mind went to his father’s letter and the locket, he wondered if it was the end.

‘There were happier times, of course,’ said Julia as she placed her cup and saucer back on the tray in front of her.  ‘Your father and Laurence didn’t have a lot in common, but they managed to get along all right once upon a time.’

‘What happened to change that?’

‘I have no idea.  Laurence refused to talk about it.’

‘It all started not long after your mother’s funeral.  Your father was shattered by her death.  Afterwards, he asked if I’d make arrangements for your return to school.  You may remember, I drove you to the airport the following day and put you on a flight to Melbourne.’  Julia paused.  ‘How old were you then?’

‘Eight.’

‘Heavens.  So young to be sent away from home.’  Nicholas did not reply.  ‘Anyway, I called to see your father a few days after you’d left, but he wouldn’t receive me.’  Julia Harford hesitated as though captured by the memory then she continued.  ‘I understand he and Laurence managed to be civil at the office, but we never mixed socially again.’  Julia paused.  ‘As a small child, you must have wondered why Laurence and I disappeared from your life.’

‘I did, but then everything changed after Mum died.  I rarely saw Dad.  He insisted I spend my summers at Gray’s Manor in Bowral.’

‘With Mr and Mrs Rutledge.’

‘Yes.  Dad came down for a couple of days at the beginning of the summer holidays each year, but then he returned to Sydney.  The rest of the year, I spent at school.  Looking back, I wonder if I reminded him too much of my mother.’

‘Well, that’s possible.’

‘Aunt Julia, I know this isn’t the time, but I want to ask you about this.’  Nicholas felt inside his pocket and brought out the green velvet case and opened it.  ‘Have you ever seen it before?’

Julia peered at the locket.  ‘No, never.  Where did you get it?’

‘Apparently my father asked his nurse, Ellen Ashworth, to give it to me when I returned.  I’m told it belonged to Mum.’

Julia took the case.  ‘Why, it’s beautiful.’  Her fingers went to the empty indentation.  ‘The key?’

‘Lost, I suppose.’

Julia lifted the locket from its place.  ‘It’s probably one of your mother’s family heirlooms.  I have similar pieces myself.  I don’t wear them but they’re very precious.’  Julia placed the locket back in the case and handed it back to Nicholas.

Nicholas thought of his father’s message that came with the locket, but at the same time, decided not to mention it.  Even though his Aunt and Laurence were not close, as she put it, his death must be causing her distress even if she was not showing it.  He closed the green velvet case and slipped it back into his pocket.  ‘You must be right.’

‘I still miss your mother, you know.  We were friends.  It shocked me when she died.’

‘How did she die, Aunt Julia?’

‘You mean to say you don’t know?’

‘Dad never spoke of it and I thought better than to ask.’

‘Mmm.  It doesn’t surprise me that he avoided the subject.  He never spoke to me about it either.  What I know I learnt from Laurence and that’s very sketchy.  He said your mother was at Brayshaw’s that afternoon and on leaving, she tripped and fell down the front staircase.  They weren’t able to revive her.’

Stunned by his Aunt’s words, Nicholas remained silent for a moment or two before he uttered, ‘So it was an accident.’

‘Yes.  A dreadful accident.’

‘I didn’t know.  For some reason I thought she’d been ill.  Was Dad there at the time?’

‘I believe so, but as I said before, Laurence didn’t go into detail.  I’m sorry, Nicholas.’

A moment of silence ensued before Nicholas looked at his watch and said, ‘I’d better go, Aunt Julia.  I want to speak to Howard Parish.  Apparently, he was the person who found Laurence this morning.’

‘Oh, I had no idea.  The police didn’t say.  Poor Howard.  It must have been dreadful for him.’  Nicholas got up to leave and Julia followed him across the room to the door.  ‘What’s to be done about Brayshaw’s, Nicholas?’

‘I thought I’d suggest to Howard that we close up until the police have finished in the building.’

‘That’s probably wise.  It must be awful for the staff at the moment.’  Julia stopped speaking before continuing.  ‘Do what you think is best as far as Brayshaw’s is concerned, Nicholas.  After all, I have no idea what Laurence’s will may reveal and, given our circumstances, I can’t imagine he left his shares to me.’

Numbed by Julia Harford’s revelations about his mother’s death, Nicholas left the house minutes later, his aunt’s frankness about her relationship with Laurence also uppermost in his mind.  The latter held no surprise, of course.  Not after his recent encounters with Laurence.  What did surprise him, however, was how little he actually knew about his family, and with this in mind, the desire to find out the reason for the rift between his father and Laurence became fuelled.

CHAPTER 9

Nicholas pulled up in front of Brayshaw’s to find its entire frontage cordoned off with police tape.  Hesitating for a moment, he climbed out of the car to be met by the police officer on duty.  ‘Have you business here, sir?’

‘Yes, I’m Nicholas Harford, one of Brayshaw’s owners.  I’m here to speak to the staff.’

‘I understand most of them have left for the day, sir.  There’s only one gentleman upstairs, a Mr Parish.’

‘Then would it be possible for me to have a word with him?’  The constable lifted the tape to allow Nicholas to duck underneath and, under the scrutinising eyes of those passing by, he made his way into the building and up the stairs.

He found Howard Parish sitting alone in his office, his eyes cast down onto his desk.  Nicholas tapped gently on the open glass door and Howard looked up, exhaustion showing on his face.

‘Oh, Nick.  I didn’t hear you come up.’  Howard started to get to his feet.

‘Don’t get up,’ said Nicholas walking into the office and sitting in the chair in front of Howard’s desk.

Howard Parish slumped back down.  ‘I take it you’ve heard about Laurence.’

‘Yes.  The police came to see me early this morning.’

Howard ran his hand through his thinning grey hair.  ‘It’s been a hell of a day.  I can’t quite believe it all.’

‘I understand you found Laurence.’

‘Yes.’  Howard’s eyes stared ahead as if reliving that moment.  ‘I never dreamt I’d ever see anything like that.  He’d been stabbed.’

‘I had no idea how he died.  The police didn’t say.’  Nicholas paused, sensing Howard’s anguish.  ‘Would it help to talk about it?’

‘No.  I’d sooner just try to forget the whole thing.’

‘Well, if you change your mind you will let me know, won’t you?’

Howard changed the subject abruptly.  ‘I took the liberty of sending the staff home after the police had finished questioning them, and we’d finished the stock take.’

‘And was it a robbery?’ asked Nicholas.

‘No.  All the stock has been accounted for, which means...’

‘Someone wanted to kill Laurence,’ said Nicholas.

‘Yes.’  Howard paused.  ‘It’s a chilling thought.’  They sat in silence for a moment or two before Howard Parish continued.  ‘Ms Plummer was very upset, poor girl.’

Nicholas thought of the young woman he had seen in the office the previous afternoon and the look on her face when she had appeared in the doorway behind him.  Did she think he had killed Laurence?  Pushing the thought away, he said, ‘Howard, I thought it might be a good idea to close Brayshaw’s for a few days.  We’ll open again when the police have finished in the building.’  Nicholas sensed Howard Parish’s confusion.  ‘You wouldn’t be aware, but since the reading of my father’s will, yesterday, I’m now the major shareholder in Brayshaw’s.’

‘Oh, I see.’

‘I thought with what’s happened over the past twenty-four hours, you’d be anxious to know what will become of the company.’

‘Some of the staff did ask,’ said Howard, fidgeting with the papers on his desk.

‘Well, perhaps you can let them know that I plan to continue on with the business for, at least, the next twelve months.’  A look of relief came to Howard’s face.  ‘If any changes are to be made after that period, the staff will be told well beforehand.  I hope that will allay any fears for the present.’  Nicholas paused before continuing.  ‘It won’t be easy, of course.  I know nothing about the jewellery business, and I do have my work at the University, but I’m sure with your help and a bit of ingenuity we’ll get through.’

‘I’m sure we will, Nick, and thanks for letting me know.  It’ll ease the minds of everyone concerned.’

‘Good.  Now, why don’t you take yourself home, Howard?’  Nicholas looked around at the forensic team who still went about their tasks.  ‘I can wait here until these people have finished.  Next week, we can go through the finances together and I’ll also have a word with Eric Holmes about the management of the retail side of things.’

‘Oh, damn.’

‘What is it?’ asked Nicholas.

‘I meant to phone Eric.  I completely forgot with all that’s gone on today.  He didn’t come into work this morning and after yesterday’s trouble, I wondered whether he’s all right.’

It was then that Nicholas remembered the commotion between Laurence and Eric Holmes as he had arrived at Brayshaw’s the previous afternoon.  ‘Yes, he came flying down the stairs after you left yesterday.  Do you know what he and Laurence were arguing about?’

‘No, although it wasn’t an unusual occurrence.  They’ve never got on, but this time I have a feeling that Laurence might have dismissed him.’

‘Do you have any idea why?’

‘Other than the fact that they disagreed on almost everything, no.  Anyway, I’ll give Eric a call when I get home.’  Howard paused.  ‘If Laurence did dismiss Eric, what do you want to do about it?’

Nicholas thought for a moment before answering.  It was clear that Howard, in his state of shock, assumed Eric Holmes had not turned up for work, that day, because Laurence had dismissed him.  He gave no hint that he thought Eric may have killed Laurence, and Nicholas felt loathed to suggest such a thing.  Not only because Howard was obviously in distress, but also because Eric Holmes had been a valued employee of Brayshaw’s for so many years.  ‘If Laurence did dismiss Eric, it might be because of Laurence’s unfortunate temperament rather than his inability to do his job,’ he said.

‘Well, I have always found Eric to be a good employee,’ said Howard.  ‘He’s a bit of a moody type, but he manages the jewellery shop and his staff well.  And he’s reliable.  I’ve never had cause to complain.’

‘Well then, I think we should try to salvage the situation,’ said Nicholas.  ‘When you speak to Eric, tell him that, as far as I’m concerned, he’s still a Brayshaw employee.’

‘All right.  I’ll do that.’  Nicholas watched as Howard got to his feet and pulled on his suit coat.

‘I’ll walk down with you.’

As they reached the front entrance Howard stopped.  ‘Thanks for waiting here Nick.  I appreciate it.’

‘It’s not a problem.  You go home and get some rest.’

Nicholas remained in the doorway for a few moments watching the police officer lift the tape and Howard disappear along the street.  As he did so, their conversation about Eric Holmes replayed in his mind.  Exactly how long had Eric worked at Brayshaw’s?  Was there any chance he was here at the time of his mother’s death?  Nicholas went to turn back to the stairs, but as he did so, his gaze fell upon a man standing on the other side of the street.  He looked familiar in a way.  Was it the man who had looked up at Laurence through the stairwell yesterday?  As their eyes met, the man turned, and with a distinctive limp, walked away.

CHAPTER 10

It was another hour before Nicholas left Brayshaw’s, making his way along George Street to Circular Quay.  As he went, he tried to make sense of all that had happened since his arrival back in Sydney only forty-eight hours before.  His father’s death had left him saddened and remorseful, but he felt a growing uneasiness about Laurence’s.  Could he be responsible for Laurence’s death?  Passing in front of the ferry terminals, he shivered with the wind as it cut through his jacket, unaware of those around him.  Matthew Howell also escaped his notice until they came face to face.  Nicholas braced himself for an onslaught of abuse, but to his surprise, Matthew smiled.

‘Nick, I didn’t realise you were back.’  In his late thirties, his suave, sophisticated appearance belying the intense individual that lay beneath, Matthew shook hands with Nicholas.

‘I got back late Tuesday afternoon.  I would have got in touch, Matt, but I’ve found myself caught up in a police investigation.’

‘Ah, yes, your uncle.  I read about it in the newspaper.’  They continued on together along the Quay.  ‘I seem to remember he was the brother your father didn’t get along with.’