Rough Cut (25 page)

   “You again! And at this time of night!” Jeremy rose to his feet belligerently and faced up to Harris. ”I’ve had enough of this. I’m going to ring your superior.” Jeremy tried to push past Conrad and Grimshaw who were still standing near the doorway.

   “I think you should hear us out first, sir,” said Harris patiently.

   “Why? Don’t you think this… this harassment has gone far enough?”

   “It’s your wife we want to talk to this time, sir.”

   Jeremy pulled up short. “Anna! Why on earth would you want to talk to Anna?” He threw a glance at Anna who was standing beside him. She looked back at him non-committally and shrugged.

   “Do you have a computer, Mrs Baines?” asked Harris but before Anna could answer, Jeremy jumped in.

   “Of course she has a computer. And a printer, and a photocopier! What of it? She does a huge amount of work for charity, you know. She was voted Yorkshire Woman of the Year last year. She needs a fully equipped office.”

   “And where is this office?” asked Harris, raising his eyebrows slightly.

   “Here in the house, just across the hall,” answered Jeremy, still choosing to speak for his wife.

   Harris turned to face Anna directly as he spoke the next few words. ”Would you mind telling us the user name and password for your computer?” Anna looked at Jeremy as Harris continued, his tone condescending. “Please.”

   “Robin and Hood.”

   Harris looked at Carter who nodded and indicated to Conrad to go and check out Anna’s computer.

   “Excuse me for asking, Mrs Baines,” continued Harris, “but would one of the charities you help be a hostel called… ” Harris paused as he took his notebook out of his pocket and looked in it, “…Jailbreak?”

   Anna cleared her throat and Jeremy was about to speak again when she held up her hand to stop him.

   “It’s all right, darling, I don’t mind telling him,” she said. “Yes, that is one of the organisations I try to help. They think, as I do, that youngsters coming out of prison should be given a break, not that you would understand that. Why do you ask?”

   “Do you have any contact with any of the, er, clients?”

   “Some, yes. Why?”

   “Carl Spicer, perhaps?”

   Anna looked away guiltily at the mention of Spicer’s name. “Quite possibly. I don’t know their names.”

   “I see.”

   “For heaven’s sake Inspector, what’s this all about?” asked Jeremy as he moved to position himself between Anna and Harris.

   Before asking his next question, Harris gathered himself to his full height. He looked at Jeremy and then at Anna.

   “Perhaps Mrs Baines wouldn’t mind telling us where she’s been this evening?” he said.

   “She’s been to her bridge club,” said Jeremy moving back beside his wife as she smiled sweetly at Harris.

   “I’d like to hear that from your wife, sir.”

   “Anna, tell him,” Jeremy urged but Anna did not speak.

   “Perhaps Mrs Baines would like to explain what she was doing in Hull earlier this evening?” The boot was on the other foot now and Harris was clearly enjoying kicking Jeremy with it.

   Anna’s expression changed and she cleared her throat. “Hull?” It was more of a croak than anything else.

   “Yes, madam. Why were you in Hull this evening?”

   “If you know I was in Hull then I expect you know why I was there.”

   Jeremy’s face reflected his astonishment and, at that moment, Conrad came back into to the room. Carter and Harris looked towards him. He nodded his head and held up a copy of
Robin Hood
, identical to the book they had found on Jacques’ boat. Harris took a deep breath and approached Anna. He stood in front of her as he spoke.

   “Anna Baines,” he began, “I am arresting you on suspicion of the murder of Robert Darrington.
You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.”

   Jeremy was speechless. Anna seemed in a daze, yet she remained in complete control of herself.

   “I’ll get my coat,” she said as she left the room and went into the hall followed by Harris and the policewoman.

   Jeremy trailed after them. “I’ll ring Tom Benedict,” he called out to Anna, as he found his voice and tried to reassure her. “He’ll meet you at the police station. Don’t say anything, darling, not until you’ve spoken to him.”

   Jeremy looked at Harris who was now also in the hall. “Benedict is our solicitor,” he said.

   Harris nodded and indicated to the policewoman to escort Anna to the car. As they left, Jeremy gave Carter a menacing look. He’d kill me if he could, thought Carter.

   As they came out of the house and Anna was helped into the police car, Carter stopped and turned to Conrad. “Well, that’s this end wrapped up,” he said, “Just Philippe and his cronies to deal with now. But that can wait until tomorrow. I think we both deserve a night off before we go back to Port Grimaud and deal with Monsieur Philippe Lacoste. And I have a date, so you’ll have to find your own amusement.” Carter smiled as Conrad looked at him questioningly.

_________________________

   It was late and Darrington Hall was in darkness as Carter approached the front door after a long day and rang the bell. Moments later the door was opened by Nicole and he went in.

   Carter followed Nicole across the hall and into the lounge where he spotted a bottle of wine open on the coffee table with two glasses beside it. Nicole sat on the sofa and patted the cushion next to her as she smiled at him. His heart soared.

   Trying his best not to convey the strength of emotion he was feeling at finally, after so many years, being able to spend time with her again, Carter sat beside her as she poured the wine and handed him a glass.

   “Is it all over?” she asked.

   “Pretty much, I think,” he answered.

   “Just Dad to deal with?” Carter nodded as she continued, “I don’t suppose there’s any way to leave him out of it, is there? I mean I know he was involved in something which ultimately led to Rob’s death, and for that I will never be able to forgive him, but I don’t believe he had any idea what sort of people he was dealing with or how far they would go to protect their interests. And as for Anna… Well…!”

   Carter shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I wish there was some way I could overlook his involvement, for your sake. But the reality is that he
was
involved. And while I can accept that it wasn’t his doing, at least not directly, the fact remains that three innocent people are dead because of what he was mixed up in.”

   “I know. But it’s hard, you know. He’s my father and I love him.”

   Nicole put her glass on the table and looked up at Carter, pleadingly. He could see the pain in her eyes and he put his arm around her. He tilted her head onto his shoulder and stroked her hair gently as he spoke, trying to soothe her.

   “I’ll do what I can to help him, whatever I can,” he said, “But I have to ask you not to speak to him about what has happened tonight. Can you promise me that?”

   “If you can promise me that you’ll get the French police to go easy on him.”

   “I promise,” he said quietly, as she closed her eyes.

CHAPTER
18

Early the next morning, having spent the night with Nicole for the first time in more than twenty-five years, Carter was sitting at the kitchen table as she made them some coffee. She took the coffee to the table and sat down as Carter took her hand in his and looked into her eyes.

   “There’s something I want to ask you,” he said and Nicole looked at him enquiringly. “We have been apart for far too long and I don’t want to lose you again.”

   Carter paused trying to gauge what reaction he was going to get to the suggestion he was about to make.

   “Why don’t you come and stay with me for a while, in Belize?” he asked, “It’s a beautiful place and it would give us a chance to get to know each other again.”

   Nicole dragged her hand back and looked away from him, this was not the response he was hoping for and his heart sank.

   “I can’t do that, Carter,” she began, “What about Eloise? She’s due back soon and she’s going to need me to be here.”

   Carter took her hand again and smiled at her. “From what I saw in Port Grimaud, I don’t think you have to worry too much about Eloise,” he said and Nicole smiled back but her smile was weaker than Carter would have liked. He decided to press on. “Just say you’ll think about it. OK?”

   “OK, I promise I’ll think about it,” she said and Carter sensed that there was a chance that she would go along with his suggestion; a chance that after all the time that had passed, they could, at last, be together.

_________________________

   As Carter and Conrad flew back to Nice, Carter recalled the way the case had worked out. The spur-of-the-moment decision to follow Anna had been inspired and Carter was proud of himself. And yet she had nearly got away with it. The tiny fact of the email address she was using being on her husband’s company’s Internet server had nearly saved her; it had certainly embarrassed Carter. It was with some satisfaction that he had heard from Harris that Dimitri had told the police everything in exchange for a guarantee that he would not be sent back to Russia where, almost certainly, he would have finished up in a Siberian prison camp.

   He had explained how the scientists at the scientific institute where he worked had developed the CVD process to its ultimate conclusion, the production of large gem quality diamonds; he had explained how, as head of administration, he had managed to increase production of these diamonds without anyone noticing and he had explained how he had systematically diverted the increased production into his own hands.

   There was still a lot of work to be done bringing all the threads of the investigation together so that a cast iron case could be prepared before Anna’s trial started, and there was also the matter of the charges relating to the murders of Antoine and Yvonne, not to mention the massive fraud which had been perpetrated on unsuspecting jewellery buyers.

   But Carter would leave all of that to be sorted out by the British and French police; he had done what he had been brought in to do. He had traced the source of the synthetic diamonds, and now it was time for him to bow out. All that remained for him to do before going home to Belize was to return to France and ensure that the French police had all the information and evidence they needed from him although, for Nicole’s sake, Carter also wanted to make sure that Philippe was given a fair hearing.

   After the plane had landed at Nice airport, Carter and Conrad came out of the airport building and got into a taxi.

   “Sainte Maxime, s’il vous plait,” said Carter to the taxi driver, followed by, “Le Gendarmerie.”

   As they drove along the road to Sainte Maxime, Carter decided that he should make sure that Philippe was being watched. He wanted to help him if he could but he was acutely aware that the French police were still unaware of Philippe’s involvement; a call to Le Grande had confirmed that Jacques had yet to be formally interviewed by the police and that apart from giving them a description of the man who had got away from the farmhouse, he had told them nothing. If Philippe were to suddenly disappear now, Carter would have a lot of explaining to do and his explanations would probably not be acceptable to the French police. He decided to give Conrad the job of watching Philippe.

   “After we get to the Gendarmerie,” he began, “Could you go on to Port Grimaud and keep an eye on Philippe. I’d like to be sure that we know where he is at all times. He’s quite capable of disappearing without trace.”

   Conrad nodded and when the taxi pulled up outside the police station in Sainte Maxime, he stayed in the car. After Carter had got out, Conrad instructed the driver, “Continuez a Port Grimaud, s’il vous plait,” and the car pulled away as Carter approached the entrance to the Gendarmerie and went in.

   Half an hour later, Carter was sitting opposite Inspecteur Le Grande in his office and was concluding his summary of the case with an evaluation of Philippe’s involvement.

   “Philippe was involved but he was a pawn, a partner of convenience for no other reason than he owned a diamond mine, something which made it easier to hide the source of the diamonds. He had nothing to do with the murders, that was down to someone else. It was almost certainly someone he was involved with, but it wasn’t him.”

   “Monsieur Lacoste, for all his power and influence, cannot escape all responsibility for what has happened,” responded Le Grande, “And there is still the matter of the stolen diamonds. We will pick him up and talk to him. If he tells us everything and we can arrest all the people involved, we may be able to do a deal.”

   Carter nodded as Le Grande rose from his desk and went to the door of his office. He opened it and called a uniformed police officer over to him.

   “Bring in Philippe Lacoste, we need to talk to him,” he said.

    The uniformed officer nodded before turning away and gesturing to two of his colleagues to accompany him. Le Grande turned back to face Carter and held out his hand.

   “A bientot, Monsieur Jefferson. I will keep you informed.”

   Carter rose from his seat and took Le Grande’s hand.

   “Thank you, Inspecteur. A bientot.”

_________________________

   While Carter was busy talking to Inspecteur Le Grande, a small inflatable dinghy, barely big enough to hold its two occupants, bumped gently into the bows of the Esprit de Jacques. Silently, Henri pulled himself up onto the deck of the boat, making sure that he could not be seen from the Capitainerie by the gendarme who had been sent to watch the boat. Gilles passed him a large bag and then followed him onto the boat. By the time he too was on deck, Henri had forced the plastic hatch above the forward stateroom. The superstructure of the boat hid him from the people on the quay as he dropped the bag onto the bed below and then slid himself quietly through the hole. Behind him, Gilles followed, though he found it more difficult to squeeze his larger frame through the small opening.