Deadly Secrets (Detective Erika Foster #6)(53)

‘I just need a few minutes of your time.’

He stood to one side and she came indoors. He took her through to the kitchen, and she saw Jeanette staggering down the stairs, wrapped in a huge purple towelling robe with a towel over her wet hair. She looked dreadful.

‘Who’s that?’ Jeanette said, through half-closed eyes. Erika introduced herself, but Jeanette didn’t seem to remember her from the day before. They carried on through to the kitchen.

‘I need to ask you a question, about Marissa,’ said Erika in a low voice. Don rushed back to the hob and quickly flipped the eggs over in the pan. He wore dark jeans and a thick brown knitted polo neck, which came up to his chin. Jeanette shuffled in, oblivious of Erika, and took a large bottle of orange juice from the fridge.

‘Do you need me?’ she asked.

‘No. This is just…’ started Erika, but Jeanette was already shuffling off out of the room.

‘Do you want eggs?’ asked Don.

‘No!’ she said. Erika watched as she shuffled down the hall and into the living room. She closed the door, and moments later the television came on. Don sighed and stood over the eggs, pushing them around in the oil. Bread popped up in the toaster and he pulled it out, dropping it onto plates.

‘Do you want her eggs? I’ll only chuck them,’ he said.

Erika hesitated. She was suddenly ravenous, but she stopped herself from accepting. ‘No, thank you. I just came to ask you a couple of questions…’

‘I try to get her to eat, but she gets most of her calories from alcohol. It’s given her this huge belly, and these two tiny stick legs.’

‘My mother was an alcoholic,’ said Erika.

‘Is she?’

‘No, was. She died, a long time ago. She was never violent, but she was belligerent and she made life difficult.’

Don nodded. His eyes were sad and dark, and he had black circles under them. He started to butter the toast.

‘What do you want to ask me?’

‘You said you saw Marissa on Christmas Eve, at Brockley station?’

‘Yeah. When Jeanette… had words with her, shall we say.’

‘Do you remember if Marissa was wearing earrings? They would have stood out, they were real diamond earrings.’

Don scooped the eggs out of the pan and placed two on his toast.

‘Real diamonds? Where would she get real diamond earrings from?’

‘I can’t go into details. Was she wearing earrings on Christmas Eve?’

‘She had no shortage of admirers. I’m sure she was able to convince some poor mug to buy her expensive jewellery.’

‘Don. Please, really think. What was she wearing when you saw her at the station? Break it down.’

‘All I can remember is that she wore a long black coat.’

‘What about her hair and make-up?’

‘She was done up. Er, she had those false eyelashes on… I can’t remember if she wore any earrings.’

‘Can I ask Jeanette?’

‘I doubt she’ll remember.’

‘It’s important to my case.’

Don put the plate down on the table. Erika followed him into the living room. Jeanette was lying on the sofa. Her wet hair hung limply down, half over her face. She was watching morning TV, with the sound up high.

‘Jeanette. She wants to talk to you,’ said Don, raising his voice. He went back to the kitchen and left them alone.

Jeanette eyeballed Erika from behind her wet hair. ‘What?’

‘I need to ask you a question?’

‘Go on then.’

‘Can you turn down the TV?’ Jeanette made a sulky show of muting it. ‘Thank you. You and Don saw Marissa Lewis on Christmas Eve.’

‘That whore,’ she spat.

‘Can you remember if she wore any jewellery?’

‘I couldn’t see her tits – for once – she had a thick coat buttoned up over her cleavage. But she was wearing earrings.’

‘What kind?’

She shrugged. ‘White gemstones, little studs.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Completely sure,’ she said, her eyes not leaving the TV.

‘How can you be so sure?’ asked Erika.

Jeanette turned to her. ‘Cos I was thinking about ripping them out of her ears, and how much it would hurt,’ she said.

Erika wished she had a photo of the diamond earrings to show her.

‘Would you say the earrings were real diamonds?’

‘I doubt they were real.’

‘But would you know real diamonds if you saw them?’

‘Do I look like the kind of woman who knows real diamonds?’ she said, bitterly.

Erika didn’t need to answer. She looked around the room and noticed a long black coat spread over a clothes airer. It was in front of the lit gas fire, and steaming lightly.

‘Is that Don’s coat?’

‘Who else’s coat did you think it was?’

‘Has he been out today?’

‘I dunno. Probably went to get milk. Are you done with your questions?’

‘Yes. Thank you.’

Jeanette unmuted the TV, and the sound boomed out again.



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