An Act of Evil Read online

  Taylor shrugged. He clearly wasn’t certain.

  ‘Bring them to my office, anyway,’ Angel said. ‘I want to see for myself. And look after that mirror,’ he said, pointing to the dressing table. ‘I’ll want that taking to the station. Preserve that at all costs.’

  ‘Oh yes, sir.’ Taylor said. He had already anticipated that he would want that.

  ‘Where’s the bathroom?’

  Taylor went out of the bedroom, along the landing and turned right into the room next door. Angel followed.

  ‘There is a trail of blood on the carpet,’ Taylor said.

  ‘In both directions?’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘So we can take it he wasn’t familiar with the layout of the house?’

  ‘Looks like it.’

  The bathroom was a large room. It had plastic covering on the floor.

  ‘Where is the blood?’

  ‘There’s a trail of blood to this sink. He’s run both taps. There were traces of pink, as you’d expect. He didn’t use the soap.’

  Angel turned and looked at the towel rail. There were two towels folded neatly across the heated rails. There was room for several more.

  ‘He didn’t use those towels either.’

  ‘I suppose there could have been three towels there, Don?’

  ‘Yes. Or more, sir.’

  ‘I’ll see if his daughter knew.’ He remembered she was downstairs waiting for him. ‘I’ll have to go,’ he said and made for the door. ‘I’ll come back.’

  Mac, who had been standing patiently by the bathroom door, said, ‘All right to move the body now, Michael?’

  ‘Yes, Mac. Thank you.’

  Angel went out of the bedroom and down the stairs.

  Mr and Mrs Krill were still in the drawing room. They stood up when he went into the room. Kathleen Krill looked very pale. Angel thought that shock was now telling on her.

  ‘Sorry to keep you,’ he said. ‘Please sit down.’ He turned to Mrs Krill. ‘I won’t keep you much longer today, but...something has cropped up. Is there anybody in the family, or that your father knew, whose name begins with the letter V?’

  Mrs Krill thought a moment, then looked at her husband. ‘Do we know anybody, Cyril, whose name begins with V?’

  He looked vague and shook his head.

  They both turned to Angel.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘Can’t think of anybody. Is it important?’

  ‘It might be. It’s incorporated in the phrase, "V to go", daubed on the mirror up there. Does that mean anything at all to you?’

  Mrs Krill gasped. The whites of her eyes grew bigger. The murderer left a...a message on a mirror?’ she said.

  ‘I am afraid so, Mrs Krill.’

  She shook her head, found a tissue and wiped her nose.

  Krill looked at her and his manner suddenly became assertive. He was no longer interested in the questions. He stood up, reached himself up to his full height and said, ‘We really need to be on our way. My wife needs to rest.’ He took a business card out of his pocket and passed it to Angel. ‘My private address and telephone number are on this, if you need to get in touch with us. I will take Kathleen home in my car, and collect hers later.’

  ‘Very well,’ Angel said. ‘Thank you, sir.’

  Krill pushed his wife gently through the door and followed close behind.

  Angel turned away, looked down at the business card, read it and then pushed it into his pocket. He wasn’t happy with the way things were developing. He rubbed his hand across his mouth thoughtfully.

  DS Carter peered through the door.

  ‘Ah, there you are, sir,’ she said brightly and bounced into the room like a teenager just out of school.

  He looked up and frowned. He wasn’t pleased. ‘Did anybody see anything, sergeant?’ he said sharply.

  She realized that she was at variance with the sombreness of the occasion; it took her a second or two to make the correction.

  ‘No, sir,’ she said. ‘Nobody saw an intruder or a man with a ladder or anything suspicious the last few days.’

  Angel grunted. That was the last thing he wanted to hear. ‘Without exception, everybody spoke very well of Mr Redman,’ Carter said. ‘The lady next door, a widow, who is in her seventies, was particularly upset. She lives on her own and they had become quite friendly.’

  Angel took in what Carter had said. He explained the writing on the mirror to her and then said, ‘Go back to the neighbour and ask her if she knows anybody or anything beginning with "V" or what "V to go," might mean.’

  ‘Right, sir,’ she said and dashed off.

  He looked at his watch. It was almost eleven o’clock. He reached into his pocket for his mobile and tapped in the CID office number. Ahmed answered.

  ‘I asked you to find DS Crisp for me. He hasn’t shown.’

  ‘He must be on his way, sir. I had some difficulty finding him but he should be with you by now.’

  ‘Well he isn’t, lad, and I want him here.’

  ‘He was out dealing with a market vendor who had some bed sheets stolen.’

  ‘Chase him up for me. This is a murder inquiry, and the crime scene’s getting cold.’

  Angel heard the closing of the front door.

  ‘Hold on a minute, Ahmed.’

  Angel went out into the hall. His eyes met those of a handsome young man in a smart suit. It was DS Crisp.

  Angel glared at him. ‘Where the hell have you been?’ he said. ‘I can never get hold of you when I need you.’

  Crisp affected a look of childlike innocence. It was his speciality, but Angel was well aware of it. ‘I didn’t know we were on a murder shout, sir,’ he said. ‘I was taken up with a shoplifting case in town.’

  Angel was exasperated beyond measure, but with Crisp it was a waste of time. He ran his hand through his hair and said, ‘Come in here.’

  Crisp followed him into the drawing room and glanced round. ‘Very nice, sir. I wouldn’t mind living here.’

  Angel pointed to a chair and Crisp flopped into it.

  Angel’s grip on the mobile tightened. ‘Are you still there, Ahmed? He’s arrived, at long last! There’s something I want you to do. There are a couple of people...Cyril Krill and his wife, Kathleen Krill aka Kathleen Redman. Look them up. See if they’re known to us and ring me back.’

  Angel cancelled the mobile and dropped it into his pocket. He looked at Crisp. ‘Did you hear what I said to Ahmed, lad?’

  ‘A couple of suspects, sir. Husband and wife. Cyril and Kathleen Krill aka Kathleen Redman.’

  ‘They’re not exactly suspects. Up to now, they’re witnesses. We haven’t any suspects.’

  ‘So we’re scratching about, sir?’

  ‘That’s exactly it, so I want you to find out what you can about her, Kathleen Krill. She’s the daughter of the dead man. She went to see her daughter at Rosehill Academy, Weeton on the Water, Gloucestershire, this last weekend. Find out when she went and when she came back. Also find out what you can about her marriage to Cyril. He’s a builder and property developer in Sheffield.’

  ‘Right, sir. And do you want me to check out the husband, while I’m about it?’

  ‘No. I’m getting Carter to do that.’

  Crisp’s eyebrows went up. ‘Oh, DS Carter’s arrived then? What’s he like?’

  Angel wrinkled his nose. ‘Different,’ he said. ‘Now push off lad and crack on with it.’

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