âShe lost her temper with him and hit him over the head with a blunt instrument!' Evangeline was in her element, the better half of
The Happy Couple
doing her stuff again. âThen she searched the files for any import/export documents he might have kept that would have incriminated her. At some point, she realized that most of the stuffed specimens in the shop were just as incriminating as any papers, so she set fire to the place.'
âI think it's time we went along to the station.' Thursby was not comfortable with audience participation. He nodded to the constables, who closed in on Soroya. âWe have a lot more questions still to ask.'
âHow could you?' I had one of my own for Soroya. âWhen you rifled those files in the office, you must have seen her. How could you have run away and left poor little Cho-Cho-San to burn alive?'
âI refuse to say another word until I have a lawyer present!' Soroya's mouth snapped shut and stayed that way.
âWell, you're not getting mine,' Eddie said. “E's too good for you.'
It was a relief to get back to the flat in Docklands. Even though it had its drawbacks and we were going to have to leave it shortly, it felt like home. A refuge, however temporary, from the world. Eddie had wanted to return to London and his interrupted life immediately and we had had no hesitation about going with him.
Now we were lounging in front of the glass wall, the riverscape stretched out below us, the clouds turning pink in the glow of the setting sun. On the coffee table, Superintendent Thursby's roses were unfolding, exuding a delicious fragrance.
I made a mental note to gather a handful of the petals when they began to fade and add them to the bottle of white wine vinegar for an exotic flavour. Exotic â I didn't want to think about that.
âAnyway,' I said, âFrou-Frou was a great success. Eventually.' Cho-Cho lounged beside me, safely mine. Soroya couldn't take her where she was going â even if she had wanted her â and a quick telephone conversation with an obliging Teddy had settled the custody question in my favour. I realized that probably meant that I'd have custody of Teddy, as well, at least part-time, but you can't win âem all.
âSoroya must have been frantic to dispose of the body,' Evangeline said, âbut she couldn't get the chance with Cecile drama-queening around at all hours of the day and night. So the best thing she could think of to do was to pretend that she thought any unknown female was the
new housekeeper. She thought that would establish the fact that she believed the housekeeper was still alive somewhere.'
âAnd those broken stairs had never been a trap set for Matilda or anyone else,' I chimed in. âSoroya sabotaged them and removed the light bulb after she had impulsively killed her newly discovered stepdaughter. Since she couldn't get rid of the body, she wanted it to look like an accident when it was discovered.'
âI'm not so sure the killing was impulsive,' Evangeline said. âSoroya was so paranoid, she was probably afraid the woman might make some claim on Gervaise's estate â '
âWhich existed only in her imagination,' I sighed.
âExactly. The house belonged to Matilda alone â and she could prove it. Gervaise had nothing to leave.'
âExcept a heap of trouble for poor Matilda.'
âOh, well, look on the bright side,' Evangeline said heartlessly. âSoroya won't have any housing problems from now on. One murder and she might possibly have got a light sentence, but two makes it look as though it was getting to be a habit.'
âThat might even be true,' I said. âIf Matilda had died without making a will, then Soroya could have claimed to be her next-of-kin and inherited the house and everything else. And I wouldn't give much for Teddy's chances, either, if Soroya was really getting into the swing of murder.'
âNo, even if she plea-bargained with what she knows about the endangered species smuggling â '
The doorbell cut Evangeline off. We looked at each other. We weren't expecting company. Tomorrow, Martha and Jocasta were going to come over early and we were going to spend the whole day cooking up a storm. But tonight was scheduled to be a quiet evening at home.
âPerhaps Martha is bringing over some extra supplies,' I said. âI'll answer it.' Cho-Cho followed me down the hallway, she didn't want to miss anything.
âYes? What is it?
Uuurk
!' I opened the door to find myself nose-to-beak with an overgrown feathered monstrosity.
Cho-Cho-San took one look, hit high C and skittered back down the hallway, fur bristling.
âWhat is it?' I repeated faintly, refusing to believe what I was seeing.
âAh! Trixie! It's Evangeline's investment.' Now I noticed Nigel, standing beside it, tethered to it by some kind of leash. âI told her I'd see to it that she didn't lose,' he said proudly.
âAn ostrich.' I identified it weakly. Several earlier incidents began to make sense. The feather boa ⦠the steaks ⦠âYou tied Evangeline's money up in an ostrich farm. A failed ostrich farm!'
âAh, but the assets didn't disappear. Not like dotcoms. These assets are salvageable. I got her share out before the receivers moved in.'
âAn ostrich,' I choked. âYou salvaged an ostrich for Evangeline.' The thing stared at me balefully.
âAh! Not
an
ostrich.' He was wounded. âI just brought Desdemona up to show you because she's the tamest.'
âShe's tame?' The thing raised one foot and stamped it. Then the rest of what he had said registered. âThe tamest?'
âAh! That's right.' He beamed with triumph. âI promised her she wouldn't lose â and I kept my promise. There are sixteen more downstairs.'
âSixteen â¦'
âTrixie!' Evangeline appeared at the end of the hallway. âWho is it? What's the matter with the cat? She's hiding under the sofa. What is it?'
âEvangeline â ' I croaked weakly. âIt's for you.'