Wexford 8 - Some Lie & Some Die by Ruth Rendell

Author:Ruth Rendell [Rendell, Ruth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2011-09-07T04:00:00+00:00

John Burden was at home and already in bed, having left a note for his father to tell him that Pat would be staying the night with her aunt. The key had been left under a flowerpot, which shocked the policeman in Burden while the father showed a fatuous pride in his son’s forethought. He removed the Vedast L.P. from the turntable and closed the record player.

‘One of these songs,’ he said, ‘is called “Whistle and I’ll come to you, my love”.’

‘Very appropriate,’ Wexford glanced at the record sleeve.

‘He must have written that for the Tates’ theme song.’

‘My God, yes. Why do they put up with it?’

‘She for love, he for money. Both for the reflected glory. He hit the nail right on the head when he said “Goffo” would have killed Dawn if he’d told him to. They’d do anything for him. “Being your slave, what should I do but tend upon the hours and times of your desire?” It’s not just love and money and glory, but the power of the man’s personality. It’s sinister, it’s most unpleasant. In a set-up of this kind that alibi goes for nothing. An alibi supported by slaves is no alibi. The Romans in their heyday were very chary about admitting slaves’ evidence.’

Burden chuckled. ‘I daresay you’re right, Caesar. How did he know he needed an alibi for the sixth of June, anyway? We didn’t tell him.’

‘Mrs Stonor or Mrs Peckham may have told him. There was something about it in the papers, about our thinking that the probable date of her death. I don’t really suppose he’s involved at all. He likes playing with us, that’s all. He likes sailing near the wind. Above all, he enjoys frightening the others.’

Wexford added in the words of the Duke of Wellington: ‘ “By God, he frightens me!” ‘

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