Free MURDER BRIEF by Mark Dryden

at straws."
    Robyn knew he was right. Richard
Olsen, whoever he was, probably had nothing to do with Alice’s
death. But she had no other leads and was quite curious to know his
real identity. "Maybe. But Rex doesn’t have to prove that
someone else murdered Alice. He just has to create a reasonable
doubt."
    Grimble nodded. "True."
    Robyn got to her feet. "Well,
thank you. You’ve been very helpful. Do you mind if I speak to
Beverley Nolan?"
    Grimble frowned and nodded
reluctantly. "No. It’s a free country. Let me introduce you."
    He led Robyn down the short
corridor and stepped into a small, cluttered office. At a desk,
reading a galley proof, was a thin woman in her mid-thirties with a
blonde page-boy haircut, pert features and turbulent eyes. She gave
Robyn a probing stare.
    Grimble said: "Bev, this is
Robyn Parker, one of Rex Markham’s barristers. She wants to chat
with you, if you’ve got time."
    Beverley Nolan folded a wary
gaze into a tense smile. "Sure. No problem."
    Grimble hesitated and shrugged.
"Alright then, I’ll leave you two alone."
    As he disappeared, Beverley
Nolan took some books off the only other chair and asked Robyn to
sit.
    Once seated, Robyn nodded
towards the galley proof. "Interesting book?"
    "Hardly. It’s a gardening
manual."
    "So you don’t only work with
novelists?"
    Beverley grimaced. "No. In fact,
I usually handle our non-fiction writers. They write cookbooks,
gardening manuals, self-help books, travel guides, biographies and
stuff like that. Hugh and Alice usually handled the novelists."
    "You're busy?"
    "Not really."
    "Why not?"
    "Because the book industry ain’t
what it used to be: publishers are disappearing; book shops are
closing; everybody is publishing on-line and digital piracy is
rife. It’s a bold new world in which literary agents probably won’t
even have bit parts."
    Robyn noticed a framed
photograph of Tim Nolan on the desk. "You know, I’ve met your
husband, Tim."
    "Really?"
    "Yes. He was with Rex when we
all visited the murder scene."
    Beverley nodded. "Oh, yes,
that’s right. Tim went along to support Rex. They’re good
friends."
    "How’d that come about?"
    "Because Alice and I were close,
Tim and Rex kept bumping into each other, and eventually became
good mates."
    "Are you close to Rex?"
    Beverley shook her head. "Not
really. We’ve never hit it off."
    "Why not?"
    A shrug. "I’ve always found him
a bit arrogant, I suppose. And he used to bully Alice and criticize
her in public, which I couldn’t stand." Beverley smiled. "In fact,
I don’t even like his novels."
    "Why not?"
    Beverley smiled. "I think he
tries too hard to imitate Le Carre, but only proves he’s nowhere
near as good as The Master."
    "Ouch."
    Beverley smiled. "You
asked."
    "Yes, I did. But your opinion of
him didn’t affect your friendship with Alice?"
    "Oh, no. We were very close.
Told each other everything."
    Robyn felt a hint of excitement.
Beverley was just the sort of person who might have vital
information. "You talked about her marriage?"
    "Oh, yes, and I had a ring-side
seat when it fell apart. They agreed to divorce. Did you know that?
They even started talking - or rather, arguing - about dividing up
their assets. Alice thought he was trying to hide his money and rip
her off."
    "And she wanted to stop
that?"
    "Of course."
    "Rex thinks she was having an
affair. That true?"
    Beverley bit her lip and looked
out the window at the patchy grey sky. "I’d rather not
comment."
    Robyn interpreted that as a big
"yes". She edged forward on her chair. "I’m afraid you must. Rex
has been charged with murder. So if you’ve got any information -
any at all - that might save him, you should tell me. I know you
don't like him. But you wouldn’t want that on your conscience."
    Beverley hesitated. "OK. But if
I tell you what I know, it’s off the record, right? You won’t tell
anyone - including Rex - that I told you?"
    Robyn couldn’t honestly promise
that, but was desperate for the