Free Rope Enough (The Romney and Marsh Files Book 1) by Oliver Tidy Page A

closed patio doors that led to the balcony beyond and from which Claire Stamp had plunged to her death. ‘That’s two things that give me hope this isn’t a suicide.’
    ‘I’ll tell you a third, sir. When I was having my chat with her last night, she was making plans. She might have been sitting on a bench on the seafront in the middle of winter in the dark, but she wasn’t there thinking about walking into the sea. I’d swear to that.’
    ‘You might have to.’
    ‘She told me that Avery had been physical with her. That’s when she showed me the marks around her neck. She said that was it for her. He’d told her to get out anyway. She was thinking of going to stay in Blackpool with her sister.’
    ‘You’re sure she wasn’t just telling you what was necessary to get rid of you? Maybe you had stumbled on her as she was going to do away with herself in the Channel and she changed her mind and came back here to do it anyway.’
    ‘No, sir. She didn’t strike me as the least bit suicidal.’
    ‘Well, if she didn’t jump then she was pushed. And who could have pushed her?’
    ‘Anyone.’
    ‘True, but why? There’s always got to be a bloody good reason for something like that. Why would anyone want to push her, throw her off the fourth floor? Who would have the motive and the opportunity?’
    ‘Avery?’
    ‘Naturally, he’d be my first choice. Perhaps she had something on him that she’d be able to screw some money out of him over.’
    ‘She told me that he had agreed to give her some money.’
    ‘How much?’
    ‘Didn’t say, but I got the impression she wasn’t worried about funds. Maybe he changed his mind while she was out.’
    ‘So maybe he had the motive, but did he have the opportunity? I’m not talking about access to the flat, we know that. I’m talking about was he down at The Castle smashing immigrants’ skulls, or, worse still, already under arrest?’
    A long moment’s silence was enough depressing contemplation for Romney. ‘Come on then,’ he said. ‘Let’s have a good look round. We’ll keep an open mind on how she got down there. You know what we’re looking for specifically: suicide note, sign of a struggle.’ He broke off. ‘I don’t suppose?’ He fished a pen out of his pocket and moving to the patio doors used it to apply pressure on the handle. The door began an easy slide. ‘Too much to hope it’d be locked.’ He slid it shut again looking through the glass at the balcony. ‘Best let SOCO have a look out there before we go traipsing around.’
    After a cursory look around the lounge the pair moved off and began their search of the rest of the apartment. It was understood between them both that what they were looking for in the other rooms was anything of an illegal nature that could be linked with Avery.
    They met again in the corridor a few minutes minutes later. Neither had uncovered anything notable.
    ‘Right,’ said Romney. ‘I’ll get back to the station, find out the timings for last night’s unfolding events. I’ll send Grimes over here. I want you two to interview as many of the neighbours as you can find. Place like this, someone must have seen something. Wait for Grimes and then start with the caretaker.’
    ‘Sir?’
    ‘What?’
    ‘Claire Stamp’s testimony. Of the rape.’
    He thought for a moment. ‘Well that’s gone now hasn’t it? Where did you lose it?’
    ‘It was on the front seat of my car when I stopped to talk to her on the seafront.’
    ‘Have you reported it?’
    She shook her head. ‘The car wasn’t locked.’ Romney’s face maintained a blank look. ‘I came back to the vehicle after I’d had a cuppa with her, and it was gone.’
    ‘Anything else missing?’
    ‘Some change.’
    ‘I can see why you wouldn’t want to report it. Not a great advert for car security, are you?’
    ‘No, sir. I’m sorry.’
    Despite deserving to have a strip torn off her for both her lax example and the loss of the testimony, Romney