The Copse Corpse
Part nine
The trip was quicker this time as there had not been any stops along the way. It was eleven o'clock when they got there and the silence in the car had become unbearable for both of them. They wanted to get out of the car. The silence in both of them was for different reasons. Maddy was silent because she wanted to know what had happened to Michael and Jonathan was silent because he wanted to get the whole thing off his chest and receive himself of the burden.
Maddy walked over to the speakerphone and pushed the button for Helen's apartment. She had rang her on the way there and she was ready. Helen opened the door for them without even having to speak to them. Jonathan and Maddy climbed the stairs slowly. They where, after all, still tired from the night before and neither of them was looking forward to the next hour, for whatever reasons.
When they got to 3C, the door was already open and the smell of breakfast was escaping from the kitchen. Maddy entered first followed by Jonathan who closed the door behind him. They enter cautiously and found Helen on the couch reading the daily rag and consuming what seemed to be a large plate of toast. As she heard footsteps she turned her head.
"Hi Mad. Jonathan. I thought I'd make us some breakfast. By the sound of you this morning, you hadn't eaten. Sit down and pour yourself a cup of tea. Help yourself to the toast. there's plenty more." Just as she said that, the toaster sprang with another four slices of fresh, brown toast. "What seems to be the problem. It's a bit early for a social call." Maddy put the report on the table. "Listen Helen. Jonathan has found out who killed Michael. He wants to discuss it. He wanted to talk to us together." Helen sat up from the couch and put the half eaten piece of toast back on the plate. Jonathan stood up and walked around to the back of the chair where Maddy was sitting.
"Before I start I'd like to ask Helen a question." "Fire away." "Helen, are you diabetic?" Helen looked a bit surprised. "No. Why?" "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to clear something up before I disclose the solution." Maddy turned to face Jonathan as did Helen.
"When I read the report, it came to my attention that Michael did in fact have a large amount of alcohol in his system when he died. Is that true?" "Of course. But it can't be. When the police officer told Maddy and I, we couldn't believe it." Jonathan walked around so that his back was now facing the large window. "So how do you think it got there?" Helen thought for a bit. "I presume that the murderer must have spiked his drink or forced him to drink something." Jonathan did a little hum. "What if I was to say that the alcohol in his body is the remainder of an alcohol based sedative that was injected into his body by someone he knew." Maddy and Helen both looked shocked. "Well who was it and how did they do it? And how do you know?" Maddy was beginning to become agitated again.
"We'll start at the beginning. Helen, can I presume that about six weeks ago you and Michael had an argument that got a little bit out of hand." Helen couldn't tell a lie. "That's true. How do you know?" "On that table there is a dust ring where a vase once stood. When I was here the other day. there was a splinter of glass on the floor. It must have come from the vase that you attempted to throw at Michael. Please stop me if I'm getting it wrong." Maddy and Helen looked at each other but did not speak. Since when has Jonathan been wrong, Maddy thought. How about never.
"During your argument you realised that Michael was deciding to sell his business and move abroad. But you didn't want to go. I found that out by looking at the flight tickets in the top draw of your bedside table." Helen was extremely surprised. "How dare you rumble through MY private things! That is an invasion of privacy." "Yes, Helen, I know but it found the solution to the puzzle didn't it." Maddy had had enough. "Jonathan are you going to tell us who killed Michael?" Jonathan took a deep breath. "Maddy, you won't want to hear this. It was Helen." Maddy was silent. She really was lost for words. Helen turned to look at Maddy. She didn't know what to say. "Maddy. You don't realise why I did it. I had to." Helen reached out an arm to Maddy. Maddy swung at it and nearly knocked Helen from the chair. "Don't touch me. How can you be all pally with me. All those tears, all that grief. It was all lies. You can't seriously believe that I would want to know you after this." She turned to Jonathan. "I don't want to hear this from that heartless bitch. I want you to tell me how she did it."
Jonathan took another deep breath. "After the realisation of her loss, Helen decided to show Michael a lesson. She stole a bottle of sedative from the hospital, along with a syringe and a needle. She made sure that the sedative was invisible when injected into the body. When he came home that evening you waited till he got into the bath and then sneaked in and injected the sedative into his heel. I discovered this when I read the report and found an unusual scar had been discovered on the base of his foot, near the ankle." Helen became agitated. "Why did you ask me if I had diabetes?" Jonathan wandered around to the other side of the couch and looked down at Maddy. She was just about keeping the tears in. "When I went to the bathroom, I noticed a used syringe in the waste paper bin. A bit of a silly place to leave it, isn't it?" Helen shrugged her shoulders. "When he was sedated you managed to drag him out of the bath and into the living room. That is how all the mess was caused. As you put him down on the sofa, you fell back and knocked another table over. That sent all of the magazines flying and smashed a plate that had been left their. You then dressed him and dragged him downstairs." Helen spoke again. "And that wasn't the easiest thing to do. Michael weighs enough to give anyone a bad back. I nearly broke my neck twice, falling down the stairs." Maddy gave a scowling look in the direction of Helen. "Anyway, when you'd done that, you sat him in the passenger seat of the car and drove out of the marina." Maddy got up. "I need a drink. Not just this crap." She dropped the cup she was holding. Tea and pottery scattered all over the floor but no one flinched. Maddy walked over to the drinks cabinet and proceeded to pour herself and Jonathan a very large whiskey. She ignored Helen and passed the drink to Jonathan. he took a sip, let Maddy sit down and continued.
"After driving around for a while you realised there was a wood a few miles away which lead onto a park. You drove there and parked the car between a few trees. If you look at the wheels of your car at the front, there is still some mud on the trims." Maddy put her glass down. "Just get on with it Jonathan. I want to get out of here." "Alright. You then dumped the body in the trees and drove back as quick as possible. The sedative would only work for eight hours and you had to think of something quick. When you got back, you proceeded to search for something that might help you think of something. While emptying a few draws, you found a piece of paper in an envelope. It was Michael's will. You read it and found out that if he died, you would get everything from the sports car to the business. You then put it with the flight tickets and shoved them in the draw where I found them. You then got on the phone." Helen wasn't happy. "You really are a bastard aren't you?" Jonathan just looked at her. "You called your friend from the hospital, who you knew had a gun. You asked if you could borrow it and, by making a few sordid suggestions, managed to manipulate him into giving you the gun. He brought it over and sent him away with a sort of I.O.U." Maddy looked disgusted. "You then drove back to the woods and shot him, then place the gun into Michael's hand, unfortunately you didn't think ahead. You put the gun in the wrong hand. Your hospital friend is at the police station right now under the suspicion of murder." Helen looked at the floor, may be from embarrassment but may be from revengeful fulfilment.
"When you came back to the apartment, you went to bed and awoke in the morning, thinking of something to avoid suspicion. You thumbed through your phone book and came across Maddy. Your closest friend. If anyone would protect you from danger, Maddy would. You packed an overnight case and went straight there. You persuaded Maddy to call the police. You even fooled her with all those tears. Perhaps you should consider the pain you've put Maddy through. If anything, the money may have meant nothing to you. You could have done it out of spite, to Maddy. You knew she liked Michael just as much as you." He picked up the glass from the table and drained the last mouthful from the bottom. Maddy did the same. They got up and made there way to the door. As it opened, the police inspector from the station darted in and grabbed Helen by the wrist. As she was dragged to the door, she leaned over and whispered something in Maddy's her. She turned her head away and Helen was lead to the car downstairs.
Jonathan put his arm around Maddy. "Are you alright?" Maddy walked off, leaving Jonathan with his arm around an invisible outline. "How could you tell me something like that? You can walk home." She sped down the stairs and, before Jonathan could reach the door, had started the engine and drove away. Jonathan knew it wasn't going to be a cheap ride home.
Part Ten
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