Hawk & Fisher h&f-1 Read online

"Are you aware of the penalties for refusing to cooperate with the Guard during an investigation?" asked Fisher.

  "Of course," said Bowman. "I am doing my best to cooperate, Captain Fisher. I've answered every question you've asked me."

  "All right," said Hawk. "That's all for now. Wait in the parlor with the others, and send in Dorimant."

  Bowman nodded briefly to them both, rose unhurriedly to his feet and left the library, closing the door quietly behind him.

  "Politicians," said Hawk disgustedly. "Getting answers to questions is like pulling teeth. The trouble is, technically he's in the right. He did answer all our questions; we just didn't know the right questions to ask him. We can't come flat out and accuse him of bedding his employer's wife. Firstly, he'd deny it anyway, and secondly, if by some chance we were wrong, he'd have us thrown out of the Guard."

  "Yeah," said Fisher. "But there's no doubt in my mind. You saw them together;the way they were reacting to each other. It's as clear as the nose on his face. I can't believe Blackstone didn't know. Or at least suspect;"

  Hawk shrugged. "You heard Visage; perhaps he chose not to know. He couldn't risk a divorce, and Bowman was useful to him;"

  "Only as long as Bowman was discreet about it, and in my experience, he's not very subtle when it comes to approaching women."

  Hawk looked at her sharply. "Oh, yes? Do I take it he approached you somewhen this evening?"

  "Yes. I took care of it. I explained that I wasn't interested, and he went away."

  "Just like that?"

  "Pretty much. Oh, I explained that you'd kill him slowly and painfully, and I did have my knife pressed against his gut, but;"

  "Yeah," said Hawk, grinning. "You've always been; persuasive, Isobel."

  "Thank you. To get back to the subject. If Bowman had been indiscreet about his affair with Katherine, and Black-stone got to hear of it;"

  "No man likes to believe the woman he loves doesn't love him anymore," said Hawk. "Older man, younger woman; it's an old story. But even if Katherine and Bowman were having an affair, it doesn't mean they committed the murder. It's not proof."

  "No, but it is a motive. And Katherine was the one who came and told us that something must have happened to her husband;"

  There was a knock on the door, and Dorimant came in. He hesitated in the doorway a moment, as though unsure of his reception, and then stepped quickly into the library and shut the door behind him. Hawk nodded curtly at the empty chair, and Dorimant came forward and sank into it. His face was pale and drawn, and his movements were clumsy, as though some of the strength had gone out of him. But when he finally raised his head to look at Hawk, his mouth was firm and his eyes didn't waver.

  "Did you have much luck with Bowman?" he asked quietly.

  "Some," said Hawk.

  Dorimant smiled harshly. "I'd lay good odds he's already told you one lie. You asked him where he was at the time of the murder, and he said alone in his room. Right? I thought so. He wasn't alone. I saw Katherine go into his room, just after we all came upstairs to change. I was just leaving the bathroom. She didn't see me."

  "Thank you for telling us," said Fisher. "We'll bear it in mind. Now, sir Dorimant, where were you at the time of the murder?"

  "In my room."

  "Alone?"

  "No. Visage was with me."

  Hawk raised an eyebrow. "Now, that's strange," he said slowly. "She told us she was in her room, alone. Why should she lie to us about that?"

  "She wants to protect me," said Dorimant, looking at his hands. "I'm currently separated from my wife, but not yet divorced. The separation is far from amicable, and my dear wife would just love to find some scandal she could use as ammunition against me."

  "So why are you telling us?" said Fisher.

  "To prove I've nothing to hide."

  "You were Blackstone's political adviser," said Hawk. "I've heard a lot about Blackstone's enemies, but so far nobody seems ready to actually name them. How about you?"

  Dorimant shrugged. "It's no secret, Captain Hawk. There's Geoffrey Tobias; he used to represent the Heights in Council before William took his seat away from him at the last election. Then there's the DeWitt brothers; they stand to lose a lot of money if William's bill becomes law. They own property down in the docks. It's in a foul state, and they've neither the money nor the inclination to make the repairs the bill will require. There's Hugh Carnell, the leading conservative on the Council; old and mean and hates change in general and William's changes in particular. I could go on, but why bother? You said yourself earlier on that no one could have got into the house to kill William. The murderer has to be one of us."

  "That's true," said Hawk. "But someone here could be in the pay of one of those enemies."

  "It's possible, I suppose," said Dorimant. He didn't sound too convinced.

  "Let's talk about Katherine and Bowman," said Fisher. "Do you think they're capable of murder?"

  "We're all capable of murder," said Dorimant. "Providing we're pushed hard enough by something we want, or fear. Edward Bowman has had years of being second-in-command to William, and he's always been ambitious. And he knew Katherine would never leave William. She liked the money and the prestige too much, and in her own way, she was always fond of William. Even though she was cheating on him."

  "Let us suppose for a moment," said Hawk, "that Bowman did kill Blackstone. Would Katherine have supported him in that, or would he have to do it on his own, and hope she never found out he was responsible?"

  "I don't know." Dorimant shrugged angrily. "I'm not a mind reader. People can do strange things when they're in love."

  "What about the other guests?" said Fisher. "Is there anyone else in this house with a motive to kill Blackstone?"

  "I don't know about motives," said Dorimant slowly. "I know William had quarreled recently with Adam Stalker."

  "Really?"" said Hawk. "That's interesting. What did they quarrel abut?"

  "I don't know. I don't think anybody knows. Neither of them would talk about it. But it must have been pretty serious. William was very angry about it; I could tell."

  "Anything else you can tell us?" said Fisher.

  "Not really. We all admired William; we all believed in him. And most of us liked him."

  "How did you feel about him?" said Fisher.

  Dorimant looked at her steadily. "William Blackstone was the bravest and finest man I ever met."

  "Thank you," said Hawk. "That will be all for the moment. Please wait in the parlor with the others, and send in Katherine Blackstone."

  Dorimant nodded and got to his feet. He left without looking back.

  "He seemed very eager to lay the blame on Bowman," said Hawk slowly. "Almost too eager."

  "Yeah," said Fisher. "I don't know about you, Hawk, but my head hurts. The more people we see, the more complicated and impossible this case gets. We've got more suspects than we can shake a stick at, and we still haven't got a clue as to how the murder was committed!"

  "Stay with it, lass," said Hawk, smiling in spite of himself. "After all, we've both had experience with Court intrigues in the past, and if we can handle that, we can certainly handle this. Let's face it. Compared to some courtiers we've known, these people are amateurs. Now, how do you feel about Dorimant? He seemed sincere enough."

  "Yeah," said Fisher. "But we've only his word that Visage was with him at the time of the murder. He could be lying."

  "It's possible. But then again, it's not the kind of thing you'd expect him to admit if it wasn't true."

  "Right." Fisher frowned thoughtfully. "And if Dorimant and Visage are having an affair, that takes away Visage's motivation, doesn't it? I mean, she couldn't be having an affair with Dorimant and Blackstone. Could she?"

  "It does seem rather unlikely," said Hawk, "but we don't know that Visage and Dorimant were having an affair. All right, they were both in his room, but Dorimant never actually said why. Perhaps they had some other reason for being there;"

&
nbsp; Fisher groaned. "My head's starting to hurt again;"

  The door opened and Katherine Blackstone came in. She looked pale but composed. She shut the door carefully behind her and glanced quickly round the library, as though searching for some hidden listener. She looked steadily at Hawk and Fisher, and then sank gracefully into the chair before them.

  "Well?" she said harshly. "Who killed my husband?"

  "We're still working on it," said Hawk politely. "Detective work is a slow process, but we usually get there in the end. There are a few questions we need to ask you."

  "All right. Go ahead."

  "Let's start with the events leading up to the murder. You and your husband went upstairs to change for dinner. He went into the bedroom and you went to the bathroom. You came back, and found the door to your room locked. You called to your husband, but couldn't get any reply. You became worried, and went downstairs to fetch Fisher and myself. We went back with you, broke the door in, and found your husband dead. Is that correct?"

  "Yes. That's what happened."

  "Is there anything missing from that account?"

  "No."

  "Did anyone see you, or talk to you, on the landing?"

  "No."

  "It has been suggested," said Fisher carefully, "that you visited Edward Bowman in his room."

  "That's a lie," said Katherine flatly. "I suppose you've also been told that we're having an affair? I thought so. William's enemies have been trying to use that slander against him for years. Who said it this time? Graham? No, he's too loyal to William. Visage. I'll bet it was that simpering bitch Visage. She always had eyes for William, but he hardly even knew she existed. Edward and I have been friends for a long time, but never more than that. I loved my husband, and no one else. And now he's dead, all his enemies will come crawling out of their holes to try and blacken his reputation with the same old lies, in the hope they can destroy what he achieved!"

  "Who do you think killed him?" asked Fisher.

  "I don't know." Katherine suddenly seemed very tired, as though all the defiance had gone out of her along with her angry words. She sat slumped in her chair, her eyes vague and far away. "I can't think straight anymore. William had any number of enemies."

  "Had he quarreled with anyone recently?" asked Fisher.

  Katherine shrugged. "Not that I know of. I know he wasn't too pleased with Adam about something, but it couldn't have been that important. William never said anything about it to me."

  "Who actually invited Stalker to this party?" asked Fisher.

  "I did," said Katherine. "William didn't bother himself with minor matters like that. But he knew Adam would be here. If we hadn't invited him, it would have been a frightful snub."

  "Thank you," said Hawk. "I think that's all for now. Please wait with the others in the parlor, and ask Lord Hightower to come in."

  "Is that it?" said Katherine. "Is that all you wanted to ask me?"

  "For the moment," said Fisher. "There might be a few more questions later."

  Katherine Blackstone nodded slowly, and got up out of her chair. "Find my husband's killer," she said softly. "I don't care how you do it, but find him." She left the library without looking back.

  Hawk scowled unhappily. "If she is lying, she's a very good liar."

  "From what I've heard, she was the finest actress in all Haven," said Fisher. "In her day. She might be a little rusty after so long away from the stage, but a few lies with a straight face shouldn't be beyond her abilities."

  "But what if she is telling the truth?" said Hawk. "Dorimant could have his own reasons for lying."

  "Yes," said Fisher. "He could. But one of the unpleasant truths of murder is that when a man or woman meets a violent end, the wife or the husband is usually the most likely suspect. Katherine could have good reasons for wanting her husband dead. Blackstone might have overlooked his wife's infidelity in the past rather than risk damaging his political career with a scandal, but if the affair got too blatant he'd have to divorce her, or lose all respect. You heard what Dorimant said. Katherine was fond of her husband, but she loved the money and prestige of being a Councilor's wife. As his widow, she could have the money and the prestige, and her lover as well."

  "Right," said Hawk. "And there's a few holes in her story, as well. According to her, she went upstairs, went to the bathroom, came back and found the door locked, and then came down to us. And as you said, between her going up and coming down again there had to be a gap of about twenty minutes. That's a long time in the bathroom; And;if she did bang on the locked door and call out to her husband;how is it that no one else heard her? No one else has mentioned hearing her call out. You'd have thought someone would come out to see what was happening;"

  "Yeah," said Fisher. "Mind you, if you're looking for another front-runner, the one thing that practically everyone agrees on is that Blackstone had a big row with Adam Stalker not long ago."

  "Now that is pushing it," said Hawk. "Adam Stalker; ?"

  The library door suddenly flew open, and Lord and Lady Hightower strode in. Lord Roderik slammed the door shut, and he and his wife stood together facing Hawk and Fisher. Their expressions were openly defiant.

  "I asked to see you alone, my Lord," said Hawk.

  "I don't give a damn what you asked for," said High-tower. "There's nothing you could possibly have to say to me that can't be said in front of my wife."

  "Very well," said Hawk. "Where were you at the time of the murder, my Lord?"

  "In my room. With my wife."

  "Is that right, my Lady?" asked Fisher.

  "Of course," said the Lady Elaine, disdainfully.

  "Thank you," said Hawk. "That will be all for the moment, my Lord and Lady."

  Hightower looked startled for a moment, and then his face was hard and unyielding again. "I demand to know why I was prevented from examining the body. What are you trying to hide from us?"

  "I said that will be all, my Lord," said Hawk politely. "You may rejoin the others in the parlor. And ask Adam Stalker to come in, if you please."

  Hightower glared at him. Hawk met his gaze calmly, and after a moment Hightower turned away. He took his wife by the arm, opened the door for her and led her out. He slammed the door shut behind him, and the sound echoed loudly in the small room. Fisher looked at Hawk.

  "That's all? What about all the other questions we should have asked them?"

  "What was the point?" said Hawk. "They've got each other as an alibi, and Hightower isn't going to volunteer any information to the likes of us. Whatever we ask, he'll just say it's none of our business. If he has anything to say, he'll save it for our superiors tomorrow. He wants us to fail, lass. That way he can prove to himself that his son's death was my fault after all."

  "He'd actually risk his friend's murderer getting away?"

  "He knows there'll be a full forensic team in here tomorrow, once the isolation spell is down and we can file our report. He'll talk to them if he's got anything to say, which I doubt."

  Fisher frowned. "The law is on our side. We could compel him to talk."

  "I don't think so. Hightower's an important man in this city. He may no longer be Chief Commander, but he still has influential friends. No, Isobel, anything we learn about Hightower will have to come from other people. He wouldn't give us the time of day if we held a sword to his throat."

  Fisher shrugged unhappily. "I suppose you're right. The Lady Elaine might not be such a tough nut, though. I'll see if I can get her on her own, later. I might get some information out of her, woman to woman."

  "Worth a try," said Hawk. "But don't raise your hopes too high."

  The door swung open, and Stalker stood framed in the doorway. He held the pose a moment, and then entered the library, ducking his head slightly to avoid banging it on the doorframe. He sat down facing Hawk and Fisher, and the chair creaked loudly under his weight. Even sitting down, Stalker was still a head taller than Hawk or Fisher.

  "All right," said Stalker griml
y. "You've talked to everyone else and heard their stories. Who killed William?"

  "It's too early to say, yet," said Hawk.

  "You must have learned something!"

  "Yes," said Hawk. "Most of it contradictory. Where were you at the time of the murder, sir Stalker?"

  "In my room. Alone. I don't have any witnesses, or an alibi. But I didn't kill William."

  "Is there any reason why we should think you did?" asked Fisher.

  Stalker smiled briefly. "Someone must have told you by now that William and I hadn't been getting on too well of late."

  "There was some talk that the two of you had argued about something," said Hawk.

  "We'd decided to go our separate ways," said Stalker. "William was always too slow, too cautious, for me. I wanted to get out there and do things, change things. William and I were always arguing, right from the start. We both wanted the same things, more or less, but we could never agree on the best way to achieve them. Looking back, it's a wonder we stayed together as long as we did. Anyway, I finally decided to go off on my own, and see what my reputation could do for me at the next election. I think I'll make a pretty good Councilor, myself. Haven could do a lot worse. It often has, in the past. But that's all there was to our quarrel;just a parting of the ways. I had nothing against the man; I admired him, always have. Straightest man I ever met."

  "So who do you think killed Councilor Blackstone?" said Fisher.

  Stalker looked at her pityingly. "Isn't it obvious? William died alone, in a room locked from the inside. Sorcery. Has to be."

  "Gaunt doesn't think so," said Hawk.

  Stalker shrugged. "I wouldn't trust him further than I could throw him. Never trust a sorcerer."

  "How long have you known Blackstone?" asked Fisher.

  Stalker stirred restlessly in his chair and glanced irritably at Fisher. "Not long. Two years, maybe."

  "Apart from the sorcerer," said Hawk, "can you think of anyone with a reason for wanting Blackstone dead?"

  Stalker smiled sourly. "I suppose you've heard about Katherine and Edward?"

  "Yes," said Fisher. "Is it true?"

  "I don't know. Maybe. Women are fickle creatures. No offence intended."