Chapter 17 – Revelations

Jack entered the staff room with the Commissioner who was anxious to hear what was about to happen. Nikki and Florence followed behind carrying evidence bags. Inside the room, Adam and Karen sat at the far side of the table with Pete, Jenny and David adjacent to them at the left-hand side. Tiffany sat on her own at the right, not looking at any of the others. Jack whispered something to Florence and Nikki and they took chairs facing Adam and Karen, leaving a space for Jack to work with. Five minutes later the door opened and J P and Ruby escorted Edward in and seated him two seats away from Tiffany, before stationing themselves at either side of the door. Everyone in the room looked at Jack.

'Forgive me for keeping you, but since it is almost lunch time, I have arranged for some refreshments to be provided. They should be here shortly, at which time I will begin what I have to tell you'

Everyone looked at each other wondering what he was talking about. Finally, the door opened once again and Catherine and Polly entered carrying a tray of sandwiches and a fresh pot of tea and some paper cups between them. These were set down on the centre of the table.

'Help yourselves' said Catherine, but nobody reached for anything. Their attention was solely focused on Jack who stood to speak again.

'Alright everyone. Thank you for staying. I am pleased to be able to tell you that our investigation is now complete, and I have called you here to reveal who killed Gavin Harper'

The suspects all gasped as Jack turned to speak in a whisper to his officers. Adam whispered to Pete who sat next to him 'I would say this should be a laugh, if it wasn't for the fact I am still afraid he might be about to arrest one of us!' Pete nodded his agreement but didn't speak as Jack had returned to his spot. Polly went to leave as her duty appeared to be done, and Catherine stood up after her, but Jack indicated to them to remain.

'No, please stay since you both helped us'. They sat back down on chairs at the side of the room and Jack continued. 'Now, this case had us extremely perplexed despite the fact it originally appeared to be simple since Gavin's body was first found held by Adam Williams, and the murder weapon was subsequently found in Adam's backpack. However, the lack of forensic evidence resulted in us having to open up the investigation to considering everyone who had met Gavin personally. Most of these people turned out to have a motive. His fiancee Tiffany Smith was heard to have expressed unhappiness at the fact Gavin would not have an opportunity for promotion and a significant pay rise in the immediate future and could have decided to find a way of getting out of marrying him without the embarrassment of having to explain herself to their families and friends'

'No!' gasped Tiffany, reminding the others of her presence.

'Then there were those who had a reason to fear retributions from him for shady dealings with his newspaper – Karen Marsden and Jenny Gifford here caused a book review to be published in this paper with misleading information about the author which could have resulted in disastrous consequences for them if they were found out' Jenny and Karen tensed up and Pete and Adam took their hands.

'Also, Pete Gifford worked for a taxi company that overcharged staff from the same newspaper and could also have been caught by Gavin!'

'But I was in the hall queue when the murder was committed!' Pete argued.

'I know you were' acknowledged Jack. 'Then we have David Marsden, who could have been out to frame Adam Williams for murder and get him out of the way so that he would have a chance to get back with the ex-wife he still loves' Adam and Karen looked at David, shocked, and David himself was embarrassed.

'I promise you this is not the case! As much as I still love you, Karen, and always will as a good friend, I would never hurt you, or anyone you love, by doing something like that!' David was almost in tears.

'We then caught up with Edward Phillips who initially resisted speaking to us. That was suspicious in itself, and he appeared to be the primary candidate when we later found his fingerprints on the fork that was planted in the lift cage behind the mannequin display in the art corridor, presumably to lure Gavin into it. We also know Edward had a confrontation with Gavin at their hotel earlier that evening so there was an element of hostility between them and possible resentment which gives Mr Phillips a motive'

'Pff, poppycock!' growled Edward.

'I knew it was him!' Adam whispered to his group as Jack looked round at his colleagues again.

'So…we have seven people, one of whom was found with the body, and another six with possible motives. Now, which of them was it…assuming it was one of these seven. I have recently been working with another detective who was always on my case to consider that it is not necessarily a foregone conclusion that one of the obvious supsects was guilty. In every case I have worked on with this detective to date, and I admit it has only been a small handful, it has turned out that it was one of my suspects. But this time my aforementioned colleague would have been right…wouldn't she Polly?'

'What?!' the young waitress and volunteer was shocked to the core at this revelation, and everyone else in the room sat up and looked at her in disbelief. 'Why…why on earth would you think I would kill someone?'

'I could give you fifty million reasons' Jack stated confidently.

'What do you mean?'

'You know fine well what I mean. Your father and uncle went over to England, York to be precise, and bought a printing business. Started with half a dozen staff but they grew until they had about sixty. From the outside it looked like a reputable company and a very desirable place to work. There were many opportunities for people from the Caribbean who didn't have much to go over and work for you and return home much better off. But in reality, their workers were over-worked, paid below the minimum wage and weren't given the leave they were legally entitled to or a company pension. Your father and uncle bribed local people to accept these conditions because if they didn't it would take away opportunities for others in the future. During the time this business was booming you were being sent to private school and were due to be sent away to your choice of university abroad. You lived a life of luxury thanks to the suffering of others. But your family's empire didn't last. It was only a matter of time before the press received rumours of their illegal business practices and it all came to an end after a young man went to work for them for a few days and turned out to be an undercover journalist. The story then got out and the business was seized, and your father and uncle deported back to Sainte-Marie, and were sued for fifty million pounds. Your family was reduced to virtual poverty and your own dreams of a better future shattered. And the young journalist's name was Gavin Harper. It was his first big case'

'But…how could you know that? The internet is down!'

'It was down. But it came back up at nine this morning. We did our research after we established that the person or persons who committed this murder must have known their way around the school. They also had to have access to the kitchen in order to avoid being seen with Gavin in the art corridor, as you'll understand in moment. But back to your story for now. So, when you did your research on your latest intake of guests, you were shocked to find out that this same journalist was visiting your hotel. Determined to get revenge for your family's disgrace your opportunity arose when the storm hit, and Gavin was evacuated to the school. You volunteered to work in the kitchen, so it was no surprise when you took a young man who was a guest at your hotel, and who was not busy at that point in time, through to the back of the kitchen, having met him in the corridor and asked him to help you with a problem. You led him to the lift cage and asked him to retrieve the fork you had jammed between the cage and wall. When he was reaching up to retrieve it, and concentrating on his task, you took this knife…' He turned to Florence who held up the evidence bag containing the offending weapon. 'and reached up and plunged it close to Gavin's heart'

'And forensic evidence shows you are just the right height to have wielded the knife at the angle it entered the victim's body' added Nikki.

Jack continued 'And we have been informed that your plan prior to your family's ruin was to study forensics, and that you have enough knowledge through your own reading to know where to insert the knife in order to kill him. Now, once you had killed Gavin you had to get his body out of the kitchen before it was discovered. So, you moved the towel trolley in front of the cage door so that no other volunteer would be aware of its existence. Then when Gavin was dead, the body was moved to the mannequin stand'

'But wait a minute' said Jenny. 'How did this slight young woman manage to get a man's body out of that cage and onto the mannequin stand?'

'Aha, good point, and I was just coming to that' Jack assured her. 'You see, that's when Polly's part ended, and her accomplice took over'

At that point the door opened, and the janitor entered. 'Oh, you're still using this room. Could you please let me know when you are leaving?' he looked at Jack.

'Sure, but please don't go, come and join us for lunch' The janitor came further in and J P closed the door.

'Right on time' Jack went on. 'This is Henri Jackson, Polly's uncle, who I mentioned was part of the infamous family business' Everyone was shocked at this revelation.

Henri looked at Polly and saw from the look on her face that they had been caught. He turned quickly around and grabbed the door handle. J P and Ruby both tried to restrain him, but he pricked their hands with his fingernail and managed to force the door open and run out. The police followed him into the corridor, J P blocking one direction and Ruby the other. The rest of the party looked round the door to witness the action. The only option left for Henri to escape was the lift cage used in the murder. He opened the door and went to squeeze himself in, but just as he was about to climb into the cage, Ruby pulled off one of her trainers and hauled it at the button, causing the door to close and Henri to be cornered. J P confidently caught him this time and handcuffed him, escorting him back into the staff room. Everyone else sat back down.

'She's brilliant!' Pete acknowledged incredulously and his friends all agreed.

'I knew that young man was a good officer too' said Karen as J P expertly cuffed Henri to a chair.

Now that the drama was over Jack continued his story 'Clearly guilty by his actions there. Henri Jackson here, as you will be aware, is employed by the school as their janitor. He therefore has the knowledge of the school required to carry out this murder without either himself or his niece being seen. The mannequin stand in the art corridor was expertly moved by Henri in front of the door at the other side of this lift cage on the floor below. He in fact stood on the stand and successfully passed himself off as one of the mannequins while he waited for Polly to do the deed. Then when nobody was looking, he opened the door and hauled Gavin's body onto the stand to pose for a short time as another mannequin'

Henri laughed. 'And what makes you so sure of this story, Inspector?'

'It so happens we have photographic evidence' Florence showed him Daisy's phone, on which was displayed a photograph of the mannequin stand with Henri's face clearly showing. Henri had nothing further to say, knowing now that there was no escape for him.

'And that takes us to the next part of your plan' continued Jack. 'You knew that it would be difficult for us to investigate the murder under these circumstances, although, as you know everything there is to know about everyone, Polly, you would have been aware that we carry a finger print kit. So, to buy yourself time before the murder was investigated in full, by which time you and your uncle could have escape the island, you decided to frame someone by dropping the body into their hands and by planting false evidence'

'You chose to frame me? Why?!' Adam yelled to Polly. 'What did I do to you?!'

'Oh, she didn't intend to frame you' Jack assured him. 'The fork you asked Gavin to retrieve does not belong to the school' Florence handed him the next evidence bag. 'Having checked the forks used in the school canteen, we did not find any with this pattern. But if you zoom in on the photograph of the restaurant on the Honore Palace website you can just make out that these forks are used here. It is therefore likely, since Polly works there, that this fork was, in fact, brought in from the Honore Palace' Everyone gasped at this piece of evidence. 'When we brushed this fork for fingerprints, we found those of Edward Phillips as well as of our victim. You see, this is the fork Edward used in the Honore Palace earlier on the evening of the murder. Polly, I assume, chose to frame this man in revenge for his meanness towards her. Henri was supposed to drop Gavin's body to Edward, who Polly had pointed out. Before mounting the mannequin stand Henri changed the directional sign pointing back to the hall from the gents' bathroom to lure Edward into the art corridor, but the plan went wrong when other people, including Adam Williams here, also followed this sign. Henri got the wrong man, and instead of Edward we arrested Adam.

'Ruin me for a little complaint, eh?' Edward growled at Polly.

'When Polly volunteered to take breakfast up to the prisoner the following morning, she expected to see Edward, but was surprised to see Adam in the Head Teacher's office instead. But needing to get rid of the murder weapon you had to form a new plan, didn't you?' Polly looked down to her feet. 'So, you planted the weapon in Adam's backpack since you needed to get rid of it. You also didn't count on us having a pathologist available to carry out the post-mortem and analyse DNA samples, hence you believed your job was done and Adam would be our only suspect until a post-mortem could be carried out on Guadeloupe. You did your best to stop the post-mortem taking place by placing gum, which I assume was found in a school bin and was chewed by one of the pupils, in the lock of the art classroom where Gavin's body was being held, but that wasn't smart enough as the army were able to shift it. So, you then took the opportunity to lead us astray by giving us information you had gathered on Adam's friends and Tiffany Smith, twisting it in a way that would make them all look like suspects. You also had the chance to frame Edward again last night when you and you Uncle Henri lured him into the janitor's office, convincing him you were helping him escape injustice, but in fact lured him to us. A very good plan, I have to say, but you obviously forgot that none of these seven suspects knew the school well enough to carry out the murder in the time it took the pair of you, and also how would they have cleaned up when they could not have accessed the kitchen later than night, or whenever you did it, without being questioned as to why they were in there?'

'How could you do this!' screamed Tiffany suddenly. 'To Gavin, and to me and our families!' she burst into tears. Karen, who was sitting closest to her, handed her a tissue'

'Thank you' Tiffany addressed the Manchester group in a friendly manner for the first time since the morning after the murder.

'Your man ruined us!' retorted Henri. 'We were only trying to provide opportunities for our people, but your laws make it impossible!'

'You didn't have the right to exploit people, nor did you have the right to take a life!' Florence burst out. 'This young woman has lost the man she loved and was going to spend the rest of her life with…and that hurts like neither of you can imagine! Your anger at UK law did not give you the right to do this!...sorry!' she sat down when she saw Jack looking nervously at her, and Nikki took her hand. Tiffany looked at Florence with painful gratitude.

'Alright, take them away' Jack instructed J P and Ruby. J P got Henri out of the chair again and escorted him out of the room and down to the police jeep. Ruby handcuffed Polly and led her in the same direction.

The Commissioner stood up. 'Congratulations, Inspector' he said to Jack. 'I knew you would solve this before we left the school'

'Just doing my job' said Jack.

'And Dr Alexander, thank you for your excellent work. I am sure it played a huge part in the resolution of this case'

'I am glad I was able to help' Nikki smiled.

'Good work from all the team. Please let them all know I am delighted. 'Well, I'll be going now. Enjoy a couple of days rest before returning to work'

'Thank you, Commissioner' said Jack on behalf of them all.

'Good day everyone' the Commissioner looked all around the room before finally leaving.

'OK folks' said Jack. 'I will make a quick call to the local bus company to get a small coach to take you all back to your hotel. In the meantime, you are welcome to go outside the building if you wish. I arranged for refreshments to be brought in to make sure Polly was in the room but please don't let the drinks and sandwiches go to waste. Help yourselves' And with that he turned from the assembled group and began to tidy away his notes. Edward stood up.

'I'll walk back to the 'otel thank you' he said and walked out of the room, never to make any contact with any of the others again.

'Good riddance!' Adam said quietly and his friends sniggered.

'I need some fresh air' announced Tiffany and she also left the room.

'Well, I don't know about you but I'm 'ungry!' declared Pete, and he took a ham sandwich. The others followed.

'One more cup of tea before we enjoy some warm weather wouldn't be so bad either!' stated Karen and they soon all had full cups.

When Nikki and Florence had replaced all the evidence in bags and placed everything in a box, they, Catherine and Jack also helped themselves to refreshments. The conversation suddenly ceased as the Manchester group and the police felt awkward in each other's company. Catherine took the initiative and broke the silence.

'Is everything OK?' she asked the visitors.

'Yes, these are really nice sandwiches' said Jenny. 'Much better than those field rations'

'We saw you making them earlier' said David. 'You really know how to make them well'

'I'm glad. And are you a chef?' she asked David.

'Um…no but I've been helping with the running of a café recently so know a thing or two about how to make a good sandwich'

'And my taste buds agree!' said Adam.

'Do you do this for a living yourself?' asked Karen.

'No, I run a bar, but I serve food in the evenings' she informed them.

'And she is also the Mayor of Sainte-Marie' Jack informed them.

'The Mayor? Really?' gasped Pete. 'And you have time to run a bar as well?'

'Women can multi-task you see!' said Nikki and Catherine high-fived her. Florence remained quiet and her colleagues assumed she was reliving bad memories. Jack and Nikki both patted her shoulder and discretely asked if she was alright. She was, in actual fact, lost in thought regarding both Tiffany and Jenny. She had realised that at this point in time that she was not the only lonely survivor on the island.

J P and Ruby returned after securing the murderers in the jeep. They took a sandwich each to eat on the way back to the station.

'The bus is here' J P informed everyone.

'OK time for us to return to the outside world' announced Jack. 'I hope you all enjoy the rest of your holiday'

'It certainly can't get worse!' declared Adam as they all stood up and left the room. When they emerged from the building their eyes took time to adjust to the bright light.

'Now this is what I expected the Caribbean to be like!' Karen rejoiced and took off her cardigan. The others cheered as well.

Tiffany was sitting on the school steps talking on her phone with tears in her eyes. She ended the call and for the first time since Gavin was murdered, she really let the tears flow. Jenny slowly approached her and held out her arms. The young woman looked up, and after only a few seconds hesitation, went into them and accepted a hug. After five minutes they broke apart and Tiffany faced Jenny.

'I am so sorry for the way I treated you yesterday. I guess I just felt awkward when I thought your friend was the murderer…but I was wrong, and I hope you can forgive me'

'No need to apologise' Jenny assured her. 'I cannot imagine what this must be like for you, but if there is anything we can do, or even if you just want a chat, you know Pete and I are in room 342'

'Thank you. I just phoned my mum. it was so horrible having to give her this news after she and Gavin's family had been so worried about us just being in the middle of a storm. They are going to go round and see Gavin's parents. They are going to be so heartbroken, at least as much as me. I expect they will come over with my mum and dad as soon as they can get a flight'

'Well I hope they won't have to wait to long to get one. It will surely be some comfort to you to have them here'

'I guess it will. I just don't know…how I will go on with my life!'

'You will have to give yourself some time. I can't imagine how I would cope but you are young and strong, I am sure'

'Jen, we need to get on the bus, the driver wants to leave now' Pete called out to his wife.

'Are you coming back to the hotel with us?' Jenny asked Tiffany.

'I suppose so' she set off towards the bus with Jenny and Pete when she was approached by Florence.

'Hello Tiffany. I was hoping I could talk to you for a minute' the Detective Sergeant gave her a sympathetic smile. 'If the bus needs to go I can easily get you a ride back to your hotel in the police van'

'Maybe see you later?' said Jenny as she boarded the bus.

'Yes, and thank you Jenny'

'Um…all the best' Florence said to Jenny before looking up at her friends. There were things she would have liked to have said but she decided her calling must surely be for Tiffany, who now turned to her.

'What can I do for you?'

'It's more what I can do for you' Florence began. 'You see, I wasn't able to tell you this when we were questioning you, but I have been through what you have'

'What do you mean?'

'I mean…my fiancee was murdered too. Six months ago'

'Your fiancee? Really?'

'Yes. It was two days before we were supposed to get married. I followed him to a deserted building and…and someone opened fire on both of us. I nearly died too but my police colleagues got there and called for help. But they were too late to save Patrice…' reliving this memory brought tears to Florence's eyes.

'I am so sorry. That must have been…so horrible for you!'

'It was. And I know that right now, no matter what anyone says, you don't think you will ever smile again. I still feel the same some days'

'That's exactly what it's like. Oh, how have you managed? Especially with having to investigate murders for a living?'

'Well, I have been away from the island since just after it happened. I just returned to be with my sick father before the storm broke out. When I heard what had happened to Gavin, I knew I had to push myself to help with the investigation and get justice for you'

'Wow, that was strong of you. And the ones who did it have been caught. I don't know how to ever thank you!'

'You don't need to thank me. I did what I had to do. Just remember that you are not the only one going through this and think about me on the worst days'

'Thank you so much'

'Listen, here's my number and email address. If you feel like talking to someone who knows what you're going through, either in person while you are on the island, or online or by phone or email after you go home, please know I am here'

'Thank you' The two women hugged before joining Florence's colleagues by the jeep.

'Are you ready, Tiffany?' asked Jack. 'Polly and Henri are in the back but there is a barrier so you won't have to look at them' he ushered her into the back seat of the jeep and Florence got in beside her.

'Well, I suppose I'd better get going myself' said Catherine, passing the jeep.

'Will you be having a rest this afternoon?' Jack asked her.

'No, I really need to get the bar open as soon as possible. I've already lost three days. I'll do my bit of the clean up by clearing my area of the street'

'Well, do remember to have a lie in tomorrow! You must be exhausted!' said J P.

'I am tired, but I always do what I have to'

'Would you like a ride back to the bar? We could squeeze you in?' asked Jack.

'Thank you, but I think I'll walk and enjoy at bit of the sunshine I have missed'

'Well, take care and I'll no doubt see you soon' said Florence.

'Yes, give my regards to your dad and all your family. Goodbye everyone!' and with that Catherine began her walk.

'Wow! Is this a police vehicle!' Nikki observed the motorcycle and sidecar with great interest. 'I've never seen anything like this in London!'

'Sainte-Marie's best!' smiled Ruby with pride as she put her helmet on.

'It's a little bumpy but you get used to it' J P informed her.

'Fancy a ride to your hotel?' Ruby offered.

'Why not!' Nikki's sense of adventure got the better of her. J P handed her his helmet and got into the front of the jeep with Jack.

'I guess I'll see you around!' she quickly looked in the window of the jeep and addressed Jack, Florence and J P'

'Absolutely' said Jack. 'We'll need your post-mortem report – you can use one of our computers if you don't have one at your hotel. And if the beach shack where I live is still standing, I'll be having a barbecue tomorrow night'

'That will be lovely. I look forward to that. See you all later' She touched Florence's shoulder before addressing Tiffany 'Once again I am so sorry for your loss'

'Thank you' said Tiffany, taking her hand.

Nikki returned to the motorcycle where Ruby was waiting for her 'I just hope I can fit in here!' she noticed how small the sidecar looked.

'You'll be fine, just duck down and watch your head!' Ruby assured her. She put on the helmet and slowly got herself in. Ruby mounted the bike and waited until Jack drove off before setting off behind him, slowly at first, but once on the open road she picked up speed.

'Aaaahh!' Nikki screamed. Ruby didn't slow down, even on roads with bit of debris lying on them that made for a bumpy ride. They splashed through puddles left by the rain and the sidecar window was soon very dirty and hard to see out of. They ran over a small, fallen tree branch and Nikki was convinced the sidecar was going to come apart from the bike and thrust her into a building or oncoming vehicle. 'Aaaaahhhh!' she screamed again. Nikki was relieved when they finally arrived at the White Sands Hotel.

'Was that fun?' Ruby asked her with a glint in her eye.

'It was…thrilling. Thank you very much'

'Any time!'

'Probably see you around while I'm on the island?'

'You bet! See ya!' Ruby set off for the police station.