every time I went to see herââ Once again, he was cut short by emotion.
âPlease be assured of our sincere sympathy,â said Sukey quietly.
He nodded, put away the handkerchief, took a deep swig of coffee and continued in his normal voice. âAll right, letâs get on with it. What do you want to know?â
âYou referred to Ms Tremaine as âFenellaâ,â Vicky began. âHow well did you know her?â
âShe used to visit an elderly woman who usually sat beside Mother in the lounge in Holmwood and we got chatting.â
âA relative?â asked Sukey.
âNo. I think she was a woman who used to look after her when she was a child. She called her âAuntie Pegâ and said she was the only person who ever really loved her.â
âWhy do you suppose that was?â asked Vicky.
âI gather her father walked out soon after she was born and her mother took it out on the child, as if she was in some way responsible for the breakdown of the marriage.â
âThat must have had a pretty damaging effect,â Sukey remarked.
âIâm sure it did. She â Fenella â was in some ways an odd mixture. With Auntie Peg she was gentle and loving, but in her dealings with the staff she was a bit of a battleaxe. If she wasnât satisfied with the treatment the old lady was getting sheâd lay into the staff in no uncertain terms.â
âHas Auntie Peg been told about her death?â
He gave a sad smile and shook his head. âIt wouldnât mean a thing to her. She calls all the female staff âFenellaâ â one woman is the same as another to her.â He made an impatient gesture. âShall we stick to the point? I donât see what this has got to do with the death of my mother or Fenellaâs murder.â
âItâs important that we find out as much as possible about Fenellaâs background,â Sukey explained. âWe know she had a daughter, Nancy, who identified her body. Did she ever mention her?â
Donaldson appeared surprised. âNo, never. Were they close?â
âWe understand they had their differences,â said Sukey, âbut there is nothing to indicate that the relationship has any bearing on the case.â
âNow, according to the medical report submitted at the inquest,â said Vicky, âyour mother suffered what was in effect a comparatively mild stroke which in a younger, fitter person would not have been fatal, but in her caseââ
âI know what was said at the inquest,â Donaldson broke in angrily, âand I made the point then that had the staff been doing their job theyâd have noticed there was something wrong and called the doctor, in which case she might still be alive. I couldnât prove it, of course â not at the time. It was only when Fenella told me what she overheard that it became clear that not only was it due to negligence, but there was a deliberate cover-up.â
âWhat did she overhear?â
âShe had occasion to go to the office one day some time after Motherâs death and as she approached she distinctly heard two members of staff talking. One said, âHer time was up anyway,â to which the other one replied, âThatâs why I didnât say anything.ââ
âAnd you assumed they were speaking about your mother?â
âWell, it was obvious wasnât it?â
âWhy didnât this come up at the inquest?â
âThis was after the inquest â in fact, it was the day after Motherâs funeral, which was reported in the local paper. Mother was a local councillor for many years so a lot of people turned up and Fenella was sure that was what they were talking about. She got in touch with me straight away and I immediately said, âI knew those so-called carers werenât doing their job properly,â and asked her if sheâd be willing to
Learning to Kill: Stories