Part 9 (2/2)

Amy realised that Jack Barnes was a powerful man who was used to getting his own way. She was sure that if she offered a plat.i.tude like 'remembering his wife the way she'd been when he'd said goodbye to her that morning', he would brush it aside, but she persisted. 'The pathologist will have to do a post mortem. The scene can't be disturbed ...'

'I have no intention of disturbing the crime scene. I only want to look at my wife.' He continued to stare at her.

After a full minute of strained tension, during which Jack didn't blink, Ben handed Jack Barnes a suit, hat, gloves, overshoes and a mask before donning a mask himself. He gave one to Amy.

Amy tried one last warning. 'Experienced officers have been affected by the sight of your wife's corpse, Mr Barnes. Are you sure you want me to open this door?'

'Get on with it.'

Chapter Twenty-one.

Alice and Irene stepped back behind Jack.

Amy tugged the handle and slid the door open.

Jack stared, wide-eyed above the white paper mask.

'Catch him, Ben,' Amy cried as Jack crumpled to his knees.

'The doctor's with Mr Barnes. His family are in the apartment with him, ma'am. Oh, and the South Wales police are on the line,' a constable informed Amy when she and Ben returned to the incident room after leaving Patrick and the forensic team in the garage.

'Put the call through to the small office,' Ben ordered.

'And ask Michael Barnes to come down here. We need to interview him again,' Amy added before following Ben.

The phone was ringing when Ben walked in. The male voice on the end of the line had a heavy Welsh accent. 'Am I talking to Sergeant Ben Miller?'

'Speaking.'

'Constable Tom Edwards. You wanted to know about the fire at Castle Owens.'

'Jack Barnes's house,' Ben checked.

'That's the one. It happened two years ago?'

'Yes. Was it caused by faulty electrical wiring?'

'The wiring that connected the pump to the boiler was the wrong grade. Suitable for lighting, not power circuits.'

'The builder was responsible?'

'Jack Barnes called Tad Moore in to renovate the place. Tad swore he'd used the right cable, but the jury didn't believe him. He was found guilty and fined.'

Ben thought he detected scepticism in Tom's voice. 'Did you believe him?'

'I've known Tad twenty years. I trusted him to rewire my mam's house, but Mam's wiring was inspected after completion. A small repair like the one in Castle Owens wasn't. Then again, Tad admitted he'd only done a temporary job. He said he intended to return the next day to finish it. That's what settled it for the jury. They decided he'd botched it. He paid his fine but was ruined. Went bankrupt. No one would employ him to tie up their roses afterwards, let alone rewire a house.'

'Jack Barnes's wife-'

'Jodie. Nice girl. Grew up in the village. She went to school with my daughter.'

'What was the cause of death?'

'Fire. Pathologist couldn't determine more. Wasn't enough left for a post mortem. They identified her from dental records. She was found on the living-room sofa. Pathologist thought she'd fallen asleep, which would explain why she didn't hear the fire alarms. It was a tragedy. She was six months pregnant. If you don't mind me asking, why are you looking into this now?'

'Jack Barnes's second wife has been murdered. She was five months pregnant.'

'I don't like coincidences. But Jack Barnes was out of the country in America when Jodie died.'

Ben thought it an odd remark for a police officer to make. 'Were there rumours?'

'There are always rumours when someone young dies unexpectedly. Jodie had just moved into the castle by herself. Some people thought it strange, given she was six months pregnant. They thought a man would want to be with his wife, especially as there was work to be done and builders to contend with. Jodie said that Jack was on a business trip but would join her later.'

'He didn't?'

'He came quickly enough after he was told she was dead. You know what gossips are.'

'Tell me,' Ben prompted.

'They thought a rich, important man like Jack Barnes, used to getting his own way, wanted to dump pregnant Jodie in the country near her family somewhere she wouldn't be able to see him playing around.'

'Castle Owens was supposed to be a weekend place, wasn't it?'

'Weekend place? It was a castle, and Jack Barnes was throwing money at it.'

Ben recalled Leila talking about Jack's wandering eye, but he also remembered the look of anguish on Jack's face when he'd seen Zee's body. That grief was real. He'd stake his career on it.

'Who reported the fire?'

'A farmer who lived a mile away. He went to check on a calf before going to bed, saw the flames and called the fire brigade. They got there too late for Jodie. There were only the stone walls of the place left. I was surprised they found her body. I would never have recognised it as human.'

'Thank you.' Ben tried to end the call.

'Before you go, Jack Barnes never rebuilt the castle. It was insured. He took the money but left the ruins. I heard the council asked him to clear the site. There's no sign of any work starting. You know anything about it?'

'Nothing.'

'If you have suspicions about Jodie Barnes's death I could call the pathologist. Old Howell wrote the report. He's retired. In fact, they brought him out to look at poor Jodie because Evans, the regular pathologist was on holiday-'

'I have no suspicions,' Ben interrupted. 'Just wanted to confirm that Jack Barnes's first wife's death was an accident.'

'Had to be. No one else was around. Lonely spot, Castle Owens.'

'Thank you for your help, Constable Edwards.'

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