Page 35 of Mann Hunt
Declan processed this new information. “Do you think it had anything to do with his disappearance?”
Katherine said, “I don’t know, but I suspect if the police start to dig too deeply, they’ll find out, and it might influence how seriously they take the case. I mean, if they were concerned about an open relationship…” She left the sentence unfinished.
Declan said, “So you’re sure Ian wasn’t seeing anyone, perhaps from the party?”
“I don’t think so,” Katherine said. “One thing I do know is that secrecy is of the utmost importance.”
“Why’s that?” Charlie interjected.
“Ian never told me who attended Sheldon’s parties, but I got the idea that some of the attendees were in prominent public positions and wanted their privacy respected.”
Charlie nodded. “Makes sense.”
Katherine turned back to Declan. “After I spoke to the police, I phoned Sheldon and he gave me yournumber. Apparently you helped a friend of his on a somewhat delicate case a few years ago. He said that you were one of the few people in this town who could be trusted. He also gave me permission to give you his name and number.”
She opened her purse, extracted a piece of paper and slid it across the desk to Declan. He looked at it and passed it on to Charlie.
“Is it safe to assume that you didn’t give this particular piece of information to the police?” Declan asked.
Katherine looked at him and said, “To Sergeant Men-Think-With-Their-Cocks?Of course not. Would you? I will not leave my husband open to ridicule from that brainless oaf. I realised perhaps the police wouldn’t be much help and telling them might make things worse.”
“I would have done the same as you,” Declan offered, thinking,There are many spouses who would not have remained so cool.“You mentioned that you were in an open relationship. Are you currently seeing someone else?”
Katherine got up and moved towards the window. “Do we have to talk about that? I know it has nothing to do with Ian’s disappearance.”
Declan remained at his desk. “I think that it’s always best to come clean with everything from the start. It saves us from wasting time following the wrong leads, and prevents anything from coming out that you want kept quiet. Remember—we’ll be working foryou.”
She returned to her seat and bit her lower lip. “If my relationship comes out, it will be very embarrassing for everyone involved.”
“Affairs often are, but it just might help us find Ian.”
She sighed. “His name is Michael Taylor. He’s the son of our friends Deirdre and Simon.”
“And is it safe to assume that the two of you were together the night that Ian disappeared?”
“I had dinner with the Taylors, and Michael drove me home after.”
“And he’d be able to attest to that?”
“If I asked him to.”
“Would he be able to attest to it without your asking?” Charlie added.
She turned to Charlie. “Of course. I just meant he probably wouldn’t say anything unless he knew I told you first.”
Charlie cocked his head to one side. “You didn’t drive yourself to the dinner party?”
“I don’t drive. I Uber when I need to go somewhere, if Ian can’t drive me.”
“Thank you,” Charlie replied, scribbling more notes on his pad.
Katherine looked at Declan and asked, “Do you have enough to go on?”
Declan said, “Just a few more questions. Outside of your personal circle, what do you know about your husband’s business dealings?”
She frowned. “He used to invest in real estate, but now he’s down to a single building. I don’t think I’ll be of any help there. We never really talked too much about his business. I think he felt it was a bit…boring.” She turned her head towards Charlie. “It was far from the glamorous lives we led in London. Here, work always felt like, well, work. He’d sooner talk to you about the Axemen.”
“The Axemen?” Declan asked.
