Myra stood looking down at the body. The blonde girl was sprawled naked on the bed. It could have been erotic if it wasn’t for the glassy, empty look in her eyes. Myra guessed that she was young, in her late-twenties at most. She saw the clothes folded on the chair. They were office gear rather than party wear or escort clothes. She looked for a handbag or mobile but couldn’t see either anywhere in the room.
“What a waste,” she muttered to herself.
“Detective Sergeant Harris, I didn’t expect to see you here.”
She turned and smiled at the forensic scientist who had just entered the room. Despite being gowned and masked, Dr Kate Monroe was easily recognisable with her mane of red hair.
“Hello, Kate. I got back off holiday last night.” She took two steps back to let Kate see the body more clearly.
“Has anything been touched?” Kate asked.
“The owner said he checked for a pulse but nothing else.”
“Any idea who she is?”
“No. No sign of handbag or mobile.”
Kate was silent as she noted the position of the naked body and lack of an identifiable cause of death. A sheen of drying juices glistened on her upper thigh.
“I’ll leave you to it. If you could get me the cause of death as soon as possible, I’d appreciate it.”
Kate glanced up at her, the green eyes seemed to bore deep into Myra’s core.
“Sure thing, Myra. I should be finished here in a few hours. I’ll have something for you by this evening.”
Myra stepped out of the room and nodded at the policeman on duty.
“I take it nobody saw anything, or heard anything or has any idea who the girl is?”
He nodded grimly. “You’ve done this before, Ma’am. The owner is downstairs. He might tell you more than he tod us.”
Myra stepped into the small office behind the reception desk. A smarmy-looking man with oily, thinning hair sat behind a desk cluttered with newspapers, coffee cups and half-full ashtrays.
“Mr…?” Myra asked.
“Margey. Mickey Margey.”
“I’m DS Myra Harris.” She showed him her warrant card. “Do you have a name for the girl in room ten?”
Margey shrugged.
“I have a name but it’s unlikely to be real.” He spun the check-in ledger around for her and placed a fat finger on the last entry.
“Mrs Smith. Paid in cash.” He paused. “She always paid in cash.”
“Always?”
“Aye, well, she was pretty regular. She wasn’t a tourist here on holiday.”
“I’ve seen the room, I don’t think many tourists pay by the hour, do they?”
He shrugged. “I provide a service. Whether it’s clandestine office affairs or a couple looking to spice up their love life with a roleplay, I don’t ask and I don’t judge.”
“Such a moral citizen, Mr Margey. And was Mrs Smith having an affair? Or was she an escort?”
Margey shrugged again. “I never asked.”
“Did she meet the same person here every time?”
“I can’t remember.”
“What time did she arrive last night?”
Margey looked at the clock.
“Dunno. Didn’t notice.”
“Did she have a handbag with her when she paid for the room?”
“Can’t quite remember.”
“Did she arrive alone?”
Margey didn’t even bother opening his mouth this time but merely shrugged again.
“Fine.” Myra stood. “I’ll be back if I need anything else from you. Good day, Mr Margey.”
Myra left the uniforms to do the door-to-door questioning of other guests and any neighbours to see if they had seen or heard anything suspicious. Others were attempting to locate any CCTV footage from the surrounding areas. There was nothing else to do but wait for the cause of death and see if the forensics turned up any ID or indications of who she was.
~oO0Oo~
Myra’s mobile rang just as she was putting on her coat to go home.
“Kate, hi. I take it you’re finished. Any news?”
“I do. Do you want to swing by the lab or would you rather hear it over a drink?”
Myra closed her eyes. She should really try and be professional. What had happened before between her and Kate had been a mistake, a one-off that shouldn’t have gone as far as it did. Despite this, she found herself suggesting they meet in the wine bar on Grafton Road.
When Myra walked in, it was obvious Kate had gone home to change. She immediately wished she hadn’t come straight from the office still wearing the blouse and trouser suit she’d been wearing all day.
Kate stood up and kissed Myra on the cheek as she slid onto the stool beside her.
“I had to change. I can hardly go out with the smell of death still lingering on my clothes now could I?”
Myra smiled at Kate’s stock response to her unspoken question.
“So, what do we know?”
“It’s more what we don’t know. We don’t have a name, age, address, next of kin or and probably most importantly, how she died.”
“Great,” Myra sighed.
“There is one interesting aspect. She appears to have been having sex when she died. There are copious amounts of pussy juices smeared over her thighs and pubic region.” She paused and sipped her drink. “Anyway, the postmortem is scheduled for tomorrow morning at 10am. I presume, as the investigating officer, that you’ll be there?”
Myra nodded.
“Good. Now, tell me about your holiday.”
~oO0Oo~
Myra awoke to the sound of her phone buzzing. She fumbled for it and saw it was her 7 am alarm. She heard a moan from beside her and Kate rolled over in her sleep and draped her arm over Myra.
“Ten more minutes,” she mumbled.
Myra lay her head back on the pillow. The events of last night replayed in her head. The couple of drinks in the wine bar. The offer from Kate to come back to hers for something to eat after Myra had said she was going home to cook a pizza. The bottle of wine they’d shared with the chicken and chorizo paella that Kate had effortlessly thrown together. Somehow, halfway through the washing up, Kate had taken her in her arms and Myra hadn’t said “No.”
Instead, they had stripped each other as they kissed their way to Kate’s bedroom. The memory of Kate sliding her way down Myra’s stomach and licking her until she’d arched her back and screamed made her squirm.
She felt Kate’s lips brushing her neck.
“Are you going to go all weird on me again now?”
Myra rolled away and slipped out of the bed.
“I don’t know what you mean. Anyway, I’ve got to get to work. I need to brief the team before I make it to the postmortem.”
“Fine. Talk later then.”
Myra got home, showered, changed in record time and was standing in front of her team of detectives for the 9 am briefing.
“At this stage, we don’t know if we are dealing with a murder or death by natural causes. We don’t know the deceased name beyond an assumed alias of Mrs Smith. We have no ID. Forensics have combed the room and have countless fingerprints, fibres etc etc.” She grimaced. “It’s clear that Mr Margey doesn’t count room service as a priority.”
She pointed to images of the clothing which appeared on the widescreen tv to her right.
“Her clothes were neatly folded on the chair. Nothing remarkable or distinctive. High street brands.”
“Is there any indication she was working as an escort, given the location?”
“Possibly. Dr Monroe thinks she had recently had sex. The postmortem should hopefully tell us how she died.”
She glanced at the clock.
“I’m going to head to the P.M. now. I want missing persons checked. I want CCTV from the surrounding area checked. I want to know who this girl is and why she died in that room.”
A chorus of “Yes, boss” rang out as she left the room.
Kate was at the postmortem. Myra cursed her stupidity for the fifteenth time over last night’s events as she entered the mortuary. The pathologist was just finishing.
“Ah, DS Harris, just in this for the summation.” Professor McGonagle grinned beneath his mask. “You’d almost think you didn’t enjoy the sight of a body being cut up.”
Myra nodded a greeting in reply.
“Morning, Professor. Do we have a cause of death?”
‘We do. Heart failure. As to what caused it, the heart will need to undergo further tests. Toxicology results should be back soon. Dr Monroe will keep you informed.”
“She doesn’t look overweight or old enough for a heart attack.”
“Perhaps not. Young people have heart attacks too. She may have been in the middle of strenuous activity.” He indicated her pubic region. “There was no sign of recent sexual intercourse but Dr Monroe believes her thighs are covered in vaginal fluid.”
“I swabbed the body but there didn’t seem to be any seminal fluid. We are checking the bedding but it’s unclear how long since the sheets were last changed.”
Back in the lab, Kate and her assistant examined in microscopic detail everything the Scene of Crime Officers had collected from the hotel room.
Kate was examining the swabs that she’d taken of the stains on the woman’s thighs. When her assistant interrupted.
“Kate, have a look at this.”
Kate stepped over to her assistant’s microscope and peered down it.
“What am I looking at?”
“The samples you lifted with tape from the girl’s body. These fibres were on her breasts. I think they are black velvet.”
“Was there any black velvet among her clothes?”
“No. No black clothing at all.”
Kate thought for a moment.
“I’ve just been checking the fluids on her thighs. There are no traces of semen on her body and the fluids on her thighs are all her own. I had wondered if she could have orgasmed herself to death.”
“Were there any sex toys in the room?”
“No, there weren’t.” She bit her lip. “There were no fluids on her fingers either.”
“So you’re wondering,” her assistant concluded, “how she could have done it?”
~oO0Oo~
Myra meanwhile was feeling more upbeat having just got her first lead. She listened as one of the Detetive Constables filled her in.
“A Mr Devlin had phoned in to say his secretary hadn’t shown up for work and wasn’t answering her phone. The desk sergeant was just about to tell him she was an adult and hadn’t been missing that long when he realised the description fitted the Mrs Smith found in the hotel room.”
“Let’s go see Mr Devlin then.”
Myra looked at the brass name plate on the door. Devlin and Montgomery – Accountants. Her knock on the door was answered immediately. He’d obviously been waiting for them to arrive.
“So Mr Devlin, “ she looked around. “is there a Montgomery here”
“No, Edward Montgomery died over fifty years ago. This was originally my Grandfather’s practice. I’m just the latest custodian.”
“Your secretary, Ms. Zoe Kempsell. Tell me about her.”
“She’d been working here for almost five years. Efficient, friendly. We work really well together. She could probably run the place better than me.”
“Do you have a picture of her?”
He indicated her desk, where several pictures were pinned to the board behind her computer monitor. Myra noted the similarities to the dead girl.
“Does she have any family? Or a partner?”
“Not that I am aware of.”
“Do you know where she lives?”
“Over on the south side. Darlington Road.”
“Can you give us her address?”
“I’m sorry. Yes, I can. I’m just a bit all over the place. The filing is in a state and Zoe was supposed to have completed the year end accounts before submitting them to Revenue. I don’t know where half the stuff is and I really need her to come in. She’s never missed a day in the five years she’s worked here. It’s so unlike her.”
Myra handed Devlin her card. “If you think of anything, or she gets in touch, let me know.”
Once back at the station, Myra let Kate know about the possible match and sent her a copy of one of the pictures from Zoe’s desk. I’ve sent officers to her address but there’s no one home.
“It certainly looks like her. I suppose the next thing is to get access to the flat and collect some samples for DNA comparison. Either that or we could try dental records.”
Myra’s phone rang and she was surprised to find Mr Devlin on the phone.
“Can you come to the office? I think I’ve been robbed.”
Myra sat behind Devlin’s desk as he outlined the theft. The money has been syphoned off in a devilishly complicated way. Every one of my clients has had large chunks of money diverted into various holding accounts before it vanished.
“How much is missing?”
“Almost a million pounds, give or take a few thousand.”
Myra raised an eyebrow. And you didn’t notice?”
Devlin blushed.
“I… I trusted Zoe. I was distracted and let her do the day to day running of the accounts. She appears to have been running multiple spreadsheets. The ones I saw looked perfectly normal.” He paused, his face ashen. “It’s only because she isn’t here that I accessed the vault from the server rather than her sending them to me. That’s when I noticed the errors.”
“I think if Ms Kempsell is involved in a million pounds going missing, you’re going to have to tell us a bit more about her and your working relationship with her.”
~oO0Oo~
“So, where are we with the body in the hotel and what’s this about a million quid being stolen?”
Myra took a deep breath before unloading on Detective Inspector Anderson.
“We’re waiting on a DNA match, but it seems that Zoe Kempsell successfully embezzled around a million pounds from her employer, Devlin and Montgomery accountants. Ms Kempsell was then found dead in a seedy hotel room near the docks. She was found naked, with no sign of sexual intercourse though her sex and thighs were coated in her own vaginal juices. According to forensics, there’s no traces of semen but there were some black velvet threads stuck to her body. Postmortem says she died of heart failure. Now we have a name, we are tracing medical records.
“Heart failure?” DI Anderson looked puzzled. “And she’s how old?”
“29 years of age. Toxicology shows no drugs apart from a small amount of alcohol. A couple of glasses of wine. No more.”
“So she wasn’t poisoned. What about natural stimulants? Could they overload the heart?”
“It’s possible but we’ll know more once Dr Monroe has gone through her medical records.”
DI Anderson nodded. “Very well. Keep me up to date.”
Myra slid onto the bar stool and took a sip of the gin and tonic Kate slid in front of her.
“So, any progress?”
“I think so.” Kate smiled. “Did you get any further with the hotel owner?”
“I did. According to Mickey Margey, Zoe had a regular thing with a man every Wednesday evening.”
“So, was she working as an escort or something while stealing a million pounds? Busy woman.”
“Allegedly. And we only have Devlin’s word that she stole the money.” She held up her hand to stop further questions.
“But here’s the best bit. The description of the client matches Devlin.”
“No,” Kate whispered theatrically. “He was fucking his secretary?”
‘Mmmhmm,” Myra nodded, smirking.
“I’m going to visit Devlin at home. Maybe catch him off guard when I ask him where he was on Wednesday night, and all those previous Wednesday nights.”
Myra and her partner, DC Brian Campbell introduced themselves to the attractive redhead who opened the door. Myra was struck by the similarity to Kate as she flashed her badge.
“DS Harris and,” indicating Brian, “this is DC Campbell. Is your husband home?”
She looked briefly nonplussed but quickly recovered her composure.
“Of course, come in. I’ll just get John.”
She left them standing in the hall as she disappeared down the corridor. A few moments later, Devlin appeared.
“DS Harris, what can I help you with?”
“We’re trying to trace Zoe’s movements. When did you last see her?”
“At work. I left her to lock up. I had an appointment.”
“What time was that?”
“just before 4pm.”
“Your relationship with Zoe Kempsell. Was it purely professional?”
He flushed at the interruption from DC Campbell.
“I beg your pardon?”
“A man fitting your description was seen with Zoe several times at Fitzgibbon’s hotel on the Shore Road.”
“That’s preposterous,” he spluttered.
“Were you and Zoe in this together? Did you plan to take the money and run off together and then something went wrong? Did she get greedy?”
“I’ve never heard anything so ridiculous,” Devlin spat.
“I think that’s enough.”
Myra turned to look as Devlin’s wife appeared. She put her hand on her husband’s arm and calmed him down.
“Darling, they are just doing their job.”
She turned to the police officers.
“My husband was not at that hotel on Wednesday evening. He was at a sleep clinic.”
“A sleep clinic?”
Devlin’s wife nodded. “I drove him there myself and collected him the next morning.”
“I’m sorry, Mrs…?”
“Please, call me Elspeth.” She stepped forward and took Myra’s hand. Myra felt her stomach somersault as the tall redhead held her hand and her gaze. Finally, she smiled and took a half-step back.
“Yes. As I was saying, John has been suffering from a lack of sleep. I think it’s stress related but he agreed to the sleep clinic doing some tests. I have connections there.”
“You’re a researcher yourself?”
“No, not at all. I work as a receptionist at the dental practice in Malmouth Row.”
Myra’s head was reeling. If it wasn’t Devlin, then they had no leads.
“Would you mind coming down to the station so we can get a statement from you. And can we also get a DNA sample and fingerprints for elimination purposes?”
“Is this not a bit much for a missing person?”
“I’m afraid it’s gone beyond that now. We are waiting on DNA confirmation but we are pretty sure that Zoe Kempsell died on Wednesday evening.”
“Dead.. but.. How?” Devlin stammered. “I don’t understand.” He sank to the settee and shook his head repeatedly while muttering, “she can’t be dead. She can’t be. She was fine.”
Elspeth led the two detectives back to the front door. “I’ll make sure he is down at the station tomorrow morning to give his statement?”
Once they were back in the car, Myra turned to Brian.
“What do you think of that?”
“Something’s not right. He has an alibi and he was shocked that she was dead. But then the wife was all bustling around making sure he didn’t say too much.”
“Mmmhmm,” Myra agreed. “Something’s definitely not right. Hopefully Dr Monroe can turn up a forensic link.”
~oO0Oo~
Myra and a tech guy from the Financial Crimes Unit sat in DI Anderson’s office as they outlined what they had gathered about the theft.
“So,’ DI Anderson paused. “Let me get this straight. We’ve no idea if it was Zoe Kempsell or John Devlin who stole the money. There’s no trace of it. A million pounds just turned into bitcoin and disappeared down a tunnel into the dark web?”
Alex, the tech guy, just nodded.
“That’s about the height of it, Boss. Devlin would be ultimately responsible. Gross lack of oversight. No security measures in place. Not even two-factor authentication on his phone. Anyone with the password could access everything.”
“Jesus.” DI Anderson wasn’t known to swear but the facts in front of him were stark. “What does Devlin say?”
“Claims he had no idea. Forensics are running checks to see if his DNA or prints show up from the hotel room. Margey, the owner, says a man fitting Devlin’s description was seen on quite a few wednesday nights. He didn’t see anyone with Zoe on the night she died. There was a big match on the tv. He barely looked up at the door opening. He would only come to the desk if someone rang the bell.”
“So anyone could have walked in, gone up the stairs, been let into Zoe’s room and..?”
“That’s the other thing. There’s no sign of murder but a couple of things don’t add up. She appears to have orgasmed recently. A lot of orgasms. There’s been no sexual penetration, no juices on her fingers and no sex toys in the room.”
“If someone was in there with her.” He pointed his finger at her. “Find out who it was.”
Myra had just left the DI’s office when Kate phoned her.
“I have two bits of good news for you. One. John Devlin was in that hotel room at some stage. His finegrprints were picked up on the dressing table and in the bathroom. But we can’t say when he was there.”
“Well that’s enough to ask him some questions anyway. And the other bit of news?”
“Zoe had a heart condition. She was at risk of Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome. It was flagged in her medical notes.”
“What does that mean?”
“She was at risk of a heart attack. Young people can sometimes just drop dead of a heart attack. She’d been advised to avoid competitive sports and unrestricted severe exertion.”
“So the cause of death was a heart attack. Natural causes?”
“Possibly. It might depend on what exertions she was doing in a hotel room.”
“Maybe. Wasn’t there that Australian politician Snedden who died while banging his son’s girlfriend?”
“I have no idea,” Kate laughed. “But at least that gives you an ‘in’ to ask about Devlin’s antics in the bedroom.”
~oO0Oo~
Myra sat and stared at John Devlin in silence. She was waiting for Brian to join them before the interview began. Hopefully, he’d be bringing her a coffee too. Finally, he bustled in and sat down. Myra took off the lid and inhaled the rich aroma. She nodded to Brian who started the tape. During all this, Devlin just stared at the floor.
“Interview commencing at 11.55 am. Present are DS Harris,”
“DC Campell,” Brian interjected.
“And John Devlin.” Myra continued. “For the purposes of the tape, Mr Devlin, will you please state your name.”
Devlin slowly raised his head and whispered “John Devlin.“
“Where were you on the evening of Wednesday last, the 5th of August, between 7 pm and 11 pm, Mr Devlin?”
“As you already know, I was at the Sleep Clinic.”
“And the Wednesday before?”
He looked momentarily confused by this.
“Um, at home I guess.”
“Your wife will confirm this?”
“No, she plays bridge on Wednesdays. I would have been home alone.”
“How much did you pay Zoe?” Brian cut in. Myra glanced at him then nodded for him to continue.
“Her salary was twenty-six thousand a year, I think.”
“I meant how much did you pay her on Wednesday nights in that hotel room on Shore Road.”
Devin’s cheeks coloured and his hand shook as he reached for his glass of water.
“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Your fingerprints were found in the room, Mr Devlin.”
He stopped reaching for the glass and stared at Brian, then looked at Myra.
“I want a solicitor.”
“Interview paused at 12:05 pm, pending arrival of Mr Devlin’s solicitor.”
Myra stood up, letting the chair legs squeak on the battered linoleum floor. She lifted her coffee cup and left the room, with Brian following. Devlin resumed staring at the floor as before.
~oO0Oo~
Myra rang the bell before taking a couple of steps back. She knew she should have left this until the morning but she wanted to speak to Devlin’s wife Elspeth and a spur of the moment decision had her parking up outside their house just before 9 pm.
“Detective Harris, is everything alright? What’s happened to John?”
“Everything is fine, Mrs Devlin. I just want..”
“Please, call me Elspeth, and come in.”
Myra nodded. “OK, Elspeth. Nothing has happened to your husband. He’s just reluctant to explain the irregularities in his statement.”
“A bit like the irregularities in his finances.”
Myra nodded.
“John’s an idiot. If he got mixed up in this mess, it will have been that Zoe’s fault. John is too trusting.”
“Have you met Zoe before?”
“I’d met her when I called to see John at the office. They seemed like two peas in a pod, always laughing at the same silly jokes about tv shows or books they’d read. It must be accountancy, it attracts a certain type of person.”
She paused.
“I’m so sorry, DS Harris. I never offered you a drink. I’m having a glass of wine. A nice full-bodied Bordeaux. Would you like a glass? Or a cup of tea?”
Myra glanced at the clock, then back to Elspeth. The glass Elspeth had just picked up from the coffee table looked so appealing.
“Sure, why not? A glass of red would be lovely. And please, call me Myra.”
While Elspeth went to get another glass, Myra studied the photographs on the wall. There was one of Elspeth and her husband graduating together from university and another of Elspeth in the formal graduation photo pose. She peered closer and discovered Elspeth had done a Masters in Cyber Security.
Just then Elspeth came back and laughed. “Oh that was a lifetime ago.”
“How’d you end up working as a dental receptionist?”
“Oh, John didn’t want me working. He thought a wife should be provided for but I was so bored that eventually, when there was no sign of the children he so desperately wanted, he agreed to let me work part-time.”
She shrugged and handed Myra a large glass of very delicious red wine.
As the wine started to flow through her system, Myra found herself relaxing on the sofa. Elspeth was clever and witty and full of anecdotes. It quickly became apparent that being the receptionist of the only dentist in town meant she had her finger on every pulse going.
Myra wasn’t sure how it happened. At one stage Elspeth had been sitting on a chair whilst Myra was on the sofa but in between refills of wine, Elspeth had sat down beside her.
Myra turned and gazed into the deep hypnotic green of Elspeth’s eyes. She was just thinking how Elspeth looked like Joan from the tv series Mad Men when Elspeth kissed her.
Elspeth’s hand caressed the nape of Myra’s neck while she pressed herself on top of Myra. Their mouths moved and melded together as they kissed. Their tongues swirled and probed.
Elspeth’s fingers scrabbled at the waistband of Myra’s trousers. In seconds they were unfastened and Elspeth had slithered her way down onto her knees, tugging Myra’s trousers down to her ankles at the same time.
“Such pretty panties,” Elspeth whispered. Her fingers traced the lace edging of Myra’s navy cotton knickers. Her thumb traversed Myra’s slit and Elspeth giggled coquettishly as a small damp spot appeared.
Quick as a flash, she thrust her head between Myra’s legs and ran her tongue along the edges of her knickers. Myra lifted her ass off the sofa to help as Elspeth slid Myra’s knickers to her ankles.
Myra squirmed as Elspeth dragged the flat of her tongue through Myra’s dripping folds. Elspeth painted Myra’s clit with her juices as she dragged her tongue up one side and down the other. When Elspeth blew her breath over Myra’s quivering clit, Myra arched her back and whimpered little needy pleas. Myra wrapped her legs behind Elspeth’s head and pulled her in deeper.
It was only after the orgasm subsided and reality took hold that Myra realised what she’d done.
“I’m sorry, Elspeth. That wasn’t very professional of me.”
“Hush,” Elspeth whispered, bringing her lips to Myra’s mouth. Myra could taste her flavour on Elspeth’s lips and sighed as Elspeth’s fingers cupped and caressed her breast.
“Please, I’m sorry. I have to go.”
Myra pressed her hands against Elspeht’s chest and pushed the woman off her. She stood and awkwardly pulled up her trousers while Elspeth lay back on the sofa, casually wiping Myra’s cum from her chin.
“Fuck, fuck, fuckity fuck!” Myra cursed to herself as she hurried down the path to her car. She couldn’t believe she’d been led by her pussy and slept with the wife of the prime suspect in her investigation.
~oO0Oo~
She could sense something had happened as soon as she entered the station. The incident room was full and DI Anderson was standing at the front, calling for hush.
“So, the results of the postmortem are back along with forensics.” He paused to look around the room before turning to Kate, who stood beside him. “Dr Monroe. Can you talk us through the results and implications?”
“Thank you, Sir. Zoe Kempsell was thirteen weeks pregnant.” she waited as a mumble of voices rippled around the room. DI Anderson held up his hands for hush and indicated for Kate to continue.
“The DNA was taken from the foetus and John Devlin is the father.”
This time, DI Anderson shut the babble of conversations down immediately.
“So, we can presume John Devlin and Zoe Kempsell were having an affair. But Devlin has an alibi for the night of Zoe’s death. So the question remains, who was Zoe Kempsell meeting and did she die of natural causes or was she murdered?”
“The further tests carried out on the heart have confirmed Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome. Basically, her heart was put under stress and she suffered a cardiac arrest. How the heart was put under stress has yet to be determined.”
Kate gave a little shrug to say that was all she had.
“Thoughts?” Anderson called out.
“If Devlin was having an affair with Zoe, why is he framing her for the theft?” Myra posited.
“Could be opportunistic. They were in it together. Now Zoe is dead, she can take the blame.”
“Is there any evidence Zoe stole the money?”
“We have a forensic accountant looking at the IT system. He says the theft was complex and happened over quite a period of time.”
“And do you think Devlin knew about the baby?” Kate pondered.
“I think we need another talk with Devlin.” Myra concluded.
~oO0O0~
John Devlin stared, ashen-faced, at the scan picture they had retrieved from Zoe’s medical file.
“She told me she was going to get rid of it,” he whispered. “Her doctor said because of the potential strain on her heart, it wasn’t a good idea to go through with the pregnancy.”
“And you had always wanted kids?”
“I thought we couldn’t. Me and Elspeth. We’d tried for years.”
“And now here was your child and you couldn’t bear the thought of her getting rid of it so you killed her.”
“No!” Devlin raised his tear-stained face. “I loved her. I’d never hurt her. I wanted her to keep it.”
That we, Me and Elspeth. We’d help raise it. When I told Elspeth, she agreed. I explained about Zoe’s heart condition but Elspeth assured me we could make sure Zoe wasn’t put under any stress.”
Myra stared in disbelief. “Are you saying your wife knew?”
“Yes,” Devlin nodded. “Zoe and Elspeth met and talked.”
“So why did you keep meeting in the hotel every week?”
“Zoe thought it was romantic. The illicitness of the affair. She got off on secrecy. She always said she adored the thought of clandestine affairs.”
“Could she have been meeting someone else?”
Devlin began to shake his head then stopped. He sighed before finally admitting, “I suppose she could.”
“Why do you say that?”
“She had a glow after sex. Her mood brightened. She’d have that glow when she came to work the morning after we’d met in the hotel. But she had it other mornings too.”
Myra nodded sympathetically.
“Tell me about the missing money. Our IT forensics say it’s a complex theft. Was Zoe a computer systems expert?”
Devlin looked confused. “I don’t know. She was good at maths. Could spot patterns and inconsistencies but I don’t think she was a cyber genius.”
“How long had Zoe worked for you?”
“Almost five years.”
“And the affair started?”
“About a year ago. We’d always been close and well, one evening it just happened.”
“OK.” Myra checked her watch. “Interview paused at 16.45.”
She stood up and left the room. Once in the corridor, she phoned the IT department.
“Alex, it’s DS Harris. When did the embezzlement start?”
“Hi, Myra. It goes back at least six years. It started small. Unnoticable really. Then built and built.”
“Six years?”
“At least. As I said, it’s complex.”
“That’s ok. Thanks.”
~oO0Oo~
“HI, Kate.”
Kate looked up from her microscope and smiled.
“Hello, Myra. What brings you here?”
“Can too much sex kill you?”
Kate laughed and stepped closer. She took Myra’s face in her hands and kissed her. “Is that a challenge?”
Despite herself, Myra’s body responded as if on auto-pilot. She opened her mouth and accepted Kate’s tongue.
Finally, with all the willpower she possessed, she broke the kiss and gently pushed Kate away.
“It’s possible,” Kate conceded when Myra finally got her mind back on the question. “Zoe had a heart condition so multiple orgasms could have put undue strain on her heart. But she would have known the risks and there was no sign of recent sexual intercourse.”
Myra thought about Elspeth’s tongue and how it had lashed her clit again and again as the orgasms ravished her body.
“Were there any traces of saliva on her body?”
“No. We swabbed everywhere. The only thing we found were some black fibres which have been identified as black velvet. Nothing distinctive about it. Could have been a velvet glove or a velvet jacket or a catsuit even.”
“And there was no velvet among her clothes.”
Kate shook her head.
“What are you thinking, Myra?”
“I was wondering about a lesbian lover. Devlin said he thought Zoe might have been seeing someone else. That she got a kick out of illicit affairs. Could our mystery lover have been dressed in black velvet?”
“But there was no trace of anyone touching her.”
“If they were wearing black velvet gloves, would they leave any traces?”
“Mmm, black velvet gloves. Sexy,” Kate giggled.
“And this glove-wearing lover fingers Zoe until she orgasms to death?”
“What a way to go,” Kate sighed dreamily.
“I’m serious,” Myra snapped.
“No. There were no traces of black velvet on her pussy or inside her. The only evidence of recent sexual activity were the copious cum splatters on her thighs and pussy.” She reached out and brushed a strand of hair back from Myra’s face. “It’s a nice theory but it doesn’t hold up. I’d be happy to help though If you want to try a reenactment. I have some velvet gloves somewhere.”
She leant in and kissed Myra on the tip of her nose. “Or maybe not,” she admitted, seeing the scowl on her face.
~oO0Oo~
Myra opened a bottle of wine as the chicken tikka masala ready-meal for one defrosted in the microwave. She savoured the taste as she ran through what she knew about the case in her head. There were so many loose threads she felt they were going nowhere. She counted them off in her head.
1. Almost a million pounds is missing from the client accounts of John Devlin.
2. Devlin claimed he only noticed this after his assistant Zoe Kempsell was found dead.
3. IT said the theft was a complex cybercrime but Zoe was not a computer genius beyond being good at spreadsheets.
4. The theft started before Zoe starting work for John Devlin.
5. There is no sign of where the money has gone.
6. Zoe Kempsell is found dead in a hotel room that she and Devlin used for an affair.
7. Zoe was pregnant with Devlin’s baby.
8. Devlin has an alibi for the night in question.
9. Someone possibly wearing black velvet gloves was in the hotel room with Zoe.
10. Zoe dies of a heart attack possibly brought on by sex or multiple orgasms.
It was at this point that Myra realised she had run out of fingers and gave up. She knocked back the rest of her glass of wine, then picked up her phone.
It rang three times before Kate’s honey-coated voice broke in. “Is this a red wine booty call?”
When Myra opened the door, Kate stepped forward and ran a velvet-gloved hand down Myra’s cheek. Myra sighed a low guttural groan and stepped back. Kate continued to caress her face and body with her gloved hand as Myra moved backwards into the bedroom.
The velvet caresses seemed to dissolve Myra’s clothes off her as Kate kissed and stroked her. Myra lay on the bed and arched her back when Kate moved her gloved hands up her thighs and brushed her dark curls. She felt so needy as she opened her legs, offering her glistening wet pussy for Kate to take.
Kate knew where Myra’s toybox lived and she reached beneath the bed and came back holding Myra’s wireless Hitachi wand. Please let it be charged, Myra silently prayed. When Kate pressed the button, the hum filled the room.
The pleasure sensations flooded her body when the buzzing head of the wand touched her clit. She arched and writhed and pleaded and moaned as Kate pressed the wand in deeper. Kate ground the wand against Myra’s clit until she came, spasming and screaming as the orgasm broke over her.
But Kate didn’t stop. Myra tried to roll away. “Please, stop,” she whimpered but Kate placed a gloved hand on her chest and pressed down, holding her in place as she continued to rub the wand over her clit. “Please,” Myra whimpered, feeling another orgasm building, chasing the tail of the first one.
Myra felt her lungs were going to burst. Sensation built on sensation, taking her higher and higher with every pulse of the wand. Just when she thought she couldn’t take any more. Kate flicked the switch to increase the intensity. Myra closed her eyes, opened her mouth and screamed.
The screaming sounded like it was coming from a distance. It was like having an out-of-body experience as the orgasms ravaged her. But still, Kate didn’t stop. She heard the switch being flicked again and the intensity increased once more. Myra could feel her body was soaked. Her thighs were splattered with cum but still, Kate ground the buzzing head over her ravaged, abused clit.
A final flick of the switch to maximum pushed Myra beyond the limit of her endurance. Orgasm crashed on orgasm which crashed and built on orgasms, one after another after another until finally, everything went black.
When she opened her eyes, Kate was leaning over her, gently stroking the sweat-soaked tresses of hair back from her face. She tried to speak but Kate just shushed her and told her it was ok.
“There’s your murder weapon,” Kate whispered before planting a soft kiss on Myra’s lips.
Through the post-orgasmic fog, an image of Elspeth Devlin’s graduation photo came to mind.
“Devlin’s wife has a Master’s in cybersecurity,” Myra groaned.
“Fuck, Kate,” Myra continued. “The bitch knew about the baby. She knew about Zoe’s heart condition. She knew how to commit a cybercrime.” And I’ve fucked her, Myra added to herself.
“Are you sure?” Kate questioned.
“The theft started before Zoe started working for Devlin. IT said for the past six years, money has been slowly siphoned off. I think it’s been made to look like Zoe was responsible.” Myra ran her fingers through her hair. “Or maybe Elspeth and Zoe were in it together, until Zoe started banging her husband and Elspeth decided to cut her losses?”
“You think Mrs Devlin was having an affair with Zoe? Is she that way inclined?”
Kate saw the sheepish look on Myra’s face. “Oh, Myra. You didn’t?”
Myra threw her clothes back on and Kate came with her as they drove at high speed to Devlin’s house.
The house was in darkness. Myra banged on the door, alternating the knocking with extended rings of the bell. Kate began lifting up the numerous flower pots that festoned the front steps. The spare key was hidden under the fifth one Kate checked.
They let themselves in and Myra ran up the stairs while Kate checked the ground floor.
Myra stopped dead in the entrance to the bedroom. She could see something sitting in the middle of the bed. She reached for the lightswitch.
A wireless Hitachi wand, similar to her own and a folded sheet of paper lay in the middle of hte bed.
Myra heard Kate enter the room. They stepped closer. Kate pulled on a pair of latex gloves she carried in her coat pocket.
She unfolded the paper. There was only one word written on it.
‘Sorry x”
“The fucking bitch,” Myra swore. “She’s gone, along with all of the money.”