Page 362 of The Running Grave

‘But was she, though?’ said Robin. ‘You know, I saw a virtual shrine to Daiyu in Mazu’s office and for a few seconds, I felt genuinely sorry for her. What could be worse than waking and finding out your child’s disappeared, and then hearing she’s drowned? But the picture other people paint isn’t of a devoted mother. Mazu was happy to palm Daiyu off onto other people – well, certainly onto Carrie. Don’t you think,’ said Robin, warming to her subject, ‘it’s odd behaviour, the way Mazu’s let this cult grow up around Daiyu? The drowning’s mentioned constantly. Is that consistent with genuine grief?’

‘Could be a deranged kind of grief.’

‘But Mazu thrives off it. It makes her important, being the mother of the Drowned Prophet. Don’t you think the whole thing feels… I don’t know… horribly exploitative? I’m sure it felt to Abigail like Daiyu was her father and stepmother’s little princess – she’d just lost her own mum, and her father had no time for her any more – but I’m not sure that was the reality.’

‘You make good points,’ said Strike, scratching his now heavily stubbled chin. ‘OK, so we think let her away with stuff but didn’t care about her really both refer to Daiyu… So who was allowed out and able to get things and smuggle them in? Who did Kevin steal chocolate from? Who was the bully?’

‘Becca,’ said Robin, with such conviction that Strike looked up at her, surprised. ‘Sorry,’ Robin said, with a disconcerted laugh, ‘I – don’t really know where that came from, except there’s something really weird about Becca’s whole… status.’

‘Go on.’

‘Well, she seems to have been singled out really early by Wace as… I mean, if I had to pick out anyone who’s treated like a princess, it would be Becca. I told you what Flora said about her being a virgin, didn’t I?’

‘You definitely didn’t,’ said Strike, staring at her. ‘I’d’ve remembered.’

‘Oh, no,’ said Robin, ‘of course I didn’t. It feels like Flora told me that a week ago.’

‘How can Becca be a virgin? I thought she was a spirit wife?’

‘That’s what’s so weird. Emily’s convinced Becca sleeps with Wace, which is why she never goes into the Retreat Rooms with anyone else, but Emily also told me Wace won’t have kids with Becca. Shawna said that’s because Wace doesn’t want a baby with her, because her half-brother was born with so many problems. But Flora says all the other spirit wives know Wace isn’t sleeping with Becca, and that’s why Mazu doesn’t hate Becca as much as she hates the rest of them. And honestly, that makes sense to me, because Mazu and Becca always seem – if not matey, there’s definitely a sense of alliance.’

Another pause ensued in which both Strike and Robin drank coffee, reading the transcript, and the dawn chorus twittered ever louder beyond the windows.

‘Making allowances,’ Strike read under his breath. ‘Bad t – possibly bad time… gonna talk to her…’

‘She’s going to meet me,’ said Robin, also reading. ‘But who’s “she”?’

‘And did “she” turn up?’ asked Strike. ‘Or was “she” a ruse? Did he answer the door and find our masked gunman friend outside? Then Navabi says is someone from the church going to meet you, Kevin? and the by now exceptionally pissed Kevin says, and answer for it. So,’ said Strike, looking up, ‘which woman in the church had things to answer for, as far as Kevin was concerned? Who was going to “answer for it”?’

‘Take your pick,’ said Robin. ‘Mazu – Louise – she dragged the family there in the first place – Becca—’

‘Becca,’ repeated Strike, ‘who he connected with a plot, according to the writing on his bedroom wall…’

He dropped his gaze again to the transcript.

‘Then Kevin goes off on a bit of a detour, starts talking about Paul Draper, or Dopey, as he refers to him here… think was part of… part of the plot? That fits, if Draper was one of the people set up to witness Carrie and Daiyu leaving.’

Robin was also reading the transcript again.

‘The pigs,’ she read aloud, ‘and Navabi says forget the pigs and Kevin says he liked pigs… no “he liked pigs”… is that Draper?’

‘Well, we know for sure it’s not Jordan Reaney,’ said Strike. ‘I was in the woods… Becca told me off because, Wace’s daughter and mustn’t snitch. And then Kevin mentions a plot again and in it together. So: a plot that involving Wace’s daughter, and multiple other people.’

‘Daiyu wasn’t the only Wace daughter at the farm, remember,’ said Robin. ‘There was Abigail, Lin – any number of girls playing in the woods at Chapman Farm could have been fathered by Jonathan Wace. Most of the kids I saw in the classroom have got his or Taio’s eyes.’

‘Always together,’ said Strike, reading again, ‘which could mean Daiyu and Carrie – if I’m right – and bution. What’s bution?’

‘Attribution? Contribution? Distri—’

‘Retribution!’ said Strike sharply. ‘“Retribution” was written on Kevin’s wall as well. And then he gets really incoherent. There’s a gale blowing, an ire but too wet – no idea – weird – threatened me – ran out of there (I think, though possibly not) – thought it was for punishment – Becca told me… and then he went off to puke in the bogs.’

‘Fire,’ said Robin.

‘What?’

‘A fire, but it was too wet to catch, maybe?’

‘You think someone was trying to burn something in the woods?’