Page 79 of Vengeance is Mine

‘On to the next claimant?’ Terry couldn’t hide the derision in his voice.

‘You make is sound so cold, Detective. I’m sure you’re exactly the same. You arrest someone then move on to the next case. You don’t go and visit the murderer in prison to see how they’re coping, do you?’

He couldn’t help but smile. ‘I suppose not.’

‘What’s this all about?’

Terry looked at Kyra and gave her the nod.

She cleared her throat. ‘I’m afraid to say that Dominic was found dead at his house earlier this morning.’

‘Good grief,’ Clare said, slapping a hand to her chest. She looked genuinely shocked by the news. ‘How did he die?’

‘He was murdered,’ Terry said, almost matter-of-fact.

‘Murdered? That’s deplorable.’

‘Indeed. Obviously, given Dominic’s history, we need to explore who might have wanted to kill him. Is there anything you can tell us about him that may help in our investigation?’

She thought for a moment. ‘I’m not sure. I don’t think so. I try not to get involved in my clients’ personal lives. I’ve made that mistake in the past. Some start to believe you’re their friend and latch onto you. When you move on to the next case, they can take offence. It can get quite ugly.’

‘So you wouldn’t know where Dominic was living or working?’ Kyra asked.

‘Well, we have his address on file, I’m sure. I wasn’t aware he was working, no.’

‘Purely for elimination purposes, could you tell us where you were last night?’ Terry asked, with a smile.

She returned the smile. ‘Of course. I finished here around six, went home and had dinner with my husband. We went to bed around eleven, and I slept until the alarm went off at seven o’clock this morning.’

‘You worked on New Year’s Day?’

‘Only for a few hours in the afternoon. I have a case in court on the fourth.’

‘I hope you don’t mind me asking, but was Dominic’s compensation claim on a no-win, no-fee basis?’

‘Yes, it was,’ she answered clearly.

‘So, when a settlement was reached, he received one hundred per cent of the claim, and your costs were paid by Maxton-Schwarz?’

‘That’s correct,’ she said, the smile disappearing.

‘I only ask because Dominic’s daughter, Dawn Shepherd, told us his compensation was for one million pounds. Yet’ – Terry made a play of reaching inside his coat pocket for the bank statement Kyra had given him outside – ‘his bank statement clearly shows a payment of only eight hundred thousand pounds going into his account.’

Clare’s eyes darted around the room, while she searched for something to say. She blinked rapidly and swallowed hard.

‘That’s correct,’ she said eventually. ‘It was a gift.’

‘A gift?’

‘Yes. Dominic wanted to give me a gift for all my help. I told him it wasn’t necessary, but he insisted.’

‘Isn’t that against the rules?’ Kyra asked.

‘Not at all. Providing the gift is declared, it’s fine.’

‘Did you declare it?’ Terry asked.

‘Yes, I did,’ she replied, looking away.