‘I’m sure he’d cooperate. He’s always been a model prisoner. It’s the outside, when he has to make his own decisions and take responsibility for himself, that he finds hard to cope with. Besides, he’s due a parole board soon.’ The woman seemed to be thinking how much effort she was willing to put into helping Willow. ‘We could see if the prison would let you use the video-link they have for court appearances.’
‘That would be wonderful. Time’s short, though. I’d like to get it set up for today.’
The probation officer barked a short laugh. ‘Are you joking? Do you know how long anything takes these days? You need forms signed in triplicate to get a visit authorized.’ A pause. ‘But I’ll see if I can work a little miracle. Leave it with me, yeah? I know the assistant governor.’
And so, two hours later, Willow was sitting in the ops room, staring at a computer, and the shaky image of Alison Teal’s only surviving relative appeared on the screen.
Jono was, as the probation officer had explained, likeable. Charming even, in a smarmy, desperate-to-please sort of way. He knew what was expected and first of all had to tell Willow how sad he was. ‘Alis was the only relative I had left. And now that’s been taken away from me too. Do you know when the funeral will be? Only they’ve said I might get a day-release to come along.’
It was hard to believe he’d once been a soldier. He looked very skinny and grey in his prison denims and striped shirt. A middle-aged man’s face on a child’s body.
Willow said they didn’t know when his sister’s body would be released, but he’d be kept informed. ‘When did you last see Alison?’
‘She came to see me sometimes. Not regular, like, but when she could. I’d always get a visiting order to her, just in case.’
‘So when did you last see her?’ Willow thought time must pass differently inside. Each day would be much the same as the last. She allowed him time to work things out in his head.
But the answer came more quickly than she expected. ‘It was two months ago, to the day. I remember because they gave me the date for my parole hearing.’ The grief at his sister’s death left him for a moment. ‘They say I’ve got a good chance of getting it. And I’m not going to screw things up this time.’ He paused for a moment. ‘I’m her only relative, so everything will come to me, won’t it? She owned that flat, bought it when she was still on the telly, and it must be worth a fortune, the way prices are in London.’
‘I guess it depends whether or not she made a will.’ Willow thought this wasn’t something they’d explored. Had Rogerson been Alison’s lawyer, as well as her business partner? She rather hoped this thin man would inherit. Perhaps the security of a little money would help him turn his life around. She looked at him smiling out at her from the screen. And perhaps pigs might fly. ‘How did Alison seem when you last saw her?’
‘She was really well.’ The response seemed genuine. ‘Better than she’s been for ages. Optimistic, you know. She said she was going away. She’d been given a business opportunity. It meant she had a chance to catch up with a few old friends and make some cash at the same time. She might not be able to visit for a while. But if it all worked out as she hoped, she’d be able to help me sort myself out. When I was released, like.’
‘Did she say where she was going?’
‘No.’ But Willow thought Jono was so self-absorbed that he might not have remembered. And he seemed to her completely institutionalized. His life was the routine of prison. He would find it difficult to imagine life outside.
‘Was Alison working?’ This was the big question, but she asked it lightly. ‘I mean, when she came to visit, before her big trip. I presume she must have chatted about her work.’
‘She had her own business,’ Jono said. ‘She always told me that was the way to go. I should be my own boss. She’d never liked having people telling her what to do. I didn’t have her drive, though. Alis was always the one with ambition.’
‘What kind of business had your sister set up?’ Willow was almost glad that they were separated by hundreds of miles and a dodgy video-link. She didn’t want him to see how important this was for her.
For the first time he seemed wary. ‘She was a very attractive woman. No harm in making the most of what you’ve got.’
‘Absolutely.’
‘She ran a legitimate company. Once the acting dried up, she still had to make a living.’ He paused and seemed deep in contemplation. ‘And it was a kind of acting, wasn’t it? Making men feel good about themselves. Everyone likes to be seen with a beautiful woman.’
‘So she worked as an escort. Is that what you’re saying, Jono?’ Willow wondered what Perez would make of that. The positive confirmation that the woman with the dark eyes and dark hair, who seemed to have haunted him since he’d found her body, had sold herself to men.
‘Only to decent blokes. Classy, you know – wanting some company. A bit of arm-candy at works social dos.’ He seemed very earnest in his sister’s defence. Willow wondered if he was convincing himself as well as her.
‘And she was doing well, was she, at the business she was running? She made enough to keep the wolf from the door?’
‘Eh?’
‘She earned enough to keep herself in nice clothes?’
‘She was always well turned out when she came to see me.’
Willow thought Jono had gained credibility inside, by having a visitor as glamorous as Alison. Had he told the other men she was his sister or allowed them to think she was his girlfriend?
Jono was still talking. ‘I think she might have had a bit of bother lately. Stepped on some important toes. It’s a competitive business and people have carved out their own territory.’
So perhaps that was why Alison had been seduced to Shetland, Willow thought. She’d upset some big players in London and had been told to move out for a while. Then she smiled to herself. What did she know about that sort of thing? Only what she’d seen in gangster films. Her police experience was limited to Scotland, and mostly the Highlands and Islands. There were few gangsters in Inverness or Kirkwall. ‘So Alison decided to leave the city to let things settle down?’
‘Yeah. Something like that. But that wasn’t the only reason she moved away. She had high hopes of the new venture. It had great potential. “If everything works out as I expect, you’ll be able to come and work for me, Jono. How do you fancy that? We’ll move you out of London and away from all those scrotes you’ve been mixing with.” I was looking forward to it. I thought it would be a fresh start for both of us.’ Now he seemed genuinely sad. ‘That’s not going to happen now, though, is it? No change of scene for me.’
‘Did Alison say exactly where she’d be moving, for her business?’ Willow thought it didn’t matter now. She had enough information to confirm her theory that Alison had been in partnership with Rogerson.
Jono considered for a moment. The image on the screen flickered and died and then he appeared again.
‘She told me I should pack my thermals.’ He gave a little laugh. ‘But she said it was beautiful. “It was my place of sanctuary, Jono. I always knew I’d go back.”’
That was enough for Willow. Alison had disappeared to Shetland when she’d been depressed and anxious as a young actor, and she’d decided to return to the same place recently, when things were getting uncomfortable for her in London.
Jono was looking off-camera, as if the prison officer operating the system had told him it was time to return to his cell.
‘Just one last question.’ Willow spoke quickly before the line was disconnected. ‘Did Alison mention a man called Tom to you? Tom Rogerson. Was that the person she was going to work with, when she left London?’ She knew it was a leading question, but she wasn’t a lawyer and she didn’t have much time.