The more she thought about this, the safer it seemed. No one had seen Jackson arrive. It wasn’t likely he would have told anyone he was coming to get money from her. The weakness was if the police had seen Jackson run off. She decided to play it off the cuff. She was confident she could dominate a police officer.
‘Here is a nice cup of tea, Mrs. Rolfe,’ Nurse Fairely said, breaking into her thoughts. ‘I’m sure you must feel like a comforting drink.’
‘I think I do.’ She opened her eyes and managed a smile.
‘And here is something to help you to sleep.’
Obediently she swallowed the small capsule, then with the nurse’s help, she drank some of the tea.
Some minutes later, she drifted into a sleep that was empty of dreams, of fear, and of the coming problems she knew she would have to face.
When she awoke, she was conscious that her head was aching and her mouth sore, but she no longer felt dopey nor weightless. The sedation was over, she told herself with relief. From now on, her mind must be razor sharp. She looked around, then lifted her head from the pillow, wincing a little.
Nurse Fairely came to her.
‘How do you feel, Mrs. Rolfe?’
‘My head aches.’ She touched the side of her face. It felt swollen and tender. ‘What time is it?’
‘Just after eight. You slept beautifully all night.’
She stared at the nurse.
‘Is it another day? Have you been up all night?’
Nurse Fairely smiled.
‘Oh no, we have a night nurse. Do you fancy some breakfast? A lightly boiled egg? Tea?’
‘Tea, I think. Nothing to eat. My mouth’s as sore as hell.’
‘That’s not to be wondered at.’ Nurse Fairely moved to the door. ‘I’ll get you tea and I’ll give you something for your headache.’
‘No more pills,’ Helga said firmly.
Nurse Fairely left the room and Helga made the effort to sit up. For a moment her head swam, then apart from the dull ache, she suddenly felt fine.
Then the door opened and Hinkle, carrying a tea tray, came in.
‘Hinkle!’ Helga exclaimed, delighted. ‘Why, bless you! When did you arrive?’
‘Yesterday afternoon, madame. As soon as I heard the distressing news.’
‘Thank you, Hinkle. I only wish now I hadn’t sent you away.’
‘It was most unfortunate, madame.’
She looked sharply at him as he poured the tea. He looked more like a grieving father than a bishop this morning. Her heart warmed to him. I really believe he cares about me, she thought. He must be the only person in the world who does.
‘Prop me up, Hinkle,’ she said. ‘I’m dying for a cup of tea.’
‘I trust madame, you are not suffering too badly,’ he said as he gently arranged her pillows, then handed her the tea.
‘It’s all right.’ She sipped the tea, then went on, ‘Tell me, what’s going on? I suppose the press have arrived?’
‘Indeed yes, madame. They are outside waiting for a statement. Mr. Winborn will be arriving this afternoon.’
‘Winborn?’ She frowned. ‘What does he want for God’s sake?’
‘Dr. Levi thought he should be here to handle the press.’
She asked the vitally important question.
‘Have they found the man who attacked me?’
‘Apparently not, madame. The Inspector is anxious to see you. He wants a description of the man. Dr. Levi has told him he must wait.’
Helga felt a surge of triumph run through her.
‘Didn’t the police see him?’
‘No, madame. They arrived too late.’
So once again the cards were falling her way! There would now no longer be a mess!
‘I’ll see the Inspector sometime this morning, Hinkle.’
‘Yes, madame.’
Helga again looked sharply at him. She was surprised that he hadn’t asked questions. How it happened? Who was the man? Then she saw there was a distressed, shocked expression on Hinkle’s face, so distressed that she put down the cup of tea.
‘Is there something wrong, Hinkle?’
He hesitated, then nodded.
‘I am afraid so, madame. Dr. Levi suggested that I should break the news to you.’
An icy chill began to crawl up Helga’s spine.
‘News? What news?’
‘It’s Mr. Rolfe, madame. I very much regret to tell you he died the night before last. Apparently, madame, he came out of the coma for a few brief moments, then his heart gave out.’
Into Helga’s mind came the scene of Jackson withdrawing the needle and then slowly pushing it into the doll’s chest. She was now so cold she began to shiver.
‘I can’t believe it,’ she said hoarsely. ‘What time the night before last?’
‘It would be about the time you were attacked, madame. This will be a terrible shock to you as it is to me. I know how both of us, madame, will miss him.’
Helga stared at the kind, distressed face and she put her hands to her eyes.
‘But you should think, madame, that it is really a happy release. He suffered so much and he was so very brave.’
Then as she began to weep, Hinkle went silently from the room, stopping Nurse Fairely from entering.
‘Madame would like a few moments to herself, nurse,’ he said in a whisper. ‘She has been so good, so worthy and so loyal to him. It is a most grievous loss to her.’
Listening to his words, Helga shuddered.
So good, so worthy, so loyal!
She again saw Herman’s contorted face and his slack mouth forming the word whore.
Burying her face in the pillow, she began to sob her heart out.
The next four hours were the worst Helga had ever lived through for they were hours of self-incrimination, remorse and self-disgust. She saw herself as she imagined others saw her. It was like looking into a three dimensional mirror and what she saw there sickened her.
When Nurse Fairely had come in, hearing Helga sobbing, Helga had screamed at her to get out and stay out.
As soon as the startled nurse had withdrawn, Helga had staggered out of bed and had locked the door, then she had returned to the bed to continue her desperate sobbing.
An hour of this left her drained and leaving the bed, she put on a wrap and had sat in a lounging chair.
There came a gentle tap on the door and Hinkle’s voice asking, ‘May I bring something, madame? A little beef tea?’
‘Just leave me alone.’ Helga had to control herself not to scream at him. ‘I’ll ring if I want anything.’
Then began the long hours of self-incrimination. So Herman is dead, she thought. You wanted him to die. You longed for him to die because you wanted to own all his money. That was all you could think about... his money! Now finally he is dead and he died hating you. After the few years you have been married to him during which time he respected you, was proud of you, trusted you, he finally died hating you.
The knowledge that he had died hating her crushed her.
Because of her infernal sex urge she had been unfaithful, but she had always been scrupulously honest with his money, and yet he had died believing she had not only been unfaithful but was no longer to be trusted with the handling of his fortune.
He had called her a whore. He had died thinking of her as a whore.
Her mind switched to what Hinkle had said: Apparently, madame, he came out of the coma for a few moments, then his heart gave out.
She saw Jackson pulling the needle out of the doll’s head and pushing it into the doll’s body. Could the needle have killed Herman? Hadn’t she stood by, doing nothing, while Jackson had murdered her husband? Why hadn’t she snatched the doll from him? Wasn’t it because she longed for Herman to die, and although she didn’t believe it could happen, had hoped it would happen?