“Sometimes, yes.”

“Was there anyone in particular?”

“I suppose we were quite friendly with several of them over the last year of the war.”

“Do you remember their names?”

“I think so. Why?”

“What about Brad? Ring a bell?”

“Brad? Yes, I think he was one of them.”

“What was his second name?”

“Szikorski. Brad Szikorski.”

Banks checked the list of Rowan Woods personnel he had brought with him. Bradford J. Szikorski, Jr. That had to be the one.

“And PX? Billy Joe?”

“Edgar Konig and Billy Joe Farrell.”

They were on the list, too.

“What about Charlie?”

Vivian Elmsley turned pale; a muscle by the side of her jaw began to twitch. “Markleson,” she whispered. “Charlie Markleson.”

Banks checked the sheet. “Charles Christopher Markleson? That the one?”

“Charlie. He was always called Charlie.”

“Whatever.”

“How did you find out their names? I haven’t heard them in so long.”

“It doesn’t matter how we found out. We also discovered that Gloria was having an affair with Brad Szikorski. Was she still seeing him when Matthew came back? Is that what happened?”

“Not that I knew of. I don’t know what you’re getting at. You’ve been misinformed, Chief Inspector. Gloria was married to Matthew, whether he was there or not. Yes, we went to the pictures with those boys on occasion, perhaps to dances, but that’s all there was to it. There was no question of romantic involvement.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I am.”

“How did Gloria behave during her husband’s absence?”

“What do you mean?”

“When she thought he was dead. Obviously things would be different then, wouldn’t they? It wasn’t as if she were waiting for him anymore. As far as she was concerned, she would never see him again. After a reasonable period of mourning, she could enter back into the spirit of the times, couldn’t she? Surely an attractive woman like her must have had boyfriends?”

Vivian paused again. “Gloria had a very gregarious side to her nature. She liked parties, group excursions, that sort of thing. She liked to keep things superficial. At a distance. Besides, we never gave Matthew up for dead completely. You must understand that, Chief Inspector; we never gave up hope. There was always hope, hope that he would return. And it proved well-founded.”

“You haven’t answered my question. Did Gloria have a romantic affair with Brad Szikorski, or with anyone else?”

She looked away. “Not that I knew about.”

“So she lived like a nun, even though she believed her husband was dead?”

“I didn’t say that. I didn’t spy on her. Whatever she got up to behind locked doors was none of my business.”

“So she did get up to something?”

“I told you: I didn’t spy on her. You’re twisting my words.”

“How did Brad take it when Matthew came back alive?”

“How should I know? Why would it matter to him?”

“It might have. If he fell in love with Gloria, and if she rejected him in favor of her husband. He might have been angry.”

“Are you suggesting that Brad killed Gloria?” Vivian sniffed. “You’re really clutching at straws now.”

Banks leaned forward. “Somebody did, Ms. Elmsley, and the most immediate suspects that come to mind are Matthew, one of the Americans, Michael Stanhope, or you.”

“Ridiculous. It must have been a stranger. We got plenty of them in the village, you know.”

“What about Michael Stanhope?”

“It’s been years since I’ve heard his name. They were friends. That’s all.”

“Would it surprise you to hear that Gloria posed nude for a painting by Stanhope in 1944?”

“Yes, it would. Very much. I know that Gloria wasn’t as fastidious about her body as some would have wished her to be, but I never saw any evidence of anything like that.”

“Next time you’re in Leeds,” Banks said, “drop by the art gallery and have a look. You’re sure she never told you?”

“I would have remembered.”

“Was Gloria having an affair with Michael Stanhope?”

“I shouldn’t think so. He was too old for her.”

“And homosexual?”

“I wouldn’t know about that. As I said, I was very young. It certainly wasn’t something people went around boasting about back then.”

“Did she ever tell you about her family in London? About her son Francis?”

“She did mention him to me once, yes. But she said she’d cut off all relations with him and his father.”

“Even so, they could have come to drag her back. Maybe they fought and he killed her?”

Vivian shook her head. “I’m sure I would have known.”

“Was Matthew ever violent toward her?”

“Never. Matthew had always been a gentle person, and even his war experiences didn’t change that.” Her voice had taken on a strained, wavering quality.

Banks paused and softened his tone. “There is one thing that really puzzles me,” he said, “and that’s what you did think had happened to Gloria? Surely you can’t have thought she had simply disappeared from the face of the earth?”

“It wasn’t a mystery at the time. Not really. She left. That’s what I had always thought until you found the remains. You are certain it’s Gloria, aren’t you?”

Banks felt a twinge of doubt, but he tried not to let it show. They still had no definite proof of the skeleton’s identity. For that, they would need Francis Henderson so they could run DNA checks. “We’re sure,” he said. “Why would she leave?”

“Because she couldn’t stand it anymore, taking care of Matthew, the way he was. After all, it wouldn’t have been the first time she’d done that. She had clearly broken off all contact with whatever life she had had in London before coming to Hobb’s End. I don’t think Gloria was particularly strong when it came to emotional fortitude.”

True enough, Banks thought. If a person has bid one life good-bye, then it probably wouldn’t be too difficult to do it again. But Gloria Shackleton hadn’t bid Hobb’s End good-bye, he reminded himself; she had been killed and buried there.

“When did she disappear?” he asked.

“Shortly after VE day. A week or so.”

“You must see how the discovery casts suspicion on your brother, most of all. Gloria was buried in an outbuilding adjoining Bridge Cottage. Matthew was living with her there at the time.”

“But he was never violent. I had never known him be violent. Never.”

“War can change a man.”

“Even so.”

“Did he go out much?”

“What do you mean?”

“After his return. Did he go out much? Was Gloria often alone in the house?”

“He went to the pub on an evening. The Shoulder of Mutton. Yes, she was alone there sometimes.”

“Did Gloria ever say anything to you about leaving?”

“She hinted at it once or twice, but I didn’t take her seriously.”

“Why not?”

“Her manner. It was as if she was joking. You know, ‘Some day my prince will come. I’m going to leave all this behind and run off to untold wealth and riches.’ Gloria was a dreamer, Chief Inspector. I, on the other hand, have always been a realist.”

“I suppose that’s debatable,” Banks said. “Given what you do for a living.”

“Perhaps my dreams are very realistic.”

“Perhaps. Even though she hinted, you didn’t believe Gloria would actually go?”

“No.”

“What were the circumstances surrounding her departure?” Banks asked. “Did you see her go?”

“No. It happened on one of the days when I accompanied Matthew to his doctor in Leeds. When we got back that evening, she was gone.”

“You accompanied him? Why not Gloria? She was still his wife.”

“And he was still my brother. Anyway, she asked me to, on occasion. It was the only respite she got. She looked after him the rest of the time. I thought it only fair she get some time to herself once in a while.”

“Did she take anything with her when she left?”