Mallorcan Magic – Episode 34
EIRA dragged herself back to some semblance of sanity. The lawyer was watching her closely.
“I – that is, we’ve become more close recently, but our relationship is strictly a business one.”
“Define ‘close’ for me.”
She took another swallow of coffee.
“Friendly. Less formal. I think that’s because I trust him more.” He raised his eyebrows.
“More than before?”
“Yes.”
“So you accepted my client’s offer of employment whilst still not totally sure of his trustworthiness.”
Goodness, this man was either a hotshot lawyer or he’d been watching too many episodes of “Perry Mason!
“With respect, you’re twisting my words, Señor. What I mean is, I felt a little overwhelmed at joining the staff of a millionaire with a very different lifestyle from my own. You surely must be aware that certain people in the city and elsewhere envy Mr Carpenter and aren’t above spreading rumours about his operating methods?”
Señor Cervantes nodded.
“Now I want to move on to the chauffeur and establish why he has allegedly decided not to report for work. Might he not be ill? Not every house on the island has a telephone line.”
“I understand that, but Raoul has family members who also work for Mr Carpenter.”
“How many?”
She paused to consider.
“I believe every one of the employees you’ve mentioned is from the same clan. I mean, family.”
“We have the same word in Spanish and in Catalan. So, you are the only employee not related to one of the others?”
“That’s right.”
“Have you ever considered that perhaps Raoul or his family might be a little put out by your sudden appearance? After all, you’ve taken over an important household role.”
“Mr Carpenter specifically wanted an English-speaking nanny for Louise and Richard. He’d already interviewed two applicants before he met me.”
“Hmm. I believe there are plenty of local girls who speak English well. They work in hotels and schools for example. My own secretary is bilingual. Does Raoul have a sister perhaps?”
“I’m not sure but I wouldn’t be surprised.”
“You get on well with the chauffeur?” Whose side was this man on?
“I used to. To put it bluntly, he made a pass at me on an occasion when no-one else was around. I slapped his face and I think I must have hurt his pride.”
Señor Cervantes tapped his pen against his very even white teeth.
“Do you think my client takes the loyalty of his employees for granted? Do you think his chauffeur might have acted in some way detrimental to Mr Carpenter and his way of life?”
“It has occurred to me, yes.”
“Then you must share with me what you know, Eira. You probably find my questions harsh but there’s a lot at stake here.”
He looked down at the open file before him.
“I think you should know the package for which you signed contained components belonging to guns. My client denies having anything to do with the illegal arms trade but unless we can prove he has an enemy or enemies out to destroy his life, we are in trouble.”
Eira sat back in her chair. Anxiety and emotion were getting to her.
“The officer in charge didn’t seem to want to listen when I asked him how he thought Danny could have hidden that package when he was waiting at the airport for a London flight. Isabella’s not sure what time Raoul got back to the villa but he was still there alone when she left to visit her friend.”
She watched the Mallorcan narrow his eyes.
“So he could have entered the study and removed the package to hide it. I see. Thank you for confirming that. Tomorrow morning, a further search will be made of the villa. Fingerprints will be examined. It would be most helpful if you could share any information you have about the chauffeur, even something you might consider too trivial to mention.”
When, at last, Señor Cervantes released Eira from her grilling, she wasn’t looking forward to driving up the mountain road so late at night. But in the outer office of the police station, she found Helen and Antonio waiting.
“You poor love,” Helen said. “Antonio says your car’s safely in the hotel car park. Why not let him drive you back to my place and collect you again in the morning?”
Eira burst into tears. The events had been so sudden, so off-putting and worrying, that all at once she couldn’t keep her emotions in place.
“Sorry,” Eira said shakily.
“You don’t have to apologise, after what you’ve gone through. I’d have thought you didn’t warrant a grilling, love.”
“It was done for a purpose. I suppose you’d call it a forensic exercise. I felt I was on trial until Danny’s lawyer explained to me the seriousness of the situation and I realised he needed to know every single scrap of information I could provide.”
“Well, we shouldn’t discuss it here.”
If all the chauffeur intended was a silly prank aimed at making Eira seem scatty or negligent, it had backfired.