I cycled round to Homelea. Heavy cloud cover threatened squalls of rain and made it dark for late afternoon. Homelea was a picture of warmth and welcome. Cheery yellow light spilled from the large bay windows, and as I locked my bike at the side, two women in wheelchairs, laden with shopping bags, were pushed up the ramp by young assistants.
Inside I could smell onions and a whiff of roasting fat before my nose clogged up again. It was a busy time of day with residents congregating downstairs for afternoon tea and staff preparing the dining room for the evening meal. In the general hubbub no one asked me my business.
I followed the corridor round and knocked twice on the office door while twisting the handle. I heard a faint ‘Come in.’ I opened the door. Mrs Knight was at the desk. She looked up in enquiry, then as she recognised me her face twisted with dismay before she had a chance to mask it.
‘Mrs Knight, we need to talk.’
‘I don’t see what…’ She rose, flustered.
‘Don’t you?’ I spoke sharply. ‘It’s about Lily Palmer. And those tablets she was given.’
‘I don’t have to listen to this.’ She was outraged. ‘I don’t know who you think you are, barging in here, taking that tone.’
‘I’m a private detective,’ I said. I sat in the chair opposite her.
She remained standing, her palms braced on the edge of the desk. She stared at me, her mouth slightly agape.
‘My client was concerned about the care that Mrs Palmer was receiving here – with good cause it seems.’
‘What are you implying?’ She rallied. ‘Our residents are well looked after, we’re inspected regularly by Social Services. We’ve never had any complaints. If you wish to make a complaint I suggest you contact the local authority, but I can assure you-’
‘The tablets that went missing,’ I persisted. ‘There was something different about them, wasn’t there?’
She frowned. ‘They were a different brand, that’s all,’ she said dismissively.
‘Oh, just a different brand? So any of the patients could have had them?’
‘Well, no. We always keep individual prescriptions separate, to ensure we can monitor the course. It reduces the risk of giving anyone the wrong medication.’
‘Why did you lie about the missing bottle turning up again?’
‘I didn’t – one of the girls found them, like I said.’
I shook my head slowly. ‘They can’t have done. I know. I’ve got the tablets.’
She clasped her hands together. ‘What?…You took them?’
‘They were found in Lily’s slippers. I don’t think anyone deliberately stole them. Why did you lie about them being found?’