Imperfection (DI Gardener 2)

“Any in particular you can remember?”

“Not off the top of my head. I remember we considered a couple that were soft porn gone a little too far. We suggested cuts and the directors agreed.”

“So, you had to get the directors’ permission?”

“Not really, no. We just thought it polite to involve them.”

“Did the directors approve without opposition?”

“Mostly. They knew we had the power to ban the film, if they didn’t,” replied Malcolm, sipping his tea.

“Where did you do all this, Dad?”

“The Town Hall in the early days. Then, as time moved on, so did we.” Malcolm paused. “I think we moved over to a warehouse, near the Playhouse.”

“Can you remember where?”

“Not the exact address, but it was at the back of the Playhouse.”

Gardener nodded. “I know where you mea

n, don’t think it’s in use now.”

Briggs resumed his questioning. “You knew Leonard White pretty well, didn’t you?”

“There were people who knew him better.”

“The day he was murdered at The Grand, you went to see him. Is there anything you can think of now that was unusual about his behaviour?”

“Only the tea. I told Stewart he was legendary for halting productions because he wanted a regular supply of tea. When a tray of tea came for us both at The Grand, he never touched a drop.”

“Did he pass you yours?”

“No.”

“Did he move the tray?”

“Not that I can recall. In fact, to be honest, he was applying the finishing touches of his make–up, but he was wearing those surgical gloves.”

“Finishing touches? What time were you with him?” asked Briggs.

“About two o’clock, as I remember.”

“And you didn’t find it strange that he was applying the finishing touches of his make-up at two o’clock in the afternoon, when he wasn’t due on stage until seven-thirty in the evening?”

The expression on Malcolm’s face changed. “Now you mention it, it did seem a little odd, but I didn’t think anything about it at the time.”

“What about his voice? Can you remember if it sounded any different?” asked Briggs.

“It was a little higher. But voices change.”

“The colour of his eyes?”

“Can’t say as I noticed,” said Malcolm. “But you have to remember it was a good twenty plus years since I’d seen him, and I had no reason to believe it was someone else.”

“Fair point,” said Briggs.

Gardener interrupted. “Dad, can you think of anything that brought the committee into disrepute? Were there any arguments about anything in particular? Were any of the members ever threatened?”