慪es. We went out for a meal then on to a karaoke bar. Karen seemed on great form.?
Judy doesn抰 say that a karaoke bar would be her idea of hell. She asks who would have been the last person to see Karen that night.
慖 think that was Sue Elver. They shared a taxi together.?
慔ave you got a phone number for Sue??
慖 think so. She left the school after Karen died. Left the profession entirely. But I think I have a number somewhere in my phone. Yes. Here it is.?
Judy takes down the number, thanks Richard for his time and wishes him good luck with the rest of term.
慖t抯 not so bad,?says Richard. 慖 love teaching and it抯 good to be back in the classroom. It抯 not the same for everyone. I抳e already had parents on the phone begging me to take their children back.?
慚y partner seems to be enjoying home-schooling,?says Judy.
慣hat won抰 last,?says Richard cheerfully. 態ye now.?
Sue Elver also answers the phone quickly. 慖抦 at home with my teenage children.?she says. 慉ny diversion is welcome.?
慚ust be tough for teenagers.?
慖t is. My son was meant to be taking his GCSEs in the summer. Now they抳e been cancelled. It抯 all going to be based on teacher assessments. He抯 regretting now not having done any work for the past five years.?
Judy has already explained that she抯 investigating the death of Karen Head. Now she asks Sue about her friend.
慖 still can抰 get over it,?says Sue. 慖t was why I left teaching really. Just couldn抰 imagine school without Karen.?
慣ell me about her,?says Judy, knowing that this is the best way of asking this question.
慘aren was great fun,?says Sue. 慣hat抯 what I remember most. We laughed all the time. It抯 the only way to survive teaching really, finding things funny. But it was a nice school and Richard抯 a good head. I was happy there. Karen was happy.?She pauses.
慦as there anything that made her unhappy??prompts Judy. 慔er divorce . . .?
慔er divorce was as amicable as these things can be,?says Sue. 慡he still got on well with Chris and they were devoted to Maisy, their daughter.?
Chris had discovered Karen抯 body, Judy remembers. She must talk to him next.
慍an you think of anything that was worrying Karen in the weeks before her death??
There抯 another pause. A more significant one this time.
慡he was seeing someone,?says Sue. 慉nd she said I抎 disapprove.?
慏id she say why??
慛o, but I got the impression there was an age difference. Something like that.?
慏id she say anything else about this person??
慛o,?says Sue. 態ut I was a bit worried. I wish I抎 asked more.?
But people don抰 always ask those questions, thinks Judy. And now it抯 too late.
By six o抍lock, Ruth is exhausted, her head thumping, her vision blurred. This feels more tiring than driving to work and back in the rush hour. Ruth has done two Zoom lectures and three tutorials. She has also overseen Kate抯 schoolwork and tempted her out for a walk to the sea. They came back with a pile of 慽nteresting stones?that will probably never move from the middle of the kitchen table. Ruth has also made lunch and sundry snacks for Kate and Flint. Now they are both making noises about supper.
Ruth looks down at her emails. There seem to be even more of these than usual: students asking for reassurance, lecturers unable to log onto Zoom, opportunistic companies wanting her to spend money. Three messages immediately catch her eye. The first is from Janet Meadows saying that the plague exhibition will now be a virtual event. Ruth sends a quick reply commiserating and congratulating. She adds a quick PS. Do you know anything about researching the history of a house?