“Please refer to the plan if it assists, Detective Butler,” said Sparling. “The jury have copies.”
“Thank you, sir. One of the panes in the window on the left had been smashed.”
“Using what?”
“I can only say that a blunt, hard object with an even surface would have been used.”
“Could it have been the butt of a handgun?”
“It could have been. The window was open, and I found some wet earth and debris in the study room and the front hall area, which suggested that the intruders had entered through the study window and had then gone through these rooms and up the front staircase. I believe that that was their exit route as well, since there was no debris on the back staircase.”
“It was at the top of the front staircase that the body of Lady Anne was found?” asked Sparling.
“Yes, that is correct.”
“You can assume that the jury have already seen the photographs, Detective Butler.”
“Thank you, sir. She was lying as shown midway between the top of the stairs and a large bookcase, which was turned so as to disclose a hiding place behind.”
“Again we have the photograph. Did you find anything in the hiding place?”
“No forensic evidence, sir, except that the carpet near the center of the bookcase was stained with urine. This was subsequently found to match a sample given by Thomas Robinson.”
“Did you find any forensic evidence to assist with identification of the perpetrators of the crime?”
“A small amount of blood on the study windowsill from which a DNA profile has been obtained but not one that matches any suspect on the database. Otherwise there are only the intruders’ footprints and the car tire marks in the roadway known as the lane.”
“We’ll return to them later. Are you able to say whether or not the intruders wore gloves?”
“They must have done, sir. There is no fingerprint evidence.”
“Thank you, Detective Butler. Please continue.”
“The electric lights in the upper corridor and on the back staircase were on, and so was the lamp beside the bed in the master bedroom. These were the only lights on in the house. The telephone by the bed had been unplugged, and the bedroom had been ransacked. However, none of the other rooms in the house showed any sign of having been searched. As I have already said, the grass and earth debris were only found in the study, the front hall, and in the master bedroom.”
“What do you mean by the word ransacked, Officer?”
“The pictures were all removed from the walls and were lying on the floor. The glass in several of them was broken. The drawers in a high chest positioned between the two windows were all pulled out and their contents strewn over the floor.”
“The curtains?”
“They were drawn, sir. There was also a safe over the fireplace, and it was empty.”
“Had it been broken into?”
“It had been opened, sir. It’s impossible to say whether the person who opened it already knew the combination or not.”
“Thank you. Now let me ask you about the body of the deceased.”
“I have already indicated her position, Mr. Sparling.”
“Yes, I know. I still need you to describe what Lady Anne was wearing, however. For the record.”
“She had on a white nightdress and no slippers. She was not wearing any underwear.”
“What about jewelry?”
“She had on her wedding ring. Otherwise no jewelry at all. And no watch.”
“And the injuries?”
“There were two bullet wounds. One to the right neck-and-shoulder area. The other to the side of the head.”
“Anything else?”
“There was a small scratch on the left side of the deceased’s neck.”
“Thank you. Now, if we may turn to the exterior of the property. Can you assist us as to the intruders’ route of entry?”
“Yes. It began raining shortly after nine P.M. that evening, and the intruders’ footprints were preserved by the north gate and, to a certain extent, on the north lawn, which they crossed to reach the house.”
“Upon which sides of the north gate did you find the footprints?”
“On both sides. There were two sets of prints, which enabled me to establish that there were two intruders.”
“What about the north gate itself?”
“It is in fact a door in the wall. It was closed but unlocked. The footprints in the doorway showed quite clearly that the intruders came through the door rather than over the wall and left by the same route.”
“Did you inspect the lock, Officer?”
“I did. There were no signs that it had been forced. It is my opinion that it was unlocked using a key. The lock is modern and resistant to being picked from the outside. Picking would have left some scratches inside the lock itself, and there were none found.”
“I see,” said Sparling. “Now, you referred earlier to tire marks in the lane. Please would you tell us about them.”
“Yes, sir. They were distinctive. They were of a type usually fitted a Mercedes C-class vehicle, which had been turned at some speed in the roadway outside the north door before being driven away.”
“Were any of the other exterior entrances to the property open?”
“Only the main gates at the front of the property. They had been left open by Thomas Robinson when he went over to Christopher Marsh’s house.”
“To raise the alarm?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Thank you, Detective Butler. If you wait there, my friend here may have some questions for you.”
“Just a few, Officer,” said Miles Lambert, getting slowly to his feet. “Just a few. We wouldn’t want to keep you from your duties unnecessarily.”
Butler did not respond. He’d sworn to tell the truth, and that was what he was going to do. However, that did not extend to exchanging unnecessary pleasantries with the other side’s counsel. He kept his eyes fixed on a point just above Miles Lambert’s head and waited.
“Ransacking, Officer. A strong word.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Implying that those who did the ransacking did not know what they were looking for?”
“I can’t say, sir. I wasn’t there.”
“Yes, Detective Butler, that’s right,” interrupted the judge. “Mr. Lambert, stick to questions please. Don’t make points.”
“I’m sorry, my Lord. Let me ask you about the bed, Officer. Had it been slept in?”
“The one in the master bedroom?”
“Yes, the one in the room that was ransacked, as you put it a minute ago.”
“I’d say it had been slept in. Yes.”
“And what about the one in Thomas Robinson’s room?”
“That had more the appearance of having been laid on rather than slept in.”
“I see. Now the north door of the grounds. You believe it was unlocked using a key.”
“Yes, sir. After close examination of the lock, I feel sure of it.”
“Did you find the key?”
“Yes. It was hanging inside the side door of the house. With various other keys, sir.”
“Thank you. Now, you told Mr. Sparling earlier that it began raining that evening shortly after nine P.M.”
“Yes, sir. There was a thunderstorm. It rained for about half an hour.”
“And the rain would have washed away any footprints that were there before?”
“Where, sir?”
“In the lane and by the north door and on the lawn.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And the weather before it started raining. Was it hot or cold? Can you assist us with that, Detective Butler?”
“It was a warm evening, sir. Quite warm, as I understand it.”
“Understand it from whom?”
“From the meteorological office. There’s a report in the case papers.”
“Yes, I have it. Now, you’ve told us about the smashed window in the study, but what about the windows elsewhere in the house? Were any of them open?”
“The one in the boy’s room. In Thomas Robinson’s room. That was slightly open, but I don’t recall any others.”
“Thank you. Now, that’s all I want to ask you about the night of the thirty-first of May. I do, however, want to move you forward a little more than a year. To last Wednesday evening in fact. The fifth of July.”