James and I went for another run before we all headed for Sunday brunch. We’d not long returned before the doorbell went. Stella answered.
I heard, “I thought I made it clear to stay away until he felt able to speak to you. He’s in tiny pieces.”
A man’s voice said, “I can help clear everything up. Please ask him to speak to us. Katrina has never betrayed her vows to him.”
Stella closed the door and came through. “Did you hear that?” I nodded. “It’s Kat and another man. I’ve seen him before but I don’t know him. I haven’t seen him with Kat.”
I took a few deep breaths. “Let’s get this over with. I have questions I need answered. No doubt my solicitor will want those as well.”
Stella opened the door and brought them through to the kitchen. Kat looked like she hadn’t slept since I caught her. She was dressed more like herself, dowdy.
James offered tea, coffee but both declined.
The man said quietly, “We have a lot to discuss.”
James added angrily, “No shit, Sherlock!”
The man looked at James, at Stella and then me. I was in my place obviously.
He began, “I can’t begin to comprehend what you’re going through. I do know I can help you understand what has happened. It will take a little time to explain but before I begin, I need to ask James to leave. Stella can stay but I can’t speak in front of James.
“James if you go outside a car will take you for a coffee and bring you back when we are finished. Don’t ask Stella or Andy about what has been said. It’s vital nothing of this gets out until everything is in place. Trust me, nothing will happen to either of them.”
He’d noted James’s anger and move to protect Stella. Stella said, “It’s okay James, do as he asks.”
After James reluctantly left, he began. His words were measured and delivered in a calm manner.
“What I am about to say, cannot be repeated to anyone, family, friends, colleagues. I had hoped you would never learn of this. Katrina especially so as she feared the consequences. When you arrived home early and caught her preparing for her role, you almost cost us the whole enquiry. Katrina was so distressed she had to be cajoled to continue in her role that night. There was no other option available to me.
“For your piece of mind, I can tell you Katrina never once broke her wedding vows to you. Had it been suggested she would never have agreed to our proposition, she’d have told us to fuck off. She is not an adulteress as you have alluded to Stella.
“I know of Stella as I have been in and out of her office to see the Area Fiscal regarding what I am about to tell you. I called her and she gave permission for me to tell you, given the circumstances. She has every faith in you to keep this under wraps until we have them all in court.
“I’m Detective Chief Inspector Brown from the Serious Crime Office. With my team, we’ve been investigating a group of businesses who have close links to several high-profile politicians who were able to send contracts to them under cover of the Covid emergency. These contracts have never been fulfilled but the money has gone straight to their offshore accounts. The politicians have received sizeable bonuses paid into their offshore accounts.
“The problem was how to break into their group. From our surveillance, we found a number of the businessmen had a serious, and we hoped, an exploitable weakness. They liked very beautiful women, preferably married, so they wouldn’t run and tell after they had seduced them. They definitely stayed clear of a working girl. They could spot them easily.
“With the Area Fiscal and other Prosecuting Counsel, we devised a plan which was highly risky but would hopefully give us leverage over those businessmen. It meant we had to find some woman, beautiful, resilient and totally unknown to them so she couldn’t be traced.
“Katrina works in an out of the way office so would be unknown. She is strikingly beautiful even if she doesn’t believe it. When the Area Fiscal and I approached her asking her to consider being bait for the operation she asked what it entailed. We had to tell her more about the role than we wished. She declined but we kept at her as she was perfect for the role.
“She was mortified at what we were asking her to do. Even more so as we couldn’t allow her to tell you. The person we wanted her to portray was so different from her, that if you found out, it would be so shocking, she knew her marriage would be seriously at risk. She wasn’t prepared to do that.
“It was almost five months ago, we finally managed to persuade her. We couldn’t find someone remotely close to her for the role. Even then she’s been far more successful than we thought possible. She’s been absolutely perfect for this role.
“For five weeks, we worked at turning her into a self-reliant hot woman. We had to overcome her low self-esteem issues which made her chose to be her dowdy self. Even when the stylists and beauticians told her she was beautiful, she struggled to believe them. When she is fully made up, she is totally stunning. It doesn’t need much makeup.
“She’s naturally shy which helps her to be able to project that she is not looking to play around. The fact she has never thought to do that really helps her to pull it off. This is what entices those men. An innocent they can corrupt. We chose the clothes for her and schooled her in how such a woman in that sort of company would act.