“Did you argue?”
“Sometimes. When she went on about things.”
“Like the fact that you had a wife and hadn’t told her about it.”
Nathan shrugged—he wasn’t going to deny it.
“Am I right in thinking Pippa ended the relationship, when she found out you were two-timing her.”
“Three-timing her, actually. I don’t know what it is about the girls round here.”
“And how did you react when she dumped you?”
Helen clocked the tiny reaction from Price, a little spike of anger at the word “dumped,” which he quickly suppressed.
“What are you going to do?” he replied casually, but Helen wasn’t buying it.
“You went nuts, didn’t you?”
“No. I di—”
“You didn’t like being dumped and you blew your stack. I have a witness statement here from one of Pippa’s colleagues at Sun First. Says you barged in there, caused a massive scene.”
“Bullshit.”
“Apparently you had to be hauled out by security. We also have a statement from a long-term tenant at Bedford Heights in Merry Oak who confirms that you turned up drunk several times, banging on Pippa’s door, demanding to be let in.”
“She’d changed the lock and I didn’t have a key. It was no big deal.”
“Why had she changed the lock, Nathan?”
For once, Nathan didn’t have a ready reply.
“Because she was scared of you? She told colleagues she was scared of you. Said you were stalking her.”
“No way.”
“You didn’t want to let her go, did you, Nathan? I think youlikedher. Where did you take her?”
A long silence, as Nathan stared back at Helen. Then he dropped his gaze. “I want a lawyer.”
“A duty brief is on the way. She should be here in a few minutes. But I’d like to keep going with these general questions, unless you’d specifically like me to stop for some reason.”
Another long pause, then a dismissive shrug.
“Tell us about Ruby Sprackling,” Lloyd said, taking up the baton.
“Don’t know her.”
“Pretty girl. Similar look to Pippa. You’re fixing a leak in her flat.”
“Oh yeah, I got you.”
“Still got keys to her flat, have you?”
“I did until you took them off me.”
“And where is Ruby now, Nathan?”
