Necessary as Blood

him that if he used this, or anything else he got from me, in a story, I would never speak to him again.‘
    ‘He believed you?‘
    ‘I think so. My mum had a word with him, too, and she‘s the one person who can put the fear of God into him.‘
    Gemma looked back at the sheets, reading through the list more carefully. There was Azad. Another name, Miles Alexander, seemed familiar to her, but she couldn‘t quite place it. Then she saw something that made her stop and check it again. John Truman, RCYS.
    ‘There‘s a vet on this list,‘ she said to Melody. ‘I wonder... The ketamine found in Naz Malik‘s system is a veterinary drug. Do you suppose this John Truman had any connection with Naz, or Sandra?‘
    ‘One of Sandra‘s patrons?‘ suggested Melody.
    ‘It‘s certainly possible.‘ She thought about going to Fournier Street and looking through Sandra‘s studio again, but had promised Kincaid that she wouldn‘t go there until some action could be taken against Kevin and Terry Gilles.
    ‘Pippa Nightingale might know,‘ she said aloud. She still had the number for the Nightingale Gallery stored in her phone. But when she pulled it up and dialled, she got a voicemail recording. Without leaving a message, she clicked off. ‘Bloody voicemail.‘ She tapped her finger on the phone while she thought.
    After a moment she announced to Melody, ‘I‘m going to Rivington Street. There‘s no reason Kevin or Terry Gilles should be there. And I‘m going to camp out on the gallery doorstep, if I have to, until I can talk to Pippa. Can you send a copy of this list to Duncan? I‘ll ring him once I‘ve talked to Pippa.‘
    ‘Where do I tell him I got it?‘
    ‘You‘re a crack researcher. Tell him you have your sources.‘

    When Gemma reached Rivington Street, the gallery looked just as it had the first time she‘d visited, and when she pressed the buzzer, the door clicked open.
    This time, however, Pippa Nightingale stood at the top of the stairs, watching her as she climbed.
    ‘Is there any news?‘ Pippa asked when Gemma had reached the top.
    ‘No. I‘m sorry. But I was hoping you could help me with something.‘
    The same surreal monochrome works were on display in the long upper room, the scenes of snow and forest and nightmarish, enchanted creatures, all in blacks and whites except for the occasional shocking splash of red. Today Pippa wore red as well, a long, deep-crimson dress, as though she only dressed to complement the art. She didn‘t invite Gemma into her office.
    ‘Lucas said you went to see him.‘ Pippa‘s voice was neutral, and Gemma couldn‘t tell if she approved or disapproved.
    ‘Yes. He was very helpful,‘ she answered carefully.
    Pippa shrugged. ‘When it suits him. I wouldn‘t expect him to put himself out too much over Sandra‘s daughter, by the way. And I‘m afraid I don‘t know anything that I haven‘t already told you.‘
    ‘This is something else entirely.‘ Gemma had realized on the way to the gallery that she couldn‘t very well show Pippa the entire list, not without more explanation than she was willing to give, considering Pippa‘s connection with Lucas Ritchie. ‘Do you know if Sandra ever sold works to a man named John Truman, a veterinary surgeon?‘
    ‘Truman? If Truman bought Sandra‘s work, it wasn‘t through me. That little snake. He used to be one of my regular customers.‘
    Gemma thought she saw a hint of colour in Pippa‘s pale cheeks.
    ‘But he is a collector?‘
    ‘In a small way. Nothing too expensive.‘ She frowned. ‘Although I had the impression that he liked to inflate to his wife the prices of the pieces he bought. Maybe he needed to impress her.‘
    Or cover up what he was spending on something else, Gemma thought. ‘Did he know Sandra?‘
    ‘He might have met her at an opening...‘ Pippa‘s eyes widened, and what Gemma saw in their ice-blue depths made her think that Pippa Nightingale‘s unusual physical poise was a mask for suppressed rage. Pippa walked to the window and looked out. ‘That bastard,‘ she breathed, her back to Gemma. ‘Truman?‘ Gemma asked.
    ‘No. Bloody Lucas. Truman met Lucas here, at more than one opening. Of course Lucas would have recruited him for his club. It‘s just the sort of secret thing that would appeal to a little snot like Truman, and if Tiuman bought Sandra‘s work, it will be because Lucas displayed it in the club. John Tiruman never had any confidence in his own taste — he