Lindsay whistled softly. “So we could be looking at a million-pound scenario where your mate Kes made Penny’s agent an opening offer she couldn’t refuse. Catriona Polson—that’s the agent—knows how Penny feels about TV and film deals, but she decides that this is too good to miss. She figures that she’ll go with it and see if she can talk it up into a deal that’s so wonderful that even Penny will abandon all her artistic principles and bite their hands off. How does that sound?”

“So far, so good. I like it. Nothing makes me happier than the sight of one of life’s Ms. Ten Percents getting stitched up,” Helen said enthusiastically.

“Only problem is, Penny throws her hands up in horror and says she’d rather eat razor blades than betray her readers and her masterworks in such a tawdry, money-grubbing way. And bearing in mind that agents usually charge more for TV and film deals, Catriona sees the thick end of 150 grand flying out of the window,” Lindsay theorized.

“Whereas, with Penny dead . . .” Helen interjected.

“The deal is even sweeter. She can probably screw more money on the notoriety basis, plus she’s got the added bonus of increased sales on the books that are currently out there. When I saw her, she said that she’d be crazy to kill Penny for a short-term gain when Penny alive would write more books. But if there’s TV in the pipeline, that means she’d get long-term benefit anyway, because all the books would be reissued as TV tie-ins. And Catriona Polson’s a really big woman. She’d have no trouble grabbing Penny and stabbing her in the neck.” Lindsay finished her beer in a single swallow, suddenly feeling dry-mouthed. “Same again?”

When she returned with fresh drinks, Helen was looking sheepish. “Spit it out,” Lindsay sighed.

“You just made out a great case against the agent. It’s a good motive. And it’s just about credible that the agent would use the murder method in the book as a kind of poetic justice, almost to make herself feel like it wasn’t real, just something in a book. Only you can’t tell the police about it, can you?”

“I’m not with you. Why not?”

Helen swallowed a gulp of beer and said, “You told me Meredith is Penny’s residuary legatee, yeah? Well, if it plays as a motive for the agent, it works as an even better motive for Meredith. About ten times better, in fact. You need something more solid before you pass this info on to the bizzies.”