Edward St John Matthews

EDWARD ST JOHN MATTHEWS

Edward St John Matthews, known to all at Manly Burgess, (“luxury goods for the discerning male”), was a long-serving, loyal employee, always willing to help, go the extra mile, support his fellow workers. His thirty years of constancy, however, were seen by some as emblematic of a rather pathetic individual with no particularly redeeming features. The man had no backbone, no personality, a dull, wooden individual, not worth bothering either with or about.

Indeed, his reward from his fellows for his faithfulness and consideration was a steady diet of condescension, selfishness and general piss-taking, the butt of the office jokes.

Undaunted, he tried to be a good team player. For example, he always made the tea, then distributed it, the right mug placed in front of its’ rightful owner, with a chocolate biscuit added on Fridays.

There was never a word as he dispensed the beverage. If he was lucky, he received a grunt, a nod, sometimes a smile from Sally. But never a simple “thank you”. He was ensconced in a world of indifference, with no obvious means of escape.

A confirmed bachelor aged 58 years, Edward lived quietly in the middle of town, thanks to a generous inheritance from his late father, who’d been a “something in the City” and had made a lot of money, even though the effort had ultimately killed him.

Edward was fastidious in respect of his appearance. Always immaculate, tall and distinguished looking, his hair now silver-grey, neat and tidy, Edward was never seen without a tie. One of the office jokes was that he even wore one to bed and Sally asked Martin Wilkes, who had made the remark, how come he knew that. For once somebody else had to endure the snide remarks which Edward knew so well. Edward did not participate in the banter. It felt an unkind thing to do so he stayed silent and got on with his work.

Away from work his main interests were church organ music, foreign stamps, (he had a fine collection) and poisons. He had an extensive knowledge of poisons, their origins and effects. One never knew, he reasoned, when such knowledge might prove useful.

Then he met Joan, a widow aged 56 years. It was in the library, close to the romantic novels section, which Edward considered to be very apt under the circumstances.

She was perfect. Kind, solicitous, listening to his stories with rapt attention and a beautiful smile. He was smitten as never before. He adored her and she adored him. It was the ideal match and they had a quiet wedding at the Registry Office in Chelsea, attended by just a few close friends. Nobody from Manly Burgess was invited or even told about his new status. Edward reasoned that they probably wouldn’t care anyway.

For the next five years Edward was supremely happy, living quietly with Joan, counting down the years until his retirement, making plans for the next phase of his life. He continued working at Manly Burgess, continued being the joke employee, continued to make the tea with never a “thank you” proffered in his direction.

It was too good to be true. And so it proved. Arriving home from work one Tuesday evening he found Joan lying on the floor of the kitchen, quite, quite dead. An ambulance arrived and Joan was borne away but it was all too late. A massive heart attack he was told.

Manly Burgess allowed him a total of five days leave to conclude arrangements and he then took a week of annual leave in order to attend the funeral. After that he was expected to return to work. They were sorry for his loss but life had to go on. There were no exceptions to the HR rules.

Upon his return nobody said anything. Death was too embarrassing a topic for a busy office where nobody cared. He made the tea as usual and Sally squeezed his hand as he placed the mug on her desk. That was all.

That night, he returned to his flat which seemed so empty and desolate now that Joan was no longer there. He considered his situation. A job which bored him with people whom he loathed. The only person in his life who had ever cared for him snatched away in a cruel and brutal manner. He never had the chance to say goodbye. It all seemed so unfair.

A few days later he listened to a radio news bulletin. The main news concerned an investigation into an incident at the office of Manly Burgess, the luxury goods distributor. A number of staff were being treated in hospital for the effects of what appeared to be a poisonous substance yet to be identified. Sadly, two of the employees had died. One was named as Martin Wilkes, aged 25 and the other was Sally Green, aged 22. Three others were critically ill. Police were investigating possible causes and an update would be provided in due course.

Edward listened with interest. He was sad about Sally. She was the only person who’d ever shown any sort of kindness towards him. That was rather unfortunate. He hadn’t intended to put the poison into her mug at all. He must have got mixed up, forgotten what he’d put where. They would all have drunk their tea and been unaware of anything wrong. It was a tasteless concoction which he’d devised himself. But within twenty-four hours they would be fighting for their life.

The knock on the door signalled the arrival of the police. It was as he expected. His video doorbell confirmed their status. Two uniformed officers and a man in a dark overcoat. They looked grim, stern, serious.

He decided to finish his tea before answering.