Never Return

by Stephen Barnes

  “What do we do now?” Marsh asked.

  “Summon up some uniforms and break in. This is a possible crime scene.”

  “Are we sure it’s the right house?”

  “Paul thinks it is and it’s definitely the address he wrote down. You can arrange the forced entry and a trip to hospital for Paul. We also need to speak to Carol’s employers. Find out whether they have a partner called either Jerry Haymer or Harmer. Paul wasn’t sure which it was. We also need to know when Carol left the office yesterday and whether she said where she was going. I’ll call Chris Hinton.”

  Chapter 33

  “Is he sure it was Tom Thorbury?” Hinton asked after taking the call from Evans and hearing about Paul’s story.

  “He seems convinced but it may be hard to prove.”

  “Well fortunately, the suspect can speak for himself. When you called, I was sitting with him in an interview room. Get here as quickly as you can. I’ll wait for you.”

  “Tom Thorbury has turned up,” Evans told Marsh. “If he can prove he wasn’t here last night, Paul will have to think a lot harder about what happened.”

  Evans helped Paul out of the car and left him in the care of the Sergeant before driving frantically to the station. He entered the interview room with Hinton where Tom Thorbury observed them without a trace of apprehension.

  “I realise I owe you an apology Inspector,” Tom said to Evans before either of the officers could speak. “As I’ve already explained to the Superintendent, I’ve been overdoing things recently. I fully intended to be here yesterday as arranged but I was delayed at the apartment by an unexpected visitor and after she left I fell asleep and woke up in the early hours of the morning.”

  “You slept for over eight hours?” Evans asked.

  “Just over ten to be precise Inspector,” Tom said. “It’s not like me but I went out like a light. My hectic lifestyle must finally have caught up with me. I’m really sorry although I don’t understand your interest in me. I had nothing to do with your murders. Why do you think I can help you?”

  “We needed to speak to you about information we’d received regarding Sarah, Michael Gilbert’s girlfriend,” Evans explained. “She’d been expecting a visitor at her house on Tuesday morning. She told her housemates it was you she’d arranged to see about IT work.”

  “That’s not how we operate, Inspector. We meet potential candidates at the office. No one from Thorbury Recruitment, myself included, would have made an arrangement to see her at home.”

  “Since my visit to your office, I’m aware that it couldn’t have been you,” Evans said. “But Sarah had been given your name and we were hoping you’d have an idea about who might do that.”

  “I’m afraid I don’t. Is the mysterious visitor a suspect in the murder investigation?”

  “The visitor is almost certainly Sarah’s murderer,” Hinton stated. “And whoever tried to frame you must be someone you know.”

  “Well I can’t imagine who. Perhaps I’m just the perfect patsy,” Tom replied.

  “We need you to give some serious thought to the question of who might want to frame you for murder,” Hinton insisted. “I doubt if the killer simply plucked your name out of thin air.”

  “I’ll let you know if an idea springs to mind.”

  “And now, there’s something else which draws you into our enquiries,” Evans said.

  “Oh dear. This really isn’t my lucky day.”

  “Paul Cahill was invited to a party last night at a house in Shoresby. He says he was tricked into going there. He believes his girlfriend was murdered at the house although we’re yet to establish that. He told me he was drugged and he’s convinced you were there. Unfortunately, your long sleep means you don’t have an alibi we can corroborate.”

  “That story is so absurd, I hardly think I need one,” Tom responded. “Whoever’s trying to set me up is clearly very determined. Why was Dr Cahill so convinced he’d seen me there?”

  “He didn’t say he’d seen you. He said he’d heard you,” Evans revealed.

  “And he told you he’d been drugged?”

  “Yes.”

  “I hope I’m not going to be charged with anything on the basis of such flimsy evidence.”

  “That remains to be decided,” Hinton said. “You say you had an unexpected visitor. Who was it?”

  “Mila Mertens. It was quite a surprise to see her after so many years. She was the family’s nanny but she had much more to do with Eddie than either myself or Charlotte. Eddie was her favourite.”

  “Why did she visit you?”

  “She thought she’d look me up while she was in the area. I don’t recall her saying why she was in Thorbury or where she was staying. She said she’d called the office and they gave her my address.”

  “Is she still in touch with Eddie?”

  “I guess so. She didn’t say. I made her a cup of tea and hurried her away due to my appointment here.”

  “Did you have tea yourself?” Hinton asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And after drinking the tea, you fell asleep and woke up ten hours later?”

  Tom shrugged and Hinton was thoughtful before asking, “Tell us about your relationship with Eddie. How well do you get on?”

  “We’ve never got on. After father’s death it was clear that Eddie resented the fact that I’d inherited the title but didn’t use it. If he’d been the eldest, he would have gloried in it. He believes in all that stuff but I’d rather leave it where it belongs, in the past. My father was eighteen when Thorbury Hall was sold. He’d expected to inherit it one day but instead, for the whole of his adult life, he had to suffer the hurt of the family’s decline. He tried to avoid reminders of what had been lost but it was certainly a factor in his untimely death.”

  “Did Eddie know Simeon Gilbert or his brother Michael?” Evans asked.

  “He may have done if Charlotte knew one of them.”

  “Charlotte hasn’t heard from Eddie recently. Did you know he had a job in Belgium?”

  “No but it would be plausible if he had kept in touch with Mila.”

  “I see. Mila Mertens is a Belgian.”

  “Well deduced Inspector.”

  “Can you describe her?”

  “Is she a suspect too?” Tom asked.

  “It’s just procedure,” Evans advised.

  “She would have been quite young when she joined the family. I’d say she’s in her late forties, medium height, blonde hair, slim, well dressed.”

  “Good English?”

  “Perfect and with a flawless accent.”

  “And what is Mila’s full name?”

  “Mila Marie Mertens.”

  “Can you put us in touch with her?”

  “I’m afraid not. She lives in Brussels. That’s all I know. Charlotte and Eddie would know more than me about Nanny Mertens but other than directing you to Long Malden, I couldn’t put you in touch with either of them. It’s hard to believe Mila managed to find Eddie a job. He certainly wouldn’t make any of our shortlists.”

  “Do you know anything about the trouble he got into at college?” Evans asked.

  “No. I’m out of the loop as far as family intrigues are concerned. Did you get that from Charlotte?”

  “She told us about Eddie having to leave but she didn’t know the details.”

  Tom Thorbury observed each of the officers in turn with a look of impatience. “I really don’t think I can help you any further, gentlemen. So if there are no charges, I’ll get back to the business.”

  “Okay Tom. We may need to see you again,” Hinton said. “Do you have any more trips planned in the next few days?”

  “No but things crop up at short notice. Why do you ask?”

  “We need you to let us know if Mila Mertens contacts you again.”

  “Very well,” Tom said, grudgingly.

  “Before you go, can we take a DNA sample? It might help to prove you weren’t at the house in Shoresby.”


  “In that case, go ahead,” Tom agreed.

  Hinton left the room and returned quickly with a constable who took a saliva sample from Tom Thorbury and left within a minute.

  “One final thing,” Hinton said before Tom reached the door. “You would be wise to make an appointment to see your doctor. Your nanny may have put something in your tea.”

  Tom gave Hinton a puzzled look but departed without another word.

  “Did you believe all that?” Hinton asked Evans.

  “Yes. He’s too self righteous to stoop to deception.”

  “Could an obviously intelligent man be so incredibly naive?”

  “I don’t think it’s naivety. His self confidence doesn’t allow him to believe he can be bettered by anyone. Especially his former nanny. If he falls asleep against his will, it has to be the result of his own failing.”

  “Any other theories?”

  “Not yet but I’m sure this is about more than drugs.”

  “I am as well. Drug dealers don’t behave like this. Their methods of intimidation are rather more straightforward. I guess we’re both thinking that Mila could have been the woman who drugged Paul Cahill after giving Tom a bigger dose to ensure he had no provable alibi for the abduction.”

  “And given the state Paul was in, he could easily have been taken in by Eddie impersonating Tom.”

  “But what’s the motive?”

  Evans shrugged. “No idea. But we have good reason to believe Eddie rented unit twelve and knew the Gilbert brothers and that’s enough to link him to our murders.”

  “But why would Eddie abduct Carol Jones and try to set up Tom for a murder which may not even have been committed?”

  “We can’t be certain it was Eddie or about what happened at Shoresby but a motive will emerge sooner or later. Are we due an audience with the media?”

  “They’re back this afternoon,” Hinton replied, looking glum. “But I’m reluctant to reveal too much at this stage. You need to launch the search for our suspects. I suggest you start with an all ports warning with descriptions of Mila and Eddie in case they’re planning to leave the country. We should also contact the Belgian police for anything they can tell us. And we should send Curtis and Turnbull to Long Malden.”

  “Any news from Fuller and Garton?” Evans asked.

  “They’re on the way back with Maxine. You’ll need to speak to her as soon as she arrives.”

  Chapter 34

  “Do either of you speak French or Dutch?” Evans asked after finding Curtis and Turnbull in the CID office.

  “Mais oui,” Turnbull replied.

  “Good. I need you to call the Brussels police.”

  “Mon plaisir. Que dois-je leur demander?”

  “No need to show off Tessa. You were a language student I take it?”

  “No Sir. My mother’s French. I managed to scrape a first in psychology.”

  “That’s useful to know. I might ask you to join me on my next difficult interview.”

  “That would be good Sir.”

  “What was your subject Gary?” Evans asked Curtis.

  “Philosophy Sir. I’m trained in the art of rational thought.”

  “That could be equally useful. But in the meantime I need you to arrange an ‘all ports warning’ in respect of the following.”

  Curtis took out a pen. “Go ahead Sir,” he said.

  “Mila Marie Mertens, mid to late forties, blonde hair, slim build, medium height, Belgian citizen, speaks perfect English. Edward Thorbury, aged nineteen, British citizen, also blond hair, well spoken. They may be travelling together. Both wanted on suspicion of kidnapping and murder.”

  “Got it Sir. Would that be Charlotte’s brother?” Curtis asked.

  “It would. The request to the Brussels police is for any information they might have on either of them,” Evans told Turnbull. “Mila Mertens is the Thorbury family’s former nanny, now resident in Brussels. It would also be worth checking social media for anything which might help us trace either of them. They may be keeping a low profile but try it anyway. When you’ve completed your tasks, if you’d both like to step into my office, I’ll update you on the latest developments.”

  After carrying out their instructions and finding nothing about the suspects on line, Curtis and Turnbull got the update from Evans including the full details of the events which followed their meeting with Charlotte.

  “You need to call Lady Thorbury and make arrangments to visit the family home in Long Malden,” Evans told the DCs.

  “When I spoke to her yesterday, she told me she was known as Mrs Thorbury,” Turnbull informed Evans. “Her first name is Louise. She told me she was done with titles. She said even Charlotte doesn’t user her title. Apparently she got ribbed about it at university and now she doesn’t think it’s cool.”

  “What’s Charlotte’s title?” Evans asked.

  “As the daughter of an Earl, she would be Lady Charlotte Thorbury,” Turnbull explained. “I looked it up,” she added in case the Inspector thought she was being a bit too smug.

  “Well, whatever they’re called, it’s likely Mrs Thorbury will know more than her daughter and may be more forthcoming if you see her on her own. Hopefully, Charlotte will be at work. The mother will almost certainly know about the trouble Eddie got into and there may be things she hasn’t told Charlotte and may not want her to know.”

  “We certainly won’t miss seeing Charlotte again Sir,” Turnbull said. “I think she’s already added us to her long list of people she doesn’t like.”

  “Not being liked is all part of the job,” Evans replied. “It would also be useful to get an insight into the relationship between Eddie and his nanny. No doubt your combined academic knowledge will help you to form one or two theories about it’s significance to the investigation. Do the Brussels Police have your mobile number?” he asked Turnbull.

  “Yes Sir.”

  “Good. Let me know as soon as they get back to you. When you call Louise Thorbury, ask her for the details of the college Eddie attended in Hull. I need to know that urgently. If there’s any problem with her, I’ll deal with it.”

  Curtis and Turnbull left the office and fifteen minutes later, Turnbull was back. “She was fine,” Turnbull said. “We can call on her at any time. Charlotte is at work. Eddie was a student at the Little Howton Academy of Science, Technology and Finance near Hull. Louise hasn’t got his number. He hasn’t been in touch for a while. Despite her pleasant manner, she seemed reluctant to say much over the phone. Do you want us to leave now?”

  “Yes. You know what we need. Good luck.”

  Hinton was the Inspector’s next visitor. “I’ve just taken a call from Fuller. Maxine will be here early this afternoon,” he told Evans. “You can call him if you need to, Garton’s driving.”

  Evans made the call immediately. “Your countrywide tour continues tomorrow,” he told Fuller. “I need you to visit the Little Howton Academy. It’s near Hull. You can go off duty when you get back here. I’ll brief you first thing tomorrow before you leave.”

  “Right Boss. The rest of the day’s ours then?”

  “Not until you get back,” Evans replied. “Don’t stop at any roadside inns.”

  A call from Marsh followed the conversation with Fuller. “The house is currently unoccupied,” Marsh explained. “The woman next door told me the owners are abroad.”

  “Are the SOCOs at work?”

  “Yes but there’s no evidence of any crime. They need more information about what happened and which rooms to focus on. It’s a big house. Shall I collect Paul from the hospital? We need his help.”

  “I’ll do that. You stay at the house. We’ll be with you as soon as possible. What did you get from Carol’s office?”

  “Needless to say, there was no party and there’s no partner called Jerry Haymer or Harmer. Carol left about four o’clock. She said she had a meeting but didn’t give any details. I got her car registration from Paul. I’ve put out an alert
. What did Tom Thorbury have to say for himself?”

  Evans retold the story of Tom Thorbury’s visit from his former nanny.

  “And Mr Hinton let him go?” Marsh asked.

  “I’d have done the same. Apart from Paul’s confused account of last night and his wild assumptions, there’s nothing to hold Tom Thorbury on.”

  Chapter 35

  Paul had undergone the necessary tests, provided the required samples and was about to be told to go home and rest when Evans arrived at the hospital. After examining the Inspector’s warrant card, the doctor quit the cubical having diagnosed an acute case of officialdom.

  “How are you feeling?” Evans asked.

  “Pretty rough. What’s happening?”

  “Not much at the moment. You’re needed at the house. The SOCOs want to know more about what happened and where to look for evidence.”

  “Let’s go then.”

  “You sure you’re alright?”

  “I’ll survive.”

  “Any idea what you were drugged with?”

  “Some sort of hypnotic. The Forensic Medical Examiner has got samples.”

  Paul dozed during the journey. The effects of the drug were yet to completely wear off and his confused recollections did nothing to dispel his depression.

  On arrival, the mandatory scene suits and gloves were presented to both men. Paul forced his on with even greater clumsiness than Evans.

  “I need you to lead me through the sequence of events to the best of your recollection,” one of the SOCOs asked Paul when they entered the house.

  “I’ll do my best. I was led this way.” Paul walked across the hall and opened the door opposite the entrance. Evans and the SOCO followed. Marsh emerged from one of the other rooms and joined the group.

  “Is this where you were given the drink?” Evans asked.

  “Yes. There were bottles on the table over there. They must have been taken away. I didn’t watch her pour the drink. She gave me the whisky and left when the doorbell rang.”