Make You Sorry

by Christine Rae-Jones

  Morgan fixed his grey blue eyes on Easton and started the questioning. ‘Before we talk about what happened outside the club, I’d like you to tell us why you said you were Steven Cooper.’

  ‘No comment.’

  ‘It’s not a name you made up on the spot, is it?’

  ‘No comment.’

  ‘How well do you know Mr Cooper?’ Danny looked down and shook his head.

  ‘For the recording please, Danny. How well do you know him?’

  ‘He’s the son of one of the residents at Silver Sands. That’s where I work.’

  Harriet Lees-Langham leant across and whispered into Easton’s ear.

  No surprises that she’s asking him to stick with “no comment,” thought Morgan.

  ‘Why that name?’ growled Spence. His tone startled Morgan and it must have had the same effect on Easton because he looked up, eyes wide.

  ‘I’ve been with Mrs Cooper when he’s come to visit. He gave her a hard time last time he came, shouting and swearing at her. Really upset her, and I don’t like to see her upset. And after all she’s done for him. Job on a plate; good money; and a fantastic inheritance when she dies.’ A sly grin crossed his face. ‘I thought I’d make some trouble for him. Show him what life was like for the rest of us.’

  ‘And instead, it’s added to your trouble. Tell us what happened last night at Club Europium,’ said Morgan.

  Easton looked back and forward between the officers. Lees-Langham leant in again and spoke softly to him. ‘Remember my advice.’

  ‘Whatever Ms Lees-Langham has advised, Danny, this is your opportunity to tell us what really happened when you were at Club Europium?’

  ‘The bouncer threw me out. I’d only been in there five minutes, and it’s expensive to get in. He came up behind me, grabbed me, and threw me out. It was right in front of the queue as well. I hurt my arm when I landed, and my arse. They were all laughing at me. He was out of order.’

  ‘Then what happened?’ Spence continued without looking up from the notes he was making. Lees-Langham reached out a hand and touched Easton’s arm as if physical restraint might stem the flow of his words.

  ‘He needed to learn a lesson,’ he smiled as if the memory satisfied him. ‘I wanted to hit him. He was a big fucker, bigger’n me, so I looked for something to hit him with. Found a brick and I used that. He wasn’t laughing then.’ Lees-Langham’s Montblanc pen paused. She looked at him, her frustration obvious.

  ‘What?’ he said returning her glare. ‘It’s on CCTV, they know I did it.’

  ‘The door supervisor is in an induced coma until they can assess the bleed on his brain,’ said Morgan. ‘Admitting the offence now will reduce your sentence, but you must know you’re going to serve time for this. So again, for the record, you admit hitting Thomas Earl Finch, a door supervisor at Club Europium over the head with a weapon, namely a brick, in the early hours of this morning?’

  Danny glanced once more at Lees-Langham before speaking. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Okay,’ said Morgan tapping his papers into a neat pile. ‘You’ll stay here while we speak to the custody sergeant and the Crown Prosecution Service. Then we can all be clear what the charges are going to be. I’ll warn you now that I’m going to ask for you to be held in custody until the next bail court at the magistrates which...’ he looked at his watch, ‘will be Monday now.’

  Morgan and Spence left Easton with his solicitor and made their way back upstairs.

  Chapter 74

  Saturday 29th February

  At four o’clock, Spence called CPS Direct for an update and got the go-ahead to charge Easton with grievous bodily harm and remand him in custody.

  Spence, Lees-Langham and Easton grouped at the custody sergeant’s desk while she told Danny Easton that the officer would read out the charges and that he should listen but it was obvious that he only heard a few words before he switched off. Morgan watched.

  ‘Do you understand the charges?’ the sergeant asked and Easton nodded. ‘Do you have any reply to make to the charges?’ He shook his head. ‘Sign the pad then and we’ll get you a copy.’

  Harriet Lees-Langham stepped forward. She pleaded that Daniel Easton was not a flight risk and that his mother relied on his income and support since the death of her husband six months before.

  The uniformed officer looked as if she’d heard it all before, but she waited until the solicitor stopped speaking before replying. ‘I’ve listened to and understood your representations and I’ve weighed them against my responsibility to keep the public safe. He’s going to stay with us until he goes to the Magistrates’ Court on Monday.’

  ‘This is outrageous,’ said Lees-Langham narrowing her eyes as she pointed at Morgan. ‘It’s an assault outside a club. He’d been drinking. Keeping him in custody is an over-reaction.’

  A middle-aged male officer stepped forward and took hold of Easton’s arm to take him back to his cell. Morgan moved to block the solicitor’s exit. When Dave Spence saw his expression he ducked back.

  ‘I’ve heard a lot about you DI Morgan. I even Googled you before I came in today. I must say, I’m disappointed by your lack of empathy. Anyone can see he’s not a flight risk.’ She was up close and invading his personal space.

  ‘Ms Lees-Langham, my empathy is with the victim who is lying unconscious because your client hit him with a brick. If you familiarise yourself with Sentencing Guidelines, use of a weapon is the first aggravating factor.’ He was counting on his fingers. ‘Under the influence of alcohol is the second and offence committed against someone providing a service, the third... I could go on. Your client is a dangerous man who needs to be in custody.’ He stood to one side. ‘Thank you for your help today and I have no doubt we’ll meet again very soon.’

  The custody sergeant made eye contact with Spence. She gave a small nod of approval before disappearing behind the bank of screens which displayed the live feed from surveillance cameras around the suite.

  Spence caught up with Morgan who was making his way to the stairs. He didn’t want to speak first in case Morgan hadn’t completely vented his anger.

  ‘I know what you’re thinking,’ said Morgan without slowing his pace or looking back. Spence remained silent. ‘I’ve decided to keep the fingerprints thing under wraps for now. I figure he’s in custody until Monday and the magistrates will have to send him to Crown Court for sentencing. Meantime, if they bail him, we can arrest him at the court and start another twenty-four hour custody time clock. If they keep him, we’ll wait till we have the full fingerprint analysis, then we’ll arrest him on suspicion of the Maguires. By that time, with any luck, we can link Wesley Crook in by the “sorry signs.”

  Spence was forced to recognise that it was a good plan. ‘And Abi Slater?’

  ‘Not sure yet. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.’

  Chapter 75

  Monday 2nd March

  Monday morning bail court was busy. Morgan and Spence queued at security with people who were appearing on summons and their supporting family and friends. When they got to the waiting area, Spence found the usher for Court One and asked when Daniel Easton’s case would be called on. The tall, blonde man in a black gown referred to his clipboard then glanced at his watch. ‘About half an hour I’d say. There are three on before him. He’s already spoken to his solicitor.’

  Spence thanked him and returned to Morgan who was standing near the exit. ‘Thirty minutes, if all goes to plan.’

  Morgan nodded, then got his phone out and started reading through emails. When he looked up again, he thought that a documentary maker would find rich pickings in a court waiting area. There were smartly suited professionals who he thought were probably here to plead their case against being disqualified from driving. He saw a young couple leaning on each other. Her head was resting on the man’s shoulder and her eyes were vacant. Morgan guessed at drug possession or shoplifting to fund their habit. A dishevelled man with a baggy suit and thick glasses bustled across the wait
ing room acknowledging a few people. Defence solicitor, he decided, as the Tannoy crackled into life.

  ‘The case of Daniel Easton is about to be heard in Court One. Daniel Easton, Court One.’ Spence joined him and they went through the heavy wooden door into the courtroom.

  The magistrates, two women and a man, were talking together as they waited for Easton to be brought up from the cells. The unsmiling woman who was chairing the court watched them as Morgan and Spence took seats in the area allocated to the public.

  Harriet Lees-Langham came into court and sat in the front row facing the bench. The unsmiling woman greeted her by name. When she had sorted her papers into individual piles, she leant across to speak to a statuesque black woman who was prosecuting. They both turned to Morgan and Spence. When Lees-Langham shuffled back along the wooden seating to her place near the dock, the CPS solicitor rose and came to the back of the court. She introduced herself without offering a handshake. ‘I’ve read through the case a couple of times and I can’t see a justification to remand in custody. He’s not a flight risk, he’s previously of good character, and he lives at home with his mother. I’ve also just been told that the victim of the assault is conscious now and awaiting further assessment.’ Morgan didn’t hide his disappointment. ‘Look, I know you want him in custody and I’ll do my best, but I don’t see them keeping him.’ She gestured towards the magistrates with her head before returning to the front of the court.

  There was a noise of footsteps and a jangle of keys. The door at the back of the dock opened and a custody officer preceded Danny Easton into the area which was triple glazed from a height of about three feet to the ceiling. There were small gaps between the thick glass panels to allow passage of documents and to facilitate communication between the court and the defendants.

  Easton looked towards the public area then quickly away again when his eyes fell on the officers. He acknowledged Lees-Langham with a nod as the single handcuff which joined him to the custody officer was removed. She returned his greeting with a wan smile.

  The Legal Adviser who sat at her desk in front of the magistrates asked Easton to give his full name, date of birth, address and nationality before reading out the charges. Morgan held his breath when she asked for a plea. It was always possible that Easton might have changed his mind about admitting the offences of grievous bodily harm and obstruction. He was pleased to hear the pleas of guilty to both charges. Now he only had to worry about whether the magistrates would grant bail before the sentencing hearing at the Crown Court.

  The CPS solicitor read from her tablet computer. She opposed bail due to the seriousness of the offence and how it might be dealt with at sentencing. As he listened, Morgan felt the likelihood of custody slip away. When Lees-Langham stood and gave her performance of barely controlled outrage, he leant towards Spence and said, ‘He’s getting out.’

  The defence suggested bail conditions which restricted Easton to living and sleeping at home and a curfew from eight at night until six in the morning. After a short discussion, the magistrates agreed, adding a stern warning about what would happen if he broke the conditions. Then it was over. Easton put out his arm for the single cuff to be replaced and followed the officer back through the door and down to the cells from where he would be released.

  The court room door opened and two women almost fell through. Everyone turned towards the commotion and Morgan was astounded to see that one of them was his mother-in-law. The usher hurried across to speak to them and Morgan heard him apologise. ‘I’m sorry, Mrs Easton, you’ve just missed him, but he’ll be coming back up to the waiting area to speak to his solicitor.’ Dorothy Cooper put her arm around the other woman and escorted her back through the door. As she passed him, she looked straight at Morgan and her eyes narrowed. She mouthed something at him and although he wasn’t sure, he thought it might have been “bastard.”

  Morgan turned to his sergeant. ‘Let’s wait for the full fingerprint report. We know where to find him.’ He followed the usher to the front of the court and crouched down to speak to the prosecutor. The usher was talking to the legal adviser and Morgan heard him say ‘GBH! That’s gonna put an end to his ideas of being a magistrate, isn’t it? Anyway, there are two more cases ready and they’re both with Ms Lees-Langham. Did you want Mohammed or Bishop up next?’

  When he finished his conversation with the prosecutor, Morgan returned to where Spence was waiting at the back of the court. ‘I just want a quick word with the usher before we go,’ he said.

  Chapter 76

  Tuesday 3rd March

  Sheila Turnbull, the officer in charge of exhibits taken from the DIY store car park rang Nick Morgan, just as he was thinking about lunch.

  ‘Thanks for your patience, Nick,’ she said. ‘Your predecessor was on to us every ten minutes when it was a hot one. But things take longer when you keep having to answer the phone.’

  ‘It’s okay, I know you’re busy. I need to be sure it’s him before we go all out to nail him. So don’t keep me in suspense. Is it him? Is it Danny Eaton’s prints on the Transit?’

  ‘I’d say there are enough points of comparison to question him, at least. There are only partials on the van keys and light switch, but we’ve found eleven points in total. Some experts say that twelve is enough and some want more than twenty. As I say, I think you’re justified in questioning him.’

  ‘Cheers Sheila, I owe you.’

  Morgan replaced the receiver and almost skipped the short distance between his office and the briefing room. The case boards had been stacked, one behind the other, as if filed away to make the room look tidy. One by one, he wheeled them out again, in order of when the bodies had been found. The living faces of the victims stared back at him and he was struck by the contrast between them. Raynor was scowling and Crook had that strange half smile on the photo taken for police records. Slater and Wyatt both grinned broadly from pictures published on their social media pages. Each living photo was accompanied by a second, taken at the mortuary. In these, the victims’ eyes were closed, but Morgan found them more reproachful.

  He was here to look at the Maguire case board, but was distracted by Wesley Crook’s photo. He couldn’t pinpoint why, but to him, it all seemed to come back to this case. The body was found at a bungalow Crook had allegedly burgled. Morgan unpinned the photocopy of the sign from round Crook’s neck. “Now I’m Sorry.” Sorry for what? He’d posed the question at every briefing but nobody had an answer. He unpinned a copy of the letter which Crook’s mother had given them and held it in his other hand. “Stop your offending behaviour or you’ll be sorry.”

  Morgan remembered Andy Gillingham’s opinion that the writer of the letters had an awareness of terms used in law courts. The usher at yesterday’s hearing had told him that Daniel Easton was often at court. He was doing observations in preparation for applying to be a magistrate. Morgan’s pulse quickened as the evidence started to connect together. Easton’s prints on the Maguire van keys and lights; the signs left with the Maguires and Wesley Crook; a letter to Crook written using court legalese; Danny Easton as a regular observer of the activities of the Magistrates Court.

  He took out his mobile and searched his contacts for the number of Silver Sands House. His call confirmed that Danny Easton had turned up for work on time and that he wasn’t due to leave until five. The clock on his phone told him it would be another skipped lunch. He also knew he would be late home and sent a text to Sam to tell her. His next interview with Danny Easton was going to be lengthy.

  He glanced back at the boards. Doubt began to nag. His theory didn’t account for Carl Raynor or Kenny Wyatt and the link to Abi Slater’s inky wedding dress was tenuous, at best. He ran through the connections again and nodded emphatically before heading for the main office.

  When he couldn’t find Dave Spence, Morgan approached DC Jenny Smart. ‘We’re going to go and bring Daniel Easton in.’

  ‘Are we? Why?’

  He lowered his voice, mindf
ul of the Exhibits Officer’s caution. ‘Easton’s prints may be a match for the prints on the van at the DIY store.’

  She looked surprised. Morgan didn’t guess that she already knew about the prints. ‘If we think he’s a murderer, are we taking backup?’

  ‘Nah, it’ll be fine. Let’s go.’

  Chapter 77

  Tuesday 3rd March

  There were no available parking spaces when Morgan and Smart arrived at Silver Sands so he left his Volvo on the driveway. He made sure there was room for emergency vehicles to pass and he wasn’t going to be long.

  They walked purposefully towards the main building. The main door was locked and he nodded to Smart who was nearer the bell. A harassed young woman in black trousers and a blue tabard opened the door. ‘We prefer that visitors don’t come at mealtimes,’ she said. ‘Can you come back after two please?’

  Morgan put his hand against the door to prevent her closing it. He produced his identification. ‘I’m DI Morgan and this is my colleague DC Smart. Where will we find Daniel Easton please?’

  The woman stared at each of them in turn. ‘Danny? Why do you want him?’

  ‘Where will we find him, please?’ asked Smart. Morgan watched her decide whether or not to be helpful.

  ‘He’ll be in his workshop around the back. His mum sends him to work with a flask and a sandwich and he gets a bit of peace if he eats it there.’

  ‘Thank you,’ said Morgan and released his pressure on the door.

  It started to drizzle as they walked around the building and it took the edge off Morgan’s anticipation. During the drive to Silver Sands he had considered reasons Easton might have for his prints being in the Maguires’ van. He still could not come up with any that didn’t put him at the scene of the murders. As he and Smart approached the maintenance area they heard a radio playing.

  ‘It’s a workshop,’ said Smart as they got closer. ‘He’ll have tools. We should call for backup?’