—I have to say it was a little bit like being the mother of a film star or a singer. People would come up to me in the supermarket and tell me they’d been watching Elizabeth on the Internet! They were full of compliments. It was all very exciting, I must say.
It was her charity work that really got her noticed in the end, and we were so proud. We were proud that we’d raised someone so giving. Elizabeth was such a positive influence in people’s lives, and the work she did with the homeless really exemplified that. She was using her popularity for good, that was Elizabeth. I know that just before she was kill— … before … what happened, Elizabeth was working on a new project for her channel. She was looking into setting up a foundation to help the most vulnerable in society. That was who she was. A beautiful soul.
A cloud passes over Mildred’s face.
—But all that brought with it some problems, of course. As soon as your name is known, there’ll be people who are jealous. It’s amazing isn’t it, really? Someone wants to do good, and there are those who hate them for it.
—There were people in Ergarth that actively hated Elizabeth? That must have been hard.
—Yes, well, luckily, we didn’t have much trouble from them. We both worked a lot. We knew Elizabeth could handle it like a sensible adult, which she did. These people are cowards, Mr King. That’s what you have to know.
—Did you know of anyone specifically who hated her?
—There was a girl, wasn’t there, Harold, do you remember? Some little so-and-so … a little ne’er-do-well from Elizabeth’s old school. She was a spiteful little thing who tried to exclude Elizabeth; didn’t invite her to a party or something like that. I remember Elizabeth being very put out. But, of course, these things were really passing us by, by then. We had other things we had to worry about.
I am only assuming this ‘so-and-so’ is Gemma Hines, who deliberately didn’t invite Elizabeth to her party, as Amirah and Jason have both told me. The Bartons are not able to recall much else about this incident. In fact their focus had shifted quite significantly away from their daughter just as her YouTube channel was beginning to see its first real spike in popularity.
—I hate to say it but someone was in the way of us getting to know our daughter’s new world; stopping us from celebrating her new success. I know how this makes me sound when I say it. I sound like a bad mother.
—You don’t, my love, you—
—I do and I want to say it because no one is perfect. None of us. We did our best. My parents were never interested in one single thing about school; they had to work. We did what we could for Jason as well as Elizabeth. we did our best. But back then, when Elizabeth started with her YouTube, it was Jason, her little brother, who we had to turn our attention to.
This is their first mention of Jason Barton, save for the impact statement at the top of the episode. Taking a quick look around the room, I see no photographs of him save for one showing a younger Barton family, posing awkwardly. Elizabeth is about four, gazing wide-eyed into the camera; a tiny bundle is in Mildred Barton’s arms.
I accept more tea and ask to hear about Jason Barton. I wonder if I should mention that I’ve spoken to him. I leave it for now but if they ask, I’m not going to lie.
There’s a stock image of Jason Barton the press use when they bother to mention him – a blurred photograph of Jason at seventeen years old, face red and creased with rage as three police officers in high-vis jackets physically restrain him. It seems that this is the summation of Jason that the world has accepted – including his parents. Mildred sighs, and there is a sadness in her voice as she talks about her son.
—Jason was a difficult birth and a difficult baby. That’s the long and the short of it, I’m afraid. He was fussy, he wouldn’t sleep, and the whole family were like zombies for about a year from the lack of sleep. He used to fall over a lot, get himself hurt, and it was always Elizabeth who managed to save him. So when Jason was very little and he’d just started to walk, he used to follow Elizabeth around like a little lost puppy. For a while anyway.
Mildred Barton puts a hand over her mouth. Mr Barton, who has been sitting patiently, turning over the pages in the photo album, comes to her rescue.
—Elizabeth was just indifferent to Jason. From quite early on.
—Did she ever show any feeling toward him?
—She did when she had to. She would accept a cuddle, a kiss from his jammy face. She would go through the motions but she would never choose to interact with him.
—You mentioned Jason’s problems…?
—He was the polar opposite of his sister. We used to say he was a changeling – a joke, of course. Oh gosh, I’m sorry Mr King. A slip of the tongue.
—Please, it’s OK.
—He was very needy as a little boy – always running to us for a cuddle, always wanting reassurance. He was accident-prone too – always leaping off the sofa, walking into things, falling over. If you heard a crash in the house you could almost count – one … two … three – and then Jason would start wailing.
He was scared – always full of nightmares and worries. Real things, imaginary things; Jason was in and out of our bed, while Elizabeth slept like a log, all night from the age of about one!
We gave him as much as we gave Elizabeth; toys, games, clothes. He was never happy with any of it. The babysitters and the nannies were always calling us at work because Jason was playing up. It was because of Jason that half of them never stayed.
I wonder if this is true and I also wonder if it was this that seeded resentment toward Jason in Elizabeth. Mildred carries on telling me about Jason’s early years.
—His problems continued into school. With his erratic behaviour, at first we were worried that he was being bullied. And sometimes there were even bruises. His hair singed and burn marks on his clothes. But he assured us he was fine – and always explained them away – a fall here and there, playing football. Messing about with Bunsen burners. He blamed Elizabeth a lot too, but we knew that was probably just jealousy, Jason vying for our attention.
He was forever asking to be taken to the woods, the seaside; anywhere there was wide, open spaces. He was never happier than when he was splodging around in his wellies in the mud. Of course, we were at work a lot and the babysitters weren’t prepared to do that. We got rid of one who let him wander off once. He was nine years old!
—Did you ever find out what was happening with Jason, why his behaviour was extreme?
—We know now that it was that ADHD, but back then we didn’t. We asked his teachers, of course. They told us Jason needed attention. I remember getting quite cross and telling them exactly how much we gave both children, how many toys and video games Jason had. He never wanted for anything, neither of them did!
Harold Barton clears his throat. Anger furrows his brow.
—But it was the lying, Mr King. That’s what we could never get on with. Jason was forever making things up. Most of the time to try and get his sister into trouble. We think that he was jealous. Elizabeth was achieving, she was on every sports team, and the only thing Jason was getting was detention.
I’m surprised at the lack of empathy the Bartons have for their son. For me, his behaviour suggests a child who lacks loving attention. However, I’m still not sure that Jason has been one hundred percent truthful with me. I ask Harold to elaborate about Jason’s lies.
—Oh it was constant. He was jealous of his sister and would make her out to be some kind of monster. If he hurt himself, it was Elizabeth’s fault. If he went running off outside in the cold, it was Elizabeth’s fault. If he spilled food all over the brand-new sofa, it was her fault. At school, Jason was always challenging authority, arguing with the teachers. And if it was bad before, his behaviour took a real nosedive. I blame the people he started associating with too: older lads, trouble-makers George Meldby and Martin Flynn, to name two very specific examples. Jason was forever in after-school detention with those two. Jason had his own issues
but he was better than that.
Harold Barton’s voice has risen with the colour in his cheeks as he talks about Jason’s association with his sister’s two killers. I feel like I detect a degree of blame in Mr Barton’s tone. I cannot imagine the conflict within him and the pain it must bring.
—Maybe I should have been stricter? Maybe I should have forbade him to go near those two.
—Do you think that would have stopped him or perhaps driven him closer to them?
—I suppose you’re right. The more we objected, the more he would have pushed us away.
Harold sighs and flicks back through the photograph album and opens it at a photo of Jason at around eleven years old. Jason is wearing a raincoat. It’s smeared with dirt, as is his face. His eyes are wide and happy, and a smile is spread across his whole being. He looks up into the camera, a piglet in his arms.
—Animals. The blessed animals. I want to say that’s where it went wrong with Jason, but it wasn’t really wrong, I suppose. Oh I don’t know. This picture is from year seven, when he started Ergarth High. It’s from a school trip to some sort of organic farm affair up in Northumberland. After that Jason became absolutely obsessed with animals. The babysitters would tell us he was forever bringing home injured birds; putting out food for hedgehogs; he even made a great big hole at the bottom of the garden fence for the things!
I remember the day after the pig farm. Jason was wittering on about it. He asked me why the sows had tags on their ears. Well, I told him, as gently as possible, of course, that these animals had been bred for meat. I’ll never forget what he said to me:
‘Even the piglets, Dad? Even the little piglets?’
Well, I couldn’t lie to him, could I? That’s not right. I had to tell him that yes, even the piglets, once they were old enough. Well, he was distraught – I mean really cut up about the whole thing, bless him. Refused to touch meat from that day onward. Wouldn’t have it. Things only went downhill from there.
More photographs: Jason getting older, taller; his face seemingly setting into a scowl. Jason’s dress sense changed too, as did, his father tells me, his friends and his attitude. He would deliberately flout school rules to provoke a reaction; dye his hair and wear trainers or jeans. He would lie to teachers, telling them he had allergies to his uniform, but telling his parents it was a charity non-uniform day. These lies only increased in frequency. Jason became a bit of a class clown at this point, performing dangerous acts for the attention and amusement of the others. Mildred remembers being called into school to see her son swarming up the side of the main building and leaping into the branches of a nearby tree, in front of a crowd of crowing children. He told her he did it because he thought he’d seen a cat stuck up there. There was another, even more disturbing incident when Jason walked away from his father after an argument straight into a busy road, where he dodged three oncoming cars before doing some sort of dance on the pavement on the other side. Unable to communicate with his son, Harold begged his wife to try and talk to him.
—I tried my best but it was impossible. Jason was just so full of anger; he would say over and over again how much he hated people, just the human race in general. I couldn’t understand where it was all coming from – none of us could. He would slam his bedroom door, smoke cigarettes, hang around with those … with those boys … anything to provoke a reaction.
—What did you think was the matter?
—I wish we knew. I think it was the ADHD. I still don’t know. I mean … we haven’t seen Jason for so long … I wonder if he would tell us now?
Jason Barton is effectively estranged from his family – his choice, his parents tell me. All they know is that he lives as far away from Ergarth as possible. I feel a sudden pang, knowing exactly where Jason lives when his parents don’t. I wonder if I should tell them. Jason didn’t, they say, attend his sister’s funeral nor has he been in touch since her death. Both of them find this difficult to forgive. Jason told me he was in Ergarth a few days before Elizabeth was killed. Something does not feel right here,
I feel like I have an idea why Jason’s behaviour was so extreme, but it’s not for me to tell the Bartons. It also seems as if they have no idea about Jason’s wanderings – around Ergarth, across the fields, and up to Flynn’s Meats.
—Harold and I have no idea why he didn’t come to say goodbye to Elizabeth. We’d like to think that maybe it was too hard for him. Everyone deals with death in a different way – there’s no right or wrong way to grieve.
By sixteen, Jason had dropped out of school and was barely in the house.
—He’d taken up with quite a militant bunch up in Northumberland. He would take buses up there, be gone for days. They were some sort of animal-rights group; they would go out into the hills and sabotage fox hunts. He was only a young lad but he was forever being brought home by the police. Sometimes he would show us the footage from the sabotage. Don’t get me wrong, neither my husband or I approve of killing animals for sport, it’s a barbaric practice. The hunters themselves were horrible people, charging their horses and swinging their whips at Jason and his friends. Honestly, I had no argument with the saboteurs, I was just worried about my boy – worried he’d get hurt or sent to prison. That was all either of us was worried about.
Jason didn’t stop, nor did he care what his parents thought. Jason has allegedly done many things in the name of animal welfare, none of which are pertinent to this case. Save for one.
As I mentioned to Jason himself – it is alleged that he was part of the group that secretly recorded undercover footage of animal cruelty at Flynn’s Meats in 2017. Jason won’t admit to being part of this incident but Justice for the Voiceless have taken credit for the footage, which saw two members of Flynn’s slaughterhouse staff given suspended sentences.
This incident could possibly constitute motivation for Elizabeth’s murder on the part of Martin Flynn, but to me it seems a tenuous argument; it was never mentioned in court, and there was no evidence put forward to support it. I ask Mildred about her views on Martin Flynn, in the years before Elizabeth’s murder.
—If you’d have asked me back then, I would have told you that, despite who he was, he wouldn’t have hurt a hair on Elizabeth’s head. It all started getting worrying when he was hanging around the house at night, but Elizabeth, she told us it was nothing. She was good like that; she told us to imagine that Martin Flynn was like a guard dog or a burglar alarm. She said she took him with her when she went out to do her charity videos. Sensible, if you ask me; you don’t know what you could be letting yourself in for. I remember her saying that we could leave our doors open at night – no one would have dared get past him to steal something. I don’t think he would have hurt her, not unless he was … coerced into doing so. George Meldby was the same. Bear in mind, Mr King, these two boys grew up with Elizabeth, they both knew her since they were all very young. That’s why it was so shocking; especially what they did to her.
I want to ask about the incident with a lamb from Flynn’s Meats a few days before Elizabeth died. Elizabeth apparently kept it in the garden.
Mildred shakes her head.
—It’s amazing what sort of stories people make up isn’t it? For attention. I don’t know where you’ve heard of all this, Mr King. But I can tell you now, it wasn’t nearly as interesting as you are making out. It’s not the story you’ve been told.
Harold Barton joins in.
—No. Exactly. I mean, I was away in Frankfurt that day. Elizabeth was looking after the house. The snow had closed off all the roads. Nothing could get in or out of Ergarth. She was hardly going to go walking around the fields, now, was she? She wouldn’t have dreamed of doing something so ridiculous. Yes. There was a lamb in the garden. I’ve seen the video. But it was all for Elizabeth’s YouTube; it was just a stunt. Any idiot would know that. She was making a lot of money at that point, saving for a deposit on a flat and she obviously paid one of the farmers to bring around one of the lambs for a while.
—So she didn’t ‘liberate’ it from Flynn’s Meats?
—She wouldn’t have done something like that. And certainly not in that snow! Not Elizabeth. And if Martin Flynn did it, he did it of his own volition. Elizabeth would never have asked him to do something like that. Elizabeth wasn’t friends with Martin Flynn. Their relationship was entirely business however much he wanted it to be more. I wish people would understand that.
I think of the newspaper report – the injuries to Martin Flynn. Elizabeth’s YouTube video surrounding the incident, in which she claims she ‘rescued’ the animal from a truck that got stuck in the snow. In Elizabeth’s ‘Liberate the Meat’ challenge, we only see the animal bounding through the snow in the Bartons’ back garden. The ‘rescue’ itself remains ambiguous.
I wonder who is telling the truth right now. Is Jason Barton the liar his parents make him out to be? Was Elizabeth making up a story online to get more popularity? Are Harold and Mildred Barton in denial? I think the truth lies somewhere in between.
Beast Page 17
