by Anne Cassidy
“But why me? I don’t know her, I’ve never seen her.”
“If you’d just come, we have the car here and I’m sure we can do this quietly without friends or neighbours seeing anything.”
“Wait. No, I won’t. I can’t. I don’t know why you want to question me…” Kate edged behind the door as if shielding herself.
“Show her,” DC Simon Kelsey said, exhaling.
DC Knight produced a piece of paper. On it was a photograph. For a second Kate thought she was looking at a picture of Jodie Mills. But then she looked again. It was a photocopy of a picture of a young girl, but it wasn’t Jodie Mills. It was her. Her when she was Jennifer Jones, when she appeared in newspaper articles, her face staring out of the front pages. The headline was faded but still shocking. JJ: FACE OF A KILLER.
“So you see, miss,” DC Kelsey said, “it would be better if you came quietly. That way no one gets to know your little secret.”
He gave her an unpleasant smile. Kate glared at him. He stared back, his eyes ice blue. His hair was gelled so that it stood in spikes at the front. The other DC was looking down at her shoes.
“I don’t think you can do this…” she mumbled.
“Jennifer Jones,” he whispered, loudly, “I can arrest you or you can come of your own free will. The choice is yours.”
Kate stuttered out something about getting her bag and meeting them at the car. They walked off and she closed the front door and felt faint against it. How dare they! What right did he have to speak to her like that?
Kate walked back into the kitchen. She had to stay calm. This might turn out to be nothing. And the bread was only half made. She grabbed a notepad and wrote on it, Bread proving. Gone out for a couple of hours. Kate. Her handwriting was all over the place but at least she’d left a note.
When she went upstairs to get her bag and phone, her hand was trembling. She picked up the hairbrush and looked out of the window at a silver car further along the road. The male DC was leaning against it, smoking a cigarette. The female DC was talking on her phone and glanced up at Kate’s window.
Why hadn’t she considered it? She pulled the brush roughly through her hair. How had it not occurred to her? A child is murdered in the middle of a community where a convicted killer is living.
She would be a suspect.
She flung the brush down and stood very still, trying to calm herself.
Then she went out of the house and headed for the police car.
Seven
Kate sat in the back of the police car as the countryside flew by. Her bag was scrunched up on her lap. She stared out of the window, her throat tight as if something was squeezing it.
“Where exactly are we going?” she said, after a while.
“Middlemoor, Exeter. Thought you’d be happier away from your home ground,” DC Kelsey said. “Save anyone you know seeing you. Putting two and two together, Kate. Or would you rather I call you Jennifer. I don’t mind. After all we, the police, are at your service.”
“No need to be sarcastic, Simon,” DC Knight said.
“Just stating it like it is, Pat. Does this lady wish to be called by her proper name, that’s all I’m asking. Miss Jennifer Jones? What’s wrong with that? It’s the name she was born with.”
“My name is Kate.”
She said it quietly. She was confused. She wasn’t sure why he was speaking to her like this. It was as if he knew her and hated her. She crossed her legs and folded her arms and stared out at the road. She thought of ringing Julia Masters and telling her what was happening. DC Kelsey had told her she was free to make a call if she wished when she got into the car. Indeed Julia herself had explained the protocol of what to do should she ever be involved with the police, If you get accused of something, shoplifting for example or drug crime, you give the officers my name and number. She’d looked at Julia as though she was mad. Why would she ever shoplift? Or buy drugs?
That’s why she hadn’t rung her. She was nineteen years old. She could be interviewed on her own. She’d done nothing wrong. There was no reason why Julia Masters should even know she’d been with the police.
“So, what’s it like? Being so famous?” DC Kelsey said. “Or infamous is perhaps a better word. I heard that you’d get pots of money if you told your story to the newspapers.”
DC Knight looked round at her, waiting for a response. Kate stared back at the police officer. What could she possibly say to these officers to make them less vile?
“She doesn’t say much, does she?” he went on. “Probably got a load of solicitors lined up ready to sue the police.”
“You shouldn’t go on. She might make a complaint,” DC Knight said.
“About what? I’m just chatting. Just passing the time of day.”
Kate closed her eyes. If she could just ignore his ugly words.
“In any case, it’s her word against mine.”
They drove on in silence until they reached the outskirts of Exeter. Kate recognised the streets from the previous year when she’d lived there as a student. She was gripping her bag and wondered whether she should ring Julia Masters. The hostility she was getting from this police officer was making her feel fearful.
DC Knight turned round again. Her voice was softer.
“How long have you lived in Exmouth?”
“Just a few months,” Kate said. “I lived in Exeter for the first two years of my degree.”
“You work for tourist information?”
“It’s just a summer job.”
The woman was being friendly. At least it seemed that way. Just then Kate remembered something that Jill Newton had said to her. Don’t ever give away too much of yourself, Alice, you never know what people’s intentions are. Her name had been Alice then; not Jennifer, not Kate.
“Got a boyfriend?”
Kate frowned and turned her face away from the woman.
“No point in being nice to her, Pat. She’s a suspect in a murder investigation. Course, it’s not new for you is it, Jennifer. You’ve been in this position before.”
“I don’t have to talk to you,” she muttered.
“She knows her rights,” said DC Knight.
They were pulling into a parking space. Kate hadn’t noticed that they’d arrived at the police station. The car pulled up sharply and the handbrake creaked. She turned to get out but felt the young detective’s stare.
“The thing is, Jennifer, I spend my days trying to catch criminals. And you know what happens to them? They get a smart barrister and get off. Or if they do get time they get out early because of overcrowding or good behaviour or some such…”
“Leave it, Simon,” DC Knight said.
“And then, on top of that, when a particularly unpleasant killer is released they get a new identity. And you know who pays for it? Taxpayers. While you’re being protected, looked after by your social worker, your probation officer, your counsellor, police stations are closing and officers are being made redundant. While you’re taking your degree and,” he put his fingers in the air to indicate inverted commas, “‘Putting your life back together’ we’re paying for it!”
Kate felt her resolve slipping. Her throat was filling up. There was absolute loathing in this man’s eyes. She tried the door handle but it was locked.
“Oops sorry, central locking,” DC Kelsey said, pressing a switch.
The door opened and she stumbled out. She was definitely going to ring Julia Masters. She wasn’t going to put up with this harassment. She strode towards the entrance and then stopped in her tracks. She could hear the police officers coming behind her, their voices light as if they were just passing the time of day.
Julia Masters was standing inside the doors of the police station.
She knew then that there had never been any need to call Julia. Julia already knew she had been brought in. Maybe it was Julia, herself, who arranged it.
The interview room was surprisingly large. She looked round and saw pinboards and a coupl
e of fold-up chairs against the wall. The table in front of her had a bottle of water and a glass. There was recording equipment and a pad with pens by the side. Julia was sitting next to her.
A woman came into the room accompanied by DC Knight. Kate stared at her. She was tall and thin, wearing a dark trouser suit with a pale blue shirt. Her hair was pulled back and she had no make-up on.
“I’m Detective Inspector Lauren Heart. You’ve already met my colleague. Now let’s get the formalities out of the way.”
She explained to Kate that she wasn’t under arrest and that she didn’t have to answer questions if she didn’t want to, that she could leave any time. Kate knew this but felt immobile. She couldn’t have got out of the chair if she’d wanted to. She stared at a large ring the inspector had on. It was silver and garnet, the stone dark red, almost black. She registered that DI Heart was addressing her as Kate and not referring to her birth name. It made her warm to the detective, nodding her head politely to show that she was paying attention. The detective explained about the recording equipment and then started the interview.
“Now, Kate, can you tell us where you were on Friday evening?”
Kate paused. “I left work, went home then went out for a swim.”
“What time did you go for a swim?”
“About seven. Just before seven.”
“A little late to go swimming?”
“It was a hot evening. I’d been at work all day and was just winding down. I love to swim.”
Kate glanced at Julia as if she wanted her to confirm this fact. Julia was staring straight ahead.
“Where did you go?”
“Sandy Bay. I got the bus and headed up there. I like that beach better than…”
A grim feeling was building up inside her. Pieces of a puzzle seemed to drop into place inside her head. This wasn’t just some routine interview. She was at Sandy Bay on the same night the little girl got killed.
“So you spent, what? An hour swimming? On the beach?”
“Give or take. Maybe a bit longer.”
“What time did you leave the beach?
“I don’t know, exactly. Maybe seven thirty or nearer to eight.”
“You went home?”
“No, I walked up the coastal path to the top and sat and watched the sun go down.”
“Where?”
“On top of the cliffs. It’s actually a place that’s fenced off? But there’s a way through and I sit near the top. It’s a… It’s a great view.”
“What did you do? When you were sitting watching the sun go down?”
“I read a bit of my book. I don’t know, I just sat and thought about stuff. I had had a tiring day.”
Kate’s voice was rising.
DI Heart sat back and looked at Kate for what seemed like a long time. Kate glanced at Julia who gave her a reassuring nod, as if to say, you’re doing well! Kate didn’t respond. She sat erect in her chair and pushed Julia out of her field of vision. It was no good her being nice now. Julia had delivered her here, like a ready-packaged chicken.
“Can I ask why I’ve been brought here?” Kate said. “Why you’re asking me these questions?”
“You were seen on the coastal path about ten, Kate. Someone saw you walking along. You were recognised. A witness said they saw one of the girls from the tourist information centre.”
“I was there. That’s not a secret.”
“Are you aware, Kate, that the body of Jodie Mills was found late last night?”
“I only heard this morning that she had been murdered. I don’t know any more than that. I thought she had drowned.”
“I’m afraid not. She was found in the undergrowth some metres from the coastal path.”
There was a moment’s silence and Kate found herself holding her breath. She had no idea what was going to be said. She steeled herself.
“May I ask you some things, Kate, about your past?”
DI Heart looked a little embarrassed. Her past had already been referred to in the car but DI Heart wasn’t to know that. Kate focused on the police officer’s ring. One minute it looked black, the next it was red. It was sombre, heavy. The detective’s finger didn’t look strong enough to hold it.
“You know it all already,” Kate said.
“The details, yes. You and two other girls went up to a local beauty spot called Berwick Waters in May eight years ago. While there you pushed one of the girls into the lake and hit the other one with a baseball bat.”
Kate crossed her arms tightly. It was bald, it was brief, but it told the facts as they were. She couldn’t deny it. There was so much more to be said though but the words were boxed away in her head. DI Heart was looking at her enquiringly; giving her a chance to answer, to soften the story if she could. But her mouth wouldn’t open and the room seemed to tilt away from her. She grabbed the edge of the table for support.
“I didn’t mean to push Lucy into the lake,” she said. “I did push her but she wasn’t supposed…”
“This girl, Lucy Bussell, ran away, and you attempted to bury the other girl even though she was still alive?”
The timbre of DI Heart’s voice rose on the last words even though she was still alive.
“I didn’t realise,” Kate said, looking down at her lap, her voice dropping. “Of course, I thought the worst. I was a child. I had no idea… I thought she was gone.”
“You didn’t tell any adults about this? As soon as it happened, I mean.”
Kate had a fleeting image in her head of the adult in her life. Her mother, Carol Jones, one-time model for fashion catalogues turned glamour model. Her sweet smiling mother who would take her clothes off for the promise of a photo in a magazine. Kate felt a pain in her chest, a twist of her heart.
“No.”
“As I understand it, you never gave any explanation for this behaviour?”
Kate shook her head, the enormity of the question too much for her. No explanation was possible.
“Well, Kate. You need to see it from our point of view. You’ll perhaps understand that when we found the body of a young girl with a head injury we did everything we could to find out what happened. We made enquiries and were told that one of the people who had been seen close to the spot where the body was found was a girl who worked for the local tourist information office. That girl had a violent past and was living with a new identity. This is why we are so keen to question her.”
Kate looked at Julia. Had she volunteered the information? Or had the police gone to her?
“Did you see or speak to this young girl on Friday evening?”
Kate shook her head, angry now. “You’re asking me this because of something I did when I was ten years old?”
“Partly. But there is more.”
Kate frowned, puzzled.
“The police were told that the victim, Jodie Mills, had gone swimming. The initial search for her took place around the water and along the shore. It was only on Saturday morning, more than twelve hours after she went missing, that we began to search the general area of Sandy Bay. Her body was discovered later that day. She was fully dressed. When her clothes were examined we found something very interesting. In the pocket of her jeans was a badge shaped like a teddy bear. It was a tourist office badge and it had your name on it, Kate.”
“What?”
“How did your badge get into the pocket of the dead girl, Kate?”
Kate had no answer.
Eight
Kate was sitting in the passenger seat of Julia’s car, which was parked behind the police station. In her hand she had a tissue which she was shredding. She stared out of the window. Julia was standing by the exit doors making a phone call, no doubt checking that her sons, Justin and Peter, were OK. A police car was idling nearby, blocking the lane as a uniformed officer emerged from the building and jumped into the car, hardly closing the door before it shot off.
If Kate had been a smoker she would have had a cigarette.
Instead she
bunched up the shreds of tissue and shoved them into her pocket.
DI Heart had been called from the interview on a pressing matter so they had been told to go home and wait to be called back into the station for more questions. Kate had walked from the room in a daze. In her head had been an image of the teddy bear badge that had been found in Jodie Mills’ jeans pocket. Kate remembered it. Aimee had wanted them to wear these badges so that the shop seemed more child friendly; teddy bears, monkeys, dogs, tigers. Her name had been printed under it in a child-friendly font, Kate.
Julia got back into the car and started the engine.
“Let’s get going,” she said, brusquely.
As the car pulled out of the car park Kate wondered where DC Simon Kelsey was. Was he regaling other officers with his story about picking up Jennifer Jones? I told her what I thought of all this new identity rubbish! She looked back at the windows of the station. There were only a couple and they were opaque. At least he hadn’t been grinning down at her. What would he say when he heard that Kate’s badge had been in the pocket of the dead girl? Perhaps he already knew. Maybe that was why he had been so nasty to her.
How had the badge got there? The question made Kate feel panicky. How could it be explained?
Her phone vibrated and she took it out of her pocket. It was a text from Sally.
What am I supposed to do with this bread?
It was gone six. Sally was home from work. No doubt Ruth and Robbie were there too. They would be wondering why she hadn’t finished baking the bread as she’d said she would. She tapped out a message.
Bake the bread at 220C for 30 mins then let it rest on a tray x
She left it at that. Sally would just think she’d gone to a pub somewhere.
The drive back was slow, the evening traffic stopping and starting as it headed out of Exeter.
“It’ll be all right,” Julia said. “There’ll be some explanation for the badge.”
“It’s not just about the badge though, is it? It’s because of what I did when I was ten years old.”
“This is just normal procedure for the police. Talking to you is just a box-ticking exercise for them.”
