by Val McDermid
‘Because you were working alone. That’s never the best way to operate when you’re dealing with psychological analysis. I think profilers should work in pairs, detective and psychologist, complementary skills.’ He took the cursor down to the ‘File directory’ option and hit ENTER.
The quality of their meeting of minds was not a conversation Carol wanted to have, especially not in company as sharp as the present one. Deftly, she moved the subject forward, bringing Leon, Kay and Simon up to speed with Tony’s theory that the arsonist was a part-time fireman with a conventional criminal motive.
‘But what is the motive?’ Kay asked. ‘That’s the important bit, isn’t it?’
‘If it’s criminal, you always want to know who benefits,’ Leon pointed out. ‘And since there’s no common ownership or insurance, maybe it’s somebody high up in the fire service who doesn’t want any more cutbacks.’
Tony looked up from the file names he was scrolling through. ‘Nice idea,’ he said. ‘Devious, though. And as a proponent of Occam’s Razor, I’m going to go for the most straightforward theory. Debt,’ he said and turned his eyes back to the screen.
‘Debt?’ Carol’s voice was full of doubt.
‘That’s right.’ He swung round to face her. ‘Somebody who owes money all over the place, somebody with a credit rating that’s fallen through the floor. His house has been repossessed or it’s on the point of it, he’s got a stack of county court judgements against him and he’s robbing Peter to pay Paul.’
‘But a night call-out is, what? Fifty, a hundred quid max, depending on how long they’re out there? You surely don’t think somebody would put his liberty, his mates’ lives, at risk for that sort of cash!’ Simon protested.
Tony shrugged. ‘If you’re up against the wall, perpetually juggling creditors, an extra hundred quid a week can make all the difference to staying in one piece and having your legs broken, your car snatched, your electricity cut off, the bank putting you into bankruptcy. You pay twenty quid off one debt, fifty off another, a tenner here, a fiver there. You show willing. It keeps everybody off your back. The courts are reluctant to take drastic steps if you can show you’re really trying. Any sensible person knows that it’s only postponing the evil hour, but when you’re in debt up to your eyeballs, you stop thinking straight. You get into this self-deluding fantasy that if you can just get over this hump, you’ll be heading towards getting straight again. Nobody cons themselves better than a bad debtor. I’ve seen pathetic idiots who owe the best part of twenty grand to a loan shark still employing a cleaning lady and a gardener because getting rid of them would be an admission that their lives were totally out of control. Look for somebody who’s teetering on the brink of insolvency, Carol.’
Already back in communion with the computer screen, he muttered, ‘Let me see…MISPER.001. That’ll be the report she did for the squad, wouldn’t you think?’
‘Seems likely. And MISPERJV.001 could be her Jacko Vance inquiries.’
‘Let’s take a look.’ Tony opened the file. Shaz’s words spilled down the screen, giving him a strange sense of communing with the dead. It was as if those extraordinary blue eyes were hovering behind his head, fixing him with their inexorable stare. ‘My God,’ he whispered. ‘She wasn’t playing games.’
Leon peered over his shoulder. ‘Fuck,’ he breathed. ‘You fucking witch, Shazza.’ It summed up everyone’s feelings perfectly as they stared at Shaz’s briefing from beyond the grave.
ORGANIZED OFFENDER CHECKLIST
Jacko Vance
Re: MISPER cluster
High birth order
Only child.
Father’s work stable
Civil engineer—often away from home for prolonged periods on long-term contracts.
Absent father
See above.
Parental discipline perceived as inconsistent
See above; also, mother appears to have suffered post-natal depression, rejected JV and later treated v. strictly.
Higher than average IQ
Regarded as bright by teachers but never did as well as expected academically; poor exam performer.
Skilled occupation, work history uneven
First as a champion javelin thrower then as TV presenter; perfectionist, prone to temper tantrums and firing junior members of team; if not for medal-winning prowess/popularity with TV audience, would have lost several contracts over the years because of arrogant and overbearing behaviour.
Socially adept; may be gregarious and good talker, but can’t connect emotionally
See above; relates very well to members of the public on superficial level; however, one of reasons why his marriage is perceived as so successful is that he appears to have no intimate relationships with either gender outside that relationship.
Living with partner
Wife, Micky, been together for twelve years. A very public marriage, the golden couple of UK TV. However, often away from home both on business and on extensive charity work.
Controlled mood during commission of crime
Unknown: but Vance is known in the business for coolness under pressure.
Use of alcohol or drugs during commission of crime
Unknown. No history of drink problem, some hint that there may have been a problem with painkiller addiction following accident in which Vance lost his arm.
Mobile; car in good condition
Vance has a silver Mercedes convertible and a Land Rover. Both are automatics and have been adapted for his disability.
Follows crimes in the media
He’s perfectly placed to do this—he has direct access to all areas of the media. He numbers many journalists among his circle of acquaintance.
Victims share common characteristics
Yes—see appendix A on original cluster of seven victims.
Unsuspicious demeanour
Millions of people would trust him with their lives or their daughters. In a poll four years ago, he was voted the third most trustworthy person in Britain after the Queen and the Bishop of Liverpool.
Looks average
Impossible to comment objectively. The gloss of celebrity, grooming and an expensive wardrobe makes it hard to judge beyond the facade.
Mental illness in immediate family
Nothing known; mother died eight years ago, cancer.
Alcohol or drugs problem in immediate family
Nothing known.
Parents with criminal records
Nothing known.
Emotional abuse
Mother reportedly told him he was ugly and clumsy, ‘just like your father’. Mother appeared to blame him for his father’s absences.
Sexually dysfunctional—incapable of mature, consensual relationship with another adult
Nothing to support this: marriage very public. No indications that MM unhappy with marriage or has lover.??? Check newspaper gossip columns??? Check with uniforms on local patrol—any signs???
Cool, distant mother; very little touching or emotional warmth as child
Implied in both books.
Egocentric world view
All the evidence—even from MM’s adoring account—supports this.
Beaten as child
MM recalls him speaking of his father coming home from trip and thrashing him for failing eleven-plus; otherwise, nothing known.
Witnessed sexually stressful situation as child, e.g. marital rape, mother engaged in prostitution
Nothing known.
Parents separated in childhood or early adolescence
Parents divorced when he was twelve. According to MM book, his obsession with athletics was bid to gain father’s attention.
Autoerotic adolescence
Nothing known.
Rape fantasies
Nothing known.
Obsession with pornography
Nothing known.
Voyeuristic tendencies
Nothing specific known; but cf. Vance’s Visits, the ultimate poke-y
our-nose-in television.
Aware his sexual/emotional relationships are abnormal and resents it
Nothing known.
Obsessive
Attested to by work colleagues and rivals alike.
Irrational phobias
Nothing known.
Chronic liar
Several instances of him ‘remaking’ past incidents; compare two books.
Initiating stressor?
Jacko Vance’s first girlfriend was Jillie Woodrow. He was unsuccessful with girls before her, and by the time they got together, he was almost sixteen and she was just fourteen. Apart from his obsessive sports training, she was his only interest. They had a relationship that was exclusive, compulsive and consuming. He appears to have been a dominating influence upon her. They were engaged as soon as she turned sixteen, opposed by her parents and his mother; he was no longer in touch with his father by this time. After the accident when he lost his arm, MM’s account claims he set Jillie free since he was no longer the man she’d contracted to marry; TB’s version is that she had been looking for a way out of the claustrophobic relationship for some time and fixed on his accident as a way out, claiming she was repelled by his injury and the prospect of living with a man with a prosthesis. MM and Vance got together shortly afterwards. Just before they married, Jillie did a ‘kiss and tell’ with the News of the World revealing that Vance had forced her to indulge in sadomasochistic rituals, tying her up to have sex in spite of her protests that it frightened her. Vance tried to prevent the story’s publication, denying it vigorously. He failed to get an injunction, but never sued for libel, claiming that he couldn’t afford the legal process. (Probably true at that stage in career.) Either the end of the relationship with Jillie in such stressful circumstances or her subsequent revelations could have been a powerful enough stressor to trigger off the first in Vance’s series of crimes.
‘Oh, shit,’ Carol said as she reached the end of Shaz’s analysis. ‘You really have to wonder, don’t you?’
‘You think Jacko Vance could be a serial killer?’ Kay asked.
‘Shaz thought so. And I think she might have been right,’ Tony said grimly.
‘There’s something bothering me about this,’ Simon said. Encouraged by a questioning look from Tony he continued. ‘If Vance is a sociopath, how come he saved those kids and tried to rescue that lorry driver in the accident where he lost his arm? Why did he not just leave them to it?’
‘Good point,’ Tony said. ‘You know I hate to theorize ahead of the data, but looking at what we know so far, I’d say Jacko spent most of his formative years desperate for attention and approval. When the accident happened, he automatically went down the road that would make him look good in other people’s eyes. It’s not uncommon for what looks like heroism to be a desperate craving for glory. I think that’s what happened there. If you still think we’re barking up the wrong tree, let me tell you about a conversation I had with Commander Bishop this afternoon.’ He told them about Shaz’s appointment with Vance and the conclusions he’d drawn from that.
‘You’re going to have to let McCormick and Wharton know about this file,’ Carol said.
‘I don’t feel much like it, the way they treated me.’
‘You want them to put Shaz’s killer away, don’t you?’
‘I want Shaz’s killer put away,’ Tony said firmly. ’I just don’t think those two have the imagination to deal with the information. Think about it, Carol. If I tell them what we’ve found here, first off, they won’t want to believe it. They’ll think we’ve tinkered with her files. I can just imagine the interview with Vance. He slipped effortlessly into the broad Yorkshire of his childhood. ‘A’right, Mr Vance, we’re sorry to trouble tha, but we think the lass here last Saturday thought tha were a serial killer. Daft, tha knows, but seeing as ’ow she got herself murdered that night, we thought we’d better come and ’ave a word. ’Appen tha might’ve seen summat, some weirdo following her, like.’
‘They’re not that bad, surely,’ Carol protested, spluttering with laughter in spite of herself.
‘You ask me, he’s being generous,’ Leon muttered.
‘They’re not going to go in and interrogate Jacko Vance,’ Simon said. ‘They’re going to be overawed, they’re going to be on his side. All they’ll do is mark his card.’
‘And Jack the Lad is a clever bastard,’ Tony continued. ‘Now he knows they know about Shaz’s visit, he’ll be the biggest Goody Two Shoes on legs. So there’s part of me that thinks, no, don’t tell them.’
There was a long silence. Then Simon said, ‘So what now?’
Tony had taken a notepad from the laptop bag and started scribbling. ‘If we’re going to do this, we’ve got to do it right. Which means I act as controller and coordinator. Carol, is there a local takeaway that delivers?’
She snorted with derision. ‘Out here? Do me a favour. There’s bread, cheese, salami, tuna, salad stuff. Give me a hand, team. We’ll throw some butties together while our leader cogitates.’
When they returned fifteen minutes later with mounds of sandwiches and a mixing bowl filled with crisps, Tony was ready for them. Sprawled round the room with bottles of beer and plates of food, they listened while he explained what he wanted them to do.
‘I think we’re all agreed that on the balance of probabilities, Shaz was killed because of the work she’d done since she came to Leeds. There’s no indication that she had any kind of personally threatening experiences up to that point. So we take as our starting point the assumption that Shaz Bowman correctly identified the existence of an as yet unknown serial killer of teenage girls.’ He raised his eyebrows in a question and noted four nods.
‘The external connector in these cases concerned Jacko Vance. Shaz assumed him to be the killer, though we shouldn’t fail to consider that our target could conceivably be someone in his entourage. Me, I’m inclined to go for Vance.’
‘Good old Occam,’ Simon muttered wryly.
‘Not just on the least complicated principle,’ Tony said. ’My view is coloured by the length of time these killings apparently cover. I don’t know if there’s anyone who has been professionally close to Vance for that long. Even if they had, I’m not convinced that they would have the charisma to lure young women into what looks superficially like a runaway bid.
‘So, we’ve got Shaz’s profile of Vance. It’s inevitably superficial. She only had access to what was in the public domain that she could get her hands on readily. That seems to have consisted mainly of two biographies, one written by his wife, the other by a showbiz hack. We need to dig a lot deeper than that before we can check whether this man is a serious possible for the series of killings we’re postulating. This is an unusual job for us profilers. Usually we’re making deductions from crime to offender. This time, we’re going from putative offender to hypothetical murders. I don’t feel entirely confident about it, if I’m honest. It’s fresh territory for me. So we need to be very careful before we put our heads anywhere near the parapet.’ More nods. Leon stood up and moved across to the doorway so he could smoke without polluting everyone else’s food.
‘We get the message,’ Leon drawled. ‘Our missions, should we choose to accept them, are…?’
‘We need to track down his fiancée, Jillie Woodrow. The person responsible for interviewing Jillie should also carry out a general investigation into his early life—family, neighbours, school friends, teachers, any local bobbies still on the payroll or recently retired. Simon, are you up for that?’
Simon looked apprehensive. ‘What exactly do I do?’
Tony signalled to Carol with his eyes. ‘Find out everything you possibly can about Jacko,’ she said. ‘Deep background. If you want a cover story for everyone except Jillie, say we’re investigating threats against him and we think the reason may lie deep in his past. People love a bit of melodrama. With Jillie, that won’t work. It might be worth hinting that you’re investigating allegations made against Jacko
by a prostitute, perhaps imply that you suspect they’re malicious lies?’
‘OK. Any ideas how I find her, given that I haven’t got access to the PNC?’
‘I’ll get to that in a minute,’ Tony said. ‘Leon, I want you to start digging into what was going on in his life around the time of the accident where he lost his arm. That and his early TV career. See if you can find his old trainer, the first people he worked with when he was starting out in sports’ broadcasting. Athletes on the British team with him, that sort of thing. OK?’
‘Just watch me,’ Leon said, cold and serious for once. ‘You won’t be sorry you asked me, man.’
‘Kay, your job is to go round the parents of the girls Shaz identified in her cluster and re-interview them. All the usual misper stuff, plus anything and everything you can pull out about Jacko Vance.’
‘The local lads should be more than happy to hand off their case files to you,’ Carol put in. ‘They’ll be so delighted that somebody else is prepared to take responsibility for such a no-hoper, they’ll probably give you the freedom of the nick.’
‘All of which DCI Jordan here will set up for you in advance,’ Tony continued. ‘She will be your facilitator, the one who speaks to ranking officers in other police stations around the country and gets you the information that will kick-start your inquiries. Stuff like where Jillie Woodrow is now, what happened to Vance’s coach, which victim’s parents have moved to Scunthorpe.’
Carol stared open-mouthed for a long moment. Leon, Simon and Kay looked on with the delight of adolescents watching grown-ups on the verge of behaving badly. ‘Fine,’ she eventually said, her voice loaded with sarcasm. ‘I have so little to do at work, it’ll be a pleasure fitting it in. So, Tony, what are you going to be up to while the rest of the squad are doing all the hard graft?’
